PASSION ORIENTATION

After a passionate debate for and against the proposal, the New York state Legislature passed a bill Tuesday that makes it legal for doctors and other health care professionals, such as midwives and physician assistants, to perform abortions up until birth for any reason in the state.

The so-called Reproductive Health Act that abortion advocates have been trying to get passed for 12 years while being vehemently opposed by religious and conservative groups, passed with a 38-28 vote and thunderous applause in the state Senate chamber. The bill codifies federal abortion rights guaranteed under the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision and removes abortion from the state's criminal code.

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said at a news conference ahead of the vote Tuesday, according to the Albany Times Union. "Today, here in New York, we are saying no. We are saying no, not here in New York. And we're not just saying no. We're saying that here in New York, women's health matters. We're saying here in New York, women's lives matter. We're saying here in New York, women's decisions matter."[1]

No one fights for something for 12 years without having passion. Yet, in many of our minds we can’t wrap our heads around how women’s health, lives, & decisions equate to or justify killing her unborn child to achieve this passionate end.

There is no question that St. Paul was a passionate man. As a devout Pharisee, schooled in the Jewish law, he made it his mission to root out a religion contrary to that law. But as the Lord often does, Jesus Christ reoriented Paul’s zeal. Sometimes our passions may be misplaced—like the proponents of abortion on demand, but when we are reordered in Christ, our world is turned right side up. This is what happened to St. Paul on the road to Damascus.

We are invited to reflect on today where our own passions lie: What fuels them? Whom do they glorify? How do they affect others? Think about it, what would it be like if just one church had the level of passion for serving the poor and helping people that the abortion advocates had for getting the Reproductive Health Act passed?

“Do everything for the glory of God” (1 Cor 10:31). Paul realized this late in life. Sometimes it takes God’s intervention for us to realize our passions may be disoriented. Many times, the confusion is rooted in pride, shame, or fear. But when properly oriented to Christ, everything—every act or passion—can glorify the Lord: from our jobs & school work; to our play & worship.

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[1] The Christian Post. “New York passes bill allowing abortion up to birth, for any reason” January 22, 2019

HEALING POWER OF TOUCH

Did you know that YOU have healing power, literally at your fingertips?  The simple act of touching – not necessarily in a romantic manner – is so powerful that it can slow your heart rate, decrease your blood pressure, and strengthen your immune system!

Our culture is not very affectionate, and we are losing out on the benefits of regular physical interaction with others.  The healing power of touch is so necessary for life that babies not touched regularly don’t grow and develop normally, and children who are not lovingly touched enough are more likely to be violent as adults.[1]

Study about disability stories in the Bible has grown in recent years. Such works distinguish between impairment (a condition) and disability (the effects of such, sometimes socially imposed).  Leprosy in the Bible is not Hansen’s disease as most people know today.  The Hebrew word (sara at) is a ritual term for a variety of conditions that affect people, clothing, and even walls (mold, fungus).  For these reasons, a term such as “defilement” may be a better designation. 

When I first started my job as Operation Director at a soup kitchen, I spent time studying staff, volunteer & client interaction.  It was a tenuous and sometimes violent culture.  Many volunteers, good-hearted as they were to serve, were not prepared to engage the often unkempt, odorous, & often intoxicated clientele.  The clients were treated like community lepers, a defiled people managed by societal rules, much like the lepers read of in scripture.  Over time this culture changed as the staff was trained to embrace the clients where they were at, to treat the clients as “customers” and as far as their comfort level would allow, touch the client.  A handshake, hand on the shoulder, it even grew to hugs as the clients started respecting themselves more and more.

Today’s story of the leper remains timeless in its teaching, beyond our noting that it embraced a myriad of illnesses in the ancient world.  It calls us to break down lingering stereotypes and prejudices about others and to promote justice and inclusion.  Recall how Jesus sought the company of those living on the fringe.  More than physical cures, his loving touch restore persons to their rightful place in community.  Genuine healing demands the removal of oppressive systems, personal & institutional, in all their forms.

We who believe in Jesus know his loving and healing touch.  It is through Jesus’ blood that the gates of life are opens, the waters of Baptism that we are joined to his family, and by the power of the Holy Spirit transubstantiates the bread and wine we offer into the Body & Blood, Jesus’ real presence, His intimate touch as we receive Him.  We are called and directed to take this touch into the a world in need of the healing power of a loving touch.

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[1] https://bodyecology.com/articles/healing_power_of_touch.php, Body Ecology “The Proven Healing Power of Touch” © 2018

A STAR & A DREAM

[1]Years ago, when our daughter was in her mid-teens, we got on the conversation of family and naming children. Before I go much further, I feel the need to set the stage with some background knowledge. Our daughter, then and now, has her own ideas and often expresses them in a polite, yet sarcastic, way to let you know she is does not see life the way her parents see life. This is why she roots for the New York Jets instead of the Buffalo Bills like her parents. I think she was trying to encourage some inter-divisional rivalry.

Back to the family and naming children. During our conversation we explained how we agreed on her and her brother’s names and how our family birth history tends to be a girl is born first, then a boy. Then we curiously asked her, what would she name her children? Without a moment of thought she exclaimed, “I’m naming the girl Epiphany Revelation!” Acknowledging the challenges existing in our faith walk at the time all we could say in response was, “she certainly will be.” 

