Suffering, Some Thoughts

I trust the title of this post won't be taken the wrong way, leading some to believe that my offering of a few thoughts will result in suffering for both you and me. At least, I hope not. No, at Mass this morning, as I proclaimed the Gospel, my aging brain entertained a few thoughts about suffering that I'd like to share. They're really nothing new or radical; they're just things I've come to understand and eventually accept as I approach ever closer to the end of this most wonderful of God's gifts, the gift of life.

The Gospel reading, from Mark 10, has always been a favorite because it focuses on that remarkable encounter between Jesus and Bartimaeus, the blind man of Jericho. Bartimaeus had suffered. After all, he was blind in a society totally lacking in resources to help him cope with his disability. Things are thankfully different today, but the visually impaired still suffer in a world centered on those with sight. But in the first-century Roman Empire, the blind, unless they came from a wealthy family, usually became beggars. The blind, the deaf, the crippled -- indeed, most people with serious disabilities -- were almost entirely dependent on others. Unable to support themselves through work, they were totally dependent on their families or the charity of those who passed by. Since Mark reveals that Bartimaeus is the son of Timaeus, we can assume his parents cared for him. And yet, given the times in which he lived, I think we can say that Bartimaeus suffered.

Now, what do I know of suffering? Of physical suffering, very little. Here I am, just a few months from my 80th birthday and I've been hospitalized only once, thanks to appendicitis at the age of ten. Other than that memorable experience, I've remained in disgustingly good health ever since. Have I suffered in other ways? Yes, but no more than most people my age and far less than many. But this isn't about me. It's about so many good people I know who have suffered deeply, but so often quietly.

When we consider Bartimaeus, we find a man who had likely been blind since birth, was forced to beg at the city gates of Jericho, and yet never gave up hope. He knew that the God of Israel heals, and such healings often come through the word and touch of holy men sent by God Himself. He had obviously heard of Jesus for the news of His acts of healing couldn't be suppressed. Sitting at the gates, Bartimaeus would have heard this and so much more about this man from Nazareth. Hope, then, filled his heart and when he was told of Jesus' presence, hope was joined by faith. My mom used to say, "Hope, once it fills the heart, drives us to faith." And so, hopeful Bartimaeus, once he experiences the Presence of Jesus, cries out in faith, “Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me.”

He continues to shout his plea to Jesus and, despite the condescension of the less-than-merciful disciples, gets Our Lord's attention. Jesus calls him. Bartimaeus, now filled with faith, leaps to his feet, discards his cloak, the sign of his beggary, and no doubt filled with the Holy Spirit, ran directly to Jesus. 

Note that his response to Jesus' question is “Master I want to see." Yes, it's a plea focused only on himself, but it's a faith-driven, fervent plea, and Jesus heals because, "Your faith has saved you." Now isn't that interesting? Bartimaeus begs for sight, and he receives it, but Jesus' real gift, the gift He proclaims, is the gift of salvation that stems from this man's faith.

But even more interesting is Bartimaeus' response to Jesus' command, "Go your way..."  What was Bartimaeus' "way"? To go home to his parents, to share the good news of his healing with his father, Timaeus? To celebrate with the people of Jericho who had long known the blind beggar at the gates? Apparently not, for Bartimaeus chose a different path. This healing had done far more than heal him physically. It had changed him in his very being. For now, this new man of God, would follow the Lord on the road to Calvary. He would follow "The WAY" to the salvation promised by Jesus. 

I've mentioned this many times in the past, but I'll say it again: Flannery O'Connor is among my favorite writers. She was a very Catholic, but very downhome girl from Georgia, and if you've never read her, do so. She writes remarkable, and truly unforgettable, stories of sinfulness, repentance, grace, forgiveness, suffering, and salvation. And boy oh boy, did she certainly understand suffering. Although she suffered from Lupus her entire adult life and succumbed to the disease at the age of 39, she considered her suffering a blessing. As she once wrote to a friend:

"Sickness before death is a very appropriate thing and I think those who don’t have it miss one of God’s mercies.”

As I said earlier, I've experienced little physical suffering, but I've spent a lot of time with those who have. I've prayed with and for them, and sat with them at their bedsides, where we joked, laughed, and cried. I've held shaky hands and hugged tired bodies. I've been with them during their last moments, brought Jesus to them in His Eucharistic Presence, and tried to help them reach out in peace to a loving, merciful Lord.  

Yes, they have suffered. But they have also been healed of the cares and worries and sins they carried with them. For as St. Paul reminds us:

"We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose" [Rom 8:28].

Yes, indeed, He calls us according to His purpose, not ours.

