Friday, July 24, 2009
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Preach It!
Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D.
The Bible is not just for Churches and Synagogues. Portions of it are read as literature, even in secular university classrooms. Invariably, when you look at the syllabus of such courses, you find Job.
It’s not hard to see why. Job poignantly expresses what all human beings experience at one time or another — the feeling that life is a burden, that our daily routine is drudgery, that our suffering is meaningless, that there’s not much hope for our future (Job 7:1-7).
Things are tough all over — in Job’s day, in ours, in Peter’s. It’s all about trying to earn a living and raise a family with taxes, government, disease, and unexpected tragedies yapping at our heels. The Gospel (Mark 1:29-39) shows us such a world that is suddenly turned upside down by Someone who breaks all the rules. Demons that normally inspire terror themselves run away in fear. Fevers flee. Incurable illnesses yield. Instead of talk about the burden of the law with its innumerable regulations, Good News is announced that gives people hope again. The Good News is that God is on the move, that He, not the Emperor or the Prince of Darkness, is King, and He is not slave master but Father. The Someone responsible for all this commotion happens to look like one of them, and indeed is one of them, but does things that only God can do. As He speaks, they begin to feel as if the world may have meaning, that life may actually be worth living. They want to be with Him, to hear His electric words and see His astonishing deeds. So they won’t leave Him alone. Crowds gather outside the door of the humble place where He is staying.
What happens next is instructive. Knowing His need for communion with His Heavenly Father, He rises early next morning to seek solitude and a few moments in prayer. But they need Him. So they send the apostles to track Him down. When they find Him, He is not annoyed. He does not protest that it is His day off and tell them to come back tomorrow or sometime next week. He has come to bring Good News, to bring light to those in darkness, healing to the suffering. Many are desperate, so His mission is urgent. He gets up, but doesn’t return to Capernaum. Instead, He moves on to other towns. Those who wish to enjoy the excitement of His company must join Him in His mission.
St. Paul has the same sense of urgency as his Master (I Cor 9:16-19). He is aware of being entrusted with an awesome responsibility. It is not an option for him to share the gospel. What he has received as a gift, the most precious gift imaginable, he must give as a gift. And he must give it not only to those he likes, or those with whom he has some natural bond. He must not do it only when it suits him, when it is convenient. No, he must exert himself. He must seek common ground with all: Jew, Greek, weak, strong, educated, uneducated — so as to express the gospel to them in a way that they can understand. And this mission led him to cover more ground than even his Master — not just Judea and Galilee, but what is now Turkey, Greece, and Italy.
Not all are called to be traveling preachers like our Lord and St. Paul. But the Church teaches unequivocally that membership in the one, holy, Catholic and apostolic church is not just about being saved and enjoying God’s company. There is a suffering world out there that desperately needs the saving truth and healing touch of Christ. Notice that immediately upon being healed, Peter’s mother-in-law began working. Baptism is completed by confirmation, an anointing to serve. You can’t be fully a member of the apostolic church without participating in the apostolic mission.
GOOD OR BAD TRADITIONS?
From: One Bread, One Body
"That is the way you nullify God's word in favor of the traditions you
have handed on." —Mark 7:13
The people of Jesus' time used mere human traditions to nullify God's
word. We do the same today. For example, God's word calls us all to be one
as Jesus and the Father are One (Jn 17:21). Yet we've remained divided in
our denominations for hundreds of years. It's our tradition.
In the Bible, the Lord commands us: "Your thoughts should be wholly
directed to all that is true, all that deserves respect, all that is
honest, pure, admirable, decent, virtuous, or worthy of praise" (Phil
4:8). Yet we have a tradition of watching TV, which directs our thoughts
to evil, lust, greed, violence, and selfishness. Jesus strongly forbids
the slightest expression of impurity.
If we fall into the temptation to look lustfully at another, Jesus
proposes that we gouge out our eyes (Mt 5:28-29). Yet we have a tradition
of dressing suggestively and joking about sexual matters (see Eph 5:3-4).
In the Bible, the Lord repeatedly commands us to be "sober and watchful"
(1 Pt 5:8; 1 Thes 5:6). However, we have a tradition of drinking alcohol.
Some churches even have the tradition of selling alcohol, even when they
are almost certain of furthering someone's alcoholism.
We must repent of nullifying God's word by observing our traditions, and
we must obey the traditions which the Holy Spirit has given us (see 2 Thes
2:15).
Prayer: Father, bring down the strongholds of the evil one (2 Cor 10:4).
Promise: "God looked at everything He had made, and He found it very
good." —Gn 1:31
"That is the way you nullify God's word in favor of the traditions you
have handed on." —Mark 7:13
The people of Jesus' time used mere human traditions to nullify God's
word. We do the same today. For example, God's word calls us all to be one
as Jesus and the Father are One (Jn 17:21). Yet we've remained divided in
our denominations for hundreds of years. It's our tradition.
