"Listening Heart"...

The “listening heart in the writings of Shayk ‘Ibn 'Arabî as he tried to unravel the meaning of the Qur’an.

The Qur'an repeatedly emphasizes God's extraordinary closeness and proximity to the human heart (e.g., at 8:24, "He passes between the man and his heart"), as well as the uniquely all-encompassing divine knowledge of "what is in their hearts" (4:66, 33:51, etc.).

That divine awareness of what is in the heart extends in particular to people's innermost intentions (especially in contrast to their words and ostensible actions). From the Qur'anic perspective a spiritually crucial dimension of the human heart is the integral involvement - together with God - of our own "will" and intimate intentions, which are portrayed as somehow inseparable from the degree and nature of our awareness of the divine. In consequence, the Qur'an can even speak of the heart (as more commonly of the soul, al-nafs) as the enduring "self" or ongoing seat of our moral and spiritual responsibility, as at 2:225: "...He will call you to account for what your hearts have earned...."

Perhaps most obvious of all in the Qur'an is the consistent stress on the divine "responsibility", indeed the ongoing divine Activity, expressed in all the different states of our hearts, including especially our recurrent failures to "remember" God. In this respect, as those familiar with the Qur'an will recognize, the larger metaphysical "paradox" with which we began this discussion is certainly not, to begin with, Ibn 'Arabî's own invention: almost half of the Qur'anic references to the heart directly mention God's responsibility for its states, often without any explicit reference to the shared role of the human "actor."

In several famous Qur'anic passages, repeated throughout Sufi literature and in popular piety, the enlightened or divinely supported heart (whether in this world or the next) is said to be the locus of true Remembrance of God (dhikr Allâh, at 13:28) and the grace of divinely bestowed Peace and Tranquillity, as well as the receptacle for the sending down of the Spirit and Gabriel and other special acts of divine support. But the Qur'anic references to these special states of enlightened hearts are limited to what in context usually seems like a very small and elect group: Muhammad and other divine prophets, certain of their disciples or saints, or some of the blessed in the Gardens of Paradise...

With far greater frequency, the Qur'an refers instead to God's sealing, veiling, hardening, locking, binding, closing, or frightening hearts - to hearts that as a result (of their own misdeeds or the divine reaction) are "sick" or "blind" and "suffering." Typical of this disproportionate emphasis are the many references to hearts that "fail to understand" (lâ yafqahûn), far more frequently than those who do perceive the divine "Signs," whose hearts are 'âqilûn. In the Qur'an, therefore, the starkly contrasting dimensions and potentialities of the human heart with which we began are, if anything, even more predominant and vividly drawn. The Qur'anic account of the heart and its situation is repeatedly cast in an intensely dramatic and unavoidably existential form. That intrinsic inner drama is certainly presupposed in each of Ibn 'Arabî's own discussions of the heart, whatever the particular language or context of each discussion.

Against that sharply drawn dramatic backdrop, the Qu'ranic verses that indicate the actual ways or conditions for us to move from these "negative" or perverse states of the human heart to full awareness of God and the corresponding divine Peace and understanding are relatively few, but certainly all the more worth noting: these practically decisive verses include references to the "softening" and "humbling" or "purification" and "strengthening" of hearts, to the necessity of a "sound" or "repentant" or "mindful" heart (qalb salîm or munîb), and so on.

(Editor’s note: The short presentation is based on the 28 – page article by James Morris on Ibn ‘Arabi)

Compassion and Mercy...

The text is taken from Qur’an 57: 27 that states… “…we sent after them Jesus the Son of Mary and bestowed on him the Gospel; and we ordained on the hearts of those who followed him COMPASSION AND MERCY. (waja’aalnaa fi qulusbi-lladhina-ttaba’uhu raa’fatan wa –rahmatan).

The two key descriptions of Jesus’ followers are Compassion and Mercy… Is this NOT the very heart of religion and the very heart of God…? God is Rahmaan and Rahim (“loving-kindness”). This is the very heart of religion and a believer as described in Sura 50:37… A believer who remembers the need for a feeling heart, a hearing mind and a present self… to his/her neighbor… (“…inna fi dhalika la-dhikra li-man kana lahu qalb aw alqa al-sam’wa wa huwa shahid”)

Reflecting on this passage, I wander whether the call for us is, precisely, to retrieve these key description and allow it to bear upon the relationship between the worship that we bring and the behavior that we come by… or putting it in another way, allowing the “coincidence” between the heart of God and the heart of the believer. (Eliseo “Jun” Mercado, OMI)

The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus

The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus – A common Muslim-Christian Heritage

1. The Importance of the Site in Ephesus

The name Ephesus evokes the ancient Greek city in Asia Minor where the cult of Artemis (Diane), which preceded Christianity, manifested itself by a temple classed among the seven marvels of the world. But it is also inseparable from Saint Paul who preached on the agora in the year 57 of the Christian era, or from Saint John, who lived there (where the Basilica containing his tomb has been found ), and of the third Ecumenical Council when the Mother of Christ was proclaimed Theotokos (Mother of God) in 431 of the Christian era.

Placed under the protection of Saint John, the Virgin would have accompanied him to Ephesus during his apostolate. It is likely that he settled her outside the ancient city on a neighboring hill where it is believed that her house was discovered. It is known today by the name Panaya Kapulu (that is to say, the "Port of All Saints").

2. The Origins of the Devotion to the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus

The devotion dates back to the middle of the 5th century. Seven young people from Ephesus were buried alive in a cave for having refused to deny their faith in God during the persecutions ordered by the Emperor Décius; they woke up after a long sleep of several hundred years and died several hours later after having testified to their experience.

They were seen collectively by the inhabitants who decided afterwards to build a sanctuary dedicated to them. The historian, Honigmann, established that this tradition was common to Melkite, Nestorian, and Jacobite Christians, and therefore precedes their division (5th and 6th centuries). As for the liturgical names of the seven saints, they were already reported in 530 by a Latin pilgrim from North Africa, Theodosis, in a Jacobite list in Nubia. In its liturgical calendar the Eastern Church celebrates the Seven Sleepers twice: October 22nd (Common of prayers to the Martyrs), and August 4th (the traditional feast day), while the Latin Occident celebrates them on July 27th.

But, what is more remarkable, the example of these martyrs for the faith is venerated beyond the limits of Christianity. In fact, Sura XVIII of the Qur'an read every Friday in the Mosques (and thus preceding the death of Muhammed in 632) is entitled al-Kahf, that is to say, the Cave. This Sura exalts the abandonment to God of these seven young Ephesians buried alive, describing their witness to fidelity in the face of an impious demand, then their ‘dormition' which it states was 309 years. Sura XVIII could be considered as the Apocalypse of Islam; not only does it magnify the attitude of the seven martyrs for their faith by their anticipated resurrection, but it also presents the announcement of the Last Judgement.

Muslims make exception for the Seven Sleepers and tolerate the building of sanctuaries to these martyrs because their temporary resurrection made them precursory witnesses of the Last Judgement, saints of the End Time. Shustari, one of the most interesting commentators on the Qur'an, said that, "All Saints lose their normal sleep and enter into the sleep of the Seven Sleepers". (Geneviève Massignon Ph. D)

OMI Scholastics Randy & Rodel with Street Children in Manila

The Righteousness being asked of us...

What is the righteousness being asked of us, today? Sura 2: 178 tells us…

“It is not righteousness that ye turn your faces to the East and the West; but righteous is he who believeth in Allah and the Last Day and the angels and the Scripture and the Prophets; and giveth his wealth, for love of Him, to kinsfolk and to orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and to those who ask, and to set slaves free; and observeth proper worship and payeth the poor due. And those who keep their treaty when they make one, and the patient in tribulation and adversity and time of stress. Such are they who are sincere. Such are the God fearing.”

(Ya_ ayyuhal lazina a_manu_ kutiba 'alaikumul qisa_su fil qatla_, al hurru bil hurri wal 'abdu bil 'abdi wal unsa_ bil unsa_, faman 'ufiya lahu_ min akhihi syai'un fat tiba_'um bil ma'ru_fi wa ada_'un ilaihi bi ihsa_n(in), za_lika takhfifum mir rabbikum wa rahmah(tun), fa mani'tada_ ba'da za_lika fa lahu_ 'aza_bun alim(un).)

This is the Qura’nic invitation to all peoples of the Book that they should “excel each other in good deeds” and this constitutes true piety and righteousness…

Bapa Eliseo “Jun” Mercado, OMI

The Heart of the Soul...

In 858 A.D. the Sufi mystic al-Husayn ibn Mansur al-Hallaj was born in Persia. In 922 A.D. he was accused of violating Islamic law and, after imprisonment and torture, he was executed for blasphemy.

In his travels as a mendicant preacher and spiritual master, al-Hallaj tried to lead his followers ever more deeply into the reality of the human soul toward ultimate unity with the divine. His writings passionately described divine love as he sought to lose himself in God (Massignon 1983, 2:198).

One of the most compelling themes from al-Hallaj's devotional doctrine is that of the Virgin Heart, which refers to the secret place in the center of the human soul where God alone has access. Al-Hallaj stated (Massignon 1989, 133).

Our hearts are one single Virgin, which the dream of no dreamer can penetrate ... which only the presence of the Lord penetrates in order to be conceived therein.

