STANDING FIRM

Michael Casey

I came across the following passage recently in a book called “Strangers to the City” by Michael Casey, a Trappist monk. It's about our Benedictine vow of stability. I found his thoughts really enlightening, and so I would like to share some of them here:

In such a social climate [in the present day], the idea of committing ourselves to perseverance seems imprudent, if not lunatic. Everything changes so rapidly that we do not know what tomorrow will bring. This is where it is important to emphasize that the vow of stability is not based on the non-variability of community life , the Church, or society. Stability is grounded on the unchanging fidelity of God.

It may be true, that it was all so different before everything changed, and that in the course of a lifetime, many major adaptations are demanded. It is our faith in God's fidelity that enables us to weather whatever storms come our way.

Another image of stability is a building designed to withstand earthquakes. Contrary to our untutored expectations, the building is designed to sway with the movement of the earth, rather than to stand solidly on moving throughout the trimmers. If it moves, it survives; if it attempts to resist the movement it cracks open.

Stability comes from the verb stare, to stand. We all know that it is very difficult to remain standing for a long period without moving. The best way to remain upright is not to stay still but to keep walking. We can walk for much longer than we can stand, because the various muscle systems are alternately worked and rested.

Stability is not immobility. It is the knack of remaining constant in the midst of change. The best example of this is a surfer. He knows that to get up and stay up on his surfboard. He needs to be aware of the movement of wind and water, so that he can certainly adjust his center of gravity the best way to persevere is to keep growing. This will not occur without periods of relative slackness and occasional wobbles, but the important thing is to keep moving forward, to keep adapting to changed circumstances, and to re-orient oneself toward the goal.... 

Stability is not a commitment to sameness. On the contrary, it is a springboard that projects us into the future and ensures that the charism does not atrophy. As such, it is an ongoing call to transcendence, not an excuse for nesting in the present (194-195).

 

HANGING IN THERE

 Earlier this week, on the Feast of Thomas the Apostle, Our Lord sends out his apostles with the encouraging words, “But he who endures to the end will be saved” (Matt 24:13).

The Greek word for ¨endures¨ is hupomeno. It is made up of two parts: hupo (under) and meno (to remain constantly). The idea is to persevere, to remain no matter what.

Today´s heat has sapped my energy, I would like to pass on a brief study of the various NT appearances of hupomeno that I wrote for myself many years ago. I will leave it to the Holy Spirit to help you gain a lesson from it to apply to your own life.

“And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind (hupomēno) in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it” (Luke 2:43).

“ Then the brethren immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and Timothy remained (hupomēno) there” (Acts 17:14).

Stand one’s ground, hold out, endure:

“And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But he who endures (hupomēno) to the end will be saved. (Matt 10:22).

“But he who endures to the end will be saved” (Matt 24:13).

“Therefore I endure (hupomēno) everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain salvation in Christ Jesus with its eternal glory. The saying is sure: If we have died with him, we shall also live with him; if we endure(hupomēno), we shall also reign with him (2 Tim. 2:10-12).

11: Behold, we call those happy who were steadfast (hupomēno). You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful. (James 5:11)

12: Blessed is the man who endures trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love him. (James 1:12)

Looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured (hupomēno)  the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured (hupomēno) from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. (Heb.12:2-3)

“For the Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives. It is for discipline that you have to endure  (hupomēno)” (Heb.12:6-7).

“Rejoice in your hope, be patient (hupomēno) in tribulation, be constant in prayer”(Romans 12:12).

“For what credit is it, if when you do wrong and are beaten for it you take it (hupomēno)  patiently? But if when you do right and suffer for it you take it (hupomēno) patiently, you have God's approval” (1 Peter 2:20).

“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures (hupomēno) all things” (1 Cor. 13:7)

Änd JOY comes with dawn.

GOD´S FAMILY

 The first reading for the feast of Saint Thomas the Apostle on July 3 was from the second chapter of Ephesians. Here Paul is addressing himself to Gentile Christians, that is, people who had been converted to Christianity not from Judaism, but from pagan religion. He is assuring them that the divisions between gentile and Jew that were in force under the Old Jewish Law no longer apply: all of us, he says, whether Gentile or Jew, are all one in Christ. We are no longer  strangers or aliens to one another. Here is the passage:

Brothers and sisters:

You are no longer strangers and sojourners, 

but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones

and members of the household of God, 

built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets,

with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone.

Through him the whole structure is held together

and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord;

in him you also are being built together

into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Eph 2:19-22).

