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October 26, 2008

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Strangers No More

It has always seemed to me that there are three absolute essentials that all creatures need to sustain life. They will fight for these and defend them to the death: One is sexuality or the desire for a mate. The second is a place to be or exist, a piece of land. The third is food and water. Without these, no living creature nor the race itself lives very long. I do not, of course, claim precedence of one of these over the other because they all coalesce for the continuance of life itself. All creatures, individuals and the human race itself want nothing more than to live. Hence they will make every effort to keep and defend what pertains to their existence, what they feel is theirs: Food, mate and place.

There is also a living instinct in all creatures to protect what they feel is theirs because that means that they will be able to continue their species into the next generation. Ordinarily, the male of the species takes it upon him or itself to carry out this defensive task. If an enemy crosses their border, he or she will be toast or roast, if you please! If you lose your territory you face extinction. That is no small matter in the circle and continuation of life.

In the human community too this protective instinct becomes very evident in our effort to have a little piece of earth that we can call our own. So, to make sure that it continues to remain our own, we fence it in, we place “No Trespassing” signs on it.

In the larger context, individual countries put up missile defense systems on their borders. They build up atomic stockpiles. (One would think a single bomb would be enough, of course, but…)

Think too about gated communities that have guards on duty twenty-four, seven! What does that say? It says, “we’ve got ours and we like it here, so don’t even think about trying to circumnavigate that gate!”

Perhaps all this has to do with the fact that there is not sufficient land and resources at this point in world history to sustain life for all the creatures that inhabit this planet or this particular place on it.

So, what happens? People migrate to another place where there is hope of finding whatever will sustain their lives. (You see, it’s always a question of life.)

I suspect migration has been happening on the planet for as long as creatures have inhabited it. Along with this migration, of course, we have the “problem” of borders and defense systems. People want to get to their destinations no matter how difficult that proves to be. People, however, who already are located on that plot of land, do not want you coming in and taking away their life’s resources. Again, it’s a matter of survival.

It is becoming more and more evident in our own times that food is running short in many parts of the world and people are beginning to move around the world at an alarming pace. Remember how the Israelites migrated to Egypt in their own time?

In the North America, for instance, as we know so well, there has been a long debate in congress over immigration, especially from Latin American countries. Given that “threat”, the United States has been building fences and walls along its southern borders to keep migrants from crossing over without proper legal documents.

It is all a great anomaly, of course, because our country needs workers who are willing to do tasks that not many Americans are willing to do, and yet we make every effort to keep these people from crossing our border. We want lettuce, tomatoes, onions, grapes and all the rest but we’d rather not harvest them ourselves!

I realize that this is a very complicated issue and there is no one simple answer to it. Our country fears an overflow of migrants (traveling people) without having the resources like education, medicine, housing, et cetera to care for them.

And so, we come finally to the scriptures for this Sunday that speak so clearly in the gospel about love of neighbor and in Moses’ words in Exodus about not oppressing or molesting the alien in your midst.

The Israelites themselves, of course, were once themselves aliens in a foreign land and depended on the courtesy of strangers to keep themselves from starving.

The early New Testament Christians, Followers of the Way, also found themselves without home, land or place of worship when they were cast out of the synagogues.

In the history of our own country we have many examples of small religious communities that have migrated from the oppressive economic and religious conditions in Europe to a place where they could live and worship in peace.

With all that, therefore, what should we make of those scriptures that speak of “honoring the alien in your midst?”

It is my sense that, despite the apparent threat to borders, food, family and land that migration often brings with it, it still continues to be necessary to bring the word of God---the love and justice of God--- to bear on this aspect of the human condition. If the word of God does nothing more than to shame us into treating the neighbor as a person with dignity, that will be a start.

How often we hear the psalms speak, for instance, of the earth and its fullness as a gift of God. That it truly is. It belongs to us all and we all should have a generous mind and heart to make sure no one is left without the resources of water, food a plot of land and a family.

