Mersey Leven Catholic Parish
Parish Priest: Fr Mike Delaney
Mob: 0417 279 437
Mob: 0417 279 437
Assistant Priest: Fr Paschal Okpon
Mob: 0438 562 731
paschalokpon@yahoo.com
Priest in Residence: Fr Phil McCormack
Mob: 0437 521 257
Mob: 0437 521 257
Postal Address: PO Box 362
Parish Office: 90 Stewart Street
(Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 10am - 3pm)
Office Phone: 6424 2783 Fax: 6423 5160
Email: merseyleven@aohtas.org.au
Secretary: Annie Davies
Finance Officer: Anne Fisher
Finance Officer: Anne Fisher
Parish Mass times for the Month: mlcpmasstimes.blogspot.com.au
Archdiocesan Website: www.hobart.catholic.org.au for news, information and details of other Parishes.
PLENARY COUNCIL PRAYER
Come, Holy Spirit of Pentecost.
Come, Holy Spirit of the great South Land.
O God, bless and unite all your people in Australia
and guide us on the pilgrim way of the Plenary Council.
Give us the grace to see your face in one another
and to recognise Jesus, our companion on the road.
Give us the courage to tell our stories and to speak boldly of your truth.
Give us ears to listen humbly to each other
and a discerning heart to hear what you are saying.
Lead your Church into a hope-filled future,
that we may live the joy of the Gospel.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, bread for the journey from age to age.
Amen.
Our Lady Help of Christians, pray for us.
St Mary MacKillop, pray for us.
Come, Holy Spirit of the great South Land.
O God, bless and unite all your people in Australia
and guide us on the pilgrim way of the Plenary Council.
Give us the grace to see your face in one another
and to recognise Jesus, our companion on the road.
Give us the courage to tell our stories and to speak boldly of your truth.
Give us ears to listen humbly to each other
and a discerning heart to hear what you are saying.
Lead your Church into a hope-filled future,
that we may live the joy of the Gospel.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, bread for the journey from age to age.
Amen.
Our Lady Help of Christians, pray for us.
St Mary MacKillop, pray for us.
Parish Prayer
Heavenly Father,
and calling us to serve as your disciples.
as we use our gifts to serve you.
as we strive to bear witness
to the Gospel and build an amazing parish.
Amen.
Our Parish Sacramental Life
Eucharistic Adoration - Devonport: Every Friday 10am - 12noon, concluding with Stations of the Cross and Angelus
Weekday Masses 4th - 7th December Tuesday: 9:30am
Penguin
Wednesday: 9:30am
Latrobe
Thursday: 12noon Devonport
Friday: 9:30am Ulverstone
12noon Devonport
Weekend Masses 8th & 9th December
Saturday Mass: 9:30am Ulverstone
Saturday Vigil: 6:00pm Penguin
6:00pm Devonport
Sunday Mass: 8:30am Port Sorell
9:00am Ulverstone
10:30am Devonport
11:00am Sheffield
5:00pm Latrobe
Ministry Rosters 8th & 9th December, 2018
Devonport: 
Ministers of Communion:
Vigil: B, B & B Windebank, T Bird, R
Baker
Ulverstone:
Reader/s: M & K McKenzie
Ministers of Communion: M Mott, W Bajzelj, J Jones, T Leary Cleaners: K.S.C. Flowers: C Stingel Hospitality:
M & K McKenzie
Penguin:
Latrobe:
Port Sorell:
Readings this week –First Sunday of Advent (Year C)
PREGO REFLECTION ON TODAY’S GOSPEL:
Readings next week –Second Sunday of Advent
(Year C)
Your prayers are asked for the sick:
Rose Grimes, Isabelita Santos, Nestor Manundo, Vic Slavin, Lionel Faustino, Marg Stewart & ….
Let us pray for those who have died recently:
Jill Di Pietro, Michael Furjanic, Dennis Murphy, Denis Bresnehan (brother of Fr Tom), Brendan Kelly, Laszlo Kiss, Karen Farr, Denis McCormack, Betty Croft, Margaret Clarke, Gabriella Colpo, Sr Angela Dance, Jillian Brooks, Audrey Glover
Let us pray for those whose anniversary occurs about this time: 1st – 7th December
Arthur Cooke, Terence Murphy, Noreen Johnson, Cecilia Rootes, Iris Nickols, Lorraine Sullivan, Neville Tyrell, Marjorie Simpson, Peter Flynn, Annie Williams, Rustica Bibera, Elsie Williams, Murray Soden, Theo Kurrle, deceased members of Legion of Mary and deceased relatives and friends of Meriam Murray.
Weekly
Ramblings
A new Liturgical Year begins this weekend as we commence
the Season of Advent. One of the challenges that all of us face at this time of
the year is trying to avoid the madness of this pre-Christmas time and actually
using our Advent Season to prepare for the celebration of the Birth of Our
Saviour.
There are a couple of ways that we can do this. We have our
Advent Reflection Booklet available and I would encourage you to grab one
before they all go and use the daily reflections to help focus our attention on
our Saviour. There will also be two sessions with Clare Kiely-Hoye in the
Parish House looking at the Advent Readings and exploring how we can grow in
our understanding and appreciation of this special season – see next page for
details. There will also be two Reconciliation Services which will focus on our
call to be ‘Prepared for the Coming of the Lord’ – Devonport on 11th
& Ulverstone on 12th – both services at 7.00pm.
