Monday, December 9, 2024

Immaculate Conception and the “Guadalupe Days” are Here

In the U.S.A., the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was moved to TODAY (because yesterday was the Second Sunday of Advent); today would ordinarily be the memorial of Saint Juan Diego, who first saw “La Virgencita” on Tepeyac hill outside of Mexico City on this day in 1531. In fact, the Immaculate Conception used to be celebrated on December 9 in some places in the Roman Church (and the Eastern churches celebrate “the Conception of Saint Anne” every year on December 9, incorporating ancient traditions about Mary’s parents). Juan Diego was actually traveling to Mass for this feast day when the Mother of God first appeared to him and commissioned him to be her “messenger” to the bishop.

Thus, the “Guadalupe Days” have begun once again, to culminate on December 12, when we commemorate the gift of Mary's image to the world, and in a particular way to the lands and peoples of the continents we call "America."

Note that the 500th Anniversary of Guadalupe is in 2031 (a mere seven years away). 

Nuestra SeƱora de Guadalupe can heal the wounds of our hemisphere and bring reconciliation and solidarity to our peoples. If we ask her, she will do it ... but she will make us her collaborators and we will have to work hard and be patient. Just ask Juan Diego about that!

Saturday, December 7, 2024

The Gentleness of Saint Ambrose

“The Lord sought [the increase of the Church] at the price of His own Blood, imitating the lovingkindness of heaven, and aiming at the redemption of all. [He] seeks this end with a gentleness which the ears of men can endure, in presence of which their hearts do not sink, nor their spirits quail.”

Therefore, the minister of the Church “who endeavors to amend the faults of human weakness ought to bear this very weakness on his own shoulders, let it weigh upon himself, not cast it off. For we read that the Shepherd in the Gospel carried the weary sheep, and did not cast it off… For how shall he offer himself to you for healing whom you despise, who thinks that he will be an object of contempt, not of compassion, to his physician? 

“Therefore the Lord Jesus had compassion upon us in order to call us to Himself, not frighten us away. He came in meekness, He came in humility, and so He said: ‘Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will refresh you.’ So, then, the Lord Jesus refreshes, and does not shut out nor cast off, and fitly chose such disciples as should be interpreters of the Lord’s will, as should gather together and not drive away the people of God. 

“Whence it is clear that they are not to be counted amongst the [faithful] disciples of Christ, who think that harsh and proud opinions should be followed rather than such as are gentle and meek; persons who, while they themselves seek God’s mercy, deny it to others…[for] no one can repent to good purpose unless he hopes for mercy.”

~Saint Ambrose, Concerning Repentance I:1

Wednesday, December 4, 2024

"He Will Destroy Death Forever"

"On this mountain [the Lord] will destroy the veil that veils all peoples, the web that is woven over all nations; he will destroy death forever. The Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces; the reproach of his people he will remove from the whole earth; for the Lord has spoken.

"On that day it will be said: 'Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us! This is the Lord for whom we looked; let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!' For the hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain."

~Isaiah 25:7-10

Monday, December 2, 2024

We Must BE VIGILANT to See the Fullness of Human Dignity

The Gospel for the First Sunday of Advent sets a crucially important tone for our Advent expectation, reminding us that we belong to Christ, that Christ is our hope. We are called to lift up our hearts to Him, to recognize our true identity and destiny in Him. Advent is a time to “stand up straight and raise our heads” in expectation of Christ’s coming, and the fullness of our redemption which will reveal the truth of every moment of our lives—the total meaning of our history and the joys and sorrows, the gifts and creative engagements, the suffering and endurance of our lives. This particularly intense Gospel passage deserves our meditation and reflection:

Jesus said to his disciples: “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand. 

“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that day will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth. Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:25-28, 34-36).

This season invites us to “run forward to meet” Jesus Christ who was born into this world, who lived and died for us, who conquered sin and death and is risen in His glorified humanity to draw all things to Himself. We are exhorted to “run forward to meet” Christ who comes to each of us in this moment, now, to empower us to see that the promise and the measure of this moment—of every moment—is His dwelling-with-us as the wondrous, unforeseen, incalculable gift of the Father’s infinite mercy and love.

We are also reminded to be vigilant and awake with welcoming hearts, with the hope and love that the Holy Spirit stirs up and sustains in us, and to guard against losing our focus on the face of Jesus. Advent reminds us that we must not allow our minds to be “weighed down” by distraction, discouragement, or forgetfulness of our supernatural destiny as co-heirs with Christ in the Kingdom of His Father.

The vigilant expectation of Jesus Christ “coming to us” and “dwelling among us” must be concrete and pervasive, transforming our minds and shaping the scope and criteria by which we judge every aspect of our lives. This does not mean reducing Christianity to an ideology that has pre-formulated answers to every concrete problem we face. Our faith certainly emphasizes and deepens our humanity, sheds light on the fundamental features of human dignity, and transforms our perspective and motivation for “loving our neighbor as ourselves.” It is natural for us to perceive that the human person in front of us is worthy of love. All people of good will—people who, although limited and fragile and often confused, seek the truth as something greater than themselves—are moved to express love and reverence for the dignity of every human person. Even if they are mistaken about the scope and demands of human dignity—even if their myopic and mistaken intentions lead to violent and tragic consequences that they do not yet recognize—people still know in the depths of their consciences that other human persons are their brothers and sisters who deserve respect, justice, equity, and a merciful love that opens up to the personhood and freedom of the “other.”

