Faith in the 21st Century

UPDATE: It's not a "personnel issue."

2012-02-28T19:20:00.000-05:00

My friend Laura graciously provided a link to a letter-writing campaign aimed at this most recent denial of Communion, unilaterally, by a sorely-misguided priest.

Via New Ways Ministry:

An action like this from a priest should not be tolerated. What is still needed is a public apology from the priest and an offer of pastoral mediation between him, the woman, and her family. These remedies are possible if Catholics contact Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the head of the Archdiocese of Washington. His contact information:

Cardinal Donald Wuerl
Archdiocese of Washington
P.O. Box 29260
Washington, DC 20017-0260
chancery@adw.org

Tell Cardinal Wuerl that as a Catholic you oppose such blatant discrimination and pastoral incompetence. Let him know that you consider the action offensive and insensitive. Explain that you support free and equal access to communion of all Catholics, especially at such a pastorally critical moment as a funeral. Let him know of your love and support of LGBT people. Request that he instruct all his priests and pastoral ministers not to repeat such an action. Call on him to provide pastoral training on LGBT issues for his priests and pastoral ministers. Ask him to call for an apology from Fr. Guarnizo, and to offer pastoral mediation between this priest, Ms. Johnson, and her family. Speak from your heart and from your faith.

It’s important to keep in mind that Fr. Guarnizo’s action is not representative of the thousands of priests who minister daily to LGBT and heterosexual Catholics across the country. At the same time, one incident is one too many. As the blogosphere echoes with the reverberations of this story, this priest’s action is sending a loud negative message about the Catholic Church to LGBT people and their allies. While we try to correct this negativity by writing to the Cardinal, we must also counter it by reminding people of our own stories of positive and affirming Catholic parishes which welcome and celebrate LGBT people. Most importantly,we must speak out to Cardinal Wuerl to ensure that reconciliation occurs, and that an incident like this one never happens again.

Please write, either by postal mail or email. I will be emailing His Eminence tonight.

Pax et bonum.

It's not a "personnel issue."

2012-02-28T16:34:00.000-05:00

This story has been circulating for a few days:

[emphases mine]

GAITHERSBURG, Md. -- Just two days after Maryland's Legislature passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage, a Gaithersburg priest reportedly denied Communion to Barbara Johnson, a former Catholic school teacher, during her mother's funeral Mass because Johnson is a lesbian living in a same-sex relationship.

In response to the controversy that erupted over Saturday's incident, the Archdiocese of Washington, in which the Gaithersburg parish is located, said, "Any issues regarding the suitability of an individual to receive Communion should be addressed by the priest with that person in a private, pastoral setting."

The priest who reportedly refused Communion to Johnson was Fr. Marcel Guarnizo, a parochial vicar at St. John Neumann Church in Gaithersburg, a city in Montgomery County about 25 miles northwest of Washington, D.C.

In an interview Tuesday with WUSA-TV, the Washington-area NBC affiliate, Johnson said she was "shocked" by the priest's denial of Communion when she approached to receive the sacrament near the end of her mother's funeral Mass.

Shortly after that, she said, when she came up to give a closing eulogy, Guarnizo left the altar; afterward, he declined to accompany her mother's body to a cemetery a few miles away in Aspen Hill. Johnson said she was told he had become ill.

Johnson expressed appreciation for the archdiocesan statement criticizing Guarnizo's action but said at some critical life moments, "we don't get a do-over."

The archdiocese said it "will handle this as a personnel issue" with Guarnizo. Archdiocesan spokeswoman Chieko Noguchi declined to comment beyond the archdiocese's prepared statement.

Publicly denying Communion to a Catholic Christian is not a "personnel issue."

If anyone knows of an organized, local, lay-led response to this, please let me know.

It needs to stop now.

Pax et bonum.

Housekeeping

2012-02-28T14:10:00.001-05:00

New comments. No more pop-up window. That seems to have resolved the "subscribe to comments" issue.

Woo.

For a happy life, do this.

2012-02-27T16:16:00.000-05:00

Chief Tecumseh
So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion; respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people. Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide.

Always give a word or a sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, even a stranger, when in a lonely place. Show respect to all people and grovel to none.

When you arise in the morning give thanks for the food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself. Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools and robs the spirit of its vision.

When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home.

(Tecumseh)

There really is nothing to add.

Pax et bonum.

"Condition of life"

2012-02-24T18:21:00.000-05:00

A friend posted this status on Facebook earlier this week:

Interesting quote: "The Church reproves, as foreign to the mind of Christ, any discrimination against men [this would include women] or harassment of them because of their race, color, CONDITION OF LIFE, or religion." Nostra Aetate, section 5 (Document of Second Vatican Council). This needs to be re-read, re-proclaimed, meditated upon as we enter the penitential season of Lent. Word.

Condition of life. Condition of life. What could the Fathers have meant? They specifically addressed race, color, and religion. What may we infer about "condition of life?"

Besides religion, the other characteristics are immutable. Religion is perceived and treated as immutable because it is an integral part of who we are as individuals, and how we relate to and interact with the world in which we live. So the obvious inference is that the thinkers behind this document sought to highlight the importance of our immutable differences, and the necessity of respecting human dignity because of these immutable differences.

According to psychologists, psychiatrists, philosophers, sociologists, anthropologists, and medical doctors, sexual orientation is also an immutable characteristic. Dare we infer from this section of Nostra Aetate that the Council sought to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation as "foreign to the mind of Christ?"

I would say yes. Yes, sexual orientation may be considered, in this context, a "condition of life," and one that would necessarily fall under the purview of this document.

Applying this reading of the document would have profound implications across the strata of the Church: monies spent in political campaigns might be used to perform corporal works of mercy, our bishops would stop appearing like flat-earth conspirators in the face of science, and those of us on the margins of the Body of Christ might finally have the opportunity to embody our intrinsic dignity in the Church, for a change.

Pax et bonum.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM on capitalism and neo-conservative Catholic dishonesty

2012-02-23T19:44:00.001-05:00

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM on capitalism and neo-conservative Catholic dishonesty:

“The world of finance, while necessary, no longer represents an instrument that favours our well-being or the life of mankind, instead it has become an oppressive power, that almost demands our adoration, mammon, the false divinity that truly dominates the world.”

Who said that? A socialist? A number of the Occupy Movement? An economic advisor to President Obama?

None of the above.

The words are those of Pope Benedict XVI, in an address given to the seminarians at Rome’s major seminary on February 15. And those words do not stand alone but are rather the latest in a series of strong statements over the last century by the Popes in support of social and economic justice, which is the right of every human being to lead a decent and humane life, and like Jesus to take the side of the poor instead of the powerful. This is unquestionable and obvious in the 4 Gospels.

It approaches dishonesty when Catholic Bishops, neo-conservative Catholics, and the ordinary press almost never quote the Popes when they say anything critical of capitalism or the Western economic system. Jesus said, “You cannot serve both God and Mammon.” (Matthew 6:24). This is one of the few and the clearest dualistic statements that Jesus ever makes, yet many Christians today seem to have trodden the Gospel beneath the unquestionable god of “the market economy”, which seems to have rights and an absolute truth of its own. Corporations are now equivalent to persons in the USA, and the bishops have nothing to say about this, while creating pseudo problems over the issue of contraception. It defies honest analysis if you have been trained in Catholic systematic theology.

Pax et bonum.

Santorum: wannabe theologian, successful liar

2012-02-23T00:29:00.000-05:00

Rick Santorum, a Roman Catholic (and darling of far-right-wingers and theocrats), was called to task this week for implying that President Obama is not a "real" Christian. He attempted to clarify his remarks by saying that by "theology" he didn't mean anything about "God."

cough.

Anyway, apparently this isn't his first foray into dissecting the faith of others, particularly our current President.

Rewind to 2008:

When asked if he believed Obama is a "sincere liberal Christian," the former Pennsylvania senator said he didn't believe that sort of ideology exists, and that Obama's church, United Church of Christ in Chicago, had "abandoned Christendom" and used a non-literal interpretation of the Bible.

"I don't think there is such a thing," he said of Obama as a liberal Christian. "To take what is plainly written and say that 'I don't agree with that, therefore I don't have to pay attention to it,' means you're not what you say you are. You're a liberal something, but you're not a Christian."

I don't even know where to begin. But Mr. Santorum, you might want to review your own Church's social teaching regarding immigration, capital punishment, poverty, just war, and ecology, just to name a few.

Pax et bonum.

Fasting

2012-02-21T23:55:00.001-05:00

Muslims fast each day during the month of Ramadan. From sunrise to sunset for what is nearly equivalent to a solar month, no food is eaten. At sundown, the fast is broken. In addition to eating no food, Muslims may also not drink anything from sunrise to sunset- not even water.

Their observance makes our Lenten observance seem like a trifle. Just remember that tomorrow when one of your two snacks or your meal doesn't quite fill you up, or you hanker for a cheeseburger.

Pax et bonum.

Prayer of St. Ephrem the Syrian

2012-02-20T22:25:00.000-05:00

Late last week I realized, to my surprise, that this Sunday past was the last Sunday before Lent. Ash Wednesday is in two days. Where has the year gone already?

Anyway, now I have Lent on my mind: specifically, what practices I will add to observe the season. (I rarely "give up" anything for Lent besides the prescribed fasts. I find that adding practices enriches the season for me and provides a means for an expression of greater penance.)

A few months ago I added a new prayer to my Office routine. I typically pray Morning, Evening, and Night Prayer, and after the Intercessions, before the Our Father, I added the Prayer of St. Ephrem of Syria. I heard it recited in From the Little Mountain, and I have been in love with it ever since. This prayer is usually recited during Lent by Orthodox monastics, but I decided to add it year-round because it is such a powerful prayer.

O Lord and Master of my life,
take from me the spirit of sloth,
despondency, lust for power, and idle talk.
But grant unto me, Thy servant, a spirit of
chastity, humility, patience, and love.

Yea, o Lord and King,
grant me to see mine own faults
and not to judge my brothers and sisters.
For blessed art Thou unto ages of ages. Amen.

It is a powerful prayer.

When it is recited during the liturgy in Eastern monasteries it is typically accompanied by a series of prostrations. Lonnie Ellis describes the prostrations this way:

A prostration involves kneeling down, bringing the head down to touch or nearly touch the ground, then standing back up. As the bow to the ground is begun, the Sign of the Cross is made. Some people touch their knees to the ground first and then bend their upper body down, and more athletic people basically "fall" toward the ground with their knees and hands touching at essentially the same time.

Prostrations occur in the Hebrew Bible including before civil authorities and in worship. Many believe that Muslims acquired the tradition of prostrations from the Christian culture of the Middle East at the time. It is a very regular practice in Byzantine Rite Catholic and Orthodox churches, especially in Lent Monday through Friday. It is a workout in repentance, and is not practiced in the celebratory time from Easter to Pentecost.

I might take up prostrations this Lent.

Happy Mardi Gras tomorrow!

Pax et bonum.

Religion / Spirituality 2

2012-02-18T00:59:00.000-05:00

Religion is about ritual, about morals, about systems of thought, all of them good but all of them incomplete. Spirituality is about coming to consciousness of the sacred. It is in that consciousness that perspective comes, that peace comes. It is in that consciousness that a person comes to wholeness.

Sr. Joan Chittister, O.S.B.
Illuminated Life, p. 16

Pax et bonum

Peace

2012-02-16T23:36:00.000-05:00

Peace
I cannot persuade myself that without love to others, and without, as far as rests with me, peaceableness toward all, I can be called a worthy servant of Jesus Christ.

St. Basil

This little quote inspired me today. Perhaps it might inspire you, too.

Relating it to current circumstances is a neat exercise.

Pax et bonum.

The Church in Syria

2012-02-15T19:01:00.000-05:00

Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim

The Archbishop of the Syrian Orthodox Church in Aleppo, Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim, is continuing to support Bashar al-Assad's presidency and campaign of violence and terror against his own people.

Mar Gregorios:

After Bashar, we don’t know who’s coming. Therefore we support the president.

You have the whole world against Bashar al-Assad as a president. And you have some people inside also against him. So how he can move?

So because he is scared of future political leadership, the Church is supporting al-Assad? Of course "the whole world is against" al-Assad. He's a monster!