Epiphanies are manifestations of a divine or supernatural being. The Epiphany of the Lord manifests the light that God shines on our world, a loving light that is utterly inclusive.[2] The first Christians, like Jesus, were all Jewish. As God’s chosen people, they had been taught to keep themselves separate from the Gentiles. So, when Gentiles wanted to join the early church, they didn’t know what to do; it was a hard decision to make. St. Paul, in today’s reading, assures the Jews that “the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and co-partners in the promise of Christ Jesus through the gospel.” (Eph 3:6) Matthew makes the same point in his own way. He tells of “magi from the East”—the non-Jewish world—coming to worship the newborn king. They have seen the light! The lesson is clear: Jesus is for everybody.[3]

Remember, the Jewish people, no different than some Catholic people, thought they were the only ones that mattered and are the only people that God loves. They believe they are the only people having the one true religion and all other people were hopelessly lost. Yet, here we have three people, clearly shown to be non-Jews, foreigners, pagans, yet called wise men, why? Because they had the big picture. They could see beyond tribal thinking of groups, nations and even religions. All they wanted was the truth, and when you want truth bad enough, you don’t really care who is saying the truth or where the truth is to be found. It doesn’t matter if the truth is beyond your group, your country, or your religion. Even if it means following a star and a dream.

What the story holds for us is, we all have to believe; we are special, we are chosen, we are beloved children of God whom calls us to himself. We also must be open to realize that the God we worship is utterly inclusive. He calls and invites ALL into His light. He calls and invites ALL to the Eucharistic feast; man & woman, rich & poor, whole & broken, saint & especially sinners.

How is it that the Magi could see something unnoticed by so many others? Matthew teaches through the Magi’s experience, that God is not found without leaving our routines and may include following something as tenuous as a star and a dream. Before we can follow the star, we need to recognize it. A characteristic of God’s signs: they are only visible in the dark. At night, when the noise of words diminishes, when the frenzy is calm, when the business slows down, then God manages to speak to our hearts. The night strips us of certain pretensions and protections, disguises and distractions. The prophets stress: God speaks in the silent crackling of a burning bush or in the delicate eloquence of the gentle breeze.

Yet even the Magi, thinking they arrived to their destination, Jerusalem, lost sight of the guiding star and needed to ask for directions. A request that “greatly troubled [King Herod] and all Jerusalem.” (Mt 2:3) The Magi were far from being self-assured, the search made them wise seekers. Leaving the palace, they joyfully see the stars reappearance and their finding made them more humble. It was in the stillness of the night, when everything was quiet, that they discovered the child with his mother. They arrived because they had been led by a star, because they had taken the road with simplicity of heart, which allowed them to recognize in the child God’s presence in the world.

The feast of the Epiphany shows us God is revealed wherever people are searching for love, light, and truth. We can find sincere, loving and generous hearts in every community, country and in every religion. So, as we begin this new year, let us challenge ourselves to be wise seekers on the journey, with eyes searching to see the light, the truth, the love and goodness of God in our ordinary daily lives, even if it means following something as tenuous as a star and a dream.[4]

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[1] New American Bible, Saint Joseph Edition © 1986.  Scriptures: Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:12 - 4:2; Luke 21:25-28, 34-36.

[2] Living the Word, Year of Luke © 2018 by Laurie Brink, O.P. and Paul Colloton, O.S.F.S.

[3] Sundays with Jesus, Reflections for the Year of Luke, James DiGiacomo, SJ © 2006.

[4] Hungry, and You Fed Me: Homilies & Reflections for Cycle C. by Fr. Richard Rohr, O.F.M. © 2012.  Clear Vision Publishing, Manalapan, NJ

SEEING, HEARING, & FOLLOWING

Do you believe in love at first sight?  Realists claim it’s unreasonable, saying that love must be nurtured to grow.  Romantics insist instant attraction often allows one to recognize a soulmate at once.  Whatever any of us believes about love at first sight, we must admit the first of Jesus’ disciples certainly experienced an instant attraction to him.  On John’s word, they turned from their lives to go after this unknown teacher.  Andrew is so immediately smitten he convinces his brother Simon to join them.

More remarkably, they follow Jesus to an unknown destiny, not knowing where he lives, let alone what discipleship might require of them.  Are we this willing and enthusiastic about our discipleship?  I feel like I'm preaching to the choir, daily Mass participants.  Was it love at first sight for us?  We attended Mass once and said I'm leaving everything, or at least re-prioritizing my life to include this beloved time, or are we more of the realist, who is inclined to hesitate, to let the relationship develop over time and maybe put conditions on our willingness to follow?  Have we made the way of Christ truly our path of life, even when it appears dark and fearful?

The question hanging in the air is, “What are you looking for?” (Jn 1:38) People must be prepared for instant attraction.  The disciples had most likely been raised with the hope of witnessing a Messiah who would save their people.  They spent their lives to that point in readiness; when the Messiah appeared, their hearts were prepared to recognize him.  We see the same readiness in today’s saint, Elizabeth Ann Seton.

From an early age, she studied the Scriptures and opened her heart to whatever was in store for her.  This openness allowed her to embrace God’s call to a life she had probably never envisioned for herself.

Our challenge today is to follow the example of these disciples.  When we participate in Mass and approach the altar to receive the real presence of Christ, “What are we looking for?”  As disciples, are we spending our lives in the hope & readiness of experiencing the same instant attraction?  Are we able to recognize the reality of what is occurring as we hear God’s voice in the Word proclaimed and participate in the Eucharistic meal?  Are we willing to leave (have we left) our old ways to give complete commitment to Christ?