One morning in fourth grade, I arrived at the bus stop to find that everybody in my year was carrying a social studies project that must have been due that day: balloons covered in papier-mâché and painted with the scene of a globe. Perhaps I had been in another world: either I stuffed the assignment into my subconscious because I didn't know how to make the globe, or I must have forgotten about it altogether.
We've all had the embarrassing experience of forgetting something or of showing up inadequately prepared. Such harrowing experiences moved us to pay more attention in the future, to become willing to ask for help when we needed it, or worst of all, to recoil from further action in fear of making another mistake.
The very last line from the recent weekend's Gospel was the most salient point to register in my mind from the Scripture readings: "Much will be demanded of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.” It sounds like the scenario diocesan priests are facing!
Jesus' words resonate with the Church's recent celebration of World Youth Day, in which Pope Francis challenged the young people of the world not to be "couch potatoes," a term that originated with an older generation that needs to hear that exhortation just as much. He said our God is a God of risk. If there is to be any goodness in the world, God has often orchestrated it to depend on our initiative and follow-through.
As the first reading from Wisdom richly recounted, the people of the First Covenant knew well what it was like to profit from the Lord's saving initiative on their behalf. Ten plagues convinced Pharaoh finally to liberate them from Egypt; "and if that wasn't enough," He parted the waters of the Red Sea so they could pass through safely.
Even though Israel would go through cycles of remembering and forgetting what God had done for them, one after another saving intervention and ungrateful amnesia, Israel still counted those interventions as mercies from the Lord, without which they would not continue it to exist. Even so, our interventions on others' behalf can be the very expressions of divine mercy they need.
We just can't rest on our laurels to expect those expressions of mercy as if we deserved them, yet we certainly can be grateful for them when they occur.
What do we need in order to initiate those acts of mercy? Trust. Jesus issues an astounding assignment: "Sell everything." Don't cling frenetically to your time, talent, or treasure, else it will elude your grasp and be of no good to anyone.
The ultimate due date for our life's assignment is the day of our death, and we cannot place it on our calendar ahead of time. Therefore it will behoove us to pay attention, ask for help, and not be afraid to extend ourselves in love--in a word, to die along the way to death. That way, it won't be such a cause for alarm and disappointment.
Ut scribantur sermones mei (Job 19:23). Contents reflect my opinion, although Church teaching happens to be my opinion as well. Wherever there appears to be conflict, defer to the Church.
Showing posts with label World Youth Day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Youth Day. Show all posts
09 August 2016
24 July 2016
Obstruction of Justice
Today is World Youth Day. Instituted by Pope Saint John Paul II, this has been an annual celebration of the youth of the world, who are not only the Church's future, but her present as well. While WYD is observed every year, Pope Francis thought it would be a good idea to hold the current biennial en masse celebration in Krakow, JPII's hometown, especially because it is the Year of Mercy, and Mercy was perhaps the greatest cause in his pontificate. The theme for the celebration is always taken from scripture; this year's theme is Matthew 5:7, "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."
At the same time, Jesus wants his disciples to seek the fullness of life (cf. John 10:10--which was the theme of WYD 1993, which I was privileged to attend). The abundant life that Jesus promises is far more than a list of goods or services that we might demand from God as if they were terms of surrender or for returning a hostage. We're talking about nothing less than participation in the life of the Blessed Trinity.
Is it possible not to want that? More to the point, is it possible to live as if we didn't want it–is it possible to choose against it? Jesus himself insists so.
While even the pagan philosopher Aristotle noted that everyone desires happiness and fulfillment by nature, it's just that everyone's vision of happiness doesn't line up appropriately with each other's vision–and quite often they fail to line up with God's vision. We can in fact have a scorpion in hand when our son asks for an egg. When Jesus suggests so, we may think it preposterous (and certainly He meant the question rhetorically), but He sneaked in a grain of truth. All of Jesus's parables and comparisons reflect His keen understanding of our fallen human nature.
In this respect he is consistent with the Hebrew Scriptures that He learned. Say what you will about the content of the Old Testament, its divine and human authors knew well our tendency toward selfish corruption. As we read from Genesis, God couldn't even find ten righteous people in the city of Sodom, so He followed through on the decision to cleanse it by fire. As a literal event it may be hard to understand, but in principle not at all.
