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Date: 30/01/11

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Perspective
30/01/11 7:19 PM

Recently I read a newspaper article preoccupied with the Pope using an expensive car (a Mercedes), a pair of red leather shoes, and what the article’s writer called the spectacle of the recent Brother Andre celebration in Montreal. The main point was chastising the Church for spending on what appears to be luxury items when there are so many people in need. After hitting on ‘the wealth of the Church, the article then made reference to pedophile priests, a subject often re-visited by this writer.   So, I thought a few more details might offer a more complete perspective around the topics raised, trying to see the whole Church rather than just select pieces.

The issue of pedophile priests is a truly horrific situation, and the initial handling of these crimes by Church authorities can only be called incompetent. Much has been done since those early days to un-earth, expose and eliminate both the perpetrators and the problem, and to make amends. It is accurate to say more still needs to be done. That said there are some 400,000 priests worldwide who have not been implicated nor charged of any crime, this one or any other. These men dedicate their entire lives to the support, care and betterment of others in virtually every situation. I’ve had the good fortune to know a few of these priests, and can attest the people they impact in a positive way is more than I can measure.
Priests accused of crimes are now relieved of church duties until such time as they have been judged by the evidence in a court of law, a now standard practice. For me it is equally important I respect the precept of innocent until proven guilty while any investigation and legal process occurs. Finally, I am most passionate about ensuring I’m not drawn into guilt-by-association thinking; that others priests may be guilty of misdeeds simply because of a shared vocation.
Shifting to look under the umbrella of money, I find it useful to look at a few programs on which the Church does spend a lot of money:
·         The Catholic Church has 3,500,000 teachers in 250,000 Catholic schools worldwide, teaching some 42,000,000 pupils, many in countries where no other organization operates such services
·         The Church is the largest single educational institution worldwide by an order of magnitude over the next largest, with 213 Catholic universities and colleges in the US alone.
·         This same Church is also the largest operator of hospitals worldwide (by a staggering margin)
·         In the US, it has 585 hospitals serving 84,000,000 patients, an number that increases exponentially when world figures are taken into account
·         The Catholic Church is the largest charitable organization in the world, again by an stunningly large margin
I could go on. But it is against these statistics the newspaper article complains about the brand of car and shoes the Pope uses. I suggest the article author may be more preoccupied with creating a negative impression rather than seeing the larger picture. Examining just one of the writer’s issues, the Pope’s car must be bullet-proof for obvious reasons, a feature offered only on vehicles in higher-end categories (such as Mercedes).
The Church’s finances have come up before, from this writer and others. And if you’ve ever had an opportunity to visit the Vatican Museum in Rome, it is easy to get the impression of great wealth. Fabulous art, paintings and tapestries adorn hallway after gallery after display. The Sistine Chapel alone contains priceless works on walls and ceilings. Add to this the building and property value of thousands of churches virtually everywhere, many in prime, big city locations, and there are indeed a lot of assets to be considered.
For much of the art, with paintings such as those from Michael Angelo, antiquity alone has dramatically increased their commercial value, especially in our modern world of so many collectors.   What seems to be misunderstood is that a great many of these works were presented to the Church as gifts to God. They were offered up by individuals who wished to thank God for the talent and circumstances enjoyed during an earthly life blessed with plenty. As such, the Church is less an owner of these artifacts, and more a minder of them, obliged to maintain the offerings as the gifts they were intended to be. Value does not in any way alter the duty of the Church to preserve these treasures for generations and centuries to come.
As to church buildings and properties, in most cases each was built through the sweat and donations and fund raising of a local community, often from decades and centuries gone by. The buildings were erected through the dedication of faith-filled people who wished to celebrate their beliefs, and pass on a place of worship to future generations. Gifts such as these are not arbitrarily sold as a money generating proposition, though there have been occasions where declining attendance and escalating maintenance costs have forced such a situation.
People without an understanding of faith may not necessarily appreciate this intention of donors, and the subsequent obligation of recipients. They possibly look past the love and devotion of such generosity and see only commercial value, calculating the monetary opportunity of sale. It is perhaps difficult for them to understand the relationship of individual hearts with the Divine, and their dedication to furthering God’s work.
Finally, the newspaper article spoke of Brother Andre’s recent elevation to sainthood and criticized the ensuing celebration held in Montreal. Our modern era is in desperate need of worthy role models and true saints, and Brother Andre lived up to the mantle of both.  When we discover such an individual, it is in everyone’s interest to raise their visibility for the young and hopefully still impressionable of society, to appreciate the good such individuals do in the course of a life of service.
By Paul Moylan
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The Angry God - The Loving God
28/01/11 8:17 AM