Let me share just a couple of other things Flannery O'Connor taught me and others about sufferings and healing.  

"You will have found Christ when you are concerned with other people's suffering and not your own."

...and then this:

"This notion that grace is healing omits the fact that before it heals, it cuts with the sword Christ said He came to bring."

I think both of these observations are worthy of our meditation.

God's peace...

Homily: Pentecost Vigil

Readings: Joel 3:1-5; Ps 104; Rom 8:22-27; John 7:37-39

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Back at the turn of the millennium I happened to catch a TV news show in which the host asked an historian to name the most important people in human history. I can't recall the historian’s name, but he made a point of calling himself an agnostic. And then he said something rather remarkable.

"As an historian," he said, "I’d have to say that the most influential person in human history was Jesus Christ. The problem is, I can't understand how he came to be so influential. He was really a nobody, tucked away in a little corner of the world. He didn't write anything. He didn't go anywhere or do anything very important. He was executed for treason. And his followers? Just a handful of simple peasants. He should have been forgotten in a matter of days or weeks. It's truly inexplicable. But that's history."

Yes, Mr. Historian, that is history. And this history, viewed from the perspective of the Church's teachings, becomes very explainable.

In truth the 3 most influential events in human history centered on the person of Jesus Christ, and all 3 took place within eight weeks of each other. Something else they have in common: they were actions, taken not by men, but by God Himself.

These events are true history — perhaps we should say, His Story — the story of the Creator of all things doing the most remarkable things — in a truly remarkable way. It’s the story of a loving Father sending His Son to suffer and die at the hands of those He created, as a perfect offering for their sins. For so many today Jesus Christ is inexplicable, until we plumb the depths of God's Love for us.

Because His Story doesn't end with the first event on the Cross at Calvary. If it had, our historian's instincts would have been correct, and Jesus would have been a mere footnote…if that. But the Father wasn’t content to let it end there. He wanted us to know, to accept the truth. And so, three days later, the second event occurred. Jesus rose from the dead, to prove His Divinity, and to give us a foretaste of what awaits those who love Him and keep His commandments.

But even the Resurrection, this momentous event, is insufficient. For the Father wants His Truth, and the knowledge of His infinite Love, to spread to the ends of the earth. He'd sacrificed His Son, not for a handful of followers, not for the Jewish people, His Chosen Ones, who for centuries prepared the way for Jesus, the Christ. No, this act of redemption was for all of humanity, for every person is a child of God.

Today we celebrate this third event, a relatively brief event in the history of salvation, but an event of such impact, it permanently and profoundly altered the very history of the world. For what took place in Jerusalem on that Sunday morning almost 2,000 years ago is God's lasting gift to His children.

He had sent His Son to suffer and die as a redemptive sacrifice, to free us from the slavery of sin and death and to give us the hope of eternal life. And now God fulfills the Word He gave us through His Prophet Joel, and so many others:

“It shall come to pass. I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions… I will pour out my spirit.”

Yes, it came to pass, and those days arrived. He sent His Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life, the personification of the Divine Love between Father and Son. And what power the Spirit has!

Suddenly, 120 men and women, this fearful little band of followers, are instantly transformed. The disciples had seen what happened to Jesus, and feared it might well happen to them. As they gathered in that upper room, in secrecy and prayer with our Blessed Mother, the mighty breath of God and the fire of the Spirit’s presence engulfed them and changed them forever.

The Holy Spirit manifested in them the new, eternal covenant Jesus instituted at the Last Supper, forming them into the Church to bring God's message of salvation to the world. The Jewish feast of Pentecost took on entirely new meaning. What had Jesus just commanded them?

"Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always until the close of the age."

Now, for the first time, they began to understand what this mission entailed. And just as suddenly, all of Jesus' teachings, His promises, the words of the Word of God that had seemed so cryptic, became perfectly clear. Inspired by the Spirit with this new understanding, overflowing with enthusiasm for the mission He’d given them, they poured into the crowded streets of Jerusalem to share the Good News.

But the Holy Spirit had only just begun, and from those 120 disciples, He calls one to lead the way. It’s Peter, the fisherman – full of bluster and human weakness, who’d betrayed his Lord in those final hours…It’s Peter. Peter, the Rock upon whom Jesus promised to build His Church, speaks to the crowd and on that first Pentecost Sunday, the Church is born.

Miracle follows miracle and three thousand are baptized, for the work of the Spirit can’t be stopped. The one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church, brought into being that day, is still with us today, still guided by the Holy Spirit, still led by Christ's Vicar, still committed to the Apostolic mission of bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to the world. And the mission is universal, given to each of us, for we are the Church.