Perhaps you've seen this election sign. Given the contemporary state of politics, one might be tempted to cast such a vote.
The Church's Catechism (1867) picks up on a centuries-old teaching tool that lists sins that cry to heaven for vengeance. Not that any sin is acceptable, but these are so heinous in God's sight that He demands immediate and total redress.
First is the blood of Abel. Recall how God told Killer Cain, "Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground!" (Gen 4:10). The balance of the universe is thrown off by willful murder. Our dignity in the Heart of God ought to be our dignity in each other's hearts; when we treat each other otherwise, we are debasing our own dignity.
Then there is the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah alluded to in today's first reading from Gen 18. It has long been understood as sexual activity that physically contravenes human nature, involving persons of the same sex, or by extension persons of the opposite sex who have made a point of separating the two appropriate purposes of marital love: union and procreation.
More recent authors have demonstrated an amplified sense of their sin, to include a lack of concern for the needy. While this fits in with the other examples of vengeance-seeking sin, the most salient example is the one herein cited. Consult this article for more details.
More recent authors have demonstrated an amplified sense of their sin, to include a lack of concern for the needy. While this fits in with the other examples of vengeance-seeking sin, the most salient example is the one herein cited. Consult this article for more details.
The cry of the Israelites oppressed in Egypt (cf. Ex 3:7-10) also seeped out of the soil. Having heard it (of course God knew of it, but the Scriptures speak poetically), God decided at length to intervene through the initially unwilling agency of Moses. He may have been carrying around the guilt of his earlier Egyptian homicide, as if to object that he was in no place to advocate the cessation of oppression. That God deems otherwise attests to His mercy.
God's outrage at the cry of the foreigner, the widow, and the orphan is variously attested in the Hebrew Scriptures. These folks in particular were already disadvantaged, lacking their customary means of security. Israel of all nations should know better than to treat anyone as second-class citizens, because she herself had been so considered in her day.
Injustice to the wage earner is also reprehensible to the Lord. When people in power withhold the funds necessary to live a decent life, that is oppression along the lines of the offenses mentioned above.
These sins have one commonality: the intentional obstruction of human flourishing. We may wonder why God does not seem to punish these crimes immediately and unmistakably. Perhaps that will remain forever scandalous. But the consequences of these actions nonetheless proceed. The world is basking (basting?) in them right now.
Our heavenly Father invests us with understanding, freedom, and passions to respond gracefully to Him and to our fellow human beings. Again, we may wonder why God does not prevent people from failing to respond gracefully. But the perhaps central component to today's parable is a dual persistence: God's in allowing us to recognize our sins, repent of them, confess them, and to live forward with renewed attentiveness; and our persistence in doing those very things as often as we sin.
02 August 2013
Vitality, Worship, Mission: A Tale of Three World Youth Days
I've just about had my fill of coverage and commentary on Pope Francis's notorious airplane interview. If I were dedicating the present post to that interview, I would title it "Takes On A Plane." Instead, I offer Timothy Cardinal Dolan's thoughtful and polished reflections for your reading. As for another voice on the Church's teaching (not connected to the Pope's interview), I offer Deacon Greg Kandra's fine summary via Catholic News Service. That is all.
My World Youth Day (hereafter, WYD) post has to do with the theme of the occasion, which I presume the Holy Father announces sometime beforehand. This year's theme was "Go and make disciples of all nations" (Mt 28:19). Here is the Vatican's official list of the WYD themes.
I attended two WYDs: Denver (1993) and Cologne (2005). Following are some reflections on the personal relevance of those celebrations.
Denver: I came that they may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10)
This event lay at the threshold of my senior year of high school. By that point I had already decided to apply to the seminary, so I didn't need the Denver experience to solidify that decision. I later learned that a number of priestly and religious vocations came out of Denver, and that WYD had such an effect on many attendees.
It was one of my first experiences away from home for more than a couple of days, and the farthest I'd ever been away from home. It was also my first experience sleeping out in the open air. (I wasn't a boy scout, as you might have surmised.) But I was in good company--a million or so enthusiastic young people, including several high school classmates and future seminary contemporaries.