Louis Massignon’s writings showed the deep layers of meaning evoked by this image of the Virgin Heart at the center of the human soul. His reflection on the subject revealed that our heart is "ensheathed," covered over by "veils" of illusions, assumptions, judgments, and attachments that prevent us from even imagining a place for the divine within us. This blindness prevents us from recognizing the same virginal point in the souls of others.

At the center of our being is a point of nothingness which is untouched by sin and illusion, a point of pure truth, a point or spark which belongs entirely to God ... this little point ... is the pure glory of God in us ... It is like a pure diamond, blazing with the invisible light of heaven. It is in everybody.

I understand this "point of pure truth" to mean that I must be capable of recognizing the sacred in everyone, as al-Hallaj did. To believe in the mystery of the Virgin Heart is to believe in a secret place in every human soul where the sacred is given to us despite our unworthiness, failures, and human limitations. That place cannot be touched by anything I do, and yet it calls me to transcend myself, to see all others as they are -- sacred. Only then can I say with Hallaj (Massignon 1983, 426): “My soul is mixed and joined together with your soul and every accident that injures you injures me.” (Ed.'s note: This a very short summary of a long article on the subject written by Dorothy C. Buck)

References

Massignon, Louis. 1983. The Passion of al-Hallaj: Mystic and Martyr. Vol. 2. Translated by H. Mason. Princeton, N.J.: princeton University Press.

Massignon, Louis. 1989. Testimonies and Reflections: Essays of Louis Massignon. Selected and introduced by H. Mason. Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press.

A Call to Simplicity in both our life style and ministry...

“He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick--no food, no sack, no money in their belts. They were, however, to wear sandals but not a second tunic.” (Mark 6: 8-9)

Jesus’ instruction to his disciples continues to challenge us in both our life style and ministry… We have perfected the art of giving ourselves comfort and privileges in carrying the mission entrusted to us. What a tragedy!

Wisdom of God: St. Benedict - Abbot 

St. Benedict - Abbot & Patron of Europe

July 11th of each year is a Feast dedicated to St. Benedict - the Founder of Western Monasticism. There are three things that stand out in St. Benedict's monastic path/"tariqa(t)". These are the following:

• Prayer
• Work
• Lectio Divina

In the past, the people who embraced the 'path' of St. Benedict transformed not only their lives but also the face of Europe.

The challenge before us today is to become, once again, instruments of a new 'birth' for Europe through PRAYER, WORK and LECTIO DIVINA.

No doubt, St. Benedict's path/tariqa(t) is still VALID today... But what we need is to search for new ways and forms of praying, working and reading the Scriptures.

Dead men/women walking...

"The girl is dead but sleeping...." (Mt. 9:24)

In life, we often see dead people walking akin to people who are sentenced to die. Life and hope have long passed them by... and they simply plod along.

In these times, we need to feel the touch of Jesus... waking us up from our slumber and "tiredness". Hear his word: "Arise!"

Beware that we take NO offense at God's ways...

Dhikr for the 14th week of the Ordinary year (B)

“When the Sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, ‘Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?’ And they took offense at him.” (Mark 6: 2-3)

In life’s often mysterious journey, God reveals his/her wisdom and power in people and events that we least expect… It is akin to that “gentle breeze” that reveals God’s “passing by”… Thus beware that we take no offense at the way God reveals him/herself.

Learning how to forgive...

"Proclaim reconciliation always and be agents of peace among the citizens of your homeland, encouraging them to undertake the path of Christian reconciliation: forgiveness liberates first of all the one who has the courage to grant it." (Benedict XVI to the Bishops of Croatia)

The first hard lesson in interreligious dialogue is to LEARN how to forgive and be forgiven... With the hurt and the wars that have often marred interreligious relations, there is the URGENT need to learn how to forgive and be reconciled with our neighbors.

Meditation on the Blood of Christ...

"In the world, innocent human blood is continually being spilled. The hearts of men are often full of hate rather than evangelical love, they often contain disdain and arrogance rather than care for mankind. Pray that modern humanity may experience the power of the Blood of Christ, poured out on the cross for our salvation."(Benedict XVI)

Charles de Foucauld's Radical Choice...

Charles de Foucauld was not a “perfect” human being, far from it. His life was a radical choice in service of God and his “beloved Jesus”. He went out to live with the farthest away and poorest of peoples. He spent hours in prayer - in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. His days were spent in welcoming everyone and he became as a “brother” to all who came to his hut.

He did not found a single institute yet there are religious families of men and women born from the profound intuition of Charles. They are called as “little brothers” and “little sisters” and they are spread out in the most remote corners throughout the world. These spiritual children of the “universal brother” have made their priority the poorest populations, the most abandoned, farthest from society.

There are also thousands of priests and laypersons who have discovered through his message a way of living the Gospel more fully to the ends of the earth, in fraternal sharing, caring for the smallest among us, and in silent adoration.

There are finally all those who have discovered the grandeur of this personality and its spiritual dimension that do not belong to his spiritual family or even to his religion.

Blessed Charles, who through his trials and errors, his thirst for solitude and for relationships, his great love of God and of his neighbor, still shows us today the way to universal brother/sisterhood!

He invites us to leave our frivolousness, our reassuring boundaries, our small spiritual comfort, to rise to the numbers of challenges that he confronted without always succeeding. It is up to us to continue the path that he outlined for us”. (Bishop Claude Rault who had served in the Algerian Sahara)

Charles de Foucauld's Prayer of Abandonemnet

Mon Père, je m'abandonne à toi,
Fais de moi ce qu'il te plaira.
Quoi que tu fasses de moi,
Je te remercie.
Je suis prêt à tout,
J'accepte tout.
Pourvu que ta volonté se fasse en moi,
En toutes tes créatures.
Je ne désire rien d'autre, mon Dieu.
Je remets mon âme entre tes mains.
Je te la donne, mon Dieu,
Avec tout l'amour de mon coeur.
Parce que je t'aime,
Et que ce m'est un besoin d'amour de me donner.
De me remettre entre tes mains sans mesure,
Avec une infinie confianceCar tu es mon Père.

A star is born and a star dies, praise be the the name of the Lord... 

Dhikr for the 13th week of the ordinary time (B)

“She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.’ Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.” (Mark 5: 27-29)

In our journey through life, we, too, have experiences of healing touches… Like the woman in the gospel, we do say… ‘if but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.’ And healing begins…!

Fatiha

One of the first prayers in the Qur’an memorized very early by every Muslim child is the Surat ul-Fatiha. It is the opening Sura (Chapter) of the Qur’an. The language of Islam and the Qur’an is Arabic and therefore all Muslims learn to chant the verses in this poetic language.

The Fatiha is a wonderful summary of Muslim belief that God is the Lord of all being, entirely separate from the world yet forever present and aware, providing a Path from darkness into light and a direction for worship and praise.

“In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
Praise be to God, the Lord of all being.
The Merciful, the Compassionate.
Master of the Day of Judgement.
It is you alone that we serve.
It is only from you that we seek aid.
Guide us on the straight path.
The path of those whom you have blessed.
Not of those with whom you are displeased.
Nor of those who go astray. Amin"
(Translated by Matthew S. Gordon)

Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees...

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, * but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?' Then I will declare to them solemnly, 'I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.' (Matthew 7: 21 – 23)

When our words are, indeed, BOLD… yet our deeds ARE LACKING, we are partaking of the yeast of the Pharisees. BEWARE….!

Pearls before swine...

"Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.” (Matthew 7: 6)

We, often, wonder why people keep giving what is holy to dogs and precious pearls before swine…

Beware that we do not act as dogs and swine when we are challenged to live the kingdom values… in our deeds and words.

In friendship and solidarity with the Tibetan monks as they struggle for freedom... 

Be quiet and be still...

Gosple reading for the 12th Sunday of the ordinary year (B)

On that day, as evening drew on, he said to them, "Let us cross to the other side." Leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat just as he was. And other boats were with him. A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up. Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion. They woke him and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Quiet! Be still!" The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked them, "Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?" They were filled with great awe and said to one another, "Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?" (Mark 4: 35-41)

We do have experiences of turbulence and storm in life...
In those times, we are invited to hear, once again, Jesus words: "Be quiet and be still!"...

The Newness in Christ Message...

"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on (your) right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow. (Matthew 5: 38-42)

· No resistance to one who is evil…
· Turning the other cheek…
· Handing over your cloak, as well…
· Going the extra mile…
· Not turning of one’s back from the needy…

Are these the values we live by…?

Reality bites: Hunger in the midst of plenty... A call to solidarity and sharing of one bread and life!

Dhikr for the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ (B)

“While they were eating, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, ‘Take it; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it. He said to them, ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many’.” Mark 14: 22-24)

Corpus Christi Sunday reminds us that we are truly “partakers” of Jesus’ Body and Blood. As he is broken and shared for the many… so are we!

By partaking of his body and blood, we are called to share and shed, too, our life for the many... that they may have life to the full.

A Reminder of God's GENTLE PRESENCE in us...

Elijah's experience of God "passing by" is a reminder of God's gentle presence amid his people...

In 1 King 19: 11-13, " God said, 'Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD.' And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.
"Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by."

God's presence in our lives is often unobserved... because his passing by is like that "gentle breeze" or "still small voice"...

Dhikr is a praxis that makes us attentive to God's presence in the gentle breeze and the stillness of our surrounding...

