• Acts 5: 12-16. A third portrait (see “A” and “B “ Cycles for the other two) describing the life of the early church. The power of healing is prominent in this account.
• Revelations 1: 9-13, 17-19. John is called to write down his visions by Christ, the Son of Man, once dead and now alive. John shares in the distress, endurance and hopes of his readers.
• John 20: 19-31. Jesus confers upon the apostles the power of the Holy Spirit to forgive sins. He also overcomes Thomas’ unbelief by beckoning him to examine the marks of the nails and spear on his body.

Thoughts for your Consideration: By John Gonzalez

The first reading immediately following Easter Sunday presents to us an image of the early Christian community. The lectionary of readings are done in three cycles (A,B, and C) and this year we are reading from cycle C. however on the Second Sunday of Easter the first reading for each cycle comes from Acts and the readings all demonstrate a characteristic of the fledgling community that follows Jesus. The term Christian actually does not apply because at this point they still see themselves as a Jewish community that follows the ways of Jesus Christ so until St. Paul the Apostle develops the term “Christian” their earliest tag is actually “The Way.” The characteristics that each cycle presents are as follows:

• Cycle A: Acts 2: 42-47 – dedication to prayer, common worship and communion
• Cycle B: Acts 4: 32-35 – All goods are held in common, communal living
• Cycle C: Acts 5: 12-16 – The power of healing to those that are sick and disturbed

I received a comment once that Jesus was not an agent of social change. To challenge society usually evokes an image of rebellion or some form of civil disobedience. In the Passion narratives that we just reflected on during Holy Week we are told about a social response to the threat that Jesus posed against the ruling classes of his day. Jesus lived with integrity to an alternative social vision. But to live with integrity meant that he had to be public in promoting and advocating for this other vision (the Kingdom of God.) If he had simply lived a personal vision in isolation he would never have been seen as a threat. His methodology for social change was not typical and that is what throws us off. His was not the standard of society so he did not employ violent insurrection (which may have disappointed some of his followers, especially Judas Iscariot) nor did he organize some form of direct action. Instead he was a public example and what he did organize was an alternative community. In the first reading we witness this public community (Peter, John and the Apostles are out in streets healing and preaching) engage in promoting this social transformation through this methodology of community organizing. They are organizing a community that prays, shares, and heals the greater society.

The second reading along with the Gospel passage remind us that any institution, including the Christian Church, needs to always re-evaluate itself from the dangers of corruption and the adoption of social rather than divine values. In the second Chapter of Revelations Jesus has John address the seven early Christian church communities. With many of these churches however Jesus points out forms of social deviation that has crept into them.  Ephesus and Sardis have lulled in their works of mercy, Pergamum has accepted heretical teachings, Thyatira has engaged in sexual misconduct, and Laodicea has been corrupted by its own affluence.

The formula for reform is suffering. In Revelations and in the Gospel Jesus demonstrates that purification comes through suffering. What is amazing to me is that the Resurrected Christ continues to bear the wounds of his suffering. This is the constant reminder that is needed to keep us on the social vision that we have been set out to build. Like Thomas we are reminded that the way to live our baptismal calling is to be ever present with the ongoing Passion and suffering that continues to be in our world. We are called to be in solidarity with all who suffer. If we stray from the suffering in our society, if we become lax in performing our works of healing and sharing then we will fall victims to corruption, then we will be the ones that will have to be purified.

In reflecting on the “signs of the times” it certainly feels that our Church is passing through such purification. This is an opportunity for us as it was for the seven churches of Revelations. Let us reflect on the vision of God’s Kingdom as lived and expressed by Christ and early community, then let us reengage with our community of faith to be heralds of reform for this vision.

Immigrants come to this country primarily because they feel that this country offers better financial opportunities then their own. Immigrants come from all over but the focus tends to be on Mexico and Central America. This of course is because we share a border with Mexico and the issues of economic disparity between that Central America and our own is significant. The recent surge of violence in that area has destabilized the situation further.

The Catholic Church in America shares this social concern. We are further impacted by the very fact that a majority of immigrants into this country tend to be members of our faith. For the church however this concern is identified with our governing social principle of promoting the God given dignity of all humanity. This principle calls us to be attentive to the suffering and destruction of all life because by faith we believe that God is the author of life. This Catholic principle informs us on the position we as Catholics take on abortion, torture and the death penalty. The recent encyclical by Pope Benedict XVI reinforces this point, “Every migrant is a human person who, as such, possesses fundamental, inalienable rights that must be respected by everyone and in every circumstance.”