In the Bible, the Lord commands us: "Your thoughts should be wholly
directed to all that is true, all that deserves respect, all that is
honest, pure, admirable, decent, virtuous, or worthy of praise" (Phil
4:8). Yet we have a tradition of watching TV, which directs our thoughts
to evil, lust, greed, violence, and selfishness. Jesus strongly forbids
the slightest expression of impurity.
If we fall into the temptation to look lustfully at another, Jesus
proposes that we gouge out our eyes (Mt 5:28-29). Yet we have a tradition
of dressing suggestively and joking about sexual matters (see Eph 5:3-4).
In the Bible, the Lord repeatedly commands us to be "sober and watchful"
(1 Pt 5:8; 1 Thes 5:6). However, we have a tradition of drinking alcohol.
Some churches even have the tradition of selling alcohol, even when they
are almost certain of furthering someone's alcoholism.
We must repent of nullifying God's word by observing our traditions, and
we must obey the traditions which the Holy Spirit has given us (see 2 Thes
2:15).
Prayer: Father, bring down the strongholds of the evil one (2 Cor 10:4).
Promise: "God looked at everything He had made, and He found it very
good." —Gn 1:31
Friday, November 28, 2008
The Image Of God Behind Bars
by Karen Williams
Inmates in New Jersey State Prison and students from Princeton University clashed in battle this month -- on chess boards. A New York Times article describes the "cultural exchange program" that gives men in New Jersey's maximum security facility the chance to compete against some of the brightest brains in the country. In a recent competition, a dozen inmates prevailed.
Their wins shouldn't be shocking. But before I visited a prison, I would not have anticipated those victories. Until I interacted with inmates, I carried the subconscious assumption that they were somehow less than human. That creative intelligence does not exist behind bars. That inmates lose awareness of time and space, making life in the same place with the same routine in the same group of people, for decades, a bearable, seemingly brief experience. Prisoners, in my mind, were like fish in an aquarium.
Talking, listening, and laughing with inmates opened my eyes to their full humanity. I finally understood that being in prison does not extinguish the image of God in a person. God infused our natures with the capacity and craving to explore, to learn, to understand, to develop, to move, to subdue. When a person enters prison, these attributes endure. Only now they are confined to a prison cell and a prison yard. Prisoners live through their sentences -- not hibernate.
I'm definitely not saying that we should tear down our prisons. Justice and safety demand punishment for crime. But I am arguing that we should do all we can to help inmates celebrate their humanity -- and direct their God-given attributes towards righteousness. We should visit, engage, and teach. Solid academic research even indicates these things dramatically improve public safety by equipping offenders to avoid criminal behavior.
A chess victory may seem trivial. But it points to the divine spark that no shackle can extinguish.
Inmates in New Jersey State Prison and students from Princeton University clashed in battle this month -- on chess boards. A New York Times article describes the "cultural exchange program" that gives men in New Jersey's maximum security facility the chance to compete against some of the brightest brains in the country. In a recent competition, a dozen inmates prevailed.
Their wins shouldn't be shocking. But before I visited a prison, I would not have anticipated those victories. Until I interacted with inmates, I carried the subconscious assumption that they were somehow less than human. That creative intelligence does not exist behind bars. That inmates lose awareness of time and space, making life in the same place with the same routine in the same group of people, for decades, a bearable, seemingly brief experience. Prisoners, in my mind, were like fish in an aquarium.
Talking, listening, and laughing with inmates opened my eyes to their full humanity. I finally understood that being in prison does not extinguish the image of God in a person. God infused our natures with the capacity and craving to explore, to learn, to understand, to develop, to move, to subdue. When a person enters prison, these attributes endure. Only now they are confined to a prison cell and a prison yard. Prisoners live through their sentences -- not hibernate.
I'm definitely not saying that we should tear down our prisons. Justice and safety demand punishment for crime. But I am arguing that we should do all we can to help inmates celebrate their humanity -- and direct their God-given attributes towards righteousness. We should visit, engage, and teach. Solid academic research even indicates these things dramatically improve public safety by equipping offenders to avoid criminal behavior.