Letting God be God...!

God is both ….
• the seen and the unseen…
• the known and the unknown…
• the evident and the hidden…
• the near and the far…
* the present and the absent...

Our refusal to let God BE God leads to the creation of idols unto our own image and likeness! Often ways, thoughts and deeds are NOT God’s. We begin to fashion our idols by…
• our refusal to be nobody compared to God the greatest of all…
• by transforming the God who cares to become our surety in our finger tips…
• by taking him for granted, especially when we do not need him,,,
• by our failure to follow the way of righteousness…
• by holding on to the inconsistencies between my knowing and reality…
• by believing our WRONG FOCUS on God...

LET US DESTROY THE IDOLS WE HAVE FASHIONED UNTO OUR IMGAE AND ALLOW GOD TO BE GOD!

The three young men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, in Daniel 3: 13-20 show us with GREAT COURAGE and FAITH what it means to believe in Yahweh. Before kings and potentates of this world, we have no need to present a defence in whom and what we believe. They invite us to confess, by our lives, words and deeds, that we shall not serve any other gods and we shall not worship gold, power and establishment that have long been our idols all these years…

John Paul II pursued the path of interreligious dialogue with great courage & love... 

The Spiritual Journey in the Writings of Christian de Chergé

Part 1. An appreciation of other religion through the eyes of a martyred friend…
The particular insight of the spiritual journey undertaken by the monks of the Atlas region lies in the innovative and likely to be of interest to the whole Church in the matter of approach to interreligious dialogue. It is not surprising that “a spirituality of the meeting of religions” should have emerged from the context of monastic life, because interreligious dialogue has its origin in spirituality.

With regard to dialogue, Christian de Chergé relies on the vision of John-Paul II. How can we appreciate the Pope’s thought, his daring? Where does it come from? We must know that John-Paul II lost his best female friend in a concentration camp; this explains how his urge towards interreligious dialogue begins in his own flesh.

As regards Christian de Chergé, the meeting with Mohammed, his friend (an Algerian field-guard) is at the basis of his thought. Christian had developed a friendship with Mohammed and committed himself to a deep relationship based on faith. Christian will state, “Mohammed brought freedom to my faith.” During an altercation in the street Mohammed tried to protect Christian, his friend, and to calm the aggressors.

The next day he was found assassinated. Christian understood this “event” as a sign from God, and this painful episode will never be forgotten. Christian comes back to it over the following years. “I know at least one much loved brother, a convinced Muslim, who gave his life out of love for another, concretely, by shedding his blood. It is an irrefutable testimony that I welcome as an incredible opportunity.

From that time on, in fact, I have been able to place, within my hope for the communion of all the chosen with Christ, that friend who lived, to the point of death, the one commandment” (in Journées Romaines: Chrétiens et Musulmans, pour un projet commun de société, 1989). Several years later, when preaching on the martyrdom of love (31st March 1994), he will say again, “I cannot forget Mohammed who one day saved my life by risking his own, and who was assassinated by his brothers because he refused to betray his friends into their hands. He did not want to choose between these and those. Ubi caritas … Deus ibi est!” (in L’invincible espérance, p. 203)

For Christian, the gift of Mohammed’s life led to the discovery of the Eucharist. The Eucharist means receiving one’s life from another. That is the meaning of the sacrifice: one cannot receive one’s life without giving one’s life. In Christian theology, Eucharist means receiving in order to give, but in the mind of Christian, there is a reversal of the meaning of sacrifice: to give in order to receive. His calling is profoundly Eucharistic, it is essential to him and is deeply embedded in him.

For Christian, “Mohammed gave his life as did Christ… Each Eucharist makes him infinitely present to me in the Glorified Body, for he lived the Eucharist to the end.” And if there is one text of this sort there are many. “The Eucharist is for all people, this very day,” and not just when all mankind will have become Catholic. Christian knew that Mohammed was in danger, and Mohammed, knowing he was threatened, accepted that Christian should pray for him, but he added, “I know you will pray for me . . . but you, Christians, don’t know how to pray.”

We need to discover, in the actual life of those Muslims whom we know, the “Eucharistic signs.” The vocation of Christian is, from this time on, to be Eucharistic, praying among others who are praying, in Algeria which is “That land where the love granted was the greatest.” He wed this land, its people. Once when he visited his mother, she told him, “My son, flowers do not move about to find the sun; it is the sun which comes to visit them.” All this will provide the basis of his Spirituality.

From this time onwards he understands that the vow of stability means stability within a people: to take up stability in the land of Algeria and therefore to be closely tied to the local Church.

Fifteen years later, on 1 October 1976, he made his solemn profession and in his request, drawn up on September14 of that year, he wrote, “I wish that my brothers who have taken the vow of stability in the Atlas should accept me permanently into their company, in the very name of that continuity, allowing me to live in PRAYER, in the service of the Church of Algeria, listening to the Muslim soul, if it please God, right to the final gift of my death ut in omnibus glorificetur Deus!” The Father Abbot Visitor and the Father Immediate, Abbot of Aiguebelle, wrote to the Abbot General, “. . . and I see in this solemn profession . . . and in the choice of those who have not yet taken the vow of stability to indeed undertake this vow in Algeria, as a conscious response made by the whole community to this action of God” (Report, 2 November, 1976).

A second key event, which took place in 1975, one year before his vows, (recounted in “Nuit de feu” , in L'invincible espérance, p. 33 f.) occurs while Christian is praying in the church during the night. Christian feels that someone is drawing close to him and saying “Pray for me”; and they start praying together the Our Father, the Magnificat, the fatihâ, prayers of praise, of thanks. Then, together with the Christian friend who had come with the Muslim, they pray for three hours. They will not see each other again. But before leaving, the Muslim goes round the monastery four times, dancing, and singing, he is so happy! Christian will not speak of this until his vows; then he will say “this event was not a dream, it is a fact”; it will be the affirmation of his vocation. Concerning this night Christian will say later, “These three hours made me live what my faith, for centuries and centuries, had known was possible.” The issue of hope is found there. The “theology of the meeting of religions” is based on eschatology; it is a matter of rethinking the theology of hope.

In 1979, he experiences a crisis (was he disappointed with the community?) and leaves for Assekrem for three months; he reads and prays a great deal on the Qur’an. By the time he comes back, the Rabat es-Salâm (the Link of Peace) has been founded by Claude Rault: prayer, sharing on themes with a Sufi community, “our Alawiya brothers of Médéa.”

Those are the key moments in the life of Christian de Chergé; we will constantly go from one to the other: from theological reflection to the key elements and vice versa. (Fr. Christian Salenson from Bulletin 76, January 2006)

Dhikr for Trinity Sunday (B)...

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28: 19-20)

Trinity Sunday reminds us that we are “sealed” by our baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This “seal” is manifested in the FELLOWSHIP and COMMUNION by our common baptism – regardless of color, race, belief, language and gender.

My Christian Witness in a Community of Muslims…

My years of experience living in the midst of Islam in Southern Philippines have taught me that the endeavor to live together in respectful understanding for one another is a journey of thousands miles… Where to begin and what should be the first step are always the daunting challenges for people who have embark on the journey.

The first is best described by assuming an attitude and a disposition that a pilgrim takes as he/she embarks on the hajj. “Labbayka” is the word that comes out of his/her mouth as he/she begins the journey to God’s abode. Labbayka ‘inna hum - Here I am … ready to do your bidding…

In my desire to live and struggle with Muslim minorities in the Southern Philippines , I have always been guided by what the Qur’an positively says about the Christians… And through these, I continue to struggle to enflesh that type of Christian witnessing that my Muslim neighbors can easily understand.

Three (3) Quranic Passages…

The first text is from Sura 5: 82 that says… “and nearest among them in love to the believers wilt thou find those who say ‘we are Christians’, because amongst these are men who are devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant.” (wa latajidanna aqrabahum mmawaddatan lilladhina amanu-l-lladhina qaalu nnaanasaaraa dhaalika bianna minhum qasisina waruhbaanaan wa annahum laa yastakbiruna.)

I resolve that I shall be true to this in my dealing with my Muslim neighbors… To be a…
• A person of learning;
• A person that renounces the world and NOT greedy; and
• A person who is not haughty or arrogant!

Yes, I strive to be that person nearest to them in Love… because I am a Christian.

The second text is taken from Qur’an 57: 27 that states… “…we sent after them Jesus the Son of Mary and bestowed on him the Gospel; and we ordained on the hearts of those who followed him COMPASSION AND MERCY’. (waja’aalnaa fi qulusbi-lladhina-ttaba’uhu raa’fatan wa –rahmatan).

The two key descriptions of Jesus’ followers are Compassion and Mercy… Is this NOT the very heart of religion and the very heart of God? God is Rahmaan and Rahim -“loving-kindness”. The heart of religion and a believer as described in Sura 50:37: "A believer who remembers the need for a feeling heart, a hearing mind and a present self… to his/her neighbor…" (“…inna fi dhalika la-dhikra li-man kana lahu qalb aw alqa al-sam’wa wa huwa shahid”)

Reflecting on this passage, I wander whether the call for us is precisely to retrieve these key descriptions and allow them to bear upon the relationship between the worship that we bring and the behavior that we come by… or putting it in another way, allowing the “coincidence” between the heart of God and the heart of the believer.