The times for the Christmas Masses are included in the
newsletter today and details will also be posted in the Foyers of our Churches.
If anyone would like extra copies to distribute in their local community then
please contact the Parish Office.
This weekend we also have a (small) number of copies of the
SWAG available. This is a magazine of the National Council of Priests and
always contains articles that are interesting and thought provoking. Some
parishioners take a copy, read it and then return it for someone else, others
take a copy to devour – whichever suits your fancy – enjoy.
Please
take care on the roads and I look forward to seeing you next weekend.
EMPTY STABLE - OUR LADY OF
LOURDES CHURCH:
BBQ & BOOK CLUB:
SACRED HEART CHURCH CHRISTMAS EVE MASS:
‘Calling all children’ you are very welcome to participate in the
nativity play at the 6pm Christmas Eve Mass at Sacred Heart Church Ulverstone. Practise will take place during 9am Mass at Sacred Heart Church Sunday 2nd, 9th, 16th, and 23rd December. If
you would like more information please phone Charlie Vella 0417 307 781.
CHRISTMAS
PARTY – ULVERSTONE:
ADVENT 2018:
LUNCH: Sunday 9th December at Furners Hotel Ulverstone 12noon-12:20pm
All welcome!
PIETY SHOP OLOL CHURCH:
Thursday Nights - OLOL Hall, Devonport. Eyes down 7.30pm! Callers Thursday 6th December, Tony Ryan &
Alan Luxton
NEWS FROM
ACROSS THE ARCHDIOCESE:
THE JOURNEY CATHOLIC RADIO PROGRAM:
BE PEACE AND JUSTICE:
This article is taken from the Daily Emails from Fr Richard Rohr OFM and the Center for Action and Contemplation. You can subscribe to receive the emails here
Last week I shared how far Christianity has strayed from Jesus’ vision of justice, even though his teaching was crystal clear. Francis (1182-1226) and Clare (1194-1253) of Assisi understood his message and modeled a similar agenda: a simple lifestyle outside the system of production and consumption (the real meaning of the vow of poverty) and conscious identification with the marginalized of society (the communion of saints pushed to its outer edge). In this position, we do not “do” acts of peace and justice as much as our lifestyle itself is peace and justice. Think about that.
By “living on the edge of the inside” I mean building on the solid Tradition (“from the inside”) but doing it from a new and creative stance where you cannot be co-opted (“on the edge”) for purposes of security, possessions, or the illusions of power. Today, many of us try to find personal and individual freedom even as we remain inside a system of consumption that we are unable or unwilling to critique. We cannot remove the plank on which we are standing. Evil tends to hide even more in systems and institutions than in individuals. [1]
The way of radical Christianity is to stay outside of such systems—insofar as possible—so they cannot control our breadth of thinking, feeling, loving, and living out universal justice. We can only re-enter them from this new place of inner freedom. This has seldom been taught, and thus most of us are on bended knee to and codependent with almost all public institutions.
We lost our unique and prophetic way when we turned Jesus into a chummy best friend and Brother Francis into “Saint Francis,” and it was no longer considered foolish to say that you followed Jesus or Francis. A prophet’s lifestyle is never fashionable or safe.
When you agree to live simply, you do not consider the refugee, the homeless person, or the foreigner as a threat or competition. You have chosen their marginal state for yourself—freely and consciously becoming “visitors and pilgrims” in this world, as Francis put it (quoting 1 Peter 2:11). A simple lifestyle is an act of solidarity with the way most people have lived since the beginnings of humanity.
As I’ve said many times, “the best criticism of the bad is the practice of the better.” This approach guards against the most common criticism of religion in general and social-justice work in particular, which, frankly, has tended to produce many negative, oppositional, and judgmental people—from reactionary conservatives to limousine liberals.
We must move to the laboratory where radical change can occur—inside of our very mind, heart, and the cells of our body. Contemplative practice rewires our inner life, giving us a kind of “emotional sobriety.” It opens us to an inner sense of divine union so we can do the needed works of justice with peace and enduring passion.
Our spirituality forms our inner lives and is then lived outwardly in the world, which is to live a life of love and justice for others. True contemplation must become action.
[1] See Richard Rohr on the classic sources of evil, Spiral of Violence: The World, the Flesh, and the Devil (Center for Action and Contemplation: 2008), CD and MP3 download.
Adapted from Richard Rohr, Eager to Love: The Alternative Way of Francis of Assisi (Franciscan Media: 2014), 33-34, 35-36, 38, 41-43, 273; and
A Spring Within Us: A Book of Daily Meditations (CAC Publishing: 2016), 15.
A LESSON IN A PARKING LOT:
This is an article from the archives of Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI. You can find the original article here
Our natural instincts serve us well, to a point. They’re self-protective and that’s healthy too, to a point. Let me explain.
Recently I was at a football game with a number of friends. We arrived at the game in two cars and parked in the stadium’s underground parking lot. Our tickets were in different parts of the stadium and so we separated for the game, each of us finding our own seats. When the game ended, I arrived at the cars with one of our party about ten minutes before the others showed up. During that wait, my friend and I scanned the crowd, looking for members of our party. But our scanning eyes drew some unwelcome attention. Two women approached us and, angrily, demanded why we had been looking at them: “Why were you looking at us? Are you trying to pick us up?”
