Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit!
Okay, I know I said the next post would be The Story and More, which is coming (don't you worry!), but I thought this too important not to post. I just think this article makes things very clear, and in light of some fairly recent events, I wanted to make sure clarity was achieved. In a world of confusion, it helps when someone says something so well. I especially like the reference to the Didache, coming from the Greek word "Teaching." It's a real historical document from the first century. So I hope you enjoy this article, and feel free to comment. God bless!
August 29, 2008 12:00 PM
Don’t Blame the Bishops
Catholic means pro-life.
By Father Thomas D. Williams
You are unlikely to ever come upon a group called Mohammedans for Polytheism or Environmentalists for Seal Slaughter. A Muslim who espouses a multiplicity of deities has, ipso facto, placed himself outside the Muslim confession. Polytheism is not an Islamic thing. An environmentalist who patronizes anti-ecological activities is not an environmentalist at all, but a subversive. This is because the monikers “Muslim” and “environmentalist” mean something; they carry with them a series of necessary consequences. Certain terms — like “Muslim” and “polytheism” — simply can’t be squared, and combining them is nonsensical.
The recent ecclesiastical backlash to Nancy Pelosi’s unfortunate remarks on Meet the Press should have surprised no one, least of all Speaker Pelosi herself. Her attempts to squeeze abortion rights into Catholic moral teaching were no more credible than trying to pass apartheid off as a legitimate goal of the civil rights movement. The bishops — some seven have weighed in on the matter so far — had no choice but to speak out.
People — including apparently some “ardent” Catholics — seem to forget how central the pro-life issue is to Catholic morality and why that is so. We are not quibbling here about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. It is no exaggeration to say that the inviolability and sacredness of innocent human life is to Catholic morality what the doctrine of the Holy Trinity is to Catholic dogma. Both are not only non-negotiable; they are foundational. I would challenge Speaker Pelosi to come up with any moral question on which the Church has expressed itself with greater clarity than on the intrinsic evil of abortion.
A solid core of beliefs or principles undergirds any human organization. These beliefs constitute the cement that binds the society together and determine its identity. Obviously plenty of issues fall outside this fundamental core, and there is a difference between legitimate pluralism of opinion and arrant contradiction. Environmentalists, for example, can disagree about many things — such as strategies, priorities, tactics, funding and the like — but devotion to the environment and its logical corollaries are not up for debate. If you sport a mink coat, you’re out of the club.
Being Catholic is no different. The title “Catholic” presumes a whole string of basic beliefs, succinctly laid out in the Apostle’s Creed. Catholics believe in one God, creator of heaven and earth, in Jesus Christ his only begotten son who became man, suffered and died for us, rose from the dead on the third day, and so forth. Along with this canon of doctrines, Catholics also embrace a body of moral teaching (summed up tidily in the Catechism of the Catholic Church) which governs their understanding of right and wrong, what is pleasing to God and what offends Him.
From the earliest days of Christianity, Jesus’ followers distinguished themselves from those around them both by their doctrinal beliefs and their moral code. The earliest known work of Christian antiquity outside the New Testament is called The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, known also by its familiar Greek appellation, the Didache. This catechetical manual makes no bones about what it means to be a Christian. It begins with the stark admonition: “Two ways there are, one of Life and one of Death, and there is a great difference between the Two Ways.” Included in the explanation of what it means to love one’s neighbor, as part of the “way of life,” first century Christians read the words, “Do not kill a fetus by abortion, or commit infanticide.” Such has been the consistent teaching throughout the history of Christianity and no amount of political posturing will change that.
Some people think that when Catholics compare abortion to slavery or to Nazi anti-Semitism they are engaging in hyperbole. They couldn’t be more wrong. Abortion is not only the greatest social injustice of our century; it is arguably the greatest social injustice of all time. Abortion circumscribes an entire class of human beings (the unborn) as non-citizens, excluded from the basic rights and protections accorded to all other human beings. In this way abortion mimics the great moral tragedies of all time, which always began with the denigration of an entire class of people as unworthy of life or freedom.
The evil of abortion is compounded by the magnitude of the problem. Though completely reliable statistics are unavailable, conservative estimates place the number of legal abortions performed worldwide each year at 25-30 million, a figure that alone makes abortion a social problem of staggering proportions. “Humanity today offers us a truly alarming spectacle,” wrote Pope John Paul in his 1995 encyclical letter Evangelium Vitae, “if we consider not only how extensively attacks on life are spreading but also their unheard of numerical proportion.” The legal, systematic elimination of the most vulnerable members of society is the most heinous crime known to man. To fail to oppose it is to make oneself complicit in it.