Now about the elephants, lions, tigers and the rest…I guess they will continue doing what they have been doing during their entire existence. With those of us who call ourselves “human”, of course, we have to have come up with a better solution to sustain life on this place we call earth.

The scriptures: Exodus 22: 20-26, 1 Thessalonians1: 5-10, Matthew 22:34-40

Posted by Cindy Lentine at 03:59 PM.

October 18, 2008

Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

We are finally coming to the end of this long political campaign and, of course, we have heard the two candidate’s positions on all sorts of issues. But there is always one issue that is more contentious than all others and that is taxes. Candidates do lot of dancing around that issue. If there is even a hint in their speeches that they might be thinking about raising taxes, you can be sure that they will have to carefully explain the reason. For sure, you won’t get elected simply on a platform of raising taxes.

However, if a candidate were brave and smart enough, he might suggest that taxes might not be such a bad idea after all. He would take the heat for that position, of course, but in reality, if this candidate’s time in office is to be successful he has to be truthful and admit that taxes in some form are for the good of the people.

The problem is that most folks want good roads, strong bridges, good police and fire protection but they don’t want to pay the taxes that provide for all this. “It’s not coming out of my pockets,” they will say. But of course you can’t have it both ways. If you want your road fixed, you have to pay for it somehow.

There is an example of this reluctance to pay taxes in the gospel for today. It seems that taxes have been a “curse” going back to Jesus’ time and much further. Historians say that Roman taxes were much higher then than they are today. Some of the money, of course, went into the coffers of the rich while the poor continued to exist in poverty.

At the same time, however, the Romans built their famous roads and their aqueducts that brought fresh water to the cities with money that came from taxes. So, taxes, as much as we might hate them, are good for something.

So, what was an issue with the scribes and their question to Jesus as to whether it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not. Actually, the taxes were not going directly to Caesar, but, for the Jewish people, the Roman state and Caesar were one and the same.

So, it’s a question about law: What is lawful according to the Torah. The Torah says, “Thou shalt not worship false Gods or graven images. For people in the Roman Empire, Caesar was a god. Every coin minted in the realm had his face on it.

So, the traditional Jewish scribes were in something of a bind: Would they be breaking the prescription of the Torah if they paid taxes?

They take the occasion, then, to ask Jesus for his teaching on the matter. It was all a scam, of course. If he said, “no, you can’t pay taxes to the emperor”, he would run a-foul of the Roman authorities. If he said, “Sure, go ahead and pay,” he could be accused of disobeying the Torah, something no loyal rabbi would want to teach.

The interesting part about the story is that Jesus asked his critics to show him a coin of the realm. And, of course, where did they find the coin of the realm? Right in their own pockets!! So, they were already breaking the Torah simply by carrying in their pockets the image of Caesar, and admitting in so many words, that they were worshipping Caesar simply by using the coin to pay taxes.

So, the scribes were trying to put Jesus into a box by answering either-or, but he outfoxed them by saying that it could be both-and. In other words, they needed to decide for themselves what belonged to Caesar and what belonged to God. Of course, had they been a little smarter, they would have said: “Well, actually, everything belongs to God, but at the same time, it’s nice to have nice clear water and smooth roads.

I suppose in our own time in history we might tend to say, “Well, hey it’s a no brainer; we can serve God and still pay our taxes with offending our conscience. We should be able to assume that what is good and just for us, even it comes from what the government offers us as a result of the paying of our taxes has to be spiritually legitimate.”

At the same time, there is still the question that must often bother us: Where do we stand on values? What is truly important in our lives, matters of the world or matters of the spirit? Being human and living in a secular world, there might be tendency for us to get caught up in “secularism” and to forget spiritual realities entirely. But it need not be so and should not be so. All things come from God and deserve our gratitude. Even the things that are purely worldly give glory to God. The way we use what is created should tell us where we stand vis-à-vis our God.

Given all that, the next time I pull a ten dollar bill out of my pocket and look at Alexander Hamilton’s image there on, I shall not be embarrassed to buy what I am buying because it is God and not Mr. Hamilton who provided the goods. God and Caesar should not have to be in competition, at least for the person who believes that God is still in charge.