That’s when natural instinct cuts in. Immediately, before any rational reflection had a chance to mitigate my thoughts and feelings, there was an automatic flash of anger, of indignation, of injustice, of coldness, of shame, and, yes, of hatred. Those feelings weren’t asked for; they simply flooded in. And, with them, came the concomitant accusatory thoughts: “If this is the “Me Too” movement; I’m against it! This is unfair!”
Fortunately, none of this was expressed. I apologized politely and explained that we were scanning the crowd for our lost party. The women passed on, no harm done, but the feelings lingered, lingered until I had a chance to process them, set them into perspective, and honor them for precisely what they are, instinctual, self-protective, feelings that are meant eventually to be replaced by something else, namely, by an understanding that goes beyond reflexive reaction.
On reflection, I didn’t see this incident as an aberration of the “Me Too” movement or as something to be indignant about. Rather, it helped me realize why there is a “Me Too” movement to begin with. The reaction of these two women no doubt was triggered by a history of injustice that they themselves (or other women they’ve known) have experienced in terms of sexual harassment, unwanted solicitation, and gender violence – injustices that absolutely dwarf the mini-mosquito bite of “injustice” that I experienced by their gratuitous remark.
It’s not without reason that this kind of exchange occurs in parking lots. Recently, I read statistics from a study that concluded that more than 80% of women in America have experienced some form of sexual harassment in their lifetime. In my naiveté, that figure seemed high, so I asked several women colleagues for their reaction to that statistic. Their reaction caught both me and my naiveté by surprise. Their reaction: “80% is far too low; it’s everyone! Rare is the woman who goes through life without experiencing some form of sexual harassment in her life.” Given that perspective, the paranoia expressed in the parking lot no longer seemed out of order.
Something else too: Reflecting further on this, I began to see more clearly the distance between natural instinct and mature empathy. Nature gives us powerful instincts that serve us well, to a point. They are inherently self-protective, selfish, even as they contain within them a certain amount of natural empathy. Instinct can sometimes be wonderfully sympathetic. For example, we are naturally drawn to reach out to a helpless child, a wounded bird, or a lost kitten. But what draws us to these is still, however subtle, self-interest. At the end of the day, our reaching out to them makes us feel better and their helplessness poses absolutely no threat to us. Natural instinct can be quite empathic when it is not threatened in any way.
But the situation changes, and very quickly, when any kind of threat is perceived; when, to put it metaphorically, something or somebody “is in your face”. Then our natural empathy slams shut like a trap door, our warmth turns cold, and every instinct inside us raises its self-interested head and voice. That’s what I felt in the parking lot at the football game.
And the danger then is to confuse those feelings with the bigger truth of the situation and with who we really are and what we really believe in. At that point, natural instinct no longer serves us well and, indeed, is no longer protective of our long-term good. What’s good for us long-term is, at that moment, hidden from our instincts. At moments like this we are called to an empathy beyond any feelings of having been slighted and beyond the ideologies we can lean on to justify our indignation: “This is political correctness (of the right or the left) gone amuck! This is an aberration!”
Our feelings are important and need to be acknowledged and honored, but we’re always more than our feelings. We’re called beyond instinct to empathy, to pray that the day will soon come when these two women, and their daughters and granddaughters, will no longer need to feel any threat in a parking lot.
and calling us to serve as your disciples.
as we use our gifts to serve you.
as we strive to bear witness
Amen.
Our Parish Sacramental Life
Baptism: Arrangements are made by contacting Parish Office. Parents attend a Baptismal Preparation Session organised with a Priest.
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)
Eucharistic Adoration - Devonport: Every Friday 10am - 12noon, concluding with Stations of the Cross and Angelus
Benediction with Adoration Devonport: First Friday each month.
Legion of Mary: Wednesdays 11am Sacred Heart of Church Community Room, Ulverstone
Prayer Group: Charismatic Renewal – Mondays 7pm Community Room Ulverstone
Weekday Masses 4th - 7th December Tuesday: 9:30am
Penguin
Wednesday: 9:30am
Latrobe
Thursday: 12noon Devonport
Friday: 9:30am Ulverstone
12noon Devonport
Friday: 9:30am Ulverstone
12noon Devonport
Weekend Masses 8th & 9th December
Saturday Mass: 9:30am Ulverstone
Saturday Vigil: 6:00pm Penguin
Saturday Vigil: 6:00pm Penguin
6:00pm Devonport
Sunday Mass: 8:30am Port Sorell
9:00am Ulverstone
10:30am Devonport
11:00am Sheffield
5:00pm Latrobe
Ministry Rosters 8th & 9th December, 2018
Devonport:
Readers Vigil: V Riley, A Stegmann 10:30am: F Sly, J Tuxworth, T Omogbai-musa
Ministers of Communion:
Vigil: B, B & B Windebank, T Bird, R
Baker
10:30am: S Riley, M Sherriff, R Beaton, D
& M Barrientos
Cleaners: 7th Dec:
M.W.C. 14th Dec: M & R Youd
Piety Shop: 8th Dec:
