Desperation
We are not ready. It is coming and we are clueless.
9-11 was but the introduction to the book of terror we will be reading every day. It will not be pretty. It will alter everything. It will affect our daily lives in ways we can not imagine right now. It will change where we live, work, go to school, and how we take care of our daily needs. All of it. Our perspective will change. What's important will change: maybe our values; surely our goals; absolutely our dependence. What we think we need now will pale to the reality of the needs to come: physically, emotionally and spiritually. We will live in an atmosphere of terror and desperation. We are not ready-as a country or, for our purposes, as a Church. Why do I say that?
Let me say first, however, that the Lord is present in the Church. He is moving among us. There are good things happening. His Spirit has grown up movements and ministries bringing new life. There are saints among us. Faithfulness still flourishes in the hearts of many. Youth caught the wave of John Paul. Orthodox Catholics cheer Bishops who fearlessly witness the truth of the Gospel. Missionaries of Charity, and others like them, draw vocations. But even as we see the good things, we need to be realistic and not hide from other facts.
Statistics don't lie, even though they don't tell everything. There are roughly 70 million Catholics on the books in the USA, of that number @70%, @50 million, don't attend Mass regularly. About 50% do not believe in the Real Presence. About 90% of Catholics use contraception. In the name of conscience, vast numbers of Catholics vote for pro-choice candidates. In the LA Times Study of 2002, only half of all priests reject premarital sex and homosexual sex as always wrong. There is little use of the Sacrament of Penance.
Clergy and religious vocations have dwindled drastically. Clergy sexual scandals have taken a toll both financially and emotionally. Although the spiritual effects have yet to be totalled, trust in the pastoral oversight of Bishops has taken a big hit, and questions remain as to the actual causes and solutions of the problem. Even recently there have been news stories of obstruction in some Dioceses, most notably, Los Angeles.
Catholic politicians flout Church teaching on abortion and other life issues without any public response by their Bishops. This scandal goes to the heart of the moral teaching and pastoral care of the faithful. General pronouncements without practical consequences mean nothing. We know from our daily lives that the "proof is in the pudding". It's not just what you say, but what you do or don't do that matters. Confusion and, in the end, more freedom to kill babies, is the result.
Then there is Catholic education, especially on the University level. Catholic Universities where the orthodox faith is taught, promoted and lived out by the faculty and student body are few and far between. As of January 2006, only some 10% of Catholic Universities have received the "Mandatum" or authority from the local bishop to teach Catholic theology.
We could all add our personal experiences-like what is preached or not preached at our local parish, but the reality is that something is seriously wrong and lacking, and has been for a long, long time. How is all this handled in the pastoral care administered today? Not necessarily "strategies" for that would point to a thought-out plan admitting to the state of the Church. Rather, deducing from Catholic life today, what seem to be the ways Church life is administered and pastored?
Catechises seems to be the primary and hoped-for way to build up the Church. If people know more about their faith then they will practice their faith. This can be true. However, there is a fatal flaw in this thinking. You have to WANT to learn. If it were just a matter of teaching, why not distribute a copy of the Bible and Catholic Catechism to every Catholic and stand by for questions? It doesn't work because it is, first and foremost, a matter of the heart. One's heart must change. Once I WANT to follow the Lord, then I WANT to learn all I can to do that because my life depends on it. Without that, we just have a lot of activity.
Pastorally, it seems that the prevailing attitude is "be nice". Not offending anyone seems really important. Our culture is very "PC" and this seems to have affected the pastoral care of the Church in the USA. In fact, God Himself seems to be "Nice". He doesn't require much of us-just that we be nice too. It is way too easy to be a Catholic today and there's a lot of leeyway in choosing from the cafeteria. "Cheap grace" as Bonhoeffer called it. Obedience and faith go together. It is a higher calling, a narrow way. It automatically puts us in conflict with the "world" around us. We do have to STAND for something-firm and fast. Standing for the truth may not be "nice" but it is loving.
