Ever Ancient / Ever New | blog.theologika.net

Home » Ever Ancient / Ever New

Posted by Kathleen Brewer de Pozos, PhD on Jan 8, 2008

5 Loaves, 2 Fish, and a Lesson for the Community

Today’s Gospel reading is from St. Mark, the story known as “the feeding of the five thousand” (Mk 6:34-44).

In this familiar story, Jesus and the twelve apostles have traveled across the Sea of Galilee to a deserted area, to get away from the crowds of people and get a bit of rest. The people had seen where they were going and followed on foot, around the lake. Mark says that Jesus was “moved with pity” when He saw them and began to teach them. It was getting late and the disciples suggested that Jesus should send the people back to the towns so they could find food and places to spend the night.

Jesus surprised them by telling them to feed the people themselves. They protested that it would cost “two hundred days’ wages” to feed so many. This didn’t faze Jesus. Instead, He asked, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” They returned with the news that they had five loaves and two fish. Jesus instructed them to have the people sit down in groups. Then He took the food they had, blessed it, broke it into pieces and told the disciples to pass it out among the people.

When everyone had eaten their fill, they gathered up what was left and found they had 12 baskets full of leftovers.

In this last week of the Christmas season, following our celebration of the shining forth of the light to the Gentiles too, what are we to make of this story? Why is it told here?

It seems to me that it’s here with good reason.

First, however, it’s important to understand a bit about the customs of the people at the time. We’re used to going places and taking a food with us, which we can eat in front of others without experiencing any social requirement to share it with people who are not part of our group. That was not the case in Palestine at the time. If you had food, you could only eat it if you had enough to share with those in the group with whom you found yourself. Hence the disciples’ dilemma – where and how could they get so much food?

It seems to me that we should assume that families took some food along with them when going out into a deserted area with their children. Most of us would grab something for the children (and for ourselves too, in most cases) when racing out the door to see a celebrity, if for no other reason than to keep the children quietly occupied during the event. I don’t think it would have been that much different in those days.

However, no one would have had enough to feed all of those around them, so the food would have stayed packed up, hidden within the robes and traveling bags of the people.

When Jesus told the disciples to share what they had with the large crowd (5,000 men plus women and children), He didn’t tell them He was going to multiply the food miraculously. He just gave thanks for the food they had, asked a blessing on the meal, and began sharing it. With that example, everyone else who had food with them was freed to take it out too, and share it with those around them. It became a great picnic! No one was restricted to only what they owned or had brought. On the other hand, no would have felt compelled to hide or guard what they had. All could share it. And the result was that there were 12 baskets more of food than was needed!

During this week, as we reflect on the great gift of salvation having been extended to all peoples, this lesson is appropriate. We each have something. It may not be much. But it is something that we can share with the community, with our community on a local level and with our larger global community. There are problems that need to be solved. There are wrongs to be righted. There are joys and sorrows to be shared. None of us can do everything. None of us can change all of the structures of our society or our church. None of us can even meet all of the needs of our individual families. However, all of us can step out in faith and do a little bit. Show a little compassion. Give a hand to someone who is down. Listen to someone who needs a friendly ear. Pray with someone who is alone.

As we do this in faith, we join the larger community of Christian witnesses who have truly changed the world, one problem and one little step at a time. Jesus asks us to look at what gifts we have, give thanks for them, and then start sharing them with those we meet. As we respond to His leadership, “miracles” will happen in our world.

Posted by Kathleen Brewer de Pozos, PhD on Jan 6, 2008

Quote of the Day – Madeleine L’Engle on Jesus and the Star

Like every newborn, he has come from very far.
His eyes are closed against the brilliance of the star.
So glorious is he, he goes to this immoderate length
To show his love for us, discarding power and strength.
Girded for war, humility his mighty dress.
He moves into the battle wholly weaponless.
– Madeleine L’Engle

This lovely poem was quoted in our local diocesan newspaper, Observer, in the January 2008 edition. It seemed perfect for the feast of the Epiphany. For the entire article, see http://www.dioceseofmonterey.org/observer/2008/jan/newborn.htm.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Jan 6, 2008

The Feast of the Epiphany – The Three Kings

Epiphany – literally the shining forth – was traditionally celebrated on January 6 but is now observed on the second Sunday after Christmas. St. Matthew’s Gospel (2:1-12) is the only one to recount the story. This feast is of singular importance because it is the first manifestation of Christ to non-Jews. It is also remarkable in that the importance of Jesus is reflected in the stars and attracts the attention of Zoroastrian priest-astrologers in Persia who come to pay homage to the newborn king.