I got to know several of our diocesan priests on that trip. I was ready to say that Denver helped to make priests human to me, but that's not true: all the priests I've known were human to me, even as I knew them in my pre-teen and teenage years. Perhaps I put them on a pedestal, but only with the hopes of being able to reach that pedestal someday, not to be able to knock them down from it. One of the priests in our company noticed my fondness for the bean, and we enjoyed it together on a few occasions. He and I don't get together for coffee anymore, but he does come over for dinner and I sometimes preach for his annual Miraculous Medal Novena.
The site of the closing Mass with John Paul II, Cherry Creek State Park, was a hot mess. People were passing out as if slain in the Spirit. During the Mass I volunteered to refill three or four canteens at one of the water sites a good distance away. I really wasn't sure where the spigot was, so I just followed people. Talk about a journey of faith! When I finally arrived, there was quite a queue. An inch at a time, I arrived and started filling. It was awkward enough to carry them there, but now that they were full, it was harder. Partway back to our group, I lost my grip on one of the canteens. The lid wasn't on too tight, and most of the water spilled out. I don't recall whether I swore at the realization of my folly (I was rather pious in those days), but Homer Simpson's "D'Oh!" certainly would have expressed my reaction. Whatever the Holy Father said that day, I'm sure it was worth hearing. It was enough that he was there, and so was I.
John 10:10 remains a favorite quote of mine. As all Scripture does, this verse has grown on me, and grown in me. As one often prone to melancholy, I have appreciated the Lord's assurance of abundant life. Jesus wasn't just expressing a good wish for us, a nice idea. He was stating the purpose for the Incarnation, the reason He became flesh and entered the human scene. Life to the full--not half-life, not occasional glimpses of what joy might resemble.
JPII was an appropriate pope to proclaim that message to the world's youth. Many of us grew up with him. We had no other experience of popecraft than his. This was a vibrant man, an enthusiastic speaker, a lover of children and of the outdoors. I believe he skied the Rockies while he was in town. Perhaps some pundits noticed that, even then, he was starting to slip, but the fact that he preserved his joie de vivre endeared us to him all the more.
Cologne: We have come to worship Him (Mt 2:2)
By early 2005 I was slated to be the associate chaplain of the local WYD contingent. Then, in April, JPII "went to the Father's house"--the desire he expressed not long before his death, the desire that pretty much characterized his life.
Then Benedict XVI was elected to occupy the Chair of Peter. Some of our kids began to wonder whether this older, apparently more serious pontiff was going to attend WYD in Cologne. While I had little doubt that he would attend, I wondered how well he would take to the festivities and to the youth. How well would he be received?
There was nothing to worry about. He shared the joy of his beloved predecessor and friend, and it seemed that he felt no need to become JPII's carbon copy in this or any other respect. That interior freedom, born of prayer, attested to the Holy Spirit's presence in Papa Bene. Both the young pilgrims and the adults recognized it.
Our coordinator and crew planned a week's stay in Rome immediately prior to the WYD events. We stayed at the Motherhouse of the Daughters of Divine Zeal, who were very gracious to us, especially because several of their own, then stationed in Reading, were part of our group. It was a joy to traverse the Tiber again, and to celebrate Holy Mass on ancient altars.
As well as things could have been planned, it's part and parcel of a pilgrimage that things will go "wrong." At the end of a day trip to Assisi, we discovered that the train operators had decided to strike that day. We had to rent a tour bus to get us back to Rome. This and other unexpected inconveniences had a strange way of bringing us together, although it didn't feel like it at the time.
Many banners were strewn along the way of the grand pilgrimage to the papal site. They featured quotes from Scripture, saints, and other sources. I can't remember a single one, although a few of them came from St. Edith Stein, whose first home as a Carmelite nun was Cologne. Those quotes fueled some interest in this holy and learned woman.
I concelebrated the papal Mass at Marienfeld with thousands of brother priests. We had to suit up in alb and stole, and line up for registration. While in line, I happened to run into a priest whose parents lived at a former parish. He would join us for daily Masses on visits home, and now I rejoined him halfway across the world!
