The Spirit of Communion

The Spirit of Communion

"...but I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven..." Matt. 5.44

Gospel Reading for the 7th Sunday of OT: Matt 5. 38-48

(Note: while most of these posts are inclusive to the Christian community at large, the reflection below is of particular interests to teachers, parents, trustees and all those committed to Catholic education)

This past Friday night and Saturday I was blessed to attend the Catholic Education Symposium sponsored by The Alberta Catholic Trustee's Association. I have been also been tasked to summarize the findings and created a guide that can be used for school boards across the province. My first task will be to bring together all the comments, ideas and strategies that came out of the discussions from the 200+ delegates.

So on Sunday, I took a step back and allowed Sabbath to enter in before I begin. And as it always does, being fed by Word and Eucharist connected powerfully to what I had just experienced.

One of the keynote speakers at the Symposium was Archbishop Michael Miller from Vancouver, who presented to us the "five marks" of Catholic school identity. He neatly summarized the key points found in the documents of the Sacred Congregation of Catholic Education. ( To read about the five marks go to http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/education/ed0395.htm)

One of the marks that identifies a school as Catholic is a spirituality of communion. This has a multiple layers of meaning:

• The Catholic school is a community first, and an institution second
• Human dignity and desire for the common good are core values
• The Catholic school goes beyond collaboration, team-work and co-operation- since we live a spirituality of communion, we are connected to each others as children of God, and live in the love of the ultimate communion of Persons- the Trinity.

So, when we read this section of the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew's Gospel, we can recognize right away that Jesus is asking us to enter into that very life of the Trinity. It has no room for revenge, retaliation and hatred. There is only room for love.

This is our core curriculum. This is what we mean by "faith permeation". All teachers, no matter what grade or area of subject specialty, are called to teach the Gospel of love.

Always. Every Day. No need to have "Random Acts of Kindness Week" if we are living and teaching Matthew 5. No need for Anti-bullying campaigns if we live and teach the Gospel of love.

Of course we struggle to be "perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect". But I don't think Jesus is setting before us an impossible task.
 
It is an invitation. An invitation to enter into the life of the Trinity. To enter into spiritual communion. To love our enemies. To do good to those who harm us.

To be children of God once again.

For this week: Consider how you can reach out to those who have caused you pain - a student, a co-worker, a family member. First, pray for them. Then do good towards them in word or action. Do not expect kindness in return. Continue to pray for them.
 

Drive-Through Morality

Drive-Through Morality

Gospel for the 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Matthew 5.17-37


Every day we are faced with choices. There are the everyday routine choices of what to eat, what to wear, what route to take to work and so forth.
We are also faced every day with choices to act morally- is what I say or do today going to be an act of creation and love, or of hate and destruction, in my life, in the lives of who I encounter, and in my life in God?

So many choices. And often, we make decisions about our moral life as if we are going to a drive-through (or "thru" as it is misspelled at McDonald's. Don't get me started...)

What I mean is we can easily believe and follow certain teachings of the Church, and then neglect or outright refused to accept others. Then we go further by teaching our children, our friends, and our students our version of the what it means to be a Catholic. We run the danger of giving half-truths about our faith, especially about our morality.

 This is nothing new, but we'll come back to this.

Hearing today's Gospel from Matthew at Mass this morning got me thinking about what it must have been like to be a devout Jew during the time of Christ. So many laws, and so many interpreters of the law! It's no surprise when we hear Jesus being questioned about the Law- which was the most important? Which ones should be ignored? How should we interpret the Law? Can we get rid of some of it?

So again, Jesus surprised, and no doubt disturbed, some of the disciples when he showed his absolute love for the Law. For it was in the Law that the people could learn to encounter and love their God. It was not about legal wrangling and making excuses. It was about LOVE. Living the moral life is simply living in God's love. Totally and without excuse.

So we hear Jesus say that it's not enough to refrain from murder- you must avoid anger, insult and slander.

It's not enough to avoid adultery- you must also break free from lustful thoughts.

And don't expect that your offerings at the altar are pleasing to God if you haven't reconciled with those who have "something against you".

It reminds me of how the Catechism of the Catholic Church breaks open the whole of our Christian morality by showing its roots in the Ten Commandments.

Here's and example of what I mean. Far too often, we think, "hey I'm OK, I'm not breaking the commandments". And although we may not have. for example, physically killed anyone, how many times have we killed someone's spirit with cruel sarcasm, gossip or innuendo? 