Liturgy seems to be another building block, ie. trying to make the liturgy "relevant" and "meaningful'-good goals especially since the Vatican Council wanted it to happen. The Sacraments are means of grace. The Eucharist and Penance especially are available to help us grow in our spiritual life. But there is another truth present: the subjective side of the Sacraments. Objectively, the Lord is present; He acts; grace is given. But what effect that sacrament has in our lives depends on our dispositions. So, therefore, attending weekly Mass will benefit us only to the extent we have the proper dispositions-maybe it will even make things worse for us if we receive Communion in serious sin. It depends. The sacraments are not magical, changing us without our will involved. Again, it is our heart that is at the center of it all. Having a humble and contrite heart, committed to the Lord and His ways, open to His Spirit and movement of His grace-these are the keys. That's why Mass attendance isn't necessarily a sign of spiritual health.
Some proposed solutions by many in the Church-including some clergy- are "democratization" of the Church, married clergy, and women priests. We all have our part to play. Each has been given spiritual gifts to be used in building up of the Body of Christ. We need to express opinions and what we sense the Spirit is saying. However, we have never been a "one person one vote" Church. Wasn't set-up that way. 33,000 protestant churches demonstrate that.
Priest and religious shortages have been problems at various times in Church history. What did God do about it? He raised up Francis, Vincent, Ignatius, Dominic, Clare, Louise, Theresa and on and on. "If you build it, they will come" was a famous line in the movie "Field of Dreams". It points to a truth for us today: as revival comes, vocations to the priesthood and religious life will follow. As you pray and work for revival, you will be praying and working for vocations to the priesthood and religious life.
Obviously, these pastoral practices are not enough. If they were, things would be different.
What, then, are the solutions? I have a few suggestions that are a good start:
1) An intervention by God. That's what Revival is. We need a new Pentecost. We need an outpouring of grace that shakes the foundations of our lives. "O rend the heavens and come down that the mountains would tremble at your Presence." Is. 64:1 We need to admit and accept that the present situation in the Church is more than we can handle or figure out. We are helpless to change even ourselves let alone the entire Church. That is the beginning: admitting our need for Him, and crying out for mercy. Our part is to pray for Revival to happen, everyday-at least 5 min-then do what He tells us.
2. We need to have our leaders lead. Simple but, obviously, not easy. Especially in three ways:
a) Preach the Gospel. Whoa! What do you mean? Isn't that what's being done every Sunday? Maybe, maybe not. Again, if that were so, things would be different. Jesus preached: "Repent and believe the good news." Mk. 1:15 Is that what is preached today? If that were so, Catholics would be able to tell you what the Good News is. Repentance, conversion, living in the power of the Holy Spirit-a personal decision is required. A personal decision needs to be asked for.
"When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, 'Brothers, what shall we do?' Peter replied, 'Repent and be baptized'...With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, 'Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.' Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day." Acts: 37-41. To preach the Gospel, in season and out of season, a humble and contrite heart is needed. Revival is for all. That is part of our intercession.
b) Stand for the Gospel. Whoa! What do you mean? Isn't that what's been happening? Maybe, maybe not. If that were happening, wouldn't things be different? "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak to you and give them warning from me. When I say to a wicked man, 'You will surely die' and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself...a righteous man turns from his righteousness...Since you did not warn him...I will hold you accountable for his blood." Ezek. 3:16-20. It is part of the calling. Intercede for our leaders.
c) Be holy. It is more important for us that you be holy than professional. We need you to know what you need to know, but having a goal of "professional" clergy lends to a "job" mentality rather than a "calling". It can be easy to fall for this temptation. Rather, show us what it means to "Repent and live the Good News", what it means to "follow the Lord", to be open to the Spirit. We want to support you and stand behind you. Our call is to pray for you, to lift you up, encourage and love you. We need you and you need us.
3) Seek the Lord ourselves. Be open to His grace to witness for the Gospel. Take a stand when the opportunity arises. When we intercede, pray the Zip drive prayer: "Convict me of my sins. Give me a humble and contrite heart. Change me. Open my eyes to Who you are and to who I am. Do what you have to do to make me holy. Help me. Have mercy on me".
The Church is not ready. Even if only peace was in our future, we are not where we need to be. The situation in the Church is more than we can handle. It is so much bigger than we are. We can't even handle our own lives, how can we deal with the state of the Church? When the chapters of terror are written, will the Church be ready? Will we be ready?
Are you desperate yet? You will be.
There is more that He has for us. More than we have right now, infinitely more.
