Happy Entanglements

Book Review - UnPlanned by Abby Johnson

2012-01-31T08:48:00.000-08:00

I had this book on the shelf for several months now. To be honest, I sort of avoided it because I suspected the sorts of things it would contain - dark & dreadful things. I had read & heard a lot about abortion methods, the anguish of the child, the harm caused to women, the botched procedures, etc. But I was certainly not ready to deal with the level of grief going on in the mind & soul of a woman who spent almost a decade on the “other side of the fence.” Because Abby begins with the pivotal moment of her career as an abortion clinic director, I admit my throat had a lump in it & I was ready to weep just a few pages in. But I just couldn’t stop reading. It was getting late, but just one more page… Soon, I had covered over 200 pages & it was almost one in the morning, so I headed off to bed. Curiously, I slept like a baby.

Several things strike me about her account that I feel compelled to share…

- The complexity of the human being. It is all too easy to paint people with whom you disagree as one-dimensional beings. All of us are complex knots of conflicts & contrasts. We easily compartmentalize our lives, & so easily dupe ourselves or allow others to do so. I do it. You do it. Abby points that all the while she worked at P.P., she thought she was doing good for women. We should be very humble before the mystery & complexity of the human person, especially in their fallen state.

- The complexity of human relations. In light of the above, when approaching others to convince them of the evil of abortion, we need to approach them with great, great care. If, as pro-lifers, our motivation, message, or means is anything other than the love of human beings, we will fail. Abby was loved by her parents & husband, though they strongly disagreed with her. She was openly loved by many on the other side of the fence. Yet those to whom she was loyal within P.P. turned viciously against her the second her intention to leave was discovered. In all human relations, with friend or foe, cultivate love.

- The complexity of man before God. It is a colossal scandal before the world that some Christian denominations are either neutral on the matter of abortion, & God please forbid, even pro-abortion. Abby was raised in a Christian home, never considered herself anything but a seeker of God, & was very conflicted when she was asked to leave her evangelical church because she worked for P.P., & saddened again when she was encouraged to leave her Episcopalian church because she left them. All the while she was searching God’s will in her life. And yet she still worked where she did. As mentioned, we can convince ourselves of nearly anything. To paraphrase G.K. Chesterton, we don’t need the Church to be right when we are right, but rather when we’re wrong.

- Good triumphs over evil. This is only true if there is something that really is good & something that really is evil. I am pro-choice when picking pizza toppings - this is a matter or pure preference of little moral concern. But if we are talking life issues, a choice is always between things more or less morally right & good. Part of speaking the Gospel of Jesus Christ is simply convincing people that there is a right & a wrong, a good & an evil, completely independent of how we feel about it or the circumstances. When facing such a horrible thing as abortion & the many other violations of human dignity, we should foremost know that the pro-life cause is a godly cause. God is pro-life because life is good; therefore, in faith we can be assured of victory.

What conclusions might we draw from Abby’s story? What can we do to end this tragedy in our day?

- Be loving & kind to everyone you meet. You never know how God will one day use a kind look or smile or word as a point of grace to change someone’s heart. We all remember something in our past who brought us unexpected grace.

- Never write off anyone. This is a corollary to the above. Some of the greatest sinners have become the greatest saints. Faith & conversion are mysterious happenings. Some people are born with faith, others are converted in a flash, but many people take time to work it all out. Every human being that ever existed was & is called to union with God; never cease to hope for this.

- Persevere. Babies take time to develop & people’s minds & hearts take time to change. The continuous, patient, loving presence of pro-life people through all days, seasons, & years must be a part of the landscape. It is easy to give up hope in the glacial pace of legislative change. We may lose ground any given day, but we certainly lose all if we retreat from the field of battle. The good news is that great numbers of young people are embracing the life message. The tide may be turning. Fortitude.

- Pray & fast. Though practical action is required, ultimately, this is a spiritual battle. Rather than trusting in our own abilities & righteousness, this mission will only be successful to the degree that we turn it over to God & trust the task of saving life to Him who created it.

- Stay informed. Thing happen really fast these days. You need to know if P.P. is planning to open a clinic in your town. You need to know about legislation being introduced into state or federal legislatures. Access to good information is key. Your local Right to Life chapter or your parish’s pro-life committee can be a clearing houses for what’s going on locally. The web can connect you to things going on nationally.

- Don’t assume others are taking care of it. Your church has people that take care of the flowers in the sanctuary. You don’t have to worry about it; it just happens. Your church also has people that pray outside of the abortion clinics & distribute information. You don’t have to worry about that, someone is taking care of it, right? Dead wrong. We do not have the luxury of assuming other people are going to do this work for us. If every Christian participated, this horror would already be over.

- Get involved & take action. Participate in the pro-life events in your area, whether through your church, the local Right to Life office, or 40 Days event. Learn enough to offer others compelling arguments about why abortion is wrong & not a personal matter for the mother alone. Know your state & federal representative’s positions on life issues. Write them (respectfully!) to let them know your pro-life views & that you expect them to do their part to uphold human life, which is rightly placed first among the self-evident truths declared in the Declaration of Independence.

Abby Johnson’s story is a great one that should be widely known, a story of hope. Read it & recommend it others. Donate a copy to your parish library. I can’t imagine myself being willing to systematically examine my own history, thoughts, & beliefs in the way Abby had done, let alone share it with the world. This was a monumental work of courage that she attributes solely to the power of God. It will change hearts & save lives. A million thanks, Abby, for telling your story.
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In the Beginning by J. Cardinal Ratzinger - Epilogue, Part II

2012-01-29T17:36:00.000-08:00

Epilogue: Consequences of Faith in Creation, Part II

The next figureCardinal Ratzinger considers after Bruno, Galileo, & Luther is Wilhelm Hegel,who saw God as the “process of reason (p.89),” where sin, grace, & personalsalvation all evaporate before the emergence of a new humanity that pullsitself up by its own bootstraps, so to speak. If Hegel proposed this as a theory, Marx made it a reality: “Redemptionis now construed strictly as the ‘praxis’ of man… the total antithesis of faithin creation (p.90).” Ratzinger notes twoaspects of Marx’s scheme. Firstly, theindividual no longer matters; only the whole. “Individual consciousness [& suffering] is taken up into classconsciousness… All that matters is the logic of the system… a future in whichhumans are redeemed by their own creation work (p.91).” A cheery prospect, no? G.K. Chesterton in his book What’s Wrong withthe World calls this not the bravest, but the most cowardly ideology of all:ever gazing toward a perfect future that never seems to arrive. Secondly, Marx says a creation ordered towardanother is dependency & weakness. Itis man that must create his own universe & destiny through work. The Marxist is utterly forbidden to ask wherethe universe came from, to what it is ordered, & how man finds his place itin. Collectivism promises freedom, butthe first thing it eliminates is the freedom to ask a question. In denying the question, it also denies thetruth that answers it. Disguised aswork, Marxism admits only contempt for both man & creation.

Based on thesehistorical observations, Ratzinger says belief in creation these days isobscured & denied three main ways: scientific rationalism, radicalenvironmentalism, & a view of creation as hostile to grace. The first false view would reduce creation tosimply a thing to be examined through microscope & telescope, mere matterto be manipulated. What is beyondempirical observation is “dismissed as meaningless (p.92).” Matter has no questions to ask, no moralityto struggle with, nor hopes or desires to pursue; all that remains is whatscience can do. In such a view, all thatis definitively human is swept aside. Yet, isn’t every aspect of human life inseparably linked to questioning& decision making as to what it right, what it true? Science by itself separates man from hisanchor in the truth; substituting a false god of progress.

The second trendagainst creation we are seeing more & more today is the idolatry of radicalenvironmentalism: the view of man “as the disease of nature (p.93).” Even the old pagans that worshipped the earthbelieved that man had a place on it. This environmentalism views the humanintellect as the source of the damage, so it is a highly anti-intellectualmovement. Further, it is self-hatred ofthe gift that is human life. It is ultimatelya nihilism in which man finds no grace, no future, & no redemption.

The third falseunderstanding of creation would not permit it to be redeemed by God; it remainsan irredeemably corrupted obstacle for man. Ratzinger recalls Paul’s words, “It is not the spiritual that is firstbut the physical, and then the spiritual (1 Cor 15:46) (p.94),” indicating thatgrace & creation are two poles of the Christian Faith that must never beset against one another. Indeed, theChristian view sees creation as the gateway to the world as grace. Understanding God as lover presupposes faithin God as creator. Ratzinger calls this“the freedom to accept myself as well as the any other member of the Body ofChrist… it is a way of saying ‘Yes’(p.95)” to the gift of God.

In his conclusion, Ratzingerproposes that ultimately there are really only two philosophies of creation:the Gnostic model & the Christian model. “Gnosticism, in all its different forms and versions, [is] therepudiation of creation (p.p.96).” Here,God’s redeeming love seems too shaky a ground on which to found our lives; itis not something we can force & control. On the contrary, in humility & dependence the Christian receives aredeemed creation as a gift & a promise from the God who entered his owncreation to save us. The Gnostic optionis, in fact, hostile to God as it aims “at power through knowledge… [it] willnot entrust itself to a world already created, but only to a world still to becreated. There is no room for trust,only skill (p.97).”

The Christian truthis exactly opposite: man is dependent. In acknowledging this, he rejects every attempt to create himself &his world from within. However, “thereis nothing degrading about dependence when it takes the form of love… for onlylove transforms dependence into freedom (p.98-99).” The center of man’s redemption is JesusChrist, the God-man, hanging on the cross. Thus, “the doctrine of creation is, therefore, inseparably includedwithin the doctrine of redemption (p.99),” which must be proclaimed to preventthe reduction of man to just another animal in nature & the redemption ofman as the future we can build by our own powers. With a proper understanding of theIncarnation & the Resurrection, man finds the truth of God & himselfwithin a genuinely Christian understanding of creation.

In the Beginning by J. Card. Ratzinger - Epilogue Part 1

2012-01-11T09:19:00.000-08:00

Epilogue: Consequences of Faith in Creation, Part 1

We have seen that faith in creation & the Father’s plan for mankind are inextricably bound together. However, in an appendix to his four homilies on creation, Cardinal Ratzinger notes that much of the Church’s recent theology has been directed toward “doing,” which sets aside the study of creation as something “not sufficiently practical.” “Theology has been seeking its truth more and more ‘in praxis’; not in the apparently unanswerable problem, ‘What are we?’, but in the more pressing, ‘What can we do?’ (p.80)”

Certainly, the world threatens God’s creation with ever-new movements & projects, all of which ultimately are philosophic in nature. Card. Ratzinger begins to examine these movements by noting that creation and nature must now “defend themselves against the limitless pretensions of human beings as creators. Human beings want to understand the created world only as material for their own creativity.” In this, “humans are sawing off the branch on which they sit (p.81).” Man’s salvation is intrinsically tied up with a proper understanding of creation, so it cannot be culled out of any plan to achieve man’s proper end. Ratzinger will now introduce a series of historical figures that mark various antithetical stances against a properly Christian view of creation.

First, we find Giordano Bruno (d.1600), a fallen-away Dominican who posited the idea of God-as-cosmos. We might wonder, if Bruno so elevated creation to divinity, how is his view antithetical? He desired to “relinquish the Christian so that the Greek could be restored in all its pagan purity (p.81).” However, Christian creation is contingent; it is dependent on the divine. Many moderns have taken the next step to claim that “the dependence implied by faith in creation is unacceptable… [As] a real barrier to human freedom [it is] the first thing needing to be eliminated if humankind is to be effectively liberated (p.82).”

Ratzinger also sees in Galileo (d.1642) a return to Greece, but this time in a Platonic movement of God-as-mathematics. Discovering the formulae that correctly describes the function of the universe is to approach the divine. “The whole of knowledge is fitted into the schema of subject and object. What is not objective is subjective. [And] the subjective is everything arbitrary and private, everything outside of science… unworthy of knowledge (p.84).” In this structure, God is reduced to being merely “the first cause,” which is detached from & unaffected by - even unaffecting of - the universe. Attempting to split the God who created the cosmos from the God who created you is lethal to both man & God. He is not God who merely dwells in the outer sphere of the universe, nor is he God who dwells only in the inner world of human piety, for in God ”creation and covenant come together (p.85).” Here Ratzinger gives an interesting, but undeveloped, idea that human beings are actually “an obstacle and irritation for ‘science’ (p.86),” as they cannot easily be “objectified.” He spies a way out of this modern mire, however: by seeing the person not just as another object in nature to study & ‘figure out,’ but in the light of God, the creator.

If Bruno & Galileo sought to break apart the Christian synthesis of Athens & Jerusalem, but keeping only the Greek, then Martin Luther (d.1546) would also seek to split the two minds, but so as to abolish the Greek entirely to rediscover a “pure” Christianity. In doing so, the cosmos became for Luther a fallen creation for fallen man: “the burden of their past, their shackles and chains, their damnation: Law (p.87).” Here, in an ironically Platonic twist, Luther stretches man between being & nothing: only insofar as his soul attains to God does he have any existence whatever; considered in himself, man is nothing, a non-being. In this scheme, “Grace is seen here in radical opposition to creation, which is marked through and through by sin; it implies an attempt to get behind creation (p.88).” This philosophy naturally breeds dualism, which sets the spirit against the flesh. Ratzinger sees this dualism developing in the modern world along two lines: one of “divine geometry” and one of “intrinsic corruption.” We will see how Ratzinger concludes this line of thought next time.

Postscript: In The Spirit of the Liturgy, Cardinal Ratzinger introduces the topic of worship in general by proposing the ideas of the descending & the ascending, the going away from & the returning to. He proposes that many, if not most, religions of the pre-Christian/Judeo ancients rightly saw divinity as the pure state from which all material things fell & to which they seek to return. In other words, creation was a disaster, a tragedy. Though surely unintended, Luther in his doctrine of the utter depravity of man has, in fact, brought in a classic pagan principle, albeit in a Christianized version – the physical order as the result of a complete fall from the divine order, and from which we must separate ourselves if we are to return to the state of divine grace. The Catholic tradition, in great contrast, sees creation as a wondrous gift to be celebrated, enjoyed, & cherished; a great good from the God that looked over his work & pronounced it good.

Short Thoughts on 2011

2012-01-04T13:18:00.000-08:00

Into Great Silence

I spent New Year’s Eve watching the documentary about the Carthusian monks at the Grande Chartreuse monastery while fireworks boomed off in the distance. It was wonderful. Other than singing the chants of the liturgy, the monks are only allowed to talk during the occasional outdoor recreation. They were discussing a hand washing routine, and some were questioning whether it was of any use. After some debate, one monk said that their entire way of life was a symbol; if there seemed to be a problem, they should examine themselves, not the symbols. Prayer is the pathway to God, and noise & distraction obscure the path. Silence is not a lack of noise, but rather something positive, an unlimited potential that connects us directly to God. Noise is not a possibility at all, but a limitation to something constricting & useless; it is the deprivation of silence. I want more silence in my life. Maybe this will become a tradition.

Monks with Brooms

Those cats were Kung Fu fighting. Not really fast as lightning, though. I’m surprised the whole place wasn’t struck by divine wrath & burnt to the ground. I don’t know anything about the relationship between the Armenians & the Greeks, but I don’t have to. This sort of thing should be impossible for anyone calling themselves a disciple of Jesus Christ. Msgr. Charles Pope has a good discussion of this & his personal experiences with the Greeks at the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem here. In my discussions with non-believers, I find that the worldly, sinful, & scandalous behavior of Christians is at or near the top of the list of reasons they give for not believing. The hatred that was and continues to be promulgated at the Church of the Nativity was not of God.

Kim Kardashian’s Not-a-Wedding

Just another log on the funeral pyre of marriage as instituted by God and upheld by natural law, at least in the West. If a validly-contracted marriage between one man & one woman isn’t permanent & exclusive, there’s no need to bother with it at all, other than as a facade for whatever personal meanings people wish to fill its empty husk. Unfortunately, this is not a “you-do-what-you-want-&-I’ll-do-what-I-want” sort of thing: marriage & the family are the building blocks of society. As marriage goes, society goes. Is going? Gone? Maybe not completely just yet. We often forget the carnage done to families & the individual souls that are at stake. The Church has the burden to remind humanity the forgotten truths of the marriage vow, despite individual Catholics’ own complicity in this crime of humanity. I feel a terrible burden to teaching these hard truths to my 6th grade kids; I know that failed marriages & fatherless families are already a part of their lives. I wish they could see how evil & destructive all of this is & that they would be the generation to finally stand & say, “Not us!”

Pro life Victories

Somehow, despite the utter moral failing of America (see above), there seems to be an increase in the understanding that babies in the womb are still babies, therefore deserving of love & care due any child. I think science has helped us here – images of children in the womb show them as little persons with fingers & toes, not the “blobs of tissue” that we’ve been told they were for so long by the abortion establishment. Did you know a baby’s heart begin beating after just 21 days or so? That’s incredible! I think most of us would say something with a beating heart of its own was a living being. And most intelligent people would note that this being is not a developing toaster, or an ostrich, or a Tonka truck, but a human being. The science speaks for itself; the abortion community has itself conceded this point, & shifted the argument to that the rights of the mother to be unencumbered as mothers trump those of their unborn children.

There have been a great number of pro-life victories around the country in state legislatures this past year: implementing high(er) information & medical standards on facilities, closing down those that don’t comply, & even prosecuting negligent & abusive abortionists (what a statement!). This is wonderful, because it isn’t just an elite few that have forced its view on the masses - which is how the permissive laws were enacted originally - but a real grassroots movement of ordinary people who believe that babies are good & it isn’t right to kill them; nor is there a dreamed-up right to kill them. Be aware, though, that there is already a rising tide of back lash amongst the “reproductive rights” brigade, and we are in for a lengthy legal & cultural battle which will demand our stamina & resources. These groups are viciously determined & have deep pockets. We already see this with the health insurance mandates that seem purpose designed to stab at the heart of Catholic institutions. We also need to be on the lookout for flank attacks by some wacky strains of environmentalist for whom humans are as lice on the beautiful head of mother earth – the fewer the better. But the good news is that every human being by the fact of being alive themselves innately knows the value of human life, and this, ultimately, will win the day. Unlike “reproductive rights,” the right to live is not granted or repealed by presidents, legislators, courts, or public opinion, but by God.

Wishing all a blessed 2012!

The 7 Pillars of Catholic Spirituality by Matthew Kelley: Fasting

2011-12-29T20:32:00.000-08:00

No.5: Fasting

Everyone’s on a diet, but no one wants to fast.

I sometimes wonder about the judgment on a nation that wastes so muchfood & spends so much money on diets, cosmetic surgery, tanning beds, Hummers,& other vanities while western society implodes from lack of Faith & theworld’s destitute quietly starve to death. Let’s look at a few things from which we should consider fasting, shallwe?

Vanity & Self-indulgence. Tertullianupbraided the women of his day for dying their hair, trying to look youngerthan they were, as if they would remain young forever (though he also screechedthat their blue gowns were from the devil, unnatural as they were, because Godhad never made a blue sheep). I’m prettyvain myself, especially now that I’m old(er) & something new isn’t workingright nearly every day I wake up. I’mnot sure St. Francis worried too much about hair loss or maintaining his manly physique. As far as self-indulgence, well, you’ll haveto figure that out for yourself according to your station in life. Keep in mind that a Lexus is just a nice Toyota+ another $20,000 dollars. What goodcould be done with $20,000? Let’sconsider how we could redirect the gifts we’ve been given to more positive ends.

