CRISIS OF CREDIBILITY

The Bishops are meeting in Rome this week to discuss a serious subject in need of greater truth and authentic love, the clerical sexual abuse crisis as well as the stories of cover-up and the failure of leadership.  This topic has been a source of anger and anguish among American Catholics for decades, a source rekindled and intensified over the past year.  Pope Francis calls it a “crisis of credibility” as he writes in his letter to the U.S. bishops:

“The Church's credibility has been seriously undercut and diminished by these sins and crimes, but even more by the efforts made to deny or conceal them. This has led to a growing sense of uncertainty, distrust and vulnerability among the faithful. As we know, the mentality that would cover things up, far from helping to resolve conflicts, enabled them to fester and cause even greater harm to the network of relationships that today we are called to heal and restore.”

I believe today’s feast and the scriptures gives us some insight into an appropriate response, not just for the Church’s bishops, but for all the faithful to begin the healing and restoration of credibility. 

Three versus’ jumped out at me as I contemplated todays readings.  In our entrance antiphon we hear: “The Lord says to Simon Peter: I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail, and, once you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” (Lk 22:32) The Lord was well aware that, at the hour of the cross, lack of unity, division and dispersion would be the greatest temptations faced by his disciples, attitudes that would distort and hinder their mission.  We share in this human experience of temptation for doubt and fear where anger leads to distrust and often disengagement.  Yet, there is hope.  Jesus said, “once you have turned back”, he knew Peter’s heart, he knew Peter would reconcile and become stronger in faith and leadership to guide his brothers and sit in what we celebrate today, the Chair of Peter.

The next verse was the Gospel Acclamation, “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church; the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.” (Mt 16:18) Our Church has experienced many many crisis’ over its 2000-year history.  Scandal, disharmony, division, yet here we are gathered around this sacred table seeking reconciliation, relationship and unity with our Lord and Savior by sharing in his sacred meal.

The final verse is, “Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Mt 16:19) Healing comes, not through policies alone, nor by a bishop or priest authoritatively laying down the law, nor by angry parishioner demands or running away from the Church, healing comes through a clear, decisive, and lived focus on our Gospel mission. Unity is key to this mission and it often begins with forgiveness.  If you are still worried about the credibility of the Church hear Pope Francis’ words, “Credibility will be the fruit of a united body that, while acknowledging our sinfulness and limitations, is at the same time capable of preaching the need for conversion.”

AN ORIGINAL EXPERIENCE

I know it is very early in the morning, but I ask you humor me in participating in a word association exercise.   You know how it works, I say a word and you reply back with an appropriate companion word.  So, I say: “Jesus”, you say? “Christ”; I say: “Holy”, you say? “Spirit”; I say: “Original”, you say? “SIN”.

This is our Christian educated response, right to Original Sin.  Saint Pope John Paul II’s response is radically different in his writings on The Theology of the Body.  He talks of 4 “original” experiences in the garden: Original Solitude; Original Unity; Original Nakedness; and then Original Sin.

In Original Solitude the man is alone with God and enjoys a unique relationship with God.  Yet in this solitude God notices something is lacking. “It is not good that the man should be alone.”

In Original Unity God remedies what is lacking by creating Eve.  Not only is Adam alone with God, he is alone with a unique being he freely gives himself to as a life partner.

Original Nakedness is a symbol of freedom in communication.  For love to be real, it must be freely given and freely accepted. Adam and Eve experienced no barriers or difficulties in their life together, until we find them in scripture today. 

Original Sin is an act of mistrust and pride. People in society today find it hard to get along with each other, to accept each other, to be generous, and to give of themselves. It is sin that takes away our experience of freedom.  To restore the experiences of original solitude, unity, and nakedness, we must be open to God’s ever-present action in our everyday lives.  We cannot hide from Him.  We also need to be open one another in community.  We can’t do it in solitude and by ourselves.

The deaf man’s friends brought him to Jesus because they believed Jesus could restore the man, to give him what he needed: hearing and clear speech.  By bringing their friend to Jesus, the friends do for him what they could not do themselves.

In our time, we must speak up for those who have no voice. I’m not talking about those with a speech impediment. I’m thinking of those invisible people who no one pays attention to or responds to their needs. The unborn, the orphan, the poor, the powerless, the immigrant—all who need someone to plead the cause for justice. They need people whose voices have power and will be heard. THEY NEED US.