R Baker 9th Dec: T Omogbai-musa
Ulverstone:
Reader/s: M & K McKenzie
Ministers of Communion: M Mott, W Bajzelj, J Jones, T Leary Cleaners: K.S.C. Flowers: C Stingel Hospitality:
M & K McKenzie
Penguin:
Greeters: S Ewing, P Lade Commentator: Y Downes Readers: J Barker, T Clayton
Ministers of
Communion: S Ewing,
P Lade Liturgy: Pine Rd Setting Up: A Landers
Care of Church: M Bowles, J Reynolds
Latrobe:
Reader: M Eden Minister of
Communion: I
Campbell Procession of Gifts: M Clarke
Port Sorell:
Reader: G Bellchambers, L Post Ministers of
Communion: T
Jeffries
Cleaners: G Bellchambers & M Gillard
Readings this week –First Sunday of Advent (Year C)
First Reading: Jeremiah 33:14-16
Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 3:12- 4:2
Gospel: Luke 21:25-28. 34-36
PREGO REFLECTION ON TODAY’S GOSPEL:
I give myself plenty of time to pray this passage. I do not rush. I put myself in the presence of God, trusting that he is at my side, ever willing to support and help me. I read the text slowly and carefully. The vivid language describing the end of times may be bewildering. I pause awhile and ask the Lord to help me see beyond the dramatic portrayal of his second coming. Perhaps I can imagine the glorious vision of the Son of Man coming in a cloud. How would I feel? Would I be able to 'stand erect'? Or would I feel trapped, unaware, and not ready to meet him? I speak to the Lord, telling him what is in my heart. I ask him for whatever help I need. Perhaps with his help, I might use this Advent period to push aside the 'cares of life', to focus even more on his coming. The natural catastrophes described above may remind me of the plight of all those people, all over the world, who are affected by tsunamis, heavy storms, tornadoes, earthquakes. I entrust them to the Lord. I may want to find a practical way, however small, in which I can help. When I am ready, slowly, I conclude my time of prayer by thanking the Lord for being with me. Glory be to the Father …
Readings next week –Second Sunday of Advent
(Year C)
First Reading: Baruch
5:1-9
Second Reading: Philippians 1:4-6, 8-11
Gospel: Luke 3: 1-6
Your prayers are asked for the sick: Let us pray for those who have died recently:
Jill Di Pietro, Michael Furjanic, Dennis Murphy, Denis Bresnehan (brother of Fr Tom), Brendan Kelly, Laszlo Kiss, Karen Farr, Denis McCormack, Betty Croft, Margaret Clarke, Gabriella Colpo, Sr Angela Dance, Jillian Brooks, Audrey Glover
Let us pray for those whose anniversary occurs about this time: 1st – 7th December
Arthur Cooke, Terence Murphy, Noreen Johnson, Cecilia Rootes, Iris Nickols, Lorraine Sullivan, Neville Tyrell, Marjorie Simpson, Peter Flynn, Annie Williams, Rustica Bibera, Elsie Williams, Murray Soden, Theo Kurrle, deceased members of Legion of Mary and deceased relatives and friends of Meriam Murray.
This weekend we also have a (small) number of copies of the
SWAG available. This is a magazine of the National Council of Priests and
always contains articles that are interesting and thought provoking. Some
parishioners take a copy, read it and then return it for someone else, others
take a copy to devour – whichever suits your fancy – enjoy.
EMPTY STABLE - OUR LADY OF
LOURDES CHURCH:
Arthur Cooke, Terence Murphy, Noreen Johnson, Cecilia Rootes, Iris Nickols, Lorraine Sullivan, Neville Tyrell, Marjorie Simpson, Peter Flynn, Annie Williams, Rustica Bibera, Elsie Williams, Murray Soden, Theo Kurrle, deceased members of Legion of Mary and deceased relatives and friends of Meriam Murray.
Weekly
Ramblings
A new Liturgical Year begins this weekend as we commence
the Season of Advent. One of the challenges that all of us face at this time of
the year is trying to avoid the madness of this pre-Christmas time and actually
using our Advent Season to prepare for the celebration of the Birth of Our
Saviour.
There are a couple of ways that we can do this. We have our
Advent Reflection Booklet available and I would encourage you to grab one
before they all go and use the daily reflections to help focus our attention on
our Saviour. There will also be two sessions with Clare Kiely-Hoye in the
Parish House looking at the Advent Readings and exploring how we can grow in
our understanding and appreciation of this special season – see next page for
details. There will also be two Reconciliation Services which will focus on our
call to be ‘Prepared for the Coming of the Lord’ – Devonport on 11th
& Ulverstone on 12th – both services at 7.00pm.
The times for the Christmas Masses are included in the
newsletter today and details will also be posted in the Foyers of our Churches.
If anyone would like extra copies to distribute in their local community then
please contact the Parish Office.
Please
take care on the roads and I look forward to seeing you next weekend.
EMPTY STABLE - OUR LADY OF
LOURDES CHURCH:
BBQ & BOOK CLUB:
Michael and Grainne Hendrey invite you to join them in
their home each first Friday of the month for an evening of conversation and
spirituality-ness. BBQ starts at 6:30pm, BYO meat and drinks and something to
share. Book club is from 7:30pm to 9pm (small groups). RSVP Michael 0417 540
566 or Grainne 0414 968 731
SACRED HEART CHURCH CHRISTMAS EVE MASS:
‘Calling all children’ you are very welcome to participate in the
nativity play at the 6pm Christmas Eve Mass at Sacred Heart Church Ulverstone. Practise will take place during 9am Mass at Sacred Heart Church Sunday 2nd, 9th, 16th, and 23rd December. If
you would like more information please phone Charlie Vella 0417 307 781.