The theme of Cologne pointed to the Magi, whose relics remain enthroned in the city's cathedral. Likewise we pilgrims shared their words and their story, as we came from various places with one aim: to know the Lord more deeply. Along the way, we made new friends and deepened current friendships. That's what happens on pilgrimages. Pope Benedict once said that WYD is the culmination of a "long exterior and interior path" (Wikipedia). As we made the interior journey we discovered the Lord's love that we could in turn share with those around us.
Liturgy is always the Church's pilgrimage of faith, hope, and charity. As a reformer of the Liturgy, Pope Benedict wanted to imbue Catholics with a profound reverence for...reverence. It must become the reason for our existence, far surpassing any previous earthly interest. Just as Jesus made clear His joyful purpose in the WYD theme of Denver, we responded with similar clarity in Cologne. Jesus came to give life to the full; we have come to worship Him.
Rio de Janeiro: "Go and make disciples of all nations!" (Mt 28:19)
I did not attend this year's WYD, but now with the modern media I could have seen almost every major event, or read each locution. I was not very diligent, I must admit. My sound-byte attention span doesn't help. But I read many headlines and news summaries. And let's face it: people are going to go crazy just because the Pope is in town, regardless of his personality.
Many people have heard of the young boy who expressed his desire to become a priest. This account will be one of the most memorable moments in WYD. Since the first weeks of his papacy, our gregarious Pope Francis has been eager to stop and greet people. That unforgettable encounter has planted in the heart of the world a reminder to pray for and encourage vocations.
Aside from the aforementioned embrace, the most noted news item was the airplane interview. The pope demonstrated mercy upon persons struggling with same-sex attraction. "Hate the sin, love the sinner." In a way, he thus epitomized the WYD theme of making disciples. Charity and truth make disciples of every truly open-minded individual.
Now it's not "the world" that needs to remain open-minded; it's Catholics! To date, the Bishop of Rome seems to have ruffled more traditional feathers than progressive ones. But we must remember that Francis has been reinforcing the Church's teachings all along. Most people suspect that he won't be making many innovations, but what for, anyhow? The needed "innovation" is not teachings; to an extent it may be presentation, but without question it will be people--disciples.
The Church's centrifugal force into the 21st century must begin with a centripetal movement, an inward movement of mercy. Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict knew this, and they initiated that movement as far as they could. Now it must go into high gear. Pope Francis is the right man for the job; at least the Holy Spirit has thought so.
My World Youth Day (hereafter, WYD) post has to do with the theme of the occasion, which I presume the Holy Father announces sometime beforehand. This year's theme was "Go and make disciples of all nations" (Mt 28:19). Here is the Vatican's official list of the WYD themes.
I attended two WYDs: Denver (1993) and Cologne (2005). Following are some reflections on the personal relevance of those celebrations.
Denver: I came that they may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10)
It was one of my first experiences away from home for more than a couple of days, and the farthest I'd ever been away from home. It was also my first experience sleeping out in the open air. (I wasn't a boy scout, as you might have surmised.) But I was in good company--a million or so enthusiastic young people, including several high school classmates and future seminary contemporaries.
I got to know several of our diocesan priests on that trip. I was ready to say that Denver helped to make priests human to me, but that's not true: all the priests I've known were human to me, even as I knew them in my pre-teen and teenage years. Perhaps I put them on a pedestal, but only with the hopes of being able to reach that pedestal someday, not to be able to knock them down from it. One of the priests in our company noticed my fondness for the bean, and we enjoyed it together on a few occasions. He and I don't get together for coffee anymore, but he does come over for dinner and I sometimes preach for his annual Miraculous Medal Novena.
The site of the closing Mass with John Paul II, Cherry Creek State Park, was a hot mess. People were passing out as if slain in the Spirit. During the Mass I volunteered to refill three or four canteens at one of the water sites a good distance away. I really wasn't sure where the spigot was, so I just followed people. Talk about a journey of faith! When I finally arrived, there was quite a queue. An inch at a time, I arrived and started filling. It was awkward enough to carry them there, but now that they were full, it was harder. Partway back to our group, I lost my grip on one of the canteens. The lid wasn't on too tight, and most of the water spilled out. I don't recall whether I swore at the realization of my folly (I was rather pious in those days), but Homer Simpson's "D'Oh!" certainly would have expressed my reaction. Whatever the Holy Father said that day, I'm sure it was worth hearing. It was enough that he was there, and so was I.
