January 27, 2013AD

Now, Hear This, Theophilus!!

             For most of this upcoming liturgical year on Sundays, we hear excerpts from the Third Gospel, attributed to St Luke.  (During the 50 days of Easter, we hear excerpts as well from the Acts of the Apostles, composed as Volume 2 of a two work opus, known today as Luke-Acts.  The 52 chapters of Luke-Acts sweep from the Annunciation of the birth of John the Baptist to Zechariah in Luke 1 to the arrival of the Good News, the Gospel, by St Paul in the Eternal City of Roma, at the ends of the earth. Acts 28.  Much ground is covered by the brilliant, inspired trained, yet anonymous, Greek speaker, known to us as St Luke. 

Both Volume One, viz., the Gospel of St Luke, as well as Volume Two, the Acts of the Apostles, were addressed to an individual known as Theophilus.  Who was this individual?  In all probability, he was a Greek speaking Gentile who attended Jewish synagogues, but did not become Jewish himself.  (We know from a variety of sources that there were sizable numbers of Gentiles who did worship in the synagogue without becoming Jewish themselves.  Jewish worshippers referred to their Gentile visitors weekly as the “God-fearers”.  These were men and women attracted to Judaism’s coherent ethics and worldview in which the human person was created in the image and likeness of God.  In addition, many of these God-fearers were scandalized by the potpourri of the various pagan religions of the time.  These non Jews sensed something special about Judaism.  However, they did not become Jews because of the obligation to observe so much of the Jewish rituals, such as circumcision and Kosher observance.  They could (and did) worship from afar. Scripture scholars tell us that many of the first Gentile Christians came exactly from this group.

The consensus is that Theophilus was an affluent Greek speaker who was interested in becoming a member of the Jesus Movement (also known in Hebrew as ha Derek, the Way, in Greek as ho hodos.) He might very well have been the patron who financed the two-fold literary efforts of St Luke.  As a result, in accordance with literary custom, the author dedicated the opus to his literary patron.

There might have been several questions about the Jesus Movement that St Luke was trying to answer for the prospective new Christian.  1) Why did not more of Jesus’ Jewish kinsfolk not become Christian themselves?  2) How could the Jewish Messiah be the universal Savior of all the human family? 3) Why should anyone follow the Way of a crucified Roman criminal? Did that make followers of the Jesus Movement suspect as well? 4) What connection was there anymore between the Jewish Temple (destroyed by the time that the Gospel was written) and the Way of God, professed by the Jesus Movement in the house churches and Jewish synagogues around the Mediterrean?  5) What were the basic premises of the Jesus Movement that needed to be clarified for Theophilus and others like him?

However, there is a meditation that anybody, then or now, could make as a result of the name of the putative literary patron.  The name Theophilus is a Greek derivative of two Greek words, 1) Theos – God; 2) philus – lover of.  The name Theophilus means simply “one who loves God.” 

Questions abound.  Was this the literary patron’s actual name? Was it a new name that he assumed if and when he became a baptized member of the Jesus Movement, similar to a Confirmation name today?

Was it simply a nickname for any member of the Jesus Movement, then and now? Could it possibly be a nickname for every one of us who claims to be a follower of the Way of Jesus Christ in the Jesus Movement?                       

Our ancestors in the first generations of the New Testament (in which we still are living today) understood, as St Paul teaches the Corinthians (and the Jesus Movement in Armonk also) bought into in the Holy Spirit, viz., God’s Integrating Energy to have a different view of reality.  In the patriarchal world of the ancient world, you were born into your lot in life and one had to live with it.  The Jesus Movement changed that. Recall Gal 3.28, “all are one in Christ Jesus. There is no longer Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female.” Think of the radical (root is the etymology meaning of the term, by the way, get at the root of things at their root, think about it!) In St Paul’s vision, all of us had a specific gift to do something for the good of the community.  The Church of the New Testament was a community of equals. It is supposed to be still today.

We see that demonstrated very clearly in our parish community.  Some of us have a head for teaching; others have a head for finances; others have the gift of asking radical (basic) questions about what it is all about; others know how to check out a refrigerator and know what needs to be bought at the store; even some others have the gift to translate Greek verbs.      