CHRISTMAS
PARTY – ULVERSTONE:
‘Come one – come all’ to our annual Christmas Party on Tuesday
4th December starting at 1:45pm at Sacred Heart Church Community Room Ulverstone. We hope you will join us for some light entertainment, a cuppa and a
chat. Once again we are asking for help with cooking. RSVP 2nd
December to Juliet Smith 6425:5854, Debbie Rimmelzwaan 6425:1384, Elizabeth Cox 0400 179 297.
ADVENT 2018:
I have come that you, the whole of humanity, the whole of creation, may
have life and life in all its fullness (Gospel of John) You are invited to two gatherings;
Thursday 6th December and 13th December, 10am – 11:30am at
Parish House, Devonport. Contact Clare Kiely-Hoye 0418 100 402
LUNCH: Sunday 9th December at Furners Hotel Ulverstone 12noon-12:20pm
All welcome!
PIETY SHOP OLOL CHURCH:
A variety of Christmas Cards are now available $4 packet of
8 and 2019 Columban Calendars $10.00 each.
Thursday Nights - OLOL Hall, Devonport. Eyes down 7.30pm! Callers Thursday 6th December, Tony Ryan &
Alan Luxton
NEWS FROM
ACROSS THE ARCHDIOCESE:
ADVENT TALKS:
Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ: Over two sessions, Fr
Michael Tate will have a look at the mother of Jesus Christ as portrayed in the
Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. Each Gospel writer contributes a
different perspective, e.g. there is no Infancy Narrative in the Gospels
according to St Mark and St John. We will get the flavour of the
contribution from each evangelist as we approach Christmas. Wednesday, 5th December
and Wednesday, 12th December 7pm at St Francis Xavier Hall, Anglesea
Street, South Hobart.
THE JOURNEY CATHOLIC RADIO PROGRAM:
This week on
The Journey, Fr Stephen Varney reflects on the Gospel of Luke, Sr Hilda
from the Abbey shares her wisdom Remembering God, Bruce Downes, The Catholic
Guy encourages us to “Change the World” and Trish McCarthy captivates us with
her God Spot entitled “Eyes”. Music sooths all souls and we are lucky to
have some amazing Christian music on the Journey Catholic Radio program, where
faith hope, love and life come together. Go to www.jcr.org.au
or www.itunes.jcr.org.au
where you can listen anytime and subscribe to weekly shows by email.
BE PEACE AND JUSTICE:
This article is taken from the Daily Emails from Fr Richard Rohr OFM and the Center for Action and Contemplation. You can subscribe to receive the emails here
Last week I shared how far Christianity has strayed from Jesus’ vision of justice, even though his teaching was crystal clear. Francis (1182-1226) and Clare (1194-1253) of Assisi understood his message and modeled a similar agenda: a simple lifestyle outside the system of production and consumption (the real meaning of the vow of poverty) and conscious identification with the marginalized of society (the communion of saints pushed to its outer edge). In this position, we do not “do” acts of peace and justice as much as our lifestyle itself is peace and justice. Think about that.
By “living on the edge of the inside” I mean building on the solid Tradition (“from the inside”) but doing it from a new and creative stance where you cannot be co-opted (“on the edge”) for purposes of security, possessions, or the illusions of power. Today, many of us try to find personal and individual freedom even as we remain inside a system of consumption that we are unable or unwilling to critique. We cannot remove the plank on which we are standing. Evil tends to hide even more in systems and institutions than in individuals. [1]
The way of radical Christianity is to stay outside of such systems—insofar as possible—so they cannot control our breadth of thinking, feeling, loving, and living out universal justice. We can only re-enter them from this new place of inner freedom. This has seldom been taught, and thus most of us are on bended knee to and codependent with almost all public institutions.
We lost our unique and prophetic way when we turned Jesus into a chummy best friend and Brother Francis into “Saint Francis,” and it was no longer considered foolish to say that you followed Jesus or Francis. A prophet’s lifestyle is never fashionable or safe.
When you agree to live simply, you do not consider the refugee, the homeless person, or the foreigner as a threat or competition. You have chosen their marginal state for yourself—freely and consciously becoming “visitors and pilgrims” in this world, as Francis put it (quoting 1 Peter 2:11). A simple lifestyle is an act of solidarity with the way most people have lived since the beginnings of humanity.
As I’ve said many times, “the best criticism of the bad is the practice of the better.” This approach guards against the most common criticism of religion in general and social-justice work in particular, which, frankly, has tended to produce many negative, oppositional, and judgmental people—from reactionary conservatives to limousine liberals.
We must move to the laboratory where radical change can occur—inside of our very mind, heart, and the cells of our body. Contemplative practice rewires our inner life, giving us a kind of “emotional sobriety.” It opens us to an inner sense of divine union so we can do the needed works of justice with peace and enduring passion.
Our spirituality forms our inner lives and is then lived outwardly in the world, which is to live a life of love and justice for others. True contemplation must become action.
[1] See Richard Rohr on the classic sources of evil, Spiral of Violence: The World, the Flesh, and the Devil (Center for Action and Contemplation: 2008), CD and MP3 download.
Adapted from Richard Rohr, Eager to Love: The Alternative Way of Francis of Assisi (Franciscan Media: 2014), 33-34, 35-36, 38, 41-43, 273; and
A Spring Within Us: A Book of Daily Meditations (CAC Publishing: 2016), 15.
A LESSON IN A PARKING LOT:
This is an article from the archives of Fr Ron Rolheiser OMI. You can find the original article here
Our natural instincts serve us well, to a point. They’re self-protective and that’s healthy too, to a point. Let me explain.