John 10:10 remains a favorite quote of mine. As all Scripture does, this verse has grown on me, and grown in me. As one often prone to melancholy, I have appreciated the Lord's assurance of abundant life. Jesus wasn't just expressing a good wish for us, a nice idea. He was stating the purpose for the Incarnation, the reason He became flesh and entered the human scene. Life to the full--not half-life, not occasional glimpses of what joy might resemble.
JPII was an appropriate pope to proclaim that message to the world's youth. Many of us grew up with him. We had no other experience of popecraft than his. This was a vibrant man, an enthusiastic speaker, a lover of children and of the outdoors. I believe he skied the Rockies while he was in town. Perhaps some pundits noticed that, even then, he was starting to slip, but the fact that he preserved his joie de vivre endeared us to him all the more.
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By early 2005 I was slated to be the associate chaplain of the local WYD contingent. Then, in April, JPII "went to the Father's house"--the desire he expressed not long before his death, the desire that pretty much characterized his life.
Then Benedict XVI was elected to occupy the Chair of Peter. Some of our kids began to wonder whether this older, apparently more serious pontiff was going to attend WYD in Cologne. While I had little doubt that he would attend, I wondered how well he would take to the festivities and to the youth. How well would he be received?
There was nothing to worry about. He shared the joy of his beloved predecessor and friend, and it seemed that he felt no need to become JPII's carbon copy in this or any other respect. That interior freedom, born of prayer, attested to the Holy Spirit's presence in Papa Bene. Both the young pilgrims and the adults recognized it.
Our coordinator and crew planned a week's stay in Rome immediately prior to the WYD events. We stayed at the Motherhouse of the Daughters of Divine Zeal, who were very gracious to us, especially because several of their own, then stationed in Reading, were part of our group. It was a joy to traverse the Tiber again, and to celebrate Holy Mass on ancient altars.
As well as things could have been planned, it's part and parcel of a pilgrimage that things will go "wrong." At the end of a day trip to Assisi, we discovered that the train operators had decided to strike that day. We had to rent a tour bus to get us back to Rome. This and other unexpected inconveniences had a strange way of bringing us together, although it didn't feel like it at the time.
Many banners were strewn along the way of the grand pilgrimage to the papal site. They featured quotes from Scripture, saints, and other sources. I can't remember a single one, although a few of them came from St. Edith Stein, whose first home as a Carmelite nun was Cologne. Those quotes fueled some interest in this holy and learned woman.
I concelebrated the papal Mass at Marienfeld with thousands of brother priests. We had to suit up in alb and stole, and line up for registration. While in line, I happened to run into a priest whose parents lived at a former parish. He would join us for daily Masses on visits home, and now I rejoined him halfway across the world!
The theme of Cologne pointed to the Magi, whose relics remain enthroned in the city's cathedral. Likewise we pilgrims shared their words and their story, as we came from various places with one aim: to know the Lord more deeply. Along the way, we made new friends and deepened current friendships. That's what happens on pilgrimages. Pope Benedict once said that WYD is the culmination of a "long exterior and interior path" (Wikipedia). As we made the interior journey we discovered the Lord's love that we could in turn share with those around us.
Liturgy is always the Church's pilgrimage of faith, hope, and charity. As a reformer of the Liturgy, Pope Benedict wanted to imbue Catholics with a profound reverence for...reverence. It must become the reason for our existence, far surpassing any previous earthly interest. Just as Jesus made clear His joyful purpose in the WYD theme of Denver, we responded with similar clarity in Cologne. Jesus came to give life to the full; we have come to worship Him.
 |
| "I always wanted to teach, but, hey, this is great too!" |
I did not attend this year's WYD, but now with the modern media I could have seen almost every major event, or read each locution. I was not very diligent, I must admit. My sound-byte attention span doesn't help. But I read many headlines and news summaries. And let's face it: people are going to go crazy just because the Pope is in town, regardless of his personality.