St. Matthew’s account does not tell us the number of Magi -literally magoi or “Great Ones” – and certainly they were not kings. For those familiar with current contemporary science fantasy books, the term in Greek for the visitors is Mages – magicians or sorcerers. The term is generally translated as Wise Men, softening the sense of black or destructive magic. The three gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh were seen as offerings for a god, according to St. John Chrysostom in the second century. Some scholars characterize this story as a non-historical account which has symbolic importance for the very special divine status of the Christ child.

Was there a star? Well yes and no. According to Ball State University astronomer, Ron Kaitchuck, contemporary astronomical research – which has its origins in this same priestly Zoroastrian caste – indicates that there were unusual conjunctions of key planets in significant constellations. The story is somewhat complicated because we are not sure of the actual month or year of the birth of Christ. (When the Christian calendar was being established, an error in arithmetic changed the count by 3 years. Christ was actually born in 3 B.C. – we think.) Astrophysicist Grant Matthews, at Notre Dame University, has found supernovae which he suggests as potential candidates.
Creationists who are also well credentialed scientists have come up with some interesting scenarios to explain the Christmas “Aster”. The Greek term we translate as star can be just about any light in the heavens. (You want to watch out for bad “asters” or “dys-asters”.)

Lambert Dolphin, an accomplished physicist, has published an updated account of the Christmas Star by Barry Setterfield, an Austrailian astronomer who has tried to reconcile literal biblical accounts of the young age of the earth with a novel approach to scientific dating that assumes the duration of atomic processes does vary over time. Needless to say, Setterfield’s ideas are not considered to be in the scientific mainstream. However, his account of the ancient night sky and the dating of Christ’s birth follow a rigorous logic. His approach is also shared by another noted astronomer, Craig Chester of the Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy.

While Setterfield and Craig issue the traditional warning against the practice of astrology and the occult, it is hard to see anything else in their analysis of the ancient star patterns other than ancient astrology. It is a curious contradiction that we are supposed to watch for signs and portents in the heavens and assign some religious predictive meaning to them by interpreting the scriptures but we are to avoid astrology. Clearly, the admonitions are meant to avoid pre-Christian and other earth based religions that attempt to manipulate the transnatural or “buy off” disasters with various types of animal sacrifice.

When the ancient night sky can be traced to certain historical events, such as the Roman census and the rise and fall of various rulers, it has a certain grounding. If we look at Setterfield’s and Chester’s analysis of sky charts to reveal the creation of the world or the coming of the apocalypse, there is really nothing to ground these speculations except for a string of assumptions that don’t seem to be supported by outside verifiable evidence.

Whether we believe it happened or see it only as a shining metaphor of the favor of Heaven, the Star and the Magi are portents of the coming of all people to faith.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Jan 4, 2008

God and Evolution – Divine Design?

Darwin’s Tortoises on the Galapagos Islands

On January 3, 2008, The National Academy of Sciences issued a new publication Science, Evolution and Creationism advocating the teaching of evolution as the primary scientific understanding underlying contemporary biology. Many religious conservatives advocate the teaching of Creation Science in the public schools as an alternative to evolution. The core of the controversy for those who interpret the Bible literally is the fact that the theory of evolution contradicts the creation account in Genesis, which states that God made all of creation in six days and rested on the seventh.

Many want Creationism, or at least the theory of intelligent design, to be presented to students along with evolution.

Unfortunately, it is a false controversy. If we look at the issue from the standpoint of epistemology – the philosophical study of knowledge and truth – faith and science are looking at entirely different things. Science attempts to explain things in terms of matter and energy, based on experiments which can be repeated to produce the same results. The uses we make of science are called technology. The same methods that cause the light to turn on when we use the wall switch are the methods that indicate a very long history of planetary and biological development.

Holy Scripture is the inspired writing of believers for believers about the meaning and significance of God in our lives. Archaeologists and scripture scholars use the same methods of science that we depend on to design and operate cars, airplanes, and space ships. They use these methods to tell us how people lived at the times these documents were written and when they were probably written. These same scientific methods helps us understand the ancient languages and cultures of the time. Consequently we – as believers – understand the scriptures differently.

Much of the problem, as I see it, is the focus of Calvinism and the Anabaptist movement on “sola scriptura,” using the Scriptures as the sole authority for matters of faith and Christian living. This approach – barely 500 years old – is fairly new and radical in the history of Christianity. In order to re-create a church free of bishops, popes, and patriarchs, and to jettison many of the teachings contained in tradition, the reformers adopted a reformed version of the Bible.

It is interesting to note that from the very beginning, the fathers of the Church had two books: the collection of writings which the church assembled and approved in the fourth century and the book of nature.