Gossip & Scandal. We allneed to fast from about 97% of the $#!t on TV. If you really are keeping up with the Kardashians, well, that’s justpathetic. I know a lot of people thatwalk into a room & immediately turn on the TV; not to watch anything inparticular, but just to have background noise & distraction. Now, television has amazing potential forgood. I mean, Abp. Sheen was a TVstar! Also, think all the good stuffEWTN has put forth. Aside from theserare exceptions, it’s almost sickening how fast & far most TV programming hassunk. I read a Psalm commentary from St.Augustine recently where he mentions curiosity as a dangerous path. I think he means our disordered fascinationwith evil. We become the things withwhich we fill ourselves, so if you don’t want that stuff to become a part ofyou, then turn it off. It really is inour power to do so - I know that’s a radical notion, but it’s true. Also, we must be careful to avoid spreading gossip,making detractions, or giving ear to either in our own interactions withothers.

Food. Regard the proper objectof fasting, we ought, on occasion, to greatly reduce our intake or foregoit all together, either to meet the requirements of the Church or as a freeoffering. Fasting is praying with ourwhole being, body & soul. It humblesus & puts us in touch with those who do without food from necessity rather than choice. Of what we do eat, we should makehealthy choices & proceed moderately. Our bodies are a gift from God to be used for our own good, ourneighbors benefit, & God’s glory. Iadmit that I’m not very good at either fasting or eating healthy myself, but Ido know that a little bodily mortification goes a long ways. It frees us up from focusing on ourselves &fosters the discipline to make our bodies a living sacrifice for God incharitable service to others.

But aside from these, there’s a whole litany of things to fastfrom. Think about the things wecontinuously indulge in that spring from & feed the seven deadly sins:pride, anger, envy, lust, covetousness, gluttony, sloth. If you dare, take an inventory of your life& note things that consume your time, your energy, or your money. Honestly assess whether these things are moreabout indulging yourself or building up the kingdom of God. Be prepared to make corrections. That’s called conversion.

Fasting always sounds like a downer, but it’s actually a pathway to Godthrough union with the poor man of Nazareth, who was born in a barn & hadnowhere to rest his head. I’ve been toldthat the abstinence aspect of fasting in the Eastern Christian tradition isabout a return to man’s original state of grace, when our first parents weregiven to eat of all the fruits of the trees in the garden. Jesus said prayer, fasting, & almsgivingwould be the way of his disciples. Sounds like a good enough reason to give it a go.

Maybe we could all start by offering up abreakfast once a week or giving up meat on Fridays again. How about turning off the idiot box for awhile - or forever. Whatever it is,figure it out, & fast!

The 7 Pillars of Catholic Spirituality by Matthew Kelley: The Scriptures

2011-12-21T06:34:00.000-08:00

No.4: The Scriptures – There are 27 books of the New Testament & 46books of the Old Testament. This is thestory of God revealing himself to his chosen people, to whom you belong throughyour baptism. You need to know thisstory, because it is your story. Mr.West is right that the readings from Mass are not enough – you have to do yourhomework away from Mass to get much out of the readings during Mass. His first suggestion is good: start byreading the Gospels over & over (I recommend Mark or Matthew first, saveJohn for last!), because you do need to “work out who Jesus was.” But I wouldsay next read Genesis & Exodus, because you need to know the set up of thestory to understand the ending. Fromthere you will be well enough equipped to go where you like.

You will need to know about Abraham & the patriarchs, because thisis God’s first calling together of a people in whom all the nations of earthwill be blessed. You need to know aboutMoses & the events of the Exodus. Youneed to know the stories of King David because Jesus is his promised heir. You need to know the prophecies & eventssurrounding the destruction of Jerusalem & the Jews’ exile in Babylon,because from this destruction & restoration, God would promise to achieve adefinite victory & restoration. Youneed to know the stories of the apostles & the early Church, because theChurch is the New Jerusalem, the promised kingdom of God on earth. Pray the Psalms continuously throughout. Memorize Psalm 1. The Scriptures are powerful, even God’s wordto man, so be very familiar with them, at least in their major parts &themes.

But you don’t have to go it alone. I would say that going it alone is asure way to end in error. The Churchgave the world the Scriptures (yes, it inherited the Jewish Scriptures), &through its living memory of Jesus Christ, it is authorized to interpret themcorrectly. So you have a trustworthyguide. The Church has given us a greatnumber of tools to understand the Scriptures; these are found in the Vatican IIConstitution Dei Verbum (The Word of God), as well as in the Catechism (esp. paragraphs50-141). Armed with these tools,humility, & prayer, Christians canconnect to their living history in a profound way & can grow in unity withChrist Jesus, the Word made flesh, who speaks to his people anew in every agethrough the proclamation of his word.

The 7 Pillars of Catholic Spirituality by Matthew Kelly: The Mass

2011-11-28T08:27:00.001-08:00

No.3: The Mass – I agree with Mr. West that the liturgy is the primary Catholic experience of God & of the Body of Christ. I agree that the vast number of Catholics do not get much out of the liturgy (i.e., “it’s boring”), because they come ignorant, ill-prepared, & with the wrong expectations of what’s wrong with the liturgy is in our heads & hearts. However, it is not true that every expression of the liturgy we encounter is a true one. The Church is not silent on the matter. While she permits a great many options, she has pastorally taught for decades what is the proper way to celebrate Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. Why? Because when properly celebrated, the dignity, beauty, & solemnity of the Roman Rite is compelling to people & facilitates the necessary spiritual dispositions for an encounter with the mystery of God.

Fathers, if you are in the habit of opening Mass with, “Hi! How is everybody doing today?” or even “Good Morning” instead of, “In nomine Patris...”, er, “In the name of…” then you are not fulfilling your responsibility to lead your people in worship of God, to raise their hearts & minds up to the heavenly. In mixing the sacred with the profane, you are sending mixed signals to your flock & sowing confusion. I can’t imagine a pastor that is worried that his parishioners show up for Mass too early, that church decorum is observed too well, that people are too attentive to the readings, that their devotion to Christ in the Eucharist is too great. Isn’t it rather the casualness & profane-ity of the masses at Mass & the resulting lack of receptivity that grieves our pastors? The “world” doesn’t take God, his Christ, or the Mass seriously at all. Don’t let it have a voice in the sacred liturgy by lending it yours. Do the Red, Say the Black, & everything will be fine.

As for the people, this is simple: dress appropriately, observe the fast, arrive on time, pay attention, follow along with what’s being said, read, sung, chanted, & prayed, give your share to the collection basket, & receive the Eucharist reverently if you possess the necessary dispositions to do so. You are in the presence of God: you are in the Upper Room, you are in the garden, you are at the trial, you are at the foot of the cross, you are at the empty tomb. You should take this seriously, because the liturgy speaks of the ultimate things of what it means to be a human being. Beware of shallow notions of “full, conscience, & active participation.” Your actuosa participatio should be primarily interior. To paraphrase St. Pope Pius X, when you carefully follow the actions on the altar & join your prayers to those of the priest, then you have prayed holy Mass.

Mr. West’s idea of being open to the one thing God is trying to say to you is a good one, whether you write it down or not. Even when it’s obscured by clumsy human action, the presence of Christ Jesus subsists in every part & action of the Mass. It is he as the Head joined to his Body that offers worship to God the Father. This is why you have to actually come to Mass & not just stay home & say prayers by yourself. We are called to physical unity as the assembled Body of Christ, just as we are called to physical union with Christ individually in the Eucharist (which you have to be present at Mass to receive). Of course, Christ’s presence in the Eucharist is quite special, but he is also really present in the proclaiming of the Scriptures, especially the Gospel, where Jesus addresses us anew in his own words, calling us to further conversion & showing us the way to Kingdom of God.

If you don’t get much out of Mass, maybe that’s because we’re not primarily there to receive anything. We are there first because God is God, & thus worthy of worship. Everything else flows from the sheer magnanimous generosity of God. If you leave Mass & go back to your normal life without a shadow of change, the problem isn’t with God or religion or the Mass, it’s with you. You have put an obstacle in the path of the Holy Spirit, which is how God works in your world, both exterior & interior. Examine your conscience & motivations, then go back to the top of the paragraph & start again. We all have a fearsome power over God – we can either welcome him, usually involving a measure of humility & suffering, or we can turn him away. He cannot compel your heart. Hopefully, we all have another whole week to work on it.

The 7 Pillars of Catholic Spirituality by Matthew Kelly: Contemplation

2011-11-18T09:38:00.001-08:00

2. Contemplation – It is true that human thought is creative, though Mr. Kelly's examples might be a little flawed; but it is definitely true that what we think, we become. If the goal of human existence is to become partakers in the divine nature, seems we should spend more than a little time contemplating the divine. Maybe there exist those who can ponder their innermost thoughts & attain to the divine essence whilst working at their desk with the phone ringing, or in line at the grocery store or in traffic, but the rest of us need silence.

The enemy hates silence, so he fills our lives with as much noise & distraction & activity as possible. Therefore, unless you decide to change the pattern of your life & say, “I will spend W hours in prayer every Xday & Yday at Z 0’clock, & I will cull these things out of my life, because they're really just noisy & empty distractions," I doubt you will ever really find that time; there’s always something to crowd it out. We are habitual creatures. Our habits – the actions that reflect our priorities & our world view – are the activiites for which we regularly give our time. It is largely through our habits that we create ourselves. If our habits are for good, we grow in virtue; if for bad, we grow in vice. There is no neutral ground here; we are either climbing the mountain of God or falling back down.

Another consideration is receptivity. Even if we could dwell in the most remote desert cave, the silence would do little good if we make it only a monologue about ourselves - it must be a dialogue. Christians call this loving exchange prayer. God converses with us in the silence, but he is the only one who really has anything interesting to say, so we must be prepared to listen. But don’t be fooled. This is no ordinary, empty silence; it is a very active waiting, full of the power of God &, therefore, full of every possibility. It was in this silence that Mary received the angel & gave her fiat. Make it a habit to spend time with God in silence.

In the Beginning by J. Ratzinger - Homily 4, Part 1

2011-11-15T20:23:00.001-08:00

Point of Order - in an all-too-common moment of confusion, I managed to post the 2nd part of Ratzinger's homily first. So perhaps you should read this, then skip back to the other part. Cheers.

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger begins his 4^th & last homily on the biblical accounts of Genesis by recalling a comment made by a fellow bishop: today we have cut the Gospel in half! Many people speak about the Good News of Christianity in attractive & palatable ways, but no one dares today to speak the first part of Jesus’ prophetic message: Repent! That is, to acknowledge the reality of sin. Ratzinger says that to repent is “to acknowledge our sinfulness, to do penance, & to become other than what we are (p.61).”

But sin is a very old-fashioned notion these days when many people reject moral norms as the residue of a backward & less-enlightened era. Of this Ratzinger says, “…the whole idea of the moral has… been generally been abandoned. This is a logical development if there is no standard for human beings to use as a model – something not discovered by us but coming from the inner goodness of creation. With this we have arrived at the real heart of the matter. People today know of no standard; to be sure, they do not want to know of any because they see standards as threats to their freedom (p.62).” Here we see that sin & freedom are intrinsically connected together. Man, however, was not given an absolute & boundless freedom; it is subject to the limitations of the one who grants it him.

Ratzinger then considers the two great images of the biblical account: the Garden & the Snake. In the Garden, God establishes man as co-owner & co-creator; together as creature & creator in harmony, man’s life finds fulfillment. The Garden is a place of peace, beauty, & plenty; the very image of God’s plan for man. Indeed, God created man to be one with Himself. Creation, then, is “a gift & a sign of the saving & unifying goodness of God (p.65).” The snake, on the other hand, was a prominent figure in Eastern fertility cults & a great temptation for Israel to abandon its covenant with God & join the milieu of its time. For the Israelites during the dark time of captivity in Babylon, & for us today, the snake sows doubt in God’s power & goodness, even his very existence. Here we must ask, why did God create man in such a way so he would fall? Love must be perfectly free or it is not love. God gave man the power to choose Him or something else. While the choice is free, the consequences are not. Ratzinger notes, “man decides to not accept the limitations of his existence (p.67).”

Today, we clearly see that technology has advanced rapidly & has made life quite luxurious for those that can afford it, but it changes so rapidly as to be disorienting. Art, too, no longer seeks to image the heavenly, but often becomes a putrid image of the fallen instead. In the uniquely human fields of art & science, the only guiding principle is that whatever can be done must be done; but when separated from the beautiful, the good, & the moral, they quickly become monsters. Ratzinger says, “the measure of human beings is what they can do & not what they are, not what is good or bad. What they can do they may do… (p.68).”

Much like the Israelites in captivity who began to forget God & turned toward their captor’s idolatrous ways, it is a trick of Satan today that “we look on [technology] nowadays with incomprehension & ultimately with helplessness… [Men] do not free themselves, but place themselves in opposition to the truth. And that means that they are destroying themselves & the world (p.69).” We think of ourselves as quite advanced today, but only a miniscule few of us actually know how all the electronic devices upon which we rely actually work. Likewise, art has degraded into entertainment, whose goal seems increasingly to be the peddling of smut. In his slavery to technology, Ratzinger notes that men “do not make themselves gods… but rather caricatures, pseudo-gods, slaves of their own abilities… (p.70).”

We end with man enslaved to the idols of his own creation; but next time we will see the response of the New Testament.

The 7 Pillars of Catholic Spirituality by Matthew Kelly: Confession

2011-11-02T09:29:00.000-07:00

Everybody loves a list, so the CD “The Seven Pillars of Catholic Spirituality” has been making the rounds & getting some attention in my parish. It’s pretty good; he gets straight to the heart of the modern Catholic malaise & responds with sound advice, amusing stories, & orthodox teaching. Plus, anyone with a foreign accent seems to have immediate credibility with Americans, so hopefully people will tune in long enough to actually consider his propositions & make some God-oriented changes in their lives.

I do think it is funny/sad that people will pay a speaker to come tell them what anyone who takes the holy Faith seriously could tell them if asked. Admitting my daily failure to live according to the teachings of Christ, I must say that I have tried to press the importance of a few of these items in my catechism & Scripture classes, & in reply usually I just get blank stares with crickets chirping in the background.

With that intro, here’s my point-by-point take on the Seven Pillars of Catholic Spirituality, 1 or 2 points at a time…

Pillar No. 1: Confession – It is true that the world has lost its sense of sin in general, but among Christians who still have a sense of right & wrong many will say they just “take it Jesus.” Apart from setting aside Scripture on the matter of confession, being such masters of self-deception as we humans are, our desire to “just take it Jesus” quickly devolves into, “I’ll take it to Jesus as soon as I have something serious to confess, which, I mean, really isn’t that often is it? I mean, virtually never; because when I said those things to that person, they really deserved it; & when I took that stuff, I really needed it; & when I slept with so-n-so, I was just loving my neighbor like we’re supposed to; & when I did this or that, it’s because I can justify anything whatsoever to myself. Nope, I don’t really ever have anything to take to Jesus. He loves me just as I am & he forgives everything I do.”

Sure he loves you, but he is also calling you to something far greater, & refusal to seriously acknowledge one's wrong-doings is refusal to enter into the heavenly banquet (Mt 22). Did you notice that the king's open invitation to his son's wedding banquet came down rather suddenly? Remember the poor sap that was thrown out because he didn’t have his clean, white wedding garment ready? Don’t be that guy!

This is pretty easy: just on the human level we need to spend time examining our thoughts, words, & deeds, & then we have to own our sins before someone else so as to get the poison out of our system by actually saying them aloud to a confident. Think of all the money paid to psyhiatrists who ask us, "And how does that make you feel?" What people really want to hear is, "My child, your sins are forgiven. Now go & sin no more." So, on the supernatural level, the sacrament brings grace that helps us to overcome those things that plague us & restores the joy & peace proper to children of God & restores harmony with others. I assure you, Satan hates Confession. So get in the box. You’ll be glad you did.

Notes on 6th Grade Catechism

2011-10-31T07:26:00.000-07:00

I was watching Sunday Night with Fr. Benedict Groeschel on EWTN & pondering what approach I will take toward presenting the Faith to my 6th graders this year. This meditation settled on me.

The Gospel calls us to a life of utmost joy in the Spirit of God. It calls us to achieve our ultimate fulfillment by contemplating & striving towards union with God. The call of the Gospel is a truly radical one – it calls us to truly be whom we are meant to be: “Man fully alive.” I know there are people who believe that man is nothing than an animal that lives a short, brutal life, & then finally dies; but I genuinely believe the vast majority of people recognize, but are scared to death of this call to such inconceivable glory, & so settle for a lower, more earthly calling which seems more graspable, both in thought & reality.

The world today calls us to a life of conformity & consumerism, to be consumed by the things that we are assured we must have if we want to be happy. Yet isn’t there always a new thing to have? So this happiness is always a step beyond us. The world wants to force you into certain channels, certain mindsets, & certain lifestyles where it neutralize your will & freedom, & drain you of your humanity & your money. In the world we engage in projects that, while possibly good in themselves & can bring temporal success, are easily turned into idols that consume us & draw us away from the only thing that ultimately matters, our immortal souls’ communion with God.

I know this is not said well & that there is much more to say, but I want to teach this to my students in some way. Through the grace of God, I just barely escaped the jaws of the world, & I’m not out of the woods yet. I hope they will not fall for false & destructive happinesses, but recognize & cling to the happiness of God for their whole lives.

Hymns of the Breviary - Jam Morte Victor

2011-10-19T17:03:00.000-07:00

Perfect for the Rosary month of October - a hymn in honor of the Glorious Mysteries from Hymns of the Breviary...

Jam Morte Victor by Fr. Augustine Ricchini, O.P.

Now Christ, the Conqueror of death,
Breaks sin's enslaving chain,
And rising from the tomb returns,
And opens heaven again.

Awhile beheld by mortal men,
He rises from their sight;
Ascending to the Father's throne,
He reigns in equal light.

His promised gift unto His own
He sends forth from above,
And rains the Holy Spirit down
In fiery tongues of love.

The Virgin, freed of mortal weight,
Is borne than stars yet higher,
And with glad melody is hailed
By each Angelic choir.

Our Mother's gentle brow now shines
With crown in starry sheen,
As nigh her Son, in light enthroned,
She reigns creation's Queen.

O Jesu, born of Virgin bright,
All glory be to Thee,
With Father and with Paraclete,
Through all eternity.

In the Beginning by J. Ratzinger - Homily 4, Part 2

2011-10-12T19:22:00.000-07:00

The first Adam through his disobedience broughta legacy of sin & death upon all his children, who to this day have continueto seek a replacement for God & to build a paradise on earth without hishelp, an effort that always brings hellish tragedy & leaves man himself degraded. The New Testament offers a remedy for oursituation.

As noted earlier, the Church reads the OldTestament, not exclusively for its own sake, but as the story of God’srevelation of himself to his people, a revelation fulfilled in the person ofJesus Christ. Therefore, we can see thatthe catastrophic fall of the first Adam into sin & death in the OldTestament gives way to the atoning sacrifice of the second Adam in the New, asacrifice that reconciles God & man & brings new life. Man was originally created to be in arelationship of love with God; in Christ, this relationship is not only possibleagain, but reaches new & previously unimagined heights.

Ratzinger notes that, “Jesus Christ goes Adam’sroute, but in reverse. In contrast toAdam he is really “like God.” But thisbeing like God… is being a Son, & hence it is totally relational… Therefore[he] does not hold graspingly to his autonomy… [but] he becomes a slave… hedoes not go the route of power but that of love (p.75).” So, from the beginning, man has asked “Who amI?” “What is my purpose?” “Does my life have meaning?” “For what was I made?” Not “for what,” but “for whom.” He was not made to be alone orautonomous. He is made to be a son, evena son of God.

