Archives for October 2021

Dear Friends:

After nearly two years of “caution to the point of exhaustion,” people are finally taking their first, tentative steps toward re-establishing the bonds of friendship. Even then, one feels a twinge of…something. Is it the danger of acquiring—or worse, passing on—an illness? Or is it guilt at having fun when so many are ill, or locked in, or under the crush of financial/work-related burdens? Or perhaps embarrassment at the idea of frivolity, when there are so many more “important” (that is, practical) things vying for our attention? Within the past two weeks, I’ve had the blessing of several long-delayed visits with dear, close friends that at any other time would have been routine. One was with a priest friend who lives at a home run by religious sisters, whose care and competence are so keen that a virus wouldn’t have the guts to cross the threshold! Another was with college friends who gathered on a brisk evening for an outdoor Oktoberfest; we rejoiced over the newest additions to our crew: two little guys (grandchildren, that is) born since last we saw each other. One new grandfather drew gentle laughter from the group, while our hostess pointed to the way the tiny flecks of ash danced through the night air like stars in the heavens.

Sad to say, our culture has been conditioned, more or less reasonably, to avoid such events. But we need Irish humor (and German, and Italian) to fortify the soul, just as vaccines protect the body. Here at St. Mary’s, countless family and friends gathered to thank God for faithful parishioners who have returned to him after lives of loving service and holy example: Dolores O’Hara, Tommy McCormack, and Russell Liotta. Waves of love swept through the Church as the parish family commended these beautiful souls to the Lord.

Our only mistake, I believe, would be to dismiss any of these gatherings as “trivial” compared to the “real” world of toil and labor. Indeed, the opposite is true. There is a long tradition in Catholic spirituality to suggest that what makes God’s activity so awesome is that, strictly speaking, none of it is “necessary.” Meaningful? Yes. Supernatural? Yes. But essentially, God does not punch a time clock or make something to order. Rather, God creates and sustains the world as a free act of joy and love. As for the Christian, says Hugo Rahner:

(Through) a certain neatness and graceful nimbleness of mind and movement…man participates in the divine, and recovers…the original unity he once had with the One and the Good. The Church, grace, and liturgical action become for him no more than a prelude to that final carefree gaiety of the heart which he will experience one day in the everlasting game of the Beatific Vision.

Today’s artwork is Andrea del Sarto’s 1528 painting of the Holy Family with St. John the Baptist. As the adults look on, the older boy passes to his divine playmate what seems like a ball: actually, an orb (the globe). Think of it: Jesus plays with us. When we play, we attest to the loving protection of God. So rejoice!
Faithfully,
Fr. Valentine

Dear Friends:

As the United States celebrates Columbus Day, we remember that our nation’s greatness is due to its unparalleled cultural diversity: the confluence of many backgrounds, traditions, and languages that have enriched our common life. Notwithstanding the undeniable tensions that have recently arisen—which threaten the fabric of society—we still aspire to the ideal according to which all people are equal in the sight of God. As such, they enjoy the inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This view of human solidarity inspires a more perfect union among people: e pluribus unum.
It therefore bears mentioning that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has published a statement on the subject of immigration entitled Welcoming the Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity. According to its summary, “Catholic Social Teaching on Immigration and the Movement of Peoples,” the bishops seek to familiarize the faithful with an important aspect of Catholic morality. Immigration has deep roots in Biblical religion. God tells the people of Israel through Moses that they must show mercy to the “aliens” living among them, for “you too were once aliens in the land of Egypt” (Lev. 19:33-34). Moreover, the birth of Jesus involved fleeing to a foreign nation from a hostile power. And in his parable of the sheep and the goats, Christ blesses those who welcome the stranger (Mt. 25: 35). In practical terms, Catholics recognize three guiding principles on the issue of immigration:
First: the right of human beings to migrate. Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical, Rerum Novarum, seeks to protect the nuclear family against any incursion that undermines this most basic building block of human society. The pope specifically targets the dehumanizing policies of Marxism, which reduce individuals to faceless cogs. After World War II, Pope Pius XII published Exsul Familia, defending the right of refugees to seek asylum, recognizing again that all people, created in the image of God, have a legitimate claim to the necessities of life.

Second: the nation’s right to control immigration and regulate its borders. The bishops recognize that in most cases, immigration is the result of unjust forces at work, and so nations must prevent these conditions from arising in the first place. However wrong it may be for wealthy nations to deny basic necessities to the indigent, it is also wrong to threaten the welfare of their own citizens by admitting greater numbers than they can accommodate.

Third: the opportunity to achieve legal status. The bishops argue that once people have lived in a country for a significant period of time, the nation should recognize their legal status. But even before then, no one should be denied basic necessities.

Of course, there is a difference between rigid adherence to a policy, whether liberal or conservative, and the virtue of prudence, whereby people of goodwill—even when they disagree—work toward an earthly society that is just and merciful. For in God, the two are the same. Catholics keep that ideal ever before them.

Faithfully,
Fr. Valentine