This basic loving recognition of human dignity (along with many mistaken judgments, confusion and sometimes violent failures to recognize human persons in specific circumstances) is common to Christians and people of other religions or other perspectives and “places” in their journey toward the truth—the mystery that gives ultimate meaning and purpose to human life. Our adherence to Jesus Christ, however, transforms the way we perceive and value human dignity. We have encountered the Mystery who has united human nature with Himself in a gratuitous outpouring of His love. By becoming fully human—like us in all things but sin—He has “consecrated” everything pertaining to human dignity. He has made our nature His own, as the gratuitous expression of His mercy and love that redeems and transfigures humanity. He has “in a certain sense united Himself with every human being” (see Gaudium et Spes 22). We know that every human person is made for Christ, and has the vocation to belong to Christ so as to share forever in the glory of the God who has revealed Himself as Absolute Love. The Holy Spirit wants to shape our experience so that we recognize ever more concretely that whatever we do to the least of our human brothers and sisters, we do to Christ. This is the truth about reality as it actually is, right now. It opens up, elevates, and transforms our perspective on “loving our neighbor” and “loving ourselves” out of the awareness that He loves us, that He is present, He is “with us” and that He “is coming” to transform us and ultimately fulfill us in Himself. 

His presence clarifies many of our responsibilities toward one another, but He doesn’t give us “all the answers” to every human difficulty we face in this life. He doesn’t give us an “absolute ideology” but rather draws us to a greater love. We do not yet see the whole of His plan for us, but we are given “new eyes”—the eyes of faith to recognize His presence among us and to welcome His “coming among us” in new ways. For this—the unfolding of our vocation, our journey toward His fullness—we must be vigilant with a ready expectation. However daunting and difficult the circumstances of His coming may be, we must trust the Holy Spirit to renew in us the vitality of faith, hope, and love (caritas) that empower us to recognize Him and respond to Him. For Christ comes among us especially in the poor and afflicted, and through them He begs for our recognition and love.

In light of this universally inclusive (i.e. Catholic) perspective on human dignity, I want to give special consideration this Advent to the global social crisis that involves hundreds of millions of migrants, refugees, and displaced persons. The unimaginable poverty of these human persons challenges my own worldly complacency and self-satisfaction. I don’t know how to “solve the problem” or relieve the countless miseries, but I don’t want to be careless, asleep, and disconnected from my brothers and sisters who suffer; I want to wake up and listen to the voice of Christ who begs for my love through them. I pray that His begging voice will awaken me, my fellow Catholic Christians, all other Christians, and the whole wider community of people of good will, to have a “preferential option” for these poor persons whose afflictions and needs are so evident, and to inspire in us vigilance, confidence, and creativity that overcome our fears and enable us to do whatever we can to respond to their cries (which are the cries of the Heart of Jesus). 

This call to attention and response—responsibility for the recognition of human dignity—addresses itself in a particular way to my nation and, in various ways, all the wealthy nations of the world. There are many Christians among us—good, generous Christians—who place their hope in Christ and seek to follow Him and show forth His glory in today’s world. We are especially called to vigilance in the present moment regarding many things, but it is illustrative to look at this one specific circumstance which we might be tempted to ignore or assess with reductive criteria that subtly set aside the ardor of the merciful love of the Heart of Jesus. 

I say this to myself as much as to anyone else: We must be vigilant. We must not become “drunk” on the illusions of worldly success, or on the fantasies of political and social leaders who promise to “make us great” according to the measure of this world—fragile and imperiled promises of “tribal self-affirmation” that inevitably require us to turn our backs on Christ present in our brothers and sisters in desperate need. They are the “Lazaruses” who long for scraps from our overfilled banquet tables: victims of violence and intractable circumstances of human misery, crying out to us who have been blessed with immense material wealth—with material comforts, technological riches, and power never before seen in the history of the human race. 

Advent reminds us that Jesus comes to us in the midst of these migrants and refugees who are our neighbors, and that Jesus in the poor makes a claim on us—He calls us to act responsibly with the wealth He has given to us who live in the rich nations of the world. This “claim,” as such, doesn’t require advocacy for any particular partisan political plan, much less agitation for “revolution” (which the bitter experience of the twentieth century has proven to be fruitless; it is another kind of “drunkenness” that forgets Christ and unleashes more violence). What is primary and fundamental is the need to recognize Christ in these suffering people so as to see and judge the problem as it really is, and to follow Him in being protagonists of creative responsibility that embodies the works of mercy, that seeks to generate spaces where people can make homes, reunite families, and find dignified work.

