St. John Bosco Parish Bulletin Letter for July 5, 2015

This weekend the United States celebrates Independence Day. It is the most important of our civic holidays, recalling our nation’s founding. It is a day to give thanks to God for the blessings we have received as a country, and the freedoms we enjoy. The Catholic Church, in particular, has thrived here because of the promise of religious liberty enshrined in the Constitution. The Church has also contributed much to our nation. The Catholic Church is one of, if not the largest private provider of heath care in the U.S. through our network of hospitals, and education by way of our schools. Catholic Charities, sometimes working with the civil government, sometimes working on its own, provides social services like work placement programs, emergency housing assistance for the homeless, and food and rent assistance for those in need, and much more. When all these service agencies and religious organizations are combined, we see that we are not only providing service to countless people, but the Church is also the largest private employer in Chicago, employing around 75,000 people. These are people who vote, pay taxes as well as rent or mortgages, shop at local businesses, contributing to the economic life of the community. I could go on, but I think you get the point. Catholics have proven to be good and faithful citizens of this Republic, while also remaining good and faithful disciples of Jesus Christ.

On June 26, 2015 the Supreme Court of the United States decided that persons of the same sex could legally marry in all 50 states of the Union. While we respect all people, and their right to pursue happiness in their lives, this is a decision that simply goes against the Christian understanding of what marriage is. For a disciple of Christ marriage is about more than personal happiness or satisfaction. It is more than a private arraignment entered into for the good of the couple. It has always been seen as the foundation of the family, the best, if imperfect, setting for the raising, evangelizing and education of children. To separate marriage from family, and make its definition dependent on personal sentiments independent of its deeper responsibilities is to render marriage meaningless.

As citizens or residents of this great nation, we respect all our neighbors. As Archbishop Cupich reminded us in his statement on this matter, “It is important to note that the Catholic Church has an abiding concern for the dignity of gay persons. In fact, the Catechism of the Catholic Church says: ‘They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided.’ (n. 2358).” But as he also reminds us, “the Supreme Court’s redefinition of civil marriage has no bearing on the Catholic Sacrament of Matrimony, in which the marriage of man and woman is a sign of the union of Christ and the Church.”

There are many people of good will on both sides of this issue. But there are, sadly, also a few who will use the Court’s decision to question our loyalty as citizens, and even try to limit our participation in public life. It is for us to move forward in faith, “with malice toward none, charity for all,” as Abraham Lincoln once said.  We should know our history, and the vital role Catholics have played in the life of the country, and that we are committed to continue as loyal citizens, but always first as faithful disciples of Jesus Christ.

Freed from Fear: From AOP

Reflections After My Retreat

I spent last week at the Mary Town Retreat center in Libertyville, IL, completing one of the sweetest obligations I have: my yearly retreat. It's not the usual, or preferred way of making a retreat: apart from one our province sponsored retreats, but scheduling made it hard to fit one in. Our provincial was gracious enough to grant me permission to spend the week in prayer and reflection on my own, and I'm grateful for that. The Conventual Franciscans who run Mary Town, which includes the National Shrine of St. Maximilian Kolbe, as well as the entire staff (I'm a familiar figure in the gift shop) were gracious as well, in their hospitality.

The week was simple. I joined the friars for prayers and Mass, spent extended times in Eucharistic Adoration (Mary Town has 24 Adoration) and read through the Pope's encyclical, Laudato Si'. I also began reading Romano Guardini's book Learning the Virtues: That Lead You to God. I also saw a series of videos via You Tube of testimonials of Jewish Converts to Catholicism. This wasn't planned ahead of time, I was drawn to it. More on that later.

I know that there is a five hundred pound gorilla in room, which is Friday's Supreme Court decision concerning same-sex marriage. I saw the news just before lunch, and was shocked by the suddenness of the ruling more then the outcome. Earlier in the week Fr. Dwight Longenecker had made an educated guess that June 30 was going to be the "day," (along with offering a not so coincidental reflection on the Mass reading for that day), so it wasn't on my radar. I'll write on this more profoundly this week. I thought about giving a quick take on it, but I can see it will end up taking up the entire post. So patience. I will get to it, just not right now.

What insights did I walk away with this week? Here are a few points.