I’ve come across multiple descriptions of God over time, but perhaps none more perplexing than the apparent difference between the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament. In the Old, it seems God is often described as harsh and a stern judge; almost angry. In the New Testament this kind of language disappears completely, and the picture is one of a kind, gentle, loving God. I’ve been asked a few times how I reconcile these seemingly contradictory images.

 
As a child, it would have been easy to find multiple descriptions of my earthly father. He was thought of by some neighbourhood kids as confrontational and angry, the preverbal mean ole man… These confrontations occurred on the front lawn of our house while the local kids, waiting for a bus, would be swearing, spitting and littering cigarette butts as teens sometimes do. My father was not given to accept such behaviour silently, especially with his own children close by and easily influenced. So he was vocal and direct with the bus kids whenever he caught them in the act. That was back in the era when such a scolding resulted in silence from teenagers, though they were not without uncharitable words once my father was out of earshot. They would describe my father as harsh and angry (although their specific description was a bit more colourful than mine).   And in a way, the critique would be accurate in so far as the experience of these kids, who only knew my father though this specific situation.   The kids at the bus stop were in the wrong, but would never admit to their own misbehaviour. So, in their eyes, it was my father’s attitude that was the problem.
 
The friends I hung around with knew my father differently, as they were often at my house and saw other aspects of his personality. To them, he was mostly pleasant and a bit quiet, but friends would add my father was unreasonably strict. The curfew I had growing up was earlier than my friends, with no dating until my late teens, and there were often mandatory chores on Saturday mornings. My friends had no such restrictions and saw my treatment as strict. So although these early friends had a closer view of my father, they weren’t around frequently enough to get a complete picture of the man. I, on the other hand, having spent many years with him, had a full view of his personality. But looking back, my opinion of my father followed quite a journey over the years.
 
Our relationship initially had parallels to the bus stop kids. When I was young I was commonly in trouble or misbehaving, and got the same dressing down as the kids at the bus stop; worse actually, because my father expected more of me.   During my teens I agreed with friends about the strictness, especially as I wanted the freedom to do as I pleased. But this strictness, I learned later, was done in an effort to instil values and protect me from situations beyond my capability at the time.
 
As I got beyond the teenage years, I came to appreciate the love that drove everything my father did. Yes, he could get angry when it was appropriate. But with time I came to understand this was in reality, only a tiny fraction of his personality. The more I came to properly see the circumstances of the world, and my role in it, the more I came to appreciate my father as truly loving, caring, and compassionate. Once beyond my own self-centeredness, looking at what was really going on, I came to respect and admire his love and relentless commitment for me and my siblings. The causal, infrequent impression of others did not reflect my father’s whole personality; hadn’t seen his core. This was consistently motivated by unconditional love. Those who truly knew my father wept bitterly when he left this world.
 
I find it interesting to read the Old Testament with this parallel in mind.
 
Early in life, despite much teaching at home, schools and church, I was more like a bus stop kid, akin to the chastised people of the Old Testament. I experienced God from afar, if at all, and was happier following my own rules about behaviour. Without proper teaching of the loving, family-oriented God, I challenged faith and God from a lack of understanding. Often, this attitude was driven by a lack of conviction and the desire for personal freedom. By late twenties and early thirties I was developing a more mature picture of God. Taking the time to properly understand the teachings of faith, I gradually understood Divine motivation as driven by deep, deep love.  Consequently, my relationship with God began to change, much as it had with my own father, as I accepted the reality of my actions.   It was not God who changed; instead it was my attitude which began to accept greater responsibility. I looked for the whole God, not just select traits perceived as in the way of personal desires. I now realize God’s relationship is and always has been pursuing me for my own best interests. And similar to my earthly father’s motive, is driven exclusively by love. 
 
