"but there was a difference..."

For the feast of Ignatius of Loyola today the second reading (below in blue) from the Office of Readings is the perfect intro to Ignatius 'discovery' of the method for discernment of spirits.

If you take time to read this, perhaps just a couple of minutes, do so considering the reality of your own life. What are your own dreams and hopes for your own day, week, year or life?  Which of these dreams leave you "full of joy"? Which leave you sad?

This consideration is the heart of Christian discernment. A "calling" or "vocation" always delivers the fulness of life that it promises. A "temptation" promises everything, and delivers nothing.

Why then would I ever settle for the fleeting and superficial gratification that temptation offers, when, in every moment, the fulness of life is offered to me?

From the life of Saint Ignatius 

from his own words by Luis Gonzalez

Put inward experiences to the test 

to see if they come from God

Ignatius was passionately fond of reading worldly books of fiction and tales of knight-errantry. When he felt he was getting better, he asked for some of these books to pass the time. But no book of that sort could be found in the house; instead they gave him a life of Christ and a collection of the lives of saints written in Spanish.

By constantly reading these books he began to be attracted to what he found narrated there. Sometimes in the midst of his reading he would reflect on what he had read. Yet at other times he would dwell on many of the things which he had been accustomed to dwell on previously. But at this point our Lord came to his assistance, insuring that these thoughts were followed by others which arose from his current reading.

While reading the life of Christ our Lord or the lives of the saints, he would reflect and reason with himself: “What if I should do what Saint Francis or Saint Dominic did?” In this way he let his mind dwell on many thoughts; they lasted a while until other things took their place. Then those vain and worldly images would come into his mind and remain a long time. This sequence of thoughts persisted with him for a long time

But there was a difference. When Ignatius reflected on worldly thoughts, he felt intense pleasure; but when he gave them up out of weariness, he felt dry and depressed. Yet when he thought of living the rigorous sort of life he knew the saints had lived, he not only experienced pleasure when he actually thought about it, but even after he dismissed these thoughts, he still experienced great joy. Yet he did not pay attention to this, nor did he appreciate it until one day, in a moment of insight, he began to marvel at the difference. Then he understood his experience: thoughts of one kind left him sad, the others full of joy. And this was the first time he applied a process of reasoning to his religious experience. Later on, when he began to formulate his spiritual exercises, he used this experience as an illustration to explain the doctrine he taught his disciples on the discernment of spirits.

Press: Denis McNamara interview

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/opinion/perspective/8978896/New-churches-could-be-treasures

Pope Francis - an extraordinary interview

On the flight to Brazil last week for World Youth Day, Pope Francis promised the journalists aboard his flight that he would speak with them on the return journey. None of them would have expected the open and frank Q&A session that lasted 1hour 22 minutes above the Atlantic on their way back to Rome.

It is an extraordinary interview in which Pope Francis communicates anew the content of Pope Benedict's teaching.

A few segments of the interview are available on this romereports video clip.

Cathedral - "beauty and sophistication"

From this morning's Christchurch Press: Denis McNamara visits the cathedral.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/8978518/Expert-hails-Catholic-cathedral

architecture, heaven & reform

Parts nine and ten of Denis McNamara's video series on Church architecture is available at this link:

9. Architecture & Heaven 

10. Vatican II & Reform

Refer to the blog index for links to parts 1-8 of Denis' series.

Denis will be speaking in Christchurch at a public meeting this Thursday evening 1 August at 7.00pm. If you have ever appreciated a beautiful old church, and are interested in why many churches now look more contemporary, you will find Denis' presentation especially interesting.

Full details of his visit are available at the Christchurch Diocese website.

If you're not sure how to get to the public meeting at 45 Havard Ave, try this link

WYD 2016...

As World Youth Day Rio 2013 drew to a close, Pope Francis announced that the next WYD will take place in 2016 in Krakow, Poland.

the video clip of the announcement is at this link

and already the Archdiocese of Krakow have launched the World Youth Day 2016 website at this link:

http://www.krakow2016.com/en/

go, without fear, to serve

Sunday morning in Rio, Pope Francis celebrated the Mass that closed the events of the World Youth Day 2013. There were 3 million people present for the Mass on Copacabana Beach. Most of these were young people aged under 35. There is no official translation yet available, That will come in a few hours. But here is a general summary of the key points made by the  pope in his homily.

Jesus calls you to be a disciple on a mission! Today, in light of the Word of God we have heard, what does the Lord say? What does the Lord say? Three words: Go, without fear, to serve.

GO 

These days, here in Rio, you had a beautiful experience, an encounter with Jesus and an opportunity to be together. You have experienced the joy of faith. But the experience of this meeting cannot stay locked up in your life or in a small group of the parish. It would be like taking the oxygen from a flame that burns. 