Recently I was at a football game with a number of friends. We arrived at the game in two cars and parked in the stadium’s underground parking lot. Our tickets were in different parts of the stadium and so we separated for the game, each of us finding our own seats. When the game ended, I arrived at the cars with one of our party about ten minutes before the others showed up. During that wait, my friend and I scanned the crowd, looking for members of our party. But our scanning eyes drew some unwelcome attention. Two women approached us and, angrily, demanded why we had been looking at them: “Why were you looking at us? Are you trying to pick us up?”
That’s when natural instinct cuts in. Immediately, before any rational reflection had a chance to mitigate my thoughts and feelings, there was an automatic flash of anger, of indignation, of injustice, of coldness, of shame, and, yes, of hatred. Those feelings weren’t asked for; they simply flooded in. And, with them, came the concomitant accusatory thoughts: “If this is the “Me Too” movement; I’m against it! This is unfair!”
Fortunately, none of this was expressed. I apologized politely and explained that we were scanning the crowd for our lost party. The women passed on, no harm done, but the feelings lingered, lingered until I had a chance to process them, set them into perspective, and honor them for precisely what they are, instinctual, self-protective, feelings that are meant eventually to be replaced by something else, namely, by an understanding that goes beyond reflexive reaction.
On reflection, I didn’t see this incident as an aberration of the “Me Too” movement or as something to be indignant about. Rather, it helped me realize why there is a “Me Too” movement to begin with. The reaction of these two women no doubt was triggered by a history of injustice that they themselves (or other women they’ve known) have experienced in terms of sexual harassment, unwanted solicitation, and gender violence – injustices that absolutely dwarf the mini-mosquito bite of “injustice” that I experienced by their gratuitous remark.
It’s not without reason that this kind of exchange occurs in parking lots. Recently, I read statistics from a study that concluded that more than 80% of women in America have experienced some form of sexual harassment in their lifetime. In my naiveté, that figure seemed high, so I asked several women colleagues for their reaction to that statistic. Their reaction caught both me and my naiveté by surprise. Their reaction: “80% is far too low; it’s everyone! Rare is the woman who goes through life without experiencing some form of sexual harassment in her life.” Given that perspective, the paranoia expressed in the parking lot no longer seemed out of order.
Something else too: Reflecting further on this, I began to see more clearly the distance between natural instinct and mature empathy. Nature gives us powerful instincts that serve us well, to a point. They are inherently self-protective, selfish, even as they contain within them a certain amount of natural empathy. Instinct can sometimes be wonderfully sympathetic. For example, we are naturally drawn to reach out to a helpless child, a wounded bird, or a lost kitten. But what draws us to these is still, however subtle, self-interest. At the end of the day, our reaching out to them makes us feel better and their helplessness poses absolutely no threat to us. Natural instinct can be quite empathic when it is not threatened in any way.
But the situation changes, and very quickly, when any kind of threat is perceived; when, to put it metaphorically, something or somebody “is in your face”. Then our natural empathy slams shut like a trap door, our warmth turns cold, and every instinct inside us raises its self-interested head and voice. That’s what I felt in the parking lot at the football game.
And the danger then is to confuse those feelings with the bigger truth of the situation and with who we really are and what we really believe in. At that point, natural instinct no longer serves us well and, indeed, is no longer protective of our long-term good. What’s good for us long-term is, at that moment, hidden from our instincts. At moments like this we are called to an empathy beyond any feelings of having been slighted and beyond the ideologies we can lean on to justify our indignation: “This is political correctness (of the right or the left) gone amuck! This is an aberration!”
Our feelings are important and need to be acknowledged and honored, but we’re always more than our feelings. We’re called beyond instinct to empathy, to pray that the day will soon come when these two women, and their daughters and granddaughters, will no longer need to feel any threat in a parking lot.
THE SPRINT TO CHRISTMAS
This is article is taken from the weekly blog by Fr Michael white, Pastor of the Church of the Nativity, Timonium, Baltimore. You can find the blog here
Now that Thanksgiving is behind us, we begin a sprint to Christmas. Here are a few things I am really looking forward to this season.
The Celebration of Advent
My very favorite liturgical season is Advent. Beginning with a focus on Christ’s coming at the end of time, the season eventually turns our attention to his birth in history. Advent positively bids us to prepare for both. The built in sense of expectation is a joy that transcends whatever else this busy time of year brings.
New Series
To guide and instruct us through our Advent journey we are launching a new series. Taking as its point of departure the holiday classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” we’ll be looking the virtue of gratitude. As part of this series we’ll be inviting parishioners feedback on their experiences. It should be fun.
Mission Sunday
Each year as part of our preparation for Christmas we always host a mission project, just to make sure it isn’t all about us as well as brighten the holiday of others. This year we’ll be funding a water project in a very needy part of the world. Donors receive a gift card they can give as a gift…the perfect Christmas present for everyone on your list.