The God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are one and the same. His ‘personality’ includes all the descriptions found throughout the Bible, much the same as my own father had the full range of human emotion during his lifetime. But as with my father, my experience of God is overwhelmingly about his love, and closely mirrors the New Testament description.
 
I just needed the time and maturity to realize it.
By Paul Moylan
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What Did We Do to Deserve This?
14/01/11 2:06 PM

It’s impossible not to notice the unusual weather seemingly everywhere these last few weeks. Major airports in Europe have shutdown from record snow falls, the southeastern US is under a thick sheet of ice, and Australia which just a few years ago was suffering drought is now facing Tsunami-like flooding. I find myself in occasional conversations about these events when the question, ‘what did we do to deserve this?’ comes up. Underlying the question is an assumption that someone somewhere has a master control room, with the means to not-so-randomly apply bad weather for reasons we can only speculate about.

Most people know otherwise and for them, the question is both small-talk and rhetorical. I remembered this week however, there are a few who do wonder whether God - the only possible choice for such supernatural management - might be directing weather, possibly for sins past or current. In 2010, one person asked publicly if such a hypothesis might be so.
 
Twelve months ago this week, a devastating earthquake virtually leveled Haiti, a country and a people arguable the most downtrodden of any in the western hemisphere. To everyone aware of the Haitians’ plight, it was impossible to watch the TV images and not at least ask why God lets bad things happen to good people.
 
The local newspaper produced an editorial about a week after the earthquake posing a more negative version of the question about God’s possible involvement. Specifically, the article asked whether God had purposely issued forth some kind of punishment against Haiti, possibly for participating in voodoo-ism in its distant past. Perhaps the Divine was angry, the article speculated, and was teaching the Haitians a lesson.
 
To me though, this kind of thinking is about as far from God’s pattern (and His word) as can be.
 
Science and reason explain weather and associated phenomenon, and earthquakes are verifiably known as seismic events resulting from shifting tectonic plates below ground. It is a truism that earthquakes (and hurricanes as also mentioned in the article) happen to many countries, not just Haiti. The Cayman Islands were struck by a significant earthquake just days after Haiti. Better building construction on that island minimized the damage. St. Lucia was devastated recently by a hurricane. Cuba and other islands have been battered by significant natural disasters time and again and Mexico’s Mayan Riviera was heavily damaged by weather a few years back. In almost every case, the country was virtually 100% recovered in less than a year. Extreme natural phenomena are a condition of the Caribbean, and Haiti unfortunately sits in the path of it along with these other countries. Science verifies all this.
 
Beyond science, another factor is the involvement of humans. Immoral leaders and self-serving bureaucrats, something purged from other Caribbean countries, still operate in Haiti and are responsible for much oppression and poverty. The outflow of this continuous corruption is poor government services, sub-standard building and road construction, and non-existent emergency preparedness. Issues such as these substantially worsen the effect of natural disasters on a population. A year after the fact, the lack of rebuilding in Haiti is testament to these localized problems, all of human origin.
 
My belief and understanding of God is that he created the natural laws, including the manner in which the earth is essentially self-sustaining. Tectonic shifts, though infrequent and disruptive, go hand-in-hand with other natural weather phenomena - wind, rain, snow, sun, etc. - as recurring, cyclical elements supporting the rejuvenating process. Having set the world in motion, God leaves His creation to its path, as He does His human creations, to live in concert with each other, and to learn from ongoing events, circumstances and experiences. This, I believe, is partially how we are provided a means to grow and evolve our knowledge and understanding.
 