Maybe as Lenten project this year, you could read, and pray with, Part Three of The Catechism entitled "Life in Christ". It's a really great help in shedding light into some of our dark corners.

It will also curb our propensity to pick and choose a drive-through morality. 
I'm not saying that we should not listened to our conscience, but if we are to be true to ourselves, we need to have an informed conscience.
That means that if we disagree with something that the Church teaches on morality, we must find out exactly what it does teach. Go to the source, not the media's interpretations of what the Church teaches. 
And don't forget to ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom and discernment.

Because a drive-through morality is not the "righteousness" that Jesus refers to when he says:
"Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." Matt 5.20

For this week
Is there a particular moral teaching of the Church with which you struggle? Go to the Catechism and read what it says about it. And read Chapter Three article 1 on "The Moral Law". It will help give you the "big picture" on our Catholic Christian morality.

 

Virtual Salt, Digital Light

Virtual Salt, Digital Light

"You are the salt of the earth... ...You are the light of the world..."

Gospel for the 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time:
Matthew: 5.13-16

The exhortations of Jesus to his disciples (US!!!) to be "salt of the earth" and "light of the world" are eternal metaphors for our Christian lives. It is a call to each and every one of us to renew our commitment to the announcing the Good News.

As individuals, and as a Church, being "salt and light" is all about how we communicate within our culture. I would therefore give the blog reflection over to His Holiness, Pope Francis. Here is an excerpt from his homily on the 48th World Communications Day, January 24, 2014:

As I have frequently observed, if a choice has to be made between a bruised Church which goes out to the streets, and a Church suffering from self-absorption, I certainly prefer the first. Those "streets" are the world where people live and where they can be reached, both effectively and affectively. The digital highway is one of them, a street teeming with people who are often hurting, men and women looking for salvation or hope.

By means of the Internet, the Christian message can reach "to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).Keeping the doors of our churches open also means keeping them open in the digital environment so that people, whatever their situation in life, can enter, and so that the Gospel can go out and reach everyone. We are called to show that the Church is the home of all. Are we capable of communicating the image of such a Church? Communication is a means of expressing the missionary vocation of the entire Church; today social networks are one way to experience this call to discover the beauty of faith, the beauty of encountering Christ. In the area of communications too, we need a Church capable of bringing warmth and stirring hearts... 
For the full transcript, go to  http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/francesco/messages/communications/documents/papa-francesco_20140124_messaggio-comunicazioni-sociali_en.html

For this week...
Think about how you use Facebook, Twitter and all digital media in the classroom or in your home. Are there ways that you can be "salt and light" through them?

Light one Candle

Light One Candle

"...a light for revelation to the Gentiles

and for the glory to your people Israel..." Luke 2.32

Gospel for the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord: Luke 2.22-39

Although the lights and decorations are packed away, and carols have long since disappeared from our lips and our IPods, there something distinctively "Christmas-y" about today's Gospel... Mary and Joseph present the infant Jesus as was the custom...

The story seems a little out of place. I mean, if we are trying to construct a chronology from Sunday to Sunday, what are we doing re-introducing the infant Jesus? Wasn't it three weeks ago that we celebrated the Baptism of Jesus, following it up with John the Baptist's proclamation, and then Jesus beginning his adult ministry?

Why are we "going back"??

It makes profound sense, not from a "narrative" sense, but from a "thematic" one.

It is all about the revelation of Jesus and the gift he is to the world.

In Jesus' baptism, God Himself reveals that " this is my Beloved Son with whom I am well pleased..." 

John the Baptist "reveals" Jesus as the "Lamb of God", a foretaste of the victory over sin and death through the blood of the Cross...

Last week, Jesus "reveals" himself as the one who "proclaims the good news of the Kingdom"- God's reign has come!

And this week, in the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, Simeon "reveals" Jesus as the "light of the world" "...a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for the glory to your people Israel..."

So as we continue in the "ordinary time" to reflect on the mission, ministry, teaching, and preaching of Jesus, we keep in mind what has been revealed to us:

Jesus as Son of God

Jesus as Lamb of God

Jesus as The Reign of God

Jesus as Light of the World.

For this week:

 If you are a teacher or parent, light a candle this week with your children, reminding them (and you) that Jesus is the "light of the world". It is also a tradition in some countries to make crepes on this day. To learn more about Candlemas, go to http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/common/candlemas

Have a great week!