4 WWW.THERECORDNEWSPAPER.ORG COMMENTARY THE RECORD JANUARY 10, 2019
Most Rev. Joseph E. Kurtz, D.D., Archbishop of Louisville Marnie ' McAllister Jennifer L. Jenkins Glenn O. Rutherford President Editor Advertising Director Editor Emeritus
is published weekly except the last Thursday in December and the first Thursday in January at Maloney Center, 1200 S. Shelby St., Louisville, KY 40203-2627 Telephone: News, Advertising (502) 471-2125, FAX: (502) 636-2379 Circulation (502) 585-3291, ext. 1125, FAX: (502) 585-2466
Address all mail to: The Record (USPS 457-260) Maloney Center, 1200 S. Shelby St. Louisville, KY 40203-2600. Subscription rates: $16.96 a year (includes sales tax). Periodicals postage paid at Louisville, KY. Send notice of change of address, giving both old and new address. Allow two weeks for corrections to be made. Postmaster Send address changes to The Record, Maloney Center, 1200 S. Shelby St., Louisville, KY 40203-2600 E-Mail: record@archlou.org
THE RECORD
Archdiocese of Louisville
Let's face it, 2018 was a mess. In an excellent editorial at the end of that awful year, Record Editor Marnie McAllister recounted the lit- any of disaster, human malfeasance and other causes that taxed human- ity throughout those dreadful twelve months. But the sun doesn't come out simply because we turn a page of the calendar; things don't automati- cally improve with the mere passage of time. We're left to deal with wackadoo- dle leadership in some parts of gov- ernment; cowardly performance by those who are supposed to stand up to that mindless incompetence; and problems - environmental and oth- erwise - that won't go away without some effort on our part. The year was like one long walk through a forest surrounded by leaden clouds slowly dripping a cold rain, a walk accompanied by a vague, inexplicable feeling that we were in a place where we didn't belong. Much as we'd like to put the year's anomalies, tragedies and embarrass- ments behind us, they hang on. Just as we feel we might have reached some nexus in the never-ending sex- ual abuse crisis - a crisis that ex- tends well beyond the church, by the way - something else happens or is revealed that brings it to our atten- tion again. In just the first week of 2019, for instance, a group of citizens in Illinois sued the Catholic Church in the state asking that the names of 500 priests involved in the abuse scandal be re- leased to the public. Though the church locally has taken every step called for by the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, and though it has passed every audit by church authori- ties since the first hint of the abuse scandal broke into our collective con- sciousness in 2002, every so often news agencies bring it to our atten- tion again. As if we need reminding. The never-ending abuse crisis seems to be forever draped around the neck of the church both here, in the nation, and around the world. But there is another side to this story, though no one is running from the failings of people and institutions re- vealed by the abuse crisis. In case you missed it, Shannon Shaughnessy Age, herself a victim of abuse at the hands of a priest, brought some light onto the dark face of this never-ending story. In "A Time to Speak" article in the Dec. 20 issue of The Record, she noted that as a victim of abuse, she once felt that Dr. Brian Reynolds, chancellor and chief administrative officer for the archdiocese, "was my arch-enemy." Now she calls him "my dear friend." How did such a dramatic change occur? Through dialogue. Through hours of conversation that led to un- derstanding. The change occurred because both Ms. Age and the archdiocese reached out to one another. Ms. Age described a meeting that she and her husband had with Reynolds and her pastor, Father Scott Wimsett. Reynolds "wanted to help me heal, starting by addressing the great anger I had against him." "Brian decided to make himself vulnerable to whatever I could throw at him," she wrote. "He decided that my healing was more important than his comfort level." During the meeting, Age wrote, Reynolds "humbly listened for hours ... he offered no excuse or comments, unless I asked him a specific ques- tion. A new type of healing started for me that day, because, as Father Scott later told me, those moments were holy. What happened (in that meet- ing) was holy." There is a lesson here for all of us. In the middle of the confusion, depression and even anger that the world seems resolved to throw at us, we can look for - and experience - moments of holiness. They are available to all of us. Every time we lend a hand to some- one who needs our help; every time we do a good deed for someone with- out being asked to do it, we experi- ence a moment of holiness. We don't have to jump up and down and call attention to ourselves every time we do something good, when we do what we should do every day. But we can be aware of the opportunities that taking part in even small acts of kindness pres- ent to us. In the middle of life's maelstrom, we always have the chance to do something good, to do the right thing. We should remember that in this new year. We should never forget to avail ourselves of the holiness that sur- rounds us. GLENN RUTHERFORD Record Editor Emeritus
Seek moments of holiness
By CINDY WOODEN