Be careful, though! Jesus did not say, if you want, if you have time, go, but he said: "Go and make disciples of all nations." Sharing the experience of faith, witness to the faith we proclaim the Gospel is the mandate that the Lord has entrusted to the whole Church. It is a command which is not born of the desire to dominate, but by the power of love, the fact that Jesus first came among us and gave us all of Himself. He gave His life to save us and show us the love and the mercy of God. Jesus does not treat us as slaves, but as free people, as friends, as brothers and sisters, and not only sends us, but with us, it is always beside us in this mission of love.

Where does Jesus send us? There are no boundaries, no limits: Jesus sends us everywhere. The Gospel is for all and not for some. It is not just for those that seem closer, more receptive, more welcoming, but for everyone. Do not be afraid to go and bring Christ to every situation, to the suburbs (this is essential), even to those who seem more distant, more indifferent. The Lord wants everyone to feel the warmth of His mercy and His love. 

FEARLESS

Some might think: "I have no special preparation, how can I go and preach the Gospel?". Dear friend, your fear is not very different from that of Jeremiah. We have just heard in the reading, when he was called by God to be a prophet. "Ah, Lord God! I cannot speak, because I am young. " God says to you what he said to Jeremiah, "Do not be afraid [...], for I am with you to deliver you" (Jer 1,7.8). God is with us! 

"Do not be afraid." When we go to proclaim Christ, it is God himself who goes before us and guide us. In sending his disciples on mission, he promised: "I am with you always" (Mt 28:20). And this is true for us too! Jesus never leaves anyone alone! Jesus is always with us. 

Then Jesus did not simply say, "Go" but "Go" together. Dear young people, you feel the company of the whole Church and the communion of saints in this mission. When we face challenges together, then we are strong, we discover resources that we did not know we had. Jesus did not call the Apostles to live in isolation. He called them to form a group, a community. 

I want to speak to you, dear priests who concelebrated this Eucharist with me: you came to accompany your young people, to share their experience of faith! Certainly we have all been rejuvinated. But this is only one step of the way. Please continue to accompany them with generosity and joy. Help them to engage actively in the Church; never feel alone! Here I would like to thank the groups of youth movements and new communities that accompany young people in their experience of being Church, so creative and so daring. Go ahead and do not be afraid!

SERVE

The last word: to serve. At the beginning of the Psalm we have proclaimed  these words: "Sing to the Lord a new song" (Psalm 95.1). What is this new song? There are no words, there is a melody, but it is the song of your life. It means to let our lives be identified with that of Jesus. To have his feelings, his thoughts, and his actions. And the life of Jesus is a life for others. It is a life of service. 

In the reading we have just heard, St Paul said: "I have made ​​myself a slave to everyone, to win as many" (1 Cor 9:19). To proclaim Jesus, Paul made himself a "servant of all." To evangelize is to witness firsthand the love of God, It means to overcome our selfishness, is to serve chinandoci to wash the feet of our brothers as Jesus did.

Dear young people, in returning to your homes do not be afraid to be generous with Christ, to bear witness to his Gospel. In the first reading when God sends the prophet Jeremiah, God gives him the power to "uproot and tear down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant" (Jer 1:10). This is also true for you as you return home. Bringing the Gospel is to bring the power of God to uproot and destroy the evil and violence to destroy and break down the barriers of selfishness, intolerance and hatred, to build a new world. 

Dear young people, Jesus Christ is counting on you! The Church depends on you! The Pope is counting on you! Mary, Mother of Jesus and our Mother, always accompany you with her ​​tenderness: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations." Amen.

Video news links

Closing Mass 

World Youth Day 2016 

Rio final Mass - listen live now

Pope Francis is about to celebrate the closing Mass at World Youth Day Rio. You can listen live at this link: 

http://www.ewtn.com/multimedia/live_player.asp?satname=radioenglish&telrad=r001&servertime=2013728752

quo vadis? Copacabana?

Quo Vadis

On Friday Pope Francis led the Way of the Cross on Copacabana Beach, as a part of the World Youth Day event. In his reflection he referred to the ancient Quo Vadis (where are you going?) encounter between Jesus and Peter. Pope Francis said:

According to an ancient Roman tradition, while fleeing the city during the persecutions of Nero, Saint Peter saw Jesus who was travelling in the opposite direction, that is, toward the city, and asked him in amazement: “Lord, where are you going?”  Jesus’ response was: “I am going to Rome to be crucified again.”  At that moment, Peter understood that he had to follow the Lord with courage, to the very end.  But he also realized that he would never be alone on the journey; Jesus, who had loved him even unto death, would always be with him...   

...Jesus, with his Cross, walks with us and takes upon himself our fears, our problems, and our sufferings, even those which are deepest and most painful... 