There is no denying that this is an enormous crisis that seems overwhelming in its implications. “Nations [are] in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves,” but in this case the roaring waves are millions of human persons, uprooted from their homes by war, indigence, persecution, and/or civil chaos that threatens the most basic requirements of human living. They are joined by immigrants who often come from very poor countries with the hope of a better way of life for themselves and their families even at the bottom rung of the economic ladder in rich neighboring countries. The disparity of lifestyle is enormous—some in Latin America have said about their North American neighbors that “your dogs live better than we do.” Having seen the poverty with my own eyes in several intensive visits to Latin America, I can only confirm that—at least for some people (too many people)—this statement is literally true. Certainly there are many organizations that work to help these people. Unfortunately, there are others who prey on their vulnerability.

This is an incredibly complex crisis that cannot be resolved quickly or easily. This is why we must be vigilant, we must “keep watch” for ways to open roads and spaces for Christian and human dignity. We must watch and pray, sacrifice and “co-suffer” with these people who are our brothers and sisters, seeing in them Christ who is “coming” to us. This does not mean we should join the most extreme ideological partisan movements, or surrender our rational capacity for prudential judgment and be taken in by facile or naive solutions that promise to “fix everything”; rather we must begin by remembering that we are searching for ways to welcome Christ in the stranger and give Christ in the homeless a place to live with dignity. He is the Lord of history even in these tumultuous times, and He will show us how to follow Him and accompany one another, enfolding us all in His Most Compassionate Heart, opening our eyes to His way of seeing and judging adequately all the problems we face in life. We must not be paralyzed by fear. “Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors to Christ” (Saint John Paul II)—Open wide the doors of our lives, our societies, our cultures, and every aspect of this wild, fascinating, perilous, unpredictable moment in history that He has entrusted to us. Open wide the doors to Christ! He “is the center of the cosmos and history” (John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis 1).

But in the disorganized and unmanageable movements of vast numbers of people, how can we not be afraid? In their anxiety, the rich nations fear being overrun, and they fear the lawless and violent elements that inevitably emerge or attach themselves to the desperation of the neglected poor. This points to a reasonable concern that cannot be ignored, but if it becomes the main criterion for judging the response of wealthy peoples to this huge and increasing human crisis of our times, then Jesus has been forgotten. A proper and reasonable concern for the common good in the regional spheres of this unprecedentedly interconnected world (with all its expansive possibilities and monstrous dangers) requires attention to restraining the criminal and violent elements, and international collaboration in seeking ways to reduce them or reform the problems that engender them and foster their growth. But anxiety will not help us; it will only make us obtuse in front of the full meaning of what is really happening. We must bring these cares, these deeply human concerns about our world to Him, trust in Him, and ask Him to enlighten our minds and enlarge our hearts.

We must be vigilant here, to see the face of Jesus and the dignity of the human person in need, and (in whatever way we can) to serve Him in them. This is a mentality that cannot (and must not) be reduced to any of the misperceptions and more-or-less dehumanizing strategies of any party on the current political spectrum. Be vigilant. Don’t become “drowsy” with the drunkenness of false enthusiasm for the “greatness” of our own “tribe,” or discouraged by the dark paralysis of anxiety in the face of an impossible danger. Christ is coming, and He knows what He is asking of us. Let us turn to Him and allow Him to renew our perspective on all things, with confidence that all things belong to Him and are expressions of His merciful love.

This pertains to everything in our lives and in death itself. We have joys, sorrows, and tribulations, but we grow in all things by adhering to Jesus, by staying with and walking with the One who has loved us and who is coming to save us.

Sunday, December 1, 2024

Advent 2024

Advent 2024 begins. “Show us, Lord, your love; and grant us your salvation.”


Saturday, November 30, 2024

Saint Andrew the “First-Called”

The Gospels give us various accounts of the details and circumstances in which Jesus began his public ministry and called his disciples. They include extraordinary events and memorable gestures. But there is one story that is remarkable precisely because it seems so “ordinary.” We might easily miss its significance.

John’s Gospel makes a brief, mysterious reference to the day when he and Andrew met Jesus for the first time (John 1:35-41). The context of this event is important: it takes place a day after John the Baptist’s testimony regarding “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29). The story involves two disciples of John the Baptist, one identified as Andrew. The other disciple is not named, but the familiar nature of the account has generally favored the assumption that it was the author of the Gospel himself, Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist. Scripture scholars have various theories about his identity, and about how to integrate the multiple “vocational narratives” (in different Gospels) regarding the famous fisherman and family business partners Peter and Andrew, John and James. We cannot address these theories here. It suffices to note that the relatively humble status of running a fishing business based in Galilee would not have prevented these men from joining the large “popular movement” that John the Baptist engendered. It was precisely the “ordinary people” who followed the Baptist, passed through the waters of the Jordan, and took his preaching to heart. This is a story about two such people:

“The next day John [the Baptist] was there again with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God.’ The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them, ‘What are you looking for?’ They said to him, ‘Rabbi’ (which translated means Teacher), ‘where are you staying?’ He said to them, ‘Come, and you will see.’ So they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about four in the afternoon.  Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus. He first found his own brother Simon and told him, ‘We have found the Messiah’” (John 1:35-41).

