Impressions of a Current Best Seller

Karen Armstrong is a former nun (no longer Catholic or Christian) who lives in England and is a very well-known, graceful writer and speaker on religious topics. Her latest book is entitled The Case for God. I have just finished it. It is a tour de force of religious and especially Western cultural and philosophical history. She should be applauded for striving to give an informed overview of vast cultural development in an age of overspecialization where, too often, the overload of fragmented information leaves many without any possibility of creating a comprehensive vision of the past or of the future.

Having given my accolades, let me be clear that, not surprisingly, I do not share her theological tendencies, the most fundamental of which seems to be that all religious traditions are created equal. I also sense in her work the apparent presumption that it is never appropriate to interpret religious texts as being reliable guides to the accurate depiction of actual historical events. It is not clear to me if she views that working presumption against historically "referential" religious texts as being rebuttable in certain, theologically significant cases. (By "referential" I mean that the text actually refers to some real, objective event in history that observers can verify.) In the end, she paints a picture of worldwide religious fraternity based on the view that the historical details do not really matter as long as the mythic aspect of different religious texts are plumbed for their deeper, universal, and common meanings. Many Christians, especially in the developing world, will view this approach as inadequate to the uniqueness of the Christian Gospel.

Yet, I can recommend the book to readers who are prepared to read critically and are not predisposed toward an uncritical embrace of a particular author's view of history or of religion. In my opinion, she does a fine job of exposing the fact that many of the new militant atheist writers of today are theologically tone deaf in assuming, without justification, that Christianity is tied to a fundamentalist approach to the Bible. She turns the tables on these aggressive atheist writers by calling them "fundamentalists" themselves who refuse to recognize the possibility and reality of a nuanced and literarily responsible interpretation of the Bible's diverse genres.

Yet, my main critique remains and is as follows. She makes much of the distinction between symbolic, non-literal discourse (mythos) and practical, logical discourse referring to objectively observed realities (logos). By viewing religious texts as merely or primarily mythos, she deftly turns back any criticism that such texts may be fictional. But, as a Christian, that approach is a strategy that is not acceptable when applied to the proclamation of the death and bodily resurrection of Jesus and thus is not ultimately favorable to the Christian stance. The key Christian response to her approach was made long ago by C.S. Lewis, an expert in mythology as a genre in both pagan and Christian inspired works. For Lewis, the Gospel is a true myth, which combines the profound symbolic meaning that Armstrong rightly sees in mythos with the objective, historical reference to truly occurring events that Armstrong labels logos. For Christians, in Jesus, the profound yearnings of all humanity expressed in mythos became true in actual history or logos. In short, the tomb was indeed empty. Interestingly, given Armstrong's terminology, Christians in fact view Jesus as the Logos, as even she mentions in the book.

That Armstrong seems to assume that Christianity can somehow overlook the logos part points to her own misunderstanding of the Christian foundational writings known as the New Testament. It is undeniable that Paul, to pick one example from the New Testament writers, understood that the Gospel story must of necessity involve a real death and a real bodily resurrection or else all bets are off. Thus, the well-intentioned Armstrong attempt to divorce logos discourse from the New Testament falls flat. Of course, Christians would have no problem with applying a purely symbolic interpretation to the texts of other religious traditions in an attempt to find common truths in such texts. But the Bible, especially the New Testament, is a very different type of story. The genre of the Gospel proclaimed in the New Testament is, as Lewis noted, true myth (not merely symbolically "true") that combines both mythos and logos, two aspects that cannot be divorced in this particular case. Yet, I still enjoyed the book, but with the above, significant reservations.

An Email Message from Mainland China

Dear Oswald, My Brother in the Lord,
The peace and joy in the Lord!

I believe you are doing very well as many brothers and sisters who are with their living faith to involve different ministries of the Church.

Thank you so much for your outstanding works. I do appreciate your sound knowledge on dealing with the topics. I'd like you know that the works, after some adaption with Chinese with the culture, have been used in our NE ["New Evangelization"] ministry after an adaption to our culture. They are quite popular. May God bless you continuously for your new work inspired by the Holy Spirit. Welcome to China, the vast missionary land in the harvest season!

With my thanksful heart to you and all of the friends, who have supported us for the NE ["New Evangelization"] in China, in this wonderful season I wish you and your loved ones all,

A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS

WITH SOUND HEALTH, JOY AND PEACE IN THE LORD AND

THROUGH THE COMING NEW YEAR!

Fraternally in the Lord,
Joe

Blogger Comment:

Joe is a Chinese Catholic whom I met when he was a seminarian; if he has yet to be ordained (I am not sure if he has been ordained already), he will likely be ordained soon to the priesthood. I post this message not to pat myself on the back for the "works" that he thanks me for in the email, but rather to point out to every reader that even what we may consider insignificant may be used by Adonai in good and unexpected ways far, far beyond our home turf. I believe that potential use is as true of you, Christian reader (or potential Christian reader, regardless of your current religious affiliation or lack thereof), as is true of Joe or of me.

The "works" that Joe refers to are pamphlets explaining the Catholic view of God and the Bible to people with no prior religious formation, as is commonly the case in China. If this century will be the Chinese century, then, for the sake of humanity, let it be an increasingly Christian Chinese century for the ultimate benefit and evangelization of all mankind everywhere, for the uplifting of the poor, and for the spread of respect for human dignity and human rights everywhere during this exciting century. Amen.

[The black bold print and information in brackets in the original email were added by this blogger.]

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to Blog Readers

Many thanks to all readers of this blog of all religions and backgrounds (including secular), to all who comment, and especially to those who send me links (you know who you are). All of you are greatly appreciated. May Adonai pour down his blessings on each of you in this season and in the year 2010. I invite you to consider letting others know that this blog is also available for their use and participation, whether directly on the web or through Facebook or Twitter. There is also a Spanish version focusing on the Sunday lectionary readings for those who wish to practice their Spanish reading skills or who are already fluent.

Two More Implicated Irish Bishops Out; One Left

So far, three out of four implicated bishops have resigned because of the devastating report on years of covering up sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin. The resignations are signs that the current leadership in Dublin and, of course, the Pope are very serious about starting anew. Here is the N.Y. Times link to the AP story. (Let me be clear, for the sake of fairness, that these bishops are implicated in covering up abuse, not in actually carrying it out.)

If this same sort of decisive, dramatic action had been taken in Boston years ago, the Church in the U.S. would have recovered much more quickly from the Boston debacle. The problem in Boston was that the ordinary (Cardinal Law) was himself implicated in the cover up and was resisting calls for his own resignation. Fortunately, in Dublin, the relatively new archbishop was uninvolved in any cover ups and so is free to ask these other bishops to resign, as, to his credit, he has done so.

Pope's Christmas Homily

I found it at Whispers in the Loggia. Emphasis below is mine:

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

"A child is born for us, a son is given to us" (Is 9:5). What Isaiah prophesied as he gazed into the future from afar, consoling Israel amid its trials and its darkness, is now proclaimed to the shepherds as a present reality by the Angel, from whom a cloud of light streams forth: "To you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord" (Lk 2:11). The Lord is here. From this moment, God is truly "God with us". No longer is he the distant God who can in some way be perceived from afar, in creation and in our own consciousness. He has entered the world. He is close to us. The words of the risen Christ to his followers are addressed also to us: "Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Mt 28:20). For you the Saviour is born: through the Gospel and those who proclaim it, God now reminds us of the message that the Angel announced to the shepherds. It is a message that cannot leave us indifferent. If it is true, it changes everything. If it is true, it also affects me. Like the shepherds, then, I too must say: Come on, I want to go to Bethlehem to see the Word that has occurred there. The story of the shepherds is included in the Gospel for a reason. They show us the right way to respond to the message that we too have received. What is it that these first witnesses of God's incarnation have to tell us?

The first thing we are told about the shepherds is that they were on the watch they could hear the message precisely because they were awake. We must be awake, so that we can hear the message. We must become truly vigilant people. What does this mean? The principal difference between someone dreaming and someone awake is that the dreamer is in a world of his own. His "self" is locked into this dreamworld that is his alone and does not connect him with others. To wake up means to leave that private world of one's own and to enter the common reality, the truth that alone can unite all people. Conflict and lack of reconciliation in the world stem from the fact that we are locked into our own interests and opinions, into our own little private world. Selfishness, both individual and collective, makes us prisoners of our interests and our desires that stand against the truth and separate us from one another. Awake, the Gospel tells us. Step outside, so as to enter the great communal truth, the communion of the one God. To awake, then, means to develop a receptivity for God: for the silent promptings with which he chooses to guide us; for the many indications of his presence. There are people who describe themselves as "religiously tone deaf". The gift of a capacity to perceive God seems as if it is withheld from some. And indeed our way of thinking and acting, the mentality of today's world, the whole range of our experience is inclined to deaden our receptivity for God, to make us "tone deaf" towards him. And yet in every soul, the desire for God, the capacity to encounter him, is present, whether in a hidden way or overtly. In order to arrive at this vigilance, this awakening to what is essential, we should pray for ourselves and for others, for those who appear "tone deaf" and yet in whom there is a keen desire for God to manifest himself. The great theologian Origen said this: if I had the grace to see as Paul saw, I could even now (during the Liturgy) contemplate a great host of angels (cf. in Lk 23 :9). And indeed, in the sacred liturgy, we are surrounded by the angels of God and the saints. The Lord himself is present in our midst. Lord, open the eyes of our hearts, so that we may become vigilant and clear-sighted, in this way bringing you close to others as well!