I’ve had a radical thought. Why not teach philosophy in the public schools? We could teach the history and philosophy of science. Unfortunately, I give my bright idea slim odds, because many religious conservatives are wary of the liberal arts, including philosophy and theology, for the same reason many scientists are. From the standpoint of the liberal arts, the world is less certain and more open to questioning both scientific and biblical teaching.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Dec 27, 2007

Saint of the Day – 12/27 St. John the Evangelist

December 27 is the feast day of the beloved disciple, St. John the Evangelist. St. John was one of the 12 apostles. He and his brother James had been followers of St. John the Baptist. They were fisherman who worked with their father Zebedee. Sts. Peter, James, and John have a special place in the Gospels. They are called away by Jesus to hear and witness things in which the other disciples are not included. St. John is presented in the Gospels as a young man and a very close friend of Jesus – the disciple whom he loved. As Jesus was dying on the cross and all of the other male disciples had fled, St. John was there with Mary the mother of Jesus and some other women. Jesus, in his dying words, entrusts His mother to St. John.

Tradition names St. John as the author of the fourth Gospel, the Book of Revelation and the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd letters of John. Some scripture scholars in the last quarter of the 20th century have challenged this traditional notion of St. John as the common author of these works. Some scholars refer to the “Johannine school “- a group or a community of students of St. John – as the source of these works.

The Gospel According to John is unique. It bears very little resemblance to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. These three Gospels are called the Synoptic Gospels because you can line them up side by side in three columns and see that they are parallel documents, with elements from the same source and a great similarity of phrasing and story content. The Gospel According to John sees signs and wonders in the life of Jesus and has layer upon layer of symbolism and meaning. Yes, the basic story line is the same, but there are soaring heights of poetry in sections such as the Prologue – introduction – and the prayers of Jesus after the Last Supper.

Fr. Raymond Brown – one of the great scripture scholars of the 20th century – sees a weaving of the history of the Johannine community of believers within the Gospel. The conflicts and tensions of the early church are mirrored in those of the characters in the Gospel story. This is especially true of the conflict between Jews over the message and meaning of Jesus. As a book written by Jews for Jews, the Fourth Gospel has many very negative things to say about Jews. As family fights go, this one was no exception in its bitterness. Eventually, Jewish authorities saw quite correctly that the followers of Jesus, who proclaimed his resurrection from the dead, had stepped beyond the boundaries of the Jewish religion that they were attempting to preserve after the destruction of the Temple by the Romans and the obliteration of Jewish life in Palestine.

The Second Vatican Council, in its decree on Non-Christian religions – Nostra Aetate, In Our Age – makes it clear that using this and other material to justify attacks on Jews or anti-Jewish hatred is historically incorrect and cannot be justified morally. After the destruction of the Temple and Israel in 70 AD, Rabbinic Judaism came to the fore and those groups that would later be called Christian began to develop a separate identity.

The other theme in the Fourth Gospel is the focus on the Incarnation – that Jesus is both human and divine. There was a very strong movement among some early followers of the Jesus movement who looked on him as a god masquerading as a human. Spirit would never truly be one with something so abject and base as matter in their way of thinking. Some of these early followers saw creation as a cosmic mistake by an errant creator figure. In broad terms, we can call this movement Gnosticism, based on the Greek word for knowledge. This true and secret knowledge came to the elect and enlightened them to the fact that they were spirits trapped in bodies. Granted, this is an over simplification of a very complex topic, but it is important to note that the Fourth Gospel uses many of the themes of light and darkness, of the mystical living word of God in Jesus, to convey a message and understanding of the meaning of Christ which enobled creation and our very humanity.

The letters of John, 1, 2, and 3 are exhortations to the followers of Jesus to live in love, peace, and mutual respect. Again, the theme of the human and divine reality of Jesus comes through loud and clear. “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.”(I John 1)

Scholars differ on whether the Apocalypse (Revelation) of John was produced by the author or authors of the Fourth Gospel. We can spend years reviewing the direct and hidden meaning of the Book of Revelation but that will have to be the topic of several other posts.

It is hard to directly link the beloved disciple of the Gospels, the man to whom Jesus entrusted his mother, to the writings which bear his name. However, the voice of tradition cannot be discounted either in the case of such a favored and remarkable young man.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Dec 26, 2007

Worn Out by Christmas Carols? – Try Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

Christmas carols and secular “holiday” songs start assaulting us the day after Thanksgiving. The constant barrage on the radio, in elevators, shopping malls, and fast food outlets is a far cry from the caroling of my childhood and the joy my neighbors gave me and my family the other night as they came singing to our door.

For refreshment take three Palestrina and call me from heaven:

Here are three selections from Palestrina’s Christmas Mass – O Magnum Mysterium – O Great Mystery

The Introit or Opening: Puer Natus Nobis – A Child is Born to Us, A Son is Given to Us

The Kyrie Eleison – Lord Have Mercy – Penitential Rite

The Communion Motet – O Magnum Mysterium – O Great Mystery

As beautiful and soaring as the polyphony of the Kyrie and Communion motet are, it is important to remember that traditionalists at the time saw it as a vulgar deviation from the purity of the plain chant of the Introit.