The third text is from Sura 49: 14 that says “…we made you into nations and tribes that you may know each other (not that you may despise each other). The most honored of you in the sight of God is the most righteous of you”. (Ya_ ay yuhal na_su in na_ halaqna_kum min zakariw wa unsa_ wa ja'alna_kum suu_baw wa qaba_ ila litaa_rafu_ in na akramakum indal la_hi atqa_kum in nal la_ha alimun kabir.)

Still in another Qur’anic passage, Sura 11: 118, it says: “If thy Lord had so willed He could have made mankind one People: but (he willed it otherwise, ands so) they will not cease to dispute.” (Wa lau sya_'a rabbuka laja'alan na_sa ummataw wa_hidataw wa la_ yaza_lu_na mukhtalifin(a).)

But what is this righteousness being asked of us…? Sura 2: 178 tells us… “It is not righteousness that ye turn your faces to the East and the West; but righteous is he who believeth in Allah and the Last Day and the angels and the Scripture and the Prophets; and giveth his wealth, for love of Him, to kinsfolk and to orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and to those who ask, and to set slaves free; and observeth proper worship and payeth the poor due. And those who keep their treaty when they make one, and the patient in tribulation and adversity and time of stress. Such are they who are sincere. Such are the God fearing.” (Ya_ ayyuhal lazina a_manu_ kutiba 'alaikumul qisa_su fil qatla_, al hurru bil hurri wal 'abdu bil 'abdi wal unsa_ bil unsa_, faman 'ufiya lahu_ min akhihi syai'un fat tiba_'um bil ma'ru_fi wa ada_'un ilaihi bi ihsa_n(in), za_lika takhfifum mir rabbikum wa rahmah(tun), fa mani'tada_ ba'da za_lika fa lahu_ 'aza_bun alim(un).)

This is the concrete response to the Qura’nic invitation to “excel each other in good deeds” that constitute true piety and righteousness. (Bapa Eliseo Mercado, OMI)

Dhikr as Remembrance of God in GOOD WORK...

Remembrance of God is the foundation of good deeds. Dhikr is a form of Sadaqa – generous charity. Sadaqa is the generous sharing of one’s life and property.

Dhikr leads to being charitable in all the senses.
* Becoming Charitable and Generous in our Knowing and Seeing…
* Becoming Charitable and Generous in our Hearing and in our Utterances
* Becoming Charitable and Generous in our Feeling and Loving…
* Becoming Charitable and Generous in our reaching out to our neighbors…

The coming down of the Spirit that renews the whole creation... May this Spirit of LOVE & FELLOWSHIP fill us all... 

Dhikr for Pentecost Sunday (B)

“Jesus breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained." (John 20: 22-23)

We have received NOT the spirit of slavery and live in fear, but the spirit that makes us sons and daughters of God that empowers us to call God – Abba!

THE BROKEN CRUCIFIX SPRAYED BY BULLETS HAS BECOME THE SYMBOL OF MARTYRDOM IN SOUTHERN SUDAN 

Only one thing matters...

The gospel of today (03 May) tells how Jesus reproves Peter of having too many peripheral concerns… Only one thing matters: “YOU FOLLOW ME” (John 21:22).

Today, we celebrate the feast of the 22 martyrs of Uganda. There are three names that we easily remember: Charles Lwanga, Mattias Mulumba Kalemba and the boy Kitisto.

There were more than 22 martyrs of Uganda. Paul VI in his homily during the canonization rite also mentioned of other Christians who were martyred yet belonging to the Anglican confession.

The witness of these martyrs in the 19th century reminds us of the contemporary martyrdom of the many Christians in Southern Sudan during the more than two decades of civil war that ended with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in January 2006.

The Christians in Southern Sudan thought that they were abandoned by the world and by God during the times of persecution...

John Paul II during his historic visit in the Sudan in 1993 reminded the Christians that they are NOT forgotten nor abandoned by God... Their names are "written on the palm of the hands of Christ pierced by the nails of crucifixion."

Therefore, with full confidence we cry out: "The Lord is our help and our shield. In him do our hearts find joy. We trust in his holy name". (Psalm 28: 7)

Have we not all the same God?

Have we not all the same God? Has not one God created us?
Why do we deal treacherously, a person against neighbor?

Justice shall you pursue, that you may live in your land.
If a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not wrong him/her.
The stranger that sojourns with you, shall be unto you as the native among you, and you shall love him/her as yourself. One law shall be among you for the native and the stranger alike.

If your neighbor becomes poor and his/her means fail, you shall uphold him/her.
Harden not your hearts to the needy in your midst, nor shut your hand to the needy; But open your hand unto him/her, and lend him/her sufficient for his/her needs.
Hate not your brother/sister in your heart; love your neighbour as yourself.

You shall deal your bread to the hungry, and bring the poor that are cast out to your house. When you see the naked, cover him/her, and hide not yourself from your own flesh.

You have given man/woman understanding and insight and have shown him/her what is good and evil. You have revealed unto him/her what is good; you have given him/her to choose between right and wrong.

You have given him/her a mind, that he might use hisher blessings wisely; a heart You have given him/her and free will that he/she might consider his/her ways and live according to Your will.

We are mindful of all the great gifts which You, O Lord, have given us; may we use them wisely that they may not be in vain. You have been told, o man/woman, what is good, and what the Lord requires of you; to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

Then shall your light break forth as the morning, and your healing shall spring forth speedily; your righteousness shall go before you, the Glory of God shall be your protection.

Behold how good and how pleasant it is, when people dwell together in unity.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord's countenance shine upon you, and be gracious unto you.
May the Lord's blessing be upon you and give you peace. Amen

Dhikr for the Ascension Sunday (B)

“These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents (with their hands), and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." (Mark 16: 17-18)

What are the new signs that must accompany our following of Christ today?
• Is it FELLOWSHIP in his name – regardless of color, race, belief, language and gender?
• Is it our fellowship with the poor and the excluded?
• Is it our capacity to do the “extra mile” and to give away our extra coat as well?

Our "grounding" in the Cross... 

"Planted in the house of the Lord..."

Peace!
Simply sharing with you the passage that struck me while saying Psalm 92...

"Planted in the house of the Lord
they will flourish in the courts of our God,
still bearing fruit when they are old,
still full of sap, still green,
to proclaim that the Lors is just;
in him, my rock, there is no wrong."

This passage challenges us to remain ever fresh - 'continue to bear fruit and to feel still full of sap' - in our ministry nothwithstanding age and whatever conditions where we find ourselves...

The key is to ensure that we are, indeed, 'planted and rooted in the house of the Lord'.

"The Lord has abandoned us!"

People, sometimes, think: "the Lord has abandoned us! He has forgotten us" (Is. 49:14. And God answers with the words of the great prophet: "can a woman forget her own baby, and not love the child she bore? Even if a mother should forget her child, I will never forget you. I have written your name on the palms of my hands" (Is. 49: 15-16).

Yes, on the palms of the hands of Christ, pierced by the nails of the crucifixion. The name of each one of you is written on those palms.

Therefore, with full confidence we cry out: "the Lord is our help and our shield. In him do our hearts find joy. We trust in his Holy Name" (Ps. 28:7) Amen.
(Prayer of John Paul II duirnh his short visit in Khartoum on February 10, 1993 expressing his solidarity with the persecuted Christians in the Sudan.)

To love a person...

"To love someone," Fr. Vernier said, "is to reveal his beauty to him, to reveal to him that he is a person, that he is important, that he can do beautiful things with his life."

Love, Vanier continued, must not be only emotional. People must be loved "with intelligence to help them get up again," "to want to go beyond the walls, through the walls," "to reveal to those who have been crushed that they are of value."

"What I wish to transmit before I die is that life is beautiful if we are determined little by little to demolish the walls that separate us," he said.

According to the founder of L'Arche, we must be honest with ourselves and acknowledge an important truth: "I am not superior to you, I am not better than you, I am like you. I have my frailty, my limitations which, perhaps, I have often hidden; you have your limitations, perhaps more visible, but behind your limitations you are a person, your heart is."

"For the walls to disappear, for us to be able to be vulnerable to one another, to not let ourselves be led by competitiveness, for the world to find peace, we need a community of brothers and sisters of Jesus," he said.

Mother Theresa - Friend of Jesus and Friend of the Poor 

Friends of Jesus

In the Gospel for the 6th Sunday of Easter (B), Jesus calls us his friends...

“I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father.” (John 15: 15)

Among the many names given to the followers of Jesus, the title: “FRIENDS of Jesus” is, no doubt, the closest to the heart of discipleship.

Many people who have become "pilgrims" have cherished the call to be Jesus's FRIENDS and indeed, we are…!

The HEART of the matter…

Today, May 18, 2006, a passage from the Acts echoes the core of the Badaliyya movement… the heart of our solidarity with all believers…

“And God, who knows the heart, bore witness by granting them the Holy Spirit just as he did us. He made no distinction between us and them, for by faith he purified their hearts (Acts 15: 8-9)

Many spiritual masters and directors claim that Spiritual Life is a matter of the heart. These are some of the famous phrases that point to this reality:
• Being single-hearted…
• A clean/purified heart...
• The heart of the matter…
• Religion of the heart…
• God dwelling in the heart…

We invite our readers to add to the enumeration…

Dhikr for the 5th Sunday of Easter (B)

“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you” (John 15: 7)

The challenge is to remain steadfast in the faith both in good times as well as in bad times… We have Jesus’ guarantee that our prayers will be heard...!