In the case of immigration the Church is being attentive to a particular human community that is unfortunately forced to emigrate for basic economic opportunities. There is a very real suffering that is happening in our nation primarily with the plight of the immigrants themeselves but also by others who are affected by their presence. As the Church develops its position it will evaluate the related issues including the legitimate concerns of national security and the domestic economic impact resulting from immigration flows. The founding principle of faith that directs this position however will be the dignity of the human person.  The Catholic Church will address the immigrant community who suffers in a very real way from violations to their dignity and sometimes life.  As the social document Strangers No Longer puts it: “We the bishops of Mexico and the United States seek to awaken our people to the mysterious presence of the crucified and risen Lord in the person of the migrant and to renew in them the values of the Kingdom of God that he proclaimed.”

The issue of immigration is an issue about a real population whose circumstances brought them into this country. Many of us are aware of the presence of immigrants in our midst. We witness them working in factories or in any number of low income jobs such as restaurant kitchen staff, construction day laborers or house cleaning services. When we become more observant we may even see them in areas where house cleaners or day laborers wait for odd jobs. We may also become aware of their presence with us when we take public transportation and then we may even see them or their families attending the same schools and church that our families attends. We then also read about their tragic stories in the newspapers when we read of migrants who are beaten, killed or rounded up and deported. We follow their migrating patterns into the desert of the southwest and find out about the atrocious smuggling conditions that many of them go through. Passionist spirituality sees the face of the suffering Christ in those who suffer insults, marginalization and physical abuse. In a Long Island newspaper a man and his children were shown grieving the violent loss of their wife and mother. We Passionist are trained to witness the pain of Jesus’ passion in contemporary experiences such as these.

As a Catholic religious community we are called to be in solidarity with all who suffer. Solidarity in turn calls us to be really present to a population that is marginalized in our society. In the coming week I hope to share at least two ministry experiences that our Passionist communities have in the United States with the immigrant community.

The Catholic Church also recognizes the value of the family as the primary unit of society and the Church defends the integrity of the family time and time again. With the immigrant community we sympathies with the difficulty they face in having their families split up as they immigrate into our nation or in being deported from the families that they have made here in the U.S. We are called to alleviate the situation so that the ever important family unit can stay intact whenever possible.  

As American Catholics we recognize the legitimate issues with regards to national security and the domestic economy. We certainly also walk with those who also suffer from unemployment and current economic distress. The suffering of one does not compete for attention against the suffering of another. Our legislative path will not be to opt for one suffering group over another. Instead we must approach this issue with an aim of promoting true reconciliation. In advocating for policies that address the real affects of suffering we are challenged to pursue a social analysis that examines the authentic root causes of the suffering we are ministering to. Adopting policies based on erroneous perceptions does not offer any redemptive quality to the suffering that either the immigrant or unemployed community faces. Nor does it offer a real solution.

Passionist spirituality has reflected on this question from the lens of our own Charism that is devoted to the memory of Christ Crucified. We see the Passion of Christ as a redemptive moment for all humanity. This moment suffering and death was a gift of God’s love to us all. It was a moment where God, through Jesus, took on our own suffering, injustice and pain. God’s incarnation with humanity was complete as it touched on all aspects of our humanity including our moments of suffering, despair and death. But even with this theology we continue to witness unimaginable suffering where we wonder what redeeming purpose could possibly come out of it.      

With this topic I would like to offer the Book of Job as a suggestion for theological reflection. This was exactly the question that the Jewish community faced with the Babylonian captivity because until then they thought that God’s action were always good and just (from their own perspective of what is good and just) and where equally confused about the actions of God when this cataclysmic event took place in their own time. The Temple was destroyed, many had been killed and executed including the entire royal family, and the remnant where exiled to Babylon where they thought they would perish. Out of this comes the Book of Job. In this Book the Israelites rework a new theology about how God can function in a way we can appreciate when evil events indiscriminately are allowed to happen. Job asks the question: “We accept good things from God; and should we not accept evil?”

In this book Job ultimately breaks down and becomes angry with God. Many of us can feel this anger with God right now. In Chapter 38 God responds back to Job by humbling Job back into his place within creation:

“Who is this that obscures divine plans with words of ignorance? Gird up your loins now like a man: I will question you, and you tell me the answers! Where were you when I founded the earth? Tell me if you have understanding. Who determined its size; do you know? Who stretched out the measuring line for it? Into what were its pedestals sunk, And who laid the cornerstone?”

This may strike us as harsh but basically God is telling Job and reminding us all that we cannot measure the greater good and evil from our own narrow vantage point. The evil that Job faced, the evil that Israel faced and the evil that Haiti faces today has some purpose. We cannot imagine what purpose could possibly justify such an action but since we are not the authors of Creation (as God reminds Job) then we are to relegate this into the realm of faith.