The most disturbing element of Speaker Pelosi’s comments, however, was not her historical fudging, her disingenuous misrepresentation of Catholic moral teaching or her implicit adoption of cafeteria Catholicism. It was her insouciant dismissal of the moral significance of abortion. She said that in the end, it didn’t matter when life begins anyway. Her exact words were: “The point is, is that it [when life begins] shouldn’t have an impact on the woman’s right to choose.” No matter when human life begins, a mother’s right trumps a baby’s, and that right includes the choice to destroy the child. This is irreconcilable not only with Catholic morality, but with the most basic natural ethics.
Pundits and liberal commentators have predictably accused the bishops of playing politics and using Speaker Pelosi’s comments to further the agenda of the Republican party. Any objective observer knows this is not the case. If Speaker Pelosi didn’t want a response, she should not have forced the bishops’ hands. And if the Democrats’ star running back steps out of bounds, it’s not the referees’ fault for calling it.
Speaker Pelosi can campaign for abortion all she likes, but to do so as an “ardent, practicing Catholic” is to invite a stiff correction. Americans still value truth in advertising, and know that words have meanings. “Catholic” means pro-life.
— Father Thomas D. Williams, LC, ThD is Vatican Analyst for CBS News and author of Knowing Right From Wrong: A Christian Guide to Conscience (Hachette, 2008).
Friday, September 26, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Hope: More Than a Four-Letter Word
Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit!
I just felt really moved to write this, and I hope it reaches the person it's meant for. As a bit of background: This post follows on a week of spiritual conferences we had here in the Seminary on continued conversion. It has been an awesome week, and I wanted to present you with some of what we have been learning. So sit down, buckle up, and hold on to your rosary beads, because it's gonna be a wild ride! But I warn you, it will be a bit more in depth than some of my other posts, so I ask you to read with an open heart. Thank you, and enjoy!
There is so much hurt in our world, so many problems, so many wounds. We all make mistakes, mistakes that have affected our lives and the lives of those around us. Other people have made mistakes that have deeply affected us as well, mistakes of which they may not even be aware.
But the message I want to give you is one of hope: You do not have to live out of that hurt, those mistakes, that pain, because God is always bigger--and He wants to heal you. God wants to give you a life filled to the brim with joy, in spite of your sufferings (or perhaps even through them). As we read in the Gospel of John, "I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).
Oftentimes, I think we cannot believe that God actually wants joy for us because we get stuck on an old and tattered image of God, one which prevents us from knowing God for Who He really is, for Who He wants to be for us. We often see God as vindictive or judgmental, or waiting to catch us in our faults--the old man with a gray beard on a golden throne, far from my experiences but ready to judge them.
The reality, however, is that God loves us, and He wants us to know of His love and His delight in us. I repeat: God delights in you. As parents delight in the presence of their children, even so God delights in you.
The problem is that our sin prevents us from experiencing this closeness of union with God. So it's not so much that God sits there condemning us in our sins, but rather that He longs for us to let go of our sin (and/or the sins of others that we have allowed to ensare us) so that we can experience the joy He longs to give us. And the beautiful thing: God has already done the work. By becoming man, God has taken on our sins to save us from them. Now the image of God becomes that of the young man with a brown beard on a wooden cross, near to my experiences and ready to heal them. All we have to do is accept this, and seek His grace in the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of Penance (Confession) and the Eucharist (Holy Mass). Through the gift of these Sacraments, God offers us the chance to be free of the burden of our sin and to experience the joy of His presence.
I encourage you to live the life God is offering you. He wants to give you so much more right now, and in the life to come, but we have to be willing to invite Him into our hurts and then let go of them. But if I let go, what will fill the emptiness? God, and He's more than enough.
And if you'd like some suggested reading to help you swap any old, tattered image of God for the new one, I suggest reading C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. They are easy, enjoyable reads, and they offer readers a great glimpse at Who God is in the character of Aslan. Seriously, give them a shot. I would also recommend reading Psalm 139, especially verse 14. Good stuff. This is good stuff. I hope you agree.
Thanks again for reading. I am constantly humbled by the feedback I get. Thank you for your loving and prayerful support. Look next time for the second installment of The Story and More, continuing stories from the summer.
God is good! Please keep us in prayer as we in the second year leave for retreat on Sunday! Ciao for niao!
I just felt really moved to write this, and I hope it reaches the person it's meant for. As a bit of background: This post follows on a week of spiritual conferences we had here in the Seminary on continued conversion. It has been an awesome week, and I wanted to present you with some of what we have been learning. So sit down, buckle up, and hold on to your rosary beads, because it's gonna be a wild ride! But I warn you, it will be a bit more in depth than some of my other posts, so I ask you to read with an open heart. Thank you, and enjoy!