I swear that there must be some kind of global conspiracy to make Christian leaders look as ridiculous, cruel, and indifferent as possible. At first I only thought it was a U.S. phenomenon.

For the curious, this is what al-Assad is doing to the Syrian people. Innocent civilians, I should add.

Pray for the people of Syria.

Pax et bonum.

Cyril and Methodius

2012-02-14T17:46:00.000-05:00

Today is the Feast Ss. Cyril and Methodius. They were declared co-patrons of Europe with St. Benedict by Pope John Paul II.

I think they're pretty awesome because when they evangelized they insisted that the liturgy be prayed in the language of the people.

That's all.

Pax et bonum.

Religion / Spirituality

2012-02-13T23:39:00.000-05:00

I "shared" a graphic meme on Facebook last week. I have seen this phrase on a bumper sticker or something before, but it seems especially poignant this week.

I've not been feeling "churchy" lately. It's been downhill since Christmas. I don't feel like going to Mass or praying. I know that it's because I've let the Church at the macro level bother me, instead of rocking gently with the motions of the local Body.

This sentiment, though, is absolutely true. I didn't become a Catholic so I could gain membership in a religion. Hell? It might be a cliche, but I've already been there. (Some theologians think that Hell is a state in life, not a place in death. Hmm.) I became a Catholic because it was the only way that I could be a Christian. I craved the liturgy and the spirituality. I craved the "cloud of witnesses" when the saints became my inheritance.

I've been to Hell and back. That's why I'm a Catholic.

Pax et bonum.

Thoughts for the weekend

2012-02-10T13:52:00.000-05:00

If you need news updates about condoms, pills, dental dams, or health insurance, you're barking up the wrong blog.

I hope everyone has a safe, happy, and healthy weekend. As for me, I need a break.

Pax et bonum.

Catholic Fundamentalism

2012-02-08T22:21:00.001-05:00

...is an emerging and rapidly-accelerating phenomenon.

This is a pretty accurate snapshot of the state of the Catholic Church in the United States today:

Because Catholics are not eschatologically minded, it is not surprising that millenialism is not a major aspect of Catholic Fundamentalism as opposed to its Protestant cousin. At the same time, the fears of the sample groups mentioned here have some resonance in the apocalyptic plot as outlined in the Bible. There is a sense that the church is at war with the powers of darkness, that the faithful are being tested by way of terrible suffering, and that Catholicism, real Catholicism, demands conscious resistance and heroic action. The anticipated reward changes somewhat from group to group, but takes the general form of a return to the past where transcendence, mystery, supernaturalism, and moral absolutes characterize a society with real power to persuade and to unify religious people. The mythic picture of a church constituted by a grateful and obedient people under the direction of a wise and benevolent pope, sometimes presented to Catholics as the reality of medieval Catholicism, is a hope for the future for many Catholic Fundamentalists.

[Catholic Fundamentalism. Encyclopedia of Fundamentalism. 2001. p. 90.]

I'd like to break this up a little bit into 3 component parts.

There is a sense that:

The church is at war with the powers of darkness. How many times have you heard a renewed call for the Leonine prayers at Mass or frequent recitation of the St. Michael the Archangel prayer? Yeah. Me too. Pray for faithful priests and bishops because Satan hates them? Ditto.
The faithful are being tested by way of terrible suffering. There is a strong sense of persecution and martyrdom among many outspoken conservative Catholics. They suffer because of bad liturgy, gay marriage, bishops who won't excommunicate Catholic Democratic politicians, bad liturgical music, priests who preach social justice, feminist nuns, the gay agenda in the priesthood, dissident Catholic university professors- did I forget anything? Oh yeah: the HHS mandate. (Nevermind that birth control pills are not necessarily used by many women for contraception, but as a way to regulate and ease menstrual cycles and accompanying, often painful and debilitating, side effects. Therapeutic use of birth control pills is not condemned by Humane Vitae- only the use of birth control pills to prevent conception. Moral theology is nuanced, after all.)
Real Catholicism demands conscious resistance and heroic action. Michael Voris is a good example of this ethos. (If you don't know who he is, move along. I won't link to him.) Letter-writing campaigns to bishops urging them to do some stated action are becoming more common. Protests are being staged outside of churches and universities. (Remember when President Obama spoke at the University of Notre Dame and received an honorary degree?) A small foray into the Catholic editorial and blogging world will easily bring this to bear. Real Catholics must act!

Where does this leave the rest of us? I'm not really sure. As I have said here before, I think it's enough to pray and to tend to our own houses and let what will be, be. That is, until one of them comes knocking on my front door.

Pax et bonum.

Bigotry

2012-02-07T23:37:00.000-05:00

A young bigot with a sign.
big-ot (noun)

: a person who is obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices; especially : one who regards or treats the members of a group (as a racial or ethnic group) with hatred and intolerance

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled today that Proposition 8, a ballot initiative in California that banned marriage for gay people, was unlawful and unconstitutional.

The court said:

Proposition 8 serves no purpose, and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gay men and lesbians in California.

Supporters of marriage equality are, of course, jubilant. Those who do not support marriage equality are not happy, and will probably take the case to the Supreme Court of the United States.

It has been popular lately for people who don't support rights for gay people to bristle at being called "bigots" or alluded to as such. They say such things as, "Hate the sin, love the sinner," and "We're only protecting marriage, not persecuting gay people." If we take a moment to look at the actual definition of "bigot," though, we can see that very often the label applies.

A person who is obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices: Anti-gay people are obstinate that what they believe about gay people, marriage, and society is true, and there can be no compromise.
One who regards or treats the members of a group (as a racial or ethnic group) with hatred and intolerance: "Hatred" does not apply across the board, however "intolerance" absolutely does. They cannot tolerate people who they see as sexual deviants and perverts having the same legal rights as they have. They cannot see gay people as anything but sexual objects, always referring to sexual acts and never love.

So it's pretty easy to see how the word "bigot" crept into our conversation about gay rights. 9 out of 10 times, it's an apt, accurate label. I'm sorry that that makes some people uncomfortable. If you don't want to fit the definition of "bigot," you have to change- the word won't change for you.

Pax et bonum.

A song for the weekend

2012-02-04T01:05:00.000-05:00

Pax et bonum.

Fire

2012-02-02T19:36:00.000-05:00

Bad Vestments posted a photo of an altar frontal today that I really, really like:

(Click to enlarge)

In spite of its intensity of design and color, it is actually a very simple parament. It conveys, simply, "fire," the same fire that we recall with liturgical red on Pentecost, at Confirmations, and at Votive Masses of the Holy Spirit.

While not technically permissible (even though, for this, I would make an exception), I don't see this as a bad vestment. Then again, red is a prominently featured color, so I think that an argument could be made for its licitness.

I wish that the creator/seller/church had been credited for this photo, but as usual it was not. I would like to see more of this.

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

Pax et bonum.

Briefly noted

2012-02-01T18:38:00.000-05:00

Amazon has announced its support for marriage equality in Washington state.

I wonder if this will hamper celebrity priest gift mongering?

Food for thought. No photos of it, however.

"Christ wears two shoes"

2012-02-01T18:12:00.000-05:00

Christ wears ‘two shoes’ in the world: Scripture and nature. Both are necessary to understand the Lord, and at no stage can creation be seen as a separation of things from God.

John Scotus Eriugena

If you think about when this was written- Eriugena lived from c. 815 to c. 877 CE- this is astounding. It is further evidence that there are many ways to experience and know God beyond the dominant fundamentalist way that currently prevails.

From this brief excerpt, we find a foundation for the idea that all of life is sacred, and therefore deserves our protection and our respect. It is from this paradigm that we may view all of creation- all of nature- as the dwelling-place of God. It is from these ideas that we dare to say that life is not sacred because it is innocent: it is sacred because it is of God. We may not pick and choose what life to preserve and what life to neglect. We may not rape our world for its monetary potential; this is sacrilege.

Franciscan theology teaches a concept known as universal kinship. God inspired all things. - God may be found in all things. - All of creation is united as "kin" because of the imprint of God that is universally present.

When we say that we are "pro-life," we ought to think about the implications of what that actually means, or forgo using it for another more apt term.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude

2012-01-30T23:25:00.000-05:00

People who know me personally know- or at least I hope they do- that I try, try, to live my life with not only integrity, but also with gratitude. I know that I say "thank you" to a fault, and that is but one external sign of what I hope is a healthy sense of sincere gratitude.

This online part of my life doesn't see that as often. So I would like to remedy that.

I sometimes spend a lot of time feeling hurt, angry, confused, bewildered, and hopeless about the state of the Church today. I sometimes post some of those thoughts here. I don't often enough post how grateful I am for the people in my life who encourage me in my life of faith. Friends in my Order, online acquaintances, writers, theologians, scholars, and even my non-religious friends all help me to know that where I am is where I am meant to be. Those people make it possible for me to stay and survive. And not only survive, but on good days even thrive.

I am grateful for the social justice doctrines of the Church. I am grateful for the sacraments. I am grateful for the beauty of the Church's liturgy, and the gentle cycle of liturgical prayer that helps to form days, weeks, months, seasons, and years. I am grateful for martyrs: recognized and unrecognized.

I am grateful for a God that is not shaped by popular opinion or experienced by following a recipe.

Pax et bonum.

Contentious debate

2012-01-28T10:27:00.000-05:00

2011 was- and 2012 will be- a year of great changes and upheaval in the Church, especially in the United States. The new English translation of the Mass was introduced. Bishops and priests in some places have taken it upon themselves to ban women and girls from serving at the altar. Our Catholic conversation, especially on the topics of social justice, grows more and more polarized. Bishops are climbing aboard political soap boxes on some issues while entirely neglecting others. Social conservatives are becoming Roman Catholics, while freethinkers and people with more progressive worldviews are being driven out of Roman pews.

I don't see a solution, though I wish that I could.

I read the following a few days ago in a past issue of Christian Century.

A young rabbi was stunned by a heated debate that erupted at his new synagogue on his first Shabbat about whether one should stand or sit during the reading of the Ten Commandments. The rabbi went to visit the oldest member of the synagogue- who was in a nursing home- to find out what the synagogue's custom had been. After hearing about the contentious debate, the old man replied, "That is our custom."

Beliefnet.com, January 6, 2011

Pax et bonum.

Simplify

2012-01-26T22:20:00.000-05:00

The maxim on my Don't Sweat the Small Stuff day calendar on my desk at work today reads:

Once you recognize that you are operating at full capacity, what you need to do is make a vow that as one new item is brought into the home, something else must go.

As someone who is striving to adopt a minimalist philosophy in both the design of my surroundings and my actual belongings, this advice is a must-do. However, I think it applies beyond one's home, as well. How often do we find ourselves overwhelmed by our lives? It is sometimes easy to introduce a new practice into our lives, but unless we eliminate a extant practice, we can easily become overwhelmed. Likewise with relationships, if we make room in our lives for someone who reciprocates our love and mutual respect, we can poison that healthy relationship with toxic former relationships.

I think that this idea works especially well in the realm of spirituality. If we make room for God in our lives as good and loving, and indeed the Source of Love, then there is hardly room left for a God who is not good and loving, but vengeful and distant. Too often we carry our baggage into a new relationship with God. This is a sure way to kill new growth before it even begins.

Pax et bonum.

"And I'm the Devil. Now kindly undo these straps."

2012-01-25T17:42:00.000-05:00

Br. Dan Horan, OFM has been posting on Facebook periodically the last couple of the days some of the nastier comments he is receiving on his "March for Life" blog post on Monday. (Which I wholeheartedly recommend. His assessment is precise and true.) I commented, after reading a particularly hateful one, that if I had been familiar with the Catholic interwebz before I converted, I probably wouldn't have. It was a close call anyway- and that was with a fantastic RCIA team and two wonderful priests.

I'm not sure what it is about the internet, or religion, or perhaps both, that can turn so-called Christians into vile, hateful demons.

I have experienced some of that myself- on a much smaller scale- particularly after I "came out" on my blog a few years ago, and more recently, too.

What am I saying? I have no idea. I'm simply pointing out the problem. I wish that I had a solution for it. One possible remedy might be for people like me, and Br. Dan, and many of my friends who write to just pack it up and quit. It would eliminate the bile, after all, and probably inspire far fewer headaches. I'm not ready to do that. I think I have something to say- we all do. And if the conversation loses our voices, the conversation becomes a monologue. That would be a sad day.