Fairgrounds Move –In/Minister’s Rally
The excitement built into the season definitely ramps up as we begin the move from our Ridgely Road campus to the Maryland State Fairgrounds. It’s a big process, requiring many hands, and long hours, but definitely a lot of fun. This year it all begins on December 17 and continues up thru the morning of Christmas Eve. One especially fun and festive event is our annual “Minister’s Rally” when we welcome all of the hundreds of member ministers who will be serving Christmas Eve for a general orientation of the facility. With Christmas Carols and hot chocolate the evening definitely puts everyone in the holiday spirit. By the way, if you haven’t already signed up to serve, do it today: churchnativity.com
Annual Pilgrimage to Catholic TV
Each year, just before Christmas Tom Corcoran and I travel to Boston to visit with our friends at Catholic TV. I usually record a few in-studio Masses for subsequent broadcast, often we record promotions and there is always a guest appearance on their morning show, “This Is the Day.” We also use the opportunity to confirm final details about their Christmas Eve broadcast of our Christmas Mass (this year it will be aired at 9:30pm EST, with rebroadcasts through the day, Christmas Day).
Christmas Eve
Of course the highlight of the whole season is Christmas Eve Mass. This year we’ll be adding more seats. For the kids we have a delightful and magical program we call “Jingle-Jam” as well as a nursery (“All Stars”) for little children and a “family friendly seating area for parents who choose to keep their little ones with them.
Two Masses, 4 & 6, both bring beautiful, soaring music and amazing technology. Insiders tip: Come early, get your perfect seat, and enjoy a holiday program presented by members of our house band before Mass begins. It is a night like no other and not to be missed.
The sprint to Christmas has begun. Enjoy it!
This is article is taken from the weekly blog by Fr Michael white, Pastor of the Church of the Nativity, Timonium, Baltimore. You can find the blog here
Now that Thanksgiving is behind us, we begin a sprint to Christmas. Here are a few things I am really looking forward to this season.
The Celebration of Advent
My very favorite liturgical season is Advent. Beginning with a focus on Christ’s coming at the end of time, the season eventually turns our attention to his birth in history. Advent positively bids us to prepare for both. The built in sense of expectation is a joy that transcends whatever else this busy time of year brings.
New Series
To guide and instruct us through our Advent journey we are launching a new series. Taking as its point of departure the holiday classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” we’ll be looking the virtue of gratitude. As part of this series we’ll be inviting parishioners feedback on their experiences. It should be fun.
Mission Sunday
Each year as part of our preparation for Christmas we always host a mission project, just to make sure it isn’t all about us as well as brighten the holiday of others. This year we’ll be funding a water project in a very needy part of the world. Donors receive a gift card they can give as a gift…the perfect Christmas present for everyone on your list.
Fairgrounds Move –In/Minister’s Rally
The excitement built into the season definitely ramps up as we begin the move from our Ridgely Road campus to the Maryland State Fairgrounds. It’s a big process, requiring many hands, and long hours, but definitely a lot of fun. This year it all begins on December 17 and continues up thru the morning of Christmas Eve. One especially fun and festive event is our annual “Minister’s Rally” when we welcome all of the hundreds of member ministers who will be serving Christmas Eve for a general orientation of the facility. With Christmas Carols and hot chocolate the evening definitely puts everyone in the holiday spirit. By the way, if you haven’t already signed up to serve, do it today: churchnativity.com
Annual Pilgrimage to Catholic TV
Each year, just before Christmas Tom Corcoran and I travel to Boston to visit with our friends at Catholic TV. I usually record a few in-studio Masses for subsequent broadcast, often we record promotions and there is always a guest appearance on their morning show, “This Is the Day.” We also use the opportunity to confirm final details about their Christmas Eve broadcast of our Christmas Mass (this year it will be aired at 9:30pm EST, with rebroadcasts through the day, Christmas Day).
Christmas Eve
Of course the highlight of the whole season is Christmas Eve Mass. This year we’ll be adding more seats. For the kids we have a delightful and magical program we call “Jingle-Jam” as well as a nursery (“All Stars”) for little children and a “family friendly seating area for parents who choose to keep their little ones with them.
Two Masses, 4 & 6, both bring beautiful, soaring music and amazing technology. Insiders tip: Come early, get your perfect seat, and enjoy a holiday program presented by members of our house band before Mass begins. It is a night like no other and not to be missed.
The sprint to Christmas has begun. Enjoy it!
Listening to the Spirit: 10,000 voices and climbing
Momentum is building as the Church reaches the midway point of the Open Listening and Dialogue phase of preparations for the Plenary Council in 2020.
Facilitator Lana Turvey-Collins says hearing the voices of more than 10,000 Australians is a great start and she hopes that’s just the tip of the iceberg as the Church builds towards the Plenary Council sessions to be held in October 2020 and May 2021.
Since the launch of the Plenary Council’s Open Listening and Dialogue stage at Pentecost, individuals and groups – large and small – have shared their stories of life and faith. By the end of September, more than 10,000 individuals had contributed their responses.
“This is an encouraging sign of engagement and also a sign of hope about how open-hearted people are,” Ms Turvey-Collins said.
“This initial level of response shows that there are many people from across the country who care deeply about the future of the Church in Australia. Now every person needs to be proactive and reach beyond our comfort zones and have conversations with those people who may need someone to let them know this is happening.
“Christmas get-togethers will be an opportunity to connect with family and friends and personally say: ‘Your story matters, the Church is planning for the future, can we chat?’ This invitation is powerful and it is how we will hear the stories from the margins.”
Trudy Dantis, director of the National Centre for Pastoral Research, said momentum has been building in recent months, with the total number of responses almost doubling each month.
She said the vast majority of responses had unsurprisingly come from Catholics, but noted that a number of responses have also come from other Christian communities, including the Anglican, Baptist, Uniting, Pentecostal, Lutheran and Orthodox churches. A small number of responses had come from people who self-identify as “no religion”, as well as people from other faith backgrounds.
