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Peace!
Welcome to Volume 2 Number 7 of The Contemporary Catholic.
Belief is both a personal thing and a communal action which is why we gather each Sunday to celebrate the Lord's great gift to us. As a young seminarian our Spiritual Director, Fr George McKenna, handed out a small, white business sized cards with the words, "Smile God loves you" printed in Kelly Green. I've kept this card for over 40 years and each day I remind myself that God believes in me and that belief must be responsive. We trust that what we have to say touches your hearts and helps you on your spiritual journey.
Thank you for joining me in this search. May we each grow in grace and wisdom as we do in age.
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The dollar falls; God's dough rises
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Money seems to be on everyone's mind these days, from the
rising gas prices to the falling values of stocks and bonds. In our economically centered times, finances
would have been a great symbol for Jesus to use to describe the Kingdom of
God. Speculators would replace the weeds
growing among the wheat, those of us who earn a living through hard, honest
work. Just like the field owner knew he
would separate the weeds from the wheat and burn them, we believe that
ultimately the day laborer earns the day's wages and cheaters never prosper.
During the summer, the Sunday readings by Matthew recall the
parables in which Jesus likened the Kingdom of God to symbols, sometimes
obscure to modern times: a treasure
buried in a field, a net thrown to catch fish, a mustard seed. While not many of us would eat if we had to
net a fish or have grown anything which does not come germinated in a plastic
container, we are familiar with Blackberries, gossip at the water cooler, the
current marital status of stars, and what is in our wallet. Yet, one of Jesus' images is so sensual and
alluring that it would work for any age: yeast.
Okay, so not many of us bake bread. Still, how many of us have grabbed a frozen
loaf of dough to bake and filled the house with the scent of freshly baked bread
or poured ingredients in a bread maker to produce warm rolls for dinner or
walked into a food store as the bake shop removes baguettes from the oven? It is yeast, the one-celled living organism
which multiples in warm liquid and changes the starch of flour into sugars and
gases to raise dough that Jesus compares to His Kingdom.
The bread making process envelops all our senses, our entire
being. Just imagine how God's fingers
manipulate the lumps of flour and water that we make of our lives by kneading
his love and spirit into us. The scent
of fresh baked bread wafts through the air, attracting the hungry, all of us
salivating for God's luscious Word. Warm
to the touch, the bread melts butter as God's love thaws the hard hearted and
comforts the broken hearted. The vision
of the beautiful golden crust lures us to enjoy the delicate flesh it covers. Through
the rising process, the loaf plumps when the gases produced by the yeast expand
the elastic glutenic mass, just as we grow rich in God's kindness and mercy
when we work towards the emergence of His Reign.
Whatever image we chose to begin to grasp God's Kingdom, as
a field where good and evil exist or as a small insignificant mustard seed
which becomes an impressive tree, God is instructing us through our everyday
experiences that He is with us, He is cognizant of our small efforts, which
appear insignificant in the secular world yet are enormous contributions to His
Reign. God loves us and wants us to be
the fish caught in the net which is not tossed back into the sea. He calls us to be part of His Reign now and
forever.
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What do you believe?
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And so we begin:
We believe in one God.
One
God? There was a recent newspaper article that talked about a group of
women who worked together on a project, some were Christian and others
were Moslems. The writer of the article stated that these individuals
were able to work as one even though they worshiped different Gods. Of
course there was a retraction of this statement since God, by whatever
name we give, is still God, the one and only. In our new multicultural
society the monotheistic presumption of our youth has been turned on
its head by believers in multiple gods that are strange to Western
ears. Despite this, there is still only one God by whatever name or
names we call God.
Even in the early church the concept of one
God caused problems. If there is only one God how can Jesus be God or
the Holy Spirit be God? Councils were called. The very existence of the
entire Roman Empire was at stake since religion and the state were so closely
linked. It was in Nicea that a statement of beliefs we recite each Sunday was created.
Who is God?
Human definitions of God vary. I suppose you would get a different answer based on each person's perception of who and what a God is if we believe in God's existence at all. In a sense, God is created in our own image since we have no words to describe an existence. When Moses asked God by what name the people of Israel should call their God, God simply answer "Tell them I am who I am."
What is it you believe about God?
Georgetown university decided to open a campus in the gulf nation of Qatar. They determined that their class offerings would be the same as those in their DC campus and sent Jesuit Fr Ryan Maher, SJ to teach his Comparative Religions course. "Do you think you will be going to hell, Father?" There was a pause after which the other student said "Yes." And then "Sorry Father." It was then that Fr Maher began to reflect on what he was teaching. In the US his The Problem of God class was just another academic subject. He expected his students to study, debate and regurgitate the correct answers to the exams questions. Here, however, he was faced with an entirely new variable, students whose belief systems were not an academic exercise but part of who they are. "It's not that we don't know bout religion, it's that we don't understand faith and its life shaping power, " noted Fr Maher in discussing his two year experience. How many of us can say that about our faith?
Its all about the Iced Tea.
Henry from a small town in Mississippi was the parish maintenance man. Being a true southerner from a rural area he was not as sophisticated as we might expect. Henry drank his milk right from the carton and left a spit of iced tea in the pitcher even though he knew there wasn't enough for his wife. His wife of three years was slowly working to change Henry to get him to think about his actions.
One day Henry was leaving for work and decided that a nice glass of iced tea would be just the thing he needed to jump start his day. Like usual Henry poured himself a glass and placed the nearly empty pitcher bag in the refrigerator. He headed out the door, started his pickup and was about to put it into gear when he had an epiphany. He realized that not only was leaving a nearly empty pitcher going to rive his wife crazy he realized he really loved her. So, he turned off the car, went inside, washed out the pitcher and brewed a new pot of tea and even sliced up some lemons. Henry knew that if he truly loved his wife he needed to demonstrate it by his actions.
When we say we believe in God that belief should not just be an academic pursuit but one which permeates our thoughts and actions. When I am at work, do I act in a loving and caring manner? Do I treat my neighbors with respect even when I disagree with them? Can the poor and those in need count on me to place their needs before my desires? Does my desire for more money, a better position, a bigger house and more personal recognition become the rule of my life? Are my spouse,children and parents first in my life or does work or hobbies crowd them out?
Belief in God is an action statement not just a declarative one. Will I fail in my belief? Yes, the Apostle Thomas didn't believe that Jesus rose from the dead. Perhaps our prayer should be like the father of the child possessed who sought Jesus' help: "Lord, I believe, help my unbelief." (Mark 9:24)
(to be continued)
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God's message...
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| Healing does not mean going back to the way things were before, but rather allowing what is now to move us closer to God.
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Let us pray...
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Let us remember all who died this week, those who are suffering and who are in special need. I invite you to pray with me as together we say Our Father...
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| We look forward to serving you and encourage you to share this e-zine with others who may also be searching for a loving, Catholic experience. We also welcome your feedback to help us make this e-zine more helpful so please feel free to drop us an email.
Sincerely,
Most Rev James Balija
White Robed Monks of St Benedict
Apostolic Vicar, Midwest and East Coast
Editor
The Contemporary Catholic
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| Peace! |
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Hi! I'm Fr Jim Balija, editor of The Contemporary Catholic. Our goal is to help you live a richer life. I invite you to take the time to read this e-zine, send us your comments and questions and hopefully share this with your family and friends.
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