If, indeed, it is a nickname for all of us, how does the inspired Gospel writer encourage us to show God our love (and commitment)?  Is it simply to say, as many do, “I believe in God and in Jesus Christ”?  As Pope Benedict wrote in Jesus of Nazareth a few years back, is it the same as saying more radically or basically, “I believe God and Jesus Christ.” 

One of the most salient characteristics of the message that Luke is sending to Theophilus (each of us??) is the usage of the words “today” (semeron) and “now” (nuun).  It is that Luke is telling Theophilus (then and now?) that whenever we are challenged by God’s message in Jesus Christ, we face a moment of decision.  We show our assent in faith through living the Way of the Jesus Movement.  Some of the difficult adjustments that obviously Luke feels that Theophilus, then and now, have to accept include our realization that God is constantly part of our lives.  Still, there are special times when we experience God’s Presence in a “Now” or a “Today” that is unique.  This critical moment becomes a time of decision whether we believe God and Jesus Christ in the everyday realities of our lives. Moments of great transformation usually happen in those significant events that occur in our life’s journey. However, please God, these moments of great transformation lead us to intuit that, indeed, God is with us in every now, even insignificant ones or boring ones or routine ones. God is the Presence in which we, every Theophilus among us, live every “Now”. As Meister Eckhardt teaches, “God is the ineffable One beyond God”.   Special situations, maybe, bring the Divine Indwelling home to us in every “today” and every “now”. But the reality is “Emmanuel, God is always with us”. Live the reality for the 168 hours in week ahead, Theophilus.   012713AD jfq

January 20, 2013AD

             Coffee Brewing Somewhere

             Several years ago, there were a variety of motion pictures about wedding preparations.  Steve Martin and Diane Keaton played the parents of the bride in Father of the Bride about twenty-five years ago.  Engaged women’s fathers were told to buy (NOT RENT) the video and watch it and study it.  They could save thousands of dollars. 

             One sad subtle point was that the actual wedding liturgy itself took about 30 seconds in the movie, featuring the de rigeux doddering, old “out of it” minister. Or was he a Catholic priest?

However, who or what was “out of it?” Sadly, it becomes apparent that many (although not all) couples usually do not have the time or energy to think about the significance of marriage in Christ Jesus.  The unspoken drive is “Don’t talk to me about my married life; I am too busy planning for my wedding.”

The Gospel of the Wedding Feast of Cana comes up as part of a triad from the early days of Christianity.  When our Christian ancestors spoke of the Epiphany of the Lord, they referred to three manifestations or appearances of the Lord Jesus: 1) the epiphany to the Visitors from our Gentile ancestors; 2) the baptism of Jesus by John; 3) the first of Jesus’ signs, the wedding feast of Cana. 

 The Lord Jesus manifests Himself to us in a variety of ways.  (Some of them are known only to Him because we miss them.)  Our relationship with Christ Jesus can take a variety of levels.  1) Yes, we can maintain an acquaintance with Him as we tip our hats to Him as we gather on the Lord’s Day.  However, more people find that religion is more than Mass on Sunday.  2)  We need to take seriously the idea of each family, such as it is, as the domestic church. Say grace for example before meals, see meals as time for talk about religion. 3) We can maintain a familiarity with Him through a variety of built-in techniques into the course of each day.  Thank Christ Jesus for the gift of each new day.  (It is only when you get older that you realize that each day is God’s “Present”.  Say a prayer the first and last thing in each day; thank God for the gift of food at each meal. (Not everyone is as fortunate as we.  Think of those in Syria and Palestine this morning after the earthquake.)  4) Think of your participation in an “intentional community” or two, viz., where you meet with others who share your vision or ideas on Catholic values. Many of the community have joined Project Embrace, CYO, Teen Life, Religious Education, Readings Groups, Contemplative groups, Pax Christi, among other things as a way to deepen their relationship with Jesus.  5) Everyone finds out that no matter what they tell you, religion is not a luxury item.  The “System” has a way to disguise Transcendence, Infinity and the Presence of God in your daily life.  Yet, the Lord Jesus is present in every moment, or He is present in no moments. The choice is yours. As St Teresa of Avila put it, “when you think of God as out there when you pray, you miss the entire point.” Why go to an ashram and spend big bucks, when we can teach you the art of contemplation gratis? 