...The Cross of Christ contains all the love of God; there we find his immeasurable mercy.  This is a love in which we can place all our trust, in which we can believe.  Dear young people, let us entrust ourselves to Jesus, let us give ourselves over to him (cf. Lumen Fidei, 16), because he never disappoints anyone!..   

...Dear friends, let us bring to Christ’s Cross our joys, our sufferings and our failures.  There we will find a Heart that is open to us and understands us, forgives us, loves us and calls us to bear this love in our lives, to love each person, each brother and sister, with the same love.

Pope Francis' complete text

make yourselves heard

Every Sunday in Rome Pope Francis greets those who gather in St. Peter's Square in Rome. He offers a few words of encouragement, On Thursday in Rio the pope met with young people who were gathered. A few quotations from his brief address: (full text and video news link below)

Let me tell you what I hope will be the outcome of World Youth Day: I hope there will be noise.  Here there will be noise, I’m quite sure.  Here in Rio there will be plenty of noise, no doubt about that.  But I want you to make yourselves heard in your dioceses, I want the noise to go out, I want the Church to go out onto the streets, I want us to resist everything worldly, everything static, everything comfortable, everything to do with clericalism, everything that might make us closed in on ourselves.  The parishes, the schools, the institutions are made for going out ... if they don’t, they become an NGO (non governmental organization), and the Church cannot be an NGO.  May the bishops and priests forgive me if some of you create a bit of confusion afterwards.  That’s my advice.  Thanks for whatever you can do. 

Look, at this moment, I think our world civilization has gone beyond its limits, it has gone beyond its limits because it has made money into such a god that we are now faced with a philosophy and a practice which exclude the two ends of life that are most full of promise for peoples.  They exclude the elderly, obviously.  You could easily think there is a kind of hidden euthanasia, that is, we don’t take care of the elderly; but there is also a cultural euthanasia, because we don’t allow them to speak, we don’t allow them to act.  

And there is the exclusion of the young.  The percentage of our young people without work, without employment, is very high and we have  a generation with no experience of the dignity gained through work.  This civilization, in other words, has led us to exclude the two peaks that make up our future.  As for the young, they must emerge, they must assert themselves, the young must go out to fight for values, to fight for these values; and the elderly must open their mouths, the elderly must open their mouths and teach us!  Pass on to us the wisdom of the peoples! 

Among the Argentine people, I ask the elderly, from my heart: do not cease to be the cultural storehouse of our people, a storehouse that hands on justice, hands on history, hands on values, hands on the memory of the people.  And the rest of you, please, do not oppose the elderly: let them speak, listen to them and go forward.  But know this, know that at this moment, you young people and you elderly people are condemned to the same destiny: exclusion.  Don’t allow yourselves to be excluded.  It’s obvious!  That’s why I think you must work. 

Faith in Jesus Christ is not a joke, it is something very serious.  It is a scandal that God came to be one of us.  It is a scandal that he died on a cross.  It is a scandal: the scandal of the Cross.  The Cross continues to provoke scandal.  But it is the one sure path, the path of the Cross, the path of Jesus, the path of the Incarnation of Jesus.  Please do not water down your faith in Jesus Christ.  We dilute fruit drinks – orange, apple, or banana juice, but please do not drink a diluted form of faith.  Faith is whole and entire, not something that you water down.  It is faith in Jesus.  It is faith in the Son of God made man, who loved me and who died for me.  

So then: make yourselves heard... 

http://www.romereports.com/palio/pope-to-youth-the-bond-with-grandparents-the-elderly-is-a-gift-treasure-it-english-10659.html#.UfNnD2QpYdI 

full text of pope's address

what do you make of this?

Take a minute to read this. Let us know your thoughts at the comment button below.

http://m.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/mass_appeal_X7cCjGIpnVDpuf3VnSBVXP

put on faith, put on love

Pope Francis continues to encourage the young in Rio, and all of us who get the chance to read his text. I share some brief quotations below. The link to the full texts is at the bottom of the page.

Dear Young Friends, 

Looking out to this sea, the beach and all of you gathered here, I am reminded of the moment when Jesus called the first disciples to follow him by the shores of Lake Tiberias. Today Christ asks each of us again: Do you want to be my disciple? Do you want to be my friend? Do you want to be a witness to my Gospel? In the spirit of The Year of Faith, these questions invite us to renew our commitment as Christians.

Homily of Pope Francis

Copacabana prayer service July 25th, 2013

Rio de Janeiro

If it is Jesus who welcomes us, we too ought to welcome him and listen to his words; it is precisely through the welcome we give to Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, that the Holy Spirit transforms us, lights up our way to the future, and enables us joyfully to advance along that way with wings of hope (cf. Lumen Fidei, 7)... 

