The End of the World ... as We Know it

Fr. Meninger has been a Centering Prayer teacher for 30 years. Click here for more information about Holy Family’s Advent Centering Prayer retreat.

It's that time of year again when we are given the ominous prophetic words concerning the end of the world. One line especially from the second reading from First Thessalonians has been given an over literal prominence; "We who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with those Christians already dead, in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." This verse has been recognized for centuries by theologians as fanciful, apocalyptic language certainly not to be taken literally.

About 200 years ago a sincere but misguided preacher insisted it be taken literally and has acquired some considerable following. Many of them are sincere, many are paranoid, and some use it to exploit gullible Christians for their own financial profit.

Please note that the first reading from the Book of Wisdom contains a beautiful promise. Wisdom is available to those who seek it. Wisdom is knowing the will of God and how it is carried out in our personal lives and in the world. Many early Christians who read First Thessalonians lacked true wisdom. If Jesus was coming soon then there wasn't much point in going to work, growing food or getting an education. So they spend their time waiting to be caught up into the skies. The apostles did this on Ascension Thursday when Jesus ascended into heaven. An angel appeared and said in effect, “Why do you stand here idle, gazing up into the heavens, Jesus will come again in the clouds and glory…meanwhile, get back to work.” This necessitated the writing of Second Thessalonians in which they were told, once again, to go back to work.

Wisdom is also prominent in the parable of the wise virgins. Their wisdom was simply common sense, something we all need. Julian of Norwich is a veritable font of wisdom, that is, of common sense. She understood that God is a God of love. There is no such thing as the wrath of God. This is a human construct. God is not a judge, or avenger. He does not condemn , punish or criticize. Again, these are all human constructions. God is a God of compassion and forgiveness and he offers us not blame but pity.

In Heaven, Julian tells us, even our sins will be to our honor because God will reward us for our repentance. The greater our sins, the greater is God's compassion. This is why Jesus tells us that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 who have no need of repentance.

Wisdom, common sense, will tell us that if the Triune God is all-powerful, all wise and all loving, then this world which he created in his wisdom out of his love will come to the end for which he created it, namely himself.

The English Jesuit poet, Gerard Manley Hopkins, expressed this well in a poem called God's Grandeur.

The world is charged with the grandeur of God.

It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;

It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil crushed.

Why do men then now not reck his rod?

Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;

And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;

And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell:

the soil is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.

And for all this, nature is never spent;

There lives the dearest freshness, deep down things.

And though the last lights off the black West went

Oh, morning, at the brown brink, Eastward springs –

Because the Holy Ghost, over the bent

World broods with warm breast and with, ah! bright wings.

So, even though we have spoiled it, the world is always on the brink of a new dawn. The theological virtue of hope is one of the three ways by which God communicates himself to us. This is not something he is going to do, he is always doing it. He is the promise and the fulfillment of the promise. He is the not -- yet and the already -- here. The victory has been won for us we have only to reach out and claim it. May God grant us the wisdom to do so. May you be happy, May you be free, May you be loving, May you be loved.

Father William Meninger

St. Benedicts’ Monastery

Snowmass, Colorado

For more information about Centering prayer and Fr. Meninger visit: http://www.contemplativeprayer.net/

A Plethora of Vocations by Fr. John Baptist Pesce

Most of us weekly pray for “an increase of vocations to the priesthood and religious life,” or something along those lines at the Sunday parish Eucharist. We are also encouraged to pray “for an increase of vocations”. The expression usually has it that “there is a shortage of vocations,” meaning a shortage of priests and religious, both male and female. And, if we pray for these the Lord will send laborers into the vineyard. Who can be “against” that?

All are equally called to holiness (relationship to God). There are no second class citizens here. There are different venues to answer that destiny. The share of God’s work to which we are called has something to do (however amorphous) with the reign of God working itself out in history. Granted this requires a more nuanced understanding of holiness than commonly accepted. But, by now, we should appreciate that this call to holiness doesn’t mean that some are called to be really holy and other, well, just about make it. There is no place for mediocrity in this call to holiness. Would you believe it, we are called to be saints! What we need among all the baptized is a willingness to answer this call to holiness whatever form this response takes in the concrete, nitty-gritty of life.