As Lord Alfred Tennyson had said: “Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die.”

In the principles of Catholic social teaching we are taught about the common good in this way. We are taught that God alone is good (Luke 18:19) and of course God is the sole author of all creation. The good we seek as Catholics is not our own good but the common good that “embraces the sum total of all those conditions of social life which enable individuals, families, and organizations to achieve complete an effective fulfillment.” (Mater et Magistra #74) Whatever universal good can possibly come out of this event God alone only knows, but we are left with doing what we can to build the common good in a place and with a people that have been absolutely devastated. The earthquake took place, and we are powerless to control what has already taken place. The issue for us is not to dwell on this but to act. We must act to promote the good to our Haitian brothers and sisters who are currently suffering from so much evil.

• Nehemiah 8:2-6, 8-10. Ezra reads and explains the Torah to all the people. While the people were weeping, he told them that “rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength!”
• 1 Corinthian 12: 12-30. Just as the body is one, but has many members… so it is with Christ. Each member has need of the other, each with different gifts.
• Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21. Luke introduces his gospel and then concludes his solemn introduction with Jesus’ initial preaching at Nazareth, a summary of his entire ministry.

Thoughts for your consideration: by John Gonzalez

In the second reading the theme of unity in the midst of diversity is again offered to us by St. Paul the Apostle. This theme surfaces fairly regularly with St. Paul who tries to challenge his gentile community on the absolute oneness of God, Christ and the Spirit to a pluralistic society. But if we look at the first reading and the introduction of the Gospel of Luke we also find these two writers discussing the theme of interpretation.

Christians have one common Bible with a number of different versions. But if we look at how the Sacred Scriptures have been interpreted to offer a position on any social issue we can see a variety of positions used to promote a political or social agenda. The issue of slavery in the United States points out that fact very well where both the abolitionist and the slaveholding community used the Bible to defend both positions. In the current culture war that is debating economic globalization, climate change and humanitarian intervention we see the same thing happening. Whether people are using the Bible, the Quran or the Torah any faith-based group can come up with any number of positions with regards to these issues using their own Sacred texts to defend these positions.

Both Ezra and Luke are dealing with tensions of interpretation. They both come out of a tradition build on the Spirit of unity but fractured by social violence. For Ezra the Hebrew community has just returned from their exile in Babylon and is trying to again make sense of their post-exilic identity. For Luke’s early Christians that Apostolic community has brought the salvific message of Christ throughout the Roman Empire but after the persecution of the Apostles Luke is struggling to maintain this unified tradition and for that purpose he has written this Gospel account.  In both cases they are struggling to offer a common understanding so that the Word can take root in all of us with our different experiences, talents and personalities while maintaining its authentic singular message that is based on God’s love and common relationship with us all.

For us Catholics the Church is the institution from which we continue to comprehend the challenging Word of God in the context of our ever changing world. While the Church continues to pronounce on issues of faith and dogma the Church also addresses new social issues that had never surfaced in the ancient world. It is the duty of our Church to offer its guidance based on its reflection on revelation and tradition to help develop us into a community that can respond to social issues that confront us. In this manner the Church has made its position felt on economic globalization in the Papal Encyclical Caritas in Veritate. The Pope has also offered a teaching on the issue of climate change in his recent World Day of Peace Message. With the great catastrophe that affected Haiti last week the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops has also offered its social position to protect in any way the devastated Haitian community by asking us to donate at the Sunday Mass and by advocating to the President to grant Haitians in the United States temporary protected status. These are social issues and they are not of themselves dogmatic objects of revealed faith such as our belief in the Resurrection or in the mystery of the Eucharist but they are themselves social doctrines that are related to the faith and morals of our revealed tradition.

As American we are fond of saying that people have a right to their opinion and of course they are. Even in our own Catholic Church we also assent to this individual right insofar as our God given conscience is regarded as a prominent vehicle from which we come to discern the decisions we must make. But let us keep in mind the struggle that Paul reminds us of whereby our individual parts must ultimately serve one body. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if one part is honored; all the parts share its joy.  

The Church offers many social teachings and many of us may struggle with some of the Church’s social positions, I know I do. Paul, Ezra and Luke are not calling us to mindless zombies. We are called to embrace our own dignity but at the service of all creation which comes from God. It will be impossible for us who experience our own lives from only one vantage point to be able to see and value the dignity and experiences of all God’s creation. For that reason it is important for us to be challenged by the position of a global Church that happens to share in the experiences of people throughout the world.

In Haiti, one part of the human community is suffering greatly. Our Church has called us to action so that we can respond to the suffering of one of our members. This now is the opportunity for us to embrace the one body and to heal a section that has been devastated.            