A chess victory may seem trivial. But it points to the divine spark that no shackle can extinguish.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Post Election Statement On Abortion
Post Election Statement on Abortion
You will recall that I mentioned in previous posts that the bishops spent some time on Monday and a good amount of time yesterday working with Francis Cardinal George, our President, on drafting a statement from the Cardinal in light of the recent election. This morning Cardinal George presented his statement to us. I will attempt to type his entire statement below (keep in mind that my less than nimble fingers are attempting to retype this somewhat long but excellent statement:)
“If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do its builders labor; if the Lord does not watch over the city, in vain does the watchman keep vigil.” (Psalm 127:1)
The Bishops of the Catholic Church in the United States welcome this moment of historical transition and look forward to working with President-elect Obama and the members of the new Congress for the common good of all. Because of the Church’s history and the scope of her ministries in this country, we want to continue our work for economic justice and opportunity for all; our efforts to reform laws around immigration and the situation of the undocumented; our provision of better education and adequate health care for all, especially for women and children; our desire to safeguard religious freedom and foster peace at home and abroad. The Church is intent on doing good and will continue to cooperate gladly with the government and all others working for these goods.
The fundamental good is life itself, a gift from God and our parents. A good state protects the lives of all. Legal protection for those members of the human family waiting to be born in this country was removed when the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973. This was bad law. The danger the Bishops see in this moment is that a bad court decision will be enshrined in bad legislation that is more radical than the 1973 Supreme Court decision itself.
In the last Congress, a Freedom of Choice Act [FOCA] was introduced that would, if brought forward in the same form today, outlaw any “interference” in providing abortion at will. It would deprive the American people in all fifty states of the freedom they now have to enact modest restraints and regulations on the abortion industry. FOCA would coerce all Americans into subsidizing and promoting abortion with their tax dollars. It would counteract any and all sincere efforts by government and others of good will to reduce the number of abortions in our country.
Parental notification and informed consent precautions would be outlawed, as would laws banning procedures such as partial-birth abortion and protecting infants born alive after a failed abortion. Abortion clinics would be deregulated. The Hyde Amendment restricting the federal funding of abortions would be abrogated. FOCA would have lethal consequences for prenatal human life.
FOCA would have an equally destructive effect on the freedom of conscience of doctors, nurses and health care workers whose personal convictions do not permit them to cooperate in the private killing of unborn children. It would threaten Catholic health care institutions and Catholic Charities. It would be an evil law that would further divide our country, and the Church should be intent on opposing evil.
On this issue, the legal protection of the unborn, the bishops are of one mind with Catholics and others of good will. They are also pastors who have listened to women whose lives has been diminished because they believed they had no choice but to abort a baby. Abortion is a medical procedure that kills, and the psychological and spiritual consequences are written in the sorrow and depression of many women and men. The bishops are single-minded because they are, first of all, single-hearted.
The recent election was principally decided out of concern for the economy, for the loss of jobs and homes and financial security for families, here and around the world. If the election is misinterpreted ideologically as a referendum on abortion, the unity desired by President-elect Obama and all Americans at this moment of crisis will be impossible to achieve. Abortion kills not only unborn children; it destroys constitutional order and the common good, which is assured only when the life of every human being is legally protected. Aggressively pro-abortion policies, legislation and executive orders will permanently alienate tens of millions of Americans and would be seen by many as an attack on the free exercise of their religion.
This statement is written at the request and direction of all the Bishops, who also want to thank all those in politics who work with good will to protect the lives of the most vulnerable among us. Those in public life do so, sometimes, at the cost of great sacrifice to themselves and their families; and we are grateful. We express again our great desire to work with all those who cherish the common good of our nation. The common good is not the sum total of individual interests; it is achieved in the working out of a common life based upon good reason and good will for all.
Our prayers accompany President-elect Obama and his family and those who are cooperating with him to assure a smooth transition in government. Many issues demands immediate attention on the part of our elected watchman. May God bless him and our country.
So ends the statement of Cardinal George. Of this much I am sure, I shall not be retyping long statements until this blog provides me with the ability to cut and paste and conduct a spell check (currently unavailable to me).
I am proud of this statement and it perfectly reflects my own feelings and hopes at this moment in our nation’s history. During the election, the President-elect never deviated from his main message: “Change and hope.” I pray that he will not change the nation’s present approach to abortion-on-request to something far worse and I hope that he will understand that there are many of us out here who hold deep religious and conscience convictions on this important issue. I hope that he will surprise and not disappoint. I pray that he will lead and not be led by those intent on the destruction of human life. Our nation needs to be united not further fractured.
This final afternoon will be spent in prayer, adoration, and reconciliation. At 6:15pm I begin my return to my beloved diocese on AMTRAK’S “Silver Meteor” and perhaps somewhere around Richmond at 10pm tonight, I will tell you more about the meeting and my train ride. There will be little that is “meteoric” in my return.
