“…since the will of man is a slender reed, not to be relied on to do the right thing, evil will exist. No police force can be expected to do what religion, good example, and the fear of being caught have failed to accomplish.”
This quotation is from a novel by Ralph McInerny titled Grave Undertakings: A Father Dowling Mystery. I was struck by it’s simple truth. In fact, stunned by it is a more appropriate way to put it.
It is very popular today to decry the decline of morality. It’s as if it’s a new thing; that there was some better time, say the post War 50s that where a high water mark of civility and high morals, or perhaps the Victorian Age. Well I certainly remember the 50s as pretty good, but I had a very limited world view. And since the media didn’t always tell us everything they knew, for example, JFK and MM, we can’t be faulted for believing it was actually better. Plus, there were so few choice of media. Now with the 24 hour new cycle and the necessity to fill it up, plenty of “bad” news gets reported perhaps given us a jaundiced view.
It’s not that I don’t think modern morality is the pits—I do. But declined? I’m not so sure. As regular readers know, I’ve been teaching a survey course on the history of the Church. Again and again I get reminded of the low level of morality both of the religious leaders and of the people throughout history. Otherwise apparently good men got elected to bishoprics or to the papacy and the power just seemed too much. There was a rampant sense that holding the office somehow permitted excesses. And the temporal rules seemed to basically care about their own needs at the expensive of their subjects.
So it seems pretty clear that McInerny is right. If religion can’t reform the lives of people, we’re doomed. And it seems clearer and clearer to me that it can’t—or at least it doesn’t. That’s not to say there aren’t good moral men and women in the world, clearly there are. It is to say that all the evidence seems to indicate they are outnumbered very many to one. That being the case, we can just expect things to continue to be bad. I just don’t see another Great Awakening coming and I don’t see a corrective in culture swing us back from our excesses.
I know this seems pretty pessimistic. But I’m feeling pretty pessimistic these days as injustice touches close to home again.
Jerry+
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Test?
"When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" He said to him, "`You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: `You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." [Matthew 22: Sunday's Gospel]
It could hardly be put more simply. Love God with all you are; love others at least as well as you love yourself. Why is it then, we seem to have so much trouble with this? I begin each day reading the local paper. I’d guess that about 30 to 40 percent is about how we fail at the second part of this pair. Those news bits are about murder, robbery, gossip, malfeasance, and more. About 2 or 3 percent seem to be about something good. This morning a local woman was highlighted as one of 500 nationally invited to the White House because of her volunteer efforts. That was nice to read. She seems to get it.
I went to a Bible study last night with a group of people I don’t know. Meeting new people is always hard for me, so this was a big deal. The man to my left was named—it really doesn’t matter. I found him friendly at first, but quickly he began to be contentious with the leader and others who spoke up. Argumentative in an environment in which we had been encouraged to listen to other points of view. To my right was a young man who had broken his wrist and who looked a bit ragged. About half way through the Bible study, he leaned over and asked for money to buy some BC powders for the pain in his wrist. I didn’t doubt he was in pain, but I also believed the free clinic that set his wrist had probably given him something for it. Was I being taken advantage of? Conned?
Was this a Phariseean test for me? On my left hand a difficult person to like. On my right hand a stranger who hit me up for a few bucks. I left the parish hall wondering if I’d return. I will, I decided, on the ride home. But the real test for me is how I will relate to these two people next week. My natural tendency will be to avoid them. But would that be loving?
Peace,
Jerry+
It could hardly be put more simply. Love God with all you are; love others at least as well as you love yourself. Why is it then, we seem to have so much trouble with this? I begin each day reading the local paper. I’d guess that about 30 to 40 percent is about how we fail at the second part of this pair. Those news bits are about murder, robbery, gossip, malfeasance, and more. About 2 or 3 percent seem to be about something good. This morning a local woman was highlighted as one of 500 nationally invited to the White House because of her volunteer efforts. That was nice to read. She seems to get it.