1. You have to put in the time before the Blessed Sacrament

As a Salesian religious I'm called to pray in community twice a day, celebrate Mass, pray the rosary and, in the spirit of St. John Bosco, make frequent though short visits to the Blessed Sacrament through out the day. The idea is the we are active, and spending long periods of time in prayer is not always possible. So we pray as we can, lifting our minds to God throughout the day, encountering the Lord in the young people we serve and the events of our lives. Very true. But as I've taken on the responsibilities of director and pastor I've learned that a Holy Hour is invaluable. It has to be right the first thing in the morning, because once the day starts it's impossible to find time for those short visits, let alone an hour. At night I'm just too tired. But that time in front of the Blessed Sacrament is essential. The greatest gift we have to offer others, no matter who we are or what our vocation is, is the gift of Jesus. If we don't spend time with him, foster a relationship with him, we are never going to be say that we know him and share our love for Christ with others. I can testify that getting up that extra hour earlier is not easy, but it is worth it.

2. Practicing traditional devotions make the celebration of the Mass a more heightened experience.

When I grew up popular devotions were simply not promoted. I'm talking about things like novenas, the rosary, the use of sacramentals like the Miraculous Medal or the Brown Scapula, even Eucharistic Adoration, which were given little, if any mention. To be fare, we did learn the rosary, but even this central devotion was not promoted as it should have been. I chalk this up to a misreading of the Second Vatican Council. With Vatican II the Liturgy was renewed, and it's proper place at the center of Christian worship was emphasized. Popular devotions were to be revised so that they both harmonized with Sacred Scripture and lead the faithful more naturally into the celebration of the Mass. The Divine Office, aka the Liturgy of the Hours, which priests and religious pray, was recast as the prayer for all Christians, not just the "professional" ones. Again, all right on. But there was an interpretation that set popular private devotion against the official public liturgy. The rosary and novenas were what the people did when they couldn't understand the Mass, but now that we have the vernacular liturgy those things are unnecessary, or even harmful. As for sacramental, at best they were nice reminders of holy things, and at worst superstitious anachronisms.

I can tell you nothing is farther from the truth. Since discovering, and really surrendering, to the Divine Mercy devotion, I've found my attentiveness, reverence, and devotion (for lack of a better term) at Mass has increased incredibly. It's not to mystical proportions, but I've found that I am "in the moment" during both he Liturgy of the Word and of the Eucharist on a much more consistent basis. Any priest will tell you that with all the preoccupation of parish or school administration keeping from being distracted during Mass is a challenge, and not every celebration has the same level of focus. I would say that forming a habit of more traditional, devotional prayer, which includes the Divine Mercy Chaplet along with the rosary (which is already apart of our Salesian routine), that augments the Office, has lead to a more consistent, reverent and profound experience of the Eucharist.

3. We owe a great debt to our Jewish brethren 

As I mentioned before, I found myself drawn to videos on You Tube featuring testimonials of Jewish converts to the faith. The most controversial of the three I saw, Roy Schoeman, accepts the term convert, but prefers to call himself a "fulfilled Jew."  And I think that's what the the big take away was for me, because all three witnesses were strong in saying that are still very much Jews who have now recognized the Jewish Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth. Schoeman, as well as Rosalind Moss (who is now a nun) and Ronda Chevin, a philosopher who is now widowed, all talked about how they discovered how Jewish the Catholic Church is when they first began investigating it. For Chevin this was not a positive point. She entered Christianity by way of evangelical Protestantism. Her brother, who had already converted to Catholicism, dragged her to Mass one evening, and she was horrified to see how much the Mass resembled a synagogue service. She kept thinking that St. Paul tells us that Jesus came to abolish all this and make something new. It was only over time that she came to understand that Jesus came to fulfill, not abolish the Old Law.

As I wrote, Schoeman is a controversial figure, who has definite ideas connecting the Holocaust with the End Times that Jews, as well as many Christians, would have serious problems with. He's not blind to the Church's shortcomings visa vi her relationship with the Jewish people over the centuries, and isn't afraid to quote the truly disturbing words of otherwise saintly Church Fathers about our elders in the faith. He's evenhanded in his assessment of Pius XII, noting the pontiff's personal efforts to save Jews from the Nazis, to the point of hiding Jewish refugees in Castel Sant'Angelo, but also saying he could have done more in his official capacity as pope to make the situation known to the world.