So while some are busy "Defending the Faith" on the internet, I think I will just go about my life. I'll go to work, pray the Office, try to keep my house in order, and occasionally, if I think I ought, I might throw out something on this weblog. In other words, business as usual.

[Image source]

Pax et bonum.

Maturity?

2012-01-24T17:57:00.000-05:00

One ~~sure~~ probable sign of maturity is not claiming to know all of the answers, but rather knowing just enough to admit that you don't.

What is justice? This concept morphs subjectively because of experience and time.

Which battles are worth fighting? Which are not?

What is God? Or, who is God? Is God transcendent, or is God immanent? Is God both transcendent and immanent?

What if someone disagrees with your answer to the last question? What if you change your mind?

What are the consequences of that?

I don't know. I bet you don't, either.

Pax et bonum.

Gosh, He's Back. Hide.

2012-01-23T10:04:00.007-05:00

First of all, my apologies for having been away for so long. I expected that Advent and Christmas would be busy as usual, but in fact they were much busier than I expected and such was the stress of finishing one or two rather high-octane jobs for the Diocese that I needed a holiday after Christmas for a week. Here is a picture of your scribe on an unrelated holiday, to get you in the mood.

Anyway, we have to wonder what the point of all this blogging is from time to time, I used to have a small blog of my own and it became such an emotive thing that in the end it was best to stop. But I resume here, now, for better or for worse. I am making no attempt to please you or to be definitive, indeed if you look up in the blog index 'Life, the meaning of' you will find little content, however if you look up 'Grouse, how to cook in the accepted manner' you will also find little, so there is parity in hopelessness.

From time to time, I find myself in interesting places. Regularly, in fact, I sit back or take a second or two out and think 'what am I doing here' or 'why have they invited me, surely there is another person with the same name and any moment now I will be found out when they expect me to dance or sing or tell amusing stories' but no, people really do seem to have little imagination and insist on bringing me to places to tell people - what - tell them what? Good news, I suppose, to reassure people that they are doing the right thing, to underline their commitment to Christ as though i am some sort of franking machine, stamping their postage to heaven. Usually, they leave with a different impression for I am not fit to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, so i can tell little of the entrance requirements.

This may sound negative, but I suggest to you today that we define ourselves by who we are not, rather than who we are. John the Baptist defined Himself by saying 'I am not the Christ', 'no, no', we imagine him saying, 'not me, but Him! Look, there He is, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world' In the same way at the moment when I face the congregation of Christmas Day toward the end of Midnight Mass, breaking the collegiality of us all facing the same way, I turn to gaze upon Christ with people, saying 'behold the Lamb of God, behold the Incarnate Word that taketh away the sin of the world, happy are ye who are called to this His supper'. Don't look at me, look at Him. Behold Him among us, behold for that few minutes when the courts of Heaven are built on earth. Behold that moment when we have built the Kingdom of God and look - we have done nothing and earned nothing - it has been done for us through Christ's death on the cross. All we need to do is to tell people of that saving death, in humility and in love, remembering that everyone is capable of redemption, no one is to be judged by us.

Why? The answer comes, like buses, in threes.

Samuel!
What do you want, you irritating old man?

Samuel!
What?

Samuel!
Speak LORD, your servant is listening!

In the end, Samuel recognises God, but only through the help of Eli. In the same way, Christ comes into the temple- yes, He comes into His own house and nobody recognises Him except two old people. Only Simeon and Anna saw the child and realised that He had, at last, arrived. It is interesting to take a close look at this entrance of the Child Jesus into the solemnity of the temple, in the great comings and goings of many people, busy with their work: priests and Levites taking turns to be on duty, the numerous devout people and pilgrims anxious to encounter the Holy God of Israel in their temple. Yet none of them noticed anything. Jesus was a child like the others, a first-born son of very simple parents. Christ Himself was overlooked in His own house, because He did not meet the expectations of His own people, whom He had come to save.

Even the priests proved incapable of recognizing the signs of the new and special presence of the Messiah and Saviour. Alone two elderly people, Simeon and Anna, discover this great newness. Led by the Holy Spirit, in this Child they find the fulfillment of their long waiting and watchfulness. They both contemplate the light of God that comes to illuminate the world and their prophetic gaze is opened to the future in the proclamation of the Messiah: “Lumen ad revelationem gentium!” – a light to enlighten the gentiles! (Lk 2:32). The prophetic attitude of the two elderly people contains the entire Old Covenant which expresses the joy of the encounter with the Redeemer. Upon seeing the Child, Simeon and Anna understood that he was the Awaited One. In the same way, Elizabeth stands alone with Mary at the gate of dawn, as the new Covenant is made in Mary’s womb, two women, alone, at the dawn of salvation- how different this is from the fall with Adam and Eve!

Again, in threes.

Simon Peter, son of John, do you love me? Yes.

Simon Peter, son of John, do you love me? You know everything, you know I love you.

Only the third time does he say the truth - you know everything, you know that I love you - through the denial of Christ, through the desertion on Calvary, through the mud and the blood and the trials of following Christ, he says 'you know everything'. Can I suggest that herein lies the key to life? This complete surrender that the Baptist knew so long before, which kept him active and working for the coming of Christ. Can we say to God that He knows everything? Everything about us - and still say that 'you know everything, so you know that I love you? You see into my inmost being, you see the pride, the lust, the times I have walked away from you, you see into my inmost soul and you therefore see that I still love you, even though sometimes I do not know how to love you. There, in that relationship, is a peace which transcends earthly structures and flies to the altar of God. There, in that understanding, is also a relationship which brings us back to Church, back to the structure which He founded on confused, but ultimately brave men.

Who are we? We can be people who define ourselves by who we are not. I am not Andrew, you are not Mr X, we are people who look for Christs presence in His world and point to Him. 'There he is, there is the Lamb of God', among you, dwelling within you, only He can make you whole. There is the way to the Father and there is no other way, or all he has said is a lie and we are ultimately without hope, for that relationship is founded on mutual love, if we know that He loves us and we love Him, then we will keep His commandments. 'If ye love me, ye shall keep my word and my Father will love thee and we shall come to ye'. This language means nothing but 'if you wish to build me Kingdom, if you would make me a home among you, you must follow my commandments, like Moses, like Aaron, like David, like Peter, like everybody else.

Christ was not noticed in the temple, people were too busy doing other things to remember ancient promises, to remember, indeed, why they were there in the first place and what the temple stood for. However, it was to them that Christ came and it is to an equally broken world that he will come again. Let us do all we can to look for Him and to welcome all of His people into our Church, otherwise, like the priests and levites and Temple visitors of old, we will all be shamed by the prayerfulness and watchfulness of two elderly people, hanging around the edges of the Temple, waiting because they believe in the light, that same light which came to them.

May your actions, dear friends, become a commitment of life that with persevering enthusiasm attains to Wisdom as truth and as beauty. May you guide the minds and hearts of the men and women of your context towards a good life according to the good news and above all that, to the light and to the truth. Anything else that our actions proclaim is explained by the Preacher, 'Vanity of vanities, all is vanity'. Peter denied Him in threes as well.

How nice to be back, how good to be able to share my thought with you again. God bless you in all that you do, to the honour and glory of His Holy Name.

Secrets

2012-01-22T01:57:00.000-05:00

Don't keep your painful secrets in your head and in your heart.

Write them down. Even if no one else ever sees them.

Pax et bonum.

"Unconscionable"

2012-01-20T21:29:00.000-05:00

Today President Obama announced that the Department of Health and Human Services would not broaden the religious exemption to a measure enacted last August that will require all employers to cover contraception with their insurance plans for their employees. The narrow religious clause exempts only churches: it does not include universities, hospitals, schools, and other religious organizations.

This decision is, in the words of the USCCB response, "unconscionable."

I'm not going to go as far out as other "Catholic commentators" have thus far gone in their treatment of this news in saying that the President is "attacking religious liberty" and "waging a war on the Catholic Church." I will say, however, that this requirement shows a total disregard for religious liberty.

In the grand scheme of things- Church teaching aside- contraception is morally neutral, in that it doesn't take life like abortion does. However, it is a deeply held, much cherished teaching that should not be trampled.

This situation is, in my eyes, no more just than France banning niqabs. The government simply has no right. It is completely out of line.

Do I still believe that Obama is better than the alternative? Absolutely, positively yes I do. But between this, the Defense Authorization legislation, Guantanamo, and other failures, President Obama continues to disappoint me.

I won't be voting Republican, but I might have to hold my nose when voting for the alternative.

Pax et bonum.

SFO to OFS

2012-01-19T14:34:00.000-05:00

I recently wrote about a change coming to the Secular Franciscan Order in the United States (and other countries where English is the first language). NAFRA has this week announced what was passed at the International Chapter in Brazil in October.

Beginning immediately, Secular Franciscans in the United States should transition from using the acronym "SFO" to "OFS". E.g., John Dale Doe, SFO becomes John Dale Doe, OFS.

The change was adopted in order to provide world-wide uniformity, as we are an international order.

See the following from our Minister General (click to enlarge):

I'm pretty happy about the change, personally.

Pax et bonum,

Thom, OFS

Stop lying

2012-01-18T13:25:00.001-05:00

Catholics who campaign against marriage equality for gay and lesbian people like to say that they do not oppose rights for same sex couples. (When pressed on the matter, they sometimes waffle, but this is individual prejudice usually and not the official position of the Roman Catholic Church.)

What doesn't add up, then, if Catholics who actively work against marriage equality say that they are not against rights for same sex couples, but rather just "re-defining" marriage as an institution, why do they then oppose civil unions legislation? After all, civil unions are not marriages, and they only afford civil rights to couples.

This from Colorado:

The Colorado Catholic Conference is urging parishioners to oppose the state’s pending civil unions bill, the Denver Post reports, and is distributing flyers during mass asking church goers to pressure lawmakers into defeating the measure. “The key flaw with civil unions legislation is that it creates an alternative parallel structure to marriage,” the Conference says. “[M]arriage is the cornerstone of our society that exists for the benefit of children and the protection of women." [Source]

I'm calling bullshit.

If you don't want gay people to have any legal protections because you think they're nasty and sinful, then just say so. That's the honest, more virtuous option. Don't try to spread the lie that you don't hate gay people and just want to "protect marriage," because you contradict yourself when you also oppose civil union legislation.

Honesty is refreshing. Try it.

Pax et bonum.

Don't shoot the messenger.

2012-01-18T00:29:00.001-05:00

I have had this gospel passage on my mind for a while.

I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. [John 13:34-35]

We religious folk often like to have lots of discussions about what Christians should do, or how we should act. Some maintain that slavish rule-following is key. Others say that pious actions make the believer. Still others think that our voices must carry over all others, proclaiming our truth. Jesus taught us otherwise.

How will people know you are Christians? If you love each other.

Jesus' way is simple. Why do we complicate it?

Pax et bonum.

"I'm on the right track, baby / I was born this way"

2012-01-12T21:44:00.000-05:00

Only recently have I became a fan of Lady Gaga. I have never been one to follow pop music very closely, and for the last few years I was less than enthused about her. I don't resonate with glam, and I, very honestly, thought she was simply pandering to gay people with her tweets, statements, and special performances.

I've decided that I was wrong.

A few of you (hehehehe) might have heard of one of her latest hits, "Born This Way." Some of the lyrics strike me as particularly theological.

My mama told me when I was young
We are all born superstars
She rolled my hair and put my lipstick on
In the glass of her boudoir

There's nothin' wrong with lovin' who you are
She said, 'cause He made you perfect, babe
So hold your head up, girl and you you'll go far
Listen to me when I say

I'm beautiful in my way
'Cause God makes no mistakes
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born this way

Don't hide yourself in regret
Just love yourself and you're set
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born this way, born this way

Powerful words, aren't they?

Love who you are.

God made you perfect; God made you in God's own image.

God makes no mistakes.

Almost reminiscent of some scripture passages, no?

Your eyes beheld my unformed substance. In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed. [Psalm 139:16]

God doesn't make mistakes. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

You're on the right track, baby.

Pax et bonum.