..But what can we do? “Bota fé – put on faith”. The World Youth Day Cross has proclaimed these words throughout its pilgrimage in Brazil. “Put on faith”: what does this mean? When we prepare a plate of food and we see that it needs salt, well, we “put on” salt; when it needs oil, then you “put on” oil. “To put on”, that is, to place on top of, to pour over... 

...And so it is in our life, dear young friends: if we want it to have real meaning and fulfillment, as you want and as you deserve, I say to each one of you, “Put on faith”, and your life will take on a new flavour, it will have a compass to show you the way; “put on hope” and every one of your days will be enlightened and your horizon will no longer be dark, but luminous; “put on love”, and your life will be like a house built on rock, your journey will be joyful, because you will find many friends to journey with you. Put on faith, put on hope, put on love!.. 

...For this reason, I want to insist with you today: “Put on Christ!” in your life, and you will find a friend in whom you can always trust; “put on Christ” and you will see the wings of hope spreading and letting you journey with joy towards the future; “put on Christ” and your life will be full of his love; it will be a fruitful life...

...Today, I would like each of us to ask sincerely: in whom do we place our trust? In ourselves, in material things, or in Jesus? We are all tempted to put ourselves at the centre, to think that we alone build our lives or that our life can only be happy if built on possessions, money, or power. But it is not so. 

Certainly, possessions, money and power can give a momentary thrill, the illusion of being happy, but they end up possessing us and making us always want to have more, never satisfied. 

“Put on Christ” in your life, place your trust in him and you will never be disappointed! 

You see how faith accomplishes a revolution in us, one which we can call Copernican, because it removes us from the centre and restores it to God; faith immerses us in his love and gives us security, strength, and hope. To all appearances, nothing has changed; yet, in the depths of our being, everything is different. Peace, consolation, gentleness, courage, serenity and joy, which are all fruits of the Holy Spirit (cf. Gal 5:22), find a home in our heart, and our very being is transformed; our way of thinking and acting is made new, it becomes Jesus’ own, God’s own, way of thinking and acting. 

During the Year of Faith, this World Youth Day is truly a gift offered to us to draw us closer to the Lord, to be his disciples and his missionaries, to let him renew our lives.

complete text available at this link

looking at, or looking along

"Meditation in a Toolshed"

In my study I often get distracted. Reading one article often leads me to look up something else that is referred to, and reading that reference very easily leads to another discovery. This morning, following that path of learning, I found a brief reflection from the writer of "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (the Narnia Chronicles): C.S. Lewis. Lewis calls his reflection "Meditation in a Toolshed" It was originally published in  "The Coventry Evening Telegraph". (July 17, 1945)

You might like to read the reflection at this link:

http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~ivcfgf/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/C-S-Lewis-meditation-in-a-toolshed.pdf

three life-giving attitudes

Earlier today Pope Francis celebrated his first World Youth Day Mass at at the Marian Shrine of Aparecida.  A few exerpts from his homily are below, with the link to a news video and fully homily text at the bottom of the page.

When the Church looks for Jesus, she always knocks at his Mother’s door and asks: “Show us Jesus”. It is from Mary that the Church learns true discipleship. That is why the Church always goes out on mission in the footsteps of Mary. 

Today, looking forward to the World Youth Day which has brought me to Brazil, I too come to knock on the door of the house of Mary – who loved and raised Jesus – that she may help all of us, pastors of God’s people, parents and educators, to pass on to our young people the values that can help them build a nation and a world which are more just, united and fraternal. For this reason I would like to speak of three simple attitudes: hopefulness, openness to being surprised by God, and living in joy. 

1. Hopefulness.  How many difficulties are present in the life of every individual, among our people, in our communities; yet as great as these may seem, God never allows us to be overwhelmed by them. In the face of those moments of discouragement we experience in life, in our efforts to evangelize or to embody our faith as parents within the family, I would like to say forcefully: Always know in your heart that God is by your side; he never abandons you! Let us never lose hope! Let us never allow it to die in our hearts! The “dragon”, evil, is present in our history, but it does not have the upper hand. The one with the upper hand is God, and God is our hope!  

2. The second attitude: openness to being surprised by God. Anyone who is a man or a woman of hope – the great hope which faith gives us – knows that even in the midst of difficulties God acts and he surprises us... God always surprises us, like the new wine in the Gospel we have just heard. God always saves the best for us. But he asks us to let ourselves be surprised by his love, to accept his surprises. Let us trust God! Cut off from him, the wine of joy, the wine of hope, runs out. If we draw near to him, if we stay with him, what seems to be cold water, difficulty, sin, is changed into the new wine of friendship with him. 