Sudan: "Passion for Christ, Passion for Humanity..."

In Southern Sudan, many catechists were martyred during the two decades of civil war and their blood became an oasis of strength as they begin to shape the destiny of the new Sudan.

The catechists, local clergy and missionaries accompanied the Christian community wherever they journeyed. All bear the marks of war - physically, psychologically and spiritually. "like malaria, it is already in our blood", a local priest said.

Following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005, this is a "kairos" moment for the new Sudan. It is the opportunity to put into effect the 5 R's of the CPA: Reconciliation, Rehabilitation, Reconstruction, Repatriation and Re-education.

The prophet Isaiah captures this moment: "For now I create a new heaven and a new earth, and the past will not be remembered, and will come no more to the minds of people... No more will the sound of weeping or the sounds of cries be heard in her... they will build houses and inhabit them, plant vineyards and eat their fruit: (Isaiah 65: 17-25).

The exhausted feet from "Exodus" are now bent in prayer...as the new Southern Sudan shapes its destiny. 

Prayer for Peace

O Risen Lord,
Your breathe your Holy Spirit on us
and tell us: "Peace be yours".

Opening ourselves to your peace -
letting it penetrate the harsh and
rocky ground of our hearts -
means preparing ourselves to be
bearers of reconciliation
whereever you may place us.

But you know that at times
we are at a loss.

So come and lead us
to wait in silence,
to let a ray of hope shine forth
in our world. (Brother Roger, Taize)

n.b.
We ask our readers to participate in a special prayer
for peace in Sri Lanka, DR Congo and the Sudan.

Unity with the Divine...

The journey to God aims to arrive at communion/unity with God. Jesus in the Gospel tells us of his communion with the Father: "the Father and I are one" (John 10: 30).

When we embark on our journey to God's abode, we desire to arrive at this communion with God.

In the midst of the up's and down's, including perils and fears of the path, we are steadfast in our faith that Jesus accompanies us - all throughout the journey.

The Lamp in your Heart... 

Wisdom of Heart...

While reading this morning's Psalm 90, a sobering phrase has struck me. The phrase is "wisdom of heart". Here is the complete text...

"Make us know the shortness of our life
that we may gain wisdom of heart."

The challenge for us is to ask for that GRACE as we advance in years...

Dhikr for the 4th Sunday of Easter (B)

“I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep." (John 10: 14 - 15)

We are, indeed, called to become THAT GOOD SHEPHERD… with people entrusted to our care and service.

Three Challenges of Acting Justly…

The first challenge in our desire to act justly is to struggle to bring justice into society. Concretely, this means to make an “option for the poor”. This is not a matter of being biased against the rich or discriminating morally against them as we are, often, accused.

It is simply a question of recognizing the more than a century-old history of the Church’s social teachings, beginning with Rerum Novarum by Leo XIII in 1892. The rich and the powerful are well able to look for themselves and their own interests. The poor, however, need special protection from society and those in authority.

The second challenge is to recognize that we – Church people – are privileged in many ways. It is very difficult for people like us to break with the vested interests of our own class, our institutions, friends, associates and comfort zones.

The third challenge is a paradigm shift. There is the real need for a change of outlook – a change of heart, a conversion! There is the need for a new UNDERSTANDING of how our society and communities work – and particularly how they are structured in ways that favor certain groups – usually the rich and the powerful. Then there is the need for a PASSIONATE COMMITMENT to correct injustices, not just on an “ad hoc” basis but the will and the act to replace the unjust structures with ones that are equitable.

Acting and Living JUSTLY...

To act and live justly means much more than paying our debt and not staling from others. It means, above all, working to build a society that is just - a society in which the structures are just and the relationships of peoples are just. Some concrete examples are the following:

• Minorities are not discriminated;
• Migrants are respected;
• Women are not treated as second-class citizens;
• Wealth and labor are equitably distributed; and
• God’s creation is held as trust.

At the international level, the same kind of bias operates and as a result the poor countries lag behind further and further from the wealthy nations.

What God asks of us...

"This is what Yahweh asks of you, only this:
THAT YOU ACT JUSTLY,
THAT YOU LOVE TENDERLY,
THAT YOU WALK HUMBLY WITH YOUR GOD."
(Micah 6: 8)

Our Journey to God's Abode... 

Dhikr for the 3rd Sunday of Easter (B)

“And Jesus said to them, thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things." (Luke 24: 45-48)

We are, indeed, witnesses of the life, teachings and deeds of the Risen Lord.

Call to Prayer & Fasting for Peace in Sri Lanka

Greetings of Peace from Rome!

The OMI General Service of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation reiterates Fr. General’s Appeal for Peace in Sri Lanka made in February 2006.

“Through baptism and through our vows we are a priestly people and prayer is a most powerful way to mediate peace. Anytime during the next four weeks would be most opportune for our prayerful intervention. Collective prayer sessions with the use of symbols, novenas, meditating in silence…or any other suitable form of prayer would be in order. We need to remind ourselves that prayer is an integral component of evangelization.”

“We also invite our friends, partners and co-workers, both lay and religious, to join us in this spiritual endeavour for PEACE in Sri Lanka.”

This time as Sri Lanka is again on the brink of war, we invite everyone to participate in the call for PRAYER and FASTING for Peace called by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Sri Lanka.

Reports from the ground tell us that the political situation in Sri Lanka has worsened these past weeks. Violence and killing continue to escalate with the recent suicide bombing inside the Military Camp in the capital and the aerial bombings in the North-East of the country. Once again the Ceasefire Agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tiger Tamil Ealam (LTTE) is observed more in violation that people fear an immanent declaration of an all-out war and the closure of the main highway (A 9 Highway) that connects the South and the North.

In the midst of these wanton killings coupled by anxieties and uncertainties, prayers and fasting for peace has become, seemingly, our only remaining recourse. We invite all people of goodwill, especially OMI Institutions, Houses, Centers and Parishes to include a special intention for Sri Lanka in their daily prayers and to devote four (4) Fridays beginning on the 27th of April in Fasting for Peace in Sri Lanka.

Pace e Bene!

Eliseo “Jun” Mercado, OMI
Director
General Service of Justice, Peace & Integrity of Creation

Oswald Firth, OMI
1st Assistant General
Portfolio on Mission and JPIC

26 April 2006

The Feast of St. Mark - the Father of the Coptic Church

(Editor's Note: During my stay in Cairo and Alexandria in the 80's, I have made contact with the Coptic Church and I have seen, touched and witnessed the three important ccontributions of the Coptic Church - first, the understanding of the mystery of our Christian Faith, second, the life of Monasticism in the desert, and third,the cross that is at the core in the life of the Coptic Church.)

The Coptic Church is based on the teachings of Saint Mark who brought Christianity to Egypt during the reign of the Roman emperor Nero in the first century, a dozen of years after the Lord's ascension.

The Copts have survived as a strong religious entity that prides themselves on their contribution to the Christian world. The Coptic Church regards itself as a strong defendant of Christian faith. The Nicene Creed, which is recited in all churches throughout the world, has been authored by one of its favorite sons, Saint Athanasius, the Pope of Alexandria for 46 years, from 327 A.D. to 373 A.D.

The contributions of the Coptic Church to Christendom are many. From the beginning, it played a central role in Christian theology---and especially to protect it from the Gnostics heresies. The Coptic Church produced thousands of texts, biblical and theological studies which are important resources for archeology.

1. The Catechetical School of Alexandria is the oldest Catechetical School in the world. Soon after its inception around 190 A.D. by the Christian scholar Pantanaeus, the school of Alexandria became the most important institution of religious learning in Christendom. Many prominent bishops from many areas of the world were instructed in that school under scholars such as Athenagoras, Clement, Didymus, and the great Origen, who was considered the father of theology and who was also active in the field of commentary and comparative Biblical studies.

2. Monasticism was born in Egypt and was instrumental in the formation of the Coptic Church's character of submission and humbleness, thanks to the teachings and writings of the Great Fathers of Egypt's Deserts. Monasticism started in the last years of the third century and flourished in the fourth century. Saint Anthony, the world's first Christian monk was a Copt from Upper Egypt. Saint Pachom, who established the rules of monasticism, was a Copt. And, Saint Paul, the world's first anchorite is also a Copt. Other famous Coptic desert fathers include Saint Makarios, Saint Moses the Black, and Saint Mina the wonderous. The more contemporary desert fathers include the late Pope Cyril VI and his disciple Bishop Mina Abba Mina.

3. The greatest glory of the Coptic Church is its Cross. Copts take pride in the persecution they have sustained as early as May 8, 68 A.D., when their Patron Saint Mark was slain on Easter Monday after being dragged from his feet by Roman soldiers all over Alexandria's streets and alleys. The Copts have been persecuted by almost every ruler of Egypt. Their Clergymen have been tortured and exiled even by their Christian brothers after the schism of Chalcedon in 451 A.D. and until the Arab's conquest of Egypt in 641 A.D. To emphasize their pride in their cross, Copts adopted a calendar, called the Calendar of the Martyrs, which begins its era on August 29, 284 A.D., in commemoration of those who died for their faith during the rule of Diocletian the Roman Emperor. This calendar is still in use all over Egypt by farmers to keep track of the various agricultural seasons and in the Coptic Church Lectionary.

