Catholicism in the sands of time

My Christian faith, for me, is one of the greatest gifts. So great, that I can't bear to keep quiet about it. So, I teach at Sunday school (Catechism) to share my faith with the beautiful children I meet there. A very interesting and amusing question I asked them is what is the meaning of the word Catholic.

Catholic means universal. And my next question to them: what does universal mean? Universal means applying to the whole world, to all people. A theme that appears repeatedly in the Catholic faith is the dissolution of boundaries - boundaries of all kinds. So it doesn't matter whether you are male or female, short or tall, Indian or American, black or white, everyone's invited, everyone's included.

A recurring theme in early Christianity is the transformation in the minds of those close to Jesus about the inclusive nature of the community He wished to be His own. The hints were there from Old Testament times, but became clearer and clearer during and after Jesus time. First, Jesus goes to foreign (Samaritan) lands and preaches to people, heals their sick, etc (the woman at the well, the Syrophoenician woman's daughter). He hints that the kingdom of God passes from those who were first called (the parable of the vineyard and tenants) to others.

During the Pentecost (early Church) period, the Apostles drastic perspective change is clear. Paul, restricted the Pharisaic Judaism of the strictest order is changed drastically after an encounter with the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. He changes from one hating all non-Jews to the point of persecuting them, to one embracing Christianity, and preaching to so many different people and helping establish Christian communities in many foreign lands - the Apostle to the Gentiles (non-Jews).

Peter also undergoes a sea change of attitude after a vision indicating God's desire for him to overcome his Jewish mindset to open out to "pagans". He witness the same gifts given to a Roman officer named Cornelius as were given to the Apostles, so that he understood that all were chosen people, not only Jews. However this demand of opening out to all people challenged these two great pillars of the early Church in a famous argument between the two.

The requirements of the Jewish practice of circumcision was not required in an all inclusive Christian community, but the vestiges of ancient practices caused Peter's preferential treatment to the circumcised. Paul mentions how he argued that this was unacceptable. Paul's experience on the road to Damascus was so drastic that he even argued with Peter for the equal treatment of non-Jews as well.

It may be said that these early challenges of clarifying the Church's stance to diversity and difference in nationality, race, etc, have remained challenges at every age and time, till the present day. Despite the challenge, I have seen and continue to see a great openness and universal inclusion in the Catholic mentality. Hernan Cortes, the Spanish conquistador married a woman from the Americas, but he is just one of many. The ethnic mix in South and Central America, regions historically conquered and converted by the Catholic Spainsh and Portuguese varies between Hispanic, African and native American Indian. It is the same in Goa, India which has a Portuguese history and influence.

The Catholic Church is a worldwide family, with a father figure called the Pope. His role is closer to a protector than a dictator. His job not to impose his own will on the Church, but Christ's will. Christ's precise words to Peter were:

You are Peter (Kepha in Aramaic) and on this rock (kepha) I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades shall not stand against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom and what you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and what you loose on earth shalled be loosed in heaven

This entails the promise of Jesus that error will not creep into the Church. This is not personal error, but error in the Church's official teaching. Christ doesn't say the gates of Hades shall not stand against you (Peter).

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

This past Monday brought to a close the "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity", which started the previous Monday (January 18th). Each year at this time, Christians pray the prayer that the Lord Jesus Christ prayed and that the Apostle John recorded in his Gospel [John 17:11].

I recently finished reading the book "Rome Sweet Home" by Scott and Kimberly Hahn, on their journey to the Catholic Church. Scott and Kimberly were Prebyterian Christians steeped in the Scriptures and faith and practices of their Church. Scott describes their journey to Rome as follows:

"In truth, the journey began as a detective story, but soon it became more like a horror story, until it finally ended up as a great romance story - when Christ unveiled His Bride, the Church."

Peter Kreeft, author of "Handbook of Christian Apologetics" says in the foreword:

"Because of the intrinsic drama of its subject - man's quest for his Creator and his for him - all conversion stories are worth listening to. But not all arrest you and sweep you along like a powerful river as this one does."

Scott writes that as he grew deeper in faith along his journey, he began to realize the great desire of God for unity in the Church - that all believers join together so that they share the communion with one another and with Christ and so that the world sees a visibly united Body of Christ. This, unfortunately is not so today.