The coming of God in the Flesh at Christmas and in the arts is ever new and startling.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Dec 26, 2007

Christmastide – 12 Days of Celebration

(Christmas Eve: Goa, India)

There can be a strange misconception that Christmas ends on the morning of December 26. Many people take down Christmas trees and other decorations and gear up for a secular New Year of parades and American football games. It does make some sense, because many people have been exhausted going to “Christmas” parties since early December, eating and drinking a lot, while chasing through the shopping malls.

Christmastide, however, from December 25 to January 6 – the former feast of the Epiphany when the Three Wise Men came to visit the infant Jesus – is actually the time for celebrating. In many Latin countries, gifts are exchanged on the Epiphany in honor of the gifts of the Magi.

The white fish recipes that are part of gourmet menus for Christmas Eve are actually an echo of a time when December 24 was the last day of Advent – a time of preparation. Christmas Eve was a day of fasting and abstaining from meat.

There is still time to reclaim the joys of Christmastide. Relaxation, reflection, some daily exercise and a slower pace – just spending time with each other – is the acceptance of the Gift beyond comprehension – Emmanuel – God with us.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Dec 24, 2007

Christmastide – Christmas Eve

“In the twenty-fourth day of the month of December;
In the year five-thousand one-hundred and ninety-nine from the creation of the world, when in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth;
In the year two-thousand nine-hundred and fifty-seven from the flood;
In the year two-thousand and fifty-one from the birth of Abraham;
In the year one-thousand five-hundred and ten from the going forth of the people of Israel out of Egypt under Moses;
In the year one-thousand and thirty-two from the anointing of David as king;
In the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;
In the one-hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;
In the year seven-hundred and fifty-two from the foundation of the city of Rome;
In the forty-second year of the reign of the Emperor Octavian Augustus;
In the sixth age of the world, while the whole earth was at peace —
JESUS CHRIST
eternal God and the Son of the eternal Father, willing to consecrate the world by His gracious coming, having been conceived of the Holy Ghost, and the nine months of His conception being now accomplished, (all kneel) was born in Bethlehem of Judah of the Virgin Mary, made man. The birthday of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to the flesh.”

A reading from the Roman Martyrology for December 24.

This proclamation is often sung or recited when placing the Christ child in the manger in the home.

Peace to all in the great joy that God is in our midst.

Posted by Kathleen Brewer de Pozos, PhD on Dec 19, 2007

Las Posadas – Welcoming the Coming of Christ

In the Spanish speaking world, it is customary to prepare for Christmas through nine days of celebration known as “las Posadas,” literally, “the inns” or “the lodgings.” As part of this celebration, a girl and a boy, dressed as Mary and Joseph, go with family and friends from house to house for nine days in a row, singing and asking for shelter. At each house, they are turned away, until on the last night, at the last house, they are welcomed inside and all share in a party.

The song for Las Posadas is sung back and forth by those outside and those inside. Those outside speak as Joseph, asking for lodging for himself and his pregnant wife. Those inside refuse entry to the pilgrims, citing lack of room and the fact that it is late and these are unknown strangers at the door. The final plea, the one that gains them entrance, is the one asking shelter for Mary, the Queen of Heaven and soon to be Mother of the Divine Word. On hearing this introduction, those inside apologize for not understanding who it was that was seeking entrance. They welcome the outsiders into the house, singing, “Enter, holy pilgrims, receive this corner, for though this dwelling is poor, I offer it with all my heart.” The song continues with the offer of the singer’s soul as a place of lodging for Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

I have seen several versions of the words and the tune for the Posada, but the theme is the same. The Holy Family is traveling, needing shelter, appearing as the stranger. No one is willing to help them. The house is full; strangers can be a danger to the household; it’s late; the claims of those asking for help seem pretty wild. (She’s a queen? Yeah, right! Why’s she out so late at night and alone?) Then comes the moment of recognition – the visitors are Heaven-sent – and welcome follows, both physically and spiritually, as the visitors enter into our homes and our hearts.

In these last few days before Christmas, whether we celebrate them with a Posada, or a novena, or simply by lighting the candles on our Advent Wreath, it is a time to remember to smile at the stranger, wait our turn patiently in the long lines at the stores, and offer a prayer for peace for ourselves and those around us. After all, who knows when the stranger we encounter will be a visitor from God who will touch our heart and who awaits our loving response.