Let us return to the Christmas Gospel. It tells us that after listening to the Angel's message, the shepherds said one to another: "'Let us go over to Bethlehem' they went at once" (Lk 2:15f.). "They made haste" is literally what the Greek text says. What had been announced to them was so important that they had to go immediately. In fact, what had been said to them was utterly out of the ordinary. It changed the world. The Saviour is born. The long-awaited Son of David has come into the world in his own city. What could be more important? No doubt they were partly driven by curiosity, but first and foremost it was their excitement at the wonderful news that had been conveyed to them, of all people, to the little ones, to the seemingly unimportant. They made haste they went at once. In our daily life, it is not like that. For most people, the things of God are not given priority, they do not impose themselves on us directly And so the great majority of us tend to postpone them. First we do what seems urgent here and now. In the list of priorities God is often more or less at the end. We can always deal with that later, we tend to think. The Gospel tells us: God is the highest priority. If anything in our life deserves haste without delay, then, it is God's work alone. The Rule of Saint Benedict contains this teaching: "Place nothing at all before the work of God (i.e. the divine office)". For monks, the Liturgy is the first priority. Everything else comes later. In its essence, though, this saying applies to everyone. God is important, by far the most important thing in our lives. The shepherds teach us this priority. From them we should learn not to be crushed by all the pressing matters in our daily lives. From them we should learn the inner freedom to put other tasks in second place however important they may be so as to make our way towards God, to allow him into our lives and into our time. Time given to God and, in his name, to our neighbour is never time lost. It is the time when we are most truly alive, when we live our humanity to the full.

Some commentators point out that the shepherds, the simple souls, were the first to come to Jesus in the manger and to encounter the Redeemer of the world. The wise men from the East, representing those with social standing and fame, arrived much later. The commentators go on to say: this is quite natural. The shepherds lived nearby. They only needed to "come over" (cf. Lk 2:15), as we do when we go to visit our neighbours. The wise men, however, lived far away. They had to undertake a long and arduous journey in order to arrive in Bethlehem. And they needed guidance and direction. Today too there are simple and lowly souls who live very close to the Lord. They are, so to speak, his neighbours and they can easily go to see him. But most of us in the world today live far from Jesus Christ, the incarnate God who came to dwell amongst us. We live our lives by philosophies, amid worldly affairs and occupations that totally absorb us and are a great distance from the manger. In all kinds of ways, God has to prod us and reach out to us again and again, so that we can manage to escape from the muddle of our thoughts and activities and discover the way that leads to him. But a path exists for all of us. The Lord provides everyone with tailor-made signals. He calls each one of us, so that we too can say: "Come on, 'let us go over' to Bethlehem to the God who has come to meet us. Yes indeed, God has set out towards us. Left to ourselves we could not reach him. The path is too much for our strength. But God has come down. He comes towards us. He has travelled the longer part of the journey. Now he invites us: come and see how much I love you. Come and see that I am here. Transeamus usque Bethlehem, the Latin Bible says. Let us go there! Let us surpass ourselves! Let us journey towards God in all sorts of ways: along our interior path towards him, but also along very concrete paths the Liturgy of the Church, the service of our neighbour, in whom Christ awaits us.

Let us once again listen directly to the Gospel. The shepherds tell one another the reason why they are setting off: "Let us see this thing that has happened." Literally the Greek text says: "Let us see this Word that has occurred there." Yes indeed, such is the radical newness of this night: the Word can be seen. For it has become flesh. The God of whom no image may be made because any image would only diminish, or rather distort him this God has himself become visible in the One who is his true image, as Saint Paul puts it (cf. 2 Cor 4:4; Col 1:15). In the figure of Jesus Christ, in the whole of his life and ministry, in his dying and rising, we can see the Word of God and hence the mystery of the living God himself. This is what God is like. The Angel had said to the shepherds: "This will be a sign for you: you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger" (Lk 2:12; cf. 2:16). God's sign, the sign given to the shepherds and to us, is not an astonishing miracle. God's sign is his humility. God's sign is that he makes himself small; he becomes a child; he lets us touch him and he asks for our love. How we would prefer a different sign, an imposing, irresistible sign of God's power and greatness! But his sign summons us to faith and love, and thus it gives us hope: this is what God is like. He has power, he is Goodness itself. He invites us to become like him. Yes indeed, we become like God if we allow ourselves to be shaped by this sign; if we ourselves learn humility and hence true greatness; if we renounce violence and use only the weapons of truth and love. Origen, taking up one of John the Baptist's sayings, saw the essence of paganism expressed in the symbol of stones: paganism is a lack of feeling, it means a heart of stone that is incapable of loving and perceiving God's love. Origen says of the pagans: "Lacking feeling and reason, they are transformed into stones and wood" (in Lk 22:9). Christ, though, wishes to give us a heart of flesh. When we see him, the God who b ecame a child, our hearts are opened. In the Liturgy of the holy night, God comes to us as man, so that we might become truly human. Let us listen once again to Origen: "Indeed, what use would it be to you that Christ once came in the flesh if he did not enter your soul? Let us pray that he may come to us each day, that we may be able to say: I live, yet it is no longer I that live, but Christ lives in me (Gal 2:20)" (in Lk 22:3).

Yes indeed, that is what we should pray for on this Holy Night. Lord Jesus Christ, born in Bethlehem, come to us! Enter within me, within my soul. Transform me. Renew me. Change me, change us all from stone and wood into living people, in whom your love is made present and the world is transformed. Amen.

Note to Blog Readers

I am trying out the new Google Chrome browser that you can download for free, and it seems to work very well so far. Something to keep in mind for readers of this blog. Of course, the Internet Explorer browser is fine also.

What It Means

THE CHILD JESUS MAKES THE LOVE OF GOD MANIFEST

[Emphasis added by blogger]

VATICAN CITY, 23 DEC 2009 (VIS) - In his general audience, celebrated this morning in the Paul VI Hall, the Pope focused his remarks on the subject of Christmas.

At the beginning of his catechesis the Holy Father explained that "the Church's liturgical year did not initially develop on the basis of Christ's birth but on that of faith in His resurrection. Hence, the most ancient feast of Christianity is not Christmas but Easter. The resurrection of Christ is what founded the Christian faith, underpinned the announcement of the Gospel and brought the Church into being".

"The first person to make the clear affirmation that Jesus was born on 25 December was Hippolytus of Rome in his commentary on the Book of Daniel, written around the year 204", said the Pope.

"In the Christian world, the feast of Christmas assumed a distinct form in the fourth century when it took the place of the Roman feast of the 'Sol invictus', the sun unconquered. This highlighted the fact that the birth of Christ is the victory of the true light over the darkness of evil and sin. Yet the particular and intense spiritual atmosphere that now surrounds Christmas developed during the Middle Ages, thanks to St. Francis of Assisi who was profoundly enamoured of Jesus the man, of the God-with-us".

"This particular devotion to the mystery of the Incarnation was the origin of the famous Christmas celebration in Greccio. ... St. Francis with his nativity scene highlighted the defenceless love, humility and goodness of God, Who in the Incarnation of the Word shows Himself to mankind in order to teach them a new way to live and love".

The Pope then went on to recall the fact that the first biographer of St. Francis, Thomas of Celano, recounted how, "on that Christmas night, Francis was granted the grace of a marvellous vision. He saw, lying immobile in the manger, a small child Who was reawakened from sleep by the proximity of Francis himself".

"Thanks to St. Francis, Christian people are able to understand that at Christmas God truly became the 'Emmanuel', the God-with-us, from Whom no barrier or distance separates us. In that Child, God became so close to each of us ... that we can establish an intimate rapport of profound affection with Him, just as we do with a newborn child.

"In that Child", the Holy Father added, "God-Love becomes manifest: God comes unarmed and powerless, because He does not intend to conquer, so to say, from the outside; rather, He intends to be accepted by man in freedom. God becomes a defenceless child to overcome man's pride, violence and thirst for possession. In Jesus, God assumed this poor and disarming condition in order to triumph over us with love and lead us to our true identity".