3. The third attitude: living in joy. Dear friends, if we walk in hope, allowing ourselves to be surprised by the new wine which Jesus offers us, we have joy in our hearts and we cannot fail to be witnesses of this joy. Christians are joyful, they are never gloomy. God is at our side... Jesus has shown us that the face of God is that of a loving Father. Sin and death have been defeated. Christians cannot be pessimists! They do not look like someone in constant mourning. If we are truly in love with Christ and if we sense how much he loves us, our heart will “light up” with a joy that spreads to everyone around us.

Video news bulletin at this link

go beyond the confines

I suspect the most reliable place to look for inspiration this week is Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Yesterday Pope Francis arrived to spend the week with an expected 2 million young people (aged 18-35) from all over the world. Each day I will share a couple of paragraphs from the pope's address to the gathering. If you want more you can get to the complete talk from the link at the bottom of each posting.

These words from the pope are certainly his own, but they have been prepared in collaboration with the young people of the world, and those in positions of leadership in the Church. So, as I say, it would be difficult to find more solid inspiration anywhere this week.

The paragraphs below are from the pope's response to the welcome he received on arriving yesterday.

...I have learned that, to gain access to the Brazilian people, it is necessary to pass through its great heart; so let me knock gently at this door. I ask permission to come in and spend this week with you. I have neither silver nor gold, but I bring with me the most precious thing given to me: Jesus Christ! I have come in his name, to feed the flame of fraternal love that burns in every heart; and I wish my greeting to reach one and all: The peace of Christ be with you! 

...As you know, the principal reason for my visit to Brazil goes beyond its borders. I have actually come for World Youth Day. I am here to meet young people coming from all over the world, drawn to the open arms of Christ the Redeemer. They want to find a refuge in his embrace, close to his heart, to listen again to his clear and powerful appeal: “Go and make disciples of all nations”... 

...[The young]  also find in Christ the answer to their highest aspirations, held in common, and they can satisfy the hunger for a pure truth and an authentic love which binds them together in spite of differences...

...Christ offers them space, knowing that there is no force more powerful than the one released from the hearts of young people when they have been conquered by the experience of friendship with him. Christ has confidence in young people and entrusts them with the very future of his mission, “Go and make disciples”. Go beyond the confines of what is humanly possible and create a world of brothers and sisters! And young people have confidence in Christ: they are not afraid to risk for him the only life they have, because they know they will not be disappointed... 

...Here it is common for parents to say, “Our children are the apple of our eyes”. What a beautiful expression of Brazilian wisdom this is, applying to young people an image drawn from our eyes, which are the window through which light enters into us, granting us the miracle of sight! What would become of us if we didn’t look after our eyes? How could we move forward? I hope that, during this week, each one of us will ask ourselves this thought-provoking question...

Complete text at this link 

Video news bulletin at this link

RIo 2013 - pope en route

Pope Francis is now on his way to World Youth Day where an estimated two million young people (aged 18-35) are waiting for him.

Over the past 28 years the World Youth Days have provided an opportunity for young Catholics from all over the world to discover and to rediscover the beauty of their faith.  

I will give updates here on this blog regularly.

You can check the pope's departure from Rome at this link.

http://www.romereports.com/palio/index.php?newlang=english

and the arrival in Brazil:

http://www.romereports.com/palio/index.php?newlang=english

rediscovering imagery

Part eight of Denis McNamara's video series on Church architecture is available at this link:

Rediscovering Liturgical Images

Refer to the blog index for links to parts 1-7 of Denis' series.

Denis will be speaking in Christchurch later this month. Full details of his visit, and his public sessions, especially Thursday 1 August. 7.00pm at the Airforce Museum, 45 Harvard Ave, Wigram are available at the Christchurch Diocese website.

Traces. July / August

There are a few daily and weekly inspirations that I rely on for my good health. There are also some monthly moments that I eagerly anticipate. These provide for (the best way to put it might be) "realignment of my soul and spirit". One of these monthly moments is the arrival of the "Traces" magazine.

"Traces" is the monthly publication of the Communion and Liberation movement. It is refreshing for both its breadth and depth. It is robustly Catholic, and energetic in its passion for life and freedom. 

You can read more about the movement at the link: Communion & Liberation. And you can visit the website for the "Traces" magazine at www.tracce.it. (click on translation to read in English)

If you live in New Zealand you can now subscribe locally from Matt Young: matt@paintcraft.co.nz The subscription is $66.00 (including postage within New Zealand) per year (11 issues).$33.00 half year.

Ipad users can sign up for the app version. Search the "Apple App" store "Traces".

This months issue: http://www.traces-cl.com

"my little part" Denis McNamara

Next week Dr. Denis McNamara arrives in New Zealand. This morning on Facebook he posted this message:

A week from today I'll be going to New Zealand to give a week of lectures on the theology of church architecture. Several years ago, the beautiful and historic city of Christchurch, New Zealand, was rocked by 2 large earthquakes. 183 people were killed. 