Posted by Kathleen Brewer de Pozos, PhD on Dec 16, 2007

Seasons of the Soul

Growing up in Eastern Washington, seasonal changes were an accepted and expected part of life. We knew that the days would get shorter and the nights longer, the weather would get colder, and sometime in late November or early December, the first snow would fall. As we snuggled into our warm houses and settled into winter activities, it seemed only right that we enter into a more reflective, quiet time liturgically too. Advent was a subdued time, with focus on preparing spiritually for the coming of Christ. Christmas cards and Christmas carols, with talk of cold weather and snow, all seemed a natural part of the season. That’s the way it was outside and it was all I knew!

Then I grew up and moved to coastal California. It still got cold in the winter, but mainly the cold was from the humidity. My first Christmas in California, I went home and got my wool clothes so I could stay warm. We only got snow on rare occasions and it never “stuck.” We often had warm, sunny days in December and January. The iris were even blooming in planter boxes in front of the bank in January! My sense of the seasons was completely thrown for a loop. Christmas day, with temperatures in the mid-60s, just didn’t feel quite like Christmas.

I was reassured to find that my mother-in-law, who was born and raised in Southern California, also had problems getting into the swing of Christmas when the weather was too nice. She commented one year that she was really glad the rains had finally come, so she could get into the spirit of Christmas.

I find myself reflecting on these memories now, as we reach Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent. Rejoice! we are told. The time is near.

What time is near? Does it have anything to do with the calendar and the way we fill our days with preparations for the celebration of Christmas?

What I am coming to understand is that liturgical seasons have no real existential tie to the physical seasons of the year. If they did, we’d have to have different liturgical seasons in the Southern Hemisphere and in the tropics, because the weather there is totally different from that of northern climes.

No, liturgical seasons are something more. They are seasons of the soul, condensed into a one year period and repeated on a regular cycle, so we can taste them, savor them, and move on to the next. By repeating them on an annual basis, we are able to enter into them differently and perhaps more deeply each time they come around. As we move through the ups and downs of our daily lives, we become more or less in touch with the gifts each season brings. We learn more about longing for God, or about finding “God with us,” or needing someone to rescue us and set us on our feet again! Having the chance to move through these seasons of the soul on a regular basis can help us move through them with hope when the events of daily life bring them crashing into reality in our personal worlds.

So, as we reach this third week of Advent, as we hear the call to “Rejoice in the Lord,” let’s each look into our heart and see what it is we ask of the Lord – what we really want. Then let’s join together in “joyful expectation as we await the coming of Our Savior Jesus Christ…”

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Dec 10, 2007

The Evangelical Prophets of Advent: Preparing the Way

We often think of prophets as people in robes holding a staff rebuking a king or trying to point out the error of our ways. In this season of Advent, the prophets are taking a different tack.

Pastor Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, comments in his interview with Krista Tippett, that Evangelicals are returning to an emphasis on personal AND social morality. He recounted how the Catholic Church had continued to emphasize both at a time in the mid-20th century when Evangelicals focused on personal salvation and morality, while Protestants focused on social morality issues such as racism, poverty, and human rights.

Kay Warren responded to a series of questions about their Saddleback, CA church’s mission to combat HIV / AIDS in Africa. Krista Tippett asked her how she could reconcile issues of sexual promiscuity and the use of condoms. Her answer was telling. Kay Warren made an important distinction between ideal positions on morality and their pastoral application. She said that in an ideal world, abstinence before marriage and fidelity in marriage were ideal solutions to the prevention of HIV /AIDS. However, condoms can’t be disregarded because they save lives in many situations in which women and men have no real control over the behavior of their spouses.

The Warren’s HIV / AIDS initiative has enlisted the help of prominent people on both sides of the political spectrum. People from the left and the right have groused about the other side being included. However, the Warrens, insist that their mission is not about politics, but faith and compassion for all people.

In a previous interview with Jim Wallis, the author of God’s Politics: How the Right Gets it Wrong and the Left Doesn’t Get It, and founder of “Covenant for a New America,” Krista Tippett focused on Wallace’s campaign to combat poverty and the dehumanization it brings.

Previous Evangelical leaders, such as Billy Graham, Pat Robertson, and James Dobson, have had the ear of the rich and powerful, in addition to the ear of millions of people. Their influence on key political figures from Richard Nixon to the current President Bush has been noted.

According to Krista Tippett, new leaders like Jim Wallace and Rick and Kay Warren now have this same influence, but with a broader message. Wallis not only has the ear of Presidential candidates, but he is close to the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Gordon Brown, and the newly elected Prime Minister of Australia, Kevin Rudd. Rick and Kay Warren are also sought out by the powerful. The difference between this new group of Evangelical leaders and the older group is an emphasis on salvation – personal, economic, and spiritual – as brought about by the activity of God in the assembly – the church. Salvation in Christ comes through the community that is church.