Why this mission? Just look around you. How can you miss it? …the sadness and hopelessness and sinfulness that plague so many today. These are God's children! They don’t need our condemnation or pity; they need God’s love and evangelization. The Father wants to bring them to Himself, and He calls us to take part in His work.

Does this call, this mission, frighten you? Are you terrified of the idea of evangelizing others? You shouldn’t be, because just like Peter and the disciples on that first Pentecost, you won’t be alone. You see, we can’t do God’s work without the Spirit. As St. Paul reminded us “…the Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness.” And later Paul told the Corinthians:

"There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit…different forms of service, but the same Lord...To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit."

Do you see what He’s telling us? We have the same mission, even though we carry it out in different ways, and it’s the Holy Spirit who inspires and guides each of us. Today we’re reminded to be roused from the comfort and safety of our own upper rooms. We too need to be amazed — that our faith should be accompanied by the sounds, the heat, the cacophony of different voices, the presence of the Holy Spirit, proclaiming the mighty acts of God.

Sisters and brothers, we all have a mission to a world that waits beyond our parish walls…

…a world often confused, divided, afraid.

…a world waiting to be astounded by power of the Spirit and His message of hope.

God doesn’t encourage us; He commands us, for it’s the essential work of our Christian faith.

Of course, it’s comforting to stay within our families or parish community, but God doesn't want us to get too comfortable. For on that first Pentecost God turned the disciples’ little circle inside out. Suddenly they faced not each other, but a world waiting to hear the Good News. As we follow them, we can rely on God’s promise: the Holy Spirit is with us, guiding us, his wisdom flowing through us…We need only invite Him.

How did Jesus put it in today’s Gospel?

“Rivers of living water will flow from within him who believes in me.”

Let’s welcome the Spirit into our lives…and those rivers will flow through us as He renews the face of the earth.

And today, here on the vigil of Pentecost, what a perfect time to pray to the Spirit, the Giver of Life, asking Him to convert and forgive all those who have taken so many innocent lives, lives He has given to the world.

Do it today, and witness the wonders, the mighty acts of God, He will bring about in your lives, in my life, and in the lives of all we encounter.

Catholic Bishops, Where Are You?

One senses that our bishops aren’t really too concerned about what’s happening in our nation or, more dangerously, in Washington, D.C., our own version of the ancient Sodom. Oh, they occasionally make a comment or send a “Tsk-tsk” note to our political elites, but all with little effect. So little that President Biden seems to enjoy telling our bishops how wrong they are about the full range of moral issues. For the president, Church teaching is optional, something that must change with the times. 

Of all the issues facing the country today, the most divisive and evident, of course, is abortion. For example, a few weeks ago, at a gathering of Florida Democrats, the president, who proudly claims to be a “practicing” and “devout” Catholic, made the Sign of the Cross during the pro-abortion speech of a fellow Democrat. (Read the article here.) Believe me, he supported everything his colleague said. Several Catholic organizations vehemently objected to this sacrilegious act, but to my knowledge I’ve heard no public comment from our bishops. If any said anything, they certainly didn’t say it very loudly. Often enough, bishops post their comments on diocesan websites, which, sadly, very few Catholics ever view. Why not call a press conference, or issue a statement to the local press, telling one and all what the Church teaches on abortion and other moral issues? Or send a teaching letter to pastors, instructing them to have it read at every Mass? Politicians provide excellent opportunities for teaching moments by our bishops, priests, and deacons. 

Even more despicable, though, the president has made abortion the key issue of his presidential campaign. For him, what it means to be a practicing and devout Catholic seems to have nothing to do with either faith or obedience:

“Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” [Mt 7,21].

Let’s face it, abortion is the moral issue of our time. Throughout the world several hundred million children are dead because of abortion. Each was slaughtered, and often painfully, as they were cut into pieces by those supposedly dedicated to healing. I can conceive of no modern crime more evil than abortion, the always willful destruction of the most innocent of human lives. The fact that so many people just accept it, as they would accept an appendectomy, tells us a lot about the moral degradation of our so-called civilized world. 

And yet we hear very little from our shepherds. What are the bishops afraid of? Is it a revenue issue? Can’t tick off the pro-abortion “Catholics” who would likely close their wallets and checkbooks. Or do they fear losing their tax-exempt status by wading into what the IRS considers political waters? But the IRS is wrong, deadly wrong. Abortion isn’t political; it’s moral and religious, two areas about which the Church must speak its mind. And thanks to the Holy Spirit, that mind, at least magisterially, always reflects the mind of God. 