My Christian faith teaches me of God as the essence of love, suffering greatly when any of His children suffer. My experience of God is that he can and does use events, difficult and otherwise, to gently guide me in my relationship with Him and others along the path of my own life. I believe it is in the core of my being to support others in ways both large and small, as I am able. When I do so, I simultaneously learn how to reach out to God. My experience is that love grows through the act of loving, which is the essence of supporting and helping others. Life’s’ circumstances, and my acceptance and positive reaction to them, ultimately draws me closer to God.
 
How do I reconcile this with an entity that would supposedly inflict hardship on the downtrodden?
 
God’s hand didn’t factor into Haiti’s earthquake according to science, reason or faith.  But for me the real question is if the constant and continuing acts of charity, support, open hearts, open wallets and outpouring of humanitarian aid are signs the hand of God is indeed at work – for me it these that bear his Fingerprints as I’ve come to appreciate them.
By Paul Moylan
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Journeying Through Faith
08/01/11 9:44 PM

What’s this blog about?

It’s really about everyday situations where Spirituality, Christianity and Catholicism, and the secular world intersect.  I find it common to come across circumstances where these come together in the daily travels of life.  Some intersections are slight enough that only a few people notice; others large enough to draw the attention of the media.  When people who don’t appreciate faith journeys, or don’t believe in God, comment about such intersections, there can be criticism about what’s going on, either with a position against faith, or at least commentary opposing to its tenants.  Here is an example;

-          Over the past year opinion articles in the local paper have appeared that are anti-Christian or anti-Catholic.  Everyone is entitled to their opinion, both public and private.  However, on more than one occasion the newspaper opinion pieces cross the line, offering criticism of faith teachings which are not based on fact, or as a distortion of the reality of those teachings and practices.  I write Letters to the Editor to respond, but these are not always published.  So, I’ll put the letters and comments I write up on this blog for those who might care to read them.

Additionally, I've had events, both large and small in life that relate to my spiritual journey.  Sometimes an event can invoke a sense in me of wanting to record the details of what occurred, and why I felt it had a spiritual connotation.  I’ll put these ramblings here as well.

 Finally, larger world events have an influence on my religious and spiritual nature and depending on the topic, can catch my attention.  Occasionally, an opinion about such events crosses my mind.  Hopefully my opinion and the resulting words are worthy of your attention.

 I try to not to be preachy, although sometimes that’s a tough one.  And I hope to avoid offering interpretations of Scripture.  There are plenty of others who do a better job on both these fronts.  I intend this blog to talk about my reactions and opinions to the world around me.

 
What qualifies me to author this blog?

 Well, I’m not formally trained religiously or biblically.  I’m not always 100% aligned with Church positions.  Many things are still a mystery to me, and I’ve not always felt as spiritual as I wish.  My journey has not been without struggle, and I’m certainly not finished making mistakes on my journey.

On the other hand, there seems to be a lack of response to public musings about faith or religion which are inaccurate or incorrect. I believe there’s a need for such a response and as a life-long Catholic, I have my own journey to tell me about the pursuit of faith.  For five years I established and administered a Bible Study program at my Church, so I know a little about Scripture.  I’ve visited the Holy Land, walked the streets of Jerusalem, traveled Greece and Turkey following the Footsteps of St. Paul in Ephesus, Corinth, Thessalonica and other places, and trekked the 800 kilometer pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago.  I can be reasonably introspective when I try.  And, I’m a budding writer.  Hopefully this last point will make the words here more readable.

 

What can you do?

 1.      Read this blog.  I’ll try to post once a week, and get to a regular day of the week for posting once I get going.  I also hope to get better at it as I go along, so keep reading, at least for a few weeks.

2.    Comment on the blog.  Go to the comments section and let me know when I provide something of value, or when you disagree with something I’ve written.  It’s only with feedback that this blog and my postings will get better.

3.   Tell me if there is something you’d like me to write about.  I have a limited number of ideas.  You don’t.

4.    Tell your friends and neighbours about this blog.  Word-of-mouth rules the world these days.  If you find my words to be of value, tell others.

 
There you go dear reader.

 Come back and visit soon.

 

Paul

By Paul Moylan
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