But how can the new Adam undo the damage causedby the first one & bridge the chasm between God & man? How do we receive our sonship? The answer is the Cross: “…the place of[Christ’s] obedience, is the true tree of life…. now approachable… and… thetrue pole of the earth, by which it is itself once more set aright (p.76).” The first man was not allowed to eat of thefruit of the tree of life lest “he live forever (Gen 3:22),” but now by way ofChrist’s obedience, man is welcomed to approach the divine. His destiny in Christ is now to be “partakersof the divine nature (2 Pet 1:4).”

And now, something quite surprising: “Thereforethe Eucharist, as the presence of the cross, is the abiding tree of life, which…to receive it, to eat of the tree of life, thus means to receive the crucifiedLord & consequently to accept… his life, his obedience, his ‘yes’… It meansto accept the love of God… our truth – that dependence on God which is no morean imposition from without than is the Son’s sonship. It is precisely this dependence that isfreedom, because it is truth & love (pp.76-77).”

Were you expecting that!?! To start with the words of the creation ofthe world & end up with the Flesh & Blood of Christ Jesus in theEucharist that is offered & received at every Mass? Will this change your view of the sacredScriptures? The way that you approachHoly Communion? Your relationship withGod? Ratzinger ends his fourth homily withthe hope that his listeners “be touched by the words of Jesus in theirentirety: ‘The kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel’(Mark 1:15).”

Photo of Christ as the Tree of Life taken at Munich's Marienplatz. in 2008.

Victory!

2011-10-07T10:37:00.000-07:00

Note Pope St. Pius V at the left, leading the Catholic world in praying the Rosary for Our Lady's intercession for victory against the Turks.

Meditating on the Gospel events of Jesus in the Rosary will surely secure our victory over those enemies that seek to separate us from Christ, as well.

These photos were taken at one of the most glorious places on earth: the Basilica Notre Dame de Fourvier overlooking Lyon, France.

See the golden sun arise!

2011-10-02T05:10:00.000-07:00

A beautiful hymn for Thursday Lauds taken from the book Hymns of Breviary

Lux ecce surgit auria

See the golden sun arise!
Let no more our darkened eyes
Snare us, tangled by surprise
In the maze of sin!

From false words and thoughts impure
Let this Light, serene and sure,
Keep our lips without secure,
Keep our souls within.

So may we the day-time spend,
That, till life's temptations end,
Tongue, nor hand, nor eye offend!
One, above us all,

Views in His revealing ray
All we do, and think, and say,
Watching us from break of day
Till the twighlight fall.

Unto God, the Father, Son,
Holy Spirit, Three in One,
One in Three, be glory done,
Now and evermore.

- Prudentius (d.413)

Confucius says...

2011-09-25T19:50:00.000-07:00

More pithy bits of wisdom from the Analects of Confucius:

I. Si-ma Niu appeared worried, saying, "All men have brothers. I alone have none."

Zi-xia said, "I have heard it said: life and death are a matter of Destiny; wealth & honour depend on Heaven. The gentleman is reverent & does nothing amiss, is respectful towards others & observant of the rites, and all within the Four Seas are his brothers. What need is there for the gentleman to worry about not having any brothers?" (12:5)

II. The Master said, "In hearing litigation, I am no different from any other man. But if you insist on a difference, it is, perhaps, that I try to get the parties not to resort to litigation in the first place." (12:13)

III. Fan Chi was in attendance during an outing to the Rain Altar. He said, "May I ask about the exaltation of virtue, the reformation of the depraved and the resolution of perplexities?"

The Master said, "What a splendid question! To put service before the reward you get for it, is that not exaltation of virtue? To attack evil as evil and not the evil of a particular man, is that not the way to reform the depraved? To let a sudden fit of anger make you forget the safety of your own person or even that of your parents, is that not being perplexed?" (12:21)

IV. Fan Chi asked about benevolence. The Master said, "Love your fellow men." He asked about wisdom. The Master said, "Know your fellow man." Fan Chi failed to grasp this meaning. The Master said, "Raise the straight over the crooked. This can make the crooked straight." (12:22)

V. The Master said, "If a man is correct in his own person, then there will be obedience without orders being given; but if he is not correct in his own person, there will not be obedience even when orders are given." (13:6)

VI. The Master said, "The gentleman is at ease without being arrogant; the small man is arrogant without being at ease." (13:26)

VII. The Master said, "There are three things constantly on the lips of the gentlemen none of which I have succeeded in following: 'A man of benevolence never worries; a man of wisdom is never of two minds; a man of courage is never afraid.'" (14:28)

VIII. The Master said, "The gentleman is ashamed when the words he utters outstrip his deeds." (14:27)

When being subjective is not subjective at all

2011-09-19T18:55:00.000-07:00

I was watching one of these new, hip investigative cop shows called The Mentalist, in which the main character who has an uncanny gift for reading people is thrown into prison & quickly confronted by the meanest & nastiest of all the inmates. He catches tough guy off guard with this observation:

"If you stopped looking at the world in terms of what you like & don't like, & instead saw things for what they are in themselves, you would find a lot of peace, my friend."

Before too long, the inmate is pouring out his heart & soul to his new buddy.

When I told my mom I was studying philosophy, she replied, "Everyone has a philosophy." Well, that's true. Maybe not everyone has thought it through explicitly, but everyone approaches life with a certain set of assumptions, presuppositions, goals, & methods. We all do it.

Something the nineteenth century brought us besides the industrial revolution & the first modern war was a crap load of really, really bad philosophy. Much of this has not only become popular, but imbued into Western culture at large. It's been so successful that it's hard to recognize it because it's already so close to us.

One such example is subjectivism, which perhaps we can trace back to Protagoras, who famously quipped, "Man is the measure of all things, of things that are that they are, of the things that are not that they are not." In other words, believing it so makes it so. Subjectivism is a kind of indulgence into one's own viewpoint. It's not a very happy place; it doesn't let in any light or air from the outside - you know, the place where, like, real stuff comes from. It also both excludes others & also concedes them their own subjectivistic territory all at the same time. If you can make your own reality, can't everyone else? And aren't all these 'realities' all equally valid? If someone hits you up with, "Well, maybe that's true for you, but not for me," then you've just been subjectivism'd on.

Now, the thing is, Subjectivity is a very good thing, so don't confuse them. Subjectivity means being who you really are, being the subject of your actions, anchored in your own being, not easily swayed & manipulated by the myriad of other things that come your way. Subjectivity allows you to see other things as they really are, too, & to approach (or avoid) them in a healthy way. It is a state of giving yourself & others their proper due. It is when you are Subjective that you are really Objective. Conversely, when you are incarcerated in subjectivism, you only get a distorted view of things, not really understanding them at all. So, from a Subjective standpoint, one could reply, "No, some things really are good in themselves regardless of how dismissive one feels about them, & other things really are horrible no matter how much one indulges in them."

Many of the 'new' philosophical schools had as their expressed aim to turn the old order upside-down. Well, it's very nearly succeeded, wouldn't you say! Subjectivism, especially, is dangerous because it says that everybody's truth is equally true, which really means "There is no Truth." It is a logical fallacy to say that 2+2 is both 4 & 7 at the same time. Only one of these propositions is true. Chesterton wisely noted that when one stops believing in something, he doesn't believe in nothing; rather he'll believe in anything. "Maybe it's 4 for you, but not for me."

In Chesterton's time, these new philosophies were radical. The Czar & his family had been executed by Communist. The Spanish civil war raged. National Socialism & fascism were on the rise in Germany & Italy. Margaret Sanger was doing her diabolical work here in the U.S. These ideas were audacious & gaudy & dangerous. Today, they've soaked into the societal fabric. We often grant others their own reality as way of being polite & maintaining order. People are scared to speak up, even when something rings through as a universal truth - like the idea of owning another human being as property, for example.

Just keeping your eyes & ears open is enough to develop a BS-detector for subjectivism. It will help root out a lot of bad philosophy - & unhappiness. The Truth of every situation may not be clear, but not up for grabs or for a vote, either. Chesterton also reminded us that the Truth is the Truth even if no one believes it, & lies are still lies even if everyone believes them. We have to be vigilant. As another popular TV show proposed, The Truth is out there...

Attende laudis canticum

2011-09-16T18:30:00.000-07:00

I stumbled upon a wonderful thing while browsing around at the wonderful Musica Sacra site: Hymns of the Breviary – a book of the traditional sacred songs for use with the Hours translated into English.

Though the book is a compilation of many people’s work & does not explicitly list an author that I could see, the writer of the Preface gives credit to a Fr. Britt for the current edition. It was first published in 1922 & was in its 3^rd printing by 1936. It has a wonderful introductory material on the history of the Office & its hymns, of musical meter, & much more. The original Latin texts are given next to lovely English translations, missal-style.

I wanted to share a beautiful hymn for Friday Matins called “Tu, Trinitas Unitas,” from it’s opening line in Latin.

O Three in One, and One in Three,

Who rulest all things mightily:

Bow down to hear the songs of praise

Which, freed from bonds of sleep, we raise.

While lingers yet the peace of night,

We rouse us from our slumbers light:

That might of instant prayer may win

The healing balm for wounds of sin.

If, by wiles of Satan caught,

This night-time we have sinned in aught,

That sin Thy glorious power to-day,

From heaven descending, cleanse away.

Let naught impure our bodies stain,

No laggard sloth our souls detain,

No taint of sin our spirits know,

To chill the fervor of their glow.

Wherefore, Redeemer, grant that we

Fulfilled with Thine own light may be:

That, in our course, from day to day,

By no misdeed we fall away.

Grant this, O Father ever One

With Christ, Thy sole-begotten Son,

And Holy Ghost, whom all adore,

Reigning and blest forevermore.

I can picture these men yawning as they rise from sleep in their cells, rubbing their eyes as they make their way down cold stone halls towards the choir to sing their earliest Hour. I love the phrase urging God to “bow down to hear the songs of praise” (attende laudis canticum), which reminds me of the upcoming haunting Introit chant Incline, Domine, aurem tuam ad me (“Incline, O Lord, your ear to me”).

Note that the world of slumber is a place that we don’t want to leave; perhaps it is heavenly, but it is also an illusion – merely a dream. Returning to the real world, we wake up in cold darkness where an enemy lurks to ensnare us. The Devil? Surely; but also our own failures & lingering resentments, anguish over words spoken or choices made, maybe yesterday or maybe thirty years ago. But we pray to remain strong in the face of such temptation to despair; the One who loves us will come to our rescue. In our struggle, we must keep our eyes on the source of our light & warmth: the God in whom there is no darkness, but everlasting day – the God who makes all things new.

A note attributes the Latin original of this Iambic dimeter hymn to Pope St. Gregory the Great (d.604), translated by G.H. Palmer & J.W. Chadwick.

In the Beginning by Joseph Ratzinger - Homily 3, Part 2

2011-09-10T06:24:00.000-07:00

Jesus Christ is origin, end, & reference point of all things, especially for Christians wishing to understand the Scriptures. Cardinal Ratzinger reminds us that, “only in the New is the deepest meaning of the Old to be found (p.49).” When read this way, we see that Christ, the new Adam, shows us the real & complete meaning of what human beings are meant to be in the plan of God: not only the highest created beings, but when related to Christ as brother - as first Adam to second Adam - we can come to relation & communion with God himself. Thus, we are not just another creature in creation, but transitional beings destined to become what we are not yet. Of this, Ratzinger says, “Human persons are not to be understood merely from the perspective of their past histories or from that isolated moment that we refer to as the present. They are oriented toward their future… We must always see in other human beings persons with whom we shall one day share God’s joy… members of the Body of Christ… children of God (p.49).”

In recent times, there has arisen a perceived ideological conflict between faith & reason, which often manifests itself in a debate between Creation & Evolution. Ratzinger says these are actually two complimentary terms that respond to different aspects of reality: “The story of the dust of the earth & the breath of God… does not in fact explain how human persons came to be but rather what they are (p.50).” The Genesis accounts of creation describe our inmost origin, the “project” that we are. Evolution, in the sense of a scientific theory, seeks to understand & describe the biological development of all life & of man. What it cannot explain the “whys” of man’s existence: why is man what he is, for what is he made, where is he going?

As scientists continue to make amazing discoveries into the “mechanisms” of life, they find a natural parallel between organisms & machines: “a thoughtful & considered plan, which is itself coherent & logical (p.54).” However, there are some significant differences. Ratzinger notes that machines are quite dull compared to the boundless creativity of life itself. Organisms move from within, whereas machines require an outside operator. Further, life reproduces itself, bringing about another like itself, & continuing its “project.” This brings us to the ideas of coming to be, perishing, & stability. In the past, the universe was understood as having been put in place in an instant basically in the form we see it now, much as the literal creationists do. While the Church once held this position, too, we can now see the universe & things in it as mutable: changing, growing, “becoming.” The catechism takes up this language when it speaks of creation as unfinished & in a state of journeying. However, the materialistic atheist is forced into to an awkward position; for instead of a personal Creator, he has only random chance to point to as the cause of things.

As the modern sciences initially developed, , many scientists felt that all things operated according to a fixed set of rules, like a grand, cosmic clock whose interactions & outcomes were assured; a universe with a comfortable predictability & permanency. Now, in the era of quantum physics & dark energy, the universe seems “messier” & more unfathomable. Few things have a shorter half-life than the latest scientific theory. Even the atheist must admit to an element of chance in the universe, an unpredictable & uncontrollable element which the Christian understands simply as freedom. Ratzinger quotes James Monad, a scientist who notes that life itself is mathematically improbable in the extreme, but then notes that our very existence must mean that we have hit the cosmic jackpot.

Yet, in this cauldron of action & reaction, Monad realizes something unexpected & important: “there is not only becoming, whereby everything is in constant change, but also permanency (p.55).” Monad notes that life is conservative - it reproduces itself exactly. While the universe is in a constant state of change, the opposite is true for life; it is largely unchanging. Still, he believes life does evolve in the form of errors in the transmission of itself, errors which are preserved & accumulated & give rise to new things. Monad summarizes his position as, “We are product of haphazard mistakes.”

Ratzinger responds, “What response shall we make to this view? It is the affair of the natural sciences to explain how the tree of life in particular continues to grow & how new branches shoot out from it. This is not a matter for faith. But we must have the audacity to say that the great projects of the living creation are not the products of chance & error (p.56).” Because creation is reasonable & intelligent, we must recognize the divine Reason & Intelligence behind it. Science itself seems to reveal this Reason with every new discovery. “Human beings are not a mistake but something willed; they are the fruit of love… Yes, Father, you have willed me (p.57).”

And so we return to Jesus Christ. As man ponders who he is, what he was made for, & what is his destiny, he can find the answer not in random chance or error, but in the divine Son of God who become man & revealed the truth of humanity to itself. Christ is the man in whom we can recognize the fullness of God’s project, for ourselves & the whole world. In his humiliation, we can see how tragic human life can be, wracked with hate & sin (the topic of the 4th homily). But in his suffering love, we can see God’s response. At the end of his third homily Cardinal Ratzinger concludes, “[Jesus Christ] is the man who is loved by God to the very dust (p.58).”

Angelus Domini nutiavit Mariae

2011-09-06T09:04:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks, I'm back with a real blog post after about 20 years of having completely ignored this space. Barely enough time to think, let alone write.

Yet, something totally unexpected & wonderful happened the other day at lunch at a Mexican restaurant that I wanted to share.

My work colleagues & I were talking about the kinds of things guys talk about while munching on chips & salza, while a Spanish-language music station played on radio in the background. Suddenly, the jabbering on the radio disappeared, & in it's place was a quite ominous-sounding church bell ringing - 12 times.

At first, my friends made a few nervous jokes about it, but then everyone became very quiet & still. Then a lovely female voice sang out Ave Maria... Then after a moment of silence, the Spanish language radio host carried on with his program. My friends looked at each other uneasily, not really sure as to what just happened or why. Then everyone went back to their chatting & chips.

We had just witnessed the call to mid-day prayer, the Angelus, & a beautiful public witness of the Catholic Faith. I'm sure this was nothing extraordinary in the sense that this radio station does this everyday, but I had never heard it & neither had my friends, I'm sure. Mary had caught us by surprise!

I very much appreciated this reminder that the time given to me is a gift to be used for the glory of God & the good of my fellow man, & also a reminder that Christ Jesus, his beautiful & glorious Mother, & all her heavenly children are with us on this journey to God.

The Angelus

V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R. And she conceived by the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary...
V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to Thy word.
Hail Mary...
V. And the Word was made Flesh.
R. And dwelt amongst us.
Hail Mary...
V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray:
Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son was made known by the message of an Angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.

BTW, if you're in the neighborhood of Holy Resurrection Byzantine Catholic Church (the old Holy Ghost on the corner Central & Baxter) this Thursday, Sep 8 at 7:00pm, come to the liturgy celebrating the Nativity of the Blessed Mother.

In The Beginning by Joseph Ratzinger, Homily 3, Part 1

2011-08-28T17:11:00.000-07:00

Made in God's Image

“God formed man from the dust of the ground. There is here something at once humbling & consoling (p.42),” reflects Joseph Ratzinger at the opening of his third homily on Genesis. First, we must observe that the Bible upholds man’s dignity from the outset by illustrating how he is “one humanity formed from God’s one earth, (p.44)” which at once shows the unity of all mankind and the evil of all division, especially along lines of ethnicity.

Further, man’s dignity is elevated in his creation in God’s own image & likeness. It is true that there is something of man from “below,” that is, of the earth; but it is likewise true that man bears within him something from “above,” something heavenly, something of God. Ratzinger says that each individual human being, “realizes the one project of God… the same creative idea of God (p.45).” Therein lies man’s dignity: “Each one bears God’s breath in himself or herself, each one is God’s image. This is the deepest reason for the inviolability of human dignity, & upon it is founded ultimately every civilization.”

Often today, this image is besmirched & goes unrecognized. “When the human person is no longer seen as… bearing God’s breath, then the human being begins to be viewed in utilitarian fashion [&] the barbarity appears that tramples upon human dignity (p.45).” In this case, Ratzinger asks, not rhetorically, if the dignity of the human person can be defended in a world of technology?

While it is true that science has given man a certain amount freedom & control over his world, there is a grave danger that those things that cannot be scientifically verified, like morality, holiness, or love will be cast aside as relics of man’s unenlightened past. In this way, instead of liberating, science can destroy what is most distinctly human. But this is a ground that Ratzinger is unwilling to concede, as man’s rationality is also defining of him; so he now distinguishes between two kinds of reason: the scientific & the moral-religious. He suggests that the moral-religious dimension of man must not be dismissed because it isn’t mathematical. In fact, it is actually the more “human” of the two. It is what prevents man from being reduced to just another thing in nature, to an animal. It keeps man from destroying himself.

Returning to the image of God in man, the Cardinal notes that “An image… represents something... It points to something beyond itself (p.47).” We then see that man, too, points to something beyond himself. It is easily observable that man is made for relations with other persons. He is not closed in on himself; he is oriented toward an Other. As fulfilling as human relations can be, man finds within him a longing for union with something transcendent, which he instinctively knows to be God, his origin and his destination. This desire for communion with the divine Other is the root of all prayer.