I walked away from these presentations with is a greater appreciation for the richness of the Catholic faith, and how ever ancient it really is. Also that we owe a great deal to our Jewish brothers and sisters. I understand better now Jesus' words from Matthew, that he came to fulfill, not abolish. We do need to be sensitive to the history of our relationship with the Jewish people. I know Schoeman would like to see a more deliberate evangelical entitative taken toward the Jewish people, but we are sensitive to the history, and our own sins. It's for us "cradle Catholics" to discover the Jewish roots of our faith, and, in not be afraid to share the riches of the Catholic Church with others, even Jews, which we've been afraid to do since World War II.

***

That was my take away from my yearly retreat. As for the big picture, I believe the Lord is calling us to greater devotion. We shouldn't be deceived about this Supreme Court decision; it's going to be rough times ahead for the Church here in the United States. But I'm optimistic. In 2,000 years we've faced pretty tough times. But if we stay close to Christ he will see us through, no matter how rough the going may get.

Fr. Robert Barron on Pope Francis' Encyclical "Laudato Si'"

Here is Fr. Barron's initial take on Pope Francis' encyclical letter Laudato Si'. He places the Holy Father's words in the context of traditional Christian cosmology, that views human beings as a part of creation, that while having a special role with in the created order, is still a part of it. We are to harmonize with nature, not dominate it in the sense that it is a mere object to be bent or manipulated to our purposes.

As Fr. Barron points out, this is a lengthy, though not necessarily a difficult read. I'm going to finish it up today (I hope), then spend my retreat next week going over it again, then giving a more thoughtful reflection of my own.

I look forward to Fr. Barron's analysis and will post it as soon as it becomes available.

New Papal Encyclical "Laudato Si: On the Care of Our Common Home" Released. Details to Follow

At about 6:00 AM local time the latest papal encyclical was released, Laudato Si'. It's caused controversy since it was still a gleam in Pope Francis' mind's eye, and now that it has actually hit the presses I'm sure more consternation will follow. I've begun reading it, and yes he does write about climate change, probably the most contentious part of the document. But from the introduction the Holy Father indicates that he is going to try and show the connection between care for the environment and other issues that we wouldn't automatically associate with ecology (think life issues and human sexuality). So while conservatives may condemn the document as being "liberation theology" or "socialist," progressives shouldn't get too giddy yet. I'm guessing that it we take off the ideological glasses we'll read enough to make us cheer and think twice about Pope Francis.

I'll finish reading it, and invite you to do the same. I'll be back soon with my take.

Discovering our Saints - St. Anthony of Padua from CCTNtv

The Compassion of Jesus from AOP

St. Boniface from AOP

Fr. Robert Barron on St. Charles Lwanga

N.T. Wright is Right, Mostly

This is is one of those uncomfortable situations where I'm commenting on someone who has probably forgotten more about Biblical scholarship than I've ever known. Which is to say, I shouldn't be commenting at all about the thought of New Testament scholar and Anglican Bishop N.T. Wright. But what the heck, as in the words of one of my old professors, I'm not some big time scripture scholar worried about my reputation. I can pretty much say what I think!

Bishop Wright is a favorite of Fr. Robert Barron, and gets quoted by Catholic apologists, as wells being well respected in his own tradition. I have not read his books, but have caught a number of his lectures and interviews on You Tube, and I can see why he's so well respected. He walks that fine line of quite vigorously defending core Christian beliefs, like the bodily Resurrection, while explaining with equal vigor the subtleness and complexity of the sacred texts that defies a fundamentalist reading.

I don't have a problem with the content of his talks. There is little I've heard so far that a faithful Catholic couldn't sign off on. There was one comment about purgatory that was complimentary of more recent Catholic scholarship on the topic, while at he same time giving a gentle back of the hand to more "traditional" doctrinal formulations; small stuff in the the end.