At the Council of Chalcedon in 451, the Coptic Church was unfairly accused of following the teachings of Eutyches, who believed in monophysitism. This doctrine maintains that the Lord Jesus Christ has only one nature, the divine, not two natures, the human as well as the divine.

The Coptic Church has never believed in monophysitism the way it was portrayed in the Council of Chalcedon! In that Council, monophysitism meant believing in one nature. Copts believe that the Lord is perfect in His divinity, and He is perfect in His humanity, but His divinity and His humanity were united in one nature called "the nature of the incarnate word", which was reiterated by Saint Cyril of Alexandria. Copts, thus, believe in two natures "human" and "divine" that are united in one "without mingling, without confusion, and without alteration" (from the declaration of faith at the end of the Coptic divine liturgy). (Based on the Encyclopedia of Coptic Church)

Dhikr for the 2nd Sunday of Easter (B) - WhitSunday

“Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed." (John 20:29)

Believing is not a question of seeing and touching… It is a question of TRUST!

DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:

1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage…that interprets one’s life NOW…!

It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…

SAHARA - JABARA*: It’s worth the effort

(Editor's note: I am re-publishing this OMI experience in the Sahara Mission, because of the interest that the Sahara generated by the Badaliyya Blogspot.)

*Jabara: News sent out for centuries among the desert people, without the help of press, radio, and TV.

One of the many inquisitive journalists that passed through here, notebook and ballpoint poised to take notes for his “best-seller,” when he was told the statistics of Christians of every race, language, country, and color that we know about…only know about…in these 280,000 square kilometers of what was once the “Spanish West Sahara,” and is now the “beloved Southern provinces” of Morocco, and specifically, the statistics of the Catholics that are in Laayoune and Dakhla, was unable to hide his surprise in the question he posed: “Is it worth the effort that you are here?”

Since I doubted that he could understand or that I would even know how to explain it, I simply answered him by asking a question: is it worth the effort for the lonely tree to grow on top of a mountain, or the one on the high plain or in the desert; and what about the little spring that bubbles up, hidden in some corner of the planet, especially in the Sahara? The ones to answer should be the birds, or the mountain dwellers, or the exhausted travelers, or the workers in Castile and Andalusia, or the desert nomads.

Nor is it a surprising question, because some Oblates in the province ask us the same question. “What are you doing there? Why don’t you just come home?”

But if the example of the tree or the spring does not convince them or seems childish, the only thing we can say is that “it all depends…”

It all depends on one’s notion of Church and of the Mystical Body, the “Great Mystery” of which Pius XII spoke. We repeat the answer which, according to what they told us 50 years ago, a little boy in communist Korea gave to the authorities who told him that there was no Church and that all the Christians had gone away: “I am the Church!”

His answer and idea have special meaning in the Muslim world, where, as some of them tell us, we are no more than a drop of water in the ocean, trying to absorb their greatness, connecting with them, and trying to share their joys and hopes, their dreams and their disappointments – as the Council says – and more so now, in the circumstances and ordeals they are experiencing. We are not unlike the grain of salt in the fable, who understood the sea only when he jumped into it.

We neither measure nor take into account whether they are the poorest or if they suffer the most. That would make no sense, because pain and suffering cannot be measured. In the Gospel, one does not read: “Blessed are the poorest…or those who weep the most…or come to me, you who are most burdened…or the most persecuted.” Nor did Christ raise up those who were the “deadest.” It only says “the poor…the burdened…the persecuted.” Those are pages from the Gospel that resonate in a special way in the Sahara ever since the latest events of last May, well known because of the coverage they had in all the media, and which continue to this day.

This is the situation in which they have lived for the past 30 years: the diaspora, and deportation to the camps of Tinduf. There is the separation of families – almost every family has someone there. There is poverty and marginalization. It’s an almost total obstacle for youth who have no future or feel that they are in a little boat where “up ahead, there are light and dreams; behind, there are hunger and suffering. To the left and to the right, there are distant boats with lights on them…and below, there is death.” That’s what one of them told us who, coming home by sea, lost his way in a storm. Just when he thought he had finally reached the beaches of Fuerteventura, he discovered that he was once again in Tarfaya, his point of departure.

Added to all that are the internal fights for political and economic reasons and the awareness that their resources (fish and phosphates) are being exploited – for that is the toll the government is exacting for the massive development of the housing and logistical infrastructure.

There is disenchantment, disappointment, and lack of trust for MINURSO – the UN Mission for the Referendum – which has yet to happen after 15 years of presence in the Sahara, even though one must recognize that they have been working. These are some of the reasons for their feeling that they have been abandoned by governments and international organizations: such unhappiness…and such patience.

The detention, imprisonment, and mistreatment received by one of their most distinguished leaders and a defender of human rights was the spark that set fire to and provoked their determination and unleashed the demonstrations, including hunger strikes.

The people, especially youth, women and even children, went to the streets late at night in numerous demonstrations, claiming independence and demanding their rights. The demonstrations were put down with violence and without giving it a second thought by the security forces, the terrifying GUS (Urban Security Groups), reinforced by the army, in an impressive show of force throughout the whole city, but especially in the most crowded neighborhoods where the great majority of Saharan families live. These had to endure damage and even destruction of their homes for having left their doors open so that those who were fleeing in panic from the security forces could hide. The forces followed them all the way in and physically abused them, even throwing some out the window, according to the stories one hears. One woman even gave birth in the street (to put it delicately). There were deaths and many serious injuries that were not treated in the hospitals, some because they could not go, and others, because they did not want to go for fear of being detained and taken to jail, the terrifying “Black Jail,” or the jails up North. Therefore, some of them had to be taken care of secretly, in private homes or in the desert, so as not to be found and arrested.

All of that unleashed an impressive unity and solidarity movement among the Saharans who have gone out of their way to help the sick and injured and needy families.

To all those problems, we should add that of the sub-Saharan emigrants, or those from other continents, hidden in the peripheral or remote neighborhoods, among the dunes and the ponds, or among the cliffs and the hidden beaches, waiting for the moment to be able to jump in their little boat that will take them to that “world of light” which they think is in front of them, “leaving behind hunger and suffering,” even though down there in the sea, with boats and lights to the left and right, death is also waiting for them, as that young man told us. They are detained in police stations in hazardous conditions, at the mercy of the charity and the aid of this good people, until they are “sent away,” one would say.

In this atmosphere, one notices a spirit of unity and solidarity and a warm understanding, even unspoken. This spirit is overshadowed only by the empty stare, the cold shoulder, and the rudeness of the informants and the spies that are there, unfortunately, sowing fear and mistrust even within families, even though people generally know who they are.

But over all, there is the sure hope that they will achieve victory. For that, they fight and it keeps them going.

They are in no hurry. They are counting on the time factor. They know how to wait. They have it in their blood and who knows? Perhaps it is genetic, because that is what they have done for centuries as nomads, with no other clock than waiting. They know that the clouds that guide their steps, their movements, will finally release the long awaited water, the gift of God, which is a remedy for its own deficiency, and which gives new birth to that remarkable life which during years of drought pulsates and blooms in the desert.

That is the world where we find ourselves, seemingly standing alone. Just as the lonely tree or the hidden spring are there in case someone needs shade or a bit of water, there is someone trying quietly to bear a grain of sand in this dune of hardships, poverty and punishment, even though unfortunately, it is not as much as would be needed or as much as we would want.

Therefore, we continue being totally convinced that, as in the title, at the beginning of these few thoughts: IT IS WORTH THE EFFORT! (NOSOTROS OMI, Newsletter of the Province of Spain, January 2006)

Listen to God or Listen to the "Powerful"...

The Easter experience of Jesus' disciples must have been very compelling and transforming...

Peter and John had found courage to confront the powers of this world. The question they raised is still valid for us today.., "it is right in God's sight to listen to men of power rather than to God."

The experience of the Risen Lord is, truly, compelling that no power can keep the disciples from speaking what they have heard, seen and touched...!

The challenge, today, is for believers to experience anew both as individuals and as a community that "compelling and transforming presence of the Risen Lord who continues dwell in our midst...

Charles de Foucauld in his hermitage... 

The "Hidden" Life of Jesus in Nazareth…

(Editor’s Note: As I write this piece, I remember our confreres in the Western Sahara, in Turkmenistan, and in the many island of the Sulu Archipelago who spent their entire lives in “mission” understood only in terms of “Nazareth”.)

"Nazareth" for Charles de Foucauld means sharing the life of men and women, like the Son of God, that lead an ordinary, everyday human life.
People who patiently live and work in many Muslim areas are beginning to understand the meaning of the “hidden life” of Jesus in Nazareth. By contemplating on Jesus in Nazareth, they begin to touch the mystery of Jesus’ ordinary and unknown life in Nazareth.

Charles de Foucauld in his almost solitary life in the Sahara concluded that the “fuga mundi” was not the destiny. Like the other great founders of Religious movement (Francis of Assisi, Iñigo Loyola, Francis de Sales, etc.) he understood that this world where the Son of God lived is good, and that it is good for us to live in it too, profoundly, to the point of dying in it so as to transfigure it like "the grain of wheat that falls into the earth and dies".