"His being a Child likewise indicates to us that we can meet God and enjoy His presence", the Pope concluded. "People who have not understood the mystery of Christmas have not understood the decisive element of Christian existence: that those who do not accept Jesus with the heart of a child cannot enter the Kingdom of heaven. This is what St. Francis wished to tell the Christian world of his time and of all times, even unto today".

Clearing the Air

NOTE CONCERNING DECREE ON THE HEROIC VIRTUES OF PIUS XII

[Emphasis added by blogger]

VATICAN CITY, 23 DEC 2009 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director Fr. Federico Lombardi S.J. today issued the following note concerning the signing of the recent decree on the heroic virtues of Servant of God Pope Pius XII.

"The Pope's signing of the decree 'on the heroic virtues' of Pius XII has elicited a certain number of reactions in the Jewish world; perhaps because the meaning of such a signature is clear in the area of the Catholic Church and of specialists in the field, but may merit certain explanation for the larger public, in particular the Jewish public who are understandably very sensitive to all things concerning the historical period of World War II and the Holocaust.

"When the Pope signs a decree 'on the heroic virtues' of a Servant of God - i.e., of a person for whom a cause for beatification has been introduced - he confirms the positive evaluation already voted by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. ... Naturally, such evaluation takes account of the circumstances in which the person lived, and hence it is necessary to examine the question from a historical standpoint, but the evaluation essentially concerns the witness of Christian life that the person showed (his intense relationship with God and continuous search for evangelical perfection) ... and not the historical impact of all his operative decisions".

"At the beatification of Pope John XXIII and of Pope Pius IX, John Paul II said: 'holiness lives in history and no saint has escaped the limits and conditioning which are part of our human nature. In beatifying one of her sons, the Church does not celebrate the specific historical decisions he may have made, but rather points to him as someone to be imitated and venerated because of his virtues, in praise of the divine grace which shines resplendently in them'.

"There is, then, no intention in any way to limit discussion concerning the concrete choices made by Pius XII in the situation in which he lived. For her part, the Church affirms that these choices were made with the pure intention of carrying out the Pontiff's service of exalted and dramatic responsibility to the best of his abilities. In any case, Pius XII's attention to and concern for the fate of the Jews - something which is certainly relevant in the evaluation of his virtues - are widely testified and recognised, also by many Jews.

"The field for research and evaluation by historians, working in their specific area, thus remains open, also for the future. In this specific case it is comprehensible that there should be a request to have open access to all possibilities of research on the documents. ... Yet for the complete opening of the archives - as has been said on a number of occasions in the past - it is necessary to organise and catalogue an enormous mass of documentation, something which still requires a number of years' work.

"As for the fact that the decree on the heroic virtues of Pope John Paul II and Pope Pius XII were promulgated on the same day, this does not mean that from now on the two causes will be 'paired'. They are completely independent of one another and each will follow its own course. There is, then, no reason to imagine that any future beatification will take place together".

"It is, then, clear that the recent signing of the decree is in no way to be read as a hostile act towards the Jewish people, and it is to be hoped that it will not be considered as an obstacle on the path of dialogue between Judaism and the Catholic Church. Rather we trust that the Pope's forthcoming visit to the Synagogue of Rome will be an opportunity for the cordial reiteration and reinforcement of ties of friendship and respect".

From Presentation Ministries for Christmas

Here it is as found at PresentationMinistries.com:


DANCING IN THE STREETS

"Here He comes springing across the mountains." —Song of Songs 2:8

Those who don't know God think being a Christian is boring. They even think that a Christ-centered Christmas is more boring than a worldly Xmas. But they're wrong in both cases. Here are a few snapshots of a Christ-centered Christmas. The Lord "comes springing across the mountains, leaping across the hills" (Sg 2:8). We respond by shouting (Zep 3:14). Then we sing joyfully (Zep 3:14). Next, this springing, leaping, and loving Lord sings joyfully because of us (Zep 3:17). We and the Lord sing back and forth to each other, and the whole place starts to jump. Then we dance with the springing, leaping, loving, and singing Lord. Even babies in the womb start to dance by jumping for joy as they receive the Holy Spirit (see Lk 1:44). The rejoicing in our town rises to fever pitch (Acts 8:8). The place starts to shake as we pray (Acts 4:31). We are all "filled with the Holy Spirit," the only true Christmas Spirit (Acts 4:31).

This is only one scene of Christ's Christmas season. Yes, we will have a "silent night, holy night" during the Christmas season. However, some of our Christmas nights and days will not be silent, but thunderously joyful. Come, Lord Jesus!


Source link.

Good News: The Clean Up Continues

A second Irish bishop resigns in response to the release of the government's investigation into abuse. Here is the BBC link, courtesy of a reader. May all implicated take their bags and go. Now.

Reopen the Eastern Orthodox Seminary in Istanbul

Since closing it in 1971, the Turkish authorities have refused to allow the prestigious Eastern Orthodox seminary in Istanbul (Constantinople) to reopen, even after being urged to do so by various U.S. Presidents, by Congress, and, apparently, also by the European Union. Here is a link giving the background to this international scandal in violation of fundamental freedom of religion.

Contact the Turkish embassy in Washington, D.C., to make your views known on this absurd situation. Here is the embassy web link.

Turkey Embassy , United States

2525 Massachusetts Ave

Washington

District of Columbia

20008

USA

Phone:

+1-202-6126700

Fax:

+1-202-6126744

Email:

contact@turkishembassy.org

Website URL:

www.turkishembassy.org

The Pope's Mind

POPE TO CURIA: 2009, A YEAR PASSED UNDER THE SIGN OF AFRICA
[Emphasis added by blogger]

VATICAN CITY, 21 DEC 2009 (VIS) - Today in the Clementine Hall of the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father held his traditional meeting with the cardinals, archbishops, bishops, and members of the Roman Curia and of the Governorate of Vatican City State, in order to exchange Christmas greetings.

Opening his address, the Pope recalled two events that marked the year 2009 - the conclusion of the Pauline Year and the beginning of the Year for Priests - affirming that both St. Paul and the saintly "Cure of Ars" demonstrate "the broad scope of priestly ministry".

"The year now drawing to a close passed largely under the sign of Africa", said the Holy Father. In this context he mentioned his apostolic trip to Cameroon and Angola where, "in the meeting with the Pope, the universal Church became manifest, a community that embraces the world and that is brought together by God through Christ, a community that is not founded on human interests but that arises from God's loving attention towards us".

In Africa "the celebrations of the Eucharist were authentic feasts of faith" characterised by "a sense of holiness, by the presence of the mystery of the loving God moulding ... each individual gesture", said Benedict XVI. [Blogger comment: The Pope is praising the renewed liturgy of Vatican II; so much for the traditionalist caricature of the Pope by both the theological left and the theological right.] He also recalled his meeting with African bishops in Cameroon and the inauguration of the Synod for Africa with his consignment to them of the "Instrumentum laboris".

His visit to Africa likewise "revealed the theological and pastoral force of pontifical primacy as a point of convergence for the unity of the Family of God". And, when the Synod itself was celebrated in Rome in October, "the importance of the collegiality - of the unity - of the bishops emerged even more powerfully", he said.

"The Vatican Council II renewal of the liturgy took exemplary form" in the liturgies in Africa while, "in the communion of the Synod, we had a practical experience of the ecclesiology of the Council".

[Blogger comment: If you didn't get it the first time, the Pope likes the renewed liturgy of Vatican II.]

Referring then to the theme of the 2009 Synod - "The Church in Africa at the service of reconciliation, justice and peace" - the Pope described it as "a theological and, above all, a pastoral theme of vital relevance. Yet", he said, "it could also be misunderstood as a political theme. The task of the bishops was to transform theology into pastoral activity; in other words, into a concrete pastoral ministry in which the great visions of Holy Scripture and Tradition are applied to the activities of bishops and priests in a specific time and place".

The problem of "a positive secularism, correctly practised and interpreted", which was the focus of the African bishops' concerns, was "also a fundamental theme of my Encyclical 'Caritas in veritate'", published in June. That document "returned to and further developed the question concerning the theological role - and the concrete application - of Church social doctrine". [Blogger comment: That is the challenge for all of us, here and abroad. We are not "theocrats" as in other religious traditions that seek to impose religious law on an entire society.]

On the subject of reconciliation, which "the Synod attempted to examine profoundly ... as a task facing the Church today", the Pope noted that "if man is not reconciled with God, he is also in disharmony with the creation. ... Another aspect of reconciliation is the capacity to recognise guilt and to ask forgiveness, of God and of neighbour", he said.

