St Philip Neri (5/26/17) Apostleship of Prayer

The Don Bosco Option, Part I

Many Christians look at the situation in the world today and want to escape.  They lose heart when they see the violence, injustice and materialism of modern life. With the popular redefinition of marriage, the continued assault on the unborn in the womb and general disrespect for the sanctity of human life that’s far too common they wonder how much farther our country can move away from the Culture of Life. We see that the culture is no longer influenced by Gospel values as it once was, and wonder if it’s possible anymore to be active, engaged and faithful citizens. Some call for Christians to separate themselves, living in small, isolated communities, only engaging in public life when it’s necessary to defend religious liberty. They say that we should follow the example of St. Benedict of Nurcia, the father of Western monasticism, whose monasteries served as refuges that preserved Christian faith and culture as the Roman world was crumbling around them. Then, when the current society collapses, the Church will be ready to reemerge to put the pieces of a broken culture back together again, in the same way the Benedictine monasteries did so many centuries ago. 

There is a popular book out now called The Benedict Option by Rod Dreher, in which the author makes this kind of proposal. I want to be fair: Dreher is not some kind of Christian survivalist who thinks we should literally move to the mountains, stockpiling food and water, while we await the apocalypse. But he does feel that we need to come together as believers, living is small, intentional communities so as to preserve Christian culture amidst the shifting tides of our unstable society. He compares it to people seeking the metaphorical high ground during a severe storm, huddling together, sharing their resources, both material and spiritual, until the tempest passes and it's safe to go outside again. Then the "survivors" can emerge to sift through the wreckage to reconstruct a new Christian civilization. 

Again, he's not talking about total separation from the mainstream, but a tactical retreat from the culture, so we have space to preserve the faith and pass it on. He would limit our political involvement to more or less advocating for religious liberty, and maybe speaking out on some other issues, but that's about it. Dreher has admitted in interviews that his tone in the book is extreme, but he feels that we are in desperate times, so he needs to be a bit alarmist to get people's attention. While there is much I find good in the book, I'm not sure if I can sign on with the Benedict Option, as its presented here. Even though he goes to great pains to say that he's not advocating the complete self ghettoizing of Christians, it can come off that way. I would like to propose a different way. We can call it “The Don Bosco Option.” 

St. John Bosco (1815-1888) lived during a time of political, social and religious upheaval in Italy and Europe. The industrial revolution had finally come to the Italian peninsula, which itself was transforming from a mere geographical expression, made up of various principalities and occupied territories into an independent, unified nation. In the rest of Europe, the attempted restoration of the old order after the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars came to an end, which saw the ultimate victory of constitutional republics over the old absolute monarchies. With these changes the temporal power of the Catholic Church, as it had been exercised and understood previously also came to an end. The newly formed Italian state was in conflict with the Church, placing strict limits on how she could function, and what social and educational services she could give. The state even prohibited the Church from founding new religious orders. It was in this anticlerical atmosphere that Don Bosco struggled to start his educative pastoral project on behalf of the young. 

In a way, Don Bosco’s oratory was a small, intentional community, where young people and those who served them lived the Gospel and preserved culture. It was an island of prayer, where youth could engage in wholesome recreations and learn a trade. They were meant to be a shelter from the increasingly secular society around them, which was losing touch with Gospel values. 

But the boys weren’t meant to live out their entire lives at the Oratory. It was there that they received a well-rounded Christian formation so that they could go out and become involved citizens. They were meant to be a leaven that transformed society, helping to form a true Christian culture. They were to go out, putting into practice the spiritual and practical lessons that they had learned so that they could change the world, a little at a time. As disciples of Christ we aren’t called to simply stay closed in on ourselves, focusing in on a small list of issues that affect us alone. We are called to be voices crying out, preparing for a “Christian Revival,” but not from behind monastery walls. While the monastic vocation is valuable, as Salesians we are called to go out engaging, with joy, the culture, always ready to give reasons for the hope that we have in Christ Jesus (1 Peter 3:15).

Don Bosco, while seeking to shield his boys from the moral dangers of the streets, and the ideological dangers of anticlerical textbooks, going as far as writing his own History of Italy for use at the Oratory, wasn't afraid to work with "the enemy." In formulating the Salesian constitutions he consulted with government officials, including the very author of some of the anticlerical laws, to see how he could formulate a rule that would pass muster with both the state, as well as the Church. 