Khalil Gibran’s  ‘Prophet’, when asked to speak about pain, says: “Pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. Even as the stone of the fruit must break so that its heart may stand in the sun, so must you know pain” Awakening to the terrible reality of human suffering breaks open our heart. Then love and action in the service of justice becomes possible. 
 
Appreciating and trying to live our first vow as Passionists to keep alive the Memoria Passionis should offer a clue as to how that shell may be broken. It should also give us some tools for critical reflection on our contemporary experience
 
Paul of the Cross began his great work in a world in transition. The Peace of Westphalia in 1648, less than 50 years before his birth, marked the waning of the political influence of papacy and empire, the two major medieval powers. “Enlightenment” ideas began to make themselves felt. The church would no longer set the agenda; religious communities,   dislodged from the center, would find themselves ‘at the edge’. In this world Paul found the drawing force of his life in contemplating the Crucified God. From here came his passion for life. The Crucified One led Paul to the ones he saw as the poorest, those who did not know God’s love and had no hope. Paul saw the name of Jesus on their foreheads.   
 
We are called to continue the great work in a world still rocked by massive change. At the start of the 3rd millennium, “to see reality in our time is to see the world as crucifixion.” 
 
Our world is marked by a virulent form of economic globalisation that leads to massive imbalances in the economic order. This affects body, soul and spirit. Access to the basic necessities for living is controlled by a powerful minority. The North, especially the US, and multinationals control and direct the lives of the majority of people in a way that was unknown in the past. 
 
Our minds have been colonised by the dominant values of individualism, consumerism and success. But the Cross reminds us that “success is not a name for God” (M. Buber) Living joyfully our relatedness as brothers and sisters is the antidote to individualism. Solidarity is the word chosen to describe a new way of being together as Passionists in mission for the life of the world. New realities call for new responses in faith.
 
The addiction to consume can heal when it learns “I am more than what I have” and longs to know that I am loved beyond all doubt. The addiction to success, and to its servants – domination, violence and ruthlessness, can only be healed in the compassion and mercy flowing from the Cross for the victim of such acts.
 
Early in its life the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, December 10, 1948 as an emphatic “NO” to the horrors of the 2nd World War. “Recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world…All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood”.(art 1) But Jesus had already announced this from his Cross!
 
Do we have anything to say to our world and to our brothers and sisters today and is it likely to be able to be heard?
 
A world in the throes of enormous change, roiled by violence and new expressions of xenophobia; the demonising of the ‘other’ expressed in the ‘war or terror’, urgently calls us to reflect on the demands of Justice at the heart of any Spirituality of the Passion if it dares speak to the questions of today’s women and men.  
 
Our self understanding as Passionists has been slowly undergoing a shift over our lifetimes. It finds clear expression in the Constitutions and the General Chapters of the past 30 years. The 2000 General Chapter says: “Life, born from the cross, was the key for understanding all of the Chapter’s work under the dual aspect of ‘memory’ and ‘prophecy’. As memory, it drew our eyes to the cross from which new life flows, and as prophecy it asked us to look at the tasks of the new millennium with the eyes of Jesus Crucified”
 
Memory and prophecy constitute the two eyes of Passionist being – one looks to Jesus of the Cross where love first touched us; the other looks to the present, where His reconciling love becomes a reality here and now. 
 
This binocular approach to our living the Passion requires us to be centered – standing with Jesus in his Passion-moment; and also sent to the edge – to stand with and keep faith with our sisters and brothers as they seek meaning and hope in their crucifixions.  To be Passionist today requires that we are passionate about Life in each of its stages and in all of its dimensions – a commitment to care for, to promote and protect life from womb to tomb and in every part of the biosphere.
 
The foundation of Passionist identity is the realisation that we have flared forth from the burning heart of God. We are the same matter threaded through every atom, molecule and particle that constitutes our universe. Our life-force comes not from duty, obligation or responsibility, but astonishment and love.  
 
Paul of the Cross, in another time and place, was astonished at the overwhelming work of God’s love that is Jesus’ Passion. As for Jesus, so for Paul; as for Paul, so for each one of us! To be drawn into the heart of our Passionist charism is to be called to live the Passion of the Christ as passion for life in its every dimension and part. 
 
As for Jesus, as for Paul, so for us! Passion for Life calls us to move from the centre to the edge there to find Christ in the suffering earth, in his suffering brothers and sisters, young, old, poor, migrant, displaced, gay, indigenous, misunderstood. Paul, with insight strengthened from gazing on the face of the Crucified, when he turned to look outward he saw the name of Jesus written on the foreheads of the poor.
 