“Everyone’s experience of faith and the Church is unique and it’s important that the Plenary Council hears the voice of as many people as possible,” Ms Turvey-Collins said.
“The diversity and differences of responses will be messy and we must resist labels, boxes and the urge to resolve things ‘neatly’. This discernment will require a nuanced and deeply prayerful consideration as we continue to listen to what the Spirit is saying.”
Dr Dantis said responses have come from many different parts of the community, including youth groups, aged care homes, Catholic agencies, religious congregations, men’s groups, women’s groups and families. There has also been a good geographic spread, with stories emerging from all parts of the country.
Ms Turvey-Collins said of the 10,000 people who have considered the question “What do you think God is asking of us in Australia at this time?”, about 1000 of them were people under the age of 30.
“That’s a great start, and I am looking forward to hearing the voices and stories from the young people in our Catholic schools who have big questions about faith, the Church and life in Australian society. There are some wonderful initiatives being planned for term 1 next year,” she said.
Stories from around the country have outlined creative ways that individuals and groups are ensuring their voice helps shape the Plenary Council agenda.
“A number of wonderful Catholic secondary school students are visiting aged care communities to have an inter-generational conversation about God, faith and life,” Ms Turvey-Collins said.
“Young people are hearing the stories of older Australians and their hopes for the Catholic Church, as well as sharing their own.”
The Open Listening and Dialogue stage of the Plenary Council runs until Ash Wednesday 2019, but Ms Turvey-Collins said that will not mark the end of the engagement with the community.
Dr Dantis and her team will then analyse the stories and responses that have been shared and, using best-practice research techniques, will identify the emergent themes.
The stories and responses grouped into themes will be considered and examined more deeply using a theological reflection method during a period of “Thematic Dialogue and Discernment”, which will commence in mid-2019 as the process builds towards the Plenary Council sessions in 2020 and 2021.
More information can be found at the Plenary Council website.
Momentum is building as the Church reaches the midway point of the Open Listening and Dialogue phase of preparations for the Plenary Council in 2020.
Facilitator Lana Turvey-Collins says hearing the voices of more than 10,000 Australians is a great start and she hopes that’s just the tip of the iceberg as the Church builds towards the Plenary Council sessions to be held in October 2020 and May 2021.
Since the launch of the Plenary Council’s Open Listening and Dialogue stage at Pentecost, individuals and groups – large and small – have shared their stories of life and faith. By the end of September, more than 10,000 individuals had contributed their responses.
“This is an encouraging sign of engagement and also a sign of hope about how open-hearted people are,” Ms Turvey-Collins said.
“This initial level of response shows that there are many people from across the country who care deeply about the future of the Church in Australia. Now every person needs to be proactive and reach beyond our comfort zones and have conversations with those people who may need someone to let them know this is happening.
“Christmas get-togethers will be an opportunity to connect with family and friends and personally say: ‘Your story matters, the Church is planning for the future, can we chat?’ This invitation is powerful and it is how we will hear the stories from the margins.”
Trudy Dantis, director of the National Centre for Pastoral Research, said momentum has been building in recent months, with the total number of responses almost doubling each month.
She said the vast majority of responses had unsurprisingly come from Catholics, but noted that a number of responses have also come from other Christian communities, including the Anglican, Baptist, Uniting, Pentecostal, Lutheran and Orthodox churches. A small number of responses had come from people who self-identify as “no religion”, as well as people from other faith backgrounds.
“Everyone’s experience of faith and the Church is unique and it’s important that the Plenary Council hears the voice of as many people as possible,” Ms Turvey-Collins said.
“The diversity and differences of responses will be messy and we must resist labels, boxes and the urge to resolve things ‘neatly’. This discernment will require a nuanced and deeply prayerful consideration as we continue to listen to what the Spirit is saying.”
Dr Dantis said responses have come from many different parts of the community, including youth groups, aged care homes, Catholic agencies, religious congregations, men’s groups, women’s groups and families. There has also been a good geographic spread, with stories emerging from all parts of the country.
Ms Turvey-Collins said of the 10,000 people who have considered the question “What do you think God is asking of us in Australia at this time?”, about 1000 of them were people under the age of 30.
“That’s a great start, and I am looking forward to hearing the voices and stories from the young people in our Catholic schools who have big questions about faith, the Church and life in Australian society. There are some wonderful initiatives being planned for term 1 next year,” she said.
Stories from around the country have outlined creative ways that individuals and groups are ensuring their voice helps shape the Plenary Council agenda.
“A number of wonderful Catholic secondary school students are visiting aged care communities to have an inter-generational conversation about God, faith and life,” Ms Turvey-Collins said.
“Young people are hearing the stories of older Australians and their hopes for the Catholic Church, as well as sharing their own.”
The Open Listening and Dialogue stage of the Plenary Council runs until Ash Wednesday 2019, but Ms Turvey-Collins said that will not mark the end of the engagement with the community.
Dr Dantis and her team will then analyse the stories and responses that have been shared and, using best-practice research techniques, will identify the emergent themes.
The stories and responses grouped into themes will be considered and examined more deeply using a theological reflection method during a period of “Thematic Dialogue and Discernment”, which will commence in mid-2019 as the process builds towards the Plenary Council sessions in 2020 and 2021.
More information can be found at the Plenary Council website.
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