So we can see that it is not only his rationality that makes man what he is, but his capacity to both think and pray. “Human beings are, as a consequence, most profoundly human when they step out of themselves & become capable of addressing God…, when they discover their relation to their Creator (p.48).” We discover our origin, purpose, meaning, & destination only when we see ourselves in reference to God, from whom we receive our being.

P.S.: Folks, I've had ZERO time to write, other than this series of articles of the KOC newsletter. I have a colossal project at work launching that's not going well, & I am way behind on my Metaphysics studies for Franciscan U. I could use a few prayers. Thanks.

In The Beginning by Joseph Ratzinger, Homily 2, Part II

2011-05-26T19:40:00.000-07:00

After exploring the great hope that lies in belief in a personal Creator & the dangers of trying to make sense of the cosmos without God, Cardinal Ratzinger goes on to explore what he calls “the enduring significance of the symbolic elements” of the Genesis account of creation.

In Genesis 1, Ratzinger notes that God “speaks” 10 times, recalling for us the Decalogue, the Ten Words or Commandments, in which God enumerates man’s obligation to him as well as to one another. Ratzinger also notes the prominence of the number 7: the number of days in a phase of the moon & thus the number of days in the week; it is the rhythm of the cosmos of which man is a part. We can see that all creation is ordered toward the Sabbath, the day of worship & rest and the sign of the covenant between God & man. He observes, “Creation is… ordered to worship [&] fulfills its purpose and assumes its significance when it is lived, ever new, with a view to worship.” Here he rightly recalls the motto of St. Benedict: Operi Dei nihil praeponatu, - “Put nothing before the service of God.” Worship follows the rhythm of creation, but also gives it its meaning. We find our meaning, too, when we discover & respond to the rhythm.

The Sabbath structure of creation is reflected in the Sabbath ordinances of the Torah. In the gift of the Sabbath, God’s expresses his love for man & renews his covenant with him. Man’s right response to this gift is worship. And true worship takes up God’s entire moral order: the right relation of man with God, with himself, & with one another. Further, in this worship-rest man discovers who he is & the grand destiny to which he is called. The Sabbath rest is not just an empty “doing nothing,” but a being taken up into God’s peace. Man is elevated out the natural world & takes his place as a supernatural being in the divine order. Here, the plan for the cosmos is restored & God’s new creation begins.

Now, every culture has intuitively known the rhythmic connection between creation & worship, but today our technological civilization is in grave danger of losing the rhythm that connects us to both God & others. Modern man finds it difficult to rest, indeed, rejects the idea of such a rest as “unprofitable.” Is it not true that fallen man would work himself virtually to death if not instructed by God to put down his tools, whether plow or keyboard? Isn’t there always one more task to do, one more dollar to make? Indeed, people today – even Christians – largely see the Lord’s Day not as the first day of the new creation in Christ’s Resurrection, but rather the last day of the week, useful for catching up on chores & finish shopping before the work week begins again. This self-centered view of existence has serious implications. In rejecting the Sabbath rest, we reject God &, necessarily, who we are & for what we are destined. We lose ourselves & one another. The cosmic order is ruptured.

Perhaps this is why God told the Israelites that every seventh year would be a Sabbath year when the land would rest & man along with it. The land was taken from the toil & profit of human hands & returned back to God, its rightful owner. Thus, man could receive it back from God again as a gift. In 2 Chronicles 36:21, Ratzinger discovers a key phrase: “The land enjoyed its Sabbaths… seventy years,” a reference to the conquering of Israel by the Babylonians. Why did God permit this to happen, & why this connection to the Sabbath rest? Ratzinger suggests, “The people had rejected God’s rest, its leisure, its worship, its peace, its freedom, and so they into gave the slavery of activity… They had to be snatched from their obstinate attachment to their own work … God had to… free them from the domination of activity (p.32).” They had to give up the idolatry of their own self-sufficiency & learn to trust in the loving God who created all, sustains all, & draws all back to himself. This Operi Dei is not the work of productivity, but liturgia, work on behalf of God before which nothing else may come & wherein we rest in his freedom, rest, & peace. Only in this, Ratzinger concludes, can man find his identity & truly live.

New Translation - The Real Deal!

2011-05-09T18:56:00.000-07:00

It's often said that the law of prayer is the law of belief. And so it is. What happens in the liturgy really does form us as Christians in how we engage every other aspect of life. Therefore, the new English translation of the not-changing Latin text of Mass is one of the most important things, like, ever to happen in the modern English-speaking world. We don't yet understand just how important this is & how it will form & inform the faith of our children & their children, & so the whole world for years to come.

Part of all that is that the Ordinaries of the Mass - the prayers & responses that are meant for the whole assembly, generally (the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Pater Noster, & Agnus Dei) - are all set to very good, but easy to sing chants that are derived from the ancient Latin originals (you should learn those, too!).

To hear a wonderful preview of them, please go to the awesome Corpus Christi Watershed site & have a listen. You should practice them, too. It is the Roman tradition to sing Mass, not just sing stuff at Mass.

It's like when you were a kid & wanted the really rich chocolate milk, but your Mom cheapened out & bought "chocolate drink" instead. Yuck! We want the real deal! Advent can't come soon enough!

A Mini Lesson in Evangelization

2011-04-29T18:38:00.000-07:00

I had to take a short trip for work to another facility & a co-worker needed to go there, too, & asked if he could catch a ride. I said jokingly, "As long as you don't mind listening to Palestrina's Lamentations of Jeremiah."

So, we motored out in my still-hanging-together Mini Cooper. Observing the trees down & other damage all alongside the road, we started talking about the weather & all the storms that have hit the area. The I switched on the radio & really did have Palestrina in the CD player, because our Latin Mass choir is practicing to offer Missa Brevis on Pentecost. I played a little of the Kyrie, & explained that this plea for God's mercy at the beginning of the liturgy was the last remaining Greek in the Roman liturgy.

Now, my friend is agnostic, but not anti-religious. He was simply not brought up in a household of faith & didn't know much about religion, even the Christian religion. In our prior conversations, he has always asked intelligent & straightforward questions about what Christians believe & the differences between the various Christian sects. This kind of questioning can be the most difficult to answer because of the lack of common language & presuppositions on which to proceed. It's not like discussing a point of disagreement with another Christian. You have to build your points from ground up & assume very little.

I've said it before, though, that the divisions between Christian groups is a huge scandal to non-believers. It confirms their suspicions. His question was along the lines of, "How can 2 different Christian groups read the same book of the same stories & come to such opposing conclusions about what it means?" A very fair question. I don't think we believers ask ourselves that question enough.

I started by confirming his doubt. In ancient times, there were all kinds of understandings & misunderstandings about who Jesus was, what he did, what it meant, & what we should do in response. Each group who believed something different used the Scriptures to support their position. I also pointed out that what we call the Bible today was really a collection of individual writings that varied among the different communities of the ancient world. I noted that all this points to the need of an authority outside of the Scriptures themselves.

Then I shifted the discussion toward Tradition. Jesus taught some thing; he did some thing; he handed on to his disciples some thing; to Peter, especially, he entrusted this thing & commanded that this thing be preached to all nations. I was so bold as to say that the Catholic Church believes that it has received this thing - this Faith - from Jesus himself; she is its custodian & passes it on to others throughout the ages.

When some people believed Jesus was merely a good teacher, it was the Church reflecting on what she had received that allowed her to declare, "False!" When others said Jesus was just a vision or spirit from God, not a real human being, the Church again was able to say, "False!" based the intimate knowledge she had received from the Lord. When some wanted to add this or that book to the list of biblical books, but toss out these others, it was the Church that was able to say, "No, this is what is true, because it accurately relates what I received from my Lord."

I didn't think to say this at the time, but describing Tradition as a rule of faith in contrast to Scripture is much like the difference looking through a scrap book or photo album of Dear Aunt Polly versus actually talking with Dear Aunt Polly's siblings, relatives, & friends. Later you find out that those same folks put together the photo album to begin with! Which source would you go to to understand some detail of Dear Aunt Polly's life? Not that I'm comparing the Lord of Lords & the King of Kings to Dear Aunt Polly. Jesus is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, fully God & fully man! And Dear Aunt Polly? Well, I just made her up.

I also mentioned the schism & fractures within Christianity itself. I said that this was never meant to be so, & that I knew this was a huge stumbling block for people. I said no Christian group can be an isolated island unto itself. Among Protestants one often finds the mentality of "church shopping" - keep moving around to you find one that suits you. Your favorite pastor's moved on? Then leave. Find another you like? Go there for a while. And so on. This can happen in Catholic circles, too, but I pointed out that one of the primary jobs of the Pope as the office of Peter is to ensure the unity of Christians, & that the Church is in discussion with virtually every major Christian group at some level to understand the reasons for their disunity & to seek reconciliation. I still hold great hope that I will live to see formal reunification with the Orthodox Churches, though God's will be done in all things.

At the end of our trip, I apologized for rambling so much, & my friend thanked me for answering his questions so thoroughly. I personally have found that whatever the topic or argument, the Catholic Church always has very intelligent & rational reasons for holding the positions that it does. But even beyond that, it has a deep & all-pervasive love for Jesus Christ. I think people who genuinely seek the truth are attracted by that. It has avoided devolving into an ideology or a movement of some kind, as all schisms are ultimately fated to do; she remains herself regardless, because she is only who she is because she has received it from Christ himself & is charged with handing it on to others.

In any case, the lesson here is that you have to be ready to share this Good News whenever, wherever, & with whomever the opportunity arises. Happy Eastertide!

Easter Vigil

2011-04-24T05:46:00.000-07:00

Blogging on Easter Sunday? Only if it's Pope Benedict's homily from Easter Vigil Mass. Further, the Holy Father here summarizes & deepens the thoughts he first laid out in his book In The Beginning 30 years ago. Ad multos annos, Papa!

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The liturgical celebration of the Easter Vigil makes use of two eloquent signs. First there is the fire that becomes light. As the procession makes its way through the church, shrouded in the darkness of the night, the light of the Paschal Candle becomes a wave of lights, and it speaks to us of Christ as the true morning star that never sets – the Risen Lord in whom light has conquered darkness. The second sign is water. On the one hand, it recalls the waters of the Red Sea, decline and death, the mystery of the Cross. But now it is presented to us as spring water, a life-giving element amid the dryness. Thus it becomes the image of the sacrament of baptism, through which we become sharers in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Yet these great signs of creation, light and water, are not the only constituent elements of the liturgy of the Easter Vigil. Another essential feature is the ample encounter with the words of sacred Scripture that it provides. Before the liturgical reform there were twelve Old Testament readings and two from the New Testament. The New Testament readings have been retained. The number of Old Testament readings has been fixed at seven, but depending upon the local situation, they may be reduced to three. The Church wishes to offer us a panoramic view of whole trajectory of salvation history, starting with creation, passing through the election and the liberation of Israel to the testimony of the prophets by which this entire history is directed ever more clearly towards Jesus Christ. In the liturgical tradition all these readings were called prophecies. Even when they are not directly foretelling future events, they have a prophetic character, they show us the inner foundation and orientation of history. They cause creation and history to become transparent to what is essential. In this way they take us by the hand and lead us towards Christ, they show us the true Light.

At the Easter Vigil, the journey along the paths of sacred Scripture begins with the account of creation. This is the liturgy’s way of telling us that the creation story is itself a prophecy. It is not information about the external processes by which the cosmos and man himself came into being. The Fathers of the Church were well aware of this. They did not interpret the story as an account of the process of the origins of things, but rather as a pointer towards the essential, towards the true beginning and end of our being. Now, one might ask: is it really important to speak also of creation during the Easter Vigil? Could we not begin with the events in which God calls man, forms a people for himself and creates his history with men upon the earth? The answer has to be: no. To omit the creation would be to misunderstand the very history of God with men, to diminish it, to lose sight of its true order of greatness. The sweep of history established by God reaches back to the origins, back to creation. Our profession of faith begins with the words: “We believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth”. If we omit the beginning of the Credo, the whole history of salvation becomes too limited and too small. The Church is not some kind of association that concerns itself with man’s religious needs but is limited to that objective. No, she brings man into contact with God and thus with the source of all things. Therefore we relate to God as Creator, and so we have a responsibility for creation. Our responsibility extends as far as creation because it comes from the Creator. Only because God created everything can he give us life and direct our lives. Life in the Church’s faith involves more than a set of feelings and sentiments and perhaps moral obligations. It embraces man in his entirety, from his origins to his eternal destiny. Only because creation belongs to God can we place ourselves completely in his hands. And only because he is the Creator can he give us life for ever. Joy over creation, thanksgiving for creation and responsibility for it all belong together.

The central message of the creation account can be defined more precisely still. In the opening words of his Gospel, Saint John sums up the essential meaning of that account in this single statement: “In the beginning was the Word”. In effect, the creation account that we listened to earlier is characterized by the regularly recurring phrase: “And God said …” The world is a product of the Word, of the Logos, as Saint John expresses it, using a key term from the Greek language. “Logos” means “reason”, “sense”, “word”. It is not reason pure and simple, but creative Reason, that speaks and communicates itself. It is Reason that both is and creates sense. The creation account tells us, then, that the world is a product of creative Reason. Hence it tells us that, far from there being an absence of reason and freedom at the origin of all things, the source of everything is creative Reason, love, and freedom. Here we are faced with the ultimate alternative that is at stake in the dispute between faith and unbelief: are irrationality, lack of freedom and pure chance the origin of everything, or are reason, freedom and love at the origin of being? Does the primacy belong to unreason or to reason? This is what everything hinges upon in the final analysis. As believers we answer, with the creation account and with John, that in the beginning is reason. In the beginning is freedom. Hence it is good to be a human person. It is not the case that in the expanding universe, at a late stage, in some tiny corner of the cosmos, there evolved randomly some species of living being capable of reasoning and of trying to find rationality within creation, or to bring rationality into it. If man were merely a random product of evolution in some place on the margins of the universe, then his life would make no sense or might even be a chance of nature. But no, Reason is there at the beginning: creative, divine Reason. And because it is Reason, it also created freedom; and because freedom can be abused, there also exist forces harmful to creation. Hence a thick black line, so to speak, has been drawn across the structure of the universe and across the nature of man. But despite this contradiction, creation itself remains good, life remains good, because at the beginning is good Reason, God’s creative love. Hence the world can be saved. Hence we can and must place ourselves on the side of reason, freedom and love – on the side of God who loves us so much that he suffered for us, that from his death there might emerge a new, definitive and healed life.

The Old Testament account of creation that we listened to clearly indicates this order of realities. But it leads us a further step forward. It has structured the process of creation within the framework of a week leading up to the Sabbath, in which it finds its completion. For Israel, the Sabbath was the day on which all could participate in God’s rest, in which man and animal, master and slave, great and small were united in God’s freedom. Thus the Sabbath was an expression of the Covenant between God and man and creation. In this way, communion between God and man does not appear as something extra, something added later to a world already fully created. The Covenant, communion between God and man, is inbuilt at the deepest level of creation. Yes, the Covenant is the inner ground of creation, just as creation is the external presupposition of the Covenant. God made the world so that there could be a space where he might communicate his love, and from which the response of love might come back to him. From God’s perspective, the heart of the man who responds to him is greater and more important than the whole immense material cosmos, for all that the latter allows us to glimpse something of God’s grandeur.

Easter and the paschal experience of Christians, however, now require us to take a further step. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. After six days in which man in some sense participates in God’s work of creation, the Sabbath is the day of rest. But something quite unprecedented happened in the nascent Church: the place of the Sabbath, the seventh day, was taken by the first day. As the day of the liturgical assembly, it is the day for encounter with God through Jesus Christ who as the Risen Lord encountered his followers on the first day, Sunday, after they had found the tomb empty. The structure of the week is overturned. No longer does it point towards the seventh day, as the time to participate in God’s rest. It sets out from the first day as the day of encounter with the Risen Lord. This encounter happens afresh at every celebration of the Eucharist, when the Lord enters anew into the midst of his disciples and gives himself to them, allows himself, so to speak, to be touched by them, sits down at table with them. This change is utterly extraordinary, considering that the Sabbath, the seventh day seen as the day of encounter with God, is so profoundly rooted in the Old Testament. If we also bear in mind how much the movement from work towards the rest-day corresponds to a natural rhythm, the dramatic nature of this change is even more striking. This revolutionary development that occurred at the very the beginning of the Church’s history can be explained only by the fact that something utterly new happened that day. The first day of the week was the third day after Jesus’ death. It was the day when he showed himself to his disciples as the Risen Lord. In truth, this encounter had something unsettling about it. The world had changed. This man who had died was now living with a life that was no longer threatened by any death. A new form of life had been inaugurated, a new dimension of creation. The first day, according to the Genesis account, is the day on which creation begins. Now it was the day of creation in a new way, it had become the day of the new creation. We celebrate the first day. And in so doing we celebrate God the Creator and his creation. Yes, we believe in God, the Creator of heaven and earth. And we celebrate the God who was made man, who suffered, died, was buried and rose again. We celebrate the definitive victory of the Creator and of his creation. We celebrate this day as the origin and the goal of our existence. We celebrate it because now, thanks to the risen Lord, it is definitively established that reason is stronger than unreason, truth stronger than lies, love stronger than death. We celebrate the first day because we know that the black line drawn across creation does not last for ever. We celebrate it because we know that those words from the end of the creation account have now been definitively fulfilled: “God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” (Gen 1:31). Amen.

Courtesy of Whispers in the Loggia

In the Beginning by Joseph Ratzinger - Homily 2, Part I

2011-04-17T06:20:00.000-07:00

Joseph Ratzinger opens his second homily by reviewing two realizations from his first homily: firstly, that Christians read the Scriptures with Christ, who is their guide, “indicating to us in reliable fashion what an image is and where the real, enduring content of a biblical expression may be found. He is freedom from a false slavery to literalism and a guarantee of the… truth of the Bible, which does not dissipate into a cloud of pious pleasantries but remains the sure ground upon which we can stand (p.21).” Secondly, that faith in creation is reasonable.

The early development of the sciences operated on an ancient principle that the heavens were of divine nature & therefore eternal & unchangeable, which the newly-discovered mathematical formulae that described & governed the physical realm seemed to support. As things progressed, however, a messier & more complicated picture of the cosmos emerged. Ratzinger notes science began to see that “the universe is subject to both becoming & destruction… Temporality is inscribed upon it… a passage from a beginning to an end (p.22).”

Indeed, on both the tiniest & the largest scales, science continues to reveal to us many surprising, startling, frightening, & awe-inspiring things. The very complexity of the universe – especially life – seems to render absurd any explanations rooted in inherent necessity or random chance, & frequently the attempts of science to explain things are untenable. One writer noted that what atheistic scientists wish to impose on us is far more unbelievable than anything Christianity has ever taught. But with faith one sees the rational hand of God at work in the cosmos. Ratzinger says, “the natural sciences… have given us a new & unheard-of creation account with vast new images, which let us recognize the face of the Creator and… realize… that at the very beginning & foundation of all being there is a creating Intelligence (p.24).”

Pope Pius XII’s encyclical letter Humani Generis of 1950 set the Church’s rules of engagement with modern science, which I will vainly attempt to sum up as: science never by itself & never for itself, but always in light of Jesus Christ & with the guidance of the Church. Pius spends a lot of time mapping out the role of the Church as a custodian of science, but I will leave that for you to explore. However, the idea of science never in isolation is important to Ratzinger because he knows it can only lead to a false &, ultimately, meaningless view of the cosmos & of man himself. In this overly-rationalistic climate a person is only value insofar as they are productive, & all matter – even human matter – serves merely as raw material to be manipulated & used for the sake of the idol of progress.