Winter: a survivor's guide for writers and readers

2012-01-10T15:26:00.001-05:00

People who have published their thoughts online in a blog format for several years - like I have- inevitably pick up on a few trends. Fewer people will read your blog during peak summer vacation times, and around July 4th. Fewer people will read from about the week before Christmas until about a week after the new year begins. And that's the way it goes. We know not to post anything that we really want to be noticed during these times because we know that a lot of people simply don't have time to read. And that's ok. That's when silly things get posted, or nothing at all, as the case may be.

After about the second week in January, though, people get cabin fever: readers and writers alike. Some of the most batshit crazy things you will ever read are posted between January 8 and March 15. This predictable pattern has not failed us this year, especially in the world of Catholic opinion. I have seen some outrageous stuff, and it's only the tenth of January!

I am offering a few suggestions for both readers and writers to try to keep a measure of dignity during these long winter months. In other words, I'd like to help people avoid writing posts and comments that they might regret once the sun sits a little higher in the sky.

Keep your home warm. You might be less likely to remove yourself from in front of your computer screen when you're cold, so warm up your home. Make sure your furnace is functioning properly, and insulate your windows if you live in a really drafty house or apartment. Not only will you save money on utility bills, but you will make your living environment more comfortable. And if you're comfortable, you're much more likely to stay busy.
Keep yourself warm. Insulating yourself is another way to stay toasty warm this winter and save some cash on utility bills. Don't be afraid to dress in layers- even at home. (I have an awesome pair of hand-knitted socks that I adore.) When heading out, be sure to dress for the weather. Layers are important outside of the home, too. Make sure that when the thermometer drops you keep your head warm, and try to cover as much exposed skin as possible.
Stay healthy. Keep your immune system in tip-top shape by eating healthy foods, immunizing yourself against influenza (your local health department probably offers the flu shot at little or no cost), exercising, maintaining nutrients with a daily multivitamin, and drinking plenty of water. Frequent handwashing is another excellent way to avoid easily-spread germs.
Stay productive. Don't let winter keep you from doing the things that you want and need to do. Brace yourself for the cold and push through it! Dressing appropriately, staying healthy, and getting enough sleep will help keep your productivity high this winter.
Fight off winter depression. Maintaining your health goes a long way in keeping your emotions on a better footing. Some people, like me, suffer from seasonal depression (diagnosed, it is Seasonal Affective Disorder). Your doctor may prescribe medication if your experience is particularly debilitating. Sometimes a few visits to a tanning bed can fight off the blues, too. No matter what, be sure to maintain social connections during the dark months. Go out with friends, and invite them to your home for dinners and movie nights. Be creative.

Most importantly, be nice to each other.

Pax et bonum.

"We all become part of the divine family."

2012-01-09T15:08:00.000-05:00

I love this Quaker quote:

Upon this basic truth all the principles and actions of the Society of Friends are founded. Each [person] is seen as having intrinsic value, and Christ is equally concerned for the other as for me. We all become part of the divine family, and as such we are all responsible for one another, carrying our share of the shame when wrong is done and of the burden of suffering.

Margaret Backhouse

As I reflect on it, I cannot help but apply it to current situations in the Church.

Cardinal George compared gay rights advocates to KKK members. (Thank God he apologized.)

I still go back to the fact that these are people we know and love and are part of our families. That’s the most important point right now. (Cardinal George, in his apology)

Cardinal George, in this case, made things right. He acknowledged that what he said was not only incorrect, but hurtful, and he continued with a call to continue the conversation, remembering that we are talking about real human beings.

Pax et bonum.

Seminary system

2012-01-09T14:53:00.000-05:00

Imagine an institution that requires its leaders to attend not only college, but graduate school. Imagine that the graduate school in question is constitutionally forbidden from receiving any form of government aid, that it typically requires three years of full-time schooling for the diploma, that the nature of the schooling bears almost no resemblance to the job in question, and that the pay for graduates is far lower than other professionals. You have just imagined the relationship between the Christian church and her seminaries.

Jerry Bowyer, Forbes.com blog, 04/20/2011

New posts

2012-01-09T01:32:00.002-05:00

I think the most appropriate thing to do at this point is to begin peppering new posts with profanity. Damn, what a good idea.

Briefly noted

2012-01-02T15:57:00.001-05:00

When I became a Roman Catholic, I did it on the Church's terms, not mine. My desire was great, and so I took the necessary steps of attending RCIA classes weekly, and with due humility participated in the "Rite of Dismissal" at Sunday Masses.

In other news, there is a new ordinariate for people who want to become Roman Catholics.

It's snowing- finally

2012-01-02T14:10:00.000-05:00

Every shower and dew, bless the Lord.
All you winds, bless the Lord.
Fire and heat, bless the Lord.
Cold and chill, bless the Lord.
Dew and rain, bless the Lord.
Frost and chill, bless the Lord.
Ice and snow, bless the Lord.
Nights and days, bless the Lord.
Light and darkness, bless the Lord.
Lightnings and clouds, bless the Lord.

Pax et bonum.

2012

2011-12-30T16:00:00.000-05:00

See you guys next year!

Pax et bonum.

People, Look East

2011-12-29T00:29:00.000-05:00


Palestinian Catholics praying in Zababdeh

Pray for our sisters and brothers.

Image source

Pax et bonum.

Birthday parties, Incarnation, and one gratuitous photo of a dikirion

2011-12-26T17:45:00.000-05:00

"Happy birthday, Jesus," Birthday parties for Jesus. Birthday cakes. Have you seen these? It's a little weird, isn't it? I know that the notion has been around for a few years in evangelical circles, but it's on my mind this year as I saw several mentions to that effect on Facebook this past weekend.

We, of course, celebrate the birth of Jesus on Christmas, but we celebrate so much more. His birth was merely a vehicle. We truly celebrate- and solemnize- the Incarnation at Christmas. This was no mere birth, and our observance of it is no mere birthday party.

Indeed, it almost smacks of Arianism to have a "birthday party." Fr. Lawrence Farley wrote the following about the changes to the Church's creed at the Council of Nicea (CE 325) to combat Arianism:

They were brilliant additions. The creed described Jesus as "light from light, true God from true God." The Scriptures described God the Father as "light" and as "true God," and the council fathers described Jesus in exactly the same terms, proclaiming Jesus not as an inferior deity, but as equal to the Father in divinity. The creed described Jesus as "begotten, not created"- a stroke of genius, wisdom from God. The Greek word for "created" was genetos (with one "n"), while the word for "begotten" was "gennetos" (with two "n's"). Arius used the two words interchangeably, thus capitalizing on the similarity and confusion between the two words. The creed here differentiates between these words, admitting Christ was "begotten" by the Father eternally, but insisting that He was "not created"- gennetos, not genetos. With this phrase, the council fathers struck from Arius's hands one of his best weapons against the truth. The creed describes Jesus as "of one essence [Greek homoousio] with the Father," sharing the Father's essence as divine. It describes Him as the One "by whom all things were created," the CReator of all, since the Father created all things through His Word and Son.

[Let Us Attend: A Journey Through the Orthodox Divine Liturgy, p. 67]


The Dikirion- candlestick with two candles- represents the dual nature of Christ

Jesus was- is- fully God, and fully man. To emphasize one as more important than the other is to entirely mischaracterize the nature of Christ. To emphasize, then, only the birth of Jesus, and not the Incarnation of God, is to miss, very profoundly, the nature of this solemnity.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.

G_d came to us. Not so G_d could be a man so he could die, but because G_d's love is so vast it was impossible not to come to us.

Immanu'El- God is with us.

Pax et bonum.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T19:49:00.000-05:00

To everyone who reads what I write- even the not so nice ones- have a blessed, happy Christmas.

Pax et bonum.

Magnificat

2011-12-22T18:48:00.000-05:00

Today's Gospel:

Mary said:

"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.
for he has looked upon his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
and has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever."

Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months
and then returned to her home.

This Gospel passage is known as the Magnificat. It is recited daily during Evening Prayer (Vespers). Those of us who pray the Hours are very accustomed to it, and, for good or naught, can recite it straight through by rote.

This must be a significant moment in the Gospel narrative if it is used so often in the Church's liturgy- each day of the year. What makes it so important and so significant that the Church prays it daily?

It is a "hymn" that is most often attributed to Mary; however, some manuscripts point to Elizabeth. The custom is attribution to Mary.
Mary rejoices in this hymn, even though her circumstances might make other people despair. It is a powerful acclamation of Mary's assent to God.
It is a pastiche of OT allusions and phrases.

It seems to me that reciting Mary's assent to God's plan is a fantastic undertaking for us as the Church who are ourselves called to bear the Christ.

Pax et bonum.

Solstice and Incarnation

2011-12-21T19:45:00.000-05:00

It's the most wonderful time of the year, or so the song says. Why is it the most wonderful time of the year? Is it because of sparkly lights? Enough candy to shame a gallon of insulin? Gifts and cards and good wishes for people who don't exist January-November? An opportunity to share, and be uncharacteristically proud of, our religious traditions?

Is it the most wonderful time of the year because the shortest, darkest day of the year (which fell today, btw) is forced to be brighter with strands of lights and gaudy tinsel? Are we still just fulfilling our duty as human beings who, for as long as recorded time can relate, have begged the Earth to rise from its slumber with lights, bonfires, merriment, and closeness?

Does it really have anything to do with God-With-Us? Officially, yes of course it does. But in our individual realities, does it? It's easy to think of a cute, blond baby lying in some hay surrounded by peasants and barnyard animals. Is it easy to think that God- you know, G_D- came to us? Is it easy to think of the implications of that? Is it possible to conceive of a G_d who didn't come to die, like most of us like to believe, but because G_d had to? Because G_d's love was so great, so immense, so profound, so beyond, that it had to manifest Itself among us?

Oh well, back to wrapping presents and bitching at cashiers for wishing us "happy holidays."

Pax et bonum.

"Ready"

2011-12-20T19:08:00.000-05:00

I am not "ready" for Christmas, whatever that means. I never am. I dread civic holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, July 4, and others. I deeply appreciate the ideas behind them, however, and I often wish I could have them without other obligations. It would be awesome if I could observe Christmas by attending Midnight Mass. Not dinners, parties, family, and everything else that comes with it in our culture. C'est la vie.

The Church gives us the season of Advent to "prepare" ourselves to receive Jesus at Christmas. It is a penitential season, yes, but it is not a "little Lent." Its focus is not penance, but preparation. So much of the character of Advent is lost, even in the Church. Wars over "Merry Christmas" and nativities transform a season of introspection into a time when some of us present ourselves to the world at our very worst and most mean-spirited. The constant buzz of "buy" and "shop" and the expectation of perfection at dinners and parties drive many of us to the point of exhaustion and financial ruin. This is no way to prepare for the Advent of God.

I haven't been able to really live in Advent like I usually try to do. It's my favorite liturgical season, and its spirituality is rich for me. This year I have barely puttered through.

But.

That's OK. There is no requirement that we be ready for Christmas. There is no requirement that we put all of ourselves into observing Advent. In fact, it is presumptuous and quite wrong to think that there is anything that we can actually do to be ready for the Advent of our God. The world was not ready when Jesus was born, and the world, two thousand years later, still isn't. God comes to us in our darkness like He came in the man Jesus in Bethlehem. No one was ready, but here He came, anyway.

I guess I'm trying to reassure myself, and maybe you as well, that it's OK to not feel ready for Christmas. In fact, I doubt there is any way to really be ready, anyway.

Pax et bonum.

Compline

2011-12-19T22:19:00.000-05:00

Persecution

2011-12-16T16:47:00.000-05:00

In spite of the strong language ("sentence enhancer")- or perhaps because of it- this pretty much sums up my thoughts on the matter.

Reading some Catholic blogs

2011-12-15T15:17:00.000-05:00

Republican/capitalist first, Catholic second

2011-12-14T16:14:00.000-05:00

Republican Presidential hopeful Rick Santorum- a Catholic- stated this week that he opposes the position of U.S. bishops on immigration.

Here's a possible explanation for that position. Republican/capitalist first, Catholic Christian second?

To fix immigration and make it more just would mean that a few private companies will lose a great deal of money.

Contrary to popular belief, most of the detention facilities for the undocumented are contracted.

A 2009 report shows that 75 percent of the 17 most populous facilities are managed by private firms, and they house more than 50 percent of all detainees.