“Nazareth” is understood not as a “hidden” life that is the opposite of what is visible. It is, rather, an insistence on the need to be in the world and to undertake fully the work of a witness in the world. Charles de Foucauld makes it clear that Francis of Assisi wished to imitate Jesus' public life, while he himself wants to imitate his hidden life. But this imitation of the hidden life is in no way a non-response to the world or a withdrawal from mission.

It is a different type of witness and proclamation. For Charles de Foucauld, it is a question of bringing Christ to "those who do not know him" "preaching not with words, but by example". For him, "the hidden life has not been imitated": it is actually the life he wants to lead in the Church, and his disciples with him. In no way is it hiding as an end in itself, but a striving for fruitfulness: the grain of wheat must die if "it is to bear much fruit".

Charles de Foucauld wanted to transform the death of Jesus as a death to self and a death "to all that is not Jesus". It is witness and proclamation that involve two important points. The first is that of time and of patient waiting. And the second is a sense of goodness.

He spoke of his task in the Sahara as a work a time "of preparation, of the first tilling". Then he spoke of a “sense of patient waiting” with Jesus who, in speaking of his daily duties, said: "All this is to arrive at Jesus Christ, God knows when, perhaps after a few centuries".

If one axis consists in that sense of waiting and great patience which is the opposite of a craving for immediate and spectacular conversion, the other axis can be defined by the sense of goodness. It is a simple goodness, without undue concern for conversion, a "goodness without ideologies", very close to that expressed by Levinas, which is always addressed to a specific human being in his daily life, a friendship in return for friendship, which gives rise to trust.

The acceptance of long delays and a long-term mission, and the desire to strictly respect the culture and convictions of others, could be expressed in what de Foucauld told a layman from Lyons: "Banish the militant spirit from our midst". This term, stressed by de Foucauld, is used by him in its etymological sense: the old soldier does not want to "take up arms" but to engage only, he says, in the "apostolate of goodness". And at the secular level, de Foucauld asked his friends, as he wrote on 21 February 1915 to Massignon, to co-operate in "progress" and "in increasing the material well-being" of the peoples among whom they lived: "There is in this an impulse to give, a collective activity to be organized and private initiatives to be determined, helped and encouraged".

Basetti-Sani's Testimony...

(Editor's Note: Fr. Basetti-Sani, OFM used to visit the Philippines and shared his life and studies on Islam. His special passion was to "connect" the mystical experiences of St. Francis with the important events in the early contacts between the Christians of Najran and the prophet of Islam. This same stories as "lived" by St. Francis inspired the famous painter Giotto in his works at the upper Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi.)

Basetti-Sani writes,” Louis Massignon had alerted me against an unjust condemnation of (Islam) that precluded any sincere and productive dialogue between Christians and Muslims.

Islam is a mystery linked with the blessing obtained by Abraham from God for his son Ishmael and Ishmael's progeny. This line of thought, taken from the Bible, is the one to take in order to grasp the significance of Islam.

Before we parted Massignon gave me two thoughts meant as guidelines in my reorientation. One was from Augustine, ' Love sees with new eyes', and the other was from John of the Coss,'Where there is no love put love, and you will find Love'.

It was true: my eyes had seen badly...Later, when my eyes were to see clearly, I would discover in Islam and the Muslims the reflections of the infinite goodness of God”. (Basetti-Sani. 1977. “The Koran in the Light of Christ” Franciscan Herald Press IL pp..17-18)

Fr. Emmanuel - Pastoral Coordinator of Yei Diocese, South Sudan 

Easter Greetings from South Sudan...

Christ is risen!
Christ is truly risen,
Alleluia…Alleluia

It is not so easy to understand that the life of Jesus did not end on the cross, but that his Father led him from death to eternal life.

Like the women who stood before the empty tomb on the morning of Easter, we will only discover the mystery of the resurrection through faith.

Even when we stand before the tomb of our hopes, not everything is lost. The experience with the Risen Redeemer requires from us that we remain always open for new encounters with Him. Jesus can and will encounter us every day again.

With this in mind, I wish you a Happy Easter and the Blessing of the Risen Redeemer.

May your eyes, your ears, and your hearts always be open for new encounters with Him and with others!

Fr. Emmanuel Lodongo Sebit
Diocese of Yei
Southern Sudan

Recognizing the Risen Lord in the Breaking of the Bread...

(Wednesday within the Octave of Easter - Luke 24: 13-35)
Bapa Eliseo “Jun” Mercado, OMI

The journey through life is akin to the disciples' walk to Emmaus... It is a journey full of uncertainties and fears, yet hopeful that there is something going on beyond their comprehension.

• First, there is the obstacle that prevents them to recognize the presence of the Risen Lord in their midst.
• Second, there is the fact that the Risen Lord is “completely transformed”. He is beyond look or appearances, beyond taste and touch, and beyond smell and hearing that ordinarily would make our five senses know and recognize a presence.
• Third, there is the remembrance of the Lord’s teaching of “sharing shelter with strangers”, “food to the hungry” and “rest to the weary”. The disciples invited the “Stranger”: “stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over”.
• Fourth, at the shared table, the disciple’s eyes were opened at the BREAKING OF THE BREAD… and they RECOGNIZED THE RISEN LORD!

The key to the mystery of life as we journey through life with all its uncertainties, fears and “untold” expectations… is the capacity to share our lives with others, especially with people in need. That key will open our eyes to recognize the presence of the Risen Lord at the breaking of the Bread. But first, we need to share our table with the poor and the strangers…

"Cut to the heart..."

When the people heard the proclamation that Jesus is RISEN from the dead, "THEY WERE CUT TO THE HEART..." (Acts 2:37)

Like Peter and companions are we able to proclaim, anew, the GOOD NEWS and be witnesses of the Risen Lord that CUT THE HEARTS OF MEN AND WOMEN of our times..?

Pasquetta Reflection... Confession and Belief

"But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; that if thou shall confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shall be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (Romans 10: 8-10)

The Lord is Risen! Alleluia! 

Easter Dhikr

"Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth. who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him." (Mark 16: 6)

Jesus is, truly, Risen! Alleluia! With Jesus' resurrection we have the guarantee that, in the end, good shall prevail over evil; life over death; and grace over sin!

Easter Blessings to one and all!

Love and Prayers,
Bapa Eliseo "Jun" Mercado, OMI
Rome, Italy
Easter 2006

Raphael: The Deposition: Our Badal/Ransom 

Jesus Christ: Our Ransom that we may have life to the full!

Jesus Christ is our Ransom...
Bapa Eliseo "Jun" Mercado, OMI

The celebration of the Lord's Passion is the narrative of the PRICE Jesus paid that we may have life...
• He experienced the betrayal by one of his own …
• He found himself all alone before the powers of the world…
• The Custodians of the Law and the Covenant condemned him to die…
• The power of this world washed its hands and gave him away to be flogged and crucified…
• He was abandoned in his utter powerlessness and weakness…
• He died on the Cross as our Ransom!

Jesus was steadfast in his obedience to the will of his Father… He embraced, albeit with fear and trembling, the consequences of his decision to pay the PRICE that we may live and live to the full.

In Jesus’ Passion and Resurrection, our God is, truly, revealed…

• Our God is NOT the all powerful one, but the God who loves and who is willing to pay the price that we may have life.
• Our God is NOT the all victorious one, but the God who is courageous to rise up in every fall and always ready to pick up the pieces and to begin anew.
• Our God is the bread broken and shared and the blood shed to free us from the tyranny of sin and the evil in our heart
• Our God brings to fulfillment the covenant established with us by the blood of Jesus, our Lord! God’s fidelity endures for thousands of generations.

“It is finished!”

Go and tell the whole world, the Good News that Jesus who died for us on the CROSS is RISEN!

Happy Easter to one and all!!!

Mourning a dear friend: Sr. Hope, RGS...

Sr. Esperanza “Parang” Quirino, RGS
(A partner, co-workers, mentor and a very dear FRIEND)

On Saturday, 8 April 2006, I received an email that a beloved friend, Sr. Parang also known as Sr. Hope passed away at 7:30 am on the same day.

The succinct announcement of her passing away said it all who this person was…

“Yes, our dear Parang has gone home to our Shepherd God at 7:30 this morning. Last night at past 10:00 pm. Parang collapsed on her way home from Church after “kumpisalan ng Bayan” (Communal Penitential Rite). She was conscious up to the end. The people were around her in the hospital. She even asked them to sing. The parish priest came who joined them for singing. Then he administered the anointing of the sick and after this she just passed quietly. She kept on telling them earlier that she could see her mother fetching her. Parang is an example of one who died with her "slippers” on.”

That same day and the days that followed, I mourned for her and reminisced the years we were together in Kabacan, North Cotabato. It was a reminiscence of a shared ministry with all the joys, hardships, frustrations and success characterized by deep bond of friendship not only between Parang and I but more so a remembrance of God’s love and care for the people of Kabacan and for the workers of the Gospel.

Kabacan was known, then, as a real “tough” place! Few people dared to cross the great Aringay River known to many as “Ilocoskovakia”.

The Ilocanos, of all the migrant peoples of the Cotabato valley, are known for hard work and thrift. They expect no less from their ministers!