But the good news of Christianity (which it shares with the Jewish faith) is that every human being has profound meaning as an image of God & has a noble purpose which is nothing less than union with God himself. Without God, a creation hurtling toward its end is completely devoid of hope. What Christianity proposes is a creation that is a gift from the Creator & is on a journey toward an ultimate destination – a truly unimaginable conclusion that is only known in the mind of God.

In the second part of his homily, Ratzinger will return to the Genesis text again and consider more deeply the imagery within it, what he calls the enduring significance of the symbolic elements in the text.

The Man Who Was Thursday by G.K. Chesterton

2011-03-26T12:54:00.000-07:00

I have several literary irons in the fire right now. One is The Man Who Was Thursday by G.K. Chesterton.

Here is an excerpt for anyone who has gotten in way over there head, whose options had run out, who feared for an immanent judgment, though hopefully not in a sword duel in a field of wild flowers...

The Colonel said quietly, "Engage!" and the two blades touched and tingled. When the jar of joined iron ran up Syme's arm, all the fantastic fears that have been the subject of this story fell from him like dreams from a man waking up in bed. He remembered them clearly and in order as mere delusions of the nerves - how the fear of the Professor had been the fear of the tyrannic accidents of nightmare, and how the fear of the Doctor had been the fear of the airless vacuum of science. The first was the old fear that any miracle might happen, the second the more hopeless modern fear that no miracle can ever happen. But he saw that these fears were fancies, for he found himself in the presence of the great fact of the fear of death, with its coarse and pitiless common sense. He felt like a man who had dreamed all night of falling over precipices, and had woke up on the morning when he was to be hanged.... He knew his enemy was a terrible fighter, and that probably his last hour had come.

And for anyone who needs to pour an exquisite insult on another, perhaps you can use this sometime...

You great fat, blasted, blear-eyed, blundering, thundering, brainless, Godforsaken, doddering, damned fool! ...You great silly, pink-faced, towheaded turnip!

I had to look up towheaded.

The Witness of Suffering

2011-03-17T15:17:00.000-07:00

"I am Patrick - a sinner - the most unsophisticated and unworthy among all the faithful of God. Indeed, to many I am the most despised." - opening words of the Confession of Patrick

What Patrick accomplished is astounding. In virtually a single generation, he managed to supplant a deeply-entrenched pagan societal system with faith in Jesus Christ. He had few resources - little personnel, no security, no infrastructure, really, nothing. So did he just skip through the land like a fairy tale spreading good cheer & making converts wherever he went? His own words do not say so. His opposition came from within the Church as bitterly as it came from chieftains & druids. But he had two key resources at his disposal: faith & suffering.

A stunning statement from the Pope Benedict XVI's book, Jesus of Nazareth, Part II:

"... the proclamation of the Gospel will always be marked by the sign of the Cross - this is what each generation of Jesus' disciples must learn anew. The Cross is and remains the sign of "the Son of Man": ultimately, in the battle against lies and violence, truth and love have no other weapons than the witness of suffering." p.49

The Virtues

2011-03-13T05:44:00.000-07:00

I confess to being a huge fan of Fr. Groeschel. His book The Virtue Driven Life has really helped to smooth out some wild & rough ground in my soul. When I was given the opportunity to lead the opening activity for the Youth Group a few weeks back, I wondered exactly what I should do. Out of the blue, I heard Fr. Groeschel's scratchy, insistent voice in my mind saying, "Teach the virtues!" So I did.

With the help of the other teachers, we presented the 4 cardinal or moral "human" virtues & also the 3 great sources of temptation for man - the world, the flesh, & the devil - in a situational, role-playing exercise. Below is a summary of the material I presented to the kids on the 4 cardinal virtues. Note that Fr. Groeschel makes an important distinction between a natural virtue & its supernatural counterpart. I think we could all use a refresher course in this from time to time. Numbers in italics are Catechism references. My apologies if the fomatting looks a little wonked.

“To live well is nothing other than to love God with all one’s heart, with all one’s soul, & with all one’s efforts; from this it comes about that love is kept whole & uncorrupted (Temperance); no misfortune can disturb it (Fortitude); it obeys only God (Justice); & is careful in discerning things, so as not to be surprised by deceit or trickery (Prudence).” - St. Augustine

Q. What are Virtues?

Virtues are habitual & firm dispositions to do the good. Moral virtues – Prudence, Justice, Temperance, & Fortitude – are acquired through human effort, helped by God’s grace. The theological virtues – Faith, Hope, & Love – are gifts from God. The virtuous person strives toward the good with all his bodily & spiritual powers, becoming in the process the best person he can be. He pursues the good & chooses it in concrete actions. The goal of a virtuous life is to become like God. 1803

Q. What is opposite of virtue?

Vices are habits acquired by repeated sin in violation of the norms of human morality. Vices are often linked to the Capital Sins. Repentance for sin & confession may restore grace to the soul, but removal of the tendency to sin or vice requires much effort & self-denial until the contrary virtue is acquired. Vice & virtue are rooted in man’s freedom: his exercise of intellect, affections, & will. They are not only the actions we do, but the desires we carry in our souls. 1866

Q. So if Virtue is related to Freedom, what is Freedom?

Freedom is the power to choose good or evil, though strickly speaking, there is no true freedom except in the sevice of what is good & just. Choosing good builds man up, makes him freer. Choosing evil is self-destructive, clouds the mind, emotions, & will. Choosing evil takes away man’s freedom & leads him to the slavery of sin. 1733

Q. Are all virtues the same?

No, the Theological are higher than the Moral, or Cardinal, virtues. Also, virtues can be considered as either natural or supernatural. Many people of other religious beliefs - or even no belief at all - have all kinds of naturally good qualities. However, in the light of Christ & in the power of the Spirit, the supernatural virtues always have the desire to please God & to do his will as their primary motive. This drive is simply another name for holiness. 1812

"Seek first the Kingdom of God & his righteousness, & all these things shall be yours as well." - Matthew 6:33

Prudence is using our power of reason to discern the good in every circumstance & choose the right means to achieve it. St. Thomas says it is “right reason in action.” Prudence guides the other virtues & directs our consciences. 1806

Natural prudence helps us order our lives toward security & happiness. Supernatural Prudence helps us & others to obtain eternal life & everlasting joy.

"To everyone who has more will be given; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away." – Matthew 25:29

Justice is the firm resolve to give what’s due to God & neighbor. Justice toward God is called religion. Justice toward neighbor respects their innate dignity & seeks to build a fair & peaceful society with regard to each person & the common good. 1807

Natural justice calls us to be fair & honest in our relations with others by following the natural law written on men’s hearts & the rules of decent behavior. Supernatural Justice seeks to realize the equal dignity of every human being out of love for Jesus, especially in caring for poor & disregarded, because he, too, was poor & despised.

"You cannot serve both God & mammon." – Matthew 6:24

Temperance moderates our desires for pleasure, directs our appetites towards what is good, & provides balance in the use of the goods of creation, which is mankind’s common inheritance. 1809

Natural temperance helps us to avoid indulging in things harmful to ourselves & contribute to our legitimate goals in life. Supernatural Temperance helps us to be good & grateful stewards of the wonderful gifts of the Creator. It means using the good things of this world wisely & well for our sanctification & that of others. We cannot choose Jesus Christ & his Kingdom if we overly value the things of this world; our treasure & destination lie elsewhere.

"In this world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer: I have overcome the world." - John 16:33

Fortitude ensures firmness in difficulties & constancy in pursuing the good; by fortitude we are strengthened against temptations & overcome obstacles in the moral life. Fortitude keeps us strong & sure to the end. It is not caving in our convictions when the situation becomes difficult or painful. 1808

Natural fortitude may be called courage; but Supernatural Fortitude keeps us vigilant & stout-hearted in our spiritual warfare, whether in heroic acts of love or in the struggles of daily life, keeping before us always the goal of eternal life in Christ.

Headline News

2011-02-25T07:56:00.000-08:00

I'm staying home today, mostly to pray & catch up on assigned reading for my Metaphysics class - mostly Aristotle. While another cup of coffee was brewing, I switched on the TV just in time to hear the CNN announcetrix relay matter-of-factly that the Pro Life billboard in NY calling out Planned Parenthood is being removed for "reasons of safety," whilst showing a video clip of the sign coming down.

Without a word of comment, the newswoman then moved on the next story, beginning with such an expression of angst, "This next story is soooo sad! A group of baby bottle-nosed dolphins has been found washed up on shore..."

Folks, I ain't against dolphins by any means, but I hope you can see the tragedy knotted up in this 30-second piece of reporting.

Confucius says...

2011-02-19T18:12:00.000-08:00

The Master said, "The gentlemen helps others to effect what is good; he does not help them to effect what is bad. The small man does the opposite." - Book 12, verse 16
...
. . .

Zi-zhang asked, "What must a Gentleman be like before he can be said to have got through?"

The Master said, "What on earth do you mean by getting through?"

Zi-zhang answered, "What I have in mind is a man who is sure to be known whether he serves in a state or in a noble family."

The Master said, "That is being known, not getting through. Now the term 'getting through' describes a man who is straight by nature and fond of what is right, sensitive to other people's words and observant of the expression on their faces, and always mindful of being modest. Such a man is bound to get through whether he serves in a state or in a noble family.

"On the other hand, the term 'being known' describes a man who has no misgivings about his own claim to benevolence when all he is doing is putting up a facade of benevolence which is belied by his deeds. Such a man is sure to be known, whether he serves in a state or in a noble family." - Book 12, verse 20

As we forgive others...

2011-02-18T08:53:00.000-08:00

My parish is holding a Scripture study on the Psalms as read through the lens of the Lord's Prayer.

In the section on "Give us our daily bread," we considered the things that we ask of God. Often that is deliverance from a difficult situation. The psalmist of Psalms 5 & 6 pleads with God for the destruction of evil-doers, those who disregard God's name.

However, in the "Forgive us our tresspasses" section, it is the psalmist of Psalm 51 himself who has commited evil against God, but now he's not so eager for God to give the evil-doers what they really deserve, is he?!? Now he wants forgiveness. To be fair, he does acknowledge that God would be perfectly just in giving him the destruction that he knows he deserves, yet he trusts in God's mercy.

This is surely why Jesus teaches us in the Our Father that God's forgiveness of us is dependent on our forgiveness of others. We continually wrong God with our sins, but we trust in his mercy so much that we rarely consider his just judgment as a real possibility. I hope that trust is not really a taking-for-granted. St. Francis de Sales noted pointedly that we sinners deserve nothing but eternal damnation. We expect God's lavish & unending mercy & forgiveness for ourselves, yet we are pretty stingy with mercy toward others - we expect them to pay dearly for whatever they've done to us.

...

There is a Latin word that sumptuously describes the love of God: misericordia. One might translate that as "heart-mercy," but it is usually just translated as love or mercy. But it reminds me that God's mercy is not in its box, his love in another box, & his forgiveness in yet another box, & so on. It is all part of God's unbounded love, which St. John tells us is his very essence.

...

If we refuse to forgive someone, then our hearts are divided & fractured. To put it plainly, we simply refuse to love. This is a very sketchy place from which to insist on God's forgiveness. Since Lent is nigh upon us, perhaps this is a good to reflect on the immensity of God's love compared to the paucity of own, both for him & for others.

With an eye towards to events in the life of David that occasioned the writing of Psalm 51, we also discussed the sources of temptation. Franciscan Father Charles has a few insightful words about this on his blog in a post titled Diabolical Temptations.

I hope you are all enjoying the unseasonably fine weather, at least here in East Tennessee. God bless.

. . .

P.S.: Above photo taken at the Nashville cathedral at the Aquinas College Theological & Catechedtical Forum on Feb 5, 2011. Click Here to hear & see the guest speakers, including D. Scott Hahn, reflect on the thinking of Pope Benedict XVI.

On the Restoration of Sanity

2011-01-29T06:50:00.000-08:00

Though St. Thomas' feast day was yesterday, I didn't want it to slip by without a note.

The greatness of St. Thomas lies in his applying both mind & heart to the age-old questions, Who am I? What does it mean to exist? What is the end of all things? How do we get there?

The Greek asked & tried to answer these questions, too; but Thomas did so in the light of Jesus Christ, and that makes all the difference. In this purifying of pagan thought, he re-established that things that are, really are. He affirmed that real people are more important than concepts. He fought for creation, & in doing so, fought for the Creator. He took people & the real things of life seriously. He showed that faith in God is reasonable & obtainable, even if not completely graspable. He wanted to illuminate Jesus Christ for others for the salvation of their souls, & also of his own.

Most people think Thomas is a great saint because of his prodigious intellectual work. It seems that not. I think it is because he wrote hymns. Lovers sing. The Church still sings even today the Eucharistic hymns Adoro te Devote, Panis Angelicus, & O Salutaris Hostia among others. I cannot now recall another Eucharistic hymn that even begins to hold a candle to these works. It was his great love of the God who came down to join man as man - & continues to come down to join man as food - that fueled his passion, not only to understand, but to praise.

Some might think Thomas' teachings are too other-worldly to be grasped; I would say he was simply delirious with the love of God.

Thank you, St. Thomas of Aquino, for helping to restore an island of sanity in an insane world. Please pray for us.

Nota Bene: Here is my review of G.K. Chesterton's biography of St. Thomas.

Sell What You Have & Follow Me

2011-01-18T19:03:00.000-08:00

One Sunday morning a long time ago when I was just a bored teenager, I heard an amazing homily - one that I will never forget.

And when I get too busy, too self-absorbed, too ungrateful, too entrenched in this world, too eager to pursue its pleasures, too offended when things don't go my way, too sulky when I don't get what I want, when I get my fragile ego bruised too easily, I think of a 1 sentence homily given by a parish priest quietly burning with a righteous anger.

"Folks, it's time to put away the BMW's & Audis, & get busy with the work of God."

Thanks, Fr. Foley.

Bridesong

2011-01-10T19:33:00.001-08:00

Gregorian Chant has entered my life & changed it. What is this strange & otherworldly music? It is the song of the Church. The cry of the Bride for the Bridegroom.

She cries, "I sought him, and found him not: I called, and he did not answer me... if you find my beloved, tell him that I languish with love."

It is important to know 2 things: firstly, that Gregorian chant arose alongside & within the Roman liturgy from its very origins - it is something integral to it, not imposed from without; & secondly, that the Church has worked steadfastly for over 100 years now to restore & re-establish chant as the primary music of the liturgy, an effort that promises to yield great fruit for the Church's liturgical life of prayer in the years to come.

Sometimes I hear that Gregorian chant is a throwback to the "bad ole days." Falderall! The Council affirmed that chant would be integral to the revised liturgy. It is never improper to sing the Propers or Ordinaries at Mass, but it may very well be improper to sing any number of the heterodox, modern hymns that have been become standard fare in many parishes today.

I've read some interesting articles & commentaries that the singing of chant is somehow "unpastoral,," that chant is difficult & so relegates the congregation to the mere spectators or shuts them out entirely. Bolderdash! Sacrosanctum Concilium relays that the priest should sing his part (the greetings, prayers, the canon, etc.), the choir should sing their part (i.e., the Propers), & the people should sing their part (i.e., the Ordinaries & responses). The people's chants are generally simple - 1 note per syllable in simple melodies & rhythms. The more complex pieces, like Offertory prayers, take a lifetime of study even for advanced choristers to get down. Chant actually puts us on equal footing, for it neither dwells in the stratosphere of the elite, nor drags us all down to the lowest possible common denominator. We're all on a journey to God; chant can help us reach toward the heavenly realm.

The divisive now/then attitude seems to have arisen from several sources: a steady diet of silent low Masses before the Council, a 60's spirit of false egalitarianism that requires that there are no differences between roles in the liturgy so that everybody must be able to do everything, & a distorted & shallow notion of what active participation means. Put positively, one should learn to cultivate a disposition of humble & expectant receptivity in the liturgy, which includes the joining of one's mind & heart with the offering of a chanted prayer. It requires a radical change of orientation of one's approach to liturgy, from doing to receiving, from busyness to stillness, from noise to silence, from being rooted in the now to participating in the eternal liturgy of heaven.

It is interesting that the recent resurgence in chant has mostly been a grass-roots effort among the laity. The Church Music Association of America offers weekend & week-long workshops in Gregorian chant several times a year. The web is absolutely abuzz with resources to make the chants as accessible as possible, especially Corpus Christi Watershed (including this great little video on what sacred music is). There is a rising tide of younger voices who want the full-expression of the Catholic liturgy as fully expressed by the recent council & every pope of the last 100 years.

The timing could not be better to reintroduce chant into the Church's repertoire with the revised English translation of the Roman Missal, as many of the afore-mentioned sites are already setting the English texts to traditional chant tones, many without any charge for their work. Wonderful in itself, this could also be a great first step to introducing a parish to genuine Gregorian chants, which really cannot be successfully translated from of the Roman Church's native tongue. It is my long-standing position that the Kyrie, Sanctus, & Agnus Dei should always & everywhere be sung in the ancient tongues anyway.

I would never argue that chant be the only music permitted in the Roman liturgy (though that wouldn't be so bad, either). However, it is the Church's native expression of prayer & should have the prominence in the liturgy for which the Council called. It is the voice of the faithful crying out to their God. It is the voice of the Bride longing for her Bridegroom.

He responds, "Show me your face, let your voice sound in my ears: for your voice is sweet, and your face comely."

. . .

N.B.: The chant at the top of the post links to a YouTube video of the 2009 chant pilgrimage to the National Shrine in D.C. Scott Turkington is leading us students through a 1st sight-reading of Ut Queant Laxis, the hymn of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. Sight-reading! This 'choir' is a mix of beginners & experts, but note how quickly the group gels up & how strong it sounds by the end. Sight-reading! The 1st syllable of 1st word of each phrase (in bold) are the basis of the Do-Re-Mi- nomenclature (explained here - I'm the guy in the white shirt on the right!). Scott's introductory comment is a reference to the song Maria used to teach the children how to sing in The Sound of Music.

A Thing of Beauty Is a Joy Forever

2010-12-26T18:12:00.000-08:00

As I have shared before, the most beautiful, memorable, & life-changing Mass I recall ever attending was the votive Mass of Blessed Virgin Mary celebrated in the Extraordinary From at the chant workshop in September 2009 in the crypt church of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. Here is Fr. McAfee's homily from that Mass...

A thing of beauty is a joy forever
Its loveliness increases;
It will never pass into nothingness.
–John Keats

When the envoys of Vladimir, Prince of Kiev returned from attending the Divine Liturgy at the in Hagia Sophia Cathedral in Constantinople in the late tenth century, they gave this report; “we knew not whether we were in heaven or on earth, for surely there is no such splendor or beauty anywhere on earth. We cannot describe it to you; only this we know, that God dwells there among men, and that their service surpasses the worship of all other places. For we cannot forget the beauty!”

President John Adams, in a letter to his wife Abigail, told of a visit to a “Romish Chapel”, it said it part; “The music was consisting of an organ and a choir of singers, went all the afternoon, excepting sermon time, and the assembly chanted-most sweetly and exquisitely. Here is every thing which can lay hold of the eye, ear, and imagination. Everything which can charm and bewitch the simple and ignorant. I wonder how Luther ever broke the spell”.

