Mersey Leven Catholic Parish
Mob: 0417 279 437; mdelaney@netspace.net.au
Assistant Priest: Fr Alexander Obiorah
Mob: 0447 478 297; alexchuksobi@yahoo.co.uk
Mob: 0447 478 297; alexchuksobi@yahoo.co.uk
Postal Address: PO Box 362
Parish Office:
90 Stewart Street
(Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10am - 3pm)
(Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10am - 3pm)
Secretary: Annie Davies / Anne Fisher
Pastoral Council Chair: Mary Davies
Pastoral Council Chair: Mary Davies
Parish Mass Times: mlcpmasstimes.blogspot.com.au
Weekly Homily Podcast: podomatic.com/mikedelaney
Parish Magazine: mlcathparishnewsletter.blogspot.com.au
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Our
Parish Sacramental Life
Baptism: Parents are asked to contact the
Parish Office to make arrangements for attending a Baptismal Preparation
Session and booking a Baptism date.
Reconciliation, Confirmation and Eucharist: Are received following a Family–centred,
Parish-based, School-supported Preparation Program.
Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults: prepares adults for reception into the Catholic community.
Marriage: arrangements are made by contacting one of our priests - couples
attend a Pre-marriage Program
Anointing of the Sick: please contact one of our priests
Reconciliation: Ulverstone - Fridays (10am - 10:30am)
Devonport -
Saturday (5:15pm– 5.45pm)
Penguin - Saturday (5:15pm - 5:45pm)
Care and Concern: If you are aware of anyone who is in need of
assistance and has given permission to be contacted by Care and Concern,
please phone the Parish Office.
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Monday: 9:30am - Ulverstone
12noon
- Devonport
Tuesday: 9:30am - Penguin
Wednesday: 9:30am - Latrobe … St Charles Borromeo
7:00pm -
Ulverstone
Thursday: 12noon - Devonport
Friday: 9:30am
- Ulverstone
9:30am -
Devonport
Saturday: 9:00am -
Ulverstone
Next Weekend 7th & 8th November, 2015
Saturday Vigil: 6:00pm Penguin
Devonport
Sunday Mass: 8:30am Port Sorell
9:00am Ulverstone
10:30am Devonport
11:00am
Sheffield
5:00pm Latrobe
Eucharistic Adoration:
Devonport: Every Friday 10am - 12noon, concluding with Stations of the Cross and Angelus
Devonport: Benediction with Adoration - first Friday of each month.
Prayer Groups:
Charismatic Renewal – Devonport Emmaus House Thursdays commencing 7.30pm
DO YOU LONG FOR SOME SPACE AND STILLNESS IN YOUR LIFE AT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR?
Christian Meditation - Devonport, Emmaus House Wednesdays 7pm.
30 minutes of silent prayer could change the rest of your week! There is an opportunity for this each Wednesday evening at 7pm at 88 Stewart Street, Devonport. Why not come along and meditate with a small group of people and see what happens? For further information see www.wccm.org or talk with Sr Carmel.
Ministry Rosters 7th & 8th November, 2015
Devonport:
Readers
Vigil: A McIntyre,
M Williams, C Kiely-Hoye
10:30am:
J Phillips, K Pearce, P Piccolo
Ministers of Communion -
Vigil: B&B
Windebank, T Bird, J Kelly, T Muir, Beau Windebank
10:30am: J DiPietro, S Riley, F Sly, M Sherriff
Cleaners 6th
November: M.W.C
13th November: B Bailey, A Harrison, M Greenhill
Piety Shop 7th
November: H Thompson
8th November: O McGinley Flowers:
M O’Brien-Evans
Ulverstone:
Reader: K McKenzie
Ministers of Communion: E Reilly, M McKenzie, K McKenzie, M O’Halloran
Cleaners: M McKenzie, M Singh, N Pearce Flowers: E Beard Hospitality: M McLaren
Penguin:
Greeters: J Garnsey, S Ewing Commentator: Readers: Y Downes
Procession: S Ewing, J Barker Ministers of Communion: T Clayton, A Guest
Liturgy: Penguin Setting Up: E Nickols Care of Church: Y & R Downes
Latrobe:
Reader: S Ritchie Ministers of Communion: B Ritchie, H Lim Procession: M Clarke Music: Jenny
Readings this Week: All Saints
First Reading: Apocalypse 7:2-4, 9-14
Second Reading: 1 John 3:1-3
Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12
PREGO REFLECTION:
I begin my prayer by trying to become relaxed and still in
presence of Jesus, ready to listen to all that he has to say to me today. I may
like to imagine myself sitting down with him, along with his other disciples.
When I am ready, I read the gospel passage slowly, perhaps several times, noticing
any particular line or image that seems to stand out for me. To which gift or
way of being am I attracted - for myself… or when I see it in others? I listen
to Jesus in the words of the gospel, and respond in whatever way seems right
for me. Which ways of being seem more challenging or difficult for me at this
time? I talk with the Lord as I ponder my reactions. I may want to ask for
whatever gift or grace I need at this moment to live the way of the gospel even
more fully: I end my prayer with gratitude, thanking our Lord for this time I
have spent with him.
