The Elections...

                                                                        A Prudent Vote…

Amid the noise and insults, the lies and accusations, what’s a responsible Dominican to do as this election draws near? It is tempting indeed to simply say, “I’m just not going to vote.” Yet we all know this is an abdication of one of our most treasured rights and responsibilities as citizens. Dominicans preach first from the pulpit of their lives, so our lives must speak from the voting booth too.

The updated 2016 Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship from the American bishops can be of help to us. (USCCB website) The bishops call us to use prudence as we go to the poles. Simply speaking, prudence is Love’s fairness. It asks that we consider all that is at stake in an issue, leaving nothing out, or looking at only one part of an issue. Then we recall our Catholic values. Finally, we choose the person or policy that gets closest to realizing those values best, or more of them.

Even more helpful and practical, the bishops put before us four Social Justice principles that guide us in doing this prudent evaluation. With these principles in view, prudence has its work cut out for it. Using our intelligent laser beam, we examines the candidates and issues in light of all of these principles, and then makes our choices. The candidate or the issue may not be perfect on all the values we as Catholics, as Dominicans, hold dear, but the principles offer criteria to evaluate who best might get us close to them.

What are the four principles we can use as we make our choices? First, the bishops remind us of the dignity of human life at all its stages. How inclusive about this is the candidate? Second, we seek the common good of all, not just some of us by class, wealth, or position. Who does the candidate leave out in this “common good?” Who is invisible in his or her point of view? Third, subsidiarity. Simply put, whose voice is not being heard from the bottom of the ladder? Are we hearing only from those who speak from power? Finally, solidarity. We need to stand with each other, the very poorest with the richest. Who is being left out in the vision of the candidate? Who is being drawn in? Who is this candidate for? Which candidate wants to unite us?

In the final assessment, no candidate will shine on all these principles. But we will know, with a little thought and prayer, who comes the closest on all of them, not just settling for one of them. Using our prudence, and the study that is part of our Dominican charism, then we vote.

Thanksgiving...

More Than a Day….

Carla Mae Streeter, OP

‘Tis the month of Thanksgiving. It’s also the time of harvest, not only from the fields but in the community we call church. We gather the harvest of the fields, and we are approaching the end of Ordinary Time. This long series of weeks in the church’s celebration of time is the time of greening, the time of growth from the Paschal Mystery. The Easter glow is like Sonshine, cultivating the fruits of the Spirit in our souls.

But thanksgiving for all the richness of field and human flourishing is not just for a day. It can be a way…of life. Scripture says it best: “In all circumstances, give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” (1Thess. 5:18) Now I don’t know about you, but a typical response to this is, “You’ve got to be kidding! Give thanks for a cancer diagnosis, for someone rear-ending me?” Yes. Scripture doesn’t mince words: “In all circumstances…”

So for the past three years I’ve been trying this “in all circumstances…” thing. The results amaze me. I keep a little notebook at my bedside, and the last thing I do before falling off to sleep is enter the date, and jot down little phrases for all I’m thankful for from that day. I go off to sleep full of gratitude. I also catch myself better during the day, and in tough spots I find myself surprisingly calm. You can’t get too fussed up if you are trying to say “Thank you.” Most of all, I find myself growing in a sense of proportion. I can be very good at making mountains out of mole hills. So, if this is the will of God for me, then I can at least take it seriously. I think it’s producing good fruit. So for me, this year I won’t just be celebrating Thanksgiving Day, but a Thanksgiving way…while I enjoy my pumpkin pie.

Most generous God,

You surround me with gifts from your overflowing heart.

I often take them for granted.

I’m given a special day this month to thank you in a special way.

But maybe I can do better than that.

You call me to come to that banquet

Where you give me your very self to grow my own risen life.

Thank you for taking me so seriously.

Help me to take you seriously in every event that happens in my life.

You have counted every hair on my head.

Fill my heart with trustful gratitude.

This year transform my Thanksgiving Day into a

Thanksgiving Way.

Amen.

...back to Basics...

…back to Basics…

We have just come from an intense weekend of reflection on contemplation. We have always known it is the rich ground of our ministries. It is a fact that many of us never have had real training in its meaning or practice in our Dominican formation. So why is contemplation so significant in present-day religious life, especially among active religious?