I went to a Bible study last night with a group of people I don’t know. Meeting new people is always hard for me, so this was a big deal. The man to my left was named—it really doesn’t matter. I found him friendly at first, but quickly he began to be contentious with the leader and others who spoke up. Argumentative in an environment in which we had been encouraged to listen to other points of view. To my right was a young man who had broken his wrist and who looked a bit ragged. About half way through the Bible study, he leaned over and asked for money to buy some BC powders for the pain in his wrist. I didn’t doubt he was in pain, but I also believed the free clinic that set his wrist had probably given him something for it. Was I being taken advantage of? Conned?
Was this a Phariseean test for me? On my left hand a difficult person to like. On my right hand a stranger who hit me up for a few bucks. I left the parish hall wondering if I’d return. I will, I decided, on the ride home. But the real test for me is how I will relate to these two people next week. My natural tendency will be to avoid them. But would that be loving?
Peace,
Jerry+
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
A Bribe
Sunday, at the announcements, the priest said, “Remember next Sunday to stay after services for free Gus’ fried chicken and fixings. Let me be up front about this. It’s a bribe to get you to stay and learn about this years’ pledge campaign. We’re going to try to get you to make a pledge.” I had two reactions. On the one hand, I laughed. I loved his candor. “Let’s not sugar coat it. We want your money.” On the other hand, how regrettable that we have to entice people to learn about the financial needs of their parish and “twist their arms” to get them to give.
Isn’t something very wrong with that picture?
Plus, if this presentation is like the other thousand (well not literally) I’ve sat through, it will not be very detailed and it will indicate that the vast majority of the money will go for internal needs: salaries, utilities, etc. Just keeping Church’s the motor running costs a fortune—never mind actually getting on the road to the Kingdom.
A professor I had in seminary, James Glass, wrote a book called Getting It Together in the Parish. One of the things he wrote was the Church might want to consider a different model. How about, he suggested, a congregation of ten families: 1minister and 9 lay? All would tithe. That would make the minister's salary an average of the lay salaries. The minister would tithe too and this would all be spent on external programming. Plus, the minister would have such a small congregation that he/she would be free to devote almost all his/her time to ministry in the community. As the congregation grew to 20 families, they would split and form a new ten family congregation. And, of course, they would meet in someone’s home so there is no facilities upkeep to drain resources.
Though it is a model not without some problems, it certainly seems to return us to New Testament times when Christians met in homes and the definition of minister was very fluid. And it provides for a lot of community ministry. Unlike the present big church model.
Oh, well. Just an idea.
Peace,
Jerry+
Isn’t something very wrong with that picture?
Plus, if this presentation is like the other thousand (well not literally) I’ve sat through, it will not be very detailed and it will indicate that the vast majority of the money will go for internal needs: salaries, utilities, etc. Just keeping Church’s the motor running costs a fortune—never mind actually getting on the road to the Kingdom.
A professor I had in seminary, James Glass, wrote a book called Getting It Together in the Parish. One of the things he wrote was the Church might want to consider a different model. How about, he suggested, a congregation of ten families: 1minister and 9 lay? All would tithe. That would make the minister's salary an average of the lay salaries. The minister would tithe too and this would all be spent on external programming. Plus, the minister would have such a small congregation that he/she would be free to devote almost all his/her time to ministry in the community. As the congregation grew to 20 families, they would split and form a new ten family congregation. And, of course, they would meet in someone’s home so there is no facilities upkeep to drain resources.
Though it is a model not without some problems, it certainly seems to return us to New Testament times when Christians met in homes and the definition of minister was very fluid. And it provides for a lot of community ministry. Unlike the present big church model.
Oh, well. Just an idea.
Peace,
Jerry+
Friday, October 10, 2008
Moses, Paul, and Me
The Exodus reading for Sunday [32:1-14] is troubling. Having grown tired of waiting for Moses to come down from the mountain, the people insist that Aaron, Moses’ right hand man, make a god for them to worship. He collects their gold and makes the golden calf and he and the people begin to worship the calf. This is the troubling part for two reasons.
The reading shows again just how fickle God’s people can be. They are unhappy there in the wilderness, perhaps still preferring Egyptian slavery to difficult freedom. The thankful they must have felt when they crossed over from Egypt is completely forgotten. In their unhappiness, they decide to abandon Yahweh and chase after a god of their own making who will apparently take better care of them. We should be able to identify.