Readings Next Week: 32nd Sunday in
Ordinary Time
First Reading: 1 Kings 17:10-16
Second Reading: Hebrews 9:24-28
Gospel: Mark 12:38-44
Your prayers are asked for the sick:
Betty Broadbent, Little
Archer, Barbara Hancock,
Kevin Bagley, Iolanthe Hannavy,
Geraldine Roden, Debbie Morris, Harry Cartwright & …
Let us pray for those who have died recently:
Pat Harris, Robert Grantham, Ena Robinson,
Esma Mibus, Shirley Stafford, Vicki Glashower,
Audrey Taylor, Peter Hays, John Stanford and
Dr John Walker.
Esma Mibus, Shirley Stafford, Vicki Glashower,
Audrey Taylor, Peter Hays, John Stanford and
Dr John Walker.
Let us pray for those whose anniversary occurs about this time:
28th
October – 3rd November
Lawrence McGuire, Margaret Doody, Bernard P Marshall, Cyril
Allford, Allan Fay and Edith McCormack.
May they rest in Peace
WEEKLY
RAMBLINGS:
Before we knew it November has arrived – at least that’s
how it seems to me. A reminder that a copy of the November Mass List will be at
each Mass Centre for the whole of the month and our Masses will be celebrated
to remember our deceased relatives and friends. There are three extra Masses
this week – two on Monday (All Souls) and on Wednesday – please check the
Bulletin for further details.
Have you been to one of the Open Houses yet? The last one
for 2015 is on next Friday evening at the Parish House at Devonport from 6.30pm
– if you would like to come for a BBQ tea with the children and families from
the 2015 Sacramental Program. Otherwise you are more than welcome to come from
7.30pm until late (well late for me anyway!)
Also next weekend there is an opportunity for the children,
younger members, of our Parish to participate at the 10.30am Mass at Devonport.
Fr Alex has been involved with the preparation of this celebration and children
and families are encouraged to come along and join in this celebration.
Gardens! Has anyone noticed that the gardens around the
Parish Houses at Devonport and Ulverstone are looking a little bit tired at
present. If anyone can spare some time to assist in cleaning up the gardens
then your help would be greatly appreciated. Working Bees will be organised
within the next few weeks.
So please take care on the roads and in your homes.
MacKillop Hill Spirituality Centre:
MELBOURNE CUP
LUNCH:
We are up and running again!
Come and join in the fun!
**Cup Sweep, **Lucky
Saddle, **Best Hat, **Raffle
- Tuesday 3rd November - 12.30pm start
Bookings by this Monday please to help with
catering arrangements.
Phone Mary 6425:2781
or contact the Centre
on
the above number.
SPIRITUALITY FOR JUSTICE Presented
by Belinda & Richard Chapman
Thursday 12th
November 7.30pm – 9pm. Cost by donation.
Exploring the 2015 Social Justice Statement and
discerning its challenges for each of us in regards refugees and asylum
seekers.
OLOL LITURGY MEETING:
The Liturgy meeting will be held Thursday 5th
November. If you have any items you would like the committee to discuss,
please call Kath Pearce 6424:6504 or Felicity Sly 6424:1933.
HELP NEEDED:
Our Sacramental Program for 2016 will commence early
February. With the transfer of Richard and Belinda Chapman to Georgetown the
position of co-ordinator of the Sacramental Program now needs to be filled. Any
teacher, parent, interested parishioner who feels they may be able to assist,
is invited to contact Fr Mike to find out what it entails to be the
co-ordinator. Otherwise Fr Mike will be on the look out to tap someone on the
shoulder!!!!
There will be an occasion before the end of the year when
we will publicly thank Belinda for the great work she has done as Sacramental
Co-ordinator (and her wonderful family for putting up with the demands of the
job!)
HEALING MASS:
Catholic Charismatic Renewal, are sponsoring a HEALING MASS
at St Mary’s Church Penguin Thursday 19th November at 7.30pm. All
denominations are welcome to come and celebrate the liturgy in a vibrant and
dynamic way using charismatic praise and worship, with the gifts of tongues,
prophecy, and healing. After Mass, teams will be available for individual
prayer. Please bring a friend and a plate for supper and fellowship in the
adjacent hall. If you wish to know more or require local transport, please
contact Celestine Whiteley 6424:2043,
Michael Gaffney 0447 018 068, Zoe Smith
6426:3073, Tom Knaap 6425:2442.
CWL ULVERSTONE: Meeting Friday 13th
November, Community Room Ulverstone at 2pm.
CWL Christmas luncheon will be held at the Lighthouse Hotel
Ulverstone on Friday 11th December, 12noon for 12:30pm. Cost $25.
All parishioners are very welcome to join us! RSVP 30th November to
Marie Byrne on 6425:5774
Thursday Nights OLOL Hall D’port.
Eyes down 7.30pm.