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY - A new year is a chance for a new start, a time to remember that all people are brothers and sisters and a time to nur- ture amazement that God became human to save all people, Pope Francis said. The Jan. 1 feast of Mary, Mother of God, also is a time to remember how strong ma- ternal love and care are, and how they are the secret to making life more livable, the pope said during his homily at a feast day Mass in St. Peter's Basilica. The Catholic Church also marks Jan. 1 as World Peace Day, an observance the pope spoke about when, after Mass, he recited the Ange- lus with tens of thousands of people gathered in St. Peter's Square. So many people were in the sunny square that the pope remarked, "It seems like a canonization," which usually is when the square is full. Mary shows to the world her son, the prince of peace, he said. "He is the blessing for every person and the whole human family. He is the source of grace, mercy and peace." Pope Francis chose as the theme for this year's World Peace Day: "Good politics is at the service of peace." "We must not think politics is reserved to those who gov- ern," the pope said. "We are all responsible for the life of the community, of the com- mon good, and politics is good to the degree that everyone does his or her part in the service of peace." After greeting hundreds of people who participated in a march for peace, Pope Francis prayed: "Through the inter- cession of the virgin Mary, may the Lord grant us to be artisans of peace - and this begins at home, in the family - every day of the new year." Earlier, in his homily at the Mass, Pope Francis paid homage not only to Mary, but also to all mothers and all those who show tender care for others, including in politi- cal and economic life. "A world that looks to the future without a mother's gaze is shortsighted," he said. "It may well increase its profits, but it will no lon- ger see others as children. It will make money, but not for everyone. We will all dwell in the same house, but not as brothers and sisters." Pope Francis prayed that Mary would help all people learn to look at the world and each other as she does, providing for people's needs, loving them and leading them to Jesus. Too many people, he said, forget they are beloved chil- dren and instead "live in an- ger and indifference to ev- erything! How many, sad to say, react to everything and everyone with bitterness and malice!" For Catholics, he said, Mary "is not an optional ac- cessory: she has to be wel- comed into our life" because Jesus entrusted her to his disciples and his disciples to her as their mother. "She is the queen of peace, who triumphs over evil and leads us along paths of good- ness, who restores unity to her children, who teaches us compassion," he said. He urged people to begin the new year holding on to the "amazement" they should have experienced at Christ- mas, amazement that God was born a baby, "held in the arms of a woman who feeds her creator." "God has become one with humanity forever. God and man, always together, that is the good news of this new year," he said. Jesus himself "pours out upon humanity a new tender- ness," the pope said, which helps people "understand more fully God's love, which is both paternal and mater- nal, like that of a mother who never stops believing in her children and never abandons them." Pope Francis ended his New Year's homily praying that Mary would "take us by the hand. Clinging to you, we will pass safely through the straits of history."
Pope prays for new year marked by tenderness, brotherhood, peace
Sunday Scripture readings, Jan. 13, 2019: Begin again
JEM SULLIVAN
The Baptism of the Lord 1) Is 42:1-4, 6-7 or Is 40:1-5, 9-11 Psalm 29:1-4, 9-10 or Psalm 104:1-4, 24-25, 27-30 2) Acts 10:34-38 or Ti 2:11-14, 3:4-7 Gospel: Lk 3:15-16, 21-22 The beginning of a new year is a perfect time to start afresh. We make New Year's resolutions to improve our health, our habits, our rela- tionships and our work. Deep down in all of us is our longing for a second chance. As we grow older, we learn that our shortcomings should not and do not define us. Rather, our sinfulness is an opportunity to turn a new leaf or a new page. The start of a new year gives a fresh chance to begin anew. The same is true of our spiritual life and our relation- ship with God. Each day, we live in the mercy of God's forgiving love with the divine invitation to turn to God and start anew. Perhaps we will make spiri- tual resolutions to pray more consistently, to read God's word more faithfully. Such spiritual resolutions express our desire to live out the meaning of our baptism. For it was at baptism that we were first given the as- tonishing new chance to live in Christ. Baptism is the be- ginning of a new life of grace in Christ by which we are reconciled to God. Today, the church cele- brates the feast of the Bap- tism of the Lord when Jesus begins his public ministry after being baptized by St. John the Baptist in the Jor- dan. Jesus is baptized as a manifestation of his self-emp- tying love that culminates in his sacrifice on the cross. From the blood and water that flowed from Jesus' side on the cross, the fountain of a new life of divine grace was opened to you and me. What a gift of God! The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that the "fruit of baptism, or bap- tismal grace, is a rich reality that includes forgiveness of original sin and all personal sins, birth into new life by which man becomes an adop- tive son of the Father, a mem- ber of Christ, and a temple of the Holy Spirit. By this very fact, the person baptized is incorporated into the church, the body of Christ, and made a sharer in the priesthood of Christ" (No. 1279). Jesus' baptism in the Jor- dan opened the path of our spiritual rebirth so we are not left in our weakness and sin. Jesus sanctifies the waters of baptism so we might daily live the gift of new divine life in the power and strength of the Holy Spirit.