What keeps us from fighting for right and justice? Is it fear of criticism and rejection? Regardless of our fears, through this Eucharist feast, God gives us the strength we need to act justly and non-violently to fight for what is right and just.

CATCHING MEN

[1]A man was sitting at his desk one morning, when his partner came running into the office, all out of breath.  “You won’t believe this, I was almost killed a minute ago!  I had just walked out of the deli, where I buy my egg sandwich every morning.  A police car, with its sirens and lights going, was chasing a car down the street.  They rammed the other car, then everyone jumped out and started shooting.  I was right in the line of fire!  I could hear the bullets whizzing overhead, windows were shattering, cars were careening onto the sidewalk, and everybody was running for cover.  Let me tell you, I’m lucky to be alive!” 

The other fellow was quiet for a moment and then he replied.  “So, you eat an egg sandwich every morning?”[2]

I’m wondering, if some days, we tend to be like the man who was sitting at his desk.  We get so lost in our daily tasks, what’s on our own minds or visions of things down the road of life that we miss the point of here and now.  For us specifically, have we become so focused on the work of formation requirements of reading, assignments, grades, reports & evaluations, as well as our secular jobs and parish ministries, and oh yeah, spending time with our families and household responsibilities, that we are missing what the real call is to the diaconate? 

It is very easy to become lost in ourselves, focused on doing, and even complacent in our daily routines that we the loose sight of our call to be evangelizing disciples.  In our desire to serve or to be ‘the fixer’ could it be that our behavior suggests, to the average parishioner, that the Church’s ministries and mission should be reserved for the select few who know best?  In his Apostolic Exhortation, “On Evangelization in the Modern World” Pope Paul VI writes, “It is the whole Church that receives the mission to evangelize.”[3]

Yet, in general, many Catholics just don’t feel they are very good at evangelization for several reasons.  The common reasons I hear, “I’m unworthy,” “I’m a sinner”.  Today’s scriptures highlight the calling of three men Isaiah, Paul, and Peter.  Each express their reservations about their call because of their sinfulness and feelings of unworthiness.  Isaiah knows he is “a man of unclean lips” (Is 6:5) living among an unclean people.  Paul considers himself “as one born abnormally” (1 Cor 15:8), because he persecuted so many Christians before getting knocked off his horse, and Peter realizing ‘who he is’ asks Jesus to “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” (Lk 5:8) Yet, despite these admissions and feelings God calls each to service of God’s people.  Jesus tells Peter, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” (Lk 5:10) Peter immediately leaves everything behind to learn to fish in a new way with Jesus. 

This is our calling, with one difference, we are not asked to necessarily leave everything behind.  The deacon is called from the world, to be formed in knowledge of self, family life, and the Church, so he can effectively proclaim the Kingdom of God, in word and deed, a living witness to Gospel values, in the world that he will return.  Pope Paul VI in restoring the permanent diaconate says, “The deacon is a driving force of the Church’s service toward the local Christian community … a living icon of Christ the servant … linked with the missionary dimension of the Church.”  We are called to be missionary disciples, evangelize to a people who, all too often, are very distracted by worldly things and may only hear, we eat an egg sandwich every morning. 

Our call to discipleship is a call to be instigators of ministry and animators of the Church’s mission.  We are to invite all the baptized into action.  By our lived example, we hope that Pope Paul VI expresses, that “the person who has been evangelized goes onto evangelize others.  Here lies the test of truth, the touchstone of evangelization: it is unthinkable that a person should accept the Word and give himself to the Kingdom without becoming a person who bears witness to it and proclaims it in his turn.”[4]

If you’re still struggling with a sense unworthiness, do not fear, it’s normal.  Learn to abandon yourself and truly enter into the mystery of this Eucharistic feast.  It is here that our lips will be touched, not by a burning ember, but by the real Body and Blood of our Lord.  While we will exclaim, “Lord I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof…”  God is telling us, “Be not afraid, from now on you will be catching men.”

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[1] New American Bible, Saint Joseph Edition © 1986.  Scriptures: Is 6:1-2A, 3-8; 1 Cor 15:1-15; Lk 5:1-11.

[2] Clark, Dennis. Sunday Morning 2. The Church of the Nativity. 2001 Print

[3] Paul, Pope VI. On Evangelization in the Modern World. #15 The Word Among Us. 1975 Print

[4] Senior, Donald. The Catholic Study Bible. Oxford University Press, 2006 Print