It was just a blip on the news in the United States, but it destroyed a large part of their downtown and caused major portions of both the Anglican and Catholic cathedrals to fall down, both now unusable. (The thumbnail photo below shows the damaged Catholic cathedral) Almost half of the Catholic churches in the diocese are unusable as well. The task they have before them is daunting: rebuilding much of the city, including two new cathedrals. I've been invited to do my little part. 

This video clip below shows part of a documentary filmmaker's beautiful and horrifying footage captured as the earthquake was happening. Watch especially from 0:25 forward (note: some uncensored cursing is in the footage as people are panicked) and at 1:20 and forward as the Anglican cathedral takes a major hit. At 6:08 and forward you can see more of the cathedral's condition, with its steeple's cross lying on the ground. 

If you're the praying type, please pray for them and for me. 

http://www.nzonscreen.com/title/when-a-city-falls-2011

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and see a selection of before and after photos by tapping on this link

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Details of Denis' Christchurch visit, including details of his public lecture at this link

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centered on the chapel

The programme of study here at the Liturgical Institute is centered not on the classroom and the library, but on the liturgical life of the chapel. Three times each day our community gathers to pray together, Morning Prayer in the morning, Mass in the afternoon, and Evening prayer early each evening.  It is because of the hours in the chapel, that the life of the classroom and library is a living experience deepening relationship with Jesus.

Music is a key part of our method of prayer. At Mass yesterday, a dozen of our number led us in thanksgiving prayer after communion. I thought you might appreciate savouring what they were able to do after a brief rehearsal under the direction of fellow student Adam Bartlett.

O Salutaris Hostia

World Youth Day 2013

I am thinking this morning of the young people (18-35) from around the world you have taken up Pope Benedict's invitation (late last year) to be a part of the 28th World Youth Days in Rio de Janeiro beginning this week. The Christchurch group made the journey last week. Let's keep them in our prayer, and also others who make the journey.

I know many young people whose lives have been changed dramatically by attendance at a World Youth Day, not because they have met new friends and seen the pope, but because they have been encountered by Jesus.  My confident prayer is that this will be the Rio experience for every person who has made the sacrifice to take part in this event. 

The theme of this years WYD is "Go and Make Disciples of All Nations" -Mt 28:19.

A remarkable shift has happened in the Catholic Church in recent decades. More than half the world's Catholics live in the Southern Hemisphere (over 60%). Less than a quarter of all Catholic's live in Europe, and only 1% in Oceania.  Even the pope is from the Southern Hemisphere.  

It is helpful for us in New Zealand to remember that our NZ experience of Catholicism is certainly real, but it only one small perspective. Many NZ parishes struggle to attract young people. However in many other parts of the world it is young Catholics (often returning from a new encounter with Jesus at a World Youth Day) who work in their local Church to make disciples of all.

Their method is significant. They do not ask for the Church to modernise, to update teaching - or to modify or reduce the gospel call to justice, love of neighbour or forgiveness of enemy. They embrace the traditional teachings of the Church on sexuality and morality. They delight in prayer and in the traditional liturgical life of the Church - liturgy celebrated with noble simplicity and solemn dignity.

And the response to their new-found faith is remarkable. Parishes, neighbourhoods and countries are transformed. Many of these new disciples become the ones who re-evangelise their parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents and even Godparents.

So over these days let's pray for all those who take part in these World Youth Days. May they return to us as new disciples, to evangelise us in a new way. 

If you have any photos from WYD 2013 and forward them to me I will upload them here.  If you are at WYD add your comments below to this blog. I know readers would love to share this experience with you...so the foodforfaith blog is looking for a WYD correspondent!

half-hearted creatures, fooling about

It is a great joy and a privilege to have the opportunity to study. As I have mentioned before, I am not a natural student. It is tough work to have to read in a disciplined way, to write papers, and to have to pass exams.  But the rewards are great. Often there is a set text that needs to be read before class, and this one text leads me to others and I get wonderfully sidetracked.  All part of the pleasure.

Yesterday it was a chance conversation with a fellow student that let me to recall C.S. Lewis' sermon: "The Weight of Glory." I used this quote in a posting last year. How is this for a good description of weak human motivations getting in the way of real living:

"Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased".

You can read the complete text of the sermon at this link.

sacred images

Part seven of Denis McNamara's video series on Church architecture is available at this link:

Sacred Images

Refer to the blog index for links to parts 1-6 of Denis' series.

Denis will be speaking in Christchurch later this month. Full details of his visit, and his public sessions, especially Thursday 1 August. 7.00pm at the Airforce Museum, 45 Harvard Ave, Wigram are available at the Christchurch Diocese website.