The two major corporations that have mostly benefited from this arrangement are Correction Corporation of America and the GEO Group – to the tune of $325 million in 2008 ICE contracts.

In 2009, they charged ICE $95 a day to house an undocumented inmate, while their actual cost was as low as $12 a day (not including medical attention and transportation costs).

If detention numbers were to decrease, their stock values would also drop.

The main concern for these private detention corporations is not to provide humanitarian living conditions but to increase their corporate profits. This can only occur when basic services are cut so as to reduce actual costs.

Substandard living conditions can be maintained with impunity because there are no substantive legislative or regulatory standards governing detention conditions. In other words, no oversight of these private detention facilities exists.

The Department of Homeland Security's internal standards, according to the UCLA Law Review, are poorly enforced and often not even binding.

And those more likely to complain, or even bring legal proceedings against these firms, are deported.

The most vulnerable are at the mercy of the corporations that profit by their detention.

Should we really be surprised that the undocumented face inhuman conditions during their U.S. incarceration?

Yes, let's talk about "pro-life issues."

Pax et bonum.

"Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you."

2011-12-13T14:51:00.000-05:00

I love today's Gospel reading. Especially this line, delivered by Jesus:

Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.

He was speaking to "the chief priests and the elders of the people." In other words, he was talking to the established religious leaders of his day, the same leaders whom he also accused of "hanging heavy weights around the necks of the people and not lifting a finger to relieve their burden" (cf Luke 11:46). I daresay there might be some chief priests and elders of the people today who might also do the very same.

Tax collectors and prostitutes were, based on what we can read in the Gospels, despised people among the occupied Jews. Tax collectors were most often Jews who "sold out" to the Romans to survive. They were outcasts, because they often betrayed their own people in order to collect funds to be given to the Roman occupiers. Prostitutes, even 2,000 years ago, carried the same stigma that they carry today, so this should be a familiar idea.

Who are the "tax collectors and prostitutes" of our day?

Drag queens are entering the kingdom of God before you.

People with HIV/AIDS are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Sex workers are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Married gay men with adopted children are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Homeless gay teenagers are entering the kingdom of God before you.

The working poor are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Undocumented immigrants are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Muslims are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Mentally unwell and depressed people are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Abused spouses and children are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Raped women are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Unwanted children are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Meth addicts and pill addicts are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Who is entering the kingdom of God before me?

Wake, awake, for night is flying;
The watchmen on the heights are crying:
Awake, Jerusalem, at last!
Midnight hears the welcome voices
And at the thrilling cry rejoices;
Come forth, ye virgins, night is past;
The Bridegroom comes, awake;
Your lamps with gladness take;
Alleluia! And for His marriage feast prepare
For ye must go and meet Him there.

Pax et bonum.

Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe

2011-12-12T19:01:00.000-05:00

O God, Father of mercies, who placed your people under the singular protection of your Son's most holy Mother, grant that all who invoke the Blessed Virgin of Guadalupe, may seek with ever more lively faith the progress of peoples in the ways of justice and of peace.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Choosing one's side

2011-12-12T18:29:00.001-05:00

I have always been a fan of Vox Nova, and a recent post has affirmed my admiration. Kelly Wilson, a seminarian, wrote a brief piece called, "Gay Rights Are Human Rights." He caught some heat for it in the comments, but he stood his ground.

It always surprised me, when I worked with students in my Practical training, to hear students say things like “that is so gay” when they wanted to express their disapproval of something (as if no stronger word existed in their vocabulary to convey something so negative). I don’t know why this surprised me. Gay students, in disproportionate numbers, are committing suicide, and many such acts result from the inability of gay students to deal with negative treatment being experienced from peers.

In the 2002 adaptation of Graham Greene’s The Quiet American, Mr. Heng attempts to draw the detached Mr. Fowler from his indifference: “Sooner or later, Mr. Fowler, one has to take sides if one is to remain human.”

I’ve chosen my side.

K.

Good for you, Kelly, and all of VN. Even on cloudy days there sometimes appear glimmers of sunlight.

Pax et bonum.

Immaculate Conception

2011-12-08T23:25:00.002-05:00

Another

2011-12-08T22:46:00.001-05:00

Today, another report of a teenager extinguishing his own life because of anti-gay bullying that he faced at school.

My friend Kevin said this on Facebook. It expresses my feelings, too.

Reading this story in the light of Christmas time and the recent hate speech spewed out by Bachman, Perry, and Gingrich leaves me in a cold anger. Do we have make a fucking quilt for all these dead kids and leave it in front of the White House to shut these idiots up? Do we have to occupy every high school and middle school in the country until administrators do their damn jobs and protect young people? The fact is this: HOMOPHOBIA KILLS. It killed in the 80's when AIDS was allowed to ravage my community while "mainsteam" America ignored it. Now we are seeing hatred that is destroying far too many children by stealing their hope and making them hate themselves. This kid was abandoned by his father, ignored by the schools, and harassed by his classmates. There is no reason in Heaven or Hell for this but hate. To paraphrase Dickens, one child such as this is worth a million Bachmans, Perrys, or Gingrinchs.

If this isn't a problem for some people, we need to make it so. It is immoral and entirely unjustifiable.

As the Father sees in every person the features of his Son, the firstborn of many brothers and sisters, so the Secular Franciscans with a gentle and courteous spirit accept all people as a gift of the Lord and an image of Christ.

A sense of community will make them joyful and ready to place themselves on an equal basis with all people, especially with the lowly for whom they shall strive to create conditions of life worthy of people redeemed by Christ.

Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order, XIII

Let them individually and collectively be in the forefront in promoting justice by the testimony of their human lives and their courageous initiatives. Especially in the field of public life, they should make definite choices in harmony with their faith.

Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order, XV

May he now rest in God's arms in the peace that he never had in this life.

Pax et bonum.

Easy and light

2011-12-07T23:58:00.000-05:00

Today's Mass Gospel reading:

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 11:28-30.

Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for your selves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.

This passage is one of my favorites (admittedly, I have a lot of favorites) in the Gospels. Jesus tells us- all of us- in no uncertain terms that he will give us rest. Rest. Not sleep. Not chillaxing. But rest. He further tells us that not only will he give us rest, but that coming to him for that rest is easy. His "yoke" is easy. (A "yoke," by the way, is a harness that is used on oxen to pull a plow.) Not only is our work easy, but his burden- what we carry... life's backpack, if you will- is light.

There are many who would complicate the narrative of the Christian life, adding many burdens and yokes that are far too heavy to shift. Jesus' way is easy and light. This is a good measuring rod by which to judge the advice and opinions of others.

Behold, the Advent of our God.

Pax et bonum.

Chrysostom on the common good

2011-12-06T18:50:00.000-05:00

This is the rule of most perfect Christianity, its most exact definition, its highest point, namely, the seeking of the common good. For nothing can so make a person an imitator of Christ as caring for their neighbors.

St. John Chrysostom

Sometimes I allow things to get me down. Hurtful things that other people say, attitudes that lack compassion entirely, bullheaded obstinacy to reason, scientific thought, and progressive theology, and blind ignorance can all contribute to a feeling of hopelessness for the Church and my place in it. Sometimes I don't want to pray. Sometimes I'd rather scrub a public toilet than go to Mass. We all struggle at times, and this is a struggle of my own.

It is helpful at times like these to return to the basics. One of the most basic tenets of my faith is perfectly encapsulated in the above quote from St. John Chrysostom. If we look with even a glance at the life and ministry of Jesus we see that he made the common good his primary concern. And so, as imitators of the Christ, ought we to do.

When I remember this it helps to put my struggles in perspective.

By caring for our neighbors- by seeking the common good- we unite with John the Baptizer in proclaiming the Advent of our God.

Pax et bonum.

Untitled

2011-12-05T02:55:00.003-05:00

Advent II

2011-12-03T16:36:00.001-05:00

I've been looking over the Readings for the Second Sunday of Advent. Advent is my favorite season, you see, because it matches my spirituality very intimately. I was trying to put together some words about these readings, but I have found that I cannot. It's a good thing that I don't have to prepare homilies for Advent, because I would be in trouble. I'm afraid I might sit in my Chair, in Silence, as He comes.

Pax et bonum.

Even kittehs observe Advent

2011-12-03T11:03:00.000-05:00

Think you're too cool for Advent? Even the cool cats are doing it.

Coolest. Advent. Calendar. Ever.

Ohai, Cheezfrends! We iz celebraytin teh holidaez wiff an Advent calendur! 2 see teh dae’z cyoot kitteh, u will need 2 “open” teh kalendur bai klickin teh pikshur abuv! We prawmise lotz ob cyoot, hiddn treetz, so plz 2 kom bak ebery dae 2 “open” a noo panel on teh kalendar.

Pax et bonum.

A very brief Advent exposition on a cold Friday night

2011-12-02T23:14:00.000-05:00

Christians are a little bit counter-cultural when it comes to Advent. When much of the secular world is busy celebrating Christmas right now ... we’re busy being thoughtful and meditative and quietly joyful in getting ready for Christmas.

Father Stanley Benecki, Pastor,
St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Church on the Hilltop, Columbus, OH

Source

Pax et bonum.

World AIDS Day

2011-12-01T22:26:00.000-05:00

Religious freedom isn't going anywhere, and the sky is not falling.

2011-11-30T19:22:00.000-05:00

There's a move among some Christians in the United States today- Catholics included- to say that they are being persecuted. This issue is dangerous, that issue is dangerous, and gay marriage is the most dangerous of all- next they'll be forcing us to marry homos and then what- horses??!!

The following out of a Baptist church in Kentucky- in my backyard- goes a long way in disproving that notion. Even when civil marriage equality is enacted, churches will still be free to do whatever they want- morally repugnant or not.

PIKE COUNTY, Ky. (AP) -- A church in Pike County, Ky. has voted to ban interracial couples from joining its flock, but the member who brought the resolution says he's not a racist.

Members at the Gulnare Free Will Baptist Church voted Sunday on the resolution, which would not allow interracial couples to place membership or be used in worship services or church functions. The vote was 9-6.

Church member Dean Harville says an appearance at the church by his daughter and her boyfriend, a native of Africa, prompted the vote.

Harville says the couple visited and sang a song at the church in June.

Member Melvin Thompson crafted the resolution but said Wednesday that he is "not racist."

Thompson says the matter is an internal affair of the church.

Harville says he plans to ask members too change their decision during services Wednesday night.

See? No worries. You can still be as hateful as you want to be. :)

Pax et bonum.

Interesting Franciscan news

2011-11-29T16:44:00.002-05:00

...if you're a Franciscan or a Church-geek, anyway.

The International Chapter of the Secular Franciscan Order met in General Chapter in October in Brazil. Lots and lots of issues were dealt with, but one is particularly interesting to me. (I have not yet been able to verify this with any documents, but I have now heard it from two sources.)

In most of the world, Secular Franciscans use the suffix "OFS" (ORDO FRANCISCANUS SAECULARIS). We in the United States, and some other English-speaking countries, use "SFO" (SECULAR FRANCISCAN ORDER) (like I do). Apparently this was discussed in Chapter, and "OFS" is to be the norm even in anglophone countries.

This has not yet been addressed by NAFRA, but it looks like, perhaps soon, "SFO" will no longer be appropriate: "OFS" will be the norm.

Interesting.

Pax et bonum.

On an equal basis with all people

2011-11-28T21:53:00.000-05:00

Secular Franciscans... accept all people as a gift of the Lord and an image of Christ... [They] place themselves on an equal basis with all people, especially with the lowly for whom they shall strive to create conditions of life worthy of people redeemed by Christ.

Article XIII, Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order

Pax et bonum.

New translation

2011-11-26T19:23:00.000-05:00

I attended Sunday's anticipated Mass this evening, and so I was able to experience, for the first time, the new translation "live," so to speak.

Preliminary thoughts:

Half of the congregation still used the old responses. I grinned each time.
The People's parts aren't awful. The Creed is difficult to get through. I will have a hard time re-memorizing.
Obviously, as it is Advent, there was no Gloria, so that will have to wait until Midnight Mass.
I felt much sympathy for the priest. You could tell he was stumbling over his words, although it was also apparent that he had practiced, practiced, practiced.
Our pastor took this opportunity to re-instate the Epiclesis bell. (We already used bells at the Consecration.) A+ :)
I don't like reading the Mass from a card. I will commit it to memory, but it will take some time. A long time, I imagine.
That said, I think it went very smoothly.
The biggest problem this evening was that I ran out of Hosts. (I was an EMHC.) That's not the new translation's fault, however.