What happened here? Two men follow Jesus. A brief conversation. They stay with Jesus. It was four in the afternoon. But then Andrew seeks out his brother and says, “We have found the Messiah!”

Why was his heart so moved, so engaged, so convinced about this man he had just met? Jesus had no disciples yet. No miracle is recounted here (the fish-catching episode would come later). Andrew hardly knows what “Messiah” means (and it will take a long time for him and the others to learn) but he knows something after this first encounter with Jesus. It’s enough to change his life, and lead him to share what he and ‘the other disciple’ have found.

What happened, on that day, at four o’clock in the afternoon?

It was a human encounter in which Andrew and John met the Person through whom and for whom they had been created, the Word made flesh.

It was the beginning of the story of conversion, the story of meeting Jesus, following Jesus and sharing him with others.

Friday, November 29, 2024

The Conversion of Dorothy Day

This brief account of the Servant of God Dorothy Day’s conversion to Christ in the Catholic Church was published in my monthly column in Magnificat way back in October 2017. After many decades of prayer and service to the poor, Dorothy Day died on November 29, 1980.

Dorothy Day tells her own conversion story in the first part of her beautiful, soul-searching memoir, The Long Loneliness. She was born in 1897 in Brooklyn, and she grew up in different cities in the United States as the family followed the fortunes of her father who was a newspaper reporter. Though there was no religion at home, Dorothy was exposed to Christianity at a very early age by her neighbors. She was an avid reader who studied the Bible and was baptized Episcopalian, and she believed in Christianity as a youth. She also read the literature of her time, often dealing with the plight of the poor, whom she saw all around her in the urban environment of those days. The twofold attraction to Jesus and to the poor was present in her life almost from the beginning.

In college, however, Dorothy became disillusioned with Christianity because so many Christians seemed to ignore the poor. She joined socialist and anarchist circles, becoming a reporter for their journals in New York. While Dorothy writes with admiration of the sacrifices and generosity of her non-believing friends, she admits that she herself lived a self-centered life and indulged her own desires. She had several love affairs, and in 1918 became pregnant and had an illegal abortion. Dorothy wanted to be a radical, but she wondered whether for her it was anything more than a justification for dissolute living. Meanwhile she was still drawn by God, and sometimes visited Catholic churches in New York where she found a sense of peace and also – at every Mass or devotion or anytime during the day – the poor on their knees before God, the poor she wanted to love (so many of whom, at that time, were immigrants from southern and eastern Europe).

Writing brought Dorothy some modest financial success. She bought a beach house in Staten Island and entered into a stable though irregular union with an anarchist named Forster Batterham. For several years she lived a quiet life surrounded by natural beauty, but she found that the measure of human happiness she experienced did not take away her desire to know God. Instead it heightened her desire to show gratitude to the Creator of all good things. When she became pregnant in 1925, she knew that she had to raise her child as a Christian. She turned to the place where she had always seen Christianity in a concrete form, shaping the lives of poor people every day, the Catholic Church.

Dorothy met a gruff but kind retired Sister of Charity (Sister Aloysia) who taught her the Catechism (and eventually became her godmother). She had her baby daughter baptized, but hesitated herself for another year because of Forster’s objections to organized religion. She realized they would have to be separated if she became Catholic, but she eventually chose to follow God and entered the Church. She was also following God’s poor, even though many Catholics—like other Christians—did not seem to care much about them. Dorothy, however, had seen them in the churches and known them in the slums. She knew that it was the will of Christ to serve Him in the poor and defend their dignity. This became the source of her immensely fruitful vocation to found the Catholic Worker movement.

Wednesday, November 27, 2024

Transfigured By the Presence of God

In our world immersed in the sadness of wars and multiple crises, let us announce the joy of the Gospel through our lives transfigured by the presence of God” (Pope Francis).

This quotation is very profound and significant. It challenges not only nations and political leaders, but every one of us. 

The crucial necessity in “announc[ing] the joy of the Gospel” is our own ongoing experience of a life-changing encounter with Jesus. People will be drawn to Christ by our living in a new way. The grace of the Holy Spirit who has been given to us is also working mysteriously in the heart of every person we meet. 

Everyone searches for “meaning.” The meaning, significance, and purpose that every human being seeks has become a man, Jesus Christ. We are best able to communicate this “good news”—this wondrous event of the Word coming to dwell with human beings and remaining with us—by asking God to empower us to live the Gospel in every encounter with the human person. 

The Lord—Pope Francis reminds us—wants to make us sharers in His eternal life, which we already begin to live by grace here and now in the present age. We are being transformed in Christ even as we journey with Him on the roads of this world. Jesus calls us to bear witness to His Gospel by the way we live our lives, by the freedom and joy we find in doing His loving and merciful will; we must evangelize “through our lives transfigured by the presence of God.”

