|
Astronomers argue whether the universe will keep expanding and cooling or whether it will one day contract and explode. T.S. Eliot thought the world would end “not with a bang but a whimper” (The Hollow Men). Christians who look to Revelation (a.k.a., the book of the Apocalypse) for answers to these questions miss the point of this New Testament book.
Criticism of the mass media often presumes that the media has an ideological bias that distorts its coverage of religion and politics.
Christ’s Resurrection is something more than simply the miracle of a corpse returning to life. It is something more, something different.
Christian interest in eastern spirituality must avoid two extremes. One extreme sees eastern spirituality as the work of the devil, while the other sees it as an easy shortcut to peace and fulfillment.
It is hard to imagine anything worse than the death of one’s child. Our hearts weep with the parents and families of the students who were so tragically killed at Virginia Tech. Lives full of promise and hope were suddenly terminated in a barrage of madness.
We like to give Jesus titles: King, Lord, Alpha, Omega, Prince of Peace, Sacred Heart, Priest, Savior, Lamb of God, Good Shepherd, Son of Man, Son of God, Bread of Life, etc.
“There are no atheist is fox holes,” first coined during the Second World War, points to the fact that people often turn to God in times of extreme stress when they feel powerless. On the other hand, many people’s faith has been challenged by the horrors of war, especially wars waged by so-called believers.
During most of the 20th century, the Democratic Party was made up of Catholics and Jews in the Northeast and Baptists in the South. The leaders and the members of the party attended services and practiced their religion, but they did not talk about religion in the party except in the most general terms.
Being forced to choose between “being saved” or “doing good works” is presenting a false dichotomy, as did the sterile debate over “faith” and “works” during the Reformation. Thanks to the Lutheran-Catholic dialogue, both sides now agree that we are saved by our faith in Jesus Christ not by our works, but our faith in Jesus compels us to do works of charity and justice.
In looking at Iraq, we need to ask two questions: What do we owe the Iraqi people, and what are we capable of delivering?
No matter what you think about the justification for initiating the Iraq war (I think it was unjustified), the issue of withdrawing is a separate question. Some Catholic ethicists (including the U.S. bishops and the Vatican) think that the U.S. has a moral obligation to fix things before it leaves. Others believe such a view is naïve—the U.S. is incapable of fixing Iraq and in fact is making matters worse.
I believe in heaven because I believe that God loves us so much that he would not let us simply disappear. I believe in hell because I believe we are free to reject God.
Under the U.S. Constitution and laws, all religions should be treated the same by the government. Paganism should be treated just like any other religion even when it comes to chaplains.
Ignoring one's past is ignoring one's roots. But repeating old prayers and doctrinal formulas without understanding them is not the way to respect tradition.
In order to understand Pope Benedict, you must remember that in his heart he is a German academic.
It was a sad day for all Americans when some so-called Christians disrupted the first-ever Hindu prayer opening a session of the U.S. Senate on July 12. Sen. Robert Casey, who was presiding in the chair, responded appropriately when he immediately called on the sergeant at arms to restore order and throw the demonstrators out of the gallery.
Anytime physicians feel a conflict between their conscience and the desires of their patients, they should tell the patient to see another doctor.
I have never been comfortable picking just one Scripture passage to sum up my faith.
I remember a Berkeley professor once trying to teach humility to a group of bright political science students: “The world is very big. The human mind is very small.” Add God to that equation and we are very small indeed. No single passage can sum up God or our relation to him.
In addition, we change. As a youth, I studied Scripture trying to find out how to make myself a better person. “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” I used the Scriptures as a mirror to find imperfections and overcome them. Jesus was the coach that urged me on.
Mother Teresa’s doubts make me like her more. Her doubts make her more human.Many people think that saints are perfect people. They are not.
From the very beginning of Christianity we had Peter denying Christ and Thomas doubting his resurrection.
The church is to be congratulated for its openness in publishing Mother Teresa’s letters. It has not always been so transparent. Before the autobiography of her namesake, St. Therese of Lisieux, was published, it was sanitized for publication, removing descriptions of her desolation and her desire to be a priest.
Spiritual writers tell us that the spiritual life develops in stages: the purgative, the illuminative and the unitive state or way.
In the first stage of spiritual development the emphasis is on turning away from sin, which involves repentance and conversion.
In the second stage, the emphasis is on the practice of virtue, which is an attempt to follow in the footsteps of Christ.
In the third stage, a person focuses less on his or her self and more on God who is ultimate love, beauty and goodness.
My faith motivates me to be interested in politics. The Hebrew prophets and Jesus eloquently express God’s concern for the poor, the sick and the powerless. Jesus and the prophets tell me that my concern should be for justice and peace.
My faith, however, does not tell me what government policies and programs will best serve the cause of justice and peace. In other words, I get my values from the Gospel, but I have to use my head to find programs to implement these values. And in the real world, I know that there are no perfect programs, and even if there were, it is politically unrealistic to think that such programs will receive unanimous consent.