Given the Church’s magisterial rejection of abortion, one would think the bishops might issue a public condemnation or two. Perhaps they believe that going public about the slaughter of millions of unborn children will jeopardize our moving forward on what some wrongfully consider more important issues, like climate change and immigration. After all, just this week Pope Francis warned that climate change has become a “planetary crisis,” and that billions of us earthlings face “an extremely high risk of climate-related devastation.” It would seem, then, based on the time the pope has expended writing and talking about climate change, it’s far more important to him than any other issue, including abortion.

Interestingly, when I read this, I emailed several old friends, all PhD meteorologists or climatologists, and asked them to confirm what they had told me earlier. All three again stated that the evidence for human-induced climate change is so minimal it can be ignored. One suggested that Pope Francis, who likely knows very little about climate change, is listening to advisors and “experts” who are reaping the financial benefits of choosing the politically correct side of the issue. “Follow the money,” he added, “and you can predict what the ‘experts’ will say.”

Sadly, too, the Biden administration has been active prosecuting (and persecuting) pro-life activists. Biden’s justice department brought conspiracy charges against a group of pro-life activists for a 2020 protest at a Washington, D.C. abortion clinic that specializes in late-term abortions. This Tuesday and Wednesday seven of these activists were sentenced to two years or more in federal prison. Just read about these “horrible criminals” that our devout Catholic president wants imprisoned. Here are some relevant links:

Imprisoned Pro-Life Activists Speak Out

Pro-Life Activists Sentenced -- combat veteran, 70-year-olds, and icon Joan Andrews, others

Diane and I were fortunate to meet Joan Andrews-Bell years ago when I chaired our Cape Cod parish's pro-life ministry. She has devoted her life to the cause and spent over 6 years imprisoned for acts of love. Now she will serve more time. Pray for all these courageous people. Joan considers her prison sentence as “a time of prayer and reparation” for the “sin of abortion in America.”

I've always believed that political approaches to life take us in the wrong direction. We must, instead, change hearts and minds, always speaking the truth and doing what is needed to instill once again in the people of this country a fervent love for God and His gift of life. It must always begin with prayer and will conclude when God acts to teach us His will.

Perhaps the bishops should also take a faithful and theological, rather than a political, approach and turn to the Nicene Creed in which the Holy Spirit is described as “Lord and Giver of Life.” If we support abortion, are we not then taking to ourselves the powers of the Holy Spirit, and assuming God-like authority over life and death? To usurp God’s power and authority is intrinsically evil, a form of pride almost beyond belief. Wouldn’t it set a wonderful example for the faithful if our bishops, as we approach the solemnity of Pentecost, turned publicly to the Holy Spirit in prayer? What a perfect time to ask the Spirit to bring about the conversion and ultimately the forgiveness for all those who have destroyed the many innocent lives He has given the world.

Prophecies

I’ve listed below just a few prophetic words from people I hold in high esteem. Each of these brief comments seems, at least to me, applicable to our current situation. That situation is a movable feast of sorts, but an indigestible feast rushing quickly to something truly demonic. We will soon reach a point where human actions will be unable to save us from a worldly future driven by those captivated by evil. That’s when God will step in as he has again and again. What He will do, how He will rescue us…well, that’s likely to be quite a surprise. But like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, God calls on us to plead the case of the faithful ones [See Gn 18]. 

In the meantime, we must do our part and never fear speaking the truth, not only among family and friends, but also openly in the public square. But first we must come together prayerfully as the people of God filled with hope. And remember, hope isn’t just wishin’ and dreamin’ — not at all. Hope, as a theological virtue, is our firm confidence that God will answer our prayer and fulfill His promise to care for us and pour out His peace on us, all over us, and into our confused and troubled hearts. "Peace be with you" Jesus says to the confused and doubting.

Keep in mind that prophecy involves the proclamation of God’s Word and only occasionally addresses future events. Prophecy, then, is simply the revelation of God’s will for us. That said, read these comments and consider their truths:

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths.” ~ St. Paul [2 Tim 4:3-4] 

“We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one's own ego and one's own desires.” ~ Pope Benedict XVI, 2005

“The hero can never be a relativist.“~ Richard M. Weaver, 1948, Ideas Have Consequences

"I don't need a church to tell me I'm wrong where I already know I'm wrong; I need a Church to tell me I'm wrong where I think I'm right" ~ Gilbert K. Chesterton

“For the first time in human history, most people are doing things that could never interest a child enough to want to tag along. That says less about the child than about us.” ~ Anthony Esolen

“Schooling deprived of religious insights is wretched education.” ~ Russell Kirk, (1986). “The Assault on religion: commentaries on the decline of religious liberty”