Many people have heard of the young boy who expressed his desire to become a priest. This account will be one of the most memorable moments in WYD. Since the first weeks of his papacy, our gregarious Pope Francis has been eager to stop and greet people. That unforgettable encounter has planted in the heart of the world a reminder to pray for and encourage vocations.
Aside from the aforementioned embrace, the most noted news item was the airplane interview. The pope demonstrated mercy upon persons struggling with same-sex attraction. "Hate the sin, love the sinner." In a way, he thus epitomized the WYD theme of making disciples. Charity and truth make disciples of every truly open-minded individual.
Now it's not "the world" that needs to remain open-minded; it's Catholics! To date, the Bishop of Rome seems to have ruffled more traditional feathers than progressive ones. But we must remember that Francis has been reinforcing the Church's teachings all along. Most people suspect that he won't be making many innovations, but what for, anyhow? The needed "innovation" is not teachings; to an extent it may be presentation, but without question it will be people--disciples.
The Church's centrifugal force into the 21st century must begin with a centripetal movement, an inward movement of mercy. Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict knew this, and they initiated that movement as far as they could. Now it must go into high gear. Pope Francis is the right man for the job; at least the Holy Spirit has thought so.
 |
| "We'll check where you're at with this after the perfumes hit you." |
26 July 2013
More Like Eleazar
My news feed fed me this fervorino attributed to our currently reigning Holy Father:
Then I caught sight of this moderate chastisement from Mary Rezac of the Catholic News Agency.
Gulp! Not Francis, huh?
For an instant, I considered turning in my Catholic Bloggers' License. Had I not done so voluntarily, I would be escorted out of the CBL headquarters with my head covered, paparazzi snapping away. One count of disseminating false information, endless counts of substandard writing...
At this point, I don't know who said the above, but somebody did; and he or she should be commended for it. Because it's true.
A man named Eleazar died and appeared before the Lord. Eleazar lamented that he wasn't more like David, or Esther, or Samuel. The Lord answered, "Why weren't you more like Eleazar?"
The Communion of Saints is as diverse a bunch as there will ever be. Christ is the only mold, and the peculiarities, technological and artistic expressions, of each age are more compatible than older generations give them credit for.
Here is one of my favorite poems. Its authorship is certain.
"We need saints without cassocks, without veils - we need saints with jeans and tennis shoes. We need saints that go to the movies that listen to music, that hang out with their friends. We need saints that place God in first place ahead of succeeding in any career. We need saints that look for time to pray every day and who know how to be in love with purity, chastity and all good things. We need saints - saints for the 21st century with a spirituality appropriate to our new time. We need saints that have a commitment to helping the poor and to make the needed social change. We need saints to live in the world, to sanctify the world and to not be afraid of living in the world by their presence in it. We need saints that drink Coca-Cola, that eat hot dogs, that surf the internet and that listen to their iPods. We need saints that love the Eucharist, that are not afraid or embarrassed to eat a pizza or drink a beer with their friends. We need saints who love the movies, dance, sports, theater. We need saints that are open sociable normal happy companions. we need saints who are in this world and who know how to enjoy the best in this world without being callous or mundane. We need saints."Since this statement surfaced amid the goings-on of World Youth Day, I figured that Francis must have said it there. In an attempt to find the precise context, I found this article by Deacon Greg Kandra at Patheos.
Then I caught sight of this moderate chastisement from Mary Rezac of the Catholic News Agency.
Gulp! Not Francis, huh?
For an instant, I considered turning in my Catholic Bloggers' License. Had I not done so voluntarily, I would be escorted out of the CBL headquarters with my head covered, paparazzi snapping away. One count of disseminating false information, endless counts of substandard writing...
At this point, I don't know who said the above, but somebody did; and he or she should be commended for it. Because it's true.
A man named Eleazar died and appeared before the Lord. Eleazar lamented that he wasn't more like David, or Esther, or Samuel. The Lord answered, "Why weren't you more like Eleazar?"
The Communion of Saints is as diverse a bunch as there will ever be. Christ is the only mold, and the peculiarities, technological and artistic expressions, of each age are more compatible than older generations give them credit for.
Here is one of my favorite poems. Its authorship is certain.
 |
| Seek first the Kingdom of God, and you will get all the appreciation you need |
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