9-11 was but the introduction to the book of terror we will be reading every day. It will not be pretty. It will alter everything. It will affect our daily lives in ways we can not imagine right now. It will change where we live, work, go to school, and how we take care of our daily needs. All of it. Our perspective will change. What's important will change: maybe our values; surely our goals; absolutely our dependence. What we think we need now will pale to the reality of the needs to come: physically, emotionally and spiritually. We will live in an atmosphere of terror and desperation. We are not ready-as a country or, for our purposes, as a Church. Why do I say that?
Let me say first, however, that the Lord is present in the Church. He is moving among us. There are good things happening. His Spirit has grown up movements and ministries bringing new life. There are saints among us. Faithfulness still flourishes in the hearts of many. Youth caught the wave of John Paul. Orthodox Catholics cheer Bishops who fearlessly witness the truth of the Gospel. Missionaries of Charity, and others like them, draw vocations. But even as we see the good things, we need to be realistic and not hide from other facts.
Statistics don't lie, even though they don't tell everything. There are roughly 70 million Catholics on the books in the USA, of that number @70%, @50 million, don't attend Mass regularly. About 50% do not believe in the Real Presence. About 90% of Catholics use contraception. In the name of conscience, vast numbers of Catholics vote for pro-choice candidates. In the LA Times Study of 2002, only half of all priests reject premarital sex and homosexual sex as always wrong. There is little use of the Sacrament of Penance.
Clergy and religious vocations have dwindled drastically. Clergy sexual scandals have taken a toll both financially and emotionally. Although the spiritual effects have yet to be totalled, trust in the pastoral oversight of Bishops has taken a big hit, and questions remain as to the actual causes and solutions of the problem. Even recently there have been news stories of obstruction in some Dioceses, most notably, Los Angeles.
Catholic politicians flout Church teaching on abortion and other life issues without any public response by their Bishops. This scandal goes to the heart of the moral teaching and pastoral care of the faithful. General pronouncements without practical consequences mean nothing. We know from our daily lives that the "proof is in the pudding". It's not just what you say, but what you do or don't do that matters. Confusion and, in the end, more freedom to kill babies, is the result.
Then there is Catholic education, especially on the University level. Catholic Universities where the orthodox faith is taught, promoted and lived out by the faculty and student body are few and far between. As of January 2006, only some 10% of Catholic Universities have received the "Mandatum" or authority from the local bishop to teach Catholic theology.
We could all add our personal experiences-like what is preached or not preached at our local parish, but the reality is that something is seriously wrong and lacking, and has been for a long, long time. How is all this handled in the pastoral care administered today? Not necessarily "strategies" for that would point to a thought-out plan admitting to the state of the Church. Rather, deducing from Catholic life today, what seem to be the ways Church life is administered and pastored?
Catechises seems to be the primary and hoped-for way to build up the Church. If people know more about their faith then they will practice their faith. This can be true. However, there is a fatal flaw in this thinking. You have to WANT to learn. If it were just a matter of teaching, why not distribute a copy of the Bible and Catholic Catechism to every Catholic and stand by for questions? It doesn't work because it is, first and foremost, a matter of the heart. One's heart must change. Once I WANT to follow the Lord, then I WANT to learn all I can to do that because my life depends on it. Without that, we just have a lot of activity.
Pastorally, it seems that the prevailing attitude is "be nice". Not offending anyone seems really important. Our culture is very "PC" and this seems to have affected the pastoral care of the Church in the USA. In fact, God Himself seems to be "Nice". He doesn't require much of us-just that we be nice too. It is way too easy to be a Catholic today and there's a lot of leeyway in choosing from the cafeteria. "Cheap grace" as Bonhoeffer called it. Obedience and faith go together. It is a higher calling, a narrow way. It automatically puts us in conflict with the "world" around us. We do have to STAND for something-firm and fast. Standing for the truth may not be "nice" but it is loving.
Liturgy seems to be another building block, ie. trying to make the liturgy "relevant" and "meaningful'-good goals especially since the Vatican Council wanted it to happen. The Sacraments are means of grace. The Eucharist and Penance especially are available to help us grow in our spiritual life. But there is another truth present: the subjective side of the Sacraments. Objectively, the Lord is present; He acts; grace is given. But what effect that sacrament has in our lives depends on our dispositions. So, therefore, attending weekly Mass will benefit us only to the extent we have the proper dispositions-maybe it will even make things worse for us if we receive Communion in serious sin. It depends. The sacraments are not magical, changing us without our will involved. Again, it is our heart that is at the center of it all. Having a humble and contrite heart, committed to the Lord and His ways, open to His Spirit and movement of His grace-these are the keys. That's why Mass attendance isn't necessarily a sign of spiritual health.