Here are some creative illuminations of the Pope’s words:



Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Late Autumn Maples Leaves in Dappled Sunlight

Our Autumn season might not be as brilliant and vivid as in the Northeastern United States, but it makes up for it by being long in duration. 
Our deciduous trees and plants have different seasonal rhythms. Many of them turn colors and their leaves begin to fall and carpet the ground in late October/early November. Still, they are not “in a hurry,” and mostly-bare trees still wear some of their remaining leaves throughout the month of November. Meanwhile, other species (like the large maple tree in my front yard) wait until the first round of Fall colors wain, and then their leaves finally begin to let go of a summer’s worth of stubborn green. The large Maple trees flame out in bright yellow and orange leaves that remain impressive through the early days of December. 

This was a lovely, mild day. As the nearly setting sun reached through the hills to adorn our Maple tree branches with dappled brightness, I took this picture with my phone camera. I decided that there was no need for my [digital] art to work further on this image. Nature is the artist in these circumstances, and one wishes as much as possible that the fine details of Nature’s own work might be seen with minimal human interference.

This blog has watched many Autumn seasons come and go over the years, and will continue to do so—God willing—for many years into the future.

Cultivating attention to this kind of beauty requires focus and patience. It whispers the inexhaustible goodness that surrounds us everywhere.

Sunday, November 24, 2024

Jesus Christ the King

We have reached the last Sunday of the liturgical year, wherein we honor the Kingship of Jesus Crucified, Risen, and Glorified.

Pope Francis shared these words with us.

Saturday, November 23, 2024

Saint Cecilia and the “Gladness” of Music

"The Lord is our savior; we shall sing to stringed instruments in the house of the Lord all the days of our life" (Isaiah 38:10).

Yesterday was Saint Cecilia's Day, and I am sending out thoughts and prayers especially to all my musician friends. In many cultures this day is celebrated as “Music Day.” 

Saint Cecilia—who was another heroic young woman who loved Jesus and gave everything for Him—is the third century Roman martyr who “praised the Lord in song.” In iconography (such as we have here) Cecilia is often depicted carrying a musical instrument, in this case a miniature pipe organ. Her connection to music stems from an experience given to her by God, but she is something more than an abstract symbol. As the patroness of music, Saint Cecilia is, in the presence of God, the friend and helper of all musicians and singers. The music that the Lord gave her in the depths of her soul—which she alone could hear—resounds in the ancient chants and later musical compositions that enrich the liturgical prayer of the Church. It also echoes within all the music written by composers or recorded by music ensembles that raises us beyond ourselves and reminds us of the wonderful and inescapable longing of our hearts. Even in distant and/or obscure performances, music “tries to remind us” that we are made for God.

I would have liked to have written something more specific about music, but I don’t have the energy right now. It’s a topic that means so much to me that I would have to give it more thorough attention, and I don’t feel capable of doing this kind of work right now. Perhaps I will write something before Christmas or during the Christmas season, so “stay tuned.”

The Collect Prayer for this feast reflects that it “gladden[s] us,” and these words articulate the special joy of this day. It’s a feast day that brings us the gladness that music engenders within our hearts, and so much more. Music can be a beautiful instrument of God’s grace, and it also can express all the urgency of the human search for the Mystery that gives meaning to everything.

O God, who gladden us each year
with the feast day of your handmaid Saint Cecilia,
grant, we pray,
that what has been devoutly handed down concerning her
may offer us examples to imitate
and proclaim the wonders worked in his servants by Christ your Son.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.

Amen. Saint Cecilia, pray for us!

Thursday, November 21, 2024

Ukraine: A Thousand Days of Suffering… and Love

In this week’s General Audience, Pope Francis commemorated the 1000th day of Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine (which was Tuesday, November 19) by sharing with the whole Church and the world an extraordinary testimony that was sent to him by a young person in Ukraine. It refers specifically to the Pope’s frequent references to the terrible suffering inflicted on the Ukrainian people in these past 1000 days of war. The writer wanted Francis to emphasize that the suffering of Ukrainians is not simply a passive affliction. Through their faith in Jesus Christ, suffering Ukrainians are learning to love in more profound ways: to love God, one another, their country, and even—perhaps—to love their enemies and persecutors.

This student’s experience indicates the grace of God that is being poured out on Ukraine at this time, a grace that is sustaining the faith of many Ukrainians and shaping their mentality (even if only a few might speak as this student does). Perhaps we may hope that Ukraine might emerge from this terrible ordeal with a new kind of patriotism, a new way of understanding and experiencing their national identity as a form of love and solidarity that reflects the light of the Gospel, as a special commitment to a more human way of living born of the transformative reality of faith—a way of living that is a blessing for the whole world.