There is so much hurt in our world, so many problems, so many wounds. We all make mistakes, mistakes that have affected our lives and the lives of those around us. Other people have made mistakes that have deeply affected us as well, mistakes of which they may not even be aware.
But the message I want to give you is one of hope: You do not have to live out of that hurt, those mistakes, that pain, because God is always bigger--and He wants to heal you. God wants to give you a life filled to the brim with joy, in spite of your sufferings (or perhaps even through them). As we read in the Gospel of John, "I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).
Oftentimes, I think we cannot believe that God actually wants joy for us because we get stuck on an old and tattered image of God, one which prevents us from knowing God for Who He really is, for Who He wants to be for us. We often see God as vindictive or judgmental, or waiting to catch us in our faults--the old man with a gray beard on a golden throne, far from my experiences but ready to judge them.
The reality, however, is that God loves us, and He wants us to know of His love and His delight in us. I repeat: God delights in you. As parents delight in the presence of their children, even so God delights in you.
The problem is that our sin prevents us from experiencing this closeness of union with God. So it's not so much that God sits there condemning us in our sins, but rather that He longs for us to let go of our sin (and/or the sins of others that we have allowed to ensare us) so that we can experience the joy He longs to give us. And the beautiful thing: God has already done the work. By becoming man, God has taken on our sins to save us from them. Now the image of God becomes that of the young man with a brown beard on a wooden cross, near to my experiences and ready to heal them. All we have to do is accept this, and seek His grace in the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of Penance (Confession) and the Eucharist (Holy Mass). Through the gift of these Sacraments, God offers us the chance to be free of the burden of our sin and to experience the joy of His presence.
I encourage you to live the life God is offering you. He wants to give you so much more right now, and in the life to come, but we have to be willing to invite Him into our hurts and then let go of them. But if I let go, what will fill the emptiness? God, and He's more than enough.
And if you'd like some suggested reading to help you swap any old, tattered image of God for the new one, I suggest reading C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. They are easy, enjoyable reads, and they offer readers a great glimpse at Who God is in the character of Aslan. Seriously, give them a shot. I would also recommend reading Psalm 139, especially verse 14. Good stuff. This is good stuff. I hope you agree.
Thanks again for reading. I am constantly humbled by the feedback I get. Thank you for your loving and prayerful support. Look next time for the second installment of The Story and More, continuing stories from the summer.
God is good! Please keep us in prayer as we in the second year leave for retreat on Sunday! Ciao for niao!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
The Story and More...
Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit! God is good!
Okay, okay, okay, I know...I promised stories. So this will be the first in a several part installment of those stories, with some pictures here and there. I'm sorry for stringing you along...but it's just so fun!
Well, where to start? The beginning? I'm glad we agree.
As you may know, some of my last posts came from the land down under ("you betta run, you betta take cover"). But I think all I gave you was some of the lingo and the next thing you knew I was writing you from Singapore, possibly not in the best of moods.
So now I want you to hear some of the amazing graces I received while in Australia. Well, one of those amazing graces came in the form of World Youth Day, the single largest gathering of Catholic Youth in the world, and it happens every three years in a different location. This year was Sydney, Australia, and in 2011 it will be in Madrid, Spain. So every part of the world gets to experience a little of the grace.
As for World Youth Day, just imagine the biggest rock concert you could possibly conceive of, including people from all over the world, throw in the Pope, extend it over a week's time, focus it all on Jesus, and you've got the event pretty well pictured. The city was literally flooded with pilgrims, romping through the streets, flags from every nation waving in those Southern hemisphere winds, and all of them were singing, laughing, and trying to outdo the other groups chants, yells, and songs. It was truly a joyous occasion. I think we rocked Sydney's world (not to mention boosting their business for a week).
Well, in the course of that week, some awesome things happened. For one, I got to meet up with my little bro, Kevin. It was really great getting to see him...from my clearly superior vantage point, being that I'm still taller than he is. I like to think that he looks up to me in multiple ways.
But honestly, it was a blessing to catch up after not seeing him for 7 months or so. And the whole group of Jesuit guys that I joined up with are great guys. They all have a lot to offer: so many gifts, great senses of humor, and they are really trying to think it all through and be good men. I told them as much while I was with them. It was just plain inspiring to see, and I'm thankful for my time with them. They don't know this yet, but I've submitted all of their names to the Diocese of Dallas for their own good...I mean, uh...pray for vocations.
Now, I also should mention that on the second day of the official WYDSYD2008 events, we had catechesis at one of the Jesuit schools in the area. That day, as it turns out, Steve Angrisano was our music leader, helping to get all of us awake and focused for the early morning session. He was also accompanied by Tony Melendez, the toe-pickin' guitarist. It was an awesome way to kick off the session.