These leaders reflect a broader movement among younger Evangelicals, who are emphasizing the transcendent and the immediate dimensions of faith in ministering to people in need as ministering to Christ. According to Krista Tippett, these young Evangelicals are called the “New Monastics” and live in communities emphasizing simplicity and service to the disenfranchised.

People familiar with the history of Evangelicals and other branches of Christianity will realize that there is nothing “new” in these developments. Yet they are wonderful to behold.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Dec 5, 2007

Polarization in the Church – The Kingdom Rent Assunder?

“A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand.” (Mt 12:25) Many of the sayings of Jesus are hard to understand or accept. This one seems only obvious.

It is often said that the lack of Christian unity is a major hazard or stumbling block – scandolos or “scandal” in Greek – for those trying to enter the Kingdom or the Reign of God. The good news is that various groups have begun to treat each other as Christians and not as minions of the anti-Christ. The bad news is that major denominations are split over the existence of the brontosaurus in the sanctuary.

Some people say the beast is an elephant because people experience it differently – like the blind men in the fable. For some it is a rope, for others tree stumps, for a few it feels like a snake. The “elephant” school says that issues like same sex marriage, women’s issues, and diversity are actually the result of a single problem – the need to update Christian ethics and not to take the Bible literally. Christian behavioral norms, according to this school, should be influenced by more enlightened cultural norms and follow the primary mandate of compassionate love.

Others say that the beast is the “Beast” of the Book of Revelation and these challenges to traditional Christian behavioral norms are the beginning of the test of the faithful. According to the “Armageddon” school, the Beast will consume the compromisers like so much buttered popcorn. Those who have not “compromised” will be caught up in the rapture and spared the thousand year reign of the anti-Christ.

Between these two extremes there is a complete spectrum of different intellectual and emotional responses to these issues. Many people are inclined to think that all of this started in the 1960s, when the world got turned upside down. For many Catholics, the secular cultural upheaval of the 1960s was nothing compared to the tsunami of the Second Vatican Council. A few think that Pope Paul VI, in ratifying the declaration on religious liberty and changes to the liturgy, committed apostasy and left the Chair of Peter vacant – Sede Vacante. According to the sedevacantists, the bishops appointed by Paul VI and the popes elected by those bishops have no legitimate authority.

At the other end of the Catholic spectrum, there are those who see Vatican II as limiting and redefining the centrality of rule from Rome. Local churches, governed by lay people, with lay presiders at the Eucharist, are seen as an authentic restoration of the Church. In response, Restorationists – including many young people – think that all these problems will go away if we return to the Golden Age of the Catholic Mass in Latin, with everyone praying their rosaries while the sacred mysteries are performed.

The beast in question is actually a “brontosaurus”(or Apatosaurus), because it is a much older and more intractable species than the elephant. It is not the Beast of the Book of Revelation because it is all too confused and political – and it doesn’t have the gaping maw. The “brontosaurus” is the challenge of living the Christian life and being church in a rapidly changing and unstable world. This challenge actually dates back to the Enlightenment in the 1700’s. However, the major denominations could contain it until the industrial revolution. The urbanization of rural agrarian populations, the revolution in transportation and communication, as well as the emergence of history and the social sciences as academic fields of study, raised major questions that divided church thinkers – the theologians and philosophers. One of the most unsettling discoveries was that Christian philosophy and theology – like all human endeavors – have changed over the centuries.

The Catholic church responded by not only condemning the modern world, but also by rehabilitating the logical approach of Aquinas and Aristotle (See Arraj Chapter 2) as a means of presenting and logically defending the faith against any thought or political action that challenged it. Instead of the medieval spirit of inquiry, students got summaries of pre-digested questions and answers. Not all thinkers went along with this, but they were marginalized or condemned. This gave the appearance of well-being, but like a person with emphysema, the overuse of steroids provides comfort while it destroys the bones. On the positive side, Pope Leo XIII and other Christian leaders, led a social gospel movement to protect the interests of industrial workers. This movement continues today, with the “preferential option for the poor.”

When Pope John XXIII called the Second Vatican Council, the Curia had prepared draft agendas and documents for the bishops. No one foresaw that the octogenerian pope, who had been elected as a caretaker, would encourage the bishops to take matters into their own hands in his opening address, Gaudet Mater Ecclesia.

Having chafed under the control of the Curia, the bishops set their own course. Theologians and philosophers who had been silenced or put to the side were chosen to fill the intellectual vacuum. One of the young superstars was Joseph Ratzinger, who is now Pope Benedict XVI. The major problem was that this new school of thinking had never been tested in the open forum of discussion and debate. Conservatives did what they could to stem the tide, but the winds of Aggiornamento (updating) filled the sails of the bishops, the clergy, and more importantly, the people in the pews who now became the “laity.”