There is only 'us'
MARISSA CASTELLANOS
When other humans are bought and sold, exploited and abused for the self-serv- ing purposes of another, it is in fact our own brothers and sisters who are being hurt. In a way, it is even our own flesh and blood. Because we belong to each other. I must be mindful of this if I am to do the work of car- ing about and coming along- side some of the most vul- nerable among us. I must care about their pain, be out- raged at their oppression, and feel compelled to engage in change on their behalf. This work can be difficult, but despite the darkness that accompanies the realities of human trafficking, I remain hopeful. I have witnessed some powerful, life-changing mo- ments in this work, when the strength and resiliency of the human spirit was evident de- spite great adversity. These moments have inspired me, and I am reminded that we can be better. A few years ago, I went to visit a young woman in the house where she was staying after she exited her traffick- ing experience. As we sat together, she began reading from a children's book. She was practicing her English, pronouncing each word care- fully. Finally, she closed the book, and almost in a whis- per said, "I have been in the United States now for more than two years, but this is the first time I have felt like I am actually in America." She survived being a do- mestic servant for more than seven years. Her peace and sense of hope inspire me. Another young woman es- caped a tobacco farm where she was forced to work 12-14 hours a day for no pay. She escaped during a few minutes that she was left unchap- eroned. She was almost 7 months pregnant and ran 10 miles away from the farm. As she was entering the city lim- its, the trafficker pulled up beside her and tried to force her into his truck. Somehow, this young woman was able to push away and run down an embankment, where she ran into a firehouse. She survived forced labor in agriculture. Her presence of mind, physical strength and determination inspire me. A colleague and I were in a van with four young men, driving away from the rural community where they had been trafficked and exploited by a "contratista" (middle manager) on a farm. They were in the U.S. on H2A visas, sponsored by their employer. We were on our way to emergency housing, and during the car ride, the men frequently ducked down when they saw a white van they feared was the contratista. Their fear was palpable - fear of being re- captured, and fear of harm being done to their families in their home country. They survived labor traf- ficking on central Kentucky farms. Their bravery, per- severance and love for their families inspire me. These individuals are why this work is so important. Their lives, and the lives of so many who have lived similar experiences, are worthy of freedom, dignity and justice. They are worthy of us doing what is in our power to com- bat these atrocities. January is National Hu- man Trafficking Awareness Month. What can you do? You can start by reading about human trafficking and increasing your person- al knowledge, then share what you learn via social media. Kids in the foster care system are some of the most vulnerable to traffick- ing: Are you willing to be- come a mentor or foster par- ent? Being a more conscious consumer impacts workers internationally, so you can commit to purchasing Fair Trade or ethically sourced products. If you are observant about the conditions and people around you, perhaps you'll see suspicious circumstances that warrant a report. You can report suspected traffick- ing to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. Please save the hotline number in your phone: 1-888-373-7888. There is so much we can do. We can commit ourselves to learning and doing more over time. May we care deeply about justice and about our com- mon humanity. Because we are more alike than we are different. In the words of Mother Teresa, reimagined by Je- suit Father Gregory Boyle: "We really do belong to each other. We risk so much when we forget that." Marissa Castellanos is di- rector of Catholic Charities of Louisville's Bakhita Empow- erment Initiative.Visit www. bakhitaempowerment.org to learn how you can help.
Mary ever-virgin
FATHER KENNETH DOYLE
A.
You are correct on the Catholic teaching: that Mary remained always a virgin - before, during and after the birth of Jesus. The Catechism of the Catholic Church quotes St. Augustine, who said that Mary "remained a virgin in conceiving her Son, a virgin in giving birth to him, a virgin in carrying him, a virgin in nurs- ing him at the breast, always a virgin" (No. 510). As regards the verse to which you refer (Mt 1:25), cur- rent usage of the word "until" often does imply that the ac- tion in question did happen later on, but that is not the meaning of the original lan- guage. The Greek word that is translated "until" in Mat- thew ("heos") says nothing one way or the other about what happened afterward. To avoid the understand- able confusion that you point out, I myself prefer the trans- lation in the New Jerusalem Bible: "When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do; he took his wife to his home; he had not had intercourse with her when she gave birth to a son; and he named him Jesus."
Q.
Would you please explain the apparent contradiction in the verse in Matthew's Gospel (1:25) that says, "He (Jo- seph) had no relations with her until she bore a son, and he named him Jesus"? The use of the word "until" would seem to indicate that conjugal relations may have occurred after the birth of Christ. This is confusing to those of us who have constantly heard Mary referred to as "ever-virgin."
QUESTION CORNER SHARE THE JOURNEY SPEAK TO ME LORD
EDITORIAL
Previous Page