Let’s get very concrete. Rational analytic consciousness, the way our minds work in day-to-day thinking, is grounded in a more basic type of consciousness. This basic awareness is just plain wonder. It’s awe. It’s surprise, like the child on Christmas morn. As we grow, we get scolded if we “wonder” too much. We need to be responsible, you know. We need to get things done, and not be lazy. We need to accomplish something. This is the measure of our worth, right?

Really? The gospel has another suggestion: “…unless you turn and become as a little child…” Wonder reclaimed has the ability to clarify our thinking.  We see more clearly when we wonder at beauty, at kindness, at being loved. So as Dominicans, we begin all meaningful activity by a pause…on tiptoe…to be kissed. Then we run off to help heal the world. Our uniqueness? To be honest, others can do our ministries. But as long as we Dominicans have breath, we will remind those in the structure of the Church and outside it, that the authentic study of anything…of science, of medicine, of economics, of politics, of theology…all of it is grounded in wonder. All of the nitty-gritty is grounded in wonder…and our uniqueness is to call the world back to this wholeness so it can heal…back to basics.

                                   

Mercy me! But what about Justice?

Mercy me! But what about Justice?

We will soon be completing the Jubilee Year of Mercy. The Dominicans will seal this special 800^th Anniversary year with final celebrations. The liturgical year is nearing end. The harvest time is upon us. Where is the fruit? What growth can we find in the rich loam of our humanness, in our very earthy human struggle? Lord, have mercy!

Yes, indeed. When we learn that real mercy means compassion for one who does not deserve it, the shoe fits. This is not about somebody else. This is about me. I try, I really do. But inevitably I come up short. Always. So scripture these days seems to understand. We really want to “…do something beautiful for God…” as Mother Theresa would say, but we don’t quite make it.

So I don’t know about you, but I come before God, holding the thimble of my puny efforts. I stand helpless, so much lacking. Then a voice next to me speaks up…”I will supply what is lacking, Father…” Then it clicks. I know how it works. The justice is tucked into the mercy. And the One who has bent so low to lift us up supplies both. For in the One who loves us justice and mercy are one. They are not opposed. They kiss.

So ordinary time plays out. The fields become rich with grain. The corn is a bumper crop. The grapes hang on the vines, and the pumpkins await the knife to be emptied out to show a toothy grin. And me? I do my little thing. Somehow God makes it enough. More often than not I need the mercy of my falling short. Then Big Brother supplies, and I remember that without Him I can do nothing. Mercy me!

* * * *

Lord, have mercy.

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Indeed.

Mercy me when I come with so little.

Mercy me when I forget, and point the finger of my judgment toward another.

Mercy me when I need your compassion.

Mercy me when I do not measure up to your justice.

Mercy me.

Reflections on Amoris Laetitia

Reflections

On Some Responses to Francis’ Amoris Laetitia

Carla Mae Streeter, OP

Francis released his Apostolic Exhortation, “On the Joy of Love,” on March 19, 2016, the Feast of St. Joseph. The document was the pope’s long awaited response to the Synod on the Family, which concretized Francis’ vision of the Church as a participative community engaged in a participative event. A questionnaire was issued beforehand, with the explicit invitation to speak freely on the issues. It was to be an experience of a truly listening Church.

 What followed the publication of the Exhortation was a variety of responses. I will name two that the reader might want to pursue, while commenting mainly on one of them. The first response I reference appeared in Commonweal on May 20, 2016, and was entitled, “A Balancing Act: Reading ‘Amoris Laetitia.’ The article featured perspectives from Peter Steinfels, Paige E. Hochschild, William L. Portier, Sandra Yocum, and George Dennis O’Brien.

 The second was a booklet in English, Rebuilding Lives: Divorce, Welcome, and Communion, published by Cristianisme i Justicia from Barcelona. It featured the responses of four Jesuits, Xavier Alegre Santamaria, “The Teaching of the Bible: What did Jesus say About Marriage?, Josἐ Ignatio Gonzάlez Faus, “Theological Approaches,” Jesús Martinez Gordo, “Truth and Mercy: The Theological Cogency of Cardinal Kasper’s Proposal,” and Andrέs Torres Queiruga, “The Ecclesiological Background: A Shepherd Pope Faced With Ecclesial Restorationism.” The perspectives of Gordo will be the main focus of these reflections.