The outflow of our contemplation of the Passion of Jesus will always call us to stand with the marginalized and the crucified ones who, without fully understanding it, thirst for life. Our contemplation of the Crucified One will always lead us to look to the edge and notice who is left discarded by the way. Sometimes this will involve ‘breaking the silence’.
 
We are called to live today in such a way as to make present of Christ’s death as liberation for the people who are crucified today by hunger, injustice and the absence of hope. We are to be ‘Memory-makers’ that the Crucified/Risen one is hope for the poor and for all of creation.
 
“Jesus will be in agony till the end of time’ said Leon Bloy. As we face the agony of the world today, it suggests to me that this is the Passionist moment. In a world marked more and more by the inequalities of possession, our approach to justice must be more than mere resourcefulness.
 
We must offer the justice of right relationship. What is needed in this polarized, fearful and ‘crusading’ world filled with a sense of its own resourcefulness and with a toolkit of solutions, is a ‘crucified mind’ formed beneath the Cross.
 
Such a sense of justice is indeed countercultural – one that embraces our own various experiences of being emptied of ego, of solutions and moved to the sideline of significance. Similar experiences shaped Paul of the Cross, brought him out of the army and away from the Crusades and brought him to be embraced by and then to proclaim the life-giving paradox of the powerlessness of the crucified God.

• Genesis 2:18-24. The creation of man and woman, their vocation to become two in one flesh and to be suitable partners for each other.
• Hebrew 2:9-11. Jesus is perfected through suffering and tastes death for all. So, he is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.
• Mark 10:2-16. Jesus prohibits divorce and remarriage and compares the kingdom of God to those who are like little children.

Thoughts for your consideration: By John Gonzalez

As we consider this week’s reading we are invited to reflect on the concept of relationship. In many ways the heart of the Gospel message is relationship: the relationship between Jesus and the Father, the relationship between God and humanity, the relationship between us and the rest of humanity. This week we are reminded of the most intimate level of this dynamic through the image of husband and wife. In the Gospel Jesus protects this radical moment of relationship where two “become one flesh,” a relationship we understand as marriage.

When people generally consider this aspect of relationship it is usually envisioned with weddings, a united and happy family, a man and wife happily aging together. Marriage evokes attitudes of happiness and joy. It is usually affiliated with the concept of love. As one reads the first reading or the Gospel passage all these images, attitudes and values will probably surface. And yet, in the second reading a very different image of suffering is sandwiched between the other two readings. This is not an accidental insert.

The Christian spirituality of the cross always reminds us that the deepest level of relationship is often born out of the fire of self sacrifice. To love God, to love your neighbor as yourself, to love your spouse and your family these are all powerful moments of relationship, but ultimately they call us to sacrifice our own selfish passions for the good of others. Christian mystics like St. Paul of the Cross have understood this within the concept they called the Mystical Union. Jesus’ mission is to cement the damaged relationship between God and humanity through the ultimate self sacrificing covenant when he suffered and died for our sake. Like Jesus we are called into a deep and meaningful relationship with God the Father and all humanity. But also like Jesus we are called to sacrifice ourselves to lift up our own brothers and sisters.

In comprehending this Mystical Union it is important for us to place His Passion within the context of society. To be in an intimate relationship with the Father meant to be at the service of all humanity. This uncompromising lifestyle was not consistent with the social structures of the Roman era and I will argue that it is not consistent with the social structures of our day. Society did to Jesus then as it did to the prophets before him and as it continues to do the saints of our own day. But as God vindicated Jesus within the social “culture of death” God continues to vindicate those of us who live to sacrifice ourselves for the common good. And thus the second reading tells us that “Jesus is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters.”

Marriage and family is the foundational unit of our society. In the eyes of our church society is build around this unit. This is the principle unit within which we are called to live a life of self sacrifice. In marriage we have the opportunity to express a form of this mystical union that we are called to have with God. Like marriage, mystical union is ultimately where one can and does experience happiness and joy. The mystics like St. Theresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, Mother Theresa and St. Paul of the Cross found their ultimate enlightenment by pursuing the Divine Will. But in pursuing this Divine Will they slowly had to shed away their own personal will, their own ideals and goals, their own wants and needs, all this was sacrificed for the ultimate good. Within our own family dynamic we experience this mystical moment. Many times we face moments where we have to sacrifice our own wants and desires. Once children are on the scene this mystical moment becomes elevated. But as the family grows together there will be moments when the ultimate meaning of one’s own purpose becomes clearly understood within the context of this family.

Our own experience within this unit should help inform us of our personal relationship with God. Our own relationship with God may not be as tangible as marriage. But if we allow ourselves to be sacrificed in faith (keeping in mind the great sacrifice that Jesus made for us, in faith) then we will begin to find the same great and powerful meaning that the mystics found. In faith we must learn to soften our own passions, expectation, and ideals for what we want from our own society. We must learn to sacrifice this on the altar of the Divine Will and receive from God’s own concept of what is Good and Just.