St. Teresa of Avilla declared, “I am always shaken by the grandeur of the ceremonies of the Church.” The love of beauty and its expression for the work of art is not itself beauty but its expression is homage to God because, according to St. Thomas Aquinas, “beauty is one of the names of God”. Thus the church, when she is summoned to celebrate the Divine Mysteries, utilizes all of the arts appealing to the senses because the beautiful is “id quod visum placet” ‘vision of which’ when beheld is pleasing. The soberness of the chant, the splendor of the instruments, the festivity of the vestments, the pageantry of the incense, the candles, the vessels, the holy water – all of these aid us in our worship of the Triune God who created beauty, sustains beauty, redeemed beauty and is Beauty itself.

The Church has traditionally clothed the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass with mystery. Using the goods of creation, the Church in her transcendent earthiness leads her children to God and God through the same means descends to them. The Church at times has forgotten this. Pope Benedict XVI (as Cardinal Ratzinger) lamented, “Since the [Second] Vatican Council the Church has turned its back on beauty.” Just a few years ago the Pontifical council of culture in Rome issued this plea “give beauty back to ecclesiastical buildings, give beauty back to the liturgical objects!” Not only has the Church turned her back on beauty, she seems to be embarrassed by it. She who was once the patroness of the arts.

We have been impoverished. We are, to use a phrase of Paul Claudel’s, “we live in an age of starved imagination”. According to the philosopher Plotinus “the soul must climb the ladder of the beautiful before it can encounter the vision of First Beauty. But what happens when they remove the rungs of the ladder?

Scientists tell us that the left side of the brain specializes in mathematics, analysis, science and so on. It is the right side of the brain is incurably romantic its province is poetry, love, art, music. It is the right side of the brain that is called into play by a high form of Liturgy. One author has said, “During a more de-ritualized example of the vernacular Mass, the right brain, that miniature Homer or Shakespeare in all of us, is smothered to death”.

H. L. Menken who wrote for a Baltimore paper, and was no friend of religion, found himself admiring the Catholic Church as he said in 1923; “The Latin Church, which I constantly find myself admiring, despite its frequent astounding imbecilities, has always kept clearly before it the fact that religion is not a syllogism, but a poem…. Rome, indeed, has not only preserved the original poetry of Christianity; it has also made capital additions to that poetry—for example, the poetry of the saints, of Mary, of the liturgy itself.” “A solemn High Mass,” he concluded, “must be a thousand times as impressive as the most powerful sermon ever roared under the big-top… in the face of such overwhelming beauty it is not necessary to belabor the faithful with logic; they are better convinced by letting them alone.”

Listen to the enemies of the Church. They tremble at every swing of incense and each and every genuflection. In 1888 a Seventh Day Adventist published a book about the Whore of Babylon. When Judge Clarence Thomas was named to the Supreme Court the book was reissued. Here the author remarks about Catholic Worship…remember this was in the 19th century: “Many Protestants suppose that the Catholic religion is unattractive and that its worship is a dull, meaningless round of ceremony. Here they mistake. While Romanism is based upon deception, it is not a coarse and clumsy imposture. The religious service of the Roman Church is a most impressive ceremonial. Its gorgeous display and solemn rites fascinate the senses of the people and silence the voice of reason and of conscience. The eye is charmed. Magnificent churches, imposing processions, golden altars, jeweled shrines, choice paintings, and exquisite sculpture appeal to the love of beauty. The ear also is captivated. The music is unsurpassed. The rich notes of the deep-toned organ, blending with the melody of many voices as it swells through the lofty domes and pillared aisles of her grand cathedrals, cannot fail to impress the mind with awe and reverence. The pomp and ceremony of the Catholic Worship has the seductive, bewitching power by which many are deceived; and they come to look upon the Roman Church as the very gate of Heaven.”

In this way, many hearts hardened to the Church and her teachings, have been melted; as was the case of the “decadents”—Baudelaire, Verlaine, Aubrey, Oscar Wilde and others. “Beauty can then be fittingly called evangelical, evangelical beauty, via pulchritudinis, can open the pathway for the search for God and “dispose the heart and spirit to meet Christ who is the beauty of Holiness Incarnate offered by God to man for their salvation.”

According to St. Thomas Aquinas, for something to be considered beautiful it must have three qualities, integrity, harmony, clarity or radiance. When the radiance breaks through and the teachings of the Church are made manifest and the Catholic Church is recognized as the place where the truth abides and the home of beauty. This was the case with the decadents. Hans Urs von Balthasar has written that when “the good has lost its power of attraction, when proofs have lost their conclusive character; then the beautiful will empower”.

Pope Benedict XVI, in his telling of the visit of the delegates of Prince Vladimir of Kiev to Constantinople said that the delegation and the prince accepted the truth of Christianity not by the cogency of its theological augmentations but by the beauty of the mystery of its Liturgy.

The poet Baudelaire wrote; “It is at once through poetry and across poetry, through and across music, that the soul glimpses the splendor situated beyond the grave; and when an exquisite poem brings tears to the eyes these tears are not proof of excessive joy. They are the testimony of an irritated melancholy, a demand of the nerves, of a nature exiled in the imperfect, and now desiring to take possession of his world.”

Baudelaire was significantly influenced on his idea of beauty by an American writer he much admired, Edgar Allan Poe. Poe states of beauty: “We still have a thirst unquenchable, the thirst belonging to the immortality of man. He is at once a consequence and an indication of this perennial nature. It is the desire of the moth for the stars. It is no mere appreciation of the beauty before us, but veiled effort to reach the beauty above.”

Why then must the Liturgy be beautiful? Because beauty provides a vehicle to transcend our present lives and to touch the skirts of heaven. When we encounter finite beauty there is engendered a more passionate longing for absolute immortal beauty of which the earthly temporal beauty is but an ephemeral epiphany.

In the Epistle to the Hebrews, Christ is called the leiturgos, the Liturgist who presides over all our rituals, who Himself offers the Liturgy. Since Christ is the leiturgos and Christ is Beauty Incarnate, all beauty must reflect him and all beauty must flow from Him in the Liturgy.

Christ the Word Made Flesh is the greatest masterpiece. Christ is the most perfect symphony. Christ is the loveliest painting. Christ is the cosmic beat in the everlasting poem.

St. John of the Cross said; “God passes through the thickets of the world and wherever His glance falls, he turns all things to beauty”.

St. Paul wrote to Timothy; “He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He does possess immortality dwelling in unapproachable light”. Yet in the Divine Liturgy of the Mass we make bold to approach Him who lives in unapproachable light.

How can I describe the Liturgy? I can describe the Liturgy with one word. In the courts of heaven, amid the chorus of angels, there is but one word spoken, one solitary word which the cherubim and seraphim utter before the majesty of the cosmic liturgy of the glorified Lamb once slain but now risen, and that word is…

That simple word…

That glorious, triumphant word is…

AHHH!

What time is it?

2010-12-20T18:32:00.000-08:00

I've been practicing the Gregorian chant Mass propers for Christmas Day. One way that chant is different from modern music is that the "beat" is irregular. There isn't a steady downbeat every measure of music to ground the melody. Chant is built out of notes in groups of 2 or 3 with a regular, pulsating rhythm. Sometimes a phrase is written 1 note per syllable. Sometimes a single syllable lasts a half a page. You might say chant is timeless.

This is not the result of medieval ignorance, though. No, it is a carefully thought-out theological statement; it is a participation in the timelessness on the other side of the veil. Remember that chant's proper place is in the liturgy & that the earthly liturgy is a reflection of, a participation in the heavenly liturgy. The timelessness of chant reflects the timelessness of heaven.

If you've been paying attention to the readings & prayers of the Mass & the Liturgy of the Hours, you may be a little confused at what time it is right now. All Advent we have been preparing for the coming of the Christ child, right? Yet we know that Jesus already came as a child over 2,000 years ago. We don't expect him to come back again as a child, do we? Further, many of the prayers & readings refer to Christ's return in glory to judge the world at the end of time. This is especially confusing at Mass when Christ Jesus is present with us in the Eucharist & we say he has dies, he has risen, & he will come again. How can we square all this up?

Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio et nunc et semper et in saecula saeculorum.

Peter reminds us that for God a thousand years is like a day & a day like a thousand years. God is not subject to time; it is a creation of his on behalf of man. Eternity is not a really long time, it is no time. It is also called all time present before God. This is the "as it was in the beginning, is now, & shall be forever unto ages of ages." Of course, we can scarcely comprehend a life apart from time, so entrenched in it are we. But time is belongs with the changeable, & the changeable belongs to the corruptible. And death has no part with God.

Further, the Church prays like it is the first coming of Christ Jesus because - as the LOH tells us - we should adopt the spirit of Mary, to give ourselves fully to God & patiently & joyfully await his coming into our lives & into the world. This attitude, this closeness to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, will keep us properly focused to hear the Word of God spoken to us & respond, both now & and at the end.

So, even though this time of "yesterday, today, & forever" can bewilder us a bit, don't resist - let yourself enter its whirlwind. We are like the Jews who even today participate in the events of the Passover & Exodus even as they ritually remember it. This holy remembering is how God saves his people. It is foundational to the Church's sacraments. Jesus told us to "Do this in remembrance of me," & we are made present not only to his Crucifixion & Death, but also his Resurrection from the Dead in the Eucharist. This "making present now" is how the sacraments - especially the Eucharist - are a foretaste of sharing in Christ's eternal life.

Perhaps we forget that our destiny is a timeless one. This is why the Church presents us with so many clues. Even if this remains cloaked in mystery, we can be sure of Christ's presence in his Church, today, tomorrow, even unto the consummation of the world. Gaudete! Dominus prope est.

Ringing that bell...

2010-12-13T19:19:00.002-08:00

In case you didn't know, the Salvation Army is not a charity per se, but a Protestant denomination, founded by William Booth in London, England around 1878, currently claiming about a half-million adherents ("soldiers") in the U.S.

It is one of a slew of renewal movements that sprouted up in the late 1800's, particularly in England, but also in the U.S. The Army holds for the Catholic view of God (that is, Trinitarian), a very Protestant view of the Church (useful but optional), & a very traditional Protestant moral code (that is, loving but rigid). They hold for the Protestant Bible as God's exclusive revelation & rule of faith (despite the Bible as we know it not existing until the Catholic Church declared it to be so in 395 or so). They hold for total abstinence from alcohol (despite this being contrary to the Bible - Ps 104:15 as one example of so many) & recreational drugs, partly because their Franciscan-like ministry to the destitute in the streets has shown them the destructive power of such substances abused.

The S.A.'s Position Statements reveal that they have been skimming the Catechism for the wording of many of their positions. They hold for the sanctity of life from birth to natural death, calling abortion "deplorable," yet include some curious language about recognizing the difficult decisions mothers may face. They are essentially silent on the flip side of abortion coin - contraception - mentioning only that it is opposed to abortion as a means of birth control. They are against euthanasia, giving an insightful statement into the value of the process of death.

They correctly uphold marriage as an exclusive & permanent bond established by God between a man & a woman, yet are silent on the evil of divorce. They encourage respect for the dignity of homosexuals, even as they encourage them in a life of chastity, indeed, as they do for all the unmarried. In a great number of moral issues, the Salvation Army stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the Catholic Church as being a sign of contradiction in a very permissive & suicidal world.

I only mention these things because, being curious, I couldn't find anything on their site about how their vast collections are spent. There's verbiage about their programs, but nothing about disclosure & accountability. Not that I harbor any special distrust of them, but because their presence is so pervasive, I thought it a curious omission. Also, I think of how different the reaction would be if it were Catholics taking collections outside of stores (maybe habited religious sisters would get a pass). People just give to the S.A. with complete trust. Does that say something about people, the Salvation Army, or about the Catholic Church? All three, I suppose.

Now, I am in no way discouraging anyone contributing to the Salvation Army - I do myself when I pass their bell-ringing volunteers - but don't forget about the multitudes of Catholic missionaries hitting the streets, or the jungles, bringing the succor of Jesus Christ to the world's crushed & abandoned. Take a look at the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal , Franciscan Missions, or countless others, to be sure, including the cloistered religious who pray for the salvation of souls - including yours & mine.

Remember, co-conspirators, this Advent... Spend less. Give more. Worship fully. Love all.

And that really does count as a conspiracy these days.

Spotted! Inner Goddess!

2010-12-09T12:42:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't had an inner goddess spotting in a while. It's amazing where they turn up. This time it blindsided me at an otherwise lovely Mass for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady.

I think the OCP composers - you know, the same 6 people who wrote the same 24 songs we've been strumming on guitars for 40 years now? - are probably geniuses. Let's write a series of dreadful, nearly impossible to sing accompaniments to the Psalms of the Sunday Masses & they'll have to sing them; we'll be nearly immortal! We'll be more popular than the Beatles! We'll be more popular than Jes... er, never mind.

And so we have Psalm 98 with the oh-so-familiar melody "All the ends of the earth (I hope you're all swaying side-to-side) have seen the glory of God; all the ends of the earth have seen (go down here instead of up) the glory of God."

Well, I thought I just had wax in my ears again, but I was sure I had heard the cantor skip a word here or there or use different words in the verses of the psalm.

Sing to the Lord a new song, for God has done wondrous deeds; God's right hand has won the vic-tory; God's holy arm... Then the cantor signals "Touchdown!" & everyone joins in the refrain.

The Lord has made salvation known... Revealing justice to the nations (or something like that)... Remember your kindness & faithfulness to Israel...

OK, so what are my problems with that, you ask? Well, a few. First, this little ditty doesn't follow the approved text of the Psalm. Hopefully, the new translation will fix that.

Further, the version we sang last night didn't even match the same one we've been singing forever. What was different? Every reference to God as masculine was eliminated. The Psalm for Mass was hijacked by someone with a feminist agenda. They want God castrated. The psalm actually goes:

Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done wondrous deeds His right hand has won victory for him; his holy arm.

The Lord has made his salvation known; in the sign of the nations he has revealed his justice. He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness toward the house of Israel.

The psalmist was pretty careful to include those masculine references. I'm not sure by what authority someone would arbitrarily eliminate them. I guess by Luther's.

Why all the fuss, you ask? God is neither male nor female, right? Well... There are libraries full of theological explanations of why God is "father" & not "mother" or simply "it." But consider this: the Second Person of the Trinity took on human nature & flesh by way of the Blessed Mother. Jesus was a man & Jesus was God. Jesus called the First Person Father. It is unequivocal that God & the masculine, even maleness, are related in a special way.

Look, I know when I'm being played, & last night someone decided that the Sacred Liturgy was the place to air out their radical feminist ideology. Since this was not my parish, I tried to put it aside & focus on the more important aspects of the liturgy. But, I hope the pastor intervenes. I hope this miserable arrangement is never played again. I hope people holding & publicly forwarding heretical notions either repent or formally leave the Church; the scandal they give is awful. Hasn't enough damage been done?

Holy Mary, vanquisher of heretics, pray for us.

Breaking the Bonds of Charity

2010-12-03T14:55:00.000-08:00

Ever wonder what goes on in the head of someone who leaves Mass early, say just after Holy Communion? Well, we must not be too judgmental, because as the saying goes, everyone's dealing with something. Perhaps they're doing the best they can.

Yet, we can't help but notice when folks come down the line for the Eucharist with their coat & cap on, keys already in hand. We know they're going to head straight up the aisle & slip out the door. They will miss the most precious & fragile time of prayer - physical communion with the Lord, they will miss the post-Communion prayer, they will likely miss announcements about the various activities of parish life - the life in Christ that we are meant to live in service of God & others, & they will miss the final blessing. In the more fortunate parishes, they may also miss an appropriate & well-sung closing hymn.

In my parish, the Saturday vigil Mass is where these people are prominent. Many times I have been present at a sign-up table or ready to distribute Little Blue Books or something else & watched these folks leave in droves after Communion, sometimes what seems to be the entire back third of the congregation! And, man, is it difficult to catch their attention! Eye-contact is avoided at all cost. On some occasions, I felt compelled to literally chase someone down in the parking lot to hand them their prayer book.

But we know that an action of one member of the Body of Christ is never a matter private to them alone - it affects the entire Body. So, I think deeper down we feel a little betrayed & hurt by those who seem to want "a minimal experience of the Faith" as one pastor of souls said about "down-n-outers." What is betrayed is our understanding of ourselves as the Body of Christ, indivisible under Jesus himself. It is a tacit denial or at least a diminishing of the reality that is the Church & of the bonds of spiritual communion that exist among the members of said Church. In fact, one of the primary fruits of the sacrament of the Eucharist is an increase in those bonds of charity.

With all this in mind, I was taken back a bit by this passage of the Didascalia, a 3rd century liturgical manual presented in Mike Aquillina's book, The Mass of the Early Christians:

"When you teach the people, O bishop, command and exhort them to come faithfully to church , and never forsake it for any reason, but gather together continuously. Let no one diminish the Church by withdrawing themselves. If they do, they deprive the body of Christ of one of its members."

My Peace I Give You

2010-11-27T18:14:00.000-08:00

I was troubled, pouring over in my head so many things. Then a voice spoke to me saying,

"Those things that trouble you, they are of no consequence; they are nothing. They cannot bring peace. Even if all your difficulties were resolved now, you would still not be a peace. I know you long for peace. But you could have peace now, if only you would truly desire it. If you turn to me to all your heart, I will give you peace."

Stained glass window photo taken in St. Joseph Cathedral in Columbus, Ohio.

Father, forgive me for I have sinned...

2010-11-23T18:49:00.000-08:00

Here is a posting I made on my classroom blogsite. Perhaps remembering the kid's first confessions will help a few adults remember their need for it, too.
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I know a lot of my students this year are making their 1st Holy Communion with our Lord Jesus in the Eucharist, but some of you are wondering why you also have to make your 1st confession.

Remember when we discussed that only perfectly pure souls can stand before God? Well, it's the very similar when receiving Christ God in the Eucharist: only souls in a state of grace can receive him, that is, souls with no serious, mortal sins.

Let's look at a story Jesus told about a king who threw a marriage banquet for his son (found in Matthew 22). Now, Jesus called himself the Bridegroom (we usually just say "groom" today). So, the story is really Jesus' wedding banquet! Who is the bride, then? The Church! And through your baptism, you are part of the Church. That's how intimate a connection you are called to have with Christ Jesus in the Eucharist: as close - even closer - than husband & wife.

Back to the story: The king notices a man who tried to sneak into the wedding celebration who was not wearing the usual wedding clothes, & he says to him, "Friend, how did you come in here not wearing a wedding garment?" You see, back then all of the guests were given a lovely, white robe to wear for the wedding. So, someone wearing just their dirty street clothes was probably a party-crasher, or just bad mannered. The king had him thrown out.

We, too, were dressed in a beautiful white robe at our baptism, when all of our sins were wiped away & our souls were made perfectly clean. But as our lives wore on, we did selfish things that smudged up our clean soul. Perhaps we did some really bad things that made it so dirty, it wasn't even recognizable anymore. If we showed up wearing that to a wedding banquet, we'd be thrown out, too!

But Jesus gave his apostles his own power to forgive sins, because he doesn't want anyone separated from him; his entire mission on earth was to restore the relation between sinners & God & one another. The power of the priests to forgive sins happens in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

So what is the difference between "ordinary" sins & serious sins? Venial sins are everyday faults we have of selfishness & uncharity. These things damage our relation to God & each other, but we can heal it through prayer, fasting, & alms-giving.

However, when we've done something really wrong, we destroy our connection to God altogether - things like fighting, lying, swearing, stealing, bullying, gossiping, unforgiveness, or sins against sexual purity. It is also a very serious sin to skip Mass or to receive Communion with serious sin on your soul. These sins are also called mortal because they kill us spiritually until we go to confession.