“The modern state does not comprehend how anyone can be guided by something other than itself. In its eyes pluralism is treason.” ~ Richard M. Weaver

"We do not need a censorship of the press. We have a censorship by the press... It is not we who silence the press. It is the press who silences us." ~ Gilbert K. Chesterton

“When one remembers how the Catholic Church has been governed, and by whom, one realizes that it must have been divinely inspired to have survived at all.” ~ Hilaire Belloc

“It may be a movement towards becoming like little children to admit that we are generally nothing else.” ~ Charles Williams, Descent into Hell

“When the whole world is running headlong towards the precipice, one who walks in the opposite direction is looked at as being crazy.” ~ T. S. Eliot

“We’re surrounded by a lot of noise. The world tries to drown out God’s voice. How many never take the time to listen for God’s call, or even believe He’s calling them?” ~ Me (2022)

"Rather than shivering in the cold, modern man has preferred to set the house on fire, and dance for a moment in the final conflagration" ~ Roger Scruton

Kristi Noem and Her Dog

5/10/24 — A postscript to the below post. RFK Jr., the “other” candidate for the presidency, recently announced his support for the abortion of full-term infants. Yep, it’s OK to slaughter the little human beings whom God created in His image and likeness. And yet we hear almost nothing about this from the mainstream media or the nattering social media crowd. These and too many others are more upset about Governor Noem’s shooting a dog 20 years ago. What are the moral priorities of a nation in which so many are far more concerned about the death of a dog than the premeditated murder of millions of innocent children?

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I expect that much of what I write in this post will make many folks here in The Villages all aflutter. In truth, though, I don’t care…so here goes, 

Let me begin by saying I’m a dog person and have lived with dogs most of my life, dogs that represented a variety of breeds: Boston Bulldog: German Shepherd; three Weimaraners; Samoyed; Shetland Sheepdog; and Bichon Frise. Let me also assert that, despite what the so-called experts say, not every dog is trainable. As one vet told me, “Some dogs just have a few mental wrinkles that can’t be ironed out. You can ease the problems with good training, but you never know if they’ll arise under certain conditions.”

A lot of people seem very upset because twenty years ago S. Dakota Governor Noem shot a dog that was not only untrainable but had also proven to a danger to man and beast alike. Most of those who fret and wring their hands over the governor’s act have never set foot on a farm or ranch and don’t understand that for many country folk dogs are often working animals. If a dog makes a habit of killing livestock and other farm critters, if it attacks people, and if it cannot be trained to do otherwise, it simply has to go. 

A few years ago I met a man in West Texas who had a huge dog in the back of his pickup. He thought it was part German Shepherd and part Bull Mastiff — as I said, a very big dog. In his words, “He seems to have a bit of blood-lust. At night he roams pretty freely on our ranch, and I have to keep him away from the calves. But if a deer enters our property — it’s  a few hundred acres — that dog knows it and that deer is dead. He’s the only dog I’ve ever seen that can pull down a fullgrown deer and kill it. He’s okay with the family, because I guess we’re his pack, but when guests visit I have to put him in his shed. If he ever hurt a person I’d have to shoot him.” 

Right after we were married, well over 50 years ago, Diane and I ended up with a large, male Weimaraner. How we got this dog is another story. Anyway, thanks to the Navy we found ourselves in San Diego, and for the next few years I spent a lot of time at sea. The dog seemed to be good protection for Diane, but over time we discovered he had more than a few problems. He was overprotective, destroyed all our furniture, and was overly aggressive around other humans, so when Diane was expecting our first child, we decided he had to go. This was not a friendly dog, and I worried about him attacking guests, or Diane, or the baby when she arrived. Quite honestly, I thought about doing what the governor did, but figured in Southern California they’d lock me up. So, we tried to find him a new home. We succeeded in giving him to a family that lived on a ranch in northern San Diego county. Within a few months they wanted to return him, but we refused (the baby had arrived). We’re pretty certain they placed him in an ASPCA shelter where he was no doubt euthanized. 

My dogs (with this one exception) were all well-trained animals and a comfort to our family. They were not working dogs — hunters, shepherds, etc. — but were family pets. We cared for them and they cared for us in their own unique way. But they were all very different and displayed their affection in varying ways. 

And yet, as you might expect, I have no problem with the governor’s dispatching her dog. If you’re one of those folks who places dogs and spiders and aardvarks and cows and lions and tigers and bears all on the same value level as human beings, we have a philosophical and theological obstacle to further discussion. You might object to the means she used to dispatch the dog, but it was probably far more humane and quicker than many other means.