The first time I read this in the original Greek I saw that the writer was playing with a Greek root, but the play on words disappears completely when the passage is translated. I would like to share with you a glimpse of Paul's clever play on the word, oikos, which means ¨house,¨ or in its common figurative meaning, ¨family.¨ For example, you remember that Saint Luke tells us that the virgin Mary ¨was espoused to a man named Joseph of the oikos of David.¨ The ¨house¨ here is the ¨family¨ or lineage of David

With this in mind, let´s go through the passage and lift out each word which involves the root oik- (house,family). I hope that you´ll share some of the satisfaction that I feel as I bring to light the treasures hidden in this passage. 

Brothers and sisters:

You are no longer strangers and sojourners,

but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones

and members of the household of God, (okeioi) 

      [Another translation might be ¨you are members God´s family,¨ or even ¨you are relatives of God.¨ ¨Yes,¨ you might say to a friend, ¨I´m related to God.¨]

built upon (epoikodomethentes) the foundation of the Apostles and prophets.  

  [This rather long Greek word, a straightforward term used in house construction, lifts up the role of the apostles as the ones chosen by God to serve as the firm basis on which the Church will be built. ] 

Christ the capstone of the Church

with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone.

Through him the whole structure (oikodome) is held together

        [The noun (oikodome) is the word for a ¨structure or a building.¨]

and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord;

in him you also are being built together (sunoikodoemsthei) 

        [The prefix sun - or syn- means ¨with.¨ So ¨built together ¨gives me the picture of all of us             being intimately unified by belonging to the great project of ¨building" the Church of                 Christ.]

into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

The first time that the root oikos occurs in this passage, it is used in the figurative sense of household or family. The other four times it is used literally, borrowing imagery from architecture or construction.

But the first time that the word is used, with the meaning of ¨family¨seems to me to color the whole rest of the passage with the warm glow of God's love for his family united in him and which includes you and me. For me this passage invites us to reflect on the Church not in terms of a building, but as God´s close family in which each of us is loved with a warm, intimate and infinite love.

Now you may want go back and read the passage as given at the beginning of this post and notice how that first word, okeioi ("members of God´s family") colors the rest of the passage, reminding you that you are a member of God´s vast family and loved by him as his very favorite family member.

STRETCHING EXERCISES

A Coincidence?

Some people say that there is no such thing as a coincidence when it comes to talking about our spiritual life. Well, in this case, it seems that the Lord arranged a beautiful “coincidence” for me in the mass readings yesterday and today.

Yesterday, Friday, the gospel of Matthew tells us that when the leper asks Jesus to heal him, Jesus “stretching out his hand” touches and heals him. The Greek verb for “stretch” (ekteino) describes a very straightforward, physical action of Jesus, reaching out to touch this man.

In today’s first reading for the solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, the Acts of the Apostles tells us that while Peter was in prison awaiting execution, the church was “praying constantly” (ekteinos) for him. But the translation “constantly,” while a legitimate second meaning, hides the important fact that the word is based on that same Greek verb “to stretch out” that was used of Jesus (in the first verse above) when healing the leper. The image, then, is of the early Christians “stretching out” in prayer. (The idea of “constantly” comes from the idea that if you pray earnestly, you will pray constantly.)

Stretching exercises?

The image that I reflected on this morning was of that small group of persecuted Christians praying for Peter, with their hands stretched out earnestly in fervent prayer, begging the Lord to watch over Peter.

It occurred to me that, unfortunately, my own prayer seldom looks like that.

Sometimes, though, inspired by this very scene from the Acts of the Apostles, I do pray with that intensity, maybe even with my hands stretched out in earnest prayer. It’s a powerful experience, maybe too powerful, too intense. When I’m praying like that I’m not in control, but leaving myself completely open to the Lord -- and that, as you know, can be very unsettling.

Peter and Paul

On this solemn feast of  Saints Peter and Paul, we celebrate two men who give us great examples of both living and dying with heroic earnestness. Even as a Pharisee, Saul was so earnest about persecuting Christians that Jesus had to knock him to the ground and strike him blind to get his attention. We all know of his enthusiasm for preaching the gospel after his conversion.

And Peter, too, was known to act boldly for the gospel -- his brash and enthusiastic personality gave him a head start in this direction.

