• Bulletin Board, Announcements, Calendar
• Welcome and Website Protocol
• Editorial - Op Ed
• Article Archive

Print this page

Article Categories

• Book Reviews
• Open Letter
• Editorials
• Notes, Quotes & Comments
• Pastor's Study
• Project Millstones
• Sidebar Comments
• Weekly Message

Links

AMERICA Magazine
A balanced Catholic weekly magazine published by the jesuits of the United States for an intelligent Catholic readership. Go online to subscribe.

Liturgy
This link will keep 'parishioners-at-large' in touch with current creative liturgy sources and resources that respect a variety of 'traditions' within the Church.

Voice of the Faithful
A 'movement' of lay Catholics 'inspired' by the abuse scandal calling for greater accountability of bishops to 'Catholics in the Pew.'

Survivos' Network for those Abused by Priests or Religious
A National Network of self-help support groups for people abused by clergy or religious.

Bishop Accountability
Vital information about the disclosure of sexual abuse and related issues affecting Catholics in the pew and the manner in which Bishops continue to exempt themselves from accountability

National Catholic Reporter
A national Catholic lay newspaper covering events not usually covered or presented with a clerical bias in the local diocesan press or but of concern and interest to Catholics.

COMMONWEAL Magazine
A 'lay' Catholic weekly publication with an accent on an intelligent analysis and commentary on curent issues, trends and concerns of interest to Catholics.

Search

Daily Scripture

+ 7th Week of Easter

Much ado about nothing or, is there something to it?

Readings: Acts 19:1-8 Psalm 68:2-7 John 16:29-33

Paul traveled through the interior of the country and down to Ephesus where he found some disciples. He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” They answered him, “We have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” [Acts 19:1-3]

Depending on one’s sacramental theology and pastoral practice, this text has been variously interpreted. For example, those who work with the RCIA (catecheumenate) hold that the sacrament of Confirmation should be administered with Baptism as it was in the early Church. It is one of the sacraments of initiation—Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist. The Eastern Rite of the Roman Catholic Church has retained the tradition of administering all three at Baptism. Yes, the infant receives a small piece of the Eucharist bread. And so in the Eastern Rite, there is no formal celebration of First Holy Communion at the age of reason or Confirmation by the bishop at whatever age the local diocese has determined the age of maturity appropriate for Confirmation. All three sacraments are administered shortly after birth.

Others feel that the celebration of First Communion and Confirmation at a later age ensures the participation of youngsters in parish religious education programs – at least until Confirmation. In this case, many Catholics view Confirmation as the completion of or graduation from religious studies.

In recent years I have become convinced that the RCIA folks and the Eastern Rite Catholics have it right. All three sacraments of initiation should be administered together. First Holy Communion and Confirmation have become more social than spiritual. I do not mean to suggest that there is no connection or that there should be no celebration after sacramental ceremonies but for many, the accent is on the wrong syllable.

The path from Baptism to Christian maturity is life-long and the benchmarks for progress are not easily measured by grouping children by age or grade level for a period of preparation that is largely academic.

This is not to suggest that religious education is optional. Faith development is unique to each person within the context first of family and then of parish. Religious education / formation is intended to provide insight into faith development at an age-appropriate level.

Catholicism has become ‘child-centered’ the result of which, we have an adult population whose religious and spiritual development stopped at Confirmation.

The celebration of Eucharist is the primary setting for faith formation. Religious education is a necessary component but detached from Eucharist, it remain just another subject to master.

Of course this all assumes that the parish celebration of the Eucharist is truly inclusive and meaningful rather than just an empty ritual. The parish at worship should be a rendition of a community of faith that strives to live its faith ‘in the town square’ as I mentioned in Sunday’s homily.

Notwithstanding my commitment to religious dialogue, I do believe that effective dialogue is based on the assumption that although both parties are knowledgeable about the topic. Though they may have different perspectives, they are not based on ignorance of the subject.

Tuesday, Second Week of Easter

Monday April 12, 2010

We are an imperfect church in an imperfect world.

Readings: Acts 4:32-37 Psalm 93:1-2, 5 John 3:7-15

Today’s texts seem to demand greater attention and so I offer this expanded commentary to engage us in thought and prayer.