Callers 5th Nov John Halley & Merv Tippett
NEWS FROM ACROSS THE ARCHDIOCESE:
WORLD YOUTH DAY 2016, KRAKOW
FACEBOOK PAGE:
CYM have launched our facebook page so that you can follow
along and support the Tasmanian Pilgrimage to World Youth Day 2016. Please
‘like’ our page to show your support and share in this journey with our young
Tasmanians from the beginning. We need the support of all our parishioners and
friends. Visit: www.facebook.com/taswyd16
If you are 16-35 and interested in joining the WYD16
Pilgrimage please contact Rachelle Smith: rachelle.smith@aohtas.org.au or
0400 045 368
PINTS OF FAITH: HUMAN TRAFFICKING – A
GLOBAL PHENOMENON: Human Trafficking occurs in nearly every country in the
world. What can we do to stop modern day slavery? Young adults (&
interested young-at-heart) are invited to join us along with our special guest
Sr Carole McDonald from Melbourne and member of ACRATH (Australian Catholic
Religious Against Trafficking of Humans). Join us Wednesday 4th
November 6.30pm at the Cock N Bull British Pub, Launceston. Book: rachelle.smith@aohtas.org.au
COUPLES FOR CHRIST SEMINAR: St Paul’s Church Paice Street, Bridgwater 7th
November from 9am - 5pm Married couples invited to attend. Lunch and
snacks provided. For more information please phone Fr. Leo 6263:6242
WORLD YOUTH DAY 2016, KRAKOW: Registrations are now open to young Tasmanians aged
16 – 35 years as at 31st December 2016. For all your information and to
register go to: www.wydtas.org.au
STAR WARS EPISODE VII: THE FORCE AWAKENS
FUNDRAISER: Come and see the highly anticipated
release of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens on Opening Night:
Thursday 17th December at 6.00pm. Catholic Youth Ministry are
holding a special viewing of this film at Village Cinemas as a World Youth Day
fundraiser. Get all your friends and family together for one brilliant evening!
Come dressed for the occasion and be in the running for the best-dressed
competition, as well as other give-aways before the film begins. Tickets are
$30 pp and include: movie ticket, small popcorn and a 600ml drink (as well as
chances for give-aways!). This event is being held at Village Cinemas Eastlands
and Village Cinemas Launceston. We appreciate early bookings! Book your
ticket online now at: www.cymtas.org.au
or by contacting Rachelle Smith on 0400 045 368
A MESSAGE FROM RACHEL’S VINEYARD - “He heals the broken
hearted…” – Psalm 147:3
If your heart is broken after abortion, wholeness and
healing are available. Attend a Rachel’s Vineyard retreat for healing after
abortion. Contact Anne Sherston on the confidential phone line 03 62298739 or
0478599241
Laudato Si': On the Care of Our Common Home
Pope Francis' Encyclical Laudato Si':
On the Care for Our Common Home is a call for global
action as well as an appeal for deep inner conversion.
He points to numerous ways world organisations, nations and communities must move
forward and the way individuals -- believers and people of good will -- should see, think, feel
and act.
Each week, we offer one of the Pope's suggestions, with the paragraph numbers to indicate its
place in the Encyclical.
“Sweat it out. Increasing use and power of air-conditioning seems ‘self-destructive.” (Par 55)
Saint of the Week – St Nicholas Tavelic and companions (November 6)
St Nicholas and his three companions are among the 158 Franciscans who have been
martyred in the Holy Land since the friars became custodians of the shrines in 1335.
St Nicholas was born in 1340 to a wealthy and noble family in Croatia. He joined the
Franciscans and was sent with Deodat of Rodez to preach in Bosnia. In 1384, they volunteered
for the Holy Land missions and were sent there. They looked after the holy places, cared for
the Christian pilgrims and studied Arabic.
In 1391 St Nicholas, Deodat, Peter of Narbonne and Stephen of Cuneo decided to take a direct
approach to converting the Muslims. On November 11, 1391, they went to the huge Mosque
of Omar in Jerusalem and asked to see the Qadi (Muslim official). Reading from a prepared
statement, they said that all people must accept the gospel of Jesus. When they were ordered
to retract their statement, they refused. After beatings and imprisonment, they were
beheaded before a large crowd.
St Nicholas and his three companions were canonised in 1970. They are the only Franciscans
martyred in the Holy Land to be canonised.
Words of Wisdom – The Inward Disciplines
During November, Bulletin Notes is presenting a series of quotes on some of the spiritual
disciplines. Last month, we highlighted four inward disciplines (meditation, prayer, fasting
and study). This month, we will focus on the outer spiritual disciplines, including simplicity,
solitude, submission and service
Meme of the week
RELIGION, SECULAR THOUGHT, AND HEALTH AND HAPPINESS
An article by Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI. The original can be found here
There is no such a thing as pure objectivity, a view that is free of all bias.
Yet that’s the claim often made by non-religious, secular thinkers in debates about values and public policy. They argue that their views, unlike those who admit that their views are grounded in religious principles, are objective and free from bias. Their underlying assumption is that a purely rational argument, a view in effect from nowhere, is objective in a way that religious arguments, based upon someone’s faith and religious perspective, can never be, as if there was such a thing as a purely objective starting point. There isn’t.
We all have a bias. The late Langdon Gilkey used to put this in a gentle, more-palatable way. We don’t have a bias, he says, but rather a “pre-ontology”, a subjective stance from which we look at reality. And that stance includes both the place where we stand, outside, when we look into any reality, as well as the software through which we perceive and reason as we look at anything. He’s right. There’s no view from nowhere, no view that’s unbiased, and no view that’s purely objective. Everyone has a bias. The religious person and the secular person simply stand at different subjective places and process things through different subjective, mental software.
Does this mean then that all views are equally subjective and that everything is relative? Can we not then distinguish between science and superstition? No. There are clearly degrees of objectivity, even if no one can claim absolute objectivity. To admit that even the strictest empirical scientific research will always contain a degree of subjectivity is not to put science on the same level as superstition or even of faith. Empirical science and rational thought must be given their due. It is medical doctors, not faith-healers, who cure physical diseases. Likewise, the scientific theory of evolution and the fundamentalist religious belief that our world was made in seven days are not to be given an equal claim. Much as religious thinkers are sometimes irritated by the absolutist claims of some secularists, science and critical rational thinking must be given their due.