When it comes to the Greek word we’re looking at today, Peter leaves us a powerful verse to meditate on. In his First Letter (Ch. 4:8) he uses ekteinos to describe not Christians’ prayer but their love for their brothers and sisters: “Have constant love for one, another,” or, if you’d like, “Have earnest love for one another.” What a beautiful image!: I need to love my brothers and sisters with the same intensity and earnestness that characterized the prayer of those first Christians, and with the same purposeful “stretching out” that Jesus did when he lovingly reached out to touch that leper.

So, on the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, this “coincidence” of the Greek root ekteinos occurring two days in a row at mass has proven to be a very fruitful gift to me.

I hope it may be the same for you today.

ARE YOU WORRIED?

 The gospel  passage at today's mass (Saturday) is a treatise about worrying (Mt 6:24-34), Since the summer heat is wearing me down, I’m taking a shortcut and presenting a chapter from my book “Walking in Valleys of Darkness.” 

It's no wonder that ours is sometimes called "The Age of Anxiety." Everyone, it seems, is worried about something -- or probably about a lot of things. The pressures of daily living in a complex society – balancing job and family, providing for a secure economic future, concern for the safety and education of our children leave us feeling anxious. We stopped worrying over a nuclear showdown in the "cold war" with the Soviet Union only to be faced with the new worry of global terrorism in our cities, and warnings about drug-resistant diseases that could wipe us out.   

Since the NT word for “worry,” merimnao, comes up a dozen times, we can get some idea of the kinds of things that the people in the early Christian churches worried about. The first Christians probably a lot of the same things you and I do! In the story of Martha and Mary, Jesus points out to the harried hostess Martha, “you worry (merimnao) and fret over many things, but only one is necessary. (Lk 10:41)”

Before looking further at how the word is used, though, it would be helpful to know that the Greek New Testament verb merimnao, and the noun form merimna come from the verb merizo, “to divide,” to draw in different directions. By extension merizo means “to distract.” in the sense of “to divide someone’s attention, to cause them to go off in a different direction.” 

To be worried is, then, to be distracted from something. Martha in the passage quoted above was distracted from the opportunity to listen to God Incarnate in her own living room and soak in his words. 

Worries can distract us from many important things. In the parable of the Sower, the seed gets sown among thorns gets choked off. The thorns, Our Lord explained, are the worries (merimna) of this world that distract us from the Word sown in our hearts. In another place Jesus warns, “Take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be overcome with surfeiting and drunkenness and the worries (merimna) of this life, and that day catch you unawares. (Lk 21:34)”  

It's true that worries can distract us from paying attention to God’s word, and can leave us unprepared for the coming of the Lord on the last day, but the bible is clear that not all anxiety is bad.

There is a kind of anxiety that is a natural part of loving and caring about someone This is the kind of anxiety that can push us closer to God. Paul tells the Philippians that he hopes to send them Timothy, the only one who is concerned about (merimnao) them the way Paul himself is (Phil. 2:20). In his list of his sufferings as an apostle Paul includes, along with shipwrecks, floods, hunger and thirst, his “anxiety” (merimna) for all the churches. (II Cor. 11:28)" 

What makes worry harmful is its power to distract us from our true goal in life. However, at least in Paul’s eyes, to be deeply concerned and even anxious for a brother or sister is not a distraction from our true mission, but is in fact something we ought to feel toward one another as Christians! He tells the Corinthians that the parts of Christ’s body should have concern (merimnao) for one another (I Cor. 12:25).

What kind of help does the bible offer to keep anxiety from distracting us from our truly important concerns? There are two texts that offer some insight. The First Letter of Peter tells the community to be humble, because God resists the proud. “And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for: 'God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble.' So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your worries (merimna) upon him because he cares for you. (I Pet. 5:5-7)” 

The writer connects worrying with pride. He seems to be telling us to be more humble, and stop trying to be so much in control of everything and cast our care on the Lord instead. Let God worry about it! Not such bad advice for worriers. 

In the Letter to the Philippians Paul offers a second bit of advice about how to handle worries: “The Lord is coming soon. Have no anxiety at all [= do not worry (merimnao)], but in all things, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:6-7)” Notice that peace comes only after you make your requests known to God. Once we include the Lord in the situation everything changes: our worries become gifts! They give us a reason to get close to God in prayer, and opportunity to admit our neediness and our dependence on God. They can lead us to the peace that surpasses all understanding – and that overcomes all anxiety.

Read Mt. 6:25-34, the section of the Sermon on the Mount that contains a treatise on worrying. Some form of the word merimnao comes up half a dozen times in those ten verses, including “Let tomorrow worry (merimnao) about itself” so that you don’t get distracted from the opportunities of today.