What are your impressions? I would be happy to hear them.

Pax et bonum.

#OccupyAdvent

2011-11-25T22:21:00.000-05:00

More and more, year after year, the KofC, Bill Donahue, and some of the others start braying about "keeping Christ in Christmas." Instead of jumping down the throats of municipal officials and elementary school principals about Christmas songs and creches, catechize your own flock. How many in the above crowd identify as Christian, I wonder?

This year: #OccupyAdvent

Soon.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 11/23

2011-11-23T23:58:00.000-05:00

This night before Thanksgiving Day I am grateful for my life as a Secular Franciscan. This week is an anniversary: I made my Solemn Profession on the Feast of Christ the King in 2009. It is one of the best decisions that I ever made, and it truly is the paradigm from which I live my life and see reality.

Pax et bonum.

Give peace a chance! Fly Delta!

2011-11-22T16:53:00.001-05:00

Mahatma Gandhi said,

Be the change you want to see in the world.

It is with that in mind that I reflect on this Zenit article:

6 NATIONS BENEFIT FROM PAPAL PLANE PASSING OVER

Benedict XVI Sends Traditional Greetings en Route to Benin

EN ROUTE TO BENIN, NOV. 18, 2011 (Zenit.org).- Though they only had Benedict XVI visiting for brief moments -- and then, only from the air -- six African countries received the assurance of papal prayers as the Holy Father flew over them on his way to Benin today.

As is customary, the Pope sent his best wishes to the leaders of the countries the papal plane passed over as he headed for his three-day trip to Benin, his second apostolic journey to Africa.

The flight, stretching more than 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) gave the Pontiff an opportunity to express his wishes for peace and stability in Tunisia.

Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me. I shall plan future flights accordingly.

Pax et bonum.

Make peace with all people

2011-11-22T01:01:00.003-05:00

Work toward unity, and live in harmony with one another. Avoid thinking you are better than others or wiser than the rest; instead, embrace common people and ordinary tasks. Do not retaliate with evil, regardless of the evil brought against you. Try to do what is good and right and honorable as agreed upon by all people. If it is within your power, make peace with all people.

Romans 12:16-18 (The Voice)

Heart of glass, follow-up

2011-11-21T18:16:00.001-05:00

I need to clarify some of my comments about the recent acquisition of the Crystal Cathedral by the Diocese of Orange. I'm not against modern architecture. In fact I love it. I'm just not a fan of this particular building for this particular church. My understanding of Christian worship spaces is that they should transport a person out of this world and into another one. I find that task not easily accomplished in a building with a transparent exoskeleton surrounded by urban sprawl. Further, I love the organ in the space. I have heard it played, and it is glorious. Aesthetically, however, I'm not sure that pipes should be the focus of a sanctuary. I understand if it is not movable, but it isn't ideal- in my opinion.

To build on my recent theme of gratitude, I should say that I am pleased that an existing building is being converted for use instead of having a new building constructed. That is laudable.

In the end, my opinion about what the Diocese of Orange decides to do for their cathedral isn't really important. Then again, you don't read my blog for absence of opinion. ;)

Pax et bonum.

Don't shatter my heart of glass.

2011-11-18T18:51:00.000-05:00

The Diocese of Orange has purchased a new building to house its cathedral. Soon, upon renovation, this will be the cathedral:

As I noted on Facebook earlier today, I am not a fan. The building is, simply, ugly. Maintenance costs are astronomical: each pane of glass has to be cleaned. Providing A/C for the building will be an exorbitant cost. As if these reasons weren't enough to be displeased, how in the hell can this space be converted for Catholic worship? Unless the pipe organ is removed, the focal point behind the altar will be... pipes. Significant portions of the seating are on balconies, which will not make the Rite of Holy Communion an easy task.

Oh, I forgot. Above the pipes are speakers. Speakers the size of my car. Further, even if the current "stage" is dismantled, how will the altar, ambo, and chair be anything but swallowed by the vast windows behind them?

All is not negative, I suppose. During the course of the Mass the People of God can keep a watchful eye on their cars in the parking lot.

Pax et bonum.

U.S. Secular Franciscan Order Demands the Deficit "Super Committee" Ensure Justice for All

2011-11-17T15:40:00.000-05:00

The U.S. Secular Franciscans met for their national gathering from October 25th through 29th at the St. Francis Retreat and Renewal Center in San Juan Bautista, CA. The national group represents approximately 13,500 Secular Franciscans across the United States. The statement is based on the Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order, chapter 2, article 13 that they "place themselves on an equal basis with all people, especially with the lowly for whom they shall strive to create conditions of life worthy of people redeemed by Christ."

We issue the following statement to the "Super Committee":

Do not further oppress and penalize those who are poor and those who are already most vulnerable, here and around the world.

We realize the moment of decision is rapidly approaching, and in this critical time it is essential that you understand the impact each decision may have. Justice for all requires that we pursue the common good.

It is essential that the "Super Committee" reach a decision by November 23rd. It is morally irresponsible for this committee to delay a decision and default to the automatic cuts that are applied at a fixed percentage, doing further injustice to the poor here and abroad.

"They asked God to kill me if it meant that I would not bring reproach upon the name of Jesus Christ."

2011-11-16T18:48:00.000-05:00

I want to take yesterday's post beyond where we left it.

What follows are excerpts from a letter from a lesbian Christian that was submitted for a new book, Wings on a Pig: Why the "Christian" View of Gays Doesn't Work by John Shore.

Can you imagine writing this letter? I know it's lengthy, but read it through. It's worth it.

I spent sixteen years as a fundamental evangelical Christian, trying to get God to fix me. I studied theology and Biblical counseling for three years in the hopes of discovering what I was doing wrong that was keeping God from answering my prayers to make me straight. I struggled with the guilt of same-sex attraction every day, and had no way of turning it off.
...

I came out to my fundamental evangelical husband almost four years ago. Initially, he was loving and kind. However, the church knew something was wrong–and when he told them what it was, I never had another civil conversation with him. He came home from a meeting with the pastors, and announced that the church was starting “Biblical discipline proceedings” (construed from Matthew 18) against me, and that the elders of the church would be contacting me.
The elders came to meet with me at my dad’s house to confirm that I was a lesbian, although I had not been unfaithful to my husband, or had any lesbian relationships during our marriage. They called me an apostate: one who knows the truth, but who then chooses to turn away from God and reject Him.

I told them that I loved God, and did not reject Him. They believe in predestination, so I argued that if I was chosen by God, then being a lesbian wouldn’t keep me from heaven—and that if God didn’t choose me I was going to hell anyway, so I might as well be happy in this life. They told me that I was going to hell, and left. Before exiting, they asked my husband to be sure that our two children were in worship service on the Sunday a few weeks later when they were having the Lord’s Supper.

In that public worship service, they announced my “sin” to the congregation, and invited everyone to contact me to let me know how they felt about my sin. The congregation was told they were not allowed to speak to me about anything other than my sin.

I praise God that my children did not make it to that service, as my dad took my kids up to his cabin for the day (where my ex was not able to locate them). After the service I received angry letters telling me that I was hell-bound–including one from a twelve-year-old friend of my daughter. I got a visit from one woman who came by my house to speak to me about how I was grieving Jesus. She became emotional and lashed out, punching me in the face and bloodying my nose. I also praise God for sparing my daughter that sight.

My ex’s church helped him to hire a “Christian” lawyer to help him hide our assets. I had to borrow $2,000 from my father to hire my own lawyer. This man took my case, then never met with me until the day before my hearing. I didn’t even know that I was allowed to have witnesses. The judge of our case was appointed by the governor of Georgia, who happened to be a Sunday School teacher at the same mega-church my ex’s lawyer attended—where Johnny Hunt, then President of the Southern Baptist Convention, was pastor.

And it was an election year.

I didn’t have a prayer in my rural Georgia county.

I lost my home, rental properties, custody of my kids, my dog, and everything else I had ever worked for. The judge ordered me to leave with only my eight-year-old car and my clothes, until such time as the ex and I worked out an agreement.

For the next two years my ex continued to argue with me over everything, so that I would go broke just negotiating, and give up everything to him.

Before, I had been a home-schooling mom: I was a foster mom, hospice volunteer, church librarian, and I helped my ex with his house-flipping business. Now I had no home, no money, no education, no church, and no place to live.

All of the shunning and mistreatment of this “Biblical discipline” was intended to show me the Christian fellowship I was going to be missing out on. However, I was highly resolved not to go back to a life of lies and misery. My church had to “disfellowship” me off of their roster. In another public worship service, they prayed for the death of my sin, including my physical death. Yes, they asked God to kill me if it meant that I would not bring reproach upon the name of Jesus Christ. It was the lowest point of my life. Even my own mom and her evangelical family cut me out of the family. They refused to speak to me, and my mom said to me that she “hated” what I had become (a lesbian), and that I was a “despicable human being.” I went to live with my Grandma, the woman to whom I was closer than anyone else in the world. She had been sick; we soon found out she had leukemia, and was given six to eight weeks to live. She made it almost three months. When she died, I thought I was going to join her. My heart was almost totally broken.

A few months after my grandma died, during my first Christmas without her, my mom’s family had their usual Christmas gathering, to which I was not invited. They did, however, invite my ex to bring our children. My mom even took my ex and our children on a cruise. It was their way of punishing me for “choosing” my “lifestyle.” My ex enrolled our children in a Christian school, where I was not allowed to take any part in their education; if I attempted to, I was told, the children would be expelled from the school. When I went to their school activities I was shunned and usually left sitting alone, a wide circle of empty chairs around me, as if I had a contagious disease. It was humiliating to be in a room filled with people I had once loved and ministered to, who now wouldn’t sit in the same row of seats with me.

Knowing that I was now walking in truth for the first time in my life allowed me to hold my head high. At times, it was a bitter pill to swallow, but in the end, it showed me how it feels to be judged, and I thank God for that lesson. God never gives you more than you can handle, and what doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger. My God has supplied all my needs according to His riches in glory. I have struggled like never before to make a new life for myself. I recently earned my associate degree in Marketing Management (with a 3.95 GPA, thank you very much), and am now at Southern Poly getting my BA in Professional Communications. I just finished an internship for my local ABC affiliate, working as a segment producer on a local TV-show about non-profits. My college, so far, has cost me nothing: I’ve won three scholarships. I get side work cleaning houses, working as a professional organizer, and freelance writing for Atlanta’s premiere LGBT bi-weekly newspaper, The Georgia Voice. (I even had a cover story with country singer Chely Wright last year!) I am madly in love with my wife, Melissa. We found a pastor who was willing to marry us; although we are not now legally wed, we wanted to make that commitment to each other, and to God.

I love Jesus. I love His teachings. I am passionate about reconnecting LGBT people with God, and I hope to be able to earn a living at being an activist, speaker, and motivator in this line. Either way, God has restored to me everything that was lost, and more. How can I be bitter or complain when I now have the life that I always dreamed of? — S.H., Atlanta, Georgia

They prayed for her death. A member of the church came to her home and punched her in the face.

Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?

All hope is not lost, because just as the Father did not abandon Jesus, neither will God abandon us. A new season is coming, and we need only work, wait, and trust. As Thomas Fox wrote,

For many of us, the linkage of gay and lesbian to "objective disorder" has been an offensive insult from the outset, the product of another time and an outdated theology. For many that time has passed; for others it is passing; for a few, it still needs to pass. Let's pray the day comes quickly when stragglers, including some of our church's shepherds, catch up with the flock.

That day couldn't soon enough for the sake of the precious mission of our church.

Amen, and amen.

Pax et bonum.

Gifts from God

2011-11-15T23:33:00.001-05:00

I am grateful to Michael Bayly for featuring the following excerpt from an op-ed by Thomas Fox in the National Catholic Reporter.

(My emphases in bold)

If you are on this Web site you are probably aware of the flap coming out of Boston where a bishops' advisor was forced to resign after suggesting some satanic involvement in the births of our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters. This kind of nutty nonsense is not church teaching, but is a product of an outdated theology. It can also be traced back to a lamentable episcopal utterance of then, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, and now Pope Benedict, who wrote that the homosexual inclination itself "must be seen as an objective disorder."