                                       What Francis Intends to Do in the Exhortation

 In his seven paragraph introduction, Francis offers us a remarkable guiding statement: he states that “…not all discussions of doctrinal, moral or pastoral issues need to be settled by interventions of the magisterium.” (3) With these words he acknowledges not only the true authority of the magisterium and its place, but affirms that the Holy Spirit operates significantly in the entire People of God, and all need to be attentive to this wide action.

Then he proceeds to sketch his approach to bring before all of us what he considers significant from the recent synod. His first chapter will explore the scriptures. Chapter two will examine the actual situation of families in our day as he perceives it. The third chapter will reaffirm the Church’s teaching on marriage and family. Two chapters will be dedicated to the nature of authentic loving, chapter four in marriage uniquely, and chapter five on love’s distinctive fruitfulness. Chapter six will offer some pastoral approaches, specifically on marriage preparation. In chapter seven Francis will tackle the sensitive issue of the education of children, including a specific call for sound sex education. Chapter eight is dedicated to a call to the entire Church to accompany, discern, and integrate the weakness of unions that do not measure up to the ideal, and provide pastoral care for those who struggle in these situations. The balance Francis envisions means “To show understanding in the face of exceptional situation never implies dimming the light of the fuller ideal…” (307) Finally in chapter nine, Francis offers a spirituality of marriage and the family. It is chapter eight, and the pope’s explicit call for mercy in irregular situations, that in my view offers a refreshing affirmation of the activity of the Holy Spirit in the consciences of couples while simultaneously affirming the guidance of the wisdom of the Church’s teachings. It is also the most controversial.

                                              The Focus of this Particular Reflection

 Standing firmly on the balance principle above, I turn now to a specific section of Jesús Martinez Gordo’s article, “Truth and Mercy: The Theological Cogency of Cardinal Kasper’s Proposal.” In section 3.4 of the article, Gordo asks the reader to identify the “it” that God has joined in marriage. Theologically, Gordo is asking for the res or substance that the marriage ritual signs to us.

 Gordo begins by reminding us that for the Eucharist itself to “last,” the matter of the sacrament, namely the bread and wine, must last. They must remain intact. If they dissolve, if they decay, then the Eucharistic presence, as sacrament, ceases in what remains.  The “it” of the Eucharist as sacrament is the presence of the risen Christ in the elements. When the elements cease, the sacramental presence of Christ ceases to be present in the destroyed or corrupted remains.

Gordo wisely chooses the most central of the sacraments to make a point. When the matter or sensory element of a sacrament ceases, the divine active presence that is its substance ceases also in that local instance. The matter and form are inseparable, as modeled for us by the incarnation itself. The presence of the eternal Word of God was intact as the Christ suffered. That divinity was present as the sacred humanity died. It was present in the deceased body of Jesus in the tomb, and it was the Father who through and in the person of the Word, raised that sacred humanity from death.

 Gordo then sides with Cardinal Kasper against the more rigid cardinals who interpret the “indissolubility of marriage” in a more literal manner. In doing so, interpreters such as Cardinal Cafarra blur the distinction between fallible teaching still in process of discussion, and infallible teaching which has clear and limited characteristics: the doctrine must be a truth revealed by God, proclaimed in a solemn act, requires an irrevocable response of faith, and excludes any contrary heretical proposition. The exact nature of the indissolubility question is clearly a work in progress and does not qualify according to the four criteria as infallible teaching.

The argument of Cardinal Kasper that Gordo supports is simply this: The human love and self-gift that is the matter of the sacrament of matrimony is a sign of the indissolubility of Christ’s love. When the human love dissolves, the matter of the sacrament in that case ceases. Thus the couple is no longer a sign of that indissoluble love. The sacrament ceases. It is not the human love that is indissoluble, but Christ’s. The human love is but its sign. When the sign dies, when the love and self-gift ceases, the sacrament ceases. The couple no longer signs the ongoing reality of Christ’s love. One or both the man and woman can destroy this sign.

Gordo is presenting an argument for the Latin Catholic Church similar to that which has been long held by the Orthodox Church. A marriage can die. And when it does, one or both partners are free to attempt to sign that self-giving love with another. Divorce thus becomes the declaration of the death of a marriage, and remarriage becomes possible, because the self-giving love of Christ still seeks a living sacramental sign.