Carmelite feast

Today (July 16) is the feast day of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.  This is a major feast day for the Carmelite family around the world, and a day for us to especially remember them in prayer, in gratitude for their prayer for us as they live in love at the heart of the Church.

The website of the Carmelite Sisters in Christchurch is well worth visiting. It features some video interviews with sisters, as well as a vintage NZBC TV documentary made in 1969. 

http://www.christchurchcarmel.org.nz

Celebrating the Spirit of the Liturgy

Last month Archbishop Sample of Portland, Oregon (USA) gave this talk to the Church Music Association of America. It is a well crafted and encouraging talk entitled: Celebrating the Spirit of the Liturgy. In the last few days it has been widely published and widely acclaimed.

You can listen to the audio at this link:

http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/index.html#6460556459495336744

or read the address at this link:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/153398708/Celebrating-the-Spirit-of-the-Liturgy

a taste of beauty

People are naturally drawn to true beauty. This is why healthy people might be moved to tears when watching this.

people as columns

Part six of Denis McNamara's video series on Church architecture is available at this link:

Columns

Refer to the blog index for links to parts 1-5 of Denis' series.

Denis will be speaking in Christchurch later this month. Full details of his visit, and his public sessions, especially Thursday 1 August. 7.00pm at the Airforce Museum, 45 Harvard Ave, Wigram are available at the Christchurch Diocese website.

capable of delivering bliss

reflecting on the readings

for the Fifteenth Sunday of the Year

tap this link to read the readings

Let’s take a moment before I offer a reflection, to consider again the heart of today’s gospel reading:

There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test him and said,“Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law? How do you read it?”
He said in reply,“You shall love the Lord, your God,with all your heart,with all your being,with all your strength,and with all your mind,and your neighbor as yourself.”He replied to him, “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.” Luke 10:25-37

You will recognize this as the first of the Commandments of the Old Testament Covenant between God and his people. As these People of God journeyed from captivity, through the wilderness to freedom, God spoke to them through Moses, and offered them everything. Note, God offered them everything!

Moses is trying to communicate this to the people in the first reading today. Listen again:

Moses said to the people: “If only you would heed the voice of the LORD, your God, and keep his commandments and statutes that are written in this book of the law, when you return to the LORD, your God, with all your heart and all your soul. Deut 30:10-14

When Moses came down the mountain with the commandments, the people did not grumble because God had given them laws. Instead they rejoiced. They were delighted because now they knew precisely “how” to receive all that God was offering them. If they would “heed the voice of the Lord, and keep his commandments, they will “inherit eternal life.” 

The way to live life fully, not only for eternity, but also here and now, is to "heed the voice of the Lord, and keep his commandments."  This is the method for the one who seeks to live life!

Many people today have a notion of God as loving. This is always a good knowledge. However what is less appreciated is the fact that because God is the ultimate lover of human persons, God is therefore the ultimate respecter of human freedom. Yes God offer each human person everything. But it is over to us whether or not we accept this divine gift of life. The ultimate gift of life has been given. But have we fully accepted this gift?

We have all heard people suggesting that because God is loving, there cannot be a Hell. But since true love always empowers the loved one with freedom, there must be the option for us to either accept what God offers, or to reject the gift. Therefore if God is truly loving, we must have the terrible option of choosing away from God even for eternity. God does not drag the adult Christian kicking and screaming into Heaven. We are free to reject what is offered. Such eternal rejection of God is possible precisely because God loves us.

Parents of adult children know this well. When their children were very small, the loving parents made it impossible for them to act in a way that might harm them. In this the parents are teaching their toddlers and their teens to use their freedom well.  But when these same children become adults, the way that the parents love has a new dimension: the respecting of their children's adult freedom.  The parent might try to explain to the twenty year old, the inevitable bad consequences of their behaviour, but then the parent shows their love by giving freedom. The parent who locks the toddler in the playpen is viewed as loving. The parent who locks the adult child in any kind of captivity is liable to be arrested.

Christians are those who in baptism have accepted all that God has offered, but who also need to receive this life anew daily by living in harmony with all that God has created us for. This is the life that we see outlined in the commandments. You could say that the commandments are the “manual” for human life.

Therefore the commandments are not the rules that we grudgingly keep in order to win an eternal reward. Instead as we grow in more intimate relationship with God, we realise that any thought we have to break the commandments, is in fact tempting us into death. No one ever finds true life by worshipping idols, murdering, stealing or bearing false witness. The temptation to sin is in fact a deadly mirage. Sin is never able to deliver what it promises. We know this from our own experience.

The call to keep the commandments is not a distant voice from a far-off authoritarian father. Tragically this is how too many people understand God’s commandments today. Instead the commandments are imprinted on our hearts. It is an intrinsic part of our human nature (and therefore our human need) to live in harmony with the commandments. The reason that God gave this law to Moses on tablets of stone, was that the people were having trouble reading the language of their own hearts. 