It is for this reason, that every year from January 18th to 25th, we observe the "Week of prayer for Christian Unity". This observance began in 1908 with the "Church Unity Octave", an experiment started by Lewis Thomas Wattson (1863-1940), an Episcopalian, at Graymoor, New York, to encourage Anglicans and Catholics to pray together for unity in response to Jesus plea to the Father: "I pray that they may all be one" [Jn 17:21a]. Almost as tangible proof of the efficacy of this prayerful exercise, Wattson, together with the Society of the Atonement founded by him on 7th October 1898 entered the Catholic Church on 30th October 1909.

Does the claim that the Catholic Church is the one true Church sound egotistic and self-righteous? It is not so, because it is Jesus who established the Church. We cannot not follow Him. To deny that the Church that Jesus founded is the true Church would be egotistical. We have a duty to the seek the Truth and once we find it, hold fast to it and defend it. It is honest for people to argue for their faith, even if they think we are wrong. But it should be done with charity and respect for the other person.

Indeed we can learn a lot from someone who has come to the Church from without. Scott Hahn was so overcome by the richness of Catholicism, especially the Eucharist that he feels they (Protestants, though we should rather call them separated brothers and sisters) have the menu while we Catholics have the meal. As cradle Catholics, we have in the Church and the Eucharist, great riches, but how much do we really appreciate it. In fact, if we really did, we would prepare for it sufficiently - the lines for the Confession would be full. Why is it that so few come for confession on Saturdays not only at our parish, but everywhere?

It is upto us to work on our relationship with God daily. We need to pray regularly and read the Bible and go for Mass often, because without this, we cannot face the enemy on our own. Only with God's help and with Jesus by our side can we courageously face up to the challenges of living out our Christian vocation. How can we share something we don't have? We need to know Jesus more and more - through prayer, the reading of the Scripture, listening attentively to homilies and teachings, reading books about the faith and about the Catholic Church. We should know Jesus to the point of overflowing with the desire to share Him. Jesus is not happy to see so many of our separated brothers and sisters not part of His one Body.

Therefore I urge you, dear brothers and sisters to pray to God our Father for the unity of all Christians. We need to join forces because our enemies are not our Christian brothers and sisters nor any other people, but Satan and all his wicked plans. He comes only to steal, kill and destroy. We fight against our own selves to master the desires that take us away from God. This is our greatest need - to be made more like God. But we should be faithful and help each other by our prayers, life and witness. For Bangaloreans, the book "Rome Sweet Home" is available at Pauline Publications, temporarily shifted to Albert Street.

Defending the Church today

The Church, an age-old institution, has believers around the globe. A big tree cannot sustain unless it has great strong roots. God himself has planted the seed of the Catholic Church. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of God's promise of reconciliation between Him and us. Through Christ life and death, we can come back to God, cleansed by Divine Mercy and perfect love.

What times do you and I live in? Is it a time of world peace, a distance from war-time, decades after the World wars? Centuries after Christian martyrs and saints death? Our search for an answer takes us to the feet of Christ, listening to his words on peace and strife. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you. I do not give as the world gives. Jesus speaks of inner peace, one that gives deep assurance.

Outside, Jesus warned of division, challenge, opposition, suffering and persecution. If one wonders why he said so, the pilgrim of truth finds meaning only deeper. This is challenge to us to a path that needs constant prayer. We are up in arms not against men, but against the treachery of the devil - forces inside of us and speaking to us in different ways. As Saint Paul wrote to early Christians in Ephesus, Greece, we fight not against flesh and blood, but the powers of darkness (Eph 6:12). How do we stand up to this challenge? What do we need?

This is a battle unlike any other. One that we can fight only because Jesus Christ is on our side. A battle against sin and death, forces of abortion, violence, sensuality and selfishness, imperfect and pleasure seeking love. Yet, God loves us and knows each hair on my head and yours. He only wants to give freely, the gift of love, truth and grace, the gift of life itself. If God is so good and has created us himself with love in our hearts, it is no wonder then, that we thirst for God deep inside. This holy thirst is good and has as its purpose, our complete peace and joy.

For any battle, we need to leave behind all hindering thoughts, take up armor and fight with faith. In the same way, we need to lay aside our fears, ask our Lord to cleanse our past, seek to be in communion with him each day, defend as one us, the Church, united in the Eucharist, in the presence of Christ, the light of the world, the Prince of everlasting peace, the greatest lover and shepherd, who alone can lead us against all arrows and swords. The greatest battle of all time is on, but we can only have the great King on our side if we pray, ask forgiveness and accept His gift of his presence. Let us all pray together.

Come, Emmanuel.

He who stands firm till the end will be saved.