It’s not as if we’ve never done the same thing. In fact, we seem to be better at it today than ever. The most recent god at whose altar we have decided to devote ourselves seems to be greed and a sense of entitlement. We seem to have largely abandoned concern for the things of God in favor of chasing after more transitory things which we believe will make us happy and provide security. It has backfired in spades, of course. Greed and stupidity have created the worse economic situation we have faced in 90 years—and not just in the U.S.
Whatever security and peace we’ve sought has turned in on itself and now many are just chasing survival. Not to say some haven’t gotten filthy rich in this debacle, but most have lost their shirts.
Paul, in Sunday’s epistle reading encourages his friends in Philippi to seek peace in a very different way. He says, “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received…and the God of peace will be with you.”
I shared with my wife, Carol, the other day what mixed emotions I have when I write a check from savings for a charitable purpose. On the one hand, the needs are real and we want to respond to them out of a sense of thankfulness for our having been blessed. On the other hand, as a retired person who has seen pension and investment values drop by 30% in the last few weeks, I can’t help think, “We may need this money ourselves before long.” So far, the thankfulness has outweighed the fear. But I can better understand those who fear in the wilderness.
Peace,
Jerry+
The reading shows again just how fickle God’s people can be. They are unhappy there in the wilderness, perhaps still preferring Egyptian slavery to difficult freedom. The thankful they must have felt when they crossed over from Egypt is completely forgotten. In their unhappiness, they decide to abandon Yahweh and chase after a god of their own making who will apparently take better care of them. We should be able to identify.
It’s not as if we’ve never done the same thing. In fact, we seem to be better at it today than ever. The most recent god at whose altar we have decided to devote ourselves seems to be greed and a sense of entitlement. We seem to have largely abandoned concern for the things of God in favor of chasing after more transitory things which we believe will make us happy and provide security. It has backfired in spades, of course. Greed and stupidity have created the worse economic situation we have faced in 90 years—and not just in the U.S.
Whatever security and peace we’ve sought has turned in on itself and now many are just chasing survival. Not to say some haven’t gotten filthy rich in this debacle, but most have lost their shirts.
Paul, in Sunday’s epistle reading encourages his friends in Philippi to seek peace in a very different way. He says, “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received…and the God of peace will be with you.”
I shared with my wife, Carol, the other day what mixed emotions I have when I write a check from savings for a charitable purpose. On the one hand, the needs are real and we want to respond to them out of a sense of thankfulness for our having been blessed. On the other hand, as a retired person who has seen pension and investment values drop by 30% in the last few weeks, I can’t help think, “We may need this money ourselves before long.” So far, the thankfulness has outweighed the fear. But I can better understand those who fear in the wilderness.
Peace,
Jerry+
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Hoping For the Worst
Last night I watched Jay Leno’s monologue. He asked the audience this question, “How many of you watched the VP debate to see Sarah Palin screw up?” Wild applause and cheers. Then he followed with, “How many watched to see Joe Biden screw up?” Wild applause and cheers. No winner. Everybody was hoping for a screw up.
I didn’t laugh. In fact, I felt sad. What have we come to when we admit to watching a debate JUST to watch somebody make a mistake? Are these the same people who’ll sit at a highway rail crossing to see if there is going to be a train wreck? Are these the people who would have gathered in the medieval square to watch a heretic hung, drawn and quartered? How messed up have we become?
Mark Twain liked to make fun of politicians, and indeed, it has long been a national pastime. But I think I detect a difference in the historic way this was done and the way it’s being done in the last 30 or 40 years. Comics are spending a great deal of time and energy focused on the foibles of those who are to lead us. And considering most young adults get their news from the satiric “news” shows such as the Colbert Report and The Daily Show, we are spending a great deal of time and energy ridiculing people in government. Not that some of it is not on point—it is. But it has become unrelenting and continuous, even to the point of Jay’s question which could have gone unasked forever.
Nobody would have taken on FDR, HST, or JFK or others like them in the way it’s done today. Are we better or worse for the change?
Peace,
Jerry+
I didn’t laugh. In fact, I felt sad. What have we come to when we admit to watching a debate JUST to watch somebody make a mistake? Are these the same people who’ll sit at a highway rail crossing to see if there is going to be a train wreck? Are these the people who would have gathered in the medieval square to watch a heretic hung, drawn and quartered? How messed up have we become?