Finally, and most important, in silence and solitude and in slowing down and in simplicity, we let God speaks in our minds and hearts in the intimacy of silent prayer. Do yourself the favor and find the time each day, no matter what.

One of the clarion calls of Vatican Council II which our parish community here always recall is the universal call to holiness (integrity) directed to each of us in the Holy Spirit as cells in the body of Christ. It comes down to "everybody can do something to build up the body of Christ thru God’s integrating  energy, the Holy Spirit”.

Our Catholic Church is transformed by the energy of the Holy Spirit in new ways.  Soon, around here, there will be parishes without resident pastors. In a recent meeting, Cardinal Dolan said that new ways of answering old questions need to be found.  Many of the parishes in the USA (though not many yet around here) have functioned for many years without a resident pastor. Now leaders, either lay or religious, have functioned as animators. Soon, it will be idea that is necessary as the traditional models undergo change in the future.

A few weeks ago, we distributed a handout with our Sunday bulletin which spoke of nine different types of parishioners, ranging from the last sheep to the exuberant evangelists, as our parish tried to do since the Millennial year of 2000,  We urged everyone, with God’s Help, to move up a notch. For example, a lost sheep could try to become a special eventer.

St. Paul addressed the very same issue 25 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. Whatever exactly St. Paul means, he is speaking about spirit in the biblical usage, viz., breath or empowering energy, to do extraordinary things. Three recent samples around here have been first, the adoption so readily by most of “CYO, more than just basketball”. Most knew the meaning of the motto and our community has grown in consciousness as the Jesus movement in Armonk. Second, the stepping up of so many of the dads in our religious education programs for the young. The presence of so many dads makes a real difference. Third, the recent effort, sponsored and organized by one of our parishioners, to provide three square meals a day, here on church campus, showed the drive of the spirit of God in different, but still familiar, patterns. And everyone gets it.

The One Whose manifestation or epiphany that we celebrate today is the One Who teaches us all that He comes for personal and social transformation.  (Get people to “snap out of it’ and “smell God’s coffee” in a critical mass and the culture will change.)  Transform the culture and individuals will change. As Venerable Dorothy Day’s associate, Peter Maurin, said, “A Catholic’s job is to help create a society where it is easier for people to be good.” 

 Christ Jesus is in each now; each now is in Christ Jesus.  Catholic theologians say now that Christ Jesus is the glue, the Blueprint, the DNA of the entire universe.  Whatever that exactly means, the human mind does not totally grasp.  At least, however, if we stick to Mother Earth, the “garden planet of the solar system”, if not the entire universe, Christ Jesus, the glue, the blueprint, the DNA of our world is present as the Forcefield,  “in Which we live, and move and have our being “, as wrote St Luke)

Make a New Year’s Resolution to think early and often in the day about the Christ Presence in your life each moment, whether you realize it or not.  To the person of faith, Christ Jesus is in every scenario. “Where charity and love prevail, there God is ever found.”  Bring that home and realize that the Spirit of Christ Jesus is present in all.  The more we realize this, through God’s Grace, the more we say with the waiters in today’s Gospel. “(God) saves the best wine until now.”  Enjoy the wedding!!!!  012013AD jfq      

January 13, 2013

             Catch the Vibes of the Magi

             We celebrate today the feast of the Epiphany. “We Three Kings of Orient Are” is the favorite Christmas carol of many folks, but, liturgically, at Mass today, it is the only day that it can be sung. The carol is loaded with the symbolism, fraught in St Matthew’s vivid account in today’s Gospel.

             One of the most vivid aspect is the appearance of the star. Many years ago, American Bible scholar, Fr Ray Brown, commented that the star was the Gospel’s way of saying that the birth of the child Jesus had cosmic meaning, not just salvific meaning for the Gospel’s audience.

Was it truly a new star that made its appearance then? Was it the vague recollection of Halley’s Comet which occurred long ago in the mind of the author (writing around 75AD)? Was it a supernova dying out in outer space that was seen on earth? Was it the configuration of three planets that appeared as one star that occurred about 80 years before the Gospel’s appearance?

Another key aspect of the story is the fact that the star indicated the birth of a king in Judea.  The talk of a “king” was unsettling to anyone running the show, whether church and/or state, in 75AD.  Everyone knew who the king was and he lived in Rome. Don’t forget it? The next time the word “king” appears in this Gospel is the inscription over the Head of Jesus on Good Friday!