I believe in life after death because I am a romantic, I believe in happy endings, I believe in a just and loving God.
Those who have suffered from injustice in this world deserve something better. A just God calls on us to work for justice, but still too many people suffer from injustice. Not only that, life is filled with disappointment and disaster even without injustice. Without life after death, life is not a romance it is a sick tragedy, a cosmic joke.
If God loves us, then I think he would want to meet us face to face, not just through a glass darkly. Love requires presence, communication and communion.
I am agnostic when it comes to visions and visitations. Too many are the product of psychosis and hallucinations. Too many promote fear rather than love. Too many do not sound like the Mary or Jesus of the gospels. I would not trade the Magnificat for all of Mary’s so called visitations.
Catholic teaching holds that there can be no conflict between faith and reason, but history shows us that sometimes scientists and theologians have been at odds. This often happens when either the scientist or theologian speaks outside his or her specialty.
Scientists who deny the existence of God have a right to their opinions, but they are not speaking as scientists but as philosophers. Likewise, theologians have no expertise in estimating the age of the earth.
For Catholics, the apparent conflict between Genesis and contemporary science was resolved by improvements in biblical theology, which respects the literary form and cultural context of scripture.
Whether Halloween originated as a Christian or Pagan feast is much debated, but today it is a $5 billion money maker where anything goes as long as it sells.
Halloween was originally a Christian feast, according to Father Augustine Thompson, O.P., writing in Catholic Parent because it was All Hollows Eve, that is the day before the feast of All Saints celebrated on November 1. In some countries, on All Saints day, Children would dress up as their favorite saint. In other countries like France, they would dress as the dead on All Souls day, November 2. In the United States, dressing up on All Hollows Eve became the custom.
The right to life includes food and basic health care.
Are we so hard hearted that we can refuse food and health care to children just because their parents are poor? What kind of society are we? Their right to food and health care is so fundamental and so self-evident that it is incomprehensible to me that we ignore their needs.
Are we trying to punish poor parents by punishing their children? Is this some Malthusian strategy to get them to stop having children?
The Bush Administration’s opposition to expanding SCHIP is outrageous and immoral. Their talking points are absurdly false as even Republican members of Congress point out.
Although Hollywood is routinely condemned by conservatives as a hotbed of liberal elitists, in fact it perpetuates the American myth that violence is the way to overcome evil.
We grew up on cowboys and Indians, war movies and espionage thrillers that showcased the good guys beating up and killing the bad guys. And if the heroine is in danger, then the end justifies the means, any means. We all booed when the criminal tortured by Dirty Harry was released back into society by the court. We cheered when Harry blew him away. Don’t get mad, just get even.
The American faith in the efficacious use of violence led us astray first in Vietnam and now in Iraq. And when you are fighting an evil such as Communism or terrorism, the argument goes, any means is legitimate.
There are numerous reasons why torture is wrong.
Jesus taught Christians to forgive, but it is not easy to do.
On the cross, Jesus prayed, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” He also told us many parables about forgiveness, especially the one about the servant who was forgiven a debt and then refused to forgive his debtor. In the Lord’s Prayer, he also has us pray, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
Forgiveness is an essential part of Christ’s message. I wish it were easy, but it is not. Since I have some Irish blood, I can repeat the joke about Irish Alzheimer’s, where the person forgets everything but his or her grudges, but any ethic group can be inserted in this joke.
“More murders occur on Christmas than any other time of the year,” a reporter once told me. “The problem is that people who hate each other consume a lot of liquor and are forced to spend time together. The combination is lethal.”
Whether Christmas is the murder season or not, holidays certainly can be a time of tension for families. Where you celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas, who is invited, who cooks, and what you talk about can all be areas of conflict. Old grudges and jealousies can surface; new slights can occur.
Reading The Washington Post every morning can be depressing.
We read each morning about wars, earthquakes, floods, famines, fires, crimes and plagues. TV is even worse. It is enough to send you right back to bed.
It sounds like Jesus talking about the end times with wars and insurrections. “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.” But Jesus tells us when we hear of these things, “do not be terrified.”
When President François Mitterrand died in Paris, his wife and mistress stood side by side at his grave, something that would be unthinkable in the United States. Everyone in the France knew that he had a mistress while he was president.
There is some sophistication in this ability to separate personal from political morality. We should be more concerned about a politician’s positions on issues than about his or her sex life. If a candidate can achieve peace and prosperity, as a citizen we can ignore his or her personal vices even if as human beings we might be appalled.
Religious believers make at least three important contributions to solving the world’s social problems.
First and most importantly, religion inspires believers to be concerned for their neighbors whom they see as children of the same God. We are all brothers and sisters; we are responsible for one another. We cannot stand by idle while they suffer. The Jewish prophets are emphatic on this as is Jesus. The poor, the sick and the oppressed should always be of special concern to believers.