What's nagged at me a bit is what I'm not hearing Bishop Wright say in his talks more than what he is. He correctly observes that Jews and gentiles of the first century and late antiquity looked at history, mythology and the natural sciences in a different way then we of the post-Enlightenment world. Our culture has bought into the notion that the scientific method is the only way that we can judge what is true or false (how this jibes with the current gender wars we're having, where objective physical evidence is rejected in favor of subjective dispositions I'll never know, but that's a subject for another day). Even fundamentalists see things this way without even knowing it. They tend to get caught up in the minutiae of whether the earth was created in six literal days or historicity of the Jonah story that they miss the deeper theological truth that renders such arguments somewhat useless.  But in appealing to a more nuanced approach to reading the Scriptures he appeals to the ancients and the Apostolic Church but ignores the post Apostolic Fathers of the Church, whom all understood the various senses of scripture. He gets to the right conclusions but seems to take the really long way around to avoid tipping his hat to the Catholic tradition.

I want to make clear that I don't believe Bishop Wright is anti-Catholic or anything like that. He's man of his ecclesial tradition, speaking to people, for the most part, of Christian groups that are farther removed from Rome then the Church of England, which maintains a liturgical life and claims Apostolic Succession along with the Catholics and Orthodox. Even though they are commonly referred to as being Protestant one can debate the validity of that identification: a discussion best left for another time. He's going to frame things in a way his audience understands, and in the case of Evangelicals he's already proposing a reading of the Bible which is fairly radical to many in the rank and file. The last thing he needs is come off looking like a papist.

That Bishop Wright is critical of transubstantiation as a way of explaining how Christ is present in the Eucharist, or has issues with traditional explanations of purgatory, I have no problem with. When we read thinkers of different faith traditions we shouldn't be afraid or shocked that we're going to disagree on some things, even fundamental things. But as a wise man once said, (and I paraphrase) you're entitled to your own opinion, but not to your own history. Bishop Wright doesn't try to rewrite history so much as gloss over it, giving the impression that somehow we're rediscovering a way of reading revelation that's been hidden since the distant past. No, the Western Church has long understood the subtlety of the ancient texts, and there is a long 2000 year history of reading the Bible on the level of metaphor and, dare I say, allegory, while recognizing the historicity of the history and the poetic nuance of the poetry, and not seeing a conflict between the two things. It strikes me that at times he's getting off at the right exit but taking a much longer route to get there so as to avoid driving in or around Rome.

That all being said, I am dust, and all I've written is as so much straw in comparison to the work of N.T. Wright. So, I whole heartedly recommend him. He's right on target when it comes to the core issues, offering invaluable insights that will help the pastor and apologist as well as the scholar, be more effective in their ministry. He's not Roman Catholic, nor should we expect him to be, so we take what is good, let the disagreements be fodder for discussion, and give thanks to God for such strong, wise voice.

St. Justin Martyr - Father and Apologist by Matthew Leonard of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology

St. Justin Martyr from AOP

From Fr. Robert Barron's Catholicism Series: The TRINITY

To order the entire Catholicism series, visit the Word on Fire store.

What is the Trinity? from Fr. Robert Barron

C4: Ignite Your Catholic Faith - What is the Holy Trinity? from Ignite Your Catholic Faith

Feast of the Most Holy Trinity from AOP

Mad Men: One Last Look - 3rd in a Series

Parenting advice from Betty Draper Francis 

Click here for parts 1 and 2 in the series titled A Wrap Up and Personal Farewell to Mad Men

To conclude this admittedly overlong goodbye to Mad Men, I'd like to hit on a couple of loose ends concerning two key characters I've neglected so far.

When I was preparing my pre-finale post which never got finished, let alone posted, Betty Draper Francis' (January Jones) fate was the first thing I started writing about. So I was embarrassed when I got to the end of two lengthy posts and nary gave her a mention. Keeping in mind my basic premise that the characters in the show didn't so much change over the course of the series as much as they came to terms with who they are, setting out to be the best versions of themselves they can be, pursuing dreams in accord with their talents, abilities and deepest wants, we can rightly ask, "where does this leave Betty?"

Just when she seems to be hitting her stride, enjoying domestic stability, returning to school to study psychology with hopes of making a career out of it, Betty is diagnosed with lung cancer. For all the smoking going on the show, you'd think she'd have to get on line for that diagnosis. But no, she is the sacrificial lamb on this one.