In the United States today there are approximately 3,300 men in seminary programs studying for the priesthood. There are also 33,000 men and women in graduate ministry and theological programs who are not studying for the priesthood. The vast majority of them share the same classrooms with the students for the priesthood. However, the newly ordained priests tend be in their 30’s and 50’s and are already formed as people. Many of them are more conservative and many bring with them an entrenched clericalism from their Philippine and Vietnamese cultures.

The growth of the Anglican Communion, the Catholic Church, and other denominations in Africa and Asia – the global south – has already created substantial tensions due to the immense cultural and economic differences which support more traditional behavioral codes and religious perspectives.

So the brontosaurus is alive and well – or at least it will be until we deal with these tensions so that others once again can come to know us as Jesus’ disciples by our love (Jn 13:34-35).

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Nov 27, 2007

Signs and Symbols – The Advent Wreath

The first Sunday of Advent (December 2, 2007) is fast approaching. The season of penance and hopeful expectation has probably been observed since the fourth century. Advent begins on the fourth Sunday before the feast of Christmas, the Sunday closest to November 30, the feast of St. Andrew. Advent wreaths appear to have come from the northern cultures of Europe, whose people used evergreen and holly for various wheels associated with the lengthening of days – the coming of the light – at the winter solstice.

The Advent wreath takes various forms. For Catholics, there are three purple candles and one rose candle. The rose candle is for the third Sunday – Gaudete or Rejoice. Protestants tend to use blue candles. Some wreaths have a white candle in the center to signify the birth of Christ. Advent wreaths were primarily used in homes for many centuries and came to churches only more recently.

A different candle is lighted on each Sunday. In our family, we light each one for the first time on Saturday after sunset, which is the liturgical beginning of Sunday. The first week only one candle burns. The second week, two are burning. By the fourth Sunday, all four are lighted, the first getting very short and the others proportionately taller. The passage of time becomes visible through the height of the candles. During all of the hustle and bustle, it is a reminder for us that the Christmas season begins on December 24th and ends on January 6th or the feast of the Epiphany – The Thee Kings.

You can find prayers and devotions for Advent at many sites. The Episcopal Church at Cornell has a wonderful booklet. St. Louis Catholic parish has a series of Advent prayers and observances at their site. Jeanne Woodward has a great collection of Advent prayer, worship, and study resources at The Text This Week. This is an impressive site, with study and worship materials for several denominations for the entire liturgical year.

For a holiday treat, take time away from food, football, and shopping. Go for a walk and gather materials for the wreath with your spouse and the children. Get a hold of some coat hangers, pliers, and some ingenuity to make the ring for the wreath. You can attach the evergreens and holly ( or other materials) with florist’s wire, plastic bag ties, or other wire. The candles can be placed in simple candle sticks inside the wreath. If you are handy you can even make wire ones.

You can sometimes find or order an Advent wreath frame. However, the key is not to create stress. Arrange some candles – don’t worry about the colors – and some greenery – or small potted plants, light a candle, say a prayer for peace, and hope and yearn for the light.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Nov 11, 2007

Saint of the Day – St. Martin of Tours

November 11 is the feast day of St. Martin of Tours (c.316 – c.397). We know very little of most of the early saints. Fortunately, Sulpicius Severus wrote the saint’s biography before St. Martin died. St Martin was born into a Roman military family in what is now Hungary and was named for the god of war, Mars. Martin’s father, a tribune, was transferred to Pavia, Italy, where the young man encountered the recently legalized religion of Christianity that was still a very small movement. Martin became a catechumen and was preparing for baptism. At the age of 15 he was required to join the army and became part of a distinguished cavalry unit. The famous story of his cutting his military cloak in half to clothe a beggar in Amiens, in what is now France, shows an emerging sense of his Christian vocation, which led to his unwillingness to kill men in battle. This pacifist position was not unusual in the early Church. St. Martin left the army and not only became a Christian, but also went to be a disciple of St. Hilary, the bishop of Poitiers, who was known for his holiness and learning.

The Arians – an heretical group which believed that Christ had not existed from eternity “there was a time when he was not” – had gained substantial strength in Gaul (present day France) and forced St. Hilary into exile in the East. (The emperor Constantine was baptized on his death bed by an Arian priest.) St. Martin returned to his parents’ home in Lombardy in northern Italy. However, the region was a stronghold of Arianism and St. Martin fled to the island of Gallinaria (now Isola d’Abenga) in the middle of the Tyrrhenian Sea, which is west of southern Italy.