Governor Mitt Romney’s speech shows the importance of having a national conversation on religion in public life but it also shows the dangers of having that discussion led by politicians during a political campaign. Political goals and rhetoric interfere with careful analysis and dialogue. While there is much to be admired in his presentation, his goal of winning over conservative evangelicals in the Iowa caucus led him to ignore important distinctions and to exclude nonbelievers as secularist bad guys.
Yes, it’s is time to stop being daft about Christmas. People should feel free to wish one another “Happy Holidays,” “Merry Christmas” and/or “Happy Hanukkah.” Christians should not take offense at “Happy Holidays,” and non-Christians should not take offense at “Merry Christmas” when no offense is intended.
I personally prefer “Merry Christmas,” but if I meet a person wearing a yarmulke, I will wish them “Happy Holiday” or “Happy Hanukkah.” This is not political correctness; this is simply good manners. We need to be respectful of one another.
Theologians have traditionally argued that pride is the core sin because it is placing ourselves above God and God’s law. Most of us, however, don’t live on that philosophical plane.
On a personal level, each of us sins and is sinned against in unique ways that are hurtful to ourselves, our families and our neighbors. Each of the deadly sins can lead to personal unhappiness, family disunity and interpersonal conflict. These sins rarely occur in isolation; we experience them in bundles.
Every American has the legal right to propose an amendment to the U.S. Constitution for any reason they want. Every American has the legal right to oppose any amendment to the U.S. Constitution for any reason they want. By its very nature, any amendment that is adopted is “constitutional.”
Our expectations of religious leaders are often unrealistic. When describing the characteristics desired in a Catholic bishop it often sounds like Jesus Christ with an MBA from Harvard. I am afraid that he is unavailable.
The Catholic Church approaches visionaries with a great deal of skepticism. Belief in visions or any post-apostolic revelations is not required of churchgoers. In most cases, the church actively discourages the faithful from getting involved in them.
Despite the official skepticism, there has always been a great deal of interest in alleged appearance of Jesus or Mary and in private revelations to visionaries. Some of them are fraudulent, many are delusional and a rare few may actually be legit.
For example, the “revelations” of Anne Catherine Emmerich, used by Mel Gibson in “The Passion of the Christ,” were found to be “devout fiction or, to put it more harshly, as well-intentioned frauds” created by Clemens Brentano, a German Romantic poet. (See “A Movie, a Mystic, a Spiritual Tradition” by John O’Malley, S.J., America, March 15, 2004.) The revelations were not used by the church in judging her sanctity.
The problem with secularism is that it means different things to different people. To many religious conservatives, secularism means banning religion from the public square. To many liberal secularists, secularism means keeping religion from imposing its doctrines on others. That is why I find myself at times agreeing with both sides of this debate.
In a dense 6,200-word address to the Royal Courts of Justice, Archbishop Rowan Williams hoped to initiate a scholarly discussion of the relationship between Islamic law and the statutory law of the United Kingdom. Instead, the archbishop of Canterbury found himself in the middle of a firestorm as pundits quoted him out of context and called for his resignation.
Approximately one-third of the Pew survey respondents who were raised Catholic no longer describe themselves as Catholic. Catholics should take no comfort in the fact that this number is less than the national average—44% of Americans have switched their religious affiliation since childhood or dropped out of any formal religious group.
The Question: What does the Eliot Spitzer scandal say about our public and private morality? Should he have resigned?
The Eliott Spitzer scandal is not about sex, it is about crime. If prostitution were legal, he would be a sinner, but there would be no reason for him to resign.
The Question: Pope Benedict's recent baptism of a well-known Italian Muslim has prompted criticism in much of the Islamic world. Has Benedict done enough to build bridges to Islam?
There is no question that Pope Benedict has a great respect for religious faith of Muslims. In fact, he wishes European Catholics were as devout as Muslims. He supports interreligious dialogue with Muslims in the hope that Muslims and Christians can work together for justice and peace in the world.
The Question: What can Pope Benedict XVI say and do to repair the growing rifts between the Vatican, the clergy and the laity in America?
Pope Benedict XVI is coming to the United States to preach the Gospel. Like any good pastor, he will attempt both to inspire and to challenge his congregation.
He is not coming to wag his finger at American Catholics. In fact, he has great admiration for them and knows they attend church much more regularly than European Catholics. European churches are morbid in comparison with American parishes. American Catholics embraced the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, especially putting the liturgy into English and encouraging ecumenism. The U.S. church also has strong Catholic institutions, including 236 colleges and universities, 556 hospitals and 1,673 local Catholic Charities agencies and institutions. These institutions serve members of all faiths.
The Question: Jeremiah Wright's sermons continue to be an issue in the presidential campaign. Why? What do you think of his preaching style? What do you wish you understood better about it?
Some of the things that Jeremiah Wright said to his congregation were obnoxious and untrue even when seen in context.
What Islam Really Says About Violence, Rights and Other Religions
Gomaa, Fadlallah, Mubarak, Khan, Siddiqi, Ellison, others | On Faith
Comments (39)