It's like saying, "No, God, I don't want you in my life. I can get on fine without you." And God respects your decision & will patiently wait until you discover that you really do need him & come back to him in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. If someone died having said "No" to God without being sorry, God will respect that decision, too; unfortunately, this time the decision is final. We call eternal separation from God & one another hell.

Remember, the Sacrament has 5 steps...

1) You must honestly & prayerfully Examine your Conscience to see where you have failed in your walk with God. Be honest - there's no fooling God.

2) You must Be Sorry for your Sins, because sins, even minor ones, are horrible compared to God's perfect holiness. If you are not sorry for what you've done, you cannot be forgiven.

3) You must Confess your Sins to the Priest, whether behind a screen or face-to-face. You have to tell EVERY serious sin you've done, no matter how difficult or embarrassing. If you hold back anything, your confession is invalid & your sins are not forgiven. The priest will not & can not ever tell anyone what was said during Confession.

4) You must Firmly Resolve not to commit those sins again. Your sorrow for having sinned against God & your desire to live rightly afterward is expressed when you say an Act of Contrition.

5) You must Do the Penance the priest gives you to help repair the harm you've done to the Church, the Body of Christ. Whether it's as easy as saying prayers or as difficult as apologizing to someone you've offended, do your penance as soon as you can.

The priest will then give you absolution by saying the Church's prayer of forgiveness over you, invoking the name of God the Holy Trinity. You are now as free of sin as the day you were baptized, so rejoice!

- Mr. Mark

BTW, the photo at the top is a painting of the story from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 15 about the son who returns home to beg forgiveness from his father.
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What is Truth?

2010-11-15T18:00:00.000-08:00

There is only 1 cardinal sin in this modern era: claiming to hold an absolute truth.

"There shall be a time when they shall not endure sound doctrine but, according to their own desires, they will heap to themselves teachers with itching ears, and will indeed turn away from the hearing of the truth... " - 2 Timothy 4:3-4

You can hold any opinion under the sun, & under this new dispensation, everyone of them must be held as absolutely equal, even sacrosanct - beyond questioning or criticism. What you cannot do, ever, is state that you are right & someone else is wrong.

I was flipping channels before heading out to Mass & I came across a catchy headline on a CNN news program: "Gay bishop speaks out," or something to that effect, apparently about Gene Robinson running his mouth about something. Always curious to see how legion are the misinterpretations & mis-presentations of Christian faith in the media, I stuck around long enough to hear Joy Berhar say to an openly-gay pastor she was interviewing, "What part of 'Love one another' do these people not get?"

This nerf dart of error is apparently aimed at mainstream Christians who take God - speaking through St. Paul - seriously when he says:

"Know you not that the unjust shall not possess the kingdom of God? Neither fornicators not idolaters nor adulterers; nor the effeminate nor liers with mankind nor thieves nor covetous nor drunkards nor railers nor extortioners shall possess the kingdom of God. And such some of you were..." - 1 Corinthians 6:9-11

This is really a classic case of taking something you want to do - say, openly practice a sexual deviancy - & then use a fan dance of vague religious language & scriptural references to convince yourself & everyone else that God not only tolerates your sin, but that Jesus actually taught approval of it. Further, any church that does not embrace your deviancy is archaic & backwards & any person who does not support your cause is at best ignorant & prejudiced or at worst a hate-monger.

Note that it's not enough that these things be tolerated. We are required to approve of them. One doesn't have to have a very keen eye or razor-sharp insight to recognize the tremendous increase in overt sexual imagery in the media over the past 30 years or so. It should be clear that pornography has basically gone mainstream, & along with this culture of sexual license is the huge push for homosexuals & other sexual deviants to demand their "rights."

The problem is, you can't grant equality of truth to something that is false. St. Thomas tells us that truth is Nature in accord with right reason. Homosexuality is false prima facia. One cannot create their own reality. There is not, has never been, & will never be a child on this earth with 2 fathers or 2 mothers. It is simply not possible. If one brings up that male-female sex is no longer required in this age of test-tube babies, I refer you back to St. Thomas: you're barking up the wrong tree again.

Now consider this in the context of theology, where Christ is the bridegroom & the Church is his bride. In what sense can a priest - the tangible presence of Christ within the sacred assembly - be homosexual? What are we to make of the Bride receiving the Bridegroom in the consummation that is the Eucharist? Further, it is not even possible without overt blasphemy to discuss homosexuality in regards to the sacrament of Matrimony. Do you see how far reaching this issues goes into the life & nature of the Church, who she is before Christ Jesus? This is far beyond a matter of being "nice" or "fair" to a certain group. In a word, caving into our perverted society's pressure to accept homosexuality as some kind of state equal to the natural state between man & woman is really to deny the Christian Faith, to deny Christ himself. The Holy Faith is interlinked in such a way that denial of one truth of the Faith will inevitably lead to a collapse of all of them.

After saying all this, I, with the Church itself, advocate tolerance in the proper sense of the word - to deal with a known disorder by peaceful means, by persuading instead of coercing. The Church acknowledges that people are afflicted with same-sex attraction, but sees it as a symptom of our fallen nature & urges them to embrace continence - as all Christians are in their state of life - as the cross they must bear, but also as their path to holiness. We are all called to sainthood despite our brokenness. Paul continues his above statement with:

"But you are washed; you are sanctified; you are justified; in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of God." - 1 Corinthians 6:11

The real key here is embracing Christ, not one's bodily urges, to be defined by the Man, the Risen Man, the Glorified Man, not by the craven desires of fallen man. It is a quest for holiness; the waging of a war against all that would keep us from God. Throwing out the stale canard of pedophile priests is not very helpful here; the Church sees this, too, as a grave disorder, the worst of which - mercifully - is in the past.

So, to paraphrase a famous saying, everyone is entitled their own belief, but not their own truth. There is only one truth & that is the One who is the Way, the Truth, & the Life. There really are no new heresies, just old ones dressed in today's fashions. When faced with a dilemma of how to handle them when they pop up, one should not try to rationalize them with today's woolly spiritualities, but instead return to the source: to Christ Jesus, to the Scriptures, to the sure teachings of the Church, & to penance & prayer. In the light of Christ's truth, all error evaporates.

The Ying-Yang of Happiness

2010-11-09T12:48:00.000-08:00

One of my Chinese business colleagues was in town for a visit this weekend. She was out to dinner last night at one of Knoxville's most authentic Chinese restaurants with another workmate, and relayed this story to me.

Apparently, it was the birthday of one of the waiters, who was perhaps a University of Tennessee student. The manager brought him a big bowl of noodles - a Chinese custom, because noodles are very long, which symbolizes a long life.

The young man said he didn't want it because he didn't want to live a long life.

So the manager then said he would bring out the birthday cake. The young man then said he didn't like birthday cake.

Talk about the arrogance, cowardliness - though ultimately, ignorance - of today's lost & self-serving youth!

I mean, who doesn't like birthday cake!

A word on "Active Participation" by St. Pius X...

2010-11-07T06:07:00.000-08:00

"The Holy Mass is a prayer itself, even the highest prayer that exists. It is the Sacrifice, dedicated by our Redeemer at the Cross, and repeated every day on the Altar. If you wish to hear Mass as it should be heard, you must follow with your eye, heart and mouth all that happens at the Altar. Further, you must pray with the Priest the holy words said by him in the Name of Christ and which Christ says by him. You have to associate your heart with the holy feelings which are contained in these words and in this manner you ought to follow all that happens on the Altar. When acting in this way you have prayed Holy Mass."

In the Beginning by Joseph Ratzinger, Homily 1, Part II

2010-11-02T09:33:00.000-07:00

However, because God is the true author of the Scriptures, we can understand the spiritual meanings of them when we read them in the light of Christ, who is their true object, as the human authors of the New Testament well understood. Thus, St. John’s 1st Letter & his Gospel open with words that mirror the first verses of Genesis. We now see that Scripture is not closed in on itself, because God’s revelation of himself in Christ, & his people’s understanding of it & their reflecting it in their writings, unfolds throughout history. So we must not read the Genesis test complete by itself & purely within itself – we must look toward its end, which is Christ. Ratzinger says, “Christ frees us from the slavery of the letter, & precisely thus does he give back to us, renewed, the truth of the images (p.16).”

Only recently was this dynamic forgotten, that all Scripture is a living unity. Scholars seemed far more interested in researching Scripture like a puzzle to solve with an eye toward “explaining” it rather than understanding it with a view toward Christ. Ratzinger says that they became obsessed with the “particulars, but meanwhile it forgot the Bible as a whole. [They] no longer read the texts forward but backward – that is, with a view not to Christ but to the probably origins of the text…(p.17).” Thus began the altogether unnecessary - & ultimately false - enmity between faith & science.

In conclusion of his first homily, Ratzinger argues that faith in creation as a gift of God is reasonable, in fact, the better hypothesis. The very reasonableness of the universe confirms the God who is Reason, Truth, & Love. In God’s freedom as Creator, creation itself becomes a gift for man, a sharing with him of God’s own freedom, reason, & love. In responding to this gift in faith, man is able to call upon God in prayer.

Church attack in Baghdad

2010-11-01T04:58:00.000-07:00

Please read this aticle on the attack on the Syriac Catholic cathedral of Baghdad & pray for the souls of the dead, comfort for their families, & healing for the wounded. Pray for Christ's peace to rest upon both the victims & the attackers.

You may also want to pray for the intercession of some of the martyr-saints that surely comprised this congregation for the conversion of hearts to Christ & peace in the region.

Here is a comment on the tragedy from Pope Benedict.

Agnus Dei, qui tolis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tolis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tolis peccata mundi, dona eis requiem.
...
P.S.: Various updates & links to other sources can be found at New Advent.

In The Beginning by Joseph Ratzinger, Homily 1, Part 1

2010-10-29T09:35:00.001-07:00

About 30 years ago now, the future Pope Benedict XVI wrote a very important book, a collection of 4 homilies given in Our Lady's Church in Munich, Germany on the meanings of the opening chapters of Genesis in light of the discoveries of science, & how we can reclaim our own Christian heritage in these words.

It is one of those books where, when you wish to highlight the important passages, you end up highlighting nearly every line. What follows is a kind of "book report," where I try bring out some of the key points. I have broken the 1st homily into 2 pieces.

This short book, authored by one of the world's great Scripture scholars, is not only profound exegetical search into the truths that God has inspired in the Genesis story, but also a great model of Catholic Scripture scholarship. It is a must read.

Homily 1, Part I

“In the beginning…” These opening words of the Scriptures are beautiful & profound, stirring in our hearts an awe of the mystery of creation & its Creator. Yet modern man has largely dismissed these words of Scripture as a myth or perhaps a fairy tale. Recent catechesis, too, has largely ignored or side-stepped the Church’s teaching of creation, overwhelmed & silenced by the alternative creation story proposed by modern science. The question arises: If we cannot accept the truth of the Scriptures regarding creation, then perhaps we cannot trust them regarding other articles of faith, even perhaps the Resurrection. Further, if Catholics disbelieve their own Scriptures, how can we expect others to be convinced of the Faith?

While Ratzinger affirms the Church's position that the message of the creation narrative is primarily a religious one not intended to give a scientific account of how the universe arose – a message that God created all that is out of His love for man, freeing him from the gods, demons, & other hostile powers that ruled ancient belief so that he may know & live toward God - he also says that is not enough; we must rediscover the truths in the text itself if we are to affirm our belief in creation &, further, the other articles of our Faith.

Following Dei Verbum, Ratzinger sees the unity of Scripture from beginning to end as the interpretive key. First, we must see that there are many other Old Testament texts that speak of creation: Job 38-39, Psalm 104, Isaiah 40, etc. Even chapter 2 of Genesis gives an alternative account of creation. Scholars now recognize that Chapter 1 of Genesis was not written first; in fact, it may have been written as late as the return from Exile in Babylon in 528 B.C. Understanding who wrote the creation account, when they wrote it, & under what circumstances helps us to grasp the literal meaning of the passage, that is, what the human author intended.

The Jews had lost their land, the people enslaved, & the Temple destroyed – all signs of the covenant between God & his people. God used these desperate circumstances of the Jews to begin a new revelation. The Jews in captivity would have witnessed the celebration of the Babylonian New Year, which recalled the victory of the god of light Marduk over the dragon of chaos Tiamat. Marduk would go on to build the cosmos of the dragon’s body & build man from the dragon’s blood. The Jewish scribes would reject this false, sinister picture of the nature of man & the universe & reaffirm in the Genesis text the origin of man & the cosmos in God’s acts of loving Reason. From here, God could reveal to the Jews something new: He was not just the God of the Hebrews, but of every people & nation.

Confucius says...

2010-10-22T17:42:00.000-07:00

"I have no hopes of meeting a sage. I would be content if I met someone who is a gentleman.

I have no hopes of meeting a good man. I would be content if I met someone who has constancy.

It is hard for a man to have constancy who claims to have when he is wanting, to be full when he is empty and to be comfortable when he is in straitened circumstances."

- Book VII, 26.

And now a few words on "Active Participation"

2010-10-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

"In order to join in Holy Communion rightly, you must give heed to several things:

In the beginning, and before the priest goes up to the Altar, make your preparation with his - placing yourself in God's Presence, confessing your unworthiness, and asking for forgiveness;

Until the Gospel, dwell upon the Coming and the Life of our Lord in this world;

From the Gospel to the end of the Creed, dwell upon our Dear Lord's teaching, and renew your resolution to live and die in the faith of the Holy Catholic Church;

From thence, fix you heart on the mysteries of the Word, and unite yourself to the Death and Passion of our Redeemer, now actually and essentially set forth in this Holy Sacrifice, which, together with the Priest and all the congregation, you offer to God the Father, to His Glory and your own salvation;

Up to the moment of communicating, offer all the longings and desires of your heart, above all desiring most earnestly to be united forever to our Saviour by His Eternal Love;

From the time of Communion to the end, thank His Gracious Majesty for His Incarnation, His Life, Death, Passion, and the Love which He set forth in this Holy Sacrifice, entreating through it His favor for yourself, your relations and friends, and the whole Church; and humbling yourself sincerely, devoutly receive the blessing which our Dear Lord give you through the channel of His Minister."

- St. Fracis de Sales, Introduction to the Devout Life, Ch. XIV, 5.

Port or Starboard

2010-09-25T09:54:00.000-07:00

I was looking for some good sources on the ordinary Magisterium of the Church & came across the sites of 2 groups that I found interesting, if somewhat sad. What was interesting was that, as different as they appear, there's something quite kindred between them, I'd say. I'll speak about one now & the other in a different post.

First up is a group of uber-Trads known as sedevacantists. I don't feel inclined to give their name & address - you can find them if you want. It doesn't take a Latin scholar to figure out their core belief - that the "See is vacant," meaning that the current pope is really a Modernist heretic, thus no pope at all - just an impostor - & further that the visible Catholic Church defected from the true faith (which, of course, they alone hold) with the 2nd Vatican Council. & is in the grip of Satan. Their big sticking points are the Novus Ordo Mass, ecumenism, & religious liberty, amongst a hoary host of attendant issues.

The New Mass is invalid, they say, because form, matter, & intention have all changed. They claim that the language of sacrifice was specifically culled out & that the vernacular translations are an abomination of errors. Besides, they hold all of the New Rite of sacraments invalid, including Holy Orders, so they would not recognize the New Mass as valid, anyway. They like to point out the innumerable abuses observed in celebrating the New Rite. They hold exclusively for the Mass of the Council of Trent.

Regarding ecumenism, they see the outreach of the "Church of Vatican II" to other religions & Christian groups as consorting with the enemy, something a Church holding the pure Faith would never do, mainly because it implicitly gives legitimacy to whatever errors the groups hold. They point to Pope John Paul II's numerous ecumenical prayer services with Buddhists & such as well as the now-permitted reception of the Sacraments by those in schism under certain circumstances are evidence supporting their arguments.

Regarding religious liberty, they equate the idea that no one should be coerced in matters of faith with admitting that there is another way to heaven besides Jesus Christ & the one, true (& indefectable) Church, because the phrase "Outside the Church there is no salvation," tenders no nuance. They see shaky theology, fuzzy preaching, diminishing vocations, & lack of vigor in evangelization as evidence of their position.

Now, I'm actually sympathetic toward these folks. I abhor when the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is replaced by the Father O'Reilly Variety Hour. I'm somewhat troubled that certain authoritative statements from the Council & subsequent teaching seem to be in conflict with prior teaching. I'm dismayed, too, by lack of vocations, bad preaching, & a certain coziness of the Church with the world in some ways & un-surety of what it believes in others.

The Seds, though, back up their claims mostly with mudslinging against the Pope & the bishops & by quoting select bits from a myriad of Church documents, mostly obscure papal bulls & councils from a long time ago. Not that the latter are bad - what's true is always true (don't we recite a Credo formed at the ancient councils of Nicea & Constantinople at every Sunday Mass?) - yet, if the Gospel is to be preached to the ends of the earth & every believing person is to be baptized, don't you suppose that the Church would be, ya know, findable? I mean, without reading, analyzing, & comparing every Church document ever written, how was little ol' Ms. Maple in the 3rd pew on the left supposed to know she became a heretic adhering to schism on 28 October 1958 (the day Pope John XXIII was elected)?

To hold to their position is basically to admit that the prayer of Jesus that Peter's faith would not fail has failed. And this cannot be. They do not hold that there is a secret line of real popes, though I'm sure somebody somewhere holds for that. They hold that the See of Peter, that is, the Papacy itself is vacant & they pray that in God's good time, he will raise up a true pope. From where? To what? It seems they are so laser-focused in on historical documents that they can't read plain history. The Church has always been a mess. There have always been very good & very bad people within it, even in the highest positions. The Mass has been ever-changing. Even the saintly Pope Pius XII, the last Pope they recognized, made changes to the Tridentine Mass. Plus, now one of the biggest legs of their stool is taken out from under them since Benedict XVI has "liberated" the Old Mass (though they surely quelp, "Ah-ha!" over the altered Good Friday prayers). But, in spite of us, Christ guides his Bride through dark nights & rough waters. He promised us he would see us through.

The Sedes want a perfect Church that will never exist on this side of the veil. Are some of the things they protest silly, infuriating, or difficult to reconcile? Absolutely. Does that mean the Church & the Pope have defected & Christ has abandoned his Church? Not a bit. A thousand difficulties do not one doubt make. Without elaborating further, the key seems to be a true belief in the Holy Spirit present & at work in the Church, leading it toward Truth. You'd almost have to be a madman to believe that Pope Benedict XVI is a Modernist heretic. He is actually working to clarify many of the issues that vex this group, if they weren't so crazy-eyed & frothing-at-the-mouth to see.

So what to do with this crew? Sadly, there's not much to do except to leave them to themselves - for they will eventually just fade away as a renewed Catholic Church regains its strength. Pray for us all to repent & be converted to Christ. Commit to being an informed & faithful Catholic, living the Faith we profess & loyal to Peter - the Rock upon which Christ Jesus has built his Church.

As Father Corapi has frequently & famously said, "You can fall of the boat port or starboard."

Sunrise

2010-09-16T05:18:00.001-07:00

No deep thoughts today, just a photo of a lovely sunrise.

Book Review: ManAlive! by G.K. Chesterton

2010-09-06T06:23:00.000-07:00

In a world of walking zombies, being alive may mean more than simply being ambulatory. It may mean being alive by way of something, to something, for something.

In ManAlive!, Chesterton immerses us in a kind of dream world that has us circling the entire globe (literally!) while remaining in the comfortable confines of an English boarding house drawing room. We are presented with a menagerie of characters, each an aspect or image of the Modern Man, who reveal the absurdity living life without a purpose, & without even trying to discover the purpose. In the end, we remain with a question: Are we alive?