Let me suggest another way to look at our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters, without trying to add even further burden on their weary shoulders. It is to say that they are special human beings and that they bring special gifts to the human family, gifts we need for material and spiritual fulfillment and, perhaps, even for the preservation of the human family itself. While recognizing the obvious shortfall of lumping large groups of people into a single category, I feel I need to point out the obvious, and that is our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters have so much to teach us, so much to give us in so many ways. I'd start with characteristic sensitivity, insight, compassion and joy. The list could go on.

Until we recognize that all of us – no exceptions – are gifts and that our LGBTQ brothers and sisters are among some of the most special of these gifts, offering us so much that enlarges our spiritual visions, so much that speaks of God's love for us, then we are missing the proverbial boat.

For many of us, the linkage of gay and lesbian to "objective disorder" has been an offensive insult from the outset, the product of another time and an outdated theology. For many that time has passed; for others it is passing; for a few, it still needs to pass. Let's pray the day comes quickly when stragglers, including some of our church's shepherds, catch up with the flock.

That day couldn't soon enough for the sake of the precious mission of our church.

Thomas C. Fox
National Catholic Reporter
November 5, 2011

There isn't much that I could add to that.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 11/14

2011-11-14T23:29:00.002-05:00

I am grateful for love.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 09/12

2011-11-12T23:54:00.000-05:00

I am grateful for

being raised on Gospel music.

Pax et bonum.

Be still

2011-11-11T22:11:00.000-05:00

Be still and know that I am God ...
Be still and know that I am ...
Be still and know ...
Be still ...
Be ...

unknown source

Pax et bonum.

Untitled

2011-11-11T13:58:00.000-05:00

The Apotheosis of War (1871) by Vasily Vereshchagin

It is better that the United States be liquidated than that she survive by war.

Dorothy Day

quote via Michael Iafrate

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 11/10

2011-11-10T23:50:00.000-05:00

I am grateful for vacation days, like this one, when I can do things that matter to me, like play the piano as long as I want, sort through clothes that I don't wear anymore, and organize files on my computer.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 11/09

2011-11-09T23:33:00.001-05:00

Our Lady of Lebanon

I haven't posted my gratitude for the last few days. I had intended to do it every day. I guess I just got busy. And that's the way it goes. We make a resolution, we screw up, and then we re-commit. I am grateful for second chances. New days. We Franciscans use a term called "daily conversion," because we're just practical enough to know that we are going to screw up all. the. time. And so each day we get to begin again. That's all we can do, isn't it?

Pax et bonum.

Two masters

2011-11-09T20:30:00.000-05:00

No one can serve two masters. If you try, you will wind up loving the first master and hating the second, or vice versa. People try to serve both God and money— but you can’t. You must choose one or the other.

Matthew 6:24 (The Voice)

Gratitude, 11/05

2011-11-06T00:27:00.002-04:00

It's already the 6th but I haven't gone to bed yet so it's still the 5th for me.

I am grateful for bright, compassionate people who work for justice.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 11/04

2011-11-04T23:02:00.001-04:00

I am grateful for religion without weird cultural hangups.

I am packing for a (SFO) regional council meeting tomorrow. I have clothes, my laptop, a mountain of paperwork, 2 bottles of wine, and a bottle of whiskey.

Pax et bonum.

Occupy

2011-11-04T00:11:00.000-04:00

For all those questioning the "point" of Occupy Wall Street and its subsidiary movements, I present two images that help to introduce it, gently.

and

The demands of justice must first of all be satisfied; that which is already due in justice is not to be offered as a gift of charity.

Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree Apostolicam Actuositatem, 8: AAS 58 (1960), 845; cf Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2446.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 11/03

2011-11-03T23:47:00.000-04:00

Today I am grateful for the absolute beauty that can be seen in a human heart. It's rare, and when you find it you have to treasure it.

Pax et bonum.

Gratitude, 11/02

2011-11-02T23:57:00.000-04:00

[I've been inspired for a while by a friend, and now compelled by another friend (thank you, Sarah and Connor) to start taking some time each day to call to mind and acknowledge things for which I am thankful. This has been done online for a while now in lots of places, which is cool because it seems to aid with accountability. So, I suppose I will make this a daily thing.]

I am grateful for people in my life who love me. Not because they think they have to (because that isn't love), but because of who I am. I am grateful to have people in my life whom I also love, not because I'm supposed to, but simply because they are. They are beautiful and smart and funny and talented and compassionate and they don't even know it. You don't get to decide who mates and births you, but you do get to decide later who you want to have in your life- people who enrich it, and people who make love incarnate.

Pax et bonum.

Incarnational, except when it isn't?

2011-11-01T19:06:00.000-04:00

I have read a few things today that all seem to fit together, however disjointedly. First, this quote from Dorothy Sayers.

From the Incarnation springs the whole doctrine of sacraments — the indwelling of the mortal by the immortal, of the material by the spiritual, the phenomenal by the real… A sure mark of Catholic Christianity is the honoring of the “holy and glorious flesh,” and indeed of all material things, because they are sacraments and symbols of the Divine glory.

Dorothy L. Sayers

Sayers makes a lofty proposition: incarnation into "holy and glorious flesh" is a distinctive mark of Catholic Christianity. Franciscan theology has proposed this since its inception, much to the chagrin of Thomas Aquinas. Contrast Sayers' incarnational proposition with this treat from The Boston Pilot, the diocesan newspaper for the Archdiocese of Boston:

In other words, the scientific evidence of how same-sex attraction most likely may be created provides a credible basis for a spiritual explanation that indicts the devil. Any time natural disasters occur, we as people of faith look back to Scripture's account of those angels who rebelled and fell from grace. In their anger against God, these malcontents prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. They continue to do all they can to mar, distort and destroy God's handiwork.

Therefore, whenever natural causes disturb otherwise typical biological development, leading to the personally unchosen beginnings of same-sex attraction, the ultimate responsibility, on a theological level, is and should be imputed to the evil one, not God.

Daniel Avila, "Some fundamental questions on same-sex attraction," The Boston Pilot

If you are grimacing and wondering if you read that correctly, you most likely did. Avila is proposing that the proper interpretation of the science around sexual orientation is that gay people were created by the Devil. Not only that, but gay people are natural disasters. Let that marinate. Keep in mind that this was written in a diocesan newspaper.

The sort of theological paradigm that posits that gay people are natural disasters is the same one that produces our next stop on today's reading tour. The following are comments left on an online forum regarding the San Diego high school that last week elected a lesbian couple as their homecoming king and queen:

Stupid, brainwashed, delusional girls. They are signing up for a life of pain, misery, heartbreak and sin.

This is disgusting. It’s deviancy on display, and our kids have been trained to approve.

The Principal should be brought up on charges and be made to register as a sex offender.

The faggot indoctrination continues.

If you believe that gay people are natural disasters created by the Devil, and then allow that to be published in an official Church newspaper, then one's next logical step might likely be these sorts of comments.

Our Catholic faith is incarnational, or it isn't.

Just saying.

Pax et bonum.

Anonymous bloggers and commenters

2011-11-01T15:35:00.000-04:00

Today's fun

2011-10-31T14:11:00.001-04:00

Dieter Phillippi has an excellent post of photos from the World Day of Prayer in Assisi showcasing the many religious hats that were seen. As a fellow religious headgear lover, I highly recommend checking it out.

Catholic Sensibility, per usual, has excellent commentary. Today, they address the retirement of the phrases "say the Mass" and "assist at Mass." Both need to go.

Pax et bonum.

Today is Halloween.

2011-10-31T13:17:00.000-04:00

Or, the "eve of All Hallows." It is also Samhain.

I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of goblins and ghouls, specters and creepy-crawlies- and that's just in my comments.

Boo.

Pax et bonum.

The psalms

2011-10-29T00:32:00.000-04:00

If you only knew the power of verses of Psalms and their effect in the highest Heavens, you would recite them constantly. Know that the chapters of Psalms shatter all barriers, they ascend higher and still higher with no interference; they prostrate themselves in supplication before the Master of all worlds, and they effect and accomplish with kindness and compassion.

Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch ("Tzemach Tzeddek, 1789-1866)

Domestic violence and the Church

2011-10-26T18:44:00.000-04:00

Much time and energy is spent in some Catholic circles of thought about the issue of gay marriage, and how it should be banned legislatively to protect the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman. I'm not here to discuss that issue. We have discussed it here before, and there is no shortage of commentary on the subject elsewhere.

What I would rather address, then, is the issue of domestic violence and spousal abuse. Overwhelmingly this abuse is committed against women by their husbands. Until very recently, much of this was sanctioned by civil law.

The act of abusing one's spouse physically, mentally, and emotionally is, without question, contrary to the Sacrament of Matrimony and a scourge on the family. The effects of spousal abuse are life-long, and they affect not only the abused spouse but any children in the family.

The first place I turned to for guidance about what the Church has to say about domestic violence was the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Let me show you what I found:

Guess how many encyclicals I found? Vatican press releases? USCCB initiatives? Campaigns?

In a church that is as focused on marriage and the family as ours, this is absolutely unacceptable.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. If you are in an abusive relationship, please, please- get out. I promise you it can be done. I know. If you see abuse, report it. If you can safely talk to the victim, provide her with information, support, and hope.

There is no excuse for domestic violence.

There is no excuse for a Church that promotes the sanctity of marriage to remain silent.

Pax et bonum.

My take on the PCJP document

2011-10-26T13:26:00.001-04:00

I predicted on the morning that the document, “Toward Reforming the International Financial and Monetary Systems in the Context of Global Public Authority,” prepared by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, was released that neo-con Catholic talking heads would ignore it, at best, and trash it more predictably. I was right. The usual suspects have lined up to say that it doesn't matter, it doesn't need to be paid any attention, it is wrong, and it has no authority.

The important part of the document is not the recommendation- over which the neo-cons are absolutely masturbating themselves into insanity- but the interpretation of our current problems based on solid teaching all the way back to Rerum Novarum. Now that the Church is beginning to apply its teachings concretely, bringing them out of theological abstraction, those whose values are more aligned with a political party or economic system are scared sh*tless that their monologue might be challenged. So, they are scrambling like mad to discredit the council and its paper.

I hope that intelligent Catholics don't fall for it.

This is important, no matter what the Acton cabal says, or however the media spins it.

Pax et bonum.

Contemporary Catholicism: three strengths

2011-10-24T22:33:00.003-04:00

Fr. Richard McBrien's latest contribution to his weekly column Essays in Theology is especially worth a closer look. In this article he discusses three strengths of contemporary Catholicism. I would like to take a moment to look at all three.

1. The Catholic Church's openness to other religions. I know already that some of you will disagree. However, it must be said that there is a certain freedom in freely choosing one's own faith- in my case, the Catholic faith- and remaining open to truths from other religious traditions. Indeed, Nostra Aetate affirms this, and since the Second Vatican Council the Church has made great strides in its relationships with people of other faiths. I'm proud of this, and I hope to be a part of the dialogue.

2. The Catholic Church's openness to scientific research. The world can thank Gregor Mendel, an Augustinian friar, for the birth of what we now know as the study of genetics. The Church has been, in varying degrees at different times, heavily involved in scientific progress. (We can set aside the Galileo catastrophe for the moment.) The Church continues to be a beacon in the Christian world for the importance of science. The Catholic Church embraces evolutionary theory as the probable vehicle through which God created and sustains life and the universe. We have a long way to go, especially in the area of human sexuality, but there is a solid scientific foundation in place for that to happen. We can only pray and persevere.

3. Catholic Social Teaching is the most developed among the world's religions. Fr. McBrien says it best: "The Catholic promotion of human rights and justice in all spheres of life -- social, economic and political -- is unique among all religions." We need to be pro-active in making known that the Church is deeply involved in all areas of social teaching because of Her never-ending embrace of God. We must fight the notion that the only issue we care about is abortion. We don't oppose abortion because babies are cute and innocent, but because human life is valuable, and all assaults against its integrity must be opposed.

I encourage you to read Fr. McBrien's piece.

Pax et bonum.