"We must learn the ability to do penance, to allow ourselves to be transformed, to go out to meet others and to allow God to grant us the courage and strength for such renewal. In this world of ours today we must rediscover the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation". In this context, the Holy Father described the fact that people are confessing less than they used to as "a symptom of a loss of veracity towards ourselves and towards God; a loss that endangers our humanity and diminishes our capacity for peace". [Blogger comment: That "loss of veracity" is also manifest in those who fail to mitigate, recognize, or try to correct the very real tragic consequences of their actions on others after participating in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Dietrich Bonhoeffer called such a casual approach "cheap grace."]

"If the power of reconciliation is not created in people's hearts, political commitment lacks the interior precondition necessary for peace. During the Synod, the pastors of the Church worked for this interior purification of man, which is the essential preliminarily requirement for creating justice and peace. But such interior purification and maturity ... cannot exist without God".

The Holy Father then turned his attention to the pilgrimage he made in May to Jordan and the Holy Land. In this respect, he thanked the king of Jordan for "the exemplary manner in which he works for peaceful coexistence among Christians and Muslims, for respect towards the religion of others and for responsible collaboration before God".

The Pope also thanked the Israeli government "for all it did to ensure my visit could take place peacefully and securely", and for having enabled him "to celebrate two great public liturgies: in Jerusalem and in Nazareth". He likewise expressed his thanks to the Palestinian Authority for its "great cordiality" and for having given him the opportunity to celebrate a "public liturgy in Bethlehem and to perceive the suffering and the hopes present in their territory".

"The visit to Yad Vashem represented a disturbing encounter with human cruelty, with the hatred of a blind ideology which, with no justification, consigned millions of human beings to death and which, in the final analysis, also sought to drive God from the world: the God of Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob, and the God of Jesus Christ". Thus the museum is, "first and foremost, a commemorative monument against hatred, a heartfelt call to purification, forgiveness and love".

The Holy Father also mentioned his September trip to the Czech Republic where, "I was always told, agnostics and atheists are in the majority and Christians now represent only a minority". In this context he noted how "people who describe themselves as agnostics or atheist must also be close to our hearts, as believers. When we speak of a new evangelisation these people may perhaps feel afraid. ... Yet the critical question about God also exists for them. ... We must take care that man does not shelve the question of God, the essential question of his existence".

In closing his address, the Holy Father again mentioned the current Year for Priests. "As priests", he said, "we are here to serve everyone. ... We must recognise God ever and anew, and seek Him continually in order to become His true friends".

"This is my hope for Christmas," he concluded, "that we become ever greater friends of Christ, and therefore friends of God, and that in this way we may become salt of the earth and light of the world".

A Lesson from Tolkien's The Silmarillion

Having recently finished a reading of the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy by Tolkien, I have now turned to another of his books, The Silmarillion. I find it uncanny how Tolkien so well expresses the Christian experience. Here is a description that will ring a bell for those also on pilgrimage (the "bell" motif is an intended pun for the liturgically astute):

But of Olorin that tale does not speak; for though he loved the Elves, he walked among them unseen, or in form as one of them, and they did not know whence came the fair visions or the promptings of wisdom that he put into their hearts. In later days he was the friend of all children of Ilúvatar, and took pity on their sorrows; and those who listened to him awoke from despair and put away the imaginations of darkness.

The Silmarillion, in "Of the Maiar," Valaquenta (emphasis added).

Think Holy Spirit.

The Clean Up Begins

Irish Bishop Resigns Over Dublin Sex-Abuse Scandal

[Emphasis added by blogger]

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Filed at 1:13 p.m. ET

VATICAN CITY (AP) -- A Roman Catholic bishop in Ireland has resigned after an investigation into child sex abuse by clergymen accused him of ignoring reports of crimes by priests in his diocese, the Vatican said Thursday.

The one-line announcement that Bishop Donal Murray had resigned did not mention the scandal.

But a statement that Murray read to colleagues and curates in the western Irish city of Limerick left no doubt that he was going because of an Irish government investigation's damning findings about his time as an auxiliary bishop in Dublin from 1982 to 1996.

''I know full well that my resignation cannot undo the pain that survivors of abuse have suffered in the past and continue to suffer each day,'' the 69-year-old Murray said. ''I humbly apologize once again to all who were abused as little children.''

Murray had been widely expected to resign following last month's report from a government-appointed commission. It ruled that Murray had handled reports of child-abusing priests ''particularly badly'' -- and condemned his failure to crack down on one particular abuser, the Rev. Thomas Naughton, as ''inexcusable.''

Murray transferred Naughton to new parishes despite receiving reports that he was molesting children. Naughton since has been convicted twice of raping altar boys.

The investigation found that four other serving bishops and five retired bishops, including Cardinal Desmond Connell, played a role in a decade of cover-up.

The report said church leaders in the Dublin Archdiocese failed to inform authorities about sexual abuse by priests, while police failed to pursue allegations because they considered church figures to be above the law.

The leader of Ireland's four million Catholics, Cardinal Sean Brady, said he was praying for Murray and offered his own apology ''to all who were abused as children by priests, who were betrayed and who feel outraged by the failure of church leadership in responding to their abuse.''

One abuse survivor, former altar boy Andrew Madden, said Murray's resignation was not enough and other church leaders should quit too.

He called for the immediate resignation of four other serving bishops who were based in Dublin during the period investigated: Jim Moriarty, Martin Drennan, Eamonn Walsh and Ray Field.

''Their continued presence in office is an insult to every child sexually abused by a priest in the Dublin Archdiocese. They display a contemptible level of arrogance and a shocking lack of humility,'' Madden said.

[Blogger comment: Any trace of arrogance and lack of humility should be the most immovable of obstacles to priestly ordination.]

But all four bishops have said they have no intention of tendering their resignations to the pope. Unlike Murray, the other four bishops were not found to have bungled any specific abuse reports.

The Vatican has been harshly criticized in Ireland, a nation of staunch Catholic traditions, for failing to answer letters from the Dublin Archdiocese investigators.

Last week, the Vatican described Benedict as being ''deeply disturbed'' by the sex-abuse scandal and said he will write a letter to Catholics in Ireland with the Holy See's response. It said also the pope shares the ''outrage, betrayal and shame'' felt by many Irish faithful.

Benedict issued that statement after meeting at the Vatican with senior Irish clergy to discuss possible resignations of Murray and other Irish bishops criticized in the Dublin Archdiocese investigation.

The 720-page report found that dozens of church leaders in Ireland's most populous diocese kept secret the record of child abuse by more than 170 clerics since 1940.

Police and social workers charged with stopping child abuse didn't start getting cooperation from the church until 1995. This opened the floodgates to thousands of abuse complaints expected to cost the Dublin Archdiocese euro20 million ($30 million).

The leader of an American group campaigning against Catholic cover-ups of pedophile priests welcomed Murray's resignation but said it wasn't nearly enough.

''Wounded adults and vulnerable children need widespread reform, not sacrificial lambs,'' said David Clohessy, director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests.

------

Blogger comment: It didn't take long after Irish bishops recently met with the Pope for the first axe to fall. Notice also that the AP refers to scandals since 1940. That puts a bit of a crimp into the wrong-headed and obtuse traditionalist attempt to pin everything bad on Vatican II (1962-65). (This AP story was provided by a reader.)

Update:

The role of substance abuse in these crimes is set forth here by Damian Thompson. In this situation, denial and the desire to not air dirty laundry must be the first things to be abandoned. If more bishops had done that, at once, years ago, both in the U.S. and in Ireland (and in other places), a gigantic scandal would have been of far smaller, although still and always of tragic, scope.

You can find a PDF copy of the official government commission report on the scandals at this link.

The God Who Humbled Himself

We have it spelled out eloquently and powerfully for all time in Philippians 2 (English Standard Version):

2:1 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by
being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, [1] 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, [2] being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Source link (emphasis added).

The Greek term for this "emptying out" or "making oneself nothing" is kenosis. The divine Son did it. It is the secret for our own personal fulfillment, however counterintuitive it may be in the light of what our society preaches to us incessantly. Some will try to empty this Pauline passage of its revolutionary impact by claiming--contrary to all the evidence--that this passage does not single out Jesus as having a uniquely divine status among men. Well, if that absence of divine origin or status is what Paul had in mind, then the passage loses all its rhetorical force and power. Certainly, everything we know about Paul and written by Paul tells us that Paul certainly intended this kenosis to be a model for all of us precisely because the divine Son himself freely chose to empty himself out for us. In a typically rabbinic mode of argumentation, Rabbi Paul is saying: if the divine Son did it, how much more should we! (See this link.)