But religious thinking must also be given its due, especially in our debates about values and politics. Religious opinion also needs to be respected, not least with the more-explicit acknowledgement that secular reasoning too operates out of a certain faith, as well as by the acknowledgement that, like its scientific and philosophical counterparts, religious thinking also brings invaluable and needed perspectives to any debate. A lot of the world’s knowledge is contained within science and philosophy, but most of the world’s wisdom is contained in its religious and faith perspectives. Just as we cannot live on religion alone, we too cannot live on science and philosophy alone. Wisdom needs knowledge and knowledge needs wisdom. Science and religion need to more deeply befriend each other.
More important however than having a proper apologetic about the place of faith and religion inside of public policy is an understanding of this for our own health and happiness. We need to understand how subjectivity colors everything, not so much so that we might eventually convince secularists that religious perspectives are important in any discussion, but so that we can more deliberately choose the right pre-ontology so as to see the world through better eyes and make better judgments on the world.
The 12th century mystic, Hugo of St. Victor, gives us, I believe, the right pre-ontology out of which to operate: Love is the eye! For Hugo, we see most accurately when our eyesight works through the lens of love and altruism, just as we see most inaccurately when our eyesight is colored by suspicion and self-interest. And this isn’t an abstract idea. Experience tells us this. When we look at someone in love, beyond of course those periods when love is overly-obsessed with romantic attraction, we see straight. We then see the other as he or she really is, with full recognition of his or her virtues and faults. That’s as accurate as we will ever see. Conversely, when we see someone through the eyes of suspicion or self-interest our vision is clouded and there’s not as fair a perception.
Jesus says as much with the first words that comes out of his mouth in the Synoptic Gospels. In his very first remarks, he invites us, in one word, to see the world as it really is. His first word? Metanoia. This is a Greek word that is generally translated in English bibles, as Repent, but it literally means “to enter a different, higher mind”. And that connotation is highlighted when we contrast it to another Greek word which we already know, namely, Paranoia. Metanoia is the opposite of paranoia.
When we look at the world through the eyes of paranoia, we are not seeing straight. Conversely, when we look at the world through eyes of metanoia, we are seeing straight, religiously and scientifically. Love, indeed, is the eye.
Jung: Week 2
A collation of the daily email series on Spirituality and it's Influences by Fr Richard Rohr. You can subscribe to the Daily emails here
Becoming Whole
I find that using geometric diagrams sometimes helps us to
clarify ideas. In that respect, I'm being quite Jungian, because C. G. Jung
emphasizes the importance of images in the work of transformation. This circular
diagram of the human self may help you understand some of the concepts we'll be
covering this week.
Most people live out of the top third of the circle, which
is ironically called "consciousness." This is what I know, what I
think, what I have experienced, what I consider to be "me." The ego,
shown here as a bold red line, is that part of the self structure that wants to
be significant, central, important, and right. It is highly defended and
self-protective by its very nature. The irony and paradox is that if you stay
above this line, you are largely unconscious, and not truly conscious at all!
The ego wants to eliminate all bothersome, humiliating, or
negative information in order to "look good" at all costs. Jesus
calls this self an "actor," a word he uses fifteen times in Matthew's
Gospel. This is usually translated from the Greek as "hypocrite." The
ego wants to keep you tied to your easy and acceptable levels of knowledge. It
encourages you to live only from this conscious self, which as we said, is
really not conscious at all. Therapy, suffering, prayer, and mysticism
encourage you to drop into the personal and collective unconscious.
The ego does not want you going down into the "personal
unconscious" or, as Jung would call it, your "shadow self." The
shadow includes all those things about yourself that you don't want to see, are
not yet ready to see, and you don't want others to see. Our tendency is to try
to hide or deny this shadow part of ourselves, even and most especially from
ourselves. [1] Jung questions: "How can I be substantial if I do not cast
a shadow?" [2] He makes clear that the unconscious is not bad or evil, it
is just hidden from us. Jung describes shadow also as "the source of the
highest good: not only dark, but also light; not only bestial, semi-human and
demonic, but superhuman, spiritual" and, in Jung's word,
"numinous." [3] So that is why you dare not avoid the deep self. The
wild beasts and the angels reside in the same wilderness, and it takes the
Spirit to "drive" you there (Mark 1:13). You see why the mystics so
emphasize going into the "darkness," which can only be done by faith
and immense courage. "It takes more courage to examine the dark corners of
your own soul than it does for a soldier to fight on a battlefield," says
William Butler Yeats.
The bottom part of the circle is the deep unconscious, or
what Jung calls the collective unconscious. There you are connected to
everything and experience things in their unity. The collective unconscious
holds images that fascinate people in all cultures, across times and places.
Jung calls these universal truths and symbols--that are just waiting to be
revealed--archetypes or ruling images. Here Jung breaks significantly with
Freud, who seems to think that sex or the pleasure principle underlies
everything else. Jung instead believes that when you go deep enough you will
find the numinous, the God archetype, the place where you are complete and
whole. This may be what most people think of as the soul.
Truly conscious people are in touch with their unconscious,
at least to some good degree. People who try to remain simply on the
"conscious" level, overly defended by their ego, end up being very
superficial and thus even dangerous--to themselves and all around them. Denying
your shadow self allows you to unknowingly do very selfish and evil things--and
even call it virtue (John 16:2-3). [4]
References:
[1] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, Things Hidden: Scripture as Spirituality (Franciscan Media:
2008), 75-76.