My suggestion is that what may possibly help in the present situation relative to the matter of vocations, narrowly understood, is to promote on all sides and for everyone a sense of vocation, comprehensively appreciated, namely, the realization that each of us has a call from God to do a share of God’s work in the service of God’s people. A heart specialist who is skilled in heart transplants as well as a park employee who picks up butts and other trash in a public park to remove some of the ugliness from the face of the earth. That goes for butcher, baker, nuclear scientist, nurse’s aide, sanitation worker. Think of the problem we’d have if we didn’t have garbage collectors! Whatever serves to humanize human life, whatever makes it easier to be good, whatever makes more for the type of society that all, deep down, are hungering and thirsting for.

To promote this mentality and the living of it because it is the truth, it seems to me would be an immense contribution towards the awareness that God may be calling some to a way of life that is that of the priest or of a sister or brother. With this collective awareness that we all have this call from God to do a share of God’s work in the service of God’s people, there is the possibility that the Spirit may awaken in some the realization, hey, it may be that God is calling me to do the life and work of a priest or sister or brother! In my judgment, it’s worth the try and there’s nothing to lose and plenty to gain even if, only by the individuals, who have this perspective on their answer to the call for holiness! Ordinary work, decent, upright, up building doesn’t have to be sanctified. It is sanctifying.

A discussion with Zen Master Dae Kwang & Father Kevin Hunt

Last summer, the Institute for World Spirituality in Chicago hosted a weekend Christian – Buddhist retreat led by Father Kevin Hunt OCSO and Zen Master Dae Kwang. Two days of silent meditation, with both Christian and Zen chanting. These are excerpts from the Saturday evening question-and-answer period.

Question: In Christianity, what is important for many people is devotional type experience-thoughts, hymns, psalms all directed to a personal God. This brings much warmth and comfort to many Christians. Now this is a dimension which is not apparent in Buddhism. I am wondering how to understand that. Is this devotional spirituality, which involves thinking and images and relating to a personal God, extraneous in Buddhism – say, something Christians do because they do not have a correct understanding of the Still Point or Buddha Nature?

Father Kevin: In Christianity, you have to consider what is the meaning of “God.” Speaking about God is not the same as knowing God. If you ask me, “What is God?” I’ll answer, “God is a three-letter word.” When it comes down to what these words and images really mean, you run up against a blank wall of Unknowing. There’s an old Christian saying that any affirmation of God is a denial of God. So the question of theistic devotion in Christianity is not a simple one.

Also, the whole question of God in Buddhism is not simple either. When Buddhists talk about God are they talking about the same God that Christians do? No. In Buddhism, the gods are still in the wheel of samsara (karma, rebirth). If Christianity had a wheel of samsara, we would never be able to place God on that wheel.

In the West, most Christians would not be comfortable with a term like Shunyata — the void or infinite emptiness. But these words may be closer to God than many of the concepts and images we use!

Question: In Christianity, the deepest level of experience is described as an I – Thou relation between you and God. Can you explain why there is no I – Thou relation in Buddhism?

Dae Kwang Sunim: In Buddhism, we say that everything is one, so there is ultimately no I – Thou. If you take away the idea of “I” and take away the idea of “Thou,” then what is there?

Question: So there is no ultimate relationship in Buddhism as there is in Christianity?

Dae Kwang Sunim: Everything is relationship. Everything is direct connectedness; you just think that it isn’t. Our job is simply to become one with everything. That’s being relationship. So if you take away the idea of “I” and take away the idea of “Thou,” what do you get? Quick! Tell me! [No answer.] I’m sitting here answering your question. That’s better than any idea concerning “I – Thou” relationships.

Question: Would you describe how you became interested in Zen practice?

Father Kevin: I didn’t get interested in Buddhism and Zen as something I wanted to study. I basically got into it because the traditional Christian explanations of what my practice was didn’t quite satisfy me. Like a drum, to get the right tone, you have to tighten the skin on the drum head. So, too, in order to firm up my practice, I learned some of their ways of doing things.