Part of Chesterton’s genius is the reverse play: the only one who is truly alive in this very tall tale appears at first to be a buffoonish, murderous, philandering thief doing business under the name Innocent. Naturally, there’s more to the story than first appears. Sometimes a fellow really does have to hoof it around the whole world just to come back around to his house (Believe me! I know a thing or two about that!). Perhaps there is a lesson here regarding what a truly Christian life would look like. As was famously said, “Holiness always looks mad by earthly standards.”

Blowing in with the westerly wind are a host of classic Chesterton quotes, each a jewel in itself, but even more precious when positioned within their proper place in the story...

“I mean,” he said with increasing vehemence, “that if there is a house for me in heaven it will either have a green lamp post and a hedge, or something quite as positive and personal as a green lamp post and a hedge. I mean God bade me love one spot and serve it, and do all things however wild in praises of it, so that this one spot might be a witness against all the infinities and sophistries, that Paradise is somewhere and not anywhere, is something and not anything. And I would not be so very much surprised if the house in heaven had a real green lamp post after all.” – Innocent Smith

“Nothing brings down more curses than a real benediction.” – Michael Moon

“As too many British officers treat the Army as a review, so I had treated the Church Militant as if it were the Church Pageant… Then I realized that for 1,800 years the Church Militant had not been a pageant, but a riot – and a suppressed riot… In the face of that I had to become revolutionary if I was to continue to be religious.” – Curate Percy

“Do you, perhaps,” inquired Pym with austere irony, “maintain that your client was a bird of some sort – say, a flamingo?”

“In the matter of his being a flamingo,” said Mood with sudden serverity, “my client reserves his defence.”

People talk of the pathos and failure of plain women; but it is a more terrible thing that a beautiful woman may succeed in everything but womanhood.

“I will not be so uncivil as to suggest that Dr. Pym has no common sense; I confine myself to recording the chronological accident that he has not shown us any so far.” – Michael Moon

“If it be true that there is a kind of man who has a natural tendency to murder, is it not equally true -” here he lowered his voice and spoke with crushing quietude and earnestness, “is it not equally true that there is a kind of man who has a natural tendency to get murdered?” – Michael Moon

“There is something pleasing to a mystic in such a land of mirrors. For a mystic is one who holds that two worlds are better than one. In the highest sense indeed, all thought is reflection... This is the real truth in the saying that second thoughts are best. Animals have no second thoughts; man alone is able to see his own thought double, as a drunkard sees a lamp post. Man alone is able to see his own thought upside down as one sees a house in a puddle. This duplication of mentality, as in a mirror, is (we repeat) the inmost thing of human philosophy. There is a mystical, even a monstrous truth in the statement that two heads are better than one. But they ought both to grow on the same body.” - Curate Percy

Will you kindly tell me what the deuce is the good of a jewel except that it looks like a jewel? You can’t fight with golden swords or eat golden biscuits; you can only look at it.

Things look so bright just before they burst.

Only saints and sages ought to be robbed. They may be stripped and pillaged; but not the poor little worldly people of the things that are their poor little pride.

"There should be priests to remind men that they will one day die. I only say that at certain epochs it is necessary to have another kind of priests, called poets, actually to remind men that they are not dead yet." - Curate Percy

H.E. Rating: 4 aspergillum shakes

Top Eleven Reasons to Speak Latin, esp. at Mass

2010-09-02T19:26:00.000-07:00

Most people, after discovering I am an adherent to the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, complain, "Why would I want a liturgy in a language I can't understand?" or "Why would I want to speak a dead language?" Below are some of my responses, some of which are quite snarky & others I just say quietly in my head...

11. That's surprising, since your obvious mastery of the English language led me to believe you were quite the language scholar! While English descends most directly from German, over half of the words in English are derived from Latin. Learn one & you learn something of the other.

10. I'm sorry, I didn't know about your learning disability. After you've prayed & sung them a thousand times, you do know them, even if you can't converse with your friends in Latin on street corners (though wouldn't that be fun!). I teach my 6th grade catechism students a few standard prayers & sayings in Latin each year, & it only takes a few classes before they don't really need their guide sheets anymore.

9. Where exactly did you go to school? America is one of the most affluent & educated countries in the world. I hold it to be a failure of the educational system - along with a big dose of cultivated personal laziness - that Latin isn't better known by anyone with a high school diploma & especially a college degree.

8. You're right - all that Cicero, Caesar, Augustine stuff is probably just a load of crap anyway. In a day when people are supposedly smarter than ever before, why in the world would we consign all the foundational writings of western civilization to the pyre! At work just last week I was asked by a whole group of engineers & technicians what "E Pluribus Unum" on our coinage means!

7. I don't like to pray together with those "other" people either! Why don't we all just fragment into our own little social-racial-linguistic factions, which I'm sure is what the Lord & his Church intends. I hear all the time that this was a big problem in the Old Days - Irish, Germans, Italians, & Polish all had their own ethnic parishes & ne'er shall they meet. This kind of Euro-factionalism isn't so common today, but often Spanish or Philippino speakers get the shaft on Mass times & run the risk of becoming a parish-within-a-parish. Can't we just pray Mass together? Plus, why would we want to lose a connection with Catholics around the world?

6. Latin is a fun to speak. It's true! The vowels are all very rich & deep. A's are always "ahhhh" as in father. O's are always "ohhhh" as in boat. U's are always "oooo", like in moose. Give your R's a little roll or flip. See how often you actually make your H's silent (nearly impossible for English speakers). All very My Fair Lady-like, if you ask me. My 6th graders eat it up, for the most part.

5. Latin is easy to sing. It is very metrical & very easy to rhyme because of the standard endings on the various noun & adjective declensions & verb conjugations, such as "Resurrexit sicut dixit..." from the Regina Caeli hymn. Which brings me to another point - there is a vast & deep ocean of beautiful liturgical chants & hymns that have lain untouched for decades now, some of which go back to antiquity. And they are soooo beautiful & prayerful!

4. Latin ain't dead; it ain't even sick. There is a rediscovery of this most beautiful tongue underway. Many students are finding themselves woefully ignorant compared to their predecessors, sensing that they are missing out on something very valuable. Here's an interesting article on the situation in Ol' Blighty (England) from our friends at the Daily Telegraph. I was very surprised at the depth of study into Greek & Latin at my son's Protestant high school!

3. Yes, the Church's ancient liturgical traditions are soooo cumbersome! Yes, tradition with a little T, but some of those point to big T's. We don't manufacture our Catholic Faith. It's not a product of our times. It's been handed on from the Apostles who received it directly from the hands of Christ. I hold strongly that the Ordinaries (Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus et Benedictus, Credo & Agnus Dei) should always be sung in the ancient languages to reinforce this. There still seems to be a lot of confusion about this & plenty of people eager to cast off the lines from the Rock & set sail into the abyss of "what's happenin' now!" Latin helps to keep us grounded in the ancient Faith.

2. The Church asked us to. Throughout the conciliar documents, esp. on the liturgy & the formation of priests, there are statements reaffirming the primacy of Latin as the liturgical & theological language of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. Why? Probably because the Church's theology, liturgy, & laws were hammered out in Latin; it says what the Church wants to say in exactly the way she wants to say it. However, every translation, even the best, runs the danger of losing the fine shades of meaning of the original. Others may be outright wrong or corrupted - witness the need for our upcoming revised Missal. The Church requires clergy to know Latin. The Church encourages the preservation & cultivation of sacred music, especially Gregorian Chant & polyphonic music, which are in Latin by definition. Shall I go on? As I see it, at some point, it is actually a question of obedience rather than style or preference.

And now, the No. 1 response to those who can't stand Latin...

1. You're right - now that Mass is in English, I sooooo get the Mysteries of God! News flash! YOU WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND. Thank you Father Christian for pointing this out! (see here) People these days seemed trained to be so shallow & impatient in their search for knowledge that things that aren't immediately apparent at face-value are simply bypassed for something more "accessible" or "relevant" or "inculturated" or whatever. Sorry, Amica, that simply isn't possible when approaching God. You have to let go of what you need, to receive instead of do, to learn to dwell in God's time, to be content with God's Mystery. We will never understand; but we are invited in nevertheless, because this is the only way we can be truly happy. And God wants us to be happy.

Now, I could go on & on with all kinds of things I hear all the time... "I didn't understand it then, why would I want it now?" Uh, I think you were 15 years old then. Mostly, Latin is a kind of symbol that people of a certain age & hair color used to rage against in their rebellion against all things ancient, steady, & authoritative - dare I say, things bigger than they were? Or at least their ideas. Well, the Age of Aquarius is glady over, Starflower. And while younger folks may be saddled with a lot of bad catechesis, fortunately they aren't really burdened with the radical baggage of that generation. Many are looking for stability in a rapidly changing world (some might say a world their elders send rolling downhill with a whoop & a kick). Ultimately, whether they know if or not, people are looking for God. The Church has seen age after age dawn, rage, & fade; she knows what people are looking for & how to lead them to it. In the liturgy of the Roman Church, a little Latin does nicely.

Rubbing Buddha's Belly

2010-08-26T17:34:00.000-07:00

On Father Christian’s blog, I made a comment to the effect that the Buddhist has no answers to find, because Buddhism seemingly has no answers to give.

As with everyone who makes some bold statement hoping to sound smart, one should immediately challenge such a crass statement by asking, “Really, Mark? No answers whatsoever? All those billions who have practiced that ancient faith have never discovered any answers at all? Gosh, you’re a genius!”

Alright, I concede my own point. But there are some distinctions that need to be made, including a clarification on what one means by “answers”. First of all, it is a point of Catholic Christian Faith that the Buddhist’s practices cannot gain him salvation, which we understand to be redemption from Original & personal sins & being taken up to the eternal & immeasurable joy of standing in God’s loving presence. News flash! The Catholic’s practices can’t earn him that either, but we’ll get to that.

First of all, the story of the man now called Buddha parallels that of St. Francis in many ways: a rich young man who becomes disillusioned with the world & embraces a life of ascetism in order to allow his spirit to reach to higher realms. With all kinds of rituals, practices, & gestures intended to bring luck, love, & fortune, I can’t imagine Buddha would even recognize the thing that is today called Buddhism - especially, the weird frog-thing with the coins on its back & the fat, gluttonous Buddha who’s in desperate need of a by-pass operation & a Man-zzier. I mean, isn’t watching where you’re going & trying to be a better driver worth more than a thousand red prayer rags tied to your car’s bumper for good luck?

Now a word about Buddhist “popular piety.” Man, do they do some pretty crazy things! They put up temples with a big, gilded statue of Buddha or one of the Buddhist saints that did some excellent deed during their life, especially if they suffered for it. Then they kneel before it & pray - often making a gesture with their hands on their foreheads, their mouths, & their chests - asking for forgiveness, healing, or other intercession for themselves, their family, & others,. Then they light candles & incense in front of the image as a way of keeping their prayers going. Then they get together in groups with their strings of prayer beads, chanting their prayers together as they go along. I told you it was crazy!

Yes, Catholics &, in truth, those of almost every religion do these kinds of things, too; because we are incarnated beings – “en-fleshed” – so our worship must include a physical, bodily dimension. I think Buddhists & Catholics alike understand that these things are not magic spells that bring a desired result automatically, nor do they bring about salvation as each religion understands it, but that they are simply “holy reminders” & useful focal points for prayer. They help keep us on the path. Nothing wrong with that, right?

Well, as a sidetrack, there are some Christian - even Catholic - movements that pop up time to time that want to “purify” the incarnational nature of the Church, such as certain Gnostic movements, Marcionism, iconoclasts, & many Reformation groups. Most of these wind up lapsing into a heresy of one stripe or another, because an attack on the Church’s incarnationalism is really an attack on creation & the Incarnation. It reduces the Faith to just an airy idea out there in space somewhere on in one’s own mind. For example, if the tangible world belongs to “accident” instead of “essence,” then it doesn’t really matter if one worships Jesus or Jes-ette, because the Redeemer’s bodily sex was just an unimportant detail. Further, it doesn’t matter if two men, two women, or all of them together want to be married, because all of this body stuff is inconsequential to what really matters: our souls. I believe Pope John Paul II’s writings & teachings on creation – most famously his Theology of the Body – seek to put the right emphasis on our embodied personhood in relation to God & each other.

So, anyway, despite Buddha’s teaching of severing one’s soul from their body as completely as possible in a very-Platonic way in order to find the divine within, it seems impossible for man to actually do this; he always comes back around to needing to involve his body in his spiritual life in some way, even if it’s only as a means to help focus the mind.

So what are they focusing on? Well, frankly, nothing. Rather, the Great Nothing. In an interesting lecture/essay/book by Fr. Norris Clarke, S.J. on human personhood, he mentions that Buddhist seek to unravel all of his relational “knots” – that is, all of our ties to this earthly realm, including bodily needs, interpersonal relations, &, at some level, even our relation to ourselves. With this final unraveling, or annihilation, we are finally released to become another drop absorbed into the cosmic ocean. If you fail to achieve this Nothingness before you die, the Wheel of Reincarnation is spun & you get another go-round on this dust ball.

In this scheme, as I understand it, there is no personal god & there is no personal salvation. In fact, there aren’t any persons, either. There sure as heck won’t be any bodies. Though Plato would certainly concede this latter point, he would never agree to the former. I needn’t waste any more electrons to explain how this contrasts with the Christian understanding of all these things.

But despite the Buddhist “dogma” of total separation, there are still things to be found – dare we say “answers”? It has long been observed that a certain reining-in of the noise of the body can produce clarity of mind & soul. In contrast, everyone knows that giving in to the body’s unruly, carnal desires darkens the mind & turns one back on themselves in a self-serving way. The Buddhist practices may create the necessary dispositions for man to reach beyond his own needs & become open to “higher things.”

In this clarity of spirit, man can hear an echo that sounds deep within him like the tolling of an old, distant temple bell, which is nothing other than the voice of God, stirring the spirit of every man, woman, & child on earth to do good & avoid evil. For those to whom Revelation has not been granted, it manifests itself as the Natural Law (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1954+). As some moral philosophers have noted, it is never really learned from the first time & can never be forgotten. Marcus Cicero said it was unchanging & everlasting, descending from on High, yet dwelling within us. It is God asking each person in the bowels of their being, “Do you love me? If you love me you will keep my commandments.”

The Church states that those who respond to this call whole-heartedly - & through no fault of their own have not been granted the knowledge & gift of Faith - may, too, be saved. This salvation would, by necessity, be by way of Christ’s redeeming sacrifice. In a sense, they would be part of the Church Universal without having formally joined it, or even knowing it! But we have to be very careful here, because there is an undeniable & unresolved (even unresolvable) tension between the God who is Love & wills not the death of any sinner and the Christ who declares that those who hear & are baptized will be saved & those who are not will not. Many would cover these persons with the mysterious phrase “Baptism of Desire,” yet, this would be a wholly new & never before used interpretation. In Roman times, this phrase came about in regards to catechumens who died before their baptism on Easter Vigil (though not a martyr’s death; that would be Baptism by Blood). To apply this meaning toward people who are not catechumens - & further, may not even want to be! – is something we should be very wary of accepting without serious consideration.

In conclusion, though the spiritual practices of both Buddhists & Catholics alike may be helpful in preparing one for an encounter with God, ultimately faith is a gift that requires a personal response. God operates in complete freedom & saves whomever he wills; however, if it is true that God saves those outside the visible confines of the Church, it a mysterious happening that occurs only between God & that individual. We can’t really say much about it; we must simply do our best to witness the Faith by word & deed & leave the rest in God’s hands.

The Bible VI: Literary Genres

2010-08-12T19:04:00.000-07:00

Another installment from the St. Thomas Knight of Columbus newsletter series...

Literary Genres in the Bible

In our review of reading the Scriptures with the mind of the Church, we have looked at what the Bible is & how it came into being. We now turn to the theme of literary genres within the Holy Writ, because this is often a big stumbling block for people today.

The Bible contains many different types of literature, not surprisingly, because it was written by many human authors over a multitude of times, places, & historical circumstances. The Bible does not fit neatly into any of the modern categories of writing, but is a story of faith revealing God's Truth, doing so by many different ways: poems, parables, histories, saga, epics, fiction, prophecies, visions, dialogues, & others. Many of these forms, like the dialogue, have fallen out of usage, & some types, like apocalyptic or gospel, have no modern equivalent, which can make them hard to discern nowadays. It owuld be a grave mistake to approach the Bible with the same mindset as one would a text book, news paper, or a how-to-book. It just isn't that kind of literature.

Some folks, Protestant & Catholic feel that this concept of literary genre is a muddling or distorting God's word; and that's a fair concern. Often, folks desire a simpler & less-challenging "what it says is what it means" type of understanding. But that really isn't understanding at all, is it? It rules out God the Spirit's ability to speak an 'ever ancient, ever new" word to his people. Now, many passages do mean exactly what they say, but I'm referring to a whole approach that bypasses both one's own powers of intellect & prayerful discernment & the interpretive Magisterium of the Church. There simply aren't any short-cuts for understanding the word of God. Cardinal Ratzinger, before becoming pope, wrote in a commentary in Genesis that we must not imprison the Word of God in the printed words of the Bible.

God speaks on multiple planes at once, & any particular verse, chapter, or even whole book could have many valid meanings. Jesus spoke in parables. He reached people at their level of understanding, but always in a way that challenged them, as he often did with his parables. They were (& are) not beyond one's ability to understand, but the meaning isn't face-plain; they require prayerful reflection to make sense of them. After all, even his disciples were confused. In this process of reflection, we are challenged to look past our own limits & expectations, to see the world through God's eyes, to invite us into his holiness & love.

That's the purpose of god revealing himself to us: to draw us into a loving union with him. But just as this journey of faith is challenging, requiring the utmost conviction & continual discernment, so too, reading the Bible requires a serious effort, a willingness to embrace the complexity of its literary forms, & a prayerful trust that god will reach us & enlighten us through his Word.

P.S.: Postings will be scarce for the next 2 weeks, as I will be in the Orient. Till then, blessings.

Confucius says...

2010-08-07T18:48:00.000-07:00

I have not been blogging much lately. Between business travels to China, catching up at home, & trying to finish up my Philosophy of the Human Person course with Franciscan U, I have had precious little time. I've not failed in thinking about blogging, just the doing.

On my last business trip, the owner of the company with whom I'm working gave me a book of the writings of Confucius in Chinese/English, because we spent a little time discussing some of the philosophical differences between East & West. This contrast is very enlightening, because a totally alien culture can shed much light on one's own. However, there are certainly points of similarity, because, people are people wherever you go.

The Confucian writings are like proverbs, each one disconnected from those around them. Some are parts of a dialogue where the beginning & end of the conversation are missing! So, it can be quite challenging to make sense of them. One has to read a large number of passages, then compare them against each other. There is not really an external "law" to them, like there would be in the Christian religion (that being the Faith itself, which preceded the written Scriptures); whatever enlightenment they possess can only be intuited from within them, though I am sure there are various schools of understanding & application (similar to some ultra-Scriptural-fundamentalist Christian groups).

I hope to share some of these interesting writings with you from time to time, with or without commentary. Here is the first:

Zeng Zi said, "Every day I examine myself on three counts. In what I have undertaken on another's behalf, have I failed to do my best? In dealings with my friends have I failed to be trustworthy in what I say? Have I failed to practice repeatedly what has been passed on to me?"
...