In this passage, we see a very distinctive Christian "take" on the divine. I am aware of no other religious tradition with anything similar (except--not surprisingly at all--for passages in the Hebrew Bible, where Adonai, so to speak, "humbles" himself by continuing to seek after Israel even after having been scorned or rejected). In fact, I expect (subject, of course, to correction) that many, if not possibly all, non-Jewish, non-Christian religious traditions would find it scandalous to even speculate that the divine would choose to "humble" itself. Maybe, that scandal is a good reason for sometimes calling Christianity the "anti-religion," in the special sense of "religion" defined as a projection of our human way of thinking.

The New Fundamentalists

In my personal experience, either firsthand or through reading, there seems to be a pattern in the background of some atheists (I include some of them as cordial, pleasant friends): they are reacting, understandably, to a fundamentalist Christian background. Of course, other atheists may be reacting to fundamentalism as found in other religious traditions. Recently, I picked up a book by Karen Armstrong (The Case for God) in which she boldly and, I believe, correctly identifies many of the vociferous and best-selling new atheist writers as the mirror image of religious fundamentalists. She points out how some of the most prominent new, aggressive atheist writers are obviously theologically illiterate and thus simplistically see all religion as fundamentalist. In contrast, the main trunk of Christianity--Catholicism--has never been fundamentalist in its view of the Bible. For example, like many other Catholics, I do not have any problem with the biological application of the theory of evolution; it is hard for many Catholics to understand the obsession of some other Christians with this issue.

So much of what the new aggressive atheism says really misses the mark when it comes to Catholicism. It is good to see Ms. Armstrong (apparently, a former Catholic) making that point. (Note: Having begun the book, I already disagree with her on some other matters. She draws a distinction between mythos and logos that seems to roughly correspond in her eyes to the division between religion and secular knowledge; but, for Christians, Jesus is the Logos. This issue needs to be sorted out by a reviewer. In addition, it seems that her philosophical analysis may possibly be ignoring the contributions and insights of the philosophical school of American pragmatism which would tend not to make such a stark division between mythos and logos. I will withhold final judgment until I read the entire book.)

Pope Responds

IRISH BISHOPS MEET WITH POPE

VATICAN CITY, 11 DEC 2009 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office released the following English-language communique at midday today:

"Today the Holy Father held a meeting with senior Irish bishops and high-ranking members of the Roman Curia. He listened to their concerns and discussed with them the traumatic events that were presented in the Irish Commission of Investigation's Report into the Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin.

"After careful study of the report, the Holy Father was deeply disturbed and distressed by its contents. He wishes once more to express his profound regret at the actions of some members of the clergy who have betrayed their solemn promises to God, as well as the trust placed in them by the victims and their families, and by society at large.

"The Holy Father shares the outrage, betrayal and shame felt by so many of the faithful in Ireland, and he is united with them in prayer at this difficult time in the life of the Church.

"His Holiness asks Catholics in Ireland and throughout the world to join him in praying for the victims, their families and all those affected by these heinous crimes.

"He assures all concerned that the Church will continue to follow this grave matter with the closest attention in order to understand better how these shameful events came to pass and how best to develop effective and secure strategies to prevent any recurrence.

"The Holy See takes very seriously the central issues raised by the report, including questions concerning the governance of local Church leaders with ultimate responsibility for the pastoral care of children.

"The Holy Father intends to address a Pastoral Letter to the faithful of Ireland in which he will clearly indicate the initiatives that are to be taken in response to the situation.

"Finally, His Holiness encourages all those who have dedicated their lives in generous service to children to persevere in their good works in imitation of Christ the Good Shepherd".

Doing Good Is the Solution to the Problem of Evil

EACH HUMAN STORY IS SACRED AND DEMANDS RESPECT

[Emphasis added by blogger]

VATICAN CITY, 8 DEC 2009 (VIS) - Today at 4.15 p.m. Benedict XVI travelled by car to Rome's Piazza di Spagna to place the traditional floral wreath at the foot of the statue of Mary in celebration of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.

Before arriving in the square, the Holy Father stopped briefly at the Church of the Most Holy Trinity to greet the Dominican Friars and the members of the Via Condotti Storeowners Association. Once in the square, in the presence of thousands of faithful, he blessed a basket of roses which was placed at the foot of the column bearing Mary's statue.

"What does Mary say to the city" What does her presence call to mind?" the Pope asked. "She reminds that 'where sin increased, grace abounded all the more'. ... She is the Immaculate Mother who tells the men and women of our time: do not be afraid".

"What need we have of this beautiful piece of news!" the Holy Father exclaimed. "Every day, through newspapers, television and radio, evil is recounted, repeated, amplified, making us accustomed to the most terrible things, making us insensitive and, in some way, intoxicating us, because the negative is never fully purged and accumulates day after day. The heart becomes harder and thoughts become darker. For this reason, the city needs Mary who ... brings us hope even in the most difficult situations".

The Pope went on to recall how our cities are inhabited by "invisible men and women", people who "now and again appear on the front pages or on television screens, and are exploited to the last drop for as long as their news and image attract attention. This is a perverse mechanism which unfortunately we find difficult to resist. The city first hides people them exposes to the public, without pity or with false pity", when the truth is that "each human story is a sacred story and calls for the greatest respect.

"The city is made up of us all", Benedict XVI added. "Each of us contributes to its life and its moral climate, for good or for evil. The confine between good and evil passes through each of our hearts". Yet, "the mass media tend to make us feel as if we are spectators, as if evil only concerned others, and that certain things could never happen to us. Whereas we are all 'actors' and, in evil as in good, our behaviour has an effect on others".

After then asking Mary Immaculate to help us "rediscover and defend the profundity of human beings", the Pope paid homage to all those people who, "in silence, ... strive to practice the evangelical law of love, which moves the world". They are "men and women of all ages who have understood that condemnation, complaint and recrimination serve no purpose, and that it is more worthwhile to respond to evil with good. This changes things; or rather, it changes people and, as a consequence, improves society".

Blogger comment:

Instead of merely agonizing over the problem of evil (something which the Bible itself has eloquently and definitively done already in the book of Job composed centuries and centuries ago), what do I do, what do you do to give the only response that is really needed? Do good.

Great Advent Video

You will find it below. It was sent to me by a seminarian friend from St. John Vianney Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, which, to my knowledge, is the largest college seminary in the U.S. (as to number of students).

An Exemplary Priest

An Australian priest recounts his work with the disabled in Lebanon in this Zenit article that is well worth your time, especially as we await the joy of Christmas. Notice also that I have categorized this article under the tag of "Exemplary Priests" so that we can maintain an accurate perspective on recent disclosures out of Ireland.

Final Talk Outline on Pope's Encyclical on Social Doctrine

Here is the link to my final talk on the Pope's most recent encyclical "Charity in Truth" (Caritas in Veritate), which discusses the social teaching of the Church. For links to the previous two related talks on the same encyclical, go to this other link.

Weigel Brings Clarity

The Vatican and the Lefebvrists: not a negotiation

by George Weigel

[Blogger comment: Weigel hits the nail on the head in this column dated Nov. 18, 2009. Emphasis added by blogger.]

Prior to the opening of formal conversations between officials of the Holy See and leaders of the Lefebvrist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), which began on Oct. 26, the mainstream media frequently misrepresented these discussions as a negotiation aimed at achieving a compromise that both sides can live with. That was to be expected from reporters and commentators for whom everything is politics and everything is thus negotiable. Alas, similar misrepresentations came from “Vatican insiders” who suggested that the teaching of the Second Vatican Council was under joint review by the Holy See and the SSPX, which only made matters worse.

Here is what’s going on here, and what isn’t.
1. The conversations between leaders of the SSPX and the Holy See are just that: conversations. These are not negotiations, for there is nothing to be negotiated; nor is this a dialogue between equal partners. On the one hand, we have the bishop of Rome and those curial officials whose work is an extension of his papal office; on the other hand, we have a society of clergy who have been living in disobedience to the Roman pontiff for decades, and their lay followers, many of whom are more confused than willfully schismatic. The purpose of these conversations is to make clear what the Second Vatican Council taught (especially about the nature of the Church), to listen politely to what the SSPX has to say, and to invite the SSPX back into the full communion of the Catholic Church, which the SSPX broke in 1988 when Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre committed the schismatic act of illicitly ordaining bishops without the authorization of the Roman pontiff (and against the direct, personal pleas of Pope John Paul II).