Here is the text of Pope Francis reading this great and moving letter:

I received a letter from a young Ukrainian university student. It reads: "Father, when, on Wednesday, you remember my country and are able to speak to the whole world on the thousandth day of this terrible war, I ask you not to speak only of our suffering but also of our faith. Although it is imperfect, that does not diminish its value, because it paints, with painful strokes, a portrait of the Resurrected Christ. There have been too many deaths in my life recently. It is difficult to live in a city where a missile kills and wounds dozens of civilians, and you are witness to so many tears. I would have liked to flee, would have liked to go back to being a child in my mother's arms, would have liked to remain in silence and in love, but I thank God because, through this pain, I am learning greater love. Pain is not only a road to anger, and despair, if based on faith, it is a good teacher of love. Father, if pain makes you suffer, it means that you love. And so, when you speak of our pain, when you remember our thousand days of suffering, speak of our thousand days of love, too, because only love, faith, and hope give a real meaning to our wounds."

Wednesday, November 20, 2024

Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai and the End of the Free Press

The Orwellian nightmare of Hong Kong’s implosion continues…

What does the imposition of dictatorship on a free society “look like”? Hong Kong shows us, among other things, that legitimate actions are retroactively criminalized and nonviolent reasonable opposition figures are subjected to mass arrests and imprisonment. 

We have just seen the “miscarriage of justice” against the “Hong Kong 45.” Today, Jimmy Lai took the stand in his own defense in the other ongoing Hong Kong “Show Trial.” His “crime”? Publishing an independent newspaper, the Apple Daily, that was the trustworthy news source for millions of Hong Kong people during the pro-democracy movement (between 2014 and 2020). 

The newspaper was shut down by the Chinese Communist Party’s imposition of its “National Security Law.” As the head of an independent media organization (i.e. a “free press” as guaranteed by Hong Kong’s Basic Law), Jimmy Lai spoke with foreign leaders, including the USA Vice President and Secretary of State. Now he is accused of “colluding with foreign forces to subvert Hong Kong’s government.” 

The 76-year-old—who came to Hong Kong as a young man fleeing the madness of Chairman Mao’s “Cultural Revolution” (who came as a “refugee”)—built up his lucrative business from many years of hard work, during which time he also encountered Christ and converted to the Catholic faith. If convicted (or, rather, WHEN convicted), he faces life imprisonment. He once commented that he hoped prison would give him the time to read many books that he’s always wanted to read.

Pray for Jimmy Lai. Pray for Hong Kong. Pray for China—where 1/6th of the human race lives and suffers oppression, where the dignity of the human person is violated every day by the Fascist-Leninist PartyState.

Tuesday, November 19, 2024

November’s “Autumn Impressions”

“More Autumn Impressions” (mid-November 2024). 

I have been sharing the inspirations of Fall on social media since 2014, via photos, videos, and various explorations in digital art. I’ll never get tired of it!šŸ˜‰



Monday, November 18, 2024

Hong Kong: The “Politics of Suffering”

The “trial” has finally been brought to a conclusion, and the “HONG KONG 45” have all received jail sentences. What this ruling means is that legitimate, nonviolent efforts by the pro-democracy movement to participate in the political process in Hong Kong are now regarded as a “threat to national security.” It would seem that all hope is lost for a “self-governing” Hong Kong free from the harsh and heavy hand of the Chinese Communist PartyState. 

But suffering injustice with patience is the hidden strength of nonviolent resistance to dictatorship. I remember in 1983 when Communist Poland declared martial law and put the leaders of the “Solidarity” movement in jail. None of us could have imagined the changes that were soon to come. 

Let’s pray for people like Benny Tai and Joshua Wong (pictured above); let’s continue to stand with them, remember them, “co-suffer” with them (in whatever small ways we can). May justice and the dignity of the human person prevail in Hong Kong, Ukraine, Sudan, the Middle East, Russia, China, and in our own nations—through the wisdom and goodness and merciful love of God.

Open this LINK to learn more by reading the BBC article cited in the picture.

Sunday, November 17, 2024

“My Words Will Not Pass Away”

As we approach the end of the liturgical year, we contemplate eschatology and the ultimate kingship of Jesus Christ who is Lord of history and Savior of the human race, who has poured Himself out in love and mercy so that we might find freedom from sin and its illusions, and fulfillment in sharing His eternal life with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Pope Francis spoke beautifully at the Angelus of November 17 about the words of Jesus in the Sunday Gospel. Death and the end of all things can appear traumatic and terrifying, but Jesus has promised that He will remain with us. If we hold fast to Him, He will lead us through every trial to the fulfillment of the Kingdom where God will be all, in all. In His wisdom and goodness we will find—renewed and transformed—the meaning of everything in this present life that is shaped by His mercy and His companionship, all the mysterious ways by which He draws us to Himself.

Here are some of Francis’s words from the Angelus:

In the Gospel of today’s liturgy, Jesus describes a great tribulation: “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light” (Mk 13:24). Faced with this suffering, many might think of the end of the world, but the Lord seizes the opportunity to offer a different interpretation, saying: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Mk 13:31).

We can take a closer look at this expression: what will pass and what will remain.

First of all, what will pass. In some circumstances in our life, when we are going through a crisis or experience some failure, as well as when we see around us the pain caused by wars, violence, natural disasters, we have the feeling that everything is coming to an end, and we feel that even the most beautiful things pass away. Crises and failures, however, though painful, are important, because they teach us to accord everything its due weight, not to attach our hearts to the realities of this world, because they will pass: they are destined to fade away.

