SEASONS OF GRACE

Miracle on 34th Street! Macy’s in Philadelphia (not New York, so that’s where the cultural reference to the ’40s movie falls flat) was the scene of a RANDOM ACT OF CULTURE at noon on October 31, when members of the Philadelphia Orchestra and local choirs broke into an enthusiastic rendition of “Handel’s Messiah.” Merry Christmas- and who cares about Halloween, anyway?

This effervescent hubbub prompted me to think about antonyms: What, exactly, is the opposite of crass commercialism? Here we see a sea of shoppers- strangers to one another- transformed into a chorale and an enthusiastic audience, as the strains of “Handel’s Messiah” break into the midday bustle. But is “culture” the opposite of “commercialism”? I think not. I think the opposite of “commercialism” is “love.”

More on that as the holiday season approaches. And Merry Christmas, a little early!

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Earlier today, I read Tom Peters’ (American Papist) blog post about the removal of an offensive video from the web. The YouTube video showed the female pastor of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in San Francisco mocking the papal popemobile. Apparently, Tom noted, the church didn’t want this controversial clip going viral.

It’s sort of too late—the word is out. Tom’s blog, which has been featured on the Today Show and MSNBC, among others—is one of the best known Catholic blogs on the Internet.

With the popemobile in the news today, I thought I’d post a couple of photos from my own collection. The first, from our family’s first trip overseas, was snapped at the papal audience on October 18, 2000. The second photo—me with the popemobile!—was taken in September 2005, when I led a Legatus pilgrimage to the Eternal City. I always laughed about that one because the rear view mirror, popping out from behind my head, looks amazingly like a cartoon thought balloon.

Can anyone remember the correct term for a stupid photo error? And if this really was a thought balloon, what would I be saying?

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LORD GOD,
as the election approaches, we seek to better understand the issues and concerns that confront our city, state, and country, and how the Gospel compels us to respond as faithful citizens in our community.

WE ASK FOR EYES that are free from blindness so that we might see each other as brothers and sisters, one and equal in dignity, especially those who are victims of abuse and violence, deceit and poverty.

WE ASK FOR EARS that will hear the cries of children unborn and those abandoned,
men and women oppressed because of race or creed, religion or gender.

WE ASK FOR MINDS AND HEARTS that are open to hearing the voice of leaders who will bring us closer to your Kingdom.

WE PRAY FOR DISCERNMENT so that we may choose leaders who hear your Word,live your love, and keep in the ways of your truth as they follow in the steps of Jesus and his Apostles and guide us to your Kingdom of justice and peace.

WE ASK THIS in the name of your Son Jesus Christ and through the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

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As we Catholics in the United States celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints (either tomorrow or—in some dioceses—today), our pastor preached an excellent homily about the saints. The word “saint,” he noted, is found 62 times in the New Testament. With the exception of the Book of Revelation, most often the term “saint” refers, not to those who have gone before us in the sign of faith and who rest in the arms of Jesus, but to those frail but well-intentioned people who accompany us on our journey through this life.

I know what he means.

At our parish, perhaps more than at any church we’ve attended, I am keenly aware of the humble holiness of the people around me. This morning I took a moment to look around at the faces of the saints: the man who, having lost his wife just a few years ago, brings his burden to the Lord and there finds peace and consolation; the elderly woman who greets those around her with enthusiastic hugs and kisses; the teacher whose lifework is deeply intertwined with the will of Christ, as she touches the lives of children and their parents; the self-conscious young altar server who recognizes that his role is an important one, and who strives to stand in the right place and ring the bells with gusto and precision timing. These are the everyday saints who inspire me by their very lives.

When people look at me, do they see someone who, along with them, is en route to an eternity with Jesus, while practicing saintly virtues in the here and now? My prayer today is that we—both I, and you the reader—will continue to more closely mirror God in our daily lives, an inspiration to all we meet.

Make it a great day!

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I attended a workshop recently led by a Benedictine priest, a great writer and speaker. His message was good, and there was much to take away. Just one thing bothered me: He complained loudly about the Church.

Let me put it in context. He’s a priest. That is, he is ordained, consecrated to the service of Holy Mother Church and dedicated to the people of God. But rather than helping to build the Body of Christ, he tears it down by criticizing and belittling and griping about something so small as a pronoun. You see, he doesn’t like the idea of a “new translation” [sigh]. “Here’s an example,” he says, “of what we have to look forward to. Instead of saying ‘We believe’ in the Creed, as we do now, we’ll have to say ‘I believe.’ ”

“That’s it?” I wondered. “That’s the issue that’s so important that you need to cast a pall over this gathering, undercut your own message, show us that Pride is victorious over Obedience?”

Actually, being as old as the hills, I remember having to change when it went the other way—when, shortly after Mass was offered in the vernacular, it was decided that we should all in unison express our shared faith by saying “We.” It was hard to remember for a while, but more than that, it absolved us in a way from the need to take personal responsibility for our faith—to stand ALONE and aver, ‘I BELIEVE.’

But who am I to criticize? I am a Catholic, and my Church says it will be so, and so it will be. We are a family, and like my own little earthly family, we are stronger when we sing with one voice. Heaven knows, we have so many enemies from without- why can’t we all get along here on the inside? I’m not saying that we should tolerate sin; but criminy! Don’t sweat the small stuff! All the whining about the bishops and the USCCB and the translation and the kneelers/no kneelers/communion on the tongue/not on the tongue/Latin vs. English—Get over it! Whatever you prefer, this is what we’re doing now, so let’s join together in praise and thanksgiving before the God Who made us, and Who gave us this Church to aid in our sanctification.

That, dear Father, is what I was thinking about today.

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