2. Despite what some “Vatican insiders” have said, these conversations do not represent a bold initiative by the Holy See; and despite the carping from the mainstream media, these conversations are not a craven papal concession to the demands of angry traditionalists whose dissent from Vatican II Benedict XVI is alleged to share. Rather, the conversations now underway are an act of pastoral charity by the pope, who is quite clear about the settled doctrine of the Church and who wishes to invite all, including members of the SSPX, to adhere to that doctrine. Nor is this about mutual enrichment; it is not easy to see how the Catholic Church is to be theologically enriched by the ideas of those who, whatever the depth of their traditional liturgical piety, reject the mid-20th century reform of Catholic thought of which Joseph Ratzinger was a leader. The pope is under no illusions on this score; his purpose is to invite the SSPX back into full communion, thus preventing the schism of 1988 from becoming a permanent wound in the Mystical Body of Christ.

3. The issues to be engaged in these conversations do not involve liturgy; the pope has addressed the legitimate pastoral needs of SSPX clergy and SSPX-affiliated laity by his decree allowing the unrestricted use of the 1962 Roman Missal. The real questions have to do with other matters. Does the SSPX accept the teaching of the Second Vatican Council on religious freedom as a fundamental human right that can be known by both reason and revelation? Does the SSPX accept that the age of altar-and-throne alliances, confessional states, and legally established Catholicism is over, and that the Catholic Church rejects the use of coercive state power on behalf of its truth claims? Does the SSPX accept the Council’s teaching on Jews and Judaism as laid down in Vatican II’s “Declaration on Non-Christian Religions” (“Nostra Aetate”), and does the SSPX repudiate all anti-Semitism? Does the SSPX accept the Council’s teaching on the imperative of pursuing Christian unity in truth and the Council’s teaching that elements of truth and sanctity exist in other Christian communities, and indeed in other religious communities?

Those are the real issues. Conversation about them is always welcome. Those who confuse conversation with negotiation make genuine conversation all the more difficult.

George Weigel is Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C. Weigel’s column is distributed by the Denver Catholic Register, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Denver. Phone: 303-715-3215.

Source link.

Waiting with Jesus

ADVENT INVITES US TO PERCEIVE THE PRESENCE OF GOD

[Emphasis Added]

VATICAN CITY, 28 NOV 2009 (VIS) - In the Vatican Basilica this evening, Benedict XVI presided at first Vespers for the first Sunday of Advent, the beginning of a new liturgical year for the Church.

In his homily the Pope reflected upon the meaning of the word Advent which "Christians used", he said, "to express their relationship with Jesus. ... The meaning of the expression advent also includes that of 'vistatio', ... a visit, which in this case means a visit from God: He enters my life and wishes to address Himself to me".

"In daily life we all know the experience of having little time for the Lord, and little time for ourselves. We end up becoming absorbed by 'doing'. Is it not often true that it is activity itself that possesses us, society with its multiple distractions that monopolises our attention? Is it not true that we dedicate a lot of time to entertainment and leisure activities of various kinds?"

"Advent, this potent liturgical period we are entering, invites us to remain silent as we come to appreciate a presence. It is an invitation to understand that the individual events of the day are signs God addresses to us, signs of the care He has for each of us. How often does God make us aware of some aspect of His love! To maintain what we might call an 'inner diary' of this love would be a beautiful and rewarding task in our lives. Advent invites us and encourages us to contemplate the living Lord. Should not the certainty of His presence help us to see the world with different eyes?"

The Holy Father went on: "Another fundamental aspect of Advent is that of waiting: a wait that is, at the same time, a hope. ... Hope marks the journey of humankind, but for Christians it is enlivened by a certainty: the Lord is present in the events of our lives, He accompanies us and will one day dry our tears. One not-far-distant day everything will reach fulfilment in the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of justice and peace.

"Yet", he added, "there are many different ways to wait. If the present time is not filled with meaning, the wait risks becoming unbearable. If we await something, but at this moment have nothing - in other words, if the present is empty - then every passing instant seems exaggeratedly long and the wait becomes an over-heavy burden because the future remains too uncertain. When, on the other hand, time has meaning and at every instant we perceive something specific and valid, then the joy of waiting makes the present richer".

The Holy Father encouraged the faithful "intensely to live the present, where we already obtain the gifts of the Lord. Let us live projected towards the future, a future charged with hope". The Messiah, "coming among us, brought us and continues to bring us the gift of His love and His salvation. He is present among us and speaks to us in many ways: in Sacred Scripture, in the liturgical year, in the saints, in the events of daily life, in all creation, which changes its appearance depending upon whether [we see Him] behind it or whether [we see it] shrouded in the fog of an uncertain origin and uncertain future".

"We in our turn", Pope Benedict concluded, "can address Him, present Him the sufferings that afflict us, the impatience and the questions that arise in our hearts. We are certain that He always listens to us! And if Jesus is present, then there can be no meaningless or empty time. If He is present we can continue to hope, even when others can no longer offer us their support, even when the present becomes burdensome".
HML/ADVENT/... VIS 091130 (640)

After the Boston Debacle, Now the Dublin Debacle

The Whispers in the Loggia blog has the roundup on the devastating disclosures of sex crimes against children in the Archdiocese of Dublin. Here is the link. We have to expose the crimes and call them as what they are, for Jesus is the Truth, not the cover up. I was happy to see the bishops' statements characterized by blunt expressions of shame at these horrendous, heinous crimes. The concerned parents who came forward and were ignored acted like Christ in this matter. Too many of the clergy acted like "antiChrists." There is a lesson there for those tempted to bring back clerical triumphalism. It is a lesson that was already there in the Gospels as Jesus denounced the dangers of self-satisfied and smug religious leadership.

This Blog Now on Facebook

Here is the link for those interested. The blog is also available on Twitter.

Todah

It's Hebrew for thank you. Yes, Adonai, You draw good even out of great evil. You continue to do so. Thank you for doing so throughout history and in our own lives. You call evil evil and good good. You are not the font of euphemisms or excuses, but of truth. Yet, You drown the reality of evil in abundant goodness and amazing grace (charis). We trust that You will continue to do so in the coming year. Amen.

Rhode Island Bulletin

Our informal, ever resourceful Rhode Island correspondent sends us today the breaking story, appropriately enough also from the state of Rhode Island, that Bishop Thomas Tobin has banned U.S. Repr. Patrick Kennedy from receiving Holy Communion because of his pro-abortion policies. Here is the NPR link.

Finally. There is a healthy populist dimension here: even the rich and the powerful have to respect the truth. Read the New Testament Epistle of James to get a fuller flavor of that healthy populist dimension, a letter which is, as I recall, said to be the most popular of the biblical books in the Third World (at least in Africa).

Wow!

The Pope recently addressed artists gathered in the Sistine Chapel. Thanks to the Whispers in the Loggia blog for bringing this great address to my attention. Read the Pope's address in its entirety at that blog. Below is a major excerpt of the papal address. But, let me make one observation: why is it that my spirit soars as I read Benedict's disquisition on beauty but that my spirit drops when I here so many self-proclaimed, proudly assertive soldiers of Catholic orthodoxy whose rhetoric often leaves me cold? I think the difference is in personal, soulful quality: Benedict XVI is immensely wise, intelligent, and kind (manifesting the fruits of the Spirit), while too many of the self-appointed guardians of traditionalist orthodoxy sound like harshly clanging cymbals. Here is the major excerpt from the papal remarks:

Dear friends, as artists you know well that the experience of beauty, beauty that is authentic, not merely transient or artificial, is by no means a supplementary or secondary factor in our search for meaning and happiness; the experience of beauty does not remove us from reality, on the contrary, it leads to a direct encounter with the daily reality of our lives, liberating it from darkness, transfiguring it, making it radiant and beautiful.

Indeed, an essential function of genuine beauty, as emphasized by Plato, is that it gives man a healthy "shock", it draws him out of himself, wrenches him away from resignation and from being content with the humdrum – it even makes him suffer, piercing him like a dart, but in so doing it "reawakens" him, opening afresh the eyes of his heart and mind, giving him wings, carrying him aloft. Dostoevsky’s words that I am about to quote are bold and paradoxical, but they invite reflection. He says this: "Man can live without science, he can live without bread, but without beauty he could no longer live, because there would no longer be anything to do to the world. The whole secret is here, the whole of history is here." The painter Georges Braque echoes this sentiment: "Art is meant to disturb, science reassures." Beauty pulls us up short, but in so doing it reminds us of our final destiny, it sets us back on our path, fills us with new hope, gives us the courage to live to the full the unique gift of life. The quest for beauty that I am describing here is clearly not about escaping into the irrational or into mere aestheticism.