[2] C. J.
Jung, Modern Man in Search of a Soul (Harvest Book: 1933), 35.
[3] C. J.
Jung, translated by R. F. C. Hull, edited by H. Read, M. Fordham, G. Adler, and
William McGuire, Collected Works, Vol. 16, Bollingen Series XX, (Princeton
University Press: 1976), 389.
[4] Adapted from
Richard Rohr, unpublished "Rhine" talks (2015).
The Two Halves of Life
One cannot live the afternoon of life according to the
program of life's morning; for what was great in the morning will be of little
importance in the evening, and what in the morning was true will at evening
become a lie. --C. G. Jung [1]
It was Carl Jung who first popularized the phrase "the
two halves of life" to describe the two major tangents and tasks of any
human life. [2] The first half of life is spent building our sense of identity,
importance, and security--what I would call the false self and Freud might call
the ego self. Jung emphasizes the importance and value of a healthy ego
structure. But inevitably you discover, often through failure or a significant
loss, that your conscious self is not all of you, but only the acceptable you.
You will find your real purpose and identity at a much deeper level than the
positive image you present to the world.
In the second half of life, the ego still has a place, but
now in the service of the True Self or soul, your inner and inherent identity.
Your ego is the container that holds you all together, so now its strength is
an advantage. Someone who can see their ego in this way is probably what we
mean by a "grounded" person.
Jung writes of his own experience: "It was only after
the illness that I understood how important it is to affirm one's own destiny.
In this way we forge an ego that does not break down when incomprehensible
things happen; an ego that endures, that endures the truth, and that is capable
of coping with the world and with fate. Then, to experience defeat is also to
experience victory." [3]
In the second half of life we discover that it is no longer
sufficient to find meaning in being successful or healthy. We need a deeper
source of purpose. According to Jung, "Meaning makes a great many things
endurable--perhaps everything. No science will ever replace myth [the
communicator of meaning], and a myth cannot be made out of any science. . . .
[Myth] is the revelation of a divine life in man. It is not we who invent myth,
rather it speaks to us as a Word of God." [4] Science gives us
explanations, and that is a good start, but myth and religion give us meaning
which alone satisfies the soul.
Jung says that during the second half of life our various
problems are not solved so much by psychotherapy as by authentic religious
experience. Jung had a significant influence on Bill Wilson, co-founder of
Alcoholics Anonymous. Thus, Wilson also emphasizes that a "vital spiritual
experience" is the best therapy of all. A vital spiritual experience,
according to Wilson, is the foundational healing of addiction, much more than
mere "recovery"--which is just getting you started. In the classical
three stages of spiritual life, recovery of itself is purgation, but not yet
true illumination or divine union.
The unitive encounter with a Power greater than you
resituates the self inside of a safe universe where you don't need to be
special, rich, or famous to feel alive. Those questions are resolved once and
for all. The hall of mirrors that most people live in becomes unhelpful and
even bothersome. Now aliveness comes from the inside out. This is what we mean
when we say "God saves you."
Jung believes we can do damage, therefore, by
"petrifying" our spiritual experience when we try to name it, to
express God as an abstract idea. Before you explain your encounter with the
Divine as an idea or a name that then must be defended, proven, or believed,
simply stay with the naked experience itself--the numinous, transcendent
experience of allurement, longing, and intimacy within you. This is the inner
God image breaking through! No idea of God is God of itself, but the experience
of God's action in you is what grounds you and breaks you wide open at the same
time. Hear a few of our mystics in this regard:
God is more
intimate to me than I am to myself. --Augustine
Between God
and the soul there is no distance. --Meister Eckhart
My deepest
me is God. --Catherine of Genoa
This is both a transcendent God and also my deepest me at
the same time. To discover one is to discover the other. This is why good
theology and good psychology work together so well. You have touched upon the
soul, the unshakable reality of my True Self, where "I and the Father are
one" (John 10:30). The second half of life is about learning to recognize,
honor, and love this voice and this indwelling Presence, which feels like your
own voice too. All love is now one. [5]
References:
[1] C. G.
Jung, The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche (Routledge and Kegan Paul:
1960), 399.
[2] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life
(Jossey-Bass: 2011), 8.
[3] C. G.
Jung, recorded and edited by Aniela Jaffe, translated by Richard and Clara
Winston, Memories, Dreams, Reflections (Vintage Books: 1989), 297.
[4] Ibid.,
340.
[5] Adapted from Richard Rohr, unpublished "Rhine"
talks (2015).
Making the Unconscious Conscious
As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human
existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being. [1]
That is the meaning of divine service, of the service which
man can render to God, that light may emerge from the darkness, that the
Creator may become conscious of His creation, and man conscious of himself. [2]
--C. G. Jung
Edward Edinger writes, "Our whole unconscious is in an
uproar from the God who wants to know and to be known." [3] To love is to
be conscious, and to be fully conscious would mean you are capable of loving.
Sin always proceeds from lack of consciousness. I don't think most people are
sinners; most people are just not aware and not fully living in their own
present moment. When Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, they don't know
what they're doing" (Luke 23:34), he was absolutely right. Most people are
on cruise control, and most of their reactions are habituated brain
responses--not fully conscious choices.