As it turns out, though, my brother noticed an empty drumset on stage. He mentioned something to the effect that I was a drummer with no drumset and there, lo and behold, sat a drumset with no drummer. So I casually strolled up to the stage, cleric-clad and all, asking the man running the stage if I could sit down at the set. He said, "Go for it!" So I dropped down on the throne (that's really what drummers call it) and joined in. Mr. Angrisano later introduced me to the auditorium of teens, saying, "If you go to seminary, they teach you how to play drums like this." Honestly, you never know how God wants to use your gifts to reach people. God willing, a few young men just might think a bit more about seminary as a result.
And then just to let you know, I think I ran into someone I knew everyday, either from Saint John Vianney Seminary, the North American College, St. Ann's, or from A&M. It was just awesome the way it all played out. God is good!
So that might be a good refresher to get the stories flowing. Thank you for any and all prayers you have offered for us seminarians. I tell you God has been at work in our lives. Many graces.
And I couldn't let you go without a picture or two from our time there, with more to come of course.
Okay, okay, okay, I know...I promised stories. So this will be the first in a several part installment of those stories, with some pictures here and there. I'm sorry for stringing you along...but it's just so fun!
Well, where to start? The beginning? I'm glad we agree.
As you may know, some of my last posts came from the land down under ("you betta run, you betta take cover"). But I think all I gave you was some of the lingo and the next thing you knew I was writing you from Singapore, possibly not in the best of moods.
So now I want you to hear some of the amazing graces I received while in Australia. Well, one of those amazing graces came in the form of World Youth Day, the single largest gathering of Catholic Youth in the world, and it happens every three years in a different location. This year was Sydney, Australia, and in 2011 it will be in Madrid, Spain. So every part of the world gets to experience a little of the grace.
As for World Youth Day, just imagine the biggest rock concert you could possibly conceive of, including people from all over the world, throw in the Pope, extend it over a week's time, focus it all on Jesus, and you've got the event pretty well pictured. The city was literally flooded with pilgrims, romping through the streets, flags from every nation waving in those Southern hemisphere winds, and all of them were singing, laughing, and trying to outdo the other groups chants, yells, and songs. It was truly a joyous occasion. I think we rocked Sydney's world (not to mention boosting their business for a week).
Well, in the course of that week, some awesome things happened. For one, I got to meet up with my little bro, Kevin. It was really great getting to see him...from my clearly superior vantage point, being that I'm still taller than he is. I like to think that he looks up to me in multiple ways.
But honestly, it was a blessing to catch up after not seeing him for 7 months or so. And the whole group of Jesuit guys that I joined up with are great guys. They all have a lot to offer: so many gifts, great senses of humor, and they are really trying to think it all through and be good men. I told them as much while I was with them. It was just plain inspiring to see, and I'm thankful for my time with them. They don't know this yet, but I've submitted all of their names to the Diocese of Dallas for their own good...I mean, uh...pray for vocations.
Now, I also should mention that on the second day of the official WYDSYD2008 events, we had catechesis at one of the Jesuit schools in the area. That day, as it turns out, Steve Angrisano was our music leader, helping to get all of us awake and focused for the early morning session. He was also accompanied by Tony Melendez, the toe-pickin' guitarist. It was an awesome way to kick off the session.
As it turns out, though, my brother noticed an empty drumset on stage. He mentioned something to the effect that I was a drummer with no drumset and there, lo and behold, sat a drumset with no drummer. So I casually strolled up to the stage, cleric-clad and all, asking the man running the stage if I could sit down at the set. He said, "Go for it!" So I dropped down on the throne (that's really what drummers call it) and joined in. Mr. Angrisano later introduced me to the auditorium of teens, saying, "If you go to seminary, they teach you how to play drums like this." Honestly, you never know how God wants to use your gifts to reach people. God willing, a few young men just might think a bit more about seminary as a result.
And then just to let you know, I think I ran into someone I knew everyday, either from Saint John Vianney Seminary, the North American College, St. Ann's, or from A&M. It was just awesome the way it all played out. God is good!
So that might be a good refresher to get the stories flowing. Thank you for any and all prayers you have offered for us seminarians. I tell you God has been at work in our lives. Many graces.
And I couldn't let you go without a picture or two from our time there, with more to come of course.
Kevin, Sydney, and I.
An artsy view of our group crossing the bridge. Nice shooting, Kev.
Even St. Aloysius was there.
Kevin, Danny, and I with our host family.
Alright, more to come. Thank you for your patience. God bless you, and please keep us in prayer. Ciao for niao!
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