The scriptures: Isaiah 45: 1. 4-6; 1 Thessalonians 1. 1-5; Matthew 22: 15-21

Posted by Cindy Lentine at 09:05 AM.

October 12, 2008

Twenty Eighty Sunday in Ordinary Time - RSVP

I have to admit that I have seldom been invited to any large public banquet in my life, like at the Whitehouse for instance. Of course, I’ve been invited to a lot of smaller banquets: Wedding banquets and post-baptismal banquets, and such and I loved them; they were always a lot of fun. Everybody was just enjoying the heck out of the occasion, kids running around, people giving toasts, et cetera.

But I also need to confess that I was once invited to a special banquet that I will never forget. Not at the White House, of course.

One day several years ago, Archbishop Schwietz, Archbishop of Anchorage, walks into my office and says: “Clem, we’re heading to Chicago!” “How come” I say?” He says, “Well, the Catholic Church Extension Society in Chicago (an old and well-known missionary support group) has decided to honor you with the prestigious missionary award, The Lumen Christi. So, I say again, “Wow, how come? I’m just a little guy in this big church?” And he says, “Listen, anybody who dedicates his retirement years to ministering to Catholics out in the bush, risking his life, flying around to little villages to bring the sacraments to people, is worth some recognition, don’t you think?” I say, “Well, I guess. When do we head down?” “End of September” he says. “Get your suit pressed and your shoes polished.” “Ok,” I say, “let’s do it.”

But let me pose this question: What would the Archbishop have said if I’d replied: “Well, you know, it’s really not that important to me. Besides, I’m sort of busy right now and I’m not really all that interested.” I’m sure the bishop would have said to me. “Clem, we’re going; this award is important to all the folks in the archdiocese and to me.”

Actually, I’m sure I would never have said, “I’m not interested.” That would have been an insult to
him and to the whole Archdiocese.

So, we go to Chicago and I get this nice award along with a banquet to which some Chicago church “notables” are in attendance, like 2 bishops and one cardinal. The wine is good and the dessert better. Of course, the Cardinal Archbishop said some nice things about me that I thought were a little bit exaggerated. But anyway, I was very gracious and thankful for the entire event.

So, the Archbishop and I come home with this nice piece of Waterford crystal that I put on my desk and everybody asks, “Hey, what’s that for?” And I say, “Well, it was for some stuff I did over the years. So, I was invited to this banquet, and I went, that’s the whole story!

But it occurs to me, after reading the Gospel for this 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time and listening to Jesus’ stories about people being invited to a banquet and refusing, that perhaps there is something especially important about nature of banquets. First of all, if you are invited, the host must feel that you have done something pretty important. Your acceptance and presence lends prestige to the host himself.

Secondly, banquets are always more than simply a time for folks to get dressed up in their finery, sit with important people, drink good wine and eat lobster.

There are reasons for banquets and it’s usually the host’s opportunity to honor someone for an important accomplishment. Presidents of the United States do this all the time: They honor sports characters, jazz bandleaders, people of literary or scientific accomplishment, et cetera. So, the honoree, and the host him/herself receive recognition.

For many centuries, of course, we Christians have described the Mass as the celebration of a banquet. Lots of people who come to the banquet do not always dress appropriately, of course, the wine may not be of the highest quality and the bread is only a small morsel that does nothing to satisfy one’s physical appetite.

Nonetheless, it is a banquet. It comes from the night that Jesus himself sat with some close friends at a small banquet, ate bread, drank wine and told stories so that they could remember him after he had gone. “Do this in memory of me,” he said. We call it Eucharist; the Eucharistic Banquet that Jesus invites us to share with him each Lord’s Day.

Ordinarily, of course, many Catholics come to this banquet we call the Mass. Many more, of course, seldom “show up.” It does not seem to bother them that they have been personally invited to this special banquet and have not responded to the invitation: “Do this in memory of me”

I have often thought that we might wish to discontinue using the word Mass to describe the Eucharist. Wouldn’t it sound more appropriate if we gave it the name: Sunday Eucharistic Banquet?