How was the universe re-configured with the birth of this newborn king? Think of the spin that the Roman Empire, viz., the system, used to maintain its hold on people.  They referred to the Pax Romana, talk of peace throughout the world, the blessings of which were felt principally by those who used the talk, the Roman authorities themselves.  An altar to the Peace of Augustus remains in ruins in Roma today! If you didn’t buy the line, you could end up on a cross, as Jesus did. 

Patriarchy ran the show then  as it still does. “Might makes right”. Violence and greed still rule the day. Add a little superficiality. Familiar?

Opposed to this view, then and now, are those who have been emancipated from systemic slavery emotionally. These are they who worship Christ the King. The programmatic of the new vision is “the kingdom of God is within you” and paradoxically, “God’s kingdom come”. The newborn king said both when He grew up.

Whatever God’s kingdom is, it involves several points. First, there is the belief that a benevolent Creating-Uniting God, revealed in Jesus of Nazareth, runs the show, not just in your own life, but in the very life of the cosmos, of which you are a part. Second, this God dwells both within you and beyond you and is readily at hand, delighting in our humble and grateful (eucharistic) recognition. Third, the Deep Spirit of God is present in all reality, in the process of ascent, descent and transformation, in growth, change and development. There is always movement, change, development and growth in creation. Fourth, this cosmic unity involves a recognition of a solidarity of all creation, particularly among our human family, all of whom share common DNA with a woman in East Africa c. 160,000 BC. (We are apparently all part Afro!) Recall Pope John Paul’s words, “When Cain asked God if he were his brother’s keeper, God didn’t even bother to answer the question!” Fifth, we believe in the economic, social, political principle of “enoughism”, that everyone in the family has enough and our responsibility to make sure enoughism is more of a reality.

People speak these days of a Pax Americana, which is the descendent of the old Pax Romana. It, too, represents a view of reality, but radically different from that of the Pax Christi.  There are 4 pillars on which the Pax Americana rests. First, the inviolability of the American Dream (sometimes confused incorrectly with the above stated Kingdom of God) is that there is a vague hope for a social mobility that we will always be better off than we started. Second, the belief that rugged individuals are responsible for themselves and that status at birth has little to do with what happens to you. Third, the idea of national security has almost sacrosanct. Might makes right. That’s how God wants it to be! Fourth, unbridled capitalism is the only way to achieve this dream.

Really, this involves a superficial, unquestioning assent on the part of many good people to the bandying about of terms such as “American Exceptionalism”, extraordinary rendition, enhanced interrogation processes, collateral damage, teleological, computerized warfare (aka drones). The question is one of pragmatism or of principle as one reviewer of the new movie about Bin Ladin.

Many years ago, in the Caribbean, they sang a popular song, entitled “Emancipation”. The refrain of the song is “Emancipation is the transformation of your mind from mental slavery.” You might still be a slave to the system, but in your mind you see things differently. (When we hear the word, we tend to think of the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, which freed no slaves whatsover, but sounded as it did. Recall the part about Jim Crow laws and the rise of the KKK, the separate but equal doctrine of Plessy vs Ferguson in 1896, the very need to integrate the armed forces in 1948)?

The appearance of the star indicates the birth of a child Who would alter the structure of the world. The Pax Romana (Americana?) is not  the way that Christ the King would have things in the Pax Christi.  You may remain a cog in the machinery of the system, but in your heart and mind, you have another vision. Matthew’s audiences then and now still have to ask themselves, “Is it the Pax Romana (maybe known by a different name now) or the Pax Christi for me?”    010613AD jfq  

January 6, 2013AD

             Catch the Vibes of the Magi

             We celebrate today the feast of the Epiphany. “We Three Kings of Orient Are” is the favorite Christmas carol of many folks, but, liturgically, at Mass today, it is the only day that it can be sung. The carol is loaded with the symbolism, fraught in St Matthew’s vivid account in today’s Gospel.

             One of the most vivid aspect is the appearance of the star. Many years ago, American Bible scholar, Fr Ray Brown, commented that the star was the Gospel’s way of saying that the birth of the child Jesus had cosmic meaning, not just salvific meaning for the Gospel’s audience.