The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own but they had everything in common. There was no needy person among them, for those who owned property or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale, and put them at the feet of the Apostles, and they were distributed to each according to need. [Acts 4:32, 34-35]

Jesus said to Nicodemus, “You must be born from above. The wind blows wherever it wills and you can hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. That is how it is with all who are born of the Spirit.” [John 3:7-8]

Many years ago, I was privileged to serve as an adjunct member of MDI, an ecumenical consulting group that worked with parishes and religious communities in the development of leadership skills that promote process planning through dialogue and collaboration. They were exciting times for a church so energized by the vision of Vatican II. For a few brief moments in the history of the Church, impetus for renewal was initiated from the top down. The then progressive theologian, Father Joseph Ratzinger was among many young influential theologians calling for greater collaboration of the faithful in there renewal process.

My MDI mentor was Father George Wilson, SJ, a theologian who specialized in ecclesiology and the structure of the Church. When contracted by a parish or religious community to work with them for a period of time, we would engage leaders and members at large in a dialogue. From the very outset of our relationship with them, we attempted to teach the skills by using the skills in all our workshops.

Before going into a parish or religious community, George would remind us that “things are never as good as they may appear but they are never as bad as some may suggest.” During our early listening sessions, participants would say some wonderful things about their parish until they were confident in our leadership. As their confidence grew, they would entrust us with data that let us know that indeed, not everything was rosy pink. At the conclusion of most of these introductory sessions, we were assured that the community had many strengths and many areas for growth.

The greatest learning, however, is that good leaders listen before they speak and they reassure participants that they are listening by feeding back to them what they said – not putting words into their mouths but by accepting their self-perception and history without casting a judgment.
Effective leadership engages its members in a confident dialogue that is based on hard data and soft data, thus allowing members to take ownership of the data harnessing the energy in the group toward the development of a vision, mission, goals and objectives. All of this demands transparency, mutual accountability and much give and take.

The process works – I know it works.

The author of the Acts of the Apostles is presumed to be St. Luke, author of his own gospel. There is no doubt that Luke was putting the early Church in a very favorable light. Did you find yourself responding to the text above with the words, “Year right?” Of course; it wasn’t all that positive. We read later in Chapter 6 of the Acts that, “In those days as the number of disciples grew, the Greek speaking believers made a a complaint against the Hebrews, asserting that their own widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. And so the Twelve called together the entire community of disciples and said, ‘It is not right for us to neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables. Therefore, brethren, we direct you to select from among you seven [men] of good reputation filled with the Spirit and with wisdom to whom we may assign this task.”

The emerging leadership of the early church was flexible enough to broaden the ministry of the early church by adopting a protocol that would satisfy the needs of the community. The implications here for the consideration of women to serve as deacons and as presbyters is obvious. In fact, there is some evidence that women did indeed serve as deacons at some point in the early church.

There were more ‘both / ands’ in the early church experience than ‘either / ors.’

The church was formed as an institution over time and after much dialogue. A variety of structures emerged in Jerusalem, Antioch and eventually in Rome. There was unity in diversity and the mix was messy at times.

What’s the point?

The point is that we have become much too linear in our thinking about how the Church should function and far too restricted in our thinking about how the Church should be structured geographically and culturally.

Indeed, “the wind blows where it will and you can hear the sound it makes but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.” [John 3:7]

And we still experience the tension between dualistic or black and white linear thinking and what we might call multi-layered thinking, i.e., thinking with the Spirit of God in whom there is no east or west, north or south. In order for tradition to grow and expand, it must change. Tradition stagnates when its leaders refuse to acknowledge new truths that emerge over time in the consciousness of all the believers working together collaboratively.
The Church is in crisis because its leadership has refused to acknowledge the voice of the spirit in the minds and hearts of its members. It is the antithesis of the experience of the early Church of Acts. In effect, contemporary church leaders are sinning against the Holy Spirit in their refusal to open the door to open dialogue about the ‘tradition’ and its implications for the belief and practice of all the members.

The sexual abuse scandal is only symptomatic of deeper issues facing the Church at every level and it will not go away until it is unpacked honestly and thoroughly.

But it is also true that as members of the Church, we must not abandon our commitment to the tradition whatever its expression. If we can dialogue with Jews and Moslems, Buddhists and Hindus, and find something in all of them to enrich our own tradition, then surely we must sift through the differences within our walls, as it were, and find something that reflects the authenticity of God’s mystical presence in some form. There will never be uniformity within the Church any more than there were will be uniformity among the worlds great religious but there can be unity within a a pluralism that can only hint at the great mystery that is God continuing to reveal himselfherself throughout the ages and in the ages yet to come.

We are an imperfect church in a very imperfect world still striving to grasp the mystery of life that unfolds one day at a time.

More.. to come…