By now it's not so original to observe that Betty is accustomed to being obedient to the men around her. She very much appears to be a passive player in her own life. Don manipulated her, and even Henry, as sensitive and loving as he is, doesn't like it when she starts giving her own opinion when it's inconvenient for him. Her life is spent in reference to others. This is a great source of frustration for her, but she never quite knows how to break herself out of this rut. It's often pointed out that Don remained unchanged through the turbulent 60's, remaining essentially a man of the Eisenhower administration. But Betty, as well, is very much a woman of the '50's.

At the same time she sees her friend Francine (Anne Dudek) get an office job outside the home and is inwardly jealous, while outwardly she tries subtly to give her friend a guilt trip over not being satisfied with marriage and family. She is vain, obsessed with her looks and the superficial appearance of things in general. She does lament the roads not taken, like when she hosts a child music prodigy ready to throw it away. Betty tries to convince her to not give up her dream of being a professional violinist, as she had abandoned a modeling career to get married, thus conforming herself to the social expectations of the day. Now, at the end she finds her bliss in the dreams of being a therapist (I'm sure a cleaver twist considering Betty's own adventures on the psychologist's couch which dominated the first season).

Once the cancer diagnosis comes Henry's first response is to seek the best doctors offering the most aggressive treatments. But Betty lived through the death of her mother. She knows how this will end, and adding six months of suffering that will not lead to a cure will be unbearable for her and the one's she loves. So she chooses to let the cancer, which has already metastasized, run it's course. We can debate the wisdom of this choice, but for the first time in her life the choice is hers. Still ever vain, she leaves meticulous instructions to Sally as to the dress she is to wear and how her hair is to be made once she is laid in the casket. But she also does something we rarely see; her giving heartfelt affirmation to her daughter.

Of all the actors on the show, January Jones gets the most hits from the critics. Jones is undeniably beautiful, and she and Jon Hamm look like they belong on top of the wedding cake together (which I think someone may have observed already). But her acting chops are often called into question. I don't now, but any actress who agrees to play such an unlikable character, and really is truly despicable at times, and then gets you to cry for her (which I did), can't be that awful. And that's what I think it is: some people can't separate the character from the person playing the role, which is the critic's problem, not the actress'.

Then we have Sally Draper (Kieran Shipka). An observation made by more than one critic is that the show, after being about Don, is really also about Sally, and the things she will be talking about with her analyst as an adult. She ages from 6 to 16 on the show, and we see her mature, literally and figuratively. I have questioned whether depicting certain aspects of her transitioning from childhood to  adolescence in such a graphic way was necessary; could the same points have been made in a less intrusive way? In the same way some questioned how Linda Blair being in The Exorcist may or may not have effected her human development, I have the same questions about Ms Shipka. I get that editing is involved with the scenes, but Sally does witness a lot of unsavory things over the years. I only hope she's not going to need therapy for herself and Sally.

I guess Sally's was the most unsatisfying ending. She is 16, so I hardly expected a full story arch for her, or that we would flash forward ten years to see what the mid-twenties Sally would look like. But we leave her, back home from boarding school, assuming the domestic duties as Betty slowly fades away. Of all the clips in that montage of the various players going their way into a bright if uncertain future, her's was the dissonant counterpoint. Does she and her brothers go live with her uncle as Betty wants, stay with Henry as she wants, or will Don swoop in after the funeral to try and assume custody, which no one wants? She did get to see the Beatles at Shea in '65, but is missing out on Spain the first in a line of disappointments to follow in life, or will she rebound? There are no hints.

But what we do know is that Sally sees through her parent's many faults and has learned to despise the defects while loving them. She also loves her brothers, and feels protective of them. In this crisis she isn't just thinking of her own security, but is thinking for all of them. On many levels she grew up too quickly, like her father, though under different circumstances. Even though Don had overcome poverty, and was careful not to discipline his children as he had been harshly reared, his inability to come to grips with his past effected them, and Sally in particular. She witnesses the infidelities first hand, she gets burned by Don's lies, and learns to lie herself because it's less embarrassing then having to explain the truth. In many ways she's a typical idealistic teen who demands authenticity, despising the phony adult world of manners and pretense. In some ways she is more mature than her parents, telling her father to think straight about he situation, assessing his abilities as a father compared to the task at hand. She does sacrifice what she wants to come home and care for her mother in her last months. If we can count these as hints, then we can say that Sally will probably turn out to be alright. Though I would still keep the number of a good shrink handy.