We may have moments when we are conscious of our real
motivations and actual goals, but it takes years of practice, honesty, and
humility to be consistently awake. Whenever you do not love, you are at that
moment unconscious. If you consistently choose to defend your state of
separateness, then spiritually speaking, you are unconscious, or in religious
language you are "in sin." [4] As has often been said, "Unless
you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will think
of it as fate."
We avoid reality and the depth of our own souls because big
truths initially disturb the comfortable and small self. For example, all
countries are special, not just mine; all religions are good, not just mine. By
definition, the small self wants to be both separate and superior. But in fact,
we suffer because we are not truly whole. Our life is then ruled by the
invisible, unknown parts of our psyche.
Spiritual maturity is to become aware that we are not the
persona (mask) we have been presenting to others. That is why saints are always
humble and scoundrels are always arrogant. We must become intentional about
recognizing and embracing our shadows. Religion's word for this is quite simply
forgiveness, which is pivotal and central on the path of transformation.
This can be painful as we realize that even when we thought
we were loving, we often really weren't. And when we thought we were bad and
sinful, we often weren't that either! Facing reality is also liberating because
we recognize that our manufactured self-image is nothing substantial or
lasting; it is just created out of our own mind, desire, and choice--and
everyone else's opinions of us! The movement to second-half-of-life wisdom
requires serious shadow work and the emergence of healthy self-critical
thinking--but without condemning or shaming that same self. That is the truly
"narrow gate and hard road that few follow upon" (Matthew 7:14). [4]
There is no shortage of opportunities to discover your
personal or corporate shadow. As Jung says, "Everything that irritates us
about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves." [6] Jung sees
the forgiving ("integrating") of our shadow self as an essential task
of every life; it is a political, social, and spiritual task to withdraw the
projection of our shadow onto others. In the end, the face you turn toward
yourself is the face you will turn toward the outer world.
References:
[1] C. G.
Jung, recorded and edited by Aniela Jaffe, translated by Richard and Clara
Winston, Memories, Dreams, Reflections (Vintage Books: 1989), 326.
[2] Ibid.,
338.
[3] Edward
F. Edinger, The Creation of Consciousness: Jung's Myths for Modern Man (Inner
City Books: 1995), 86.
[4] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, unpublished "Rhine" talks (2015).
[5] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life
(Jossey-Bass: 2011), 129-130.
[6] Jung, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, 247.
Healing Images
In his classic book, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, Carl
Jung talks about being a young man at the outbreak of World War I and how the
experience of massive destruction and slaughter was impacting him and so many
Europeans. Through this trauma, Jung found, "To the extent that I managed
to translate the emotions into images--that is to say, to find the images which
were concealed in the emotions--I was inwardly calmed and reassured. Had I left
those images hidden in the emotions, I might have been torn to pieces by them.
. . . As a result of my experiment, I learned how helpful it can be, from the
therapeutic point of view, to find the particular images which lie behind
emotions." [1]
One of Jung's foundational ideas is that mere words and
concepts do not give us access to the unconscious. Certain sculptures,
biographies, images, art, and stories can have such a striking effect on you
because what your unconscious has already half-known is brought home to
conscious awareness by gazing upon them rather than analyzing them. Analysis,
if it remains dominant, is merely a control mechanism of the ego. Let the
images do something with you before you try to do something with them is the
principle here.
I believe that good art and good images (Jung would call
some of them archetypal images) have the power to evoke an epiphany in you and
to transform you at deeper levels. That's why I think good art is absolutely
essential for good religion. The iconoclastic nature of the Protestant
Reformation might have been its greatest fault. Sometimes you don't know what
you're experiencing in a logical, rational way, but you can't take your eyes
off of a picture or a piece of art. You're drawn to it because the epiphany is
happening as the unconscious is being ferried across to your conscious
mind--but unconsciously!
One of my own encounters with good art has stayed with me
for many years. On one of my first speaking trips in the mid-seventies, I went
by myself to the St. Louis Art Museum where they had an extended exhibit of
Monet's water lilies. I went from room to room and found myself getting quieter
and happier, and when I walked out into the sunshine, I felt I floated home!
Now, I don't know that I had a new piece of doctrinal information or
theological insight, but the experience connected to something deep and true
within.
I believe that's what good art, poetry, and mythology do.
They tell you, without you knowing it, that life is not just a series of isolated,
meaningless events, as postmodernism sees reality. The great truths--when they
can be visualized in images--reveal to you the deep patterns, and tell you that
you are a part of the course of history and all humanity. That deeply heals
you. It is less informational than transformational. And it largely happens
beneath your conscious awareness that it is even happening. You only see the
fruits later. [2]
Jung also believed that God speaks through dreams. Dreams
can bring the unconscious into the conscious because the ego's defenses are
down when you are sleeping. Truth that might seem threatening to your ego when
it's awake, and therefore not be allowed in, can slip undetected into your
dreams. In Jung's words, "Myths which day has forgotten continue to be
told at night." [3]
I hope you will now have permission to trust good art and
"great dreams" (not all are) as messages being lifted from the
unconscious, and not just your personal unconscious but the Great Collective
where all things are one and shared. If I ever write, preach, or teach anything
well, I am always drawing from that broader field and deeper well, and that is
why I must honestly say, "I did not do it. It is not my idea."
References:
[1] C. G.
Jung, recorded and edited by Aniela Jaffe, translated by Richard and Clara
Winston, Memories, Dreams, Reflections (Vintage Books: 1989), 177.