Questions for your Reflection:

• What set of attitudes and expectation do we have as we consider our own marriage or community unit? Are these attitudes self serving or are they serving the family dynamic?
• How can we come to understand the image of Christ suffering for us within our own role within our own family or community? How can we understand this image in our own role within society?
• Take the time to evaluate your own social values and ideals. How are these values formed and whom do they serve? Do they promote your own good in the midst of the social reality, or do they promote a good that is other than your own?

Thoughts For Your Consideration: by Hugo Esparza, CP

During one of the hardest nights of my work with taxi-drivers last year, I sat discouraged, hopeless and exhausted with my team of organizers. The group of primarily East-African and Middle-Eastern, Muslim, Cab-drivers had decided to go on strike a few days before. The dark, humid, Georgia night was as asphyxiating as the news that we received. The companies the drivers had struck decided to close all lines of communications with their ex-employees and their lawyer. That meant that almost one-hundred and twenty-five men were out of work indefinitely. What made things worst for us young, idealistic organizers in training was that we were going back home at the end of that week to finish up our summer training. It was hard to accept the facts of our defeat. There was nothing I could morally say to the men that I got to know and admire during my time with them. Our campaign was beaten and outsmarted by the deep-pockets of greedy businessmen and a biased city council committee. We were all demoralized by the situation. Neither prayer nor sleep helped me get over our defeat. Furthermore, since I hate to over-spiritualize bad situations, very soon my prayers became accusations and murmurs against God. I could not the see the good in the situation anywhere.

The scriptures for this Sunday can be applied to the challenging efforts to live out the social teachings of our faith in our contemporary world. Elijah’ s commitment to what he had been entrusted, to speak for what is right, got him into trouble. As King Ahab was persecuting him, Elijah seems to be overwhelmed, tired and discouraged so much so that death seems to him as the only solution. Both the first reading and the gospel, talk about divine “bread” that would feed us and nourish us in our journey. God’s faithfulness and presence is given to us in the form of bread. Furthermore, Jesus’ promise to be the “living bread”, which is “for the life of the world”, is the example for us to follow. We too are called to give ourselves to others, or as the letter to the Ephesians puts it, to be “imitators of God.” Furthermore, Jesus’ promise to feed us and thus give eternal life first goes through the Cross in order to show the extent of such commitment. Hence, the “living bread” that we are fed does not bring us to redemption unless it first brings us to the Cross.

Despite all of our efforts, the outcome of the campaign did not change. Some of the taxi-drivers went back to their old jobs under the same oppressive circumstances. Others were forced to migrate to other States and some settled for jobs that granted them less flexibility with their schedule. I cannot to this day imagine what these proud-men endured as they informed their families that their investment in the taxi industry had come to an end, or the pressure that bills and everyday expenses would put on them. I’m sure that these men understood the Prophet Elijah’s spirit as he prayed, overwhelmed, tired and discouraged, for his own death.

While redemption is not yet palpable for low-wage employees like them, the “living bread”, which I continue to share during our Eucharist, helped me to realize that I am not being called to be successful but that I am being called to be faithful. My response to God to give myself for others was what got me to commit to a secular organization that trained me for a whole summer on the art and science of community organizing in a Muslim Community at a moment in history when Muslims are looked upon as suspects. The bonds my team of organizers—Christian and Atheist—and I created among the workers was “living bread” for all. Some of the drivers were amazed that a group of young people like us could care enough about them that we would be willing to offer our hard work and time for their cause. And, some of us organizers were surprised by the audacity and joy that these men demonstrated even during the worst parts of the campaign. While our campaign did not change the oppressive situation for the drivers, the unity created among us participants, workers and organizers, as a sign of tolerance during a time of intolerance, became “living bread” for all of us.

Questions for Reflection in your Faith Sharing Group:
•    What social problems get you discouraged?
•    When do you want to walk away like Elijah?
•    What issues and situations seem to be overwhelming to you?
•    Are you ever discouraged by our political system and our political leaders?

Unlike other religious traditions and institutions our Catholic Church is one of the most hierarchical religious systems in our world. While our church is open to the spiritual and cultural diversity of our faith, our own tradition and teachings are ultimately formulated through the highest governing body known as the Magisterium. It is the opinion of the Passionist office of Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation that the Catholic Church does have a unified position on the principle of this issue. Our own Passionist spirituality values this position. While the Catholic Church does have a position on the principle of this issue it does not offer a detail policy for how to carry out this principle, but the position does lend itself to contemplate certain policy direction.