Dae Kwang Sunim: I was raised Christian. The reason I went to Buddhism is much like what Father Kevin said. The Christian tradition I was raised in didn’t have any contemplative practice. I became interested in Zen Buddhism because it contained a very strong tradition of practice. I saw it not so much as an alternative to Christianity but as offering something I had never encountered before.

Question: Were you dissatisfied then with Christianity?

Dae Kwang Sunim: I wasn’t dissatisfied. I wanted something different. Actually, many people use Zen meditation to realize what Christianity is all about. Zen, you may have noticed, is very generic. It’s like drinking pure, cool water when you’re thirsty. Zen points to something before thinking, before all your ideas. Actually God is before your idea of God, and so is Buddha. And what is that? What are you? That’s the question! And how do you attain that?

Buddha likened the human situation to a man who has just been shot in the chest by an arrow. Before he gets treated for the wound, he wants to know who shot the arrow. He also wonders which tribe made the arrow. How strong was the bow and what trajectory did the arrow take to pierce his chest in such a manner? While he is asking these questions, he dies. The most important thing in this situation is getting treatment.

The Buddha was only concerned with one thing: human suffering and taking away human suffering. He refused to talk about anything else because it was not helpful to people. He went instead right to the heart of the matter, the matter of life and death. Christ, too, was not a scholar; he was not a theologian. He pointed directly to the human condition and how to relieve it. If you look at it that way, everything else pales.

A Journey Encountering the International, Universal Christ at World Youth Day

“The Important Words Sound the Same: A Journey Encountering the International, Universal Christ at WYD”

By Catherine Matta

Blisters on my feet, sweat down my back, sunburn on my nose, bruises on my legs, cross around my neck, and a song in my heart: this is how I returned to JFK International Airport after spending 11 days (Aug. 12 – 23) in Madrid, Spain for 2011 World Youth Day.

The trip consisted of three days at Madrid’s Colegio Santa Francisca Javier Cabrini with people representing the various provinces and regions of the worldwide institute of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus; six days exploring Spanish culture and my faith; and two days at airports. Throughout the trip, I thought in Spanish, communicated in “Spanglish,” sang in Latin, and shared in Christ.

Ultimately, World Youth Day was a journey to prove to myself the strength of our Church in the youth, and the ability to shatter language and cultural boundaries in the name of our Lord.

The theme of this year’s World Youth Day event, Aug. 16-21, came from Colossians 2:7: “Rooted and built up in Jesus Christ, firm in the faith.” And while I could spend days recounting the many simple ways I saw the Holy Spirit working during my time in Madrid, I’ll just share a couple of anecdotes and the lessons taken from them.

The first event to really speak to me was Adoration. My prayers that evening were very intense, and made me think more about my vocation in life and what God has done for me throughout the past few years. Sitting next to me in the Church was a young man who also seemed overwhelmed with the Spirit.

As a sign of solidarity, I wanted to give him my white wristband that has “iPray” embossed on it, hoping it might be of as much comfort to him as it has been to me. However, when I looked over to say a few words of support, he was gone. Just as my disappointment began to sink in, I looked down at the pew and saw waiting for me the bracelet he had been wearing, placed so specifically by my water bottle and hand-fan that I am sure he didn’t leave it by mistake. In a place so far from home, God sent me consolation in a nameless follower of Christ. Even if he had spoken a different language, his actions spoke words so universally Christian that conversation would have seemed superfluous.

God sent me something else during my trip to Madrid: a challenge. In the gospel of Matthew, we read an account of Jesus walking on water, urging Peter to take courage and walk to Him: “... Peter got down out of the boat … But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out His hand …” (14:29).

After receiving special access to sit just 18 rows from the Holy Father during the Saturday night vigil, I found myself roaming a field of two million people, looking for my group. Unfortunately, it was pitch black at midnight, and my search was in vain. I spent hours straining my eyes, desperately trying to pick out the purple shirts of my group. I prayed: “Lord, help me not to despair; help me trust that you will part this sea of sleeping bags and find me my group.” Hours later, my prayer became more desperate: “Lord, I have nowhere to sleep; no one around me speaks my language. Help me!”

At that point, I’d never felt more alone. But then, a group of people from England, who were also staying at Santa Francisca Javier Cabrini Collegio, offered me a spot on their tarp, a towel to use as a pillow, and foil to keep me dry and warm. Even as my faith was tested, Jesus came to me in the form of a British woman telling me not to fret, giving me the strength to get through the night.