[2] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, unpublished talk (Center for Action and Contemplation:
2015).
[3] C. G. Jung, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, 282.
One Suffering
They will gaze on the one they have pierced. --Zachariah
12:10a, quoted in John 19:37
Let me use our classic Christian logo, the cross, to
illustrate what Jung is trying to say about the transformative power of images.
The cross is a deeply disturbing image of a naked bleeding man, with arms
nailed open, dying on a crossbeam--a most unlikely logo for anything. It has
probably been cheapened, and the shock taken away, by reason of too much
familiarity. But perhaps this is because we do not gaze long enough or deep
enough. Jung says the cross might be the most significant image in Western
civilization. The very fact that we keep repainting and sculpting this now
ubiquitous image tells us that the soul must need to see it. Those who never
gaze upon the cross, allowing it to work its metamorphosis, miss out on a huge
healing secret, a divine disclosure that most humans would never dare to
imagine on their own.
One of my favorite lines from Jung is revealing here. He
says, "The whole world is God's suffering." [1] This is not poetry
but precisely the fruit of mystical seeing, or gazing until a deeper message
comes through. Mystics see things in wholes. They connect smaller anecdotes and
images to see bigger patterns. Jung saw every act of human suffering as a
participation in what Christians would call the eternal crucifixion of the One
Christ. There is only one suffering, as it were, and we are all participants in
it. [2]
When the single image morphs into a universal image, you get
its archetypal significance, and as the prophet Zechariah says, "You will
weep for him as you would weep for your only child, you will mourn for him as
if he is every child" (Zechariah 12:10b). That is how images can transform
us, but only if we can move beyond the mere literal, specific image to the
universal and always true image. Fundamentalists find this very hard to do;
mystics and great poets seem to be able to do nothing else. Mystics wait for
experiential knowledge of the Divine and are not satisfied with mere memorized
answers.
In the heart of the mystic there arises an actual empathy
with the suffering of God, which is sort of unthinkable to most of us. Read the
memoirs of Etty Hillesum and Anne Frank to catch a glimpse of this shared
suffering. Does God suffer? With us and in us? Did you ever think of it that
way? I believe we are invited to gaze upon the image of the crucified to soften
our hearts toward God, and to know that God's heart has always been softened
toward us, even and most especially in our suffering.
Christian saints are often pictured gazing empathetically at
the cross. Why? Because it is a soul-shattering image of the willing suffering
of God in solidarity with every single "shedding of blood since the
foundation of the world" (Luke 11:50). It is the only half-satisfying
answer to the whole human tragedy. [3] But it does not satisfy the rational
mind, only the empty and seeking soul.
After true gazing, the cross becomes a two-way mirror. We
see our own suffering, the suffering of the world, and God's suffering as all
one and the same. The 14th century unknown author of the classic Cloud of
Unknowing uses a most striking metaphor. He or she says that in God's eyes all
evil, suffering, and death are "one lump" and that Jesus on the cross
deals with it all "in one lump." The entire human journey, including
resurrection, is revealed in Jesus' course of life, which Jung says is "an
almost perfect map" of human transformation. Jesus is "The One Single
New Human" (Ephesians 2:15, 4:13), as the school of Paul puts it. At least
for Christians, the Christ image is the Archetype of Everything. Both Paul and
Carl Jung, along with every true mystic, see things in wholes and not just in
parts.
References:
[1] C. G.
Jung, edited by Sir Herbert Read, The Collected Works, Volume I-XX (Routledge:
2014), 5063.
[2] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, unpublished "Rhine" talks (2015).
[3] See the
"Postscript" in Richard Rohr's book, Breathing Under Water
(Franciscan Media: 2011), which addresses the issue of theodicy and human
suffering in a more extended way.
The Sacred Wound
Only the wounded physician heals. --C. G. Jung [1]
When life is hard, we are primed to learn something
absolutely central. I call it God's special hiding place. The huge surprise of
the Christian revelation is that the place of the wound is the place of the
greatest gift. Our code phrase for this whole process is "cross and
resurrection," revealing that our very wounds can become sacred wounds, if
we let them.
No surprise that an unjustly wounded man became the central
transformative symbol of Christianity. Once "the killing of God"
becomes the very "redemption of the world," the pathway was revealed.
Forevermore the very worst things have the power to become the very best
things. Henceforth, nothing can be a permanent dead end; everything is capable
of new shape and meaning. There is no advantage to playing the victim, and we
are forever warned against victimizing others. Henceforth, we are indeed saved
by gazing upon the wounded one--and loving there our own woundedness and
everybody else's wounds too (John 3:14, 12:32, 19:37). One's world is
henceforth grounded in mutual vulnerability instead of any need to have power
over one another.
This is the core meaning of the Christian doctrine of
Trinity--the inner shape of God is mutual deference and honoring among three,
not self-assertion or autonomy by one. [2] God is "an event of
communion" and perfect vulnerability, not an old man sitting on a throne.
All creation is a replication of that foundational pattern. When Pope Francis
first bowed to receive the blessing of the people instead of just giving his
own blessing, he was bodily illustrating this wondrous divine revelation, which
the church itself has seldom understood.