By God’s providence, I was a “superman” Pastor of the place from 1976-80, and Sr. Parang was a “superwoman” Parish Sister.

Looking back, it must be “terrible”, awesome and fascinating, as well,sight to see a team of a “superman” and a “superwoman” trying to evangelize and conscientize the heart of “Ilocandia” in Cotabato valley during the Martial Law years of the great Ilocano Dictator, Apo Ferdinand Marcos, then President of the Republic of the Philippines.

Parang was a GREAT ILOCANA! There was in her an immediate recognition of “something made in Ilocos” by the people, especially the older generations who came from the Ilocos region. She was one of them and they saw in her, yet, another GREAT ILOCANO –her uncle, Elpidio Quirino, the second President of the Republic.

Parang was a great and patient mentor, particularly in everything Ilocano, including the language. She would translate into Ilocano my homilies and interventions in assemblies until I developed the courage to speak it and made it my own. With Parang and some lay leaders, we developed an Ilocano Cursillo and through the cursillo developed the basic Christian Community in the barrios of Kabacan.

Parang was an example of a Missionary Religious with “FIRE” - a Passion for Christ and Compassion for humanity”. She was tireless in her ministry, especially to the poor and the most marginalized. True to her RGS slogan: she made the poor and the most abandoned feel most important and valuable persons in the eyes of God.

Even before death, distance, space and times were never obstacles to her dedicated service. Her speed and travels were phenomenal – by bus, by boat or by TDK (truck de karga)! She was devotee of the God of the impossible!

But what stood out was not her wonderful works or speed, but her testimony to a deep prayer life and a simple life-style. Many times, she would say that she had to pray hard and lead a simple and frugal life because she talked too much and she was an Ilocana!

From her I learned that prayer is the important ingredient to a happy missionary life. We all have our share of frustrations, failures and successes. But what truly spells the difference is our faith and trust in God as we stand before him in prayer.

As I mourned Parang’s passage into a new life, I am assured, more than ever, of the mystery of the resurrection.

The 2006 celebration of Holy Week, particularly of the Triduum, has become special to me… as I mourn my friend's passing away.

As my unlce Johnny wirtes in his Sunday column, the passing away of friend is the mystery of encountering anew the crucified Jesus in a new way.

Like the disciples at Emmaus, it is an experience of "our eyes were opened," the evangelists add, "and they recognized Him in the breaking of bread".

They met Jesus after Calvary and arrived at certitude: this Jesus who died on the cross had entered into a radically transformed life. They "brought Peter the Rock out of Simon the betrayer, or the executed Paul out of the executing Saul, or the church of martyrs out of the scattered and fearful disciples."

The disciples’ experience has been refracted to us over the centuries. Even those who live out the implications of Easter—Mother Teresa or John Paul II or the Christians in South Sudan - stammer to articulate its meaning.

"Not everything has a name," Aleksandhr Solzhenitsyn writes. "Some things lead us into the realm beyond words…For an instant, you glimpse the Inaccessible. And the soul cries out for it." (Bapa Eliseo Mercado, OMI)

He died as the Badal (Ransom) for us while we were still sinners! 

Good Friday People

GOOD FRIDAY PEOPLE by Juan L. Mercado

( Looking for a book that will carry you beyond Palm Sunday? Written by Dr. Shiela Cassidy, “Good Friday People” looks at broken men and women – and the grace that shines through them. She was jailed and tortured by the Chilean military, for treating rebels. Dr Cassidy is a UK hospice medical director -- Juan L. Mercado )

"Good Friday people is a phrase I coined, for those who find themselves called to powerlessness and suffering,” she writes. “(These) are men and women, broken in body and assaulted in mind --- deprived not merely of things we take for granted.

"God calls them to walk the same road His Son trod.... I have no clever answer to the eternal 'Why' of suffering . But whatever it's cause and outcome, it is never without meaning."

Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel captures this “sense of the absence of God”, Cassidy notes. Then 14-years old, Weisel was forced, along with other Jewish prisoners at Auschwitz , to watch the Gestapo execute a child.

"Where is God? Where is He now?’ someone behind me asked, Weisel recalls in his book: Night "And I heard a voice within me answer him: ‘Where is He?. Here He is ---He is here hanging on this gallows..

“Never shall I forget these moments which murdered my God and turned my dreams into dust, " Weisel added. "Never shall I forget even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never."

Weisel had the look of a “Lazarus, risen from the dead yet still a prisoner…stumbling among shameful corpses,” recalled Catholic philosopher Francois Mauriac. In his foreword to Night, Mauriac wrote :

"And I, who believed that God is love, what answer could I give my young questioner whose dark eyes still held the reflection of that angelic sadness which appeared on the face of the hanged child?

"Did I speak to him of that other Israeli, his brother --- the Crucified, whose cross conquered the world?... Did I affirm that conformity to the Cross and suffering was, in my eyes, the key to that impenetrable mystery whereon the faith of his childhood had perished..?

"We do not know the worth of one single drop of blood, one single tear. All is grace. If the Eternal is the Eternal, the last word for each one of us belongs to Him. This is what I should have told this Jewish child," Mauriac adds. "But I could only embrace him weeping."

In her book, Cassidy accompanies "Good Friday people" -- from El Salvador’s Oscar Romero, the timid priest who emerged into a fearless defender of the descamisados, sick people, Maryknoll nun Eta Ford to Marxist folk singer Victor Jara.

Their suffering "make us want to screen our faces, to turn away," Cassidy writes. "Yet, is through them that the grace of God flows to our arid souls... There is a terrible agony in watching someone hollowed out with a knife…even if the end result is an instrument on which is played the music of the universe”.

There is Beth and her third bout with cancer. "Unable to wait for her to die, her man had gone off with another woman. She “spent a life of drawing short straws'." Or the dying Katie. "Day after day, she waited. But the visitor never came: not her mother, nor her lovers, not even her children."

Catherine’s tumor had spread to her brain. She had few symptoms but soon she’d be in deep trouble. Radio therapy could only buy time. “I just want whatever is best for my daughter,” she said as tears fell.

“There is rare beauty in selflessness of this kind,” Cassidy writes. “Some go to their deaths grasping everything. These are people who will call you away from another patient’s deathbed to adjust their television.”

Jesuit priest Rutilo Grande insisted his El Salvador seminarians live among slum dwellers and landless peasants. “However much one may know about poverty and oppression at an intellectual level, meeting the poor themselves is something quite other.”

Like that of Archbishop Oscar Romero, Father Grande’s efforts, helped the poor "rediscover the Old Testament concept of God as liberator of his oppressed people." It was the poor who showed Grande and Romero “what they required of their church,” Cassidy notes. “Not just the catechism and the sacraments but something much harder : to speak out against injustice”.

The military junta goons killed both of them, of course.

But Grande’s system of exposure to “Good Friday people” anchors seminary training today, including the Philippines. And Romero’s address, on receiving the Nobel Peace prize in 1980, still resounds:

“There are those who sell a just man for money and a poor man for a pair of sandals…It is the poor who force us to understand what is really taking place…The poor are the body of Christ. Through them, He lives on in history.” .

Ironically, it is often non-believers who seem closest to following Christ. Chilean singer Victor Jara abandoned studies for the priesthood “and put his ‘honest guitar’ to work on behalf of the marginalized. He too was killed.

“Should I be speaking of a Marxist folk-singer in the same breath as Jesus?,” Cassidy asks. “The answer is surely yes. For did he not embark on his road to Calvary in response to a call to serve the poor.”

"( Yet ), we are all potentially Good Friday people. We are all frail earthen vessels who, should the potter choose, be fashioned in His image and for his own mysterious purposes….And we tremble because we too may be called to powerlessness... “ (Juan Mercado is my uncle and the doyen of Philippine journalism)

Allowing God to be God...

On Idolatry…
Bapa Eliseo Mercado, OMI

God is both ….
• the seen and the unseen…
• the known and the unknown…
• the evident and the hidden…
• the near and the far…

Our refusal to let God BE God leads to the creation of idols unto our own image and likeness! Often our ways, thoughts and deeds are NOT God’s. We begin to fashion our idols by…
• our refusal to be nobody compared to God the greatest of all...
• by substituting the God who cares to our surety in our “finger tips”...
• by taking him for granted, especially when we have not need of God...
• by our failure to follow the way of justice & righteousness...
• by holding on to the inconsistencies between my knowing and reality…
• by believing our WRONG FOCUS - the idol- of god...

LET US DESTROY THE IDOLS WE HAVE FASHIONED AND ALLOW GOD TO BE GOD…!

The week before Holy Week, the three young men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, in Daniel 3: 13-20 show us with GREAT COURAGE and FAITH what it means to believe in Yahweh. Before kings and potentates of this world, we have no need to present a defence in whom and on what we believe. They invite us to confess, by our lives, words and deeds, that we shall not serve any other gods and we shall not worship gold, power and establishment that have long been our idols all these years…

John Paul II - The Lamp of Interreligious Dialogue 

John Paul II - the LAMP

"Death is not the extinguishing of life," the Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore wrote. "It is putting out the lamp because dawn has come."

In his final illness, John Paul II taught us how to put out the lamp when the final letting go is asked, as it will be for all of us.

Our celebration of his first death anniversary reminds us of the URGENT NEED to light NEW LAMPS in our very vulnerable and fragile world...

WANTED NEW LAMPS!!!