And so I come to the end of my journey with Don Draper and company. I could see writing more, but I'll give it a rest, at least for a while. Maybe I'll revisit our friends when the Season 7B DVD and streaming becomes available.

Quick Takes: Charlie, Charlie Challenge, The Ireland Vote, Should ISIS Make you Nervous?

Charlie, Charlie Challenge: Better to Stick to Water Buckets 

Over the last couple of days I've seen these posts on Facebook about the so called Charlie, Charlie Challenge. A geezer like me knowing about this can only mean that this latest internet phenomenon has been circulating around the kids for a while now.

Basically it's a ouija board for people with attention deficit, since the board itself has been reduced to small square with "Yes" and "No" quadrants, navigated by two pencils (no spelling required). Charlie, the challenge's name sake, is billed as a Mexican demon, and there are rules about how to gain and break contact with said Charlie. I don't want to give too much info, lest I inadvertently lead people to try it. I have mixed feelings about mentioning it at all, but feel moved by prayer to write at least this brief warning.

STAY AS FAR AWAY FROM THIS, OR ANY OTHER OCCULT PRACTICE AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN.

As I told the young people at Mass last night, you wouldn't purposely stand on a dangerous street corner where a lot of drive-bys take place. You wouldn't wear the wrong colors in the wrong neighborhood to see what'll happen. You wouldn't flash gang signs on the street for a laugh. The spiritual world is the same. When we play with these forces we open doors that are not easily closed. Whether Charle is a real demon is beside the point. Demons are real and will exploit any opening to lay a claim either on a person or a place, and he'll answer to Charlie, Captain Howdy, or Bobo the Monkey if it's to his advantage.

Let me be clear: playing these games does not necessarily lead to demonic possession. Possessions are extremely rare, even taking into account the recent rise in reports of such cases. But demonic oppression and infestations of places are arguably more common than we may think. That's why I recommend getting your house blessed and living a moral, prayerful life, which for Catholics includes the regular reception of Holy Communion and frequent confessions. And avoiding door openers like ouija boards, seances, fortune telling, palm readings along with any other form of spiritualism is vitally important.

Keeping the dark forces out is easy when you let God, who is life and light, in.

The Ireland Vote

I know that the recent vote to legalize gay marriage in Ireland has left many Catholics reeling. Ireland, once a bulwark of the Faith, has gone completely secular, and some would say is now anti-religion, not simply anti-Catholic. I'm troubled, like most of my sisters and brothers are, but I wish I could say I'm perplexed by this development, but I'm simply not. I'm one who thinks that social commentator Camille Paglia is correct, the current gender wars are a sign that Western Civilization is dying, and I would say it's already dead.

I have written at length in this space about the Catholic teaching on marriage, and I admit that I've backed off over the last couple of years. Not because I've reconsidered what I believe, rather that I've come to conclusion that all the blog posts in the world are not going to sway minds and hearts. As a culture we have chosen the path we want to walk, and now it's time to await the consequences of that choice. For those Catholics who remain in the truth (and I pray I receive the grace to do that) it will mean social marginalization, limits put on how and where we can minister, loss of tax exempt status and possibly jail for not accepting the new secular orthodoxy.

Both Pope Emeritus Benedict and the late Cardinal George have gotten praise and consternation for comments they made about where they see the Church and society heading. Benedict VVI spoke of a smaller, more faithful Church, George famously said that he expected to die in bed, his successor to die in jail and his successor to die a martyr. But the archbishop after that would help restore society, starting with the shards of a broken culture, much like the Church has done in the past. Both men were criticized as either looking for the Church to be an elitist organization, or else was guilty of being a prophet of doom. But both assessments are false.