Too often, though, the beauty that is thrust upon us is illusory and deceitful, superficial and blinding, leaving the onlooker dazed; instead of bringing him out of himself and opening him up to horizons of true freedom as it draws him aloft, it imprisons him within himself and further enslaves him, depriving him of hope and joy. It is a seductive but hypocritical beauty that rekindles desire, the will to power, to possess, and to dominate others, it is a beauty which soon turns into its opposite, taking on the guise of indecency, transgression or gratuitous provocation. Authentic beauty, however, unlocks the yearning of the human heart, the profound desire to know, to love, to go towards the Other, to reach for the Beyond. If we acknowledge that beauty touches us intimately, that it wounds us, that it opens our eyes, then we rediscover the joy of seeing, of being able to grasp the profound meaning of our existence, the Mystery of which we are part; from this Mystery we can draw fullness, happiness, the passion to engage with it every day.

Source link (emphasis added by blogger).

Your Calling

From young to old, we spend much of life searching for our calling. This search in many ways reflects our wider belief about our life: is it a series of random, accidental, chance events; or is there a purpose lurking in the multiplicity of our engagements and encounters throughout life? Today's Wall Street Journal online has an insightful column that reminds us that the Christian view espouses a very personal purposefulness in our passions, interests, and callings. The occasion for these insights is the writer's musings on how a Puritan might advise someone unemployed today:

Man's vocation was not seen as impersonal and random, but as from a loving and personal God who bestowed each individual with natural talents and desires for a particular occupation.

. . . .

The Puritans pursued joy, the very antithesis of depression, even in the midst of hardship, believing they were firmly in God's hand, not forgotten and never forsaken.

. . . .

A man's worth, the Puritans might advise the unemployed Steve Lee, lay in his service to God and to his fellow man, not in titles or financial portfolios. Rather than seeing life as a series of random events, the Puritan's belief in Providence imputed a profound sense of a loving God's purpose for him, a purpose that left very little room for despair.

Source link.

Substitute "Christian" for "Puritan," and apply these insights to your own situation and calling, even if you are employed. This worldview has shown itself to be the basis for great productivity and creativity, regardless of our personal circumstances.

For China and For Us

LETTER TO PRIESTS IN THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA VATICAN CITY, 17 NOV 2009 (VIS)
[Emphasis added]

- Made public yesterday was a letter from Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B. to priests of the Catholic Church in the People's Republic of China, for the occasion of the Year for Priests which was called to mark the 150th anniversary of the death of St. John Mary Vianney, the saintly "Cure of Ars".

"In the Letter that the Holy Father addressed to the bishops, priests, consecrated persons and lay faithful in the People's Republic of China on 27 May 2007, a number of guidelines are indicated for the future journey of the Church", explains the cardinal in his letter which was published in Chinese, English and Italian. "Among those I wish to emphasise reconciliation within the Catholic community and a respectful and constructive dialogue with the civil authorities, without renouncing the principles of the Catholic faith. In this regard, despite the persisting difficulties, the information that has come from different parts of China points also to signs of hope".

Cardinal Bertone also expresses the view that, "at a distance of only two years since the publication of the papal Letter, it does not seem that the time has come to make definitive evaluations. Using the words of the great missionary of China, Fr. Matteo Ricci, I believe we can say that it is still more a time of sowing than of reaping".

"There are", the secretary of State tells Chinese clergy, "various practical ways in which you can make your valuable contribution: for example, by visiting Catholic and non-Catholic families frequently; ... increasing efforts to prepare and train good catechists; fostering greater use of charitable services directed especially to children and to sick and old people; ... organising special gatherings where Catholics could invite their non-Catholic relatives and friends in order to become better acquainted with the Catholic Church and Christian faith; distributing Catholic literature to non-Catholics".

"In this Year of the Priesthood, I wish to remind you of the source where you can find the strength to be faithful to your important mission, ... the Eucharist. ... A truly Eucharistic community cannot retreat into itself, as though it were self-sufficient, but must stay in communion with every other Catholic community".

Addressing bishops, Cardinal Bertone says: "Your paternal solicitude will suggest to you, according to the possibilities and conditions of each diocese, suitable initiatives for promoting vocations to the priesthood, such as prayer days and meetings or the opening of places where priests and faithful, especially the young, can come to pray together under the guidance of expert and good priests acting as spiritual directors".

"The Holy Father Benedict XVI realises that 'in China too, as in the rest of the Church, the need for an adequate ongoing formation of the clergy is emerging. Hence the invitation, addressed to you bishops as leaders of ecclesial communities, to think especially of the young clergy who are increasingly subject to new pastoral challenges, linked to the demands of the task of evangelising a society as complex as that of present-day China'". "The saintly 'Cure of Ars' teaches us that the worship given to the Eucharist outside of Mass is of inestimable value in the life of every priest. This worship is closely joined to the celebration of the Eucharist".

After then highlighting how, "if we are united in the Eucharistic Christ, all of the miseries of the world echo in our hearts to implore the mercy of God", the cardinal secretary of State emphasises the need "to seek reconciliation with concrete gestures. ... In order to obtain it, there is an urgent need to pay attention also to the human formation of all the faithful, priests and sisters included, because the lack of human maturity, self-control and inner harmony is the most frequent source of misunderstandings, lack of co-operation and conflicts within Catholic communities". Finally, Cardinal Bertone concludes by "entrusting to the Most Blessed Virgin the wish that your priestly life may be guided more and more by those ideals of the total giving of oneself to Christ and to the Church which inspired the thought and action of the saintly 'Cure of Ars'".

Go Where You Are Really Needed

It strikes me that some very well-meaning fellow Christians have a tendency to focus too much on the local parish by seeking to start a new group or fellowship in an already healthy and thriving parish when, in fact, they should, so to speak, regularly "refill" themselves in such thriving parishes and then go forth to where they are really needed: in the public square of our stores, schools, businesses, and universities (especially secular universities), in the contemporary equivalents of the areopagus or public square (in the plural: areopagi) made famous by St. Paul in the book of Acts. That is one of the messages that I, for one, hear from the following papal story:

CHRISTIAN UNITY WILL FACILITATE EVANGELISATION

[Emphasis added]

VATICAN CITY, 16 NOV 2009 (VIS) - Made public today was a Message from the Holy Father to Cardinal Ivan Dias, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, for the plenary assembly of that dicastery, currently being held on the theme: "St. Paul and the new areopaghi".

The reference to the Areopagus in Athens where St. Paul announced the Gospel "represents a pressing call to make good use of today's 'areopaghi', where the great challenges of evangelisation are to be found", the Pope writes.

He also highlights how "the missionary activity of the Church must be oriented towards these nerve centres of society in the third millennium. Nor should we undervalue the influence of a widespread relativist culture, usually lacking values, which enters into the sanctuary of the family infiltrating the field of education and other areas of society, contaminating them and manipulating consciences, especially among the young. At the same time however, despite these snares, the Church knows that the Holy Spirit is always at work.

"New doors are being opened to the Gospel and a longing for authentic spiritual and apostolic renewal is spreading throughout the world", the Pope adds. "As in other periods of change, the pastoral priority is to show the true face of Christ. ... This requires each Christian community and the Church as a whole to offer witness of faithfulness to Christ, patiently building that unity He wanted and called for from all His disciples. In fact, Christian unity will make it easier to evangelise and to face the cultural, social and religious challenges of our time".

The Pope concludes his Message with a call "to imitate the lifestyle and the apostolic spirit" of the Apostle of the Gentiles, "focusing entirely on Christ. Through such complete adherence to the Lord, Christians will easily be able to transmit the heritage of faith to new generations, a heritage capable of transforming even difficulties into opportunities for evangelisation".

Anticipating the Consecration

During the Nicene Creed, we bow in profound reverence at the mention of these words which we simultaneously recite out loud: "and by the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary and became man" (the new English translation of the Mass, to be introduced presumably in the near future, will read as follows: "and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man").nbyhe Holy S

Mary,
We bow at the Incarnation as we repeat these words. This gesture of reverence by all the laity and the clergy at the Mass comes before the Eucharistic liturgy where, at the consecration, Jesus becomes really present under the appearances of bread and wine.

How interesting and appropriate that we lay people as members of the common baptismal priesthood anticipate the eucharistic consecration of the ordained priest when we say and bow at the words signifying the becoming flesh of the Son of God. This anticipation of what the ordained priest will do in the Eucharistic Liturgy is a reminder of our common baptismal priesthood, something many Catholics tend to forget and even some clergy tend to deemphasize. Yet, the anticipation by witnessing in word and posture to the Incarnation in the creed is a powerful reminder that we are all priests in one form or another.

St. Leo the Great put it this way:

The sign of the cross makes kings of all those reborn in Christ and the anointing of the Holy Spirit consecrates them as priests, so that, apart from the particular service of our ministry, all spiritual and rational Christians are recognized as members of this royal race and sharers in Christ's priestly office. What, indeed, is as royal for a soul as to govern the body in obedience to God? And what is as priestly as to dedicate a pure conscience to the Lord and to offer the spotless offerings of devotion on the altar of the heart?