Some proposed solutions by many in the Church-including some clergy- are "democratization" of the Church, married clergy, and women priests. We all have our part to play. Each has been given spiritual gifts to be used in building up of the Body of Christ. We need to express opinions and what we sense the Spirit is saying. However, we have never been a "one person one vote" Church. Wasn't set-up that way. 33,000 protestant churches demonstrate that.
Priest and religious shortages have been problems at various times in Church history. What did God do about it? He raised up Francis, Vincent, Ignatius, Dominic, Clare, Louise, Theresa and on and on. "If you build it, they will come" was a famous line in the movie "Field of Dreams". It points to a truth for us today: as revival comes, vocations to the priesthood and religious life will follow. As you pray and work for revival, you will be praying and working for vocations to the priesthood and religious life.
Obviously, these pastoral practices are not enough. If they were, things would be different.
What, then, are the solutions? I have a few suggestions that are a good start:
1) An intervention by God. That's what Revival is. We need a new Pentecost. We need an outpouring of grace that shakes the foundations of our lives. "O rend the heavens and come down that the mountains would tremble at your Presence." Is. 64:1 We need to admit and accept that the present situation in the Church is more than we can handle or figure out. We are helpless to change even ourselves let alone the entire Church. That is the beginning: admitting our need for Him, and crying out for mercy. Our part is to pray for Revival to happen, everyday-at least 5 min-then do what He tells us.
2. We need to have our leaders lead. Simple but, obviously, not easy. Especially in three ways:
a) Preach the Gospel. Whoa! What do you mean? Isn't that what's being done every Sunday? Maybe, maybe not. Again, if that were so, things would be different. Jesus preached: "Repent and believe the good news." Mk. 1:15 Is that what is preached today? If that were so, Catholics would be able to tell you what the Good News is. Repentance, conversion, living in the power of the Holy Spirit-a personal decision is required. A personal decision needs to be asked for.
"When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, 'Brothers, what shall we do?' Peter replied, 'Repent and be baptized'...With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, 'Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.' Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day." Acts: 37-41. To preach the Gospel, in season and out of season, a humble and contrite heart is needed. Revival is for all. That is part of our intercession.
b) Stand for the Gospel. Whoa! What do you mean? Isn't that what's been happening? Maybe, maybe not. If that were happening, wouldn't things be different? "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak to you and give them warning from me. When I say to a wicked man, 'You will surely die' and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself...a righteous man turns from his righteousness...Since you did not warn him...I will hold you accountable for his blood." Ezek. 3:16-20. It is part of the calling. Intercede for our leaders.
c) Be holy. It is more important for us that you be holy than professional. We need you to know what you need to know, but having a goal of "professional" clergy lends to a "job" mentality rather than a "calling". It can be easy to fall for this temptation. Rather, show us what it means to "Repent and live the Good News", what it means to "follow the Lord", to be open to the Spirit. We want to support you and stand behind you. Our call is to pray for you, to lift you up, encourage and love you. We need you and you need us.
3) Seek the Lord ourselves. Be open to His grace to witness for the Gospel. Take a stand when the opportunity arises. When we intercede, pray the Zip drive prayer: "Convict me of my sins. Give me a humble and contrite heart. Change me. Open my eyes to Who you are and to who I am. Do what you have to do to make me holy. Help me. Have mercy on me".
The Church is not ready. Even if only peace was in our future, we are not where we need to be. The situation in the Church is more than we can handle. It is so much bigger than we are. We can't even handle our own lives, how can we deal with the state of the Church? When the chapters of terror are written, will the Church be ready? Will we be ready?
Are you desperate yet? You will be.
There is more that He has for us. More than we have right now, infinitely more.
posted by gene | 6:27 PM
2 Comments:
Dad, what fresh words those are! I am inspired. You have so much wisdom and such a heart for God. I am proud that you are my dad! Ellen
"Come Holy Spirit. Speak through Gene tomorrow on the radio. Continue to speak through him with this blog. Prepare the hearts of the listeners/readers. Give us holy desperation for You and Your will alone, God. Mary, spouse of the Spirit, pray for Gene. Lift him up, comfort him, protect him. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen."
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