A Thought for the Week
August 30, 2008
Twenty Second Sunday in Ordinary Time - Taking the Heat
Most folks in Chicago’s South Side remember vividly the events that occurred at the Church of St. Sabina this past summer. Father Michael Pfleger, pastor there for the past 30 years, incurred the wrath of some Chicago Catholics for remarks he made at a neighboring non-Catholic church regarding Hillary Clinton’s nomination for President. Events became so heated that Cardinal George decided to give Father Pfleger two weeks off for rest and reflection.
Several points must be noted, however. First, Michael Pfleger is white although people say he thinks and preaches like black pastor.
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Posted by Cindy Lentine at 01:58 PM.
August 24, 2008
Twenty First Sunday in Ordinary Time - Striking Resemblance
During a visit to my home in North Dakota last summer for the celebration of my 50th anniversary of ordination, our extended family gathered for a picnic where we discussed “old times.” Part of the afternoon was spent digging out photos and commenting on what we looked like in those days.
Fortunately, my dear sister had managed to find an early group photo of some grade school students all lined up on the steps of the school that all of us eventually attended. We looked closely at each youngster, trying to remember a name that would go with a face.
Suddenly, someone said, “Hey, Father Clem, here’s a picture of your dad and his two sisters.” And so it was! Someone else said: “You know, you still look just like your dad, same facial features and all.” I looked closely at it but I could not see any resemblance at all. Later, I took the photo home and looked at it more closely. Then I looked in the mirror and finally I said to myself: “By golly, there is a resemblance there.” Hmmm.
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Posted by Cindy Lentine at 09:05 AM.
August 17, 2008
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Never Give Up!
We can say many wonderful things about the human spirit: We love, we are compassionate, we are sometimes angry, we sometimes cry out for joy or out of sadness, we defend righteousness, we defend those in whom we believe. Most of all, however, we never give up, even if we feel that our cause has no chance of success.
It all starts even when we are little children: “Ma, can I have another cookie?” No!” “Ma, I have to go to the bathroom!” “Go!” “Dad, may I have the car for the prom?” “I’ll think about it.” Mom, is this dress too risqué?” “Would you wear it to church?”
Think too about congressmen and women who speak endlessly in favor of some political issue? Do they always win their causes? Sometimes yes, mostly no, but does that keep them from pressing on? Not at all. Think about Hillary Clinton and her plea for universal health care! Issues, therefore, are often personally important to them; so, they seldom give up. The fact that they persisted through hours of debate tells you where their passions are
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Posted by Cindy Lentine at 11:36 AM.
August 10, 2008
The 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Discovering Silence
In the year 1984, the German filmmaker, Philip Groning, sent a letter to the abbot of the Carthusian order at the Grand Chartreuse, deep in the French Alps. He asked if it might be possible for him to come to the monastery and film the daily course of their monastic schedule. He would not interfere with their personal lives; He just wanted to be among the monks to get a sense of what the life of silence and penance might look like to an outsider and why an individual might choose to practice it in such a severe form.
The abbot wrote to Mr. Groning and said that he would consult with his brother monks and get back to him. He did, indeed, get back to him but only after a lapse of 16 years! Of course, the life of Carthusian monks does not move very swiftly. They are not going anywhere soon.
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Posted by Cindy Lentine at 03:25 PM.
August 02, 2008
The 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Free Lunch?
There are two old sayings most of us may remember: No Free Lunch and The Best Things in Life are Free. The modern world, of course, would insist that the former is true: If you can’t pay for it, you don’t get it! The idealists among us, on the other hand, would claim that there is enough of everything for everyone to have at least a small portion.
Other idealists would add that material things are not necessarily the most precious commodities in life. So, how do the ideal and the so-called real worlds deal with these questions?
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Posted by Cindy Lentine at 12:39 PM.
July 26, 2008
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - True Treasure
When I lived in Anchorage, Alaska, I could always tell when spring was near. It wasn’t the disappearance of the snow or the appearance of trash that had been lying beneath it all winter. Actually, it was not even the first sight of the tulips I had planted last September. The first clue I would notice was always the ragged, ill-conceived and poorly-constructed signs on the corner of my street: Garage Sale, Moving Out of Town Sale, Yard Sale, Everything Must Go . Some are fairly creative, but most were probably hastily put together in someone’s kitchen a half hour before they were placed on a wobbly stick for all to see.
Garage sales are so common and so frequent in the summer months we hardly even think much of them. For those of us who do not frequent such mercantile ventures, they mean little. However, for others, they are a way of life. Some folks spend an entire Saturday driving from one home to another searching for that one piece of treasure that will make all the difference in their lives. They are rarely very costly, but they mean something to this person, something to take home and be stored in the garage or the basement until it’s time to take the piece and sell it at another next garage sale!
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Posted by Cindy Lentine at 09:34 AM.