Was it truly a new star that made its appearance then? Was it the vague recollection of Halley’s Comet which occurred long ago in the mind of the author (writing around 75AD)? Was it a supernova dying out in outer space that was seen on earth? Was it the configuration of three planets that appeared as one star that occurred about 80 years before the Gospel’s appearance?

Another key aspect of the story is the fact that the star indicated the birth of a king in Judea.  The talk of a “king” was unsettling to anyone running the show, whether church and/or state, in 75AD.  Everyone knew who the king was and he lived in Rome. Don’t forget it? The next time the word “king” appears in this Gospel is the inscription over the Head of Jesus on Good Friday!

How was the universe re-configured with the birth of this newborn king? Think of the spin that the Roman Empire, viz., the system, used to maintain its hold on people.  They referred to the Pax Romana, talk of peace throughout the world, the blessings of which were felt principally by those who used the talk, the Roman authorities themselves.  An altar to the Peace of Augustus remains in ruins in Roma today! If you didn’t buy the line, you could end up on a cross, as Jesus did. 

Patriarchy ran the show then  as it still does. “Might makes right”. Violence and greed still rule the day. Add a little superficiality. Familiar?

Opposed to this view, then and now, are those who have been emancipated from systemic slavery emotionally. These are they who worship Christ the King. The programmatic of the new vision is “the kingdom of God is within you” and paradoxically, “God’s kingdom come”. The newborn king said both when He grew up.

Whatever God’s kingdom is, it involves several points. First, there is the belief that a benevolent Creating-Uniting God, revealed in Jesus of Nazareth, runs the show, not just in your own life, but in the very life of the cosmos, of which you are a part. Second, this God dwells both within you and beyond you and is readily at hand, delighting in our humble and grateful (eucharistic) recognition. Third, the Deep Spirit of God is present in all reality, in the process of ascent, descent and transformation, in growth, change and development. There is always movement, change, development and growth in creation. Fourth, this cosmic unity involves a recognition of a solidarity of all creation, particularly among our human family, all of whom share common DNA with a woman in East Africa c. 160,000 BC. (We are apparently all part Afro!) Recall Pope John Paul’s words, “When Cain asked God if he were his brother’s keeper, God didn’t even bother to answer the question!” Fifth, we believe in the economic, social, political principle of “enoughism”, that everyone in the family has enough and our responsibility to make sure enoughism is more of a reality.

People speak these days of a Pax Americana, which is the descendent of the old Pax Romana. It, too, represents a view of reality, but radically different from that of the Pax Christi.  There are 4 pillars on which the Pax Americana rests. First, the inviolability of the American Dream (sometimes confused incorrectly with the above stated Kingdom of God) is that there is a vague hope for a social mobility that we will always be better off than we started. Second, the belief that rugged individuals are responsible for themselves and that status at birth has little to do with what happens to you. Third, the idea of national security has almost sacrosanct. Might makes right. That’s how God wants it to be! Fourth, unbridled capitalism is the only way to achieve this dream.

Really, this involves a superficial, unquestioning assent on the part of many good people to the bandying about of terms such as “American Exceptionalism”, extraordinary rendition, enhanced interrogation processes, collateral damage, teleological, computerized warfare (aka drones). The question is one of pragmatism or of principle as one reviewer of the new movie about Bin Ladin.

Many years ago, in the Caribbean, they sang a popular song, entitled “Emancipation”. The refrain of the song is “Emancipation is the transformation of your mind from mental slavery.” You might still be a slave to the system, but in your mind you see things differently. (When we hear the word, we tend to think of the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, which freed no slaves whatsover, but sounded as it did. Recall the part about Jim Crow laws and the rise of the KKK, the separate but equal doctrine of Plessy vs Ferguson in 1896, the very need to integrate the armed forces in 1948)?

The appearance of the star indicates the birth of a child Who would alter the structure of the world. The Pax Romana (Americana?) is not  the way that Christ the King would have things in the Pax Christi.  You may remain a cog in the machinery of the system, but in your heart and mind, you have another vision. Matthew’s audiences then and now still have to ask themselves, “Is it the Pax Romana (maybe known by a different name now) or the Pax Christi for me?”    010613AD jfq