When St. Hilary was recalled from exile by order of the emperor, St. Martin returned to Poitiers in 361. He asked St. Hilary if he could live near Liguge, which was not far from Poitiers, as hermit as he had done on Gallinaria. Eventually, other men were attracted by his example and they formed a community which would later become a Benedictine Abbey. (St. Benedict of Nursia would not be born for another 19 years in 480.) In this early monastic community, the monks lived in caves, shared all things in common, and neither bought nor sold anything. They assembled for the liturgy and meals but otherwise lived in their caves.

Periodically, St. Martin would travel in central and western Gaul, evangelizing people in the countryside. The places he visited later became popular places for pilgrims to visit on their way to the shrine of St. James the Apostle in Compostela, Spain. In 371 or 372, when the second bishop of Tours, St. Lidorius, died, St. Martin resisted the request of the people of Tours to become their bishop. He was literally tricked into it when he agreed to visit a dying woman at the pleading of her husband. When St. Martin got to Tours, he was acclaimed bishop by the people. St. Martin still persisted in his monastic lifestyle by setting up a small hermitage outside of Tours – Montmartier – that would become a larger monastery than Liguge.

While he paid primary attention to Tours, St. Martin would also travel outside his diocese as necessary. On more than one occasion, he went to Trier, in present day Germany, which at the time was the capital of western empire. He went to ask for clemency for condemned criminals in his diocese. St. Martin also asked the emperor to release bishop Priscillanus of Avila ( in present day Spain) to the jurisdiction of Church authorities. Priscillanus had been found guilty of heresy in absentia by the Synod of Saragossa. He and his followers essentially held that the true Christian life had to be that of the celibate monk. Pricillanus’ views appeared to echo those of gnosticism and Manicheanism, which downplayed the value of the physical world and placed the universe in a contest between equally strong forces of good and evil. Although St. Martin had been assured that Priscillanus would be returned to the church’s jurisdiction, the Spanish bishop, Ithacius, got the decision reversed. Priscillanus and his key followers were beheaded. This was the first time that Christians were killed for heresy. St. Martin protested and refused to have anything to do with Ithacius. However, when St. Martin approached the emperor to spare the lives of two rebels, the emperor said he would only do it on the condition that St. Martin would be reconciled to Ithacius. St. Martin complied in order to save the men’s lives, but always regretted the action as a moment of weakness. He died in 397.

The traditional image of St. Martin cutting his cloak to share it with a beggar is only a very small part of his story. His act of charity doesn’t appear to capture the meaning of his vocation and the effect that he would have on the church. In St. Martin we see the model of the monk as Bishop, teacher, and advocate. The selection of a hermit by the people to be bishop would be repeated with St. Augustine bishop of Hippo and many others. St. Martin’s efforts to evangelize the countryside as monk, and later as bishop, would become a model for centuries to come. His combination of learning, holiness, and zeal for the simplicity of the Christian life would be an ideal that Christians and non-believers would adopt in evaluating church officials.

Today we might have some reservations about the elimination of pre-Christian religions, lack of religious tolerance, and the union of church and state. However, we see these things from the long trajectory of Christian history, with a post-modern sensibility. We might take heart in St. Martin’s zeal if for no other reason than our need of some energy in the post-modern malaise.

Posted by Dcn. Randy Pozos on Nov 9, 2007

Feast of the Day – Dedication of St. John Lateran: Rome’s Cathedral

November 9 is the feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran.

The Pope’s main Church is St. Peter’s Basilica -True or False? The correct answer is False. Interestingly, the cathedral for the Bishop of Rome – the Pope – is the Church of St. John Lateran. It was originally built in the fourth century on land that had belonged to the Lateran family but had become the property of the Emperor Constantine. St. John Lateran is the oldest and ranks first among the four great patriarchal churches of Rome. The present church was commissioned by Pope Innocent X in 1646.

How can you have a feast day celebration for a building? It is not about the stones and lumber. It is a celebration of Latin Christianity’s central parish of its central diocese. In a broader sense, the feast celebrates what the building is and signifies. The church building is an ancient Christian meeting place and symbolizes the center of the vast world wide community that is the Catholic Church.

« Older Entries

Next Entries »

Quote of the Day – Madeleine L’Engle on Jesus and the Star

The Feast of the Epiphany – The Three Kings

God and Evolution – Divine Design?

Saint of the Day – 12/27 St. John the Evangelist

Worn Out by Christmas Carols? – Try Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

Christmastide – 12 Days of Celebration

Christmastide – Christmas Eve

Las Posadas – Welcoming the Coming of Christ

Seasons of the Soul

Polarization in the Church – The Kingdom Rent Assunder?

Signs and Symbols – The Advent Wreath

Saint of the Day – St. Martin of Tours

Feast of the Day – Dedication of St. John Lateran: Rome’s Cathedral

Welcome to our blog

Our Vision

Our Supporters and Friends

Help Support Theologika

Topics of Interest

Past Issues

Our Visitors Around the World