Our last catechesis session was directed by Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York. Befitting a send-off session, his talk focused on our Catholic call to be “light to the world” and “salt to the earth” when we return from Spain. He said, “The love for Jesus and the Church must be the passion of our lives.” This sentiment resembles the Cabrinian motto: “All for the greater glory of the sacred heart of Jesus.”

If I learned one thing from World Youth Day, it was to be a proud and visible sign of the Church. The flag I wave doesn’t matter – what matters is that I have the ability to practice my faith in that country. The food on my plate doesn’t matter – what matters is the God I thank for providing me with something to eat. The language I speak doesn’t matter – what matters is that I’m spreading the Word of God in my native tongue.

You feel something, looking around a field of people praying the rosary. You may not understand their language, but you understand the prayer in their hearts. Trying to communicate with Russians, Argentineans, and South Americans could have been overwhelming. Instead, it was an opportunity to get to the root of what we believed.

I thank those with me at World Youth Day, those praying for us at home, and those who have supported me and my companions on a journey of a lifetime. May you find peace in knowing that we have come home alive in our faith, ready to make disciples of nations.

"Cancer and Other C Words" by Marilynn Cruz-Aponte

My 46th birthday was marked with the dreadful discovery of a lump. My family had no history of cancer, yet I was diagnosed with the dreaded “C” word--Cancer.

Cancer brought a cascade of changes. It altered me physically. My body was pummeled by the impacts of surgery, reconstruction and chemotherapy. Once a beauty queen, the alterations to my body left me feeling as if I were looking at another woman—one not as pretty, not as feminine as the one I had previously known. There were emotional changes, tears, rage and confusion, “why me?”

Cancer gave way to monumental family concerns. It walloped my teen children with anxiety, crazed by thoughts of losing their primary parent. How would they live without mom? Cancer threatened our family structure. It worried and saddened my parents who could not fathom losing their adult child or imagine assuming a parental role once again. It instilled fear and led to painful projections about the future.

Shortly after I started chemotherapy treatments and my hair had fallen out, I was standing hairless in front of my mirror when one of my children said, “you have a baby head, soft and fragile.” I took in the kindhearted comment knowing it was a tender recognition of my weak state, my helplessness and vulnerability.

At that moment it became clear that cancer offered more than just changes and concerns. There were many more soothing “C” words that came from battling breast cancer—there was care. I came to graciously accept the care of others. Gifted doctors treated me. At home, loved ones nursed me. Loving family and friends sent cards filled with uplifting messages, written prayers and biblical scripture. Others prepared meals and school parents absorbed the carpool and after-school activity routines. Reliance on others was new but necessary. I grew in humility.

Cancer taught me to count, to count my blessings. Thanksgiving was no longer just a holiday but a part of daily prayer. I was grateful for living in a time of advanced medicine, grateful for the resources to secure medical care, to provide for my family. I was blessed to live in a community rich with loving relationships. I grew in gratitude.

Enduring the pains and sorrows of cancer cultivated my compassion. While I had always been a sensitive person, I now shared in the sufferings of others. I had come to know the challenges associated with cancer, the fear of death and my own mortality. I grew in my humanity.

Without courage cancer would have been the victor. Cancer could have destroyed the quality of my relationships and my life. However, with profound faith, I was able to summon courage to squarely face the villain. I grew in confidence.

Throughout the battle to survive breast cancer there were deep valleys but there were also many moments of joy. It was possible to rejoice and find gladness in each day. Celebrating life, despite the sorrows, was possible because I knew with certainty that the ultimate “C” word, Christ, was in the midst of my journey. He consoled me through my changes and concerns. His love was reflected in the care offered by family and friends. Through my relationship with Christ I was assured of his character; he did not abandon his children. He was devoted, compassionate and encouraging. I could celebrate because I believed in Christ’s promise and plans for me…..”plans for peace, not disaster, reserving a future full of hope for me.” I believe in everlasting life.

Join us at Holy Family as we celebrate Cancer Survivors along with their friends and families on Sunday, October 30. Click here for more information.