Quoted in the Catechism of the Catholic Church at Section 786.

Pope's Social Encyclical Talks: Parts One and Two

In the recent past, I intended to give a commentary on the Pope's recent encyclical on the social teaching of the Church, "Charity in Truth" (Caritas in Veritate, in Latin). I will fulfill that goal by making available to you links to the outlines of the first two of three talks I am giving on the encyclical. Here are the links:

Outline to Talk One;

Outline to Talk Two.

I will post the final outline in the near future.

You can use the outline by going to its page references matching the printed copy of the encyclical published in pamphlet form by Pauline Books & Media. I have also added the paragraph numbers in the original encyclical itself (after the Pauline Media page numbers and clearly labeled) for those who do not have that particular pamphlet and simply wish to use the web version at the Vatican website or some other published version of the encyclical to follow the logic of the outline.

The Details for Anglicans: Promptly Announced

ANGLICANORUM COETIBUS AND COMPLEMENTARY NORMS

[Emphasis added]

VATICAN CITY, 9 NOV 2009 (VIS) - The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith today published the Apostolic Constitution "Anglicanorum coetibus", which provides for personal ordinariates for Anglicans entering into full communion with the Catholic Church, and someComplementary Norms for the same Apostolic Constitution.

Both documents are dated 4 November, feast of St. Charles Borromeo, and are signed by Cardinal William Joseph Levada and Archbishop Luis F. Ladaria S.J., respectively prefect and secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

An English-language communique released by the congregation recalls how on 20 October, Cardina Levada "announced a new provision responding to the many requests that have been submitted to the Holy See from groups of Anglican clergy and faithful in different parts of the world who wish to enter into full visible communion with the Catholic Church.

"The Apostolic Constitution 'Anglicanorum coetibus' which is published today introduces a canonical structure that provides for such corporate reunion by establishing personal ordinariates, which will allow the above mentioned groups to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of the distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical patrimony. At the same time, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is publishing a set of Complementary Norms which will guide the implementation of this provision.

"This Apostolic Constitution opens a new avenue for the promotion of Christian unity while, at the same time, granting legitimate diversity in the expression of our common faith. It represents not an initiative on the part of the Holy See, but a generous response from the Holy Father to the legitimate aspirations of these Anglican groups. The provision of this new structure is consistent with the commitment to ecumenical dialogue, which continues to be a priority for the Catholic Church.

"The possibility envisioned by the Apostolic Constitution for some married clergy within the personal ordinariates does not signify any change in the Church's discipline of clerical celibacy. According to the Vatican Council II, priestly celibacy is a sign and a stimulus for pastoral charityand radiantly proclaims the reign of God".

The Apostolic Constitution contains thirteen sections which concern, among other things: the formation of the new ordinariates which possess, according to paragraph 3 of section 1, "public juridic personality by the law itself (ipso iure)" and are "juridically comparable to a diocese"; the power of the ordinary, "to be exercised jointly with that of the local diocesan bishop in those cases provided for in the Complementary Norms"; candidates for Holy Orders; erection, with the approval of the Holy See, of new Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life; the "ad limina" visit of the ordinary, etc.

The Complementary Norms concern the jurisdiction of the Holy See; relations with episcopal conferences and diocesan bishops; the ordinary; the faithful of the ordinariate; the clergy; former Anglican bishops; the governing council; the pastoral council, and personal parishes.

Blogger Comment:

Two points strike me as important: 1.) the embrace of legitimate liturgical diversity in the Roman Rite, as opposed to neo-Tridentine uniformity; and 2.) married clergy among the new Catholics, which we can term "clerical diversity." Both points emphasize that the "Benedictine" model of this Pope does not match that of the supertraditionalists.

Here is the Vatican website link for those who like the canonical details. What struck me was how generous are the provisions in favor of former Anglican bishops who will be able to exercise jurisdictional authority if appointed as "ordinaries" even though they are not Catholic bishops. As I understand the norms, former Anglican bishops can even participate in the appropriate Catholic bishops' conferences as if they were retired Catholic bishops and may even keep the episcopal insignia they used as Anglican bishops. That is a very generous and shrewd move, given that Anglican bishops will play a crucial role in determining if their flocks will join the Catholic Church. See Article 11 of the norms and the accompanying canonical commentary.

Update: I note that in the Nov. 20, 2009, edition of the N.Y. Times there is an article on this Anglican development which refers to the creation of an "Anglican rite" in the Catholic Church. That description of what has happened, in effect, matches my own analysis (although, technically, canonically, and strictly speaking, it is not a "rite" as in the "Eastern rites"; but the point is, nevertheless, well-made; I prefer this description: the Anglican liturgical usage of the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite). See source link.

The Decision to Admit to Ordination Is Not Infallible

That should be obvious to anyone familiar with any portion of the Church's very long history. I am aware of at least one case where, in my strong opinion, I find it amazing that the individual was ever ordained in spite of clear signals of trouble. I am sure many others with a wider circle of experience can testify to the same. And, so, I reproduce here the recent comments of Archbishop Thomas Collins of Toronto on this very painful and distressing matter, as originally posted at the Whispers in the Loggia blog:

Anyone who has participated in the awesome rites of ordination is conscious of the majesty of the priesthood of Christ, which He has chosen to share with frail humans, "vessels of clay" as St. Paul calls them, so that He might work through them in a sacramental way. I celebrate several ordinations each year, and every time I am filled with awe. When I place my hands upon the head of the candidate at the moment of ordination, I silently pray in my heart: "Lord, may this man be a faithful and holy priest all the days of his life."

To me, as a bishop, the pain of any priestly scandal is a sharp personal reminder that I need to do all that I can to be sure that those who are ordained, for all their inescapable human frailty, are living their vocation with integrity.

In our seminaries, over the long period of preparation for the priesthood, we continually strive to improve our procedures for solid human, intellectual, pastoral, and spiritual formation, so that only those candidates who are suited for the priesthood will proceed to ordination.

As for the choice of bishops, the process is extremely thorough, with detailed letters of reference from dozens of men and women. A thorough process, but not perfect. If no one in that extensive reference net is aware of a problem, it will be missed.

Those entrusted with discerning who should be ordained as priest or bishop need to be diligent, and to pray for wisdom, always aware that they might fail to spot an unsuitable candidate, especially if the problem is deep seated and hidden from everyone behind a splendid exterior.

As for improper behaviour by those already ordained, I and all of us who exercise authority in the Church have a solemn obligation to God and to the people we serve, especially to the most vulnerable, to act clearly and effectively if a problem is discovered, although also with great care that injustice not be done to an innocent person, whose name and life can be destroyed be a false accusation.

The basic reality is that in the sacrament of Holy Orders God works through frail humans, and always has done so, and always will. In the twelve apostles we see the whole range of raw material from the beloved disciple to Judas. As long as the human heart is susceptible to iniquity, we will face scandals among the apostles.

Source link (emphasis added).

It seems to me that the charism of discernment should be a prime requirement for those involved in the spiritual and academic formation of seminarians--and I mean "charism" in the supernatural sense, not just the natural ability to write out evaluations as in the corporate world. There is always more than we can see. Hence, we need the discernment that comes from the Holy Spirit to supplement our natural reasoning and evaluations. Moreover, the same requirement for supernatural discernment certainly applies to the selection of lay people to various parish and diocesan ministries. The need for the charism of discernment is urgent because, let's face it, plenty of people with emotional and personality disorders are precisely those most attracted to the perceived status, prestige, acclaim, and attention that can come with being a priest or a lay leader in ministry.

We Won (So far)

The pro-life Democrats forced the Speaker to include restrictions against abortion in the health care reform bill. Here is the story link (thanks for an early tip from Rhode Island). I sent in my email to my local Congressman on Friday. You should still send in yours because this wrangle is not over by any means. The matter now goes to the Senate. Go to this Bishops' Conference link and email your congressional people in the House and the Senate. The link gives you suggested, updated language to use in your message. You can also look up the names of your local representative and Senators at a "Contact Your Congressperson" link at the top. Many thanks for the strong leadership on this issue from our bishops.

Ancient of Days

In a recent biblical Aramaic class, we translated this famous passage from the book of Daniel in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament:

The Ancient of Days Reigns

9 “As I looked,

thrones were placed,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat;
his clothing was white as snow,
and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames;
its wheels were burning fire.
10 A stream of fire issued
and came out from before him;
a thousand thousands served him,
and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him;
the court sat in judgment,
and the books were opened.

11 “I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. 12 As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

Source: English Standard Version at this link.

It is a thrill for a believer to translate these words from the original language.

It reinforces the thrill of exuberant praise as seen in this YouTube video that I recommend you enjoy with generous clapping: