Breaking the Word

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Wednesday in the 7th Week of Easter
Inner Compass

Readings: Acts 20:28-38; Psalm 68:29-30, 33-35a, 35bc-36ab; John 17:11b-19
Picture: CC alexia *

Today the BBC carried a news report about the partial demolition of a wall in South India. Apparently, the higher caste residents of Uthapuram, a village in Tamil Nadu state, had put up the wall after an outbreak of inter-caste violence in the late 1980s. The wall had served to keep out the Dalits (or untouchables) from the main parts of the village.

The construction of such a wall to guard against undesirable influences might seem to be the first image that comes to mind as we continue to ponder the power of the Holy Spirit in the light of our Mass readings for today. This is especially because both Paul, in the first reading, and Jesus, in the gospel, express a concern for the ongoing protection of those they are leaving behind. I know quite well, says Paul, that when I am gone fierce wolves will invade you and will have no mercy on the flock… So be on your guard. And, in his prayer to his heavenly Father, Jesus highlights the world’s hatred for those who belong to him.

We modern-day Christians can probably identify quite well with this desire for protection, this sense of being besieged by the seductive temptations, the fierce wolves, of the world around us. We are concerned, for example, to protect our children against the insidious influences of the Internet and the Mass Media. We censor our films and filter our email in an effort to screen out unwanted content. Like those high-caste residents of Uthapuram, our first response to undesirable influences often seems to be that of separation. We build a wall.

And yet, we might well wonder if wall building is the only proper Christian response. Of course, we are not necessarily arguing here for the total abolition of censorship, or the tearing down of walls of all kinds. I don’t know what I’d do without a junk email folder. And we cannot fail to acknowledge the importance of shielding children, for example, if only for a time, from the harsh realities of life. But neither can we ignore the fact that God’s approach to a sinful world was not to shun it, but to send the Second Person of the Holy Trinity into it. The Word was made flesh… And, in his earthly ministry, doesn’t Jesus seem to delight in associating with sinners and tax collectors? Wasn’t this partly the reason why he was put to death? Also, in today’s gospel, although Jesus prays for the protection of those who belong to him, he presupposes that they, that we, are called to remain in the world, and not apart from it. Finally, we might well question the effectiveness of a wall for protection, given what Paul says to the elders in the first reading, that even from your own ranks there will be people coming forward with a travesty of the truth on their lips to induce the disciples to follow them.

What then is the protection envisioned by Paul and Jesus, if not a wall to shield us from harm? In a world filled with misleading voices, how do they propose to keep those they are leaving behind faithfully walking along the straight and narrow? The strategy is the same. Paul commends his friends to God, and to the word of his grace… And Jesus asks his Father to keep those you have given true to your name, so that they may be one like us. Instead of an external wall of separation, what Paul and Jesus offer for the disciples’ protection is an inner compass for guidance. And how does this compass work, this unerring pointer to the Truth of God’s Word, if not by the power of the Spirit, who teaches us all things, and reminds us of everything that the Lord has said to us (John 14:26)? The very same Spirit we are praying to experience anew in these days.

How might we grow in following the guidance of this Inner Compass today?

4 comments:

AnonymousThu May 08, 08:38:00 am GMT+8
Those of us who are Singaporean or who have lived in Singapore long enough never fail to marvel at all the well-meaning intentions of the authorities to make life more pleasant on the Island: anti-littering campaigns, queues for buses and trains, using fewer plastic bags, etc., etc. The most astounding must surely be the $500 fine for not flushing after using the toilet. Well intentioned initiatives that never gained the support they deserve.

Walls have to be policed to be effective. They have to be maintained, sometimes re-inforced, to make clear to all, their intended purpose. On the other hand, an inner compass tells us the true purpose of the wall, and what our response should be. If it is a wall of injustice, our response should be different from if it were a wall to protect us from dangers unkown to us. An inner compass helps our young tell the good from the subversive in the Internet and helps us to tell the fake from the authentic, the opportunist from the sincere.

My inner compass needs to be frequently re-calibrated so it always shows the true North. This weekend is the perfect occasion to do that.

"Come Holy Compass, fill our hearts with Your wisdom and enkindle in us the fire of Your love".
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AnonymousSun May 11, 03:37:00 pm GMT+8
Fr Chris, how do you reconcile the message in this post with the message in the "How old are you?" post?

Here, we're to trust the inner compass within ourselves and others. There, the message is, "If you love me, be willing to grow old for my sake… even to the extent of being led where you’d rather not go…"
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Fr ChrisMon May 12, 07:52:00 pm GMT+8
How do Jesus and the other persons in the bible reconcile them?
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AnonymousTue May 13, 09:08:00 am GMT+8
If God's will conflicts with man's will: "We must obey God rather than men." (Acts 5:29)

The problem is: Most people believe that their will is God's will. Again, how to tell the difference?

Perhaps some might quote the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5): Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, Self-Control. But sometimes, Jesus and other persons in the bible do "rock the boat" and make people upset, don't they?
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Breaking News: Ordinary Time

Apart from those seasons having their own distinctive character, thirty-three or thirty-four weeks remain in the yearly cycle that do not celebrate a specific aspect of the mystery of Christ. Rather, especially on the Sundays, they are devoted to the mystery of Christ in all its aspects. This period is known as Ordinary Time. Ordinary Time begins on Monday after the Sunday following 6 January and continues until Tuesday before Ash Wednesday inclusive. It begins again on Monday after Pentecost and ends before Evening Prayer I of the First Sunday of Advent. This is also the reason for the series of liturgical texts found in both the Roman Missal and The Liturgy of the Hours (Vol. III - IV), for Sundays and weekdays in this season. ~ General Norms for the Liturgical Year & Calendar, 43-44

From 36th Jesuit General Congregation

It is our union with one another in Christ that testifies to the Good News more powerfully than our competences and abilities.... In our individualistic and competitive age, we should remember that the community plays a very special role since it is a privileged place of apostolic discernment.... The Jesuit community is a concrete space in which we live as friends in the Lord. This life together is always at the service of mission, but because these fraternal bonds proclaim the Gospel, it is itself a mission. –Companions in a Mission of Reconciliation and Justice (CMRJ), nn. 7-9.

With the poor, we can learn what hope and courage mean.... In our communities and apostolates, we hear the call to rediscover hospitality to strangers, to the young, to the poor, and to those who are persecuted. Christ himself teaches us this hospitality. –CMRJ, nn. 15-16.

At the heart of Ignatian spirituality is the transforming encounter with the mercy of God in Christ that moves us to a generous personal response. The experience of the merciful gaze of God on our weakness and sinfulness humbles us and fills us with gratitude, helping us to become compassionate ministers to all.... For us Jesuits, compassion is action, an action discerned together. Yet we know that there is no authentic familiarity with God if we do not allow ourselves to be moved to compassion and action by an encounter with the Christ who is revealed in the suffering, vulnerable faces of people, indeed in the suffering of creation. –CMRJ, nn. 19-20.

(T)he Society must respond more decisively to the Church’s call for a new evangelization, giving special emphasis to ministry to and with the young and with families.... A special gift Jesuits and the Ignatian family have to offer to the Church and her mission of evangelization is Ignatian spirituality, which facilitates the experience of God and can therefore greatly help the process of personal and communal conversion. –CMRJ, nn. 22-23.

In many societies, there is an increased level of conflict and polarization, which often gives rise to violence that is all the more appalling because it is motivated and justified by distorted religious convictions. In such situations, Jesuits, along with all who seek the common good, are called to contribute from their religious-spiritual traditions towards the building of peace, on local and global levels. –CMRJ, n. 28.

Pope Francis has emphasized the fundamental connection between the environmental crisis and the social crisis in which we live today. Poverty, social exclusion, and marginalization are linked with environmental degradation. These are not separate crises but one crisis that is a symptom of something much deeper: the flawed way societies and economies are organised. The current economic system with its predatory orientation discards natural resources as well as people. For this reason, Pope Francis insists that the only adequate solution must be a radical one. The direction of development must be altered if it is to be sustainable. We Jesuits are called to help heal a broken world, promoting a new way of producing and consuming, which puts God’s creation at the center.... The multifaceted challenge of caring for our common home calls for a multifaceted response from the Society. We begin by changing our personal and community lifestyles, adopting behaviour coherent with our desire for reconciliation with creation. – CMRJ, nn. 29-30

From 35th Jesuit General Congregation

From General Congregation 35

By sending us to 'those physical and spiritual places which others do not or have difficulty reaching,' the Pope entrusts to us the task to 'build bridges of understanding and dialogue,' according to the best tradition of the Society, in the diversity of its ministries.
- Decree With Renewed Fervor and Dynamism, n. 6

To be missioned to this work 'at the New Frontiers of our times' always requires that one also be rooted at the very heart of the Church. This tension, specific to the Ignatian charism, opens the way to true creative fidelity.
- Decree With Renewed Fervor and Dynamism, n. 13

In every mission that we carry out, we seek only to be where (Christ) sends us. The grace we receive as Jesuits is to be and to go with him, looking on the world with his eyes, loving it with his heart and entering into its depths with his unending compassion.
- Decree on Identity, n. 15

For ultimately, there is no reality that is only profane for those who know how to look. We must communicate this look and provide a pedagogy inspired by the Spiritual Exercises, that carries people - especially the young - into it.
- Decree on Identity, n. 10

Our ministries of proclamation of the Word and the celebration of the Life of Christ in the sacraments continue to be fundamental for our mission and our lives together as Jesuits.
- Decree on Mission, n. 19

The complexity of the problems we face and the richness of the opportunities offered demand that we engage in building bridges between rich and poor and establishing advocacy links of mutual support between those who hold political power and those who find it difficult to voice their interests. Our intellectual apostolate provides an inestimable help in setting up these bridges, offering us new ways of understanding in depth the mechanism and links among our present problems.
- Decree on Mission, n. 28

Jesuit community is not just for mission, it is itself mission.
- Decree on Mission, n. 41

In this global context it is important to highlight the extraordinary potential represented by our character as an international and multicultural body. Acting consistently with this character can not only enhance the apostolic effectiveness of our work but in a fragmented and divided world it can witness to the reconciliation in solidarity of all the children of God.
- Decree on Mission, n. 43

Faith in Jesus Christ teaches us that self-realization comes from self-giving and that freedom is not so much the power to choose as the power to order our choices toward love. At the same time, love for Jesus Christ and the desire to follow him call us to trusting commitment. Commitment to the Word Incarnate cannot be separated from commitment to the concrete manifestations of the Word that are at the center of our lives, the Church and the Society which exists to serve the Church.
- Decree on Obedience, n. 19