Put simply, if you want to be fully and authentically human, the method is keeping the commandments. The first reading today expresses this very beautifully:

“For this command that I enjoin on you today is not too mysterious and remote for you. It is not up in the sky, that you should say, ‘Who will go up in the sky to get it for us and tell us of it, that we may carry it out?’ Nor is it across the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross the sea to get it for us and tell us of it, that we may carry it out?’ No, it is something very near to you, already in your mouths and in your hearts; you have only to carry it out.” Deut 30:10-14  

Last week Pope Francis issued his first encyclical letter: “The Light of Faith” (Lumen Fidei). He announced it as the “work of four hands” since Pope Emeritus Benedict had begun the letter before his retirement, and Pope Francis has completed it. It is simply written, and rich in encouragement. One of the parts that speaks most clearly to help our understanding of today’s readings is the section titled “The Fulness of Christian Faith.” Pope Francis writes:

Our culture has lost its sense of God’s tangible presence and activity in our world. We think that God is to be found in the beyond, on another level of reality, far removed from our everyday relationships. But if this were the case, if God could not act in the world, his love would not be truly powerful, truly real, and thus not even true, a love capable of delivering the bliss that it promises. It would make no difference at all whether we believed in him or not. Christians, on the contrary, profess their faith in God’s tangible and powerful love which really does act in history and determines its final destiny: a love that can be encountered, a love fully revealed in Christ’s passion, death and resurrection.  Lumen Fidei par.17

Our participation in the Mass each week (in accordance with the fourth commandment) is a sign that we are continuing to say yes to God’s offer of life. It is our participation in the sacramental life of the Church that enables us to receive and to live the life of Jesus. Jesus concludes today’s gospel reading speaking to his disciples, and inviting each of us to “Go and do likewise.” 

weekly newsletter

The weekly newsletter (Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time) for the Catholic Parish of the Good Shepherd, Hurunui District is now available on the parish webpage www.catholichurunui.co.nz.

magic or miracle?

“I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing
 compared with the glory to be revealed for us”     Romans 8:18

OK, I have to admit that I am looking for distractions from study. I have a couple of papers I'm working on. The problem is that I'm really enjoying the study at the moment. It's a problem because I find myself reading related texts that are not required, but they're really interesting.  As a result I am not sure that these papers will be finished on time!

Then I had a moment of real empathy and prayer for all people who are studying or working on tough projects, and are struggling to stay focussed. I was reminded of one of my seminary theology teachers would try to encourage us in the ‘stressful’ days before exams. He would say: “the sufferings of this time are not worth comparing to the glory yet to be revealed”.

Gerry was not predicting great student grades when he said this. Instead he was (with humour) nudging us to keep the glorious, God-centred, big picture in focus. Whenever Gerry offered his encouragement we would respond with laughter. We knew what he was saying to be true. It was a tragedy that we would forget this life-giving perspective right when we most needed to remember.

A few times on this blog, I have reflected on the problem of stress. Stress is the consequence of a loss of healthy (read "God-centred") perspective. When we know God’s love for us, even the most challenging trials are bearable. When we lose this life-giving perspective, even the joys of life fail to encourage us.

Imagine God saying to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden: "see this little, dead-looking, chip of wood. It is a seed. If you plant it in the soil, and give it some water, it will grow into a great tree like that one over there..." 

Well to Adam and Eve, what God was saying would have been quite unbelievable. “Yeah, right” they might have laughed. Surely God was pulling their legs? How could such a dead looking little bit of wood could ever be a mighty green and flowering tree. That would take a great feat of magic!

No, this is not magic. The magician only makes things seem to happen. We all know that the assistant is not really sawn in two. The watch is not really smashed by the hammer. Magic is a clever feat of deception.

Instead what God does is truly miraculous. A miracle not only appears to happen. A miracle really does happen. Jesus really does bring sight to the blind. God really does raise Jesus from the dead.

So too, as the seed germinates and the tree flourishes, we see the miracle of life emerging from what seems lifeless. The life God offers us does not just seem to happen. This life is a reality. Our lives are full of moments that look deathly. We wonder 'how can anything that delights me come from the impossible situation I find myself in today?'

When we look back over our lives we see the repeated pattern of life emerging from death. It the heart of a winter it is easy to forget that spring will come. In the midst of earthquake devastation it is hard to imagine a successful rebuild. In the midst of grief over the loss of family and friends, it is near impossible to imagine future moments of happiness.

But, from our past experience of deathly suffering and tragedy, new life has emerged. If not yet, this will come.

God’s hope-filled invitation is to notice the seeds of hope in our daily situation. Even the fact that you are reading this is proof that you are already seeking God. God has motivated your search, and God is with you.

Now, away with this distraction and back to the papers!