Mark Twain liked to make fun of politicians, and indeed, it has long been a national pastime. But I think I detect a difference in the historic way this was done and the way it’s being done in the last 30 or 40 years. Comics are spending a great deal of time and energy focused on the foibles of those who are to lead us. And considering most young adults get their news from the satiric “news” shows such as the Colbert Report and The Daily Show, we are spending a great deal of time and energy ridiculing people in government. Not that some of it is not on point—it is. But it has become unrelenting and continuous, even to the point of Jay’s question which could have gone unasked forever.
Nobody would have taken on FDR, HST, or JFK or others like them in the way it’s done today. Are we better or worse for the change?
Peace,
Jerry+
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Matthew 21: 33-46
Sunday's Gospel is another parable, a perplexing one about vineyard tenants killing the owner's son. When you hear this parable, you just have to ask yourself: what were they thinking? You can sort of follow them when they resist the first time, maybe even the second, but what in the world made them think they would inherit the vineyard if they killed the owner’s son? It’s another example of those things we read and hear about when company executives cheat companies and shareholders out of millions of dollars. When they stole the first little bit, you can kind of understand how they would think they would get away with it. I mean, I’m sure most criminals think they won’t get caught. But after a while, didn’t they finally realize it had gone too far and they would have to pay up?
Common sense would say yes. But as it turns out, common sense apparently isn’t so common. Even Paul, a saint of the Church and full of dedication and fervor for the Lord, tells his close friends in Philippi, that here at the end of his life, he realizes he has not attained his goal of having Christ be Lord of his life. Elsewhere he says, “I do the very things I should leave undone, and fail to do those things I should do.” For some reason, we just don’t seem to learn from our mistakes. Or at least we don’t learn enough to truly become different. Why is that?
I don’t know. My own tendency is apparently to forget the pain I feel when I realize I have embarrassed myself before God. Then without the reminder, I find myself doing the bad thing all over again. Martin Luther, the father of the Protestant Reformation, is said while a monk, to have made confession multiple times a day. It was common place for him to rise from his knees having just confessed and then to immediately kneel and begin his confession all over again.
I suppose the point here is that we are and will remain imperfect and sinful people. The good news is that our sin will not inhibit our relationship with God because Jesus has died for our sins. Perhaps we should hear Paul again as he says, “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” Perhaps we can think of this as, “don’t become bogged down in your past sinfulness, but instead continue to look toward the next opportunity to avoid sin and to do the will of your Lord.”
Taken that way, we can avoid the paralysis of Martin Luther, weighed down with his imperfections and instead look at the life of Paul who was always trying to share the power of God with others, even until the time of his death.
Peace,
Jerry+
Common sense would say yes. But as it turns out, common sense apparently isn’t so common. Even Paul, a saint of the Church and full of dedication and fervor for the Lord, tells his close friends in Philippi, that here at the end of his life, he realizes he has not attained his goal of having Christ be Lord of his life. Elsewhere he says, “I do the very things I should leave undone, and fail to do those things I should do.” For some reason, we just don’t seem to learn from our mistakes. Or at least we don’t learn enough to truly become different. Why is that?
I don’t know. My own tendency is apparently to forget the pain I feel when I realize I have embarrassed myself before God. Then without the reminder, I find myself doing the bad thing all over again. Martin Luther, the father of the Protestant Reformation, is said while a monk, to have made confession multiple times a day. It was common place for him to rise from his knees having just confessed and then to immediately kneel and begin his confession all over again.
I suppose the point here is that we are and will remain imperfect and sinful people. The good news is that our sin will not inhibit our relationship with God because Jesus has died for our sins. Perhaps we should hear Paul again as he says, “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” Perhaps we can think of this as, “don’t become bogged down in your past sinfulness, but instead continue to look toward the next opportunity to avoid sin and to do the will of your Lord.”
Taken that way, we can avoid the paralysis of Martin Luther, weighed down with his imperfections and instead look at the life of Paul who was always trying to share the power of God with others, even until the time of his death.
Peace,
Jerry+
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