Read Lk 12:11 in which Jesus advises “When they bring you to trial before the synagogue do not worry (merimnao) about how you will answer or what you are to say. It will be given you at that time.” “Don’t be distracted from your present apostolic task,” he seems to be saying, “by worrying about your trial.” Have you ever been so distracted by anxiety that you lost your focus on important tasks at hand? Is there anything right now that is causing you a great amount of concern? Make up a prayer to the Lord and ask him to take that worry over for you so that you may have peace can be about the important business of being Christ to others.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS?

 

The original St. Mary's building

This week we "downtown monks" spent four days on retreat with our Benedictine brothers at Saint Mary's Abbey in the beautiful, quiet hills of Morris County, about 24 miles west of Newark. For me, the best part was the opportunity to just sit and reflect and write in my prayer journal.

I reflected a lot on my experience of being unfinished, and of my temptation to fill in the emptiness when it seems that God is not enough for me. I wrote that I dislike being unfinished but want to be complete -- in other words, I want to be God.

Here are two passages to reflect on:

The first is something I wrote many years ago, but which I tend to forget.

We humans are perpetually unfinished. We have all experienced the sense that there is always something more to learn, to accomplish, to become. It is this “incurable unfinished in this,“ as one philosopher, calls it, that sets us apart from other living things, because in trying to “finish“ ourselves, we become creators. Our incurable unfinishedness keeps us childlike, capable of learning, and growing. We may be trying to head toward perfection, but none of us will ever arrive there.

The second is a poem from "Surprised by Light," a book of beautiful photographs and poems

by Ulrich Schaffer:

He creates the yearning in you.

That at times seems too much to bear.

He allows you to think paradise

Even though you cannot enter it yet.

He lets you become restless

So that you will start again 

Through the thousand thoughts of the world.

He shows you the incompleteness of everything.Because only one image and one presence will still your yearning.

He gives out waiting and yearning

Like a gift and a heaviness,

Because he alone

Can satisfy our hunger.

Just about every line in this poem poses a  useful challenge to me.

I hope you will find something in this post to challenge you!

CAUSING THE KINGDOM?

The first reading at mass this past Tuesday was from the second letter of Peter. The letter deals in part with warnings against false teachers. A particular crisis at the time was the claim by "scoffers" that there will be no “second coming of Jesus,” and that we are not to expect any kind of “parousia.” 

The first sentence of the passage caught my attention: “Beloved, wait for and hasten the coming of the day of God.” (2 Pet. 3:12)

The translation formerly used at mass was“wait earnestly for the coming of the Lord" instead of "hasten the day of the Lord."

This discrepancy between the two translations sent me to my Greek lexicon for some clarification.  What I found made me sit up and take notice. That's why I'm sharing it with you,

The verb in question is speudo. Its first meaning is “hurry.” You may remember in the first chapter of Luke, after the annunciation, Mary goes “in haste” to visit your kinswoman Elizabeth. That noun ” haste“ is from the same root. 

Some extended meanings given in the lexicon for speudo include the notion of “eagerness,” which is what the former lectionary brought out by telling us to be eager for the coming of the day of the Lord

But there is good reason to prefer the first meaning, "to hurry" with a direct object such as to hurry someone along.  If we do so, we find some challenging translations such as:

“Making the day of God come soon.“

"Hastening the day of God.”

One scholar even suggests:

“Doing your best to cause the kingdom.“

The question that arises naturally is this: “How can I cause the day of God to come soon?“

First, we should understand that “the day of the Lord,” refers to the final coming of the “kingdom of God.” And what is this kingdom, this reign of God? Where is it? My favorite image of the kingdom comes from Jesus himself, "The kingdom of God is among you," or, better, "the kingdom of God is between you” (Lk 17:20)" The kingdom exists in the spaces between us, in our relationships with one another.

So I have to ask myself, for example, "What characterizes my relationship with my spouse?" Is it selfless love? Generosity? Impatience? Anger? 

It is in our relationships with one another that the kingdom exists. For me, this means my way of relating with each of my brother monks, with each of my students, etc. Am I doing my share to make the kingdom a reality right now by the way I relate to those around me, by the way I love other people?

So, when Peter writes  “Beloved, wait for and hasten the coming of the day of God,” he is not saying "Sit around and wait for the coming of the day of God," but rather "Be about the task of loving one another, which builds the kingdom and thus brings us all closer to the final coming of Jesus."