This understanding opens a new pastoral possibility. Access to the Eucharist for Catholics whose marriages have died becomes the healing for one or both persons to recover and again reach out in self-giving love. It is the Christ whose love never dies, whose union with us in the baptismal bond is indissoluble. Francis is asking that this pastoral mercy be discussed further in the Latin Church. Amoris Laetitia is not a final word, but a call for the Church to move forward in mercy. It is a call for the development of doctrine into the fullness of its truth as it is lived in the lives of the People of God.

 Carla Mae Streeter, OP is professor emerita of systematic theology and spirituality at Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis.

Three and Then Four?

As September comes, we look toward the harvest in the fields, and liturgically toward the fruit the Spirit has coaxed into ripeness in the spiritual gardens of our souls. We have just celebrated the Transfiguration of the sacred humanity of Jesus and the Assumption of the humanity of Mary, his mother. Both of these feasts point to what we ourselves shall be.

 As if the Church is deeply pondering this remarkable revelation, she offers us three more feasts of the Mother of God in this month: Mary’s birthday on September 8, the feast of her Holy Name on the 12^th, and then the feast of her Sorrows on the 15^th, right after the feast of the Holy Cross. Could the Church be trying to tell us something as the Sunday readings look for sweet fruit from us? Then, as though three were not enough, in the earlier calendars there was a fourth feast of Mary: Our Lady of Ransom on September 24. No longer on the liturgical calendar, this was the ancient feast of Our Lady of Mercy. It commemorated her concern for those enslaved, and often set to work as rowers on slave ships.

I suggest that this is no coincidence. Mary had a birthday, and so do we. She was named, and so are we. Her heart was broken in sorrow and grief, and so too is ours. Finally, in this Year of Mercy, she is still concerned about those of us enslaved. Whether it be by what we accumulate day by day, what fear paralyzes us, or what addiction wraps its chains around our will. It is time to look for the Spirit’s fruit, and we might be surprised at how much there is. We live our days in swift flow, wondering at times where the time has gone. Yet all the while the trees of our lives are blossoming and beginning bear the luscious fruits of kindness, joy, peace, patience, mildness, chastity and more, all being shaped by those quiet happenings in our unique situations. We often are all too aware of the fungus. But make no mistake: the fruit is there too. God brings it forth from the water of our tears and the sonshine of the love of the Word. So it was with this woman who shows us what we too will be one day. Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of mercy…our hope. Yes, indeed.

                                                            ************

Lady,

I bring you my soul’s garden.

Help me clear it of briars and brambles

that might suffocate the growth

the Spirit’s groaning has tried to bring forth.

Look upon my poor efforts

and bend down to wipe the sweat from my brow.

Drive away the grubs of doubt and the hungry beetles

of self-love that seek to consume what little I have to offer.

Take me on a tour, and show me what my tears have watered

From the broken vessel that I am.

Uncover for me what my humble prayers have produced

and what my patient suffering has sweetened.

Show me what you see.

Amen.

Why Mary???

Have you ever wondered why Mary, the Mother of Jesus, is so prominent in Dominican spirituality? Yes, there are the stories of Mary’s appearances, guiding Dominic in the foundation of the Order, and the use of the prayer beads that became the rosary, to give folks access to scripture before the printing press arrived in 1443. But why would Mary take such an interest, not only in the Dominicans, but in other Orders as well?

We might find a helpful clue from the lay woman Chiara Lubich, foundress of the Focolare Movement, who died recently in Rome. Chiara calls Mary the transparency of God. Her insight suggests that Mary’s present state as a risen human is something like a “see-through lady.” Her humanness has become the very radiance of God, who shows in her and through her. This would give us a hint of our very own future. Is that how it will be with us? Will the grateful love we have lived day by day, and the faithfulness we have struggled to maintain, be the agents of our transformation? Are we actually a partner in our own risen life? Is this our “wedding garment?”

It would be just like our merciful God, to use our very own love, faith, and hope, to make us new. In fact, this may be just what the Word does with each Eucharistic kiss. He may be about the work of transforming us into our own risen life like his own, for as Augustine says, we become what we eat, and he is a transformed human as risen.

So as we enter the time of harvest, the time when the fruits of the Paschal Mystery should be showing in the gardens of our souls, it might be a good practice to keep our eyes on our Mother. She shows us what we shall be when the pain is gone and the tears are wiped away. That’s Good News, and the essential element of being a Dominicans is about proclaiming the Good News.