I usually find that most great people still carry a
significant personality flaw. It is fairly predictable. St. Paul himself,
clearly flawed, humbly recognized that God had given him a "thorn in the
flesh, an angel of Satan to buffet me" (2 Corinthians 12:7), which he says
was necessary "to keep me from getting too proud." In most wise
people I know, their authority and wisdom comes from the struggle with their
wound or some essential conflict. Material moves from the unconscious to the
conscious through conflict and struggle, hardly ever through perfect coherence
or ideal performance. The Jungian aphorism holds true: "The greater light
you have, the greater shadow you cast." The search for the supposedly
perfect is very often the enemy of the truly good. [3] All
"important" people must daily recognize their own imperfection and
sin or they become dangerous to themselves and others.
All scapegoating, the process of both denying and projecting
our fears and hates elsewhere, only perpetuates suffering. The scapegoat
mechanism is hidden in the unconscious; it proceeds from our unrecognized but
real need to project our anxiety elsewhere. [4] Unfortunately, there is no
elsewhere in the spiritual world. Either you transform pain within yourself or
it is always an outflowing wound. You are transformed when you can refuse to
project your anxieties elsewhere, and learn to hold and forgive them within
yourself, which can only be done by the grace of God--and which grace is always
given.
Jesus didn't project the problem on to any other group,
race, or religion; he held it and suffered it and thus transformed it into
medicine for the world. He neither played the victim nor created victims, which
is the modus operandi of much of the world. Jesus revealed the redemptive
pattern, the "third way," or what we call the Paschal Mystery. The
significance of Jesus' wounded body is his deliberate and conscious holding of
the pain of the world and refusing to send it elsewhere. Jesus' wounds were not
necessary to convince God that we were loveable (atonement theory); his wounds
are to convince us of the path and the price of transformation.
Jesus agrees to be the Universal Wounded One and thus to
reveal God's willingness to share in our plight. Christians are the strange
believers in a wounded healer, even though they seldom seem to appreciate the
implications of this for themselves. If I were to name the Christian religion,
I would probably call it "The Way of the Wound." Surprise of
surprises, Christianity is saying that we come to God not by doing it right
(which teaches you very little), but invariably by doing it wrong and
responding to our failures and suffering with openness and awareness.
Jesus' wounded body is an icon for what we are
all doing to one another and to the world.
Jesus' resurrected body is an icon of God's
promise, response, and victory over these crucifixions.
The two images contain the whole
transformative message of the Gospel. [5]
References:
[1] C. G.
Jung, recorded and edited by Aniela Jaffe, translated by Richard and Clara
Winston, Memories, Dreams, Reflections (Vintage Books: 1989), 134.
[2] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, Adam's Return: The Five Promises of Male Initiation (The
Crossroad Publishing Company: 2004), 46.
[3] Ibid.,
82.
[4] Rene
Girard has unpacked the momentous implications of scapegoating for human
culture and for understanding the core meaning of Jesus on the cross. Try The
Girard Reader, edited by James Williams (Crossroad: 1996, 69ff). Rene Girard is
a monumental thinker, and I predict that one day his name will be broadly known
and appreciated.
[5] Adapted
from Richard Rohr, Dancing Standing Still: Healing the World from a Place of
Prayer (Paulist Press: 2014), 76-78.
FIVE CORE VALUES OF A HEALTHY CHURCH
A weekly blog by Fr MIchael White, Pastor of the Church of the Navitity, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. You can read the weekly blog here or by going here
The Church is a living thing. It’s a body, not a building. When we talk about a healthy church, it’s important we make that distinction, because often our plan for growing healthy churches is aimed more at the latter than the former. And they are very different in practice.
Think of some healthy churches and other organizations, places where the people seem happy, committed, respected in the community, and growing. What do they all do that makes them different from unhealthy bodies? In the different churches, charities, and groups across the country we’ve learned from, a few core values seem to consistently show up across a wide range of people and places. There are plenty of others, but here’s five that really stand out.
Focused Leadership
Leadership is essential for healthy churches. Unhealthy churches rise and fall on the authority, competency, or charisma of just one person. It’s a lie that leaders do it all. Leaders inspire and equip those called to many forms of ministry. They understand and leverage the irreplaceable value of a team.
Clear Vision
A vision is not some impractical, ill-defined private revelation. Every healthy, successful organization has a clear vision they are relentlessly faithful to. Vision is about learning to see the world and Church through God’s eyes. Some churches have a strong vision and identity, but it’s just poorly communicated so nobody can follow it. It’s the leader’s responsibility to make the vision clear. And your vision is only clear to your community when it’s practiced. If you can’t make your vision practical, re-consider what your vision really is.
Attention to Gifts
One of the reasons people don’t get involved in ministry is they don’t feel there’s an opportunity to use their God-given gifts. Maybe they’re right. Churches that don’t actively call people and use their gifts foster a “leave it to the pros” kind of Christianity where people end up spectators, not participators. Like any gift or talent, if it’s buried, it can’t grow and honor God. I think we should honestly ask ourselves if we as church leaders sometimes inadvertently bury the talents sitting in our pews. People are less inclined to serve to fill a spot, but enthused about fulfilling their potential.
Practical, Gospel-Centered Preaching
People don’t want a dumbed-down message, just a practical one. Jesus’ preaching was rarely “easy” but it was always practical. As a pastor, a homily doesn’t have to pander to a consumer mentality to connect with people’s needs. Start where they are and over time, lead them where God wants. This goes for any catechesis that goes on in your church. Practical preaching gives people a real way to practice what you preach.
Rooted in Prayer
Growing a healthy parish is, first and last, an exercise in prayer. A Christ-centered spirit, anchored in the Eucharist, is the source and summit of health and growth.