The SSPX and the SFO

2011-10-22T12:47:00.000-04:00

The Vatican and the leadership of the breakaway Society of St. Pius X are continuing to dialogue about a possible "homecoming" for the SSPX under a possible deal that would allow the Society to function licitly in the Church as a legitimate charism and institution. If this happens another group will be added to the "extraordinary Church," joining the ranks of the FSSP, ICKSP, and others.

Even if a "doctrinal agreement" is reached and the SSPX is regularized, that is only the beginning. There will be other issues to be considered and resolved. I wonder about the place of the religious orders that are currently affiliated with the SSPX. Specifcally, I wonder about the Secular Franciscans in the SSPX, even though they refuse that designation.

Essentially, the Third Order of St. Francis in the SSPX is the equivalent of the Secular Franciscan Order. However, they do not acknowledge the SFO as legitimate. They reject the current Rule (1978), the Statutes, and the organizational structure. They still profess and operate under the Rule of Pope Leo XIII (1883), which is no longer valid or licit:

By this letter and our apostolic authority, we abrogate the previous rule of what was formerly called the Franciscan Third Order.

Given at Rome at St. Peter's, under the ring of the Fisherman, on June 24, 1978, the 16th year of our pontificate.

John Cardinal Villot
Secretary of State

from The Rule of the Secular Franciscan Order as Approved and Confirmed by Pope Paul VI

There is no room for interpretation here: the former rules have been abrogated, and only the Rule of 1978 is in force. (The new Rule coincided with the change of the name of the order to the Secular Franciscan Order.)

What will happen? It isn't for me to say. However, issues like these will need to be addressed down the road if the SSPX is regularized. Regarding the form of the Mass, there is room for accommodation: both the old and the new Masses are permitted, as the old was never abrogated. This is not the case for the Rule.

Pax et bonum.

OWS and Conscience Rights

2011-10-21T19:53:00.000-04:00

I said that I wouldn't do this, but I think I will. Just a little bit. It's important.

Priests denouncing the Occupy Wall Street movement and its participants and supporters. Really? Let me see if I understand this properly: A priest's education is paid for. His services are in high demand. In spite of the sex abuse scandal, his occupation retains a high occupational prestige rating. Employment includes salary, health insurance, room & board, book allowances, and retirement, plus applicable stipends. And all of this doesn't even take into consideration the Church's social teachings. (Which, oddly, are cited heavily where other matters are concerned.)

"Persecution" and Conscience Rights. All the USCCB is abuzz about "persecution" and "conscience rights" stemming from a mandate that health insurance companies provide contraception. I could write 1,000 words about conscience rights, but I think a picture will suffice:

Source

I would like a religious exemption from funding the killing of children- on this side of the womb, too, please. Now that the USCCB has a new committee, perhaps this is a cause they will take up.

Now, I would like to think that I'm doing more than bitching. I would like to think that I'm raising awareness, or at least offering another point of view in the conversation. Your mileage may vary.

Pax et bonum.

The Killing of Gaddafi, in Too Many Words.

2011-10-21T05:41:00.002-04:00

War is waged, even within the context of a just war, for a variety of reasons. The aggressor, invading your homeland, being a common reason, the joining of another nation to help repel their invaders another, or again to stop a tyrant. This latter, Tyrannicide usually is understood to mean the killing of a tyrant by a private person or group of concerned people for the common good. There are two classes of tyrants who are given different appellations, tyrants by usurpation and tyrants by oppression. A tyrant by usurpation (tyrannus in titula) is one who unjustly displaces or attempts to displace the legitimate supreme ruler in order to undergo his or her own oppressive regime, assuming that the previous ruler was not himself a tyrant. A tyrant by oppression (tyrannus in regimine) is a supreme ruler who uses his power arbitrarily and oppressively to the destruction and subjugation of his or her own people or that of other nations. By his invading of Poland during the Second World War, Hitler is seen as a tyrant who waged unjust warfare, by his governance of Libya, Colonel Gaddafi is seen as a tyrant by many, although I have some sympathy with him, like Hitler, he was courted by the West when it seemed convenient.

Emmanuel Hirsch, the German Protestant theologian and member of the Nazi party struggled with the concept of a just war under Hitler, saying that ‘greed for power’ is an unacceptable reason for starting a war, but that people defend by law land which they may have taken by force in the past, that Germans of his generation may own land which was seized in long ago wars, so economic rights for all individuals do not exist, therefore they do not exist for nations. War, he says, is ‘a question for God’,

‘He remains the God of history and blesses only those….who set all their power and will on their freedom and their life goals. He (God) does not listen to a volk (people, nation) which questions only half heartedly, which does not struggle for its life seriously and to the ultimate degree’.

Hirsch looked for the rising of strong men to lead Germany out of the Weimar Republic, acknowledging (as he perceived it) how low they had sunk as a nation and although he questioned the paganism and the racial teachings of Nazism, it is not surprising that Hirsch greeted the rise of Hitler with enthusiasm and hope for the future of his volk. He lost much credibility by remaining a Nazi until almost the end of the Second World War along with his university contemporary Paul Althaus, a Lutheran, who favoured a programme of mediation between the Third Reich and Christianity, but who still favoured the advancement of the volk.

Contrary to these theologians and their attempt to justify the Third Reich is the witness of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, like Althaus a Lutheran, but a member of the Confessing Church, set up to maintain an authentic Christian and non-Nazi infiltrated faith during the Third Reich. In 1939, Bonhoeffer was recruited to a secret group of high-ranking military officers in the Abwehr (the Third Reich’s Military intelligence Office), who plotted to end the National Socialist regime by killing Hitler. Bonhoeffer was arrested in April 1943 after money which was used to help Jews escape to Switzerland was traced back to him. He was charged with conspiracy and imprisoned in Berlin for a year and a half. After this he lent his support to the ‘Walkure’, or June 20^th (1944) plot to assassinate Hitler which was unsuccessful. He was later executed by the Nazi’s for his part in this.

Bonhoeffer saw Tyrannicide as being compatible with the Christian just war theory, There are a number of principles which are fundamental to the Christian understanding of humanity and society and sometimes they conflict with one another. The principle of respect for the sanctity of life sometimes conflicts with the necessity of having an ordered or a just society, which certainly is true in the case of Hitler. The Christian tradition of Tyrannicide does not believe that just one tradition is relevant, but deals with life in all its complexity and ambiguity and tries to provide a framework with which to think about the many different and difficult situations that arise when one person exploits and oppresses a group of people.

Bonhoeffer and his involvement in the plot to kill Hitler is mainly approved by a reading of the teachings of Aquinas, the action was taken by members of a public authority and the need was urgent, this much is unarguable, however with the hindsight of history we may wonder if without the plot and the many other plots on the life of Hitler, he would not have fallen anyway, when the army began to surrender and his generals turned against him and his increasingly bizarre close circle of advisors. It is also debatable whether the replacement government would have been able to stop the suffering of the people which Germany was oppressing, if the army stayed loyal to the Hitler regime.

In the early Middle Ages the question of Tyrannicide was raised by the Christian philosopher John of Salisbury who wrote in his book Policraticus,

‘For myself, I am satisfied and persuaded that loyal shoulders should uphold the power of the ruler; and not only do I submit to his power patiently, but with pleasure, so long as it is exercised in subjection to God and follows His ordinances. But on the other hand if it resists and opposes the divine commandments, and wishes to make me share in its war against God; then with unrestrained voice I answer back that God must be preferred before any man on earth. Therefore inferiors should cleave and cohere to their superiors, and all the limbs should be in subjection to the head; but always and only on condition that religion is kept inviolate.’

This suggests that a good ruler can bring people to God, whereas one who leads people away from God is a tyrant, the image of, he goes on to suggest, a devil and can be struck down, either by God through a natural disaster or by human hand. People who struck down tyrants were, he said in Policraticus, ‘servants of the Lord’. Politicians like Tony Blair who courted Gaddafi are in a very difficult moral place.

John of Salisbury would have found sympathy with Dietrich Bonhoeffer although probably not Blair, although a more recent Just War and Tyrannicide philosopher would not. In the Anglican Church, hostility to resistance of any kind reached its peak with Lancelot Andrewes (who would not have agreed with the election of William Temple as Archbishop of Canterbury, who supported the Allied actions in the Second World War), who preached a sermon on David and Saul. He said that Saul was a tyrant and a demoniac, but that nothing at all could justify David killing Saul, because Saul was the rightful ruler. This example, Andrewes said, was binding upon all people for all time.

Lancelot Andrewes may not be a well regarded just was ethicist, but his Biblical example of David and Saul is one which I would compare to that of Moses and the situation in Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe, which came directly after the false declaration of independence by Smith as well as they in Libya.

According to the book of Exodus, Moses was born in a time when war threatened and the large increase in the number of his people concerned the Pharaoh who was scared that they might help Egypt's enemies thus unsettling his rule. His Hebrew mother, Jochebed, hid him when the Pharaoh ordered all newborn Hebrew boys to be killed, and he ended up being adopted into the Egyptian royal family. After killing a slave master he fled and lived a pastoral life. Moses knew of the condition of the people of God in Egypt, that they were slaves and oppressed yet he made no attempt to liberate them, nor is any concern for them shown by him, until God commissions him to go into Egypt and bear witness to Him. Even though Moses is sent to see the Pharaoh, to testify to the power of God through signs and plagues, God had ‘hardened the heart’ of Pharaoh already, leaving Moses and other human actors out of consideration in order to highlight God’s control of the situation. Moses is never commanded to act violently, indeed his actions are peaceful and ones of witness, but in the end the Egyptians acknowledge that God is supreme in his act, worked through Moses in part, of bringing his people out of slavery. Through non violence and strict adherence to the word of God, Moses delivers the people of God and witnesses to the power of God, who by His own action brings plague and death upon the people and the armies of Pharaoh. Like David, Moses acts much as the early Christians did, much later, by passive, non violent witness, even though Pharaoh, to the people of God, was a tyrant, holding them in enforced slavery. It would be possible to refer to the First Letter of Peter in which Christians are urged to bear sufferings patiently, as well as to the example of Christ Himself, but a distinction could be drawn in all cases between suffering for your faith and suffering oppression as a free human being, however Christ died to free us from sin and the Israelites suffered because of the breaking of the covenant.

The Jews, Poles, Gypsies, Homosexuals and many other groups suffered under Hitler because they were considered inferior races or peoples, not specifically for their religion or orientation, but as a group sharing little in common save a wish by Hitler to eradicate them to ‘cleanse’ the German race. In this case, it could be argued that the Christian Just War teaching on Tyrannicide could be upheld as the action is leading to the liberation from subjugation and murder of people of many and no religious belief. The hand of God is not found in the holocaust, or in the reasons behind it, whereas it can be found in the enslavement and subsequent liberation of the Israelites from Egypt as well as in the early Christian persecutions.

Hans Kung in his seminal work ‘On Being a Christian’, says that Jesus ‘expects his disciples voluntarily to renounce rights without compensation’. This renunciation site closely with our calling to trust solely in God to guide us. This guidance leads me to suggest that the hand of God is not found in the Holocaust nor in Gaddafi's reign in Libya, but It would also not be in his death, which is an execution without trial, not Tyrannicide, but murder.

"Food" for thought

2011-10-20T21:13:00.000-04:00

I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me.

Source

Pax et bonum.

Shut the front door: writing and learning to shut up

2011-10-20T19:04:00.000-04:00

There are so many things that I want to bitch about lately. The scandal in Kansas City. Palestine. The political op taking place in Minnesota churches at the direction of their bishops. Catholics whose values are aligned more with Capitalism than the Gospel. Catholics- priests and lay alike- who are smearing the Wall Street protesters- rather hypocritically, I might add. The endless prattling of American Christians hell-bent on finding reasons to call themselves "persecuted" when they are a solid, powerful majority. My own financial spot. I could go on and on.

But, in the grand scheme of things, what would it accomplish? You know my opinions about most of these matters, and expressing them again and again wouldn't benefit you or me. We can all talk about these things, and other issues as well, in a way that contributes to the conversation, offers ideas, suggestions, encouragement, whatever, but too many of us (by "us" I mean people who broadcast their thoughts on the internet like I do) just bitch. Often and loudly.

Maybe that's why we can't hear God speak. In my (admittedly limited) experience, God speaks when I shut up. Even Francis spent a good 50% of his time in retreat on a mountain away from people, emerging to speak only after communing with God.

Pax et bonum.