In all this Don Bosco gives us an example to follow. A Salesian work, be it a school, a parish, a youth center, among the many types of works we run, should form intentional, Christian communities. They should be sanctuaries, where the culture of life is lived. When a student, parishioner or member enters, he or she should have a sense that they are in a different place, guided by different values than those of the world. At the same time they are being prepared to go back out into the world to engage others. They should be ready to live the faith with integrity, while being active, engaged citizens. This engagement can come with dangers and sacrifices. It's not for no reason that there are Salesian martyrs among the saints and blesseds of the Church. While there's still is a need for the Benedictine spirit, and those who embrace it, the Salesian call, and I believe the call for most Christians, is one of membership in an intentional, formative Christian community that leads us to active engagement with the world.  

More thoughts on this to come.

Bishop Barron on Pride, Humility, and Social Media

Peace, Not as the World Gives It - Reflection for Tuesday of the 5th Week of Easter

In the first reading of todays’s Mass (Acts 14:19-28), we hear about only a very few of the many hardships that Paul endured preaching the Gospel. In other places we hear that he is ship wrecked, falls victim to bandits, endures slanders and calumnies at the hands of false brothers.  Here he is stoned to the point that his would-be executioners leave him for dead. Yet he got up, with other disciples around him, and entered the city, an act of defiance in the face of determined opposition. What gave Paul the ability to get up after suffering such harsh treatment was that he possessed the peace of Christ. 

In the Gospel reading (Jn 14:27-31A) Jesus tells his disciples not to be afraid. The satanic "ruler of the world is coming," He is going away, and their faith will be shaken. It is the night before He's to die, and Jesus is trying to prepare them so that they won't falter. Of course, they do - especially Peter, but He gives them His peace so that even when they stumble and fall they may have the ability to get back up. 

But what is this peace? To start with something it's not, we can say that it isn't contentment or happiness. I doubt that Paul felt happy after being beaten within an inch of his life by men with heavy stones. I don't think Martin Luther King was feeling contented as he sat in Birmingham Jail. Both men, in a way, had been beaten down by their foes. They were defeated in the moment, but an inner peace that only Christ can give lifted them back up. In Paul's case to continue the mission of evangelization by walking defiantly back into the city of Lystra. In the case of King, he wrote his famous letter, challenging the consciences of those "moderate" religious leaders who sympathized with he cause of civil rights but felt it imprudent to act. Both men possessed the inner strength born from faith, and the right ordering of their lives in light of that faith. In those moments they were no longer living for themselves, but for Christ, and the Kingdom He came to establish. Both men possessed the peace of Christ. 

The peace of Christ isn't a protection against all anxiety, or a guarantee that we will never face obstacles. It is the peace of Christ that enables us to get up again after being beaten down. The peace of Christ is born from faith lived out consistently in our lives. When we know and live the Commandments, not out of fear but out of love, we possess the peace of Christ. In a way it is a coming together of the three great theological virtues, faith hope and love, lived in concert with one another, directing our lives toward deeper union with God.

This isn't the peace of the world. The peace of the world is built on that which is material, sensual, and willful. We too often seek happiness in consumer goods, money or property. Or else we seek some sense high or pleasure from chemical or sexual sources. Then there are those who chase after power, either in the political, corporate or ecclesiastical realm. In their proper place property, pleasure and the exercises of power aren't bad, but they don't offer lasting peace, and can corrupt the individual. Property, pleasure and power divorced from responsibility are sources of unhappiness for those caught up in their pursuit and for others around them. They can lead, in the end, to eternal perdition.

Christ is calling us to not look for lasting peace in these temporary fixes of property, pleasure and power. He gives us the example to follow. We shouldn't be afraid to carry the cross we are given. It will seem hard, even excruciating, at the time. We may feel beaten down or imprisoned emotionally or psychologically. But if we hold fast to what is true, and to Him who is Truth, this peace will carry us on from the cross, through the tomb to the everlasting glory of the resurrection.    

The Scapular by the Apostleship of Prayer

Bishop Barron on the Sacrament of Confirmation

A Leper Among Lepers - Fr. Damien by AOP

Our Lady of Fatima HD

This Saturday is the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, which this year marks the 100th anniversary of the apparitions of Mary to the three child seers in Fatima, Portugal. I'll have more on this important feast later in the week.