Cardinal George, in his last major interview before he passed away clarified what he meant by those now famous (to some infamous) words. He stressed that this was a private conversation that he didn't expect to be made public. He also framed his observations, not as a prophesy, but as a worst case scenario. It's not that he expects that these things would happen, but even if they do come to pass, we shouldn't lose heart: the Church will still be there to pick the pieces up when the crisis is over. These were meant to be worlds of hope to a friend who was depressed over where he saw things heading.

As for Pope Benedict, a fuller understanding of the context of his comments, as we can see here in Fr. Dwight Lonhenecker's post, again shows that we're not talking about an ideal, but the logical consequences that will face the Church in an age of militant secularism. Those who choose to remain with the main body of the Church once doing so means loss of status, property, and possibly liberty, will likely be a relative few, human nature being what it is. Countless numbers chose to burn incense to the Roman emperor and surrender the sacred books to be destroyed in the early centuries of the Church rather then face, not only imprisonment, but possible death. Once the peace came the debate turned to whether to admit these apostates back into full communion (which the Church eventually did). How many will flee the persecution by renouncing the Faith is anybody's guess, and a guessing game better not to play. All of us will be tested, none of us is so strong as to boast that we will, without doubt, do the right thing. In light of this we all need to pray continually for the gifts of courage and wisdom.

Until then, there is no point being depressed or worried. Christ won the victory already. He always told us trials would come (persecutions, earthquakes, famines, wars and rumors of war) but he also assured us that these would not have the final word.

Should ISIS Make You Nervous?

I had a meeting of young adults at the parish last Friday, and two young women from another parish joined, what is a small but growing group. I was finishing up a talk on the Book of Revelation that I'd begun the month before. My main point was that, while the book does point to a definitive end of history as we understand it, it is also showing how history is a series of repeating patterns. Not that events repeat, but that the rise and fall of empires follow a predictable cycle, and the Church needs to know how to adapt to these ever changing circumstances. I then mentioned the Venerable Fulton Sheen's belief, expressed in the 1970's during a retreat he was giving to priests, that we're at the end of a Christendom. What he meant was that we were at the end of a unified Christian culture where Gospel values are at the root of our social, political and moral life. He claimed that history could be broken up into roughly five hundred year epochs, beginning with the birth of Jesus, and that we were now at the end of one such period.

One of our visitors looked up from the notebook that she was feverishly scribbling in, and asked, "What do you think of ISIS? They make me nervous." Normally this would be the time when I would make some reassuring comment about them being half a world away, and that they're really a rag tag outfit, the JV team, actually: no need to worry, at all. But I couldn't get myself to lie. These were adults I was talking to, so I said, "Well, they make me nervous, too."

Yes, they do make me a little nervous, mainly because the world's leaders don't seem to be taking them seriously. These are people who really believe in what they are doing, and they will stop at nothing to reach their objectives. There is no internal debate that I can see that they are having over who they are and what values they hold. We in the West really don't believe in anything. We say we believe in freedom of speech, but do we really? It seems that we do as long it doesn't offend anybody. Being self critical and self questioning is a healthy trait of Western Civilization. But we now question everything about ourselves, including the things that are genetically and anatomically obvious. Sheen would say that we have subordinated all moral and ethical values to the economic and the political. I would add another value: the emotional, or therapeutic. Because our leaders, and many of us, can't understand why people would fight for something beyond purely practical or even animal motives, they don't understand ISIS.

The secular society that at the same time dabbles in spiritualism, among other quasi religious activities, to fill the gap, is not prepared to stand up to a force of true believes, no matter how rag tag they seem. We are not ready to defend our society because we really don't believe in it. We take freedom for granted because we don't believe in responsibility. The world's leaders are making decisions based on political and economic considerations, and the electorate is being swayed more and more by emotions. This is a combination for disaster.

But I end, as I must, because I can't lie, on a positive note. I'm no prophet, nor am I from a school of prophets (as I think I've written before), but I have no doubt who's going to win this struggle. In the short term there will be trials and, dare I say, tribulations, but Christ won the victory already. I do believe, like John Paul the Great, that we are at the beginning of a new spring time for the Faith. Spiring brings flowers and new life, but also rain, and even a few thunder storms along the way. ISIS makes me nervous, sure, but not bowed, and certainly not defeated.

St. Augustine of Canterbury from AOP

Saint Philip Neri