From: Bishop Robert Lynch, St. Petersburg, FL
You will recall that I mentioned in previous posts that the bishops spent some time on Monday and a good amount of time yesterday working with Francis Cardinal George, our President, on drafting a statement from the Cardinal in light of the recent election. This morning Cardinal George presented his statement to us. I will attempt to type his entire statement below (keep in mind that my less than nimble fingers are attempting to retype this somewhat long but excellent statement:)
“If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do its builders labor; if the Lord does not watch over the city, in vain does the watchman keep vigil.” (Psalm 127:1)
The Bishops of the Catholic Church in the United States welcome this moment of historical transition and look forward to working with President-elect Obama and the members of the new Congress for the common good of all. Because of the Church’s history and the scope of her ministries in this country, we want to continue our work for economic justice and opportunity for all; our efforts to reform laws around immigration and the situation of the undocumented; our provision of better education and adequate health care for all, especially for women and children; our desire to safeguard religious freedom and foster peace at home and abroad. The Church is intent on doing good and will continue to cooperate gladly with the government and all others working for these goods.
The fundamental good is life itself, a gift from God and our parents. A good state protects the lives of all. Legal protection for those members of the human family waiting to be born in this country was removed when the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973. This was bad law. The danger the Bishops see in this moment is that a bad court decision will be enshrined in bad legislation that is more radical than the 1973 Supreme Court decision itself.
In the last Congress, a Freedom of Choice Act [FOCA] was introduced that would, if brought forward in the same form today, outlaw any “interference” in providing abortion at will. It would deprive the American people in all fifty states of the freedom they now have to enact modest restraints and regulations on the abortion industry. FOCA would coerce all Americans into subsidizing and promoting abortion with their tax dollars. It would counteract any and all sincere efforts by government and others of good will to reduce the number of abortions in our country.
Parental notification and informed consent precautions would be outlawed, as would laws banning procedures such as partial-birth abortion and protecting infants born alive after a failed abortion. Abortion clinics would be deregulated. The Hyde Amendment restricting the federal funding of abortions would be abrogated. FOCA would have lethal consequences for prenatal human life.
FOCA would have an equally destructive effect on the freedom of conscience of doctors, nurses and health care workers whose personal convictions do not permit them to cooperate in the private killing of unborn children. It would threaten Catholic health care institutions and Catholic Charities. It would be an evil law that would further divide our country, and the Church should be intent on opposing evil.
On this issue, the legal protection of the unborn, the bishops are of one mind with Catholics and others of good will. They are also pastors who have listened to women whose lives has been diminished because they believed they had no choice but to abort a baby. Abortion is a medical procedure that kills, and the psychological and spiritual consequences are written in the sorrow and depression of many women and men. The bishops are single-minded because they are, first of all, single-hearted.
The recent election was principally decided out of concern for the economy, for the loss of jobs and homes and financial security for families, here and around the world. If the election is misinterpreted ideologically as a referendum on abortion, the unity desired by President-elect Obama and all Americans at this moment of crisis will be impossible to achieve. Abortion kills not only unborn children; it destroys constitutional order and the common good, which is assured only when the life of every human being is legally protected. Aggressively pro-abortion policies, legislation and executive orders will permanently alienate tens of millions of Americans and would be seen by many as an attack on the free exercise of their religion.
This statement is written at the request and direction of all the Bishops, who also want to thank all those in politics who work with good will to protect the lives of the most vulnerable among us. Those in public life do so, sometimes, at the cost of great sacrifice to themselves and their families; and we are grateful. We express again our great desire to work with all those who cherish the common good of our nation. The common good is not the sum total of individual interests; it is achieved in the working out of a common life based upon good reason and good will for all.
Our prayers accompany President-elect Obama and his family and those who are cooperating with him to assure a smooth transition in government. Many issues demands immediate attention on the part of our elected watchman. May God bless him and our country.
So ends the statement of Cardinal George. Of this much I am sure, I shall not be retyping long statements until this blog provides me with the ability to cut and paste and conduct a spell check (currently unavailable to me).
I am proud of this statement and it perfectly reflects my own feelings and hopes at this moment in our nation’s history. During the election, the President-elect never deviated from his main message: “Change and hope.” I pray that he will not change the nation’s present approach to abortion-on-request to something far worse and I hope that he will understand that there are many of us out here who hold deep religious and conscience convictions on this important issue. I hope that he will surprise and not disappoint. I pray that he will lead and not be led by those intent on the destruction of human life. Our nation needs to be united not further fractured.
This final afternoon will be spent in prayer, adoration, and reconciliation. At 6:15pm I begin my return to my beloved diocese on AMTRAK’S “Silver Meteor” and perhaps somewhere around Richmond at 10pm tonight, I will tell you more about the meeting and my train ride. There will be little that is “meteoric” in my return.
From: Bishop Robert Lynch, St. Petersburg, FL
Monday, November 10, 2008
Talk To Me
I just read an interesting article on BreakPoint that mentions our lack of conversation. Our lack of good conversation. I want to talk to someone! I want to talk about Jesus, the Church, the enviroment, politics, social change, family values, poets, books.... Where have I been. I want to hear people talk about today's issues and cultures. My computer has silenced me.
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