The Catholic Position:
When we compare the various opinions of the Catholic American community on this subject it is noticeable that there is one fundamental question that tends to split the community into two camps that are either in favor or against universal healthcare. Is healthcare a basic human right or not? If you accept that people have the right to good healthcare then you will generally support some model of universal healthcare. On the other hand if you disagree with this position then healthcare is not a social responsibility but an individual’s privilege.

The Catholic Church does have a position with regards to this question. Healthcare is a basic human right. Catholic social teaching affirms this in the encyclical by Pope John XXIII known as Pacem in Terris:

#11: Man has the right to live. He has the right to bodily integrity and to the means necessary for the proper development of life, particularly food, clothing, shelter, medical care, rest, and, finally, the necessary social services. In consequence, he has the right to be looked after in the event of ill health; disability stemming from his work; widowhood; old age; enforced unemployment; or whenever through no fault of his own he is deprived of the means of livelihood.

In 1993 The United States Catholic Conference of Bishops affirmed this basic right and offered a detailed position titled “Comprehensive Health Care Reform” in which they offer the following definitive position:

“Every person has a right to adequate health care. This right flows from the sanctity of human life and the dignity that belongs to all human persons, who are made in the image of God.” Healthcare is more than a commodity; it is a basic human right, and essential safeguard of human life and dignity.

The Catholic Church then does affirm healthcare as a basic human right. While our own Passionist spirituality does not develop itself in terms of defining rights or duties it does promote an ethic of compassion based on a spirituality on the Passion of Christ that identifies with the ongoing suffering of the human community as witness of the New Creation that was revealed to us in the Resurrection. As a lay and vowed community we are called to be in solidarity with those who suffer. While all members of the human community do suffer and we minister to all without any reservation we do acknowledge a fundamental option towards those who suffer injustice at the hand of society. We acknowledge a particular solidarity with the poor who St. Paul of the Cross reminded us had “the name of Jesus written on their foreheads.” This solidarity calls us to offer a compassionate position on issues of social concern. This social ethic was stated very well by our own Pope Benedict XVI in his recent Encyclical Spe Salvi:

#38. The true measure of humanity is essentially determined in relationship to suffering and to the sufferer. This holds true both for the individual and for society. A society unable to accept its suffering members and incapable of helping to share their suffering and to bear it inwardly through “com-passion” is a cruel and inhuman society.

Universal healthcare is an issue because among other things we recognize that there are Americans who are left outside of the private healthcare system. We also recognize that some Americans who have poor insurance still suffer from a healthcare system that has poor or limited quality of access to their own healthcare needs. These are people who are struggling in our midst with a system that is not working at all for them. With the current economic crisis we know that many of our families, neighbors and maybe even ourselves may be facing this struggle as well. Our Passionist spirituality and our Catholic Church call us to promote some form of universal healthcare.

An American universal healthcare system:
Having made this position what should we advocate for in the midst of this healthcare debate? We do not offer a legislative position on this. We recognize that the call for a universal healthcare system in our nation must take into consideration the various economical and social elements that are currently part of the fabric of our own nation. We are a highly capitalistic society with powerful insurance and pharmaceutical industries. We also place a high secular value on the individual’s liberty and are generally nervous about top down government intervention. As challenging as these values and situation might be for promoting the Catholic position we can still be creative in seeing how we can promote a healthcare system that serves the common good while adapting to the situation and values of the American society.

The socialized medicine option of Great Britain may not be the model for America. However we can examine the healthcare system of others that resemble our own social values and economic forces. Switzerland is one such nation that may offer us such a model. It is the idea of a socially regulated insurance where all citizens are required to have coverage. On the one hand Government does set the price for medicine and the insurance company is not allowed to make a profit on basic services. But they are given the freedom to negotiate prices for services with providers and they are allowed to profitable supplemental insurance.

Henry Aaron is a senior fellow in the Economic Studies program at the Brookings Institute. He has adopted a very realistic goal for a healthcare model that he feels can be adopted by the various interests in America and can offer us an excellent first step in promoting a good American style universal healthcare system. In his proposal he advocates for a national healthcare insurance exchange. It would be a place where citizens are given the option of private and public insurance companies. Furthermore a good initial healthcare bill will improve on the information technology of the healthcare system and conduct a study on the comparative effectiveness of various health care models. While this may seem like a slow beginning it does offer a pragmatic base from which a well fitting universal healthcare system can grow in our nation.