At the same time, Jesus talks about what will remain. Everything passes away, but His words will not pass away: Jesus’ words will remain for eternity. He thus invites us to trust in the Gospel, which contains a promise of salvation and eternity, and not to live under the anguish of death. For while everything passes away, Christ remains. In Him, in Christ, we shall one day find again the things and people who have passed away and who have accompanied us in our earthly existence. In the light of this promise of resurrection, every reality takes on a new meaning: everything dies and we too will one day die, but we will lose nothing of what we have built and loved, because death will be the beginning of a new life.

Brothers and sisters, even in tribulations, in crises, in failures, the Gospel invites us to look at life and history without fear of losing what ends, but with joy for what will remain. Let us not forget that God is preparing for us a future of life and joy.

Thursday, November 14, 2024

“Do Not Go Off, Do Not Run In Pursuit…”

Jesus said, “The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.” Then he said to his disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. There will be those who will say to you, ‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’ Do not go off, do not run in pursuit. For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation” (Luke 17:20-25).

Wednesday, November 13, 2024

Mother Cabrini: An "American Immigrant"

Francesca Cabrini (1815-1917) was the first "naturalized" U.S.A. citizen to be canonized (she was born in Italy). Immigrants of those days loved "Mother Cabrini," who took care of them and showed them the face of Jesus.

"Prayer is powerful! It fills the earth with mercy, it makes the Divine clemency pass from generation to generation; right along the course of the centuries wonderful works have been achieved through prayer" (Saint Francesca ["Frances"] Cabrini, feast November 13).

God our Father, who called Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini from Italy to serve the immigrants of America, by her example, teach us to have concern for the stranger, the sick, and all those in need, and by her prayers help us to see Christ in all the men and women we meet.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.

--Collect, November 13

Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Saint Josaphat: Sign of Hope For Ukraine

Today marks an important feast day especially for Ukrainian Byzantine Catholics, who are not only suffering along with all Ukrainians the ongoing brutal attacks of Russian aggression, but also face even now religious repression in every part of Ukraine that Russia illegally occupies. Saint Josaphat Kuncevic was the first modern Ukrainian Catholic martyr, but by no means the last.


Josaphat followed the Metropolitan Archbishop of Kiev and a group of Ukrainian and Belorussian bishops who entered into full communion with Rome in 1598. The “Union of Brest” preserved the Byzantine liturgy and the spirituality and practices of the Byzantine tradition while also recognizing the juridical primacy of the Bishop of Rome for the Universal Church. From this reunion were born what are today known as the Ukrainian Byzantine Catholic Church and the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church.

At the beginning of the Seventeenth Century, the reunion was an occasion of great controversy among the population and clergy. Josaphat himself became a Byzantine Catholic Bishop and worked tirelessly not only in defense of the Papacy, but also to reform the clergy according to the great heritage of the Eastern Church and to catechize the common people and serve them. Many were drawn by his preaching as well as his humility and holiness, but others opposed him vehemently, preferring the benefits of patronage that local nobility gave to the orthodox churches.

Saint Josaphat sought Church unity with great fervor, but also great charity. He knew that his enemies were plotting his death, yet he remained among his people to guide them and, as much as possible, resolve disputes and overcome the violence of his enemies with the nonviolence of Christian love.

On November 12, 1623, he was put to death by a lynch mob of his enemies.

“You people want to kill me. You wait in ambush for me in the streets, on the bridges, on the highways, in the marketplace, everywhere. Here I am; I came to you as a Shepherd. You know I would be happy to give my life for you. I am ready to die for union of the Church under Saint Peter and his successor, the Pope” (Saint Josaphat).

Saint Josaphat, pray for us. Pray for the unity of all Christians. Pray for the reunion of Christians East and West. Pray for a just and lasting peace for the people of Ukraine, and a renewal of their fidelity to Jesus Christ and commitment to human dignity.

Saturday, November 9, 2024

Communion and Solidarity for All of “America”

The popular elections for the President of the United States of America are over. I have carried out my very small task on behalf of the candidate of the American Solidarity Party, a political movement that represents ideals that need to grow—in my opinion—if the United States is to survive as a nation. For all its colossal wealth, power, and influence, the United States is only one of the nations on this great hemispheric continent (north, central, and south) that constitutes the proper reference point for the term “America.” In my opinion, the tumultuous and in many ways transitional times in which we live constitute a challenge for all the nations of “America” to recognize the bonds they share and to live in greater solidarity. Through such a solidarity and communion, “America”—from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego—might one day become “great” in its contribution to the long history of humanity.

Jesus Christ is the Lord of history, and His Mother Mary has taken up a unique kind of “presence” at the geographical center of this “America,” through her astonishing and scientifically inexplicable image on the hill of Tepeyac at the edge of Mexico City: Our Lady of Guadalupe.