Nonetheless, whether the invited people prefer to come to the banquet or not, the invitation is always out there.

Perhaps, for many who do not attend the weekly banquet, Jesus is inviting them to remember him in some other way, in some other place. I’m sure Jesus is not offended, but we are the ones who are missing something important in not attending. Maybe we should just say “Lord, you know, I just couldn’t make it today, sorry about that. No offense meant.” How about if I see you next week, ok?” I’m sure Jesus would say, “Hey, y’all have a lot of stuff to do. Come when you can; I’m always around, ok?

The scriptures: Isaiah 25: 6-10; Philippians 4: 12-14; Matthew 22: 1-14

Posted by Cindy Lentine at 03:20 PM.

October 05, 2008

Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time - Getting the Message Across

George Carlin, the comedian, died a couple months ago. The history of his life was all over the newspapers and television. I had never actually listened to George’s routine. The word around was that his skits were a little “over the edge,” language-wise, so I decided I needed to listen to something that did not offend my sensibilities.

But as I read some of the stories on his life and his career, I discovered that, despite his language, he was a sincere and clever observer of life as we know it in the world. Many of his “one-liners” are still quoted today. Here are couple examples: “By and large language is tool for covering up the truth.” “Most people are not particularly good at anything.” “No one can be sure what a deserted area looks like.” “There ought to be at least one round state.” So, you get the idea.

George Carlin spent much of his adult life pointing out the absurdities of modern life and language. He was a master of what we call “the put-down.” In short, he used his speaking talents to get across a message to people, even those who did not particularly like the way he did it. In the end most folks had to admit that he had a point.

Language is one of those human tools that can have a long-lasting effect on our lives. The point, of course, is that “straight-forward” language seldom moves us to do anything. Take the daily news, for instance. It’s news and that is it. There is not much more that you can do with it. But humor, on the other hand, can make you think differently about life. The same is true of exaggeration or what Shakespeare called “damming with feint praise.” The point is that the hearers don’t always know that they are being criticized until they begin to think hard about it.

We have two examples of how two individuals used language to make a point without getting tomatoes thrown at them: One is Isaiah the prophet. The other is Jesus of Nazareth: Both tell stories with a hidden meaning that the listener is left to deal with when he “gets it.” In this case they are stories about a vineyard. “Let me sing you a song about a vineyard”, Isaiah says. And so he goes on to say that his friend cultivated the land, discarded the rocks, built a wine press and all the rest. The result? Nothing happened, the vineyard failed to produce.

Jesus tells a similar story of a man who planted a vineyard and left it out to renters, expecting lots of good wine at vintage time. What happens? The renters refuse to hand over the produce. So, the owner throws them out.

At first the hearers probably thought: “Well, hey, that’s a nice little story.” In fact, however, it wasn’t meant to be a story. It wasn’t a story about vineyards or winemaking at all. It was a critique of Israel’s way of life. Instead of making efforts to follow God’s law and be open to the needs of the people around them, they stuck their heads in the sand and paid no attention.

So, in both instances, the story tellers were using the “song of the vineyard” to say: “Folks, it’s all about you: You are the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts. God has an issue with you. You’re not producing. Get with it.”

We can see then that the best way to get a point of criticism across is to sneak it under the veil of a story or a song. People may not “get it” immediately, but once they do, they will know that they “have been had.” The implication will set in.

The implications for us today, of course, might be something like this: As Christians, how are we like a vineyard? Are we producing what Christians are expected to produce in this secular world around us? Does anybody really know that we Christians are still around? Are we serious about making a difference in the world? If not, perhaps the joke is on us. I just hope in our case it doesn’t take us too long to figure out the true meaning of the story.

The scriptures: Isaiah 5: 1-7; Philippians 4: 6-9; Matthew 21: 33-43

Posted by Cindy Lentine at 03:16 PM.