To keep the dialogue going on the subject, wathc Paul Krugman’s response on the Universal Healthcare Debate:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMsLhx9coxo

The Christian faith has shown us that truth, justice and love are not simply ideals, but enormously weighty realities. It has shown us that God —Truth and Love in person—desired to suffer for us and with us… Hence in all human suffering we are joined by one who experiences and carries that suffering with us; hence con-solatio is present in all suffering, the consolation of God’s compassionate love—and so the star of hope rises. – Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi

The basic thesis for Pope Benedict XVI is that in the midst of great suffering (social or personal) one can experience some deep meaning that can bring a new vision of true hope that is grounded in the will of God for all of humanity. From this we can begin to address personal and social issues. Below is the link and video link of Pope Benedict’s Easter message. Here I would like to offer a quote from his Urbi et Orbi message in which Pope Benedict identifies many of the issue that impact our global family.

At a time of world food shortage, of financial turmoil, of old and new forms of poverty, of disturbing climate change, of violence and deprivation which force many to leave their homelands in search of a less precarious form of existence, of the ever-present threat of terrorism, of growing fears over the future, it is urgent to rediscover grounds for hope. Let no one draw back from this peaceful battle that has been launched by Christ’s Resurrection. For as I said earlier, Christ is looking for men and women who will help him to affirm his victory using his own weapons: the weapons of justice and truth, mercy, forgiveness and love. – Pope Benedict XVI, Easter Message 2009

Pope Benedict’s encyclical and message of Christian hope identifies the Paschal Mystery not only in its historical significance but also in the meaning of social and personal suffering in our lives which is usually the place where we struggle to identify Hope. In this way Pope Benedict’s social and spiritual message is firmly grounded in the Passionist tradition which has seen the redemtive quality of Christ Passion, Death and Ressurection in the suffering of the world today. Consider this powerful quote from our own Fr. Don Senior, CP on the fourth vow of the Passionist which is to keep alive the memory of the Passion:

But there are other reasons for the Passionist vow. Jesus’ death on the cross was a death in the cause of justice. He was executed because he challenged accepted values. He sided with the poor and the outcasts. He condemned oppressive structures. Jesus was a prophet and prophets meet strong opposition.

His cross reminds us that Christians must listen to the cries of the poor. We are in solidarity with those whom society may forget or even exploit. The cross is a sign of justice. To remind the world about the cross is to challenge the world for its injustice and neglect. Passionists are pledged to that challenge. -Fr. Don Senior, CP

Here are the links of Pope Benedict’s Easter Message for 2009. I offer you this for your thoughts and consideration as we begin to celebrate our Easter season. Let me know what you think of the global challenge to the Easter message.

Pope Benedict XVI’s Easter Message 2009

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5axrSsEU_U0

• Isaiah 52:13–53:12
• Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9
• John 18:1–19:42

Quote:

Jesus’ death on the cross was a death in the cause of justice. He was executed because he challenged accepted values. He sided with the poor and the outcasts. He condemned oppressive structures. Jesus was a prophet and prophets meet strong opposition.

His cross reminds us that Christians must listen to the cries of the poor. We are in solidarity with those whom society may forget or even exploit. The cross is a sign of justice. To remind the world about the cross is to challenge the world for its injustice and neglect. Passionists are pledged to that challenge.
-Fr. Don Senior, CP

Thoughts for your consideration: By Fr. Ronan Newbold, CP

We are coming up to Good Friday, the day that we recognize the Passion, crucifixion and death of Jesus. Isaiah is the most dramatic in his horrible description of the physical wounds of the Servant of Yahweh. It is not a question of our compassion for Jesus anymore. Indeed, he was so beat up and battered that no one could recognize him. The terror and trauma that he experienced in his Passion and Death represents the greatest demonstration of God’s being with humanity in the face of evil.

What part of humanity is God with? Is it not in those who are beat up and battered today? Or could it be the earth that continues to take a beating from humans who are not aware of what they are doing. That is what we have to think about.

On this day, Good Friday, we bring all of our sufferings, our anxieties, and our worries to the Lord. There, in the Kedron valley, we walk with the Lord, Jesus. With our own sufferings in mind, we can look at the Lord and both of us can sense what is going on.

Our redemption did not take place through the construction of a new building, a new plan for fighting poverty, or from someone’s theory of justice in the world today. It took place through the cross of Christ. But Christ did not suffer and die for just me or for just a few people. He redeemed us all. And this redemption took place under the social injustice that Christ suffered in being executed by the governing social and religious powers of his time. Through the Cross our dignity has been reconciled with God the Father. Our redemption is to live and celebrate the dignity of all creation amidst the social and personal injustice that continues to compromise this message.

“We adore thee, O Christ, and we praise thee.

Because by thy holy Cross, thou hast redeemed the world.”

Questions for Reflection in your Faith Sharing Group:

• Who is experiencing the passion today?
• Share your list with others in the group.
• After you share your lists, make them the focus of your prayer.