In January 1999, I traveled to Mexico for the closing of the “Synod on America,” where Pope Saint John Paul II presented the fruit of the dialogue carried out by bishops from all over the hemispheric continent. He proposed that American solidarity had not only an evangelical significance, but also a temporal significance in its increasing interdependence and in the responsibilities of the rich nations to help their poorer neighbors. I think this event of 25 years ago was a prophetic moment. It is a light for judging the larger context of our particular circumstances, and a great encouragement for prayer. Our Lady of Guadalupe, Queen of America—of all of America—pray for us.

Some words from Saint John Paul II’s Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in America (1999):

I asked that the Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops reflect on America as a single entity, by reason of all that is common to the peoples of the continent, including their shared Christian identity and their genuine attempt to strengthen the bonds of solidarity and communion between the different forms of the continent's rich cultural heritage. The decision to speak of ‘America’ in the singular was an attempt to express not only the unity which in some way already exists, but also to point to that closer bond which the peoples of the continent seek and which the Church wishes to foster as part of her own mission, as she works to promote the communion of all in the Lord...

“The Church is the place where men and women, by encountering Jesus, can come to know the love of the Father, for whoever has seen Jesus has seen the Father (cf. John 14:9). After his Ascension into heaven, Jesus acts through the powerful agency of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete (cf. John 16:17), who transforms believers by giving them new life. Thus they become capable of loving with God's own love, which ‘has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us’ (Romans 5:5). God's grace also enables Christians to work for the transformation of the world, in order to bring about a new civilization, … ‘the civilization of love’”

Friday, November 8, 2024

“I Shall See the Bounty of the Lord”

Jesus came to announce the coming of the Kingdom of God, and to initiate it Himself by atoning for sin and overcoming the limitations of this earthly life through His death and resurrection. Insofar as we love God’s wisdom and goodness, we will not feel entirely “at home” in this present life. 

We are called to follow Jesus, and when we work for goodness, justice, and peace in this world, we do so as instruments of His love and mercy. We are called to show forth the glory of Christ in the midst of whatever circumstances we live in—however difficult and confusing they may be—confident in the Holy Spirit that God will bring to fruition all that He has promised.


Wednesday, November 6, 2024

Summer in November!


Meanwhile, in "news" that has nothing to do with the U.S.A. elections, IT'S EIGHTY DEGREES today... in November... in the Northern Hemisphere!šŸ˜³

To make that comprehensible to the rest of the world, we're talking about 26.7 degrees Celsius.

Tuesday, November 5, 2024

“Our Citizenship is in Heaven”

Four years ago, I posted this New Testament text, in which Saint Paul reminds the early Christians of Philippi that the common mentality in the society in which they live is not the source and measure of their identity. But Paul doesn’t propose merely replacing the human social mores of first century Asia Minor (which were in some ways analogous to the attitudes of the dominant culture in the USA today) with a “better” mentality—an attitude that might be less shameless and more “respectable,” but still founded on a preoccupation with “earthly things.”

Saint Paul reminds the Philippians that their identity as Christians already establishes them as citizens of the New Creation, because they are incorporated into the Risen Christ and live in the hope of His glory. Here and now they participate in the “first fruits” of the Kingdom of God by the grace of the Holy Spirit and in the “hastening” of His final coming by living and sharing the Gospel they have received. What they have received—what we Christians have received—is a gift of grace that is the truth of the destiny of every person and of the whole of creation. Our identity and the purpose of our lives every day, is to cooperate with the Lord by allowing His presence, His glory, and His mercy to shine through our whole humanity, so that He might draw others to Himself.

That is who we are. We belong to Christ on election day and on every other day. Let us not be distracted by earthly power, or drawn into forgetfulness by its idolatrous pretences. Let us not be discouraged by the inevitable disappointments and failures of earthly things, earthly societies, earthly powers.

“Our citizenship is in heaven” with Jesus Christ our Savior.

"Many, as I have often told you and now tell you even in tears, conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction. Their God is their stomach; their glory is in their 'shame.' Their minds are occupied with earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified Body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, beloved" (Philippians 3:18 - 4:1).

Sunday, November 3, 2024

Autumn Evenings Cut Short (But Colors Remain)

“Goodbye Evening Sunshine” (November 2, 2024). 

See you in… February, maybe? This is the weekend to set back the clocks one hour (or, in most cases, allow your digital devices to do it for you automatically). 

This means that #WinterDarkTimeBegins and cuts off those evening hours when I like to walk. I’ll have to pay attention to the time during the day, otherwise—BOOM!—it’s dark before 5:30 P.M. The clock set-back also signals that time of year when the suns dips rapidly into shorter days leading up to the Winter Solstice. That's okay when Christmas is drawing near, but the sudden "shortening" of days in November is always a challenge to people whose moods are sensitive to the seasons (like mine).

Of course, we do have a few more weeks of colorful leaves coming up. Which reminds me that I should “dump” some other examples of Autumn vistas and impressions—in photography and/or digital art—that JJStudios has created this Fall (including the image featured above). Here are some more examples from last month, in no particular order: