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PentecostAs seen through the eyes of the great Renaissance Painter Giotto (1267 - 1337) |
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Fr. Gene gets up early in the morning for a conversation about some great quotes for Advent |
 May 1, 2012In this edition: |
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Practical InsightsBy Br. Bob SylvesterWhat can one do to arrest the estrangement caused by exclusionary secular culture, a culture that had little room left for faith and belief in God? I share a few practical insights that have emerged over time, and especially from my training and experience. They are: 1. It is easy to be converted to the "default settings" of exclusionary secular culture, so develop an understanding of cultural criticism -- especially those rooted in philosophy, theology and psychology; 2. Read and learn from the masters of contemplation, spirituality and mysticism because these men and women open us to what the cultures neglects (i.e., acquiring the language of contemplatives, mystics and spiritual thinkers will increase the power of religious narrative for you); 3. See our present situation as a historic transition and understand it as an intellectual history -- that it, see the ideas that govern thinking and assess their value, their harm or benefit; 4. Imagine that a contemporary Christian might well be living something so fundamental to their life that it might be said that he or she is facing a First Century, early Church experience (i.e., we are given the opportunity to commit ourselves to Christ in a foundational way); (Click title to read more) |
A New Age of WallsBy Father Eugene Hemrick"There is something wrong with this picture," I told myself as I watched Mexican-American laborers build anti-terrorist barriers around the U.S. Capitol while at the same time Congress was voting to erect walls along the Mexican-American border. Without question, illegal immigration needs to be checked, not only for security reasons but also for the safety of immigrants. Sad to say, the threat of terrorism has heightened suspicions about the legality of all immigrants. So, too, have drug cartels infiltrated our country and corrupted America's true values. Equally unfortunate are illegal immigrants who end up being exploited by corrupt people. We have entered a new era of immigration when a welcoming spirit we once lauded is being tested. The problem with walls along our borders is that they heighten suspicions at a time when we should be striving to increase respect for and unity with each other. Building protective walls is a fact of life. In the Bible the walls of Jericho are destroyed by the Hebrews. When they, in turn, build Jerusalem, walls are erected to keep out their enemies. Interestingly, the word "Kremlin" means walls, and in Russia's neighboring country there is the Great Wall of China. (Click title to read more) |
Jesus ChristusA classic meditation on Christ by the author of The LordAuthor: Romano Guardini Ave Maria Press. Notre Dame, IN. 2012. pp. 113 An Excerpt from the Jacket: Romano Guardini, widely recognized as the theological mentor of Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI), presents a series of meditations on the life of Christ that will remind readers of the pope's Jesus of Nazareth series. Delivered while Guardini was writing his bestselling masterwork The Lord, these reflections inspire the reader to contemplate the presence of Jesus Christ manifested to the world. An Excerpt from the Book: Passage As long as I am in the world . . . (John 9:5) A man's life is a weft of happenings of every sort. People and things are there --- friendly and hostile, close and alien. They work their influence, they hinder or further. Man comes to grips with the realities of the world: he has dealings, he acts, creates, experiences his destiny. This plethora of elements is all drawn together by what we call his personality. Here is something very important: what is the total impression this man makes? There are different ways of looking at this. One man's. (Click title to read more) |
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An Excerpt from the Introduction: Welcome to Together at Baptism and to this special time of preparation for your child's Baptism in the Catholic Church. Parents from many walks of life use this booklet, and we hope that each of you will find much of value in it. You may be awaiting the birth of your first child, have a newborn, or have a child who is several months old. One parent may not be Catholic, or you may be a single parent. Perhaps you have been away from the Church for a while. No matter what your life circumstances are, if you have come to the Church sincerely desiring to raise your child in the Catholic faith, this book is written for you. We hope it will enrich your experience of Christian parenthood and help you to understand the rich meaning of the celebration of your child's Baptism and the lifelong journey of faith that this sacrament initiates. An Excerpt from the Book: The people may sing a psalm or hymn suitable for the occasion. Meanwhile, the celebrating priest, or deacon, vested in alb or surplice with a stole (with or without a cope) of festive color, (Click title to read more) |
In the last decade, the numbers of Catholic priests and Catholic parishes have declined in number, but the scale of parish life in the United States has expanded along with the nation's growing Catholic population. Bigger parishes, more Masses, and ministries in languages other than English are becoming the norm. This is one of many new findings from the Emerging Models of Pastoral Leadership project that just released the first report, The Changing Face of U.S. Catholic Parishes details the findings from the first phase of the study, a 2010 national survey of pastors and other parish leaders at 846 randomly selected U.S. parishes. The report is available at: www.emergingmodels.org The survey documents changes in parish life as the U.S. Catholic Church has downsized its number of parishes in recent years. In the last decade, through a combination of closing and mergers, U.S. Catholic Church leaders have reduced the number of parishes in the United States by 1,359 (a decline of 7.1 percent). In 2000, the Church had more than 19,000 parishes nationally and by decade's end it had fewer than 17,800, almost the same number it had in 1965. The survey shows that in the wake of these closures, the average number of registered households in U.S. parishes has grown to 1,168. A third of (Click title to read more) |
A Funny Thing Happened On The Way to the Altar: Comedy, Parables, Miracles and Angelic EncountersCompiled by Rev. William J. Jarema Randy Triplettt at Images in Ink. Colorado Springs, CO. 2005. pp. 203 An Excerpt from the Introduction: This book is a compilation of stories and shared experiences that I have collected over the past 25 years of public speaking. Many of the program participants of the various conferences, retreats, and workshops throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean have contributed to this collection of stories, parables and personal miracles. My hope is to share the wisdom of these storytellers who have graciously provided their life experiences through this collection of stories and reflections. I am most grateful to the many participants I have had the privilege to serve as their retreat director, conference speaker, or workshop provider. An Excerpt from the Book: Things Our Mothers Taught Us My mother taught me LOGIC. . ."If you fall off that swing and break your neck, you can't go to the store with me." (Click title to read more) |
Lay ministry association shows us our inheritanceMay 12, 2012By An NCR Editorial Years ago a campus minister at a prominent Catholic university bemoaned the fact that much of the institutional church was squandering its inheritance of laypeople committed to a ministerial call within the church in favor of a continued call for prayers for vocations to priesthood and religious life. Fortunately, for 35 years the National Association for Lay Ministry (NALM) has been working to counter that impression. It has given a public and unified voice to the many lay ministers who work in parishes, prisons, universities, diocesan offices, hospitals and retreat centers, to name just a few. (Click title to read more) |
CARA reports U.S. seminary theology numbers highest since 1988-89May 09, 2012By Jerry Filteau WASHINGTON -- U.S. Catholic seminary enrollment in theology this year is the highest in almost a quarter-century, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate reported in the spring issue of its quarterly newsletter, The CARA Report. The reported growth in seminarians, however, does not begin to match the growth in the U.S. Catholic population, which has increased by about 25 percent in that time period. "This year's total of 3,723 is the highest enrollment since the 3,788 reported for 1988-89," (Click title to read more) |
The New EvangelizationRon RolheiserRecently a new expression has made its way into our theological and ecclesial vocabulary. There's a lot of talk today about the New Evangelization. Indeed the Pope has called for a Synod to meet this year for a month in Rome to try to articulate a vision and strategy for such an endeavor. What is meant by New Evangelization? In simple terms: Millions of people, particularly in the Western world, are Christian in name, come from Christian backgrounds, are familiar with Christianity, believe that they know and understand Christianity, but no longer practice that faith in a meaningful way. They've heard (Click title to read more) |
Pastoral councils are a work in progressBy Tom GallagherMission Management Diocesan and parish pastoral councils have recently been in the news. First, the beleaguered Philadelphia archdiocese announced the formation of its first "archdiocesan pastoral council," as Archbishop Charles Chaput tries to create almost from scratch a well-functioning enterprise. Then there's the case of Florian Stangl, a 26-year-old gay Austrian man in a registered domestic partnership, whose pastor had prohibited him from serving on the parish council to which he had been elected by a wide margin. Cardinal Christoph Schonborn of Vienna overrode the pastor and allowed Stangl to serve on the council. (Click title to read more) |
The Christian in the WorldFrom a letter to DiognetusAn excellent reflection on who we are as Christians in times in which the Persecution of Christians is on the increase. Christians are indistinguishable from other men either by nationality, language or customs. They do not inhibit separate cities of their own, or speak in strange dialect, or follow some outlandish way of life. Their teaching is not based upon reveries inspired by the curiosity of men. Unlike some other people, they champion no purely human doctrine. With regard to dress, food and manner of life in general, they follow the customs of whatever city they happen to be living in, whether it is Greek or foreign. And yet there is something (Click title to read more) |
The Place of Recollection in Prayer and Its PowersBy Romano Guardini in his book: Prayer in PracticeThe basic meaning of the 'collected' is to be gathered together, united. A glance at our life will show how much we lack this attitude. We should have a fixed center which, like the hub of a wheel, governs our movements and from which all our actions go out and to which they return; a standard, also, or a code by which we distinguish the important from the unimportant, the end from the means and which puts actions and experiences into their proper order; something stable, unaffected by change and yet capable of development, which makes it clear to us who we are and how matters stand with us. We lack this; we, the men of today, lack it more than did those who lived in earlier ages. (Click title to read more) |
The Power of PowerlessnessRon RolheiserThere are different kinds of power and different kinds of authority. There is military power, muscle power, political power, economic power, moral power, charismatic power, and psychological power, among other things. There are different kinds of authority too: We can be bitterly forced into acquiescing to certain demands or we can be gently persuaded into accepting them. Power and authority are not all of a kind. Imagine four persons in a room: The first is a powerful dictator who rules a country. His word commands armies and his shifting moods intimidate subordinates. He wields a brutal power. Next to him sits a gifted athlete at the peak of his physical prowess, a man whose quickness and strength have few equals. His skills are a graceful power for which he is much admired and envied. The third person is a rock star whose music and charisma can electrify an audience and fill a room with a soulful energy. Her face is on billboards and she is a household name. That's still another kind of power. Finally, we have too in the room a newborn, a baby, lying in its (Click title to read more) |
Recognize martyrs around the world by canonizing one of their ownby John L Allen JrThe National Catholic Reporter Once again, Christians found themselves on the firing line last Sunday, with 19 people killed in Nigeria and one in Kenya in attacks on three churches. Those atrocities, alas, have rated no more than a blip on the global radar screen, largely because such things have become chillingly familiar. The consensus estimate is that about 150,000 Christians are today killed around the world every year, either out of hatred for the faith or for works of charity inspired by the faith. That translates into one victim every three and a half minutes. In effect, we are witnessing the rise of an entire new generation of Christian martyrs. Every time something like this happens, the Vatican, to its credit, is usually quick to speak out. Again this time, Jesuit Fr. Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesperson, denounced the "horrible and despicable acts" in Kenya and Nigeria and urged the populations to resist a "vicious circle of homicidal hatred." (Click title to read more) |
Growing old gracefullyBy Father Eugene Hemrick"The service of the elders is not a service of labor; it is a service of enlightenment, of wisdom, of discernment of spirits. Only the carriers of generations past can give us those things, because wisdom is what lasts after an experience ends. "We cannot expect wisdom as a wholesale item of the young then, because they simply have not lived long enough or through enough to have been able to amass much of it." The above reflection on aging by Sister Joan Chittister is in her book "The Gift of Years: Growing Old Gracefully" (Blue Bridge, New York, 2008). It is consoling, and thought-provoking, for it made me recall the wisdom of my grandparents, especially as it pertained to my Uncle George. I will never forget the death of Uncle George. Each day he would go to the corner grocery store and argue ferociously with the staff. As a boy, I never thought he would die because he possessed so much fighting spirit. He did die, becoming my first encounter with death. (Click title to read more) |
The Home as a Sacred TempleReflections byRomano Guardini and Frank Lloyd Wright On Making Our Home Sacred The reality of the house is order The blessing of the house is community The glory of the house is hospitality The crown of the house is godliness Frank Lloyd Wright In the home the idea of the consecrated place should be revived. But this is more difficult, especially when there is a shortage of space, or where other members of the family show indifference or reluctance. All the same it should be possible to establish some kind of a sanctuary, be it only the corner of a room in which hangs a crucifix, in front of which one may sit down, or a holy picture on the wall which one approaches with special reverence. A holy picture is more than a mere memento. Obviously it is not Christ Himself or the Mother of the Lord or the saint whom it depicts; we must beware of such phantasies. At the same time it is more than a (Click title to read more) |
An Excerpt from the Jacket: In this book, Monsignor Guardini treats of some of the gravest issues that confront the thinking man: death and the hereafter. In giving an outline of the Church's teaching concerning death, purification after death, resurrection, the Last Judgment, and eternity, the author addresses himself to man today. The change that has come about in our vies of the universe and in our knowledge about life give rise to many questions and contradictions. Monsignor Guardini takes them up one by one, illuminating them in the light of revelation. Christians, he says, must not suppose that they are forced by divine authority to accept nonsense, but should perceive that they have been admitted to a higher view than that of natural science, a view which, though mysterious, is yet real. From this point of view, the reader is shown his position in time, and taught to think and act in accordance with a higher (Click title to read more) |
Talent: Knowing what to look forBy Father Eugene Hemrick"Recruiting the most talented people possible is the first task of anyone who hopes to create a great group. Talented people smell out places that are full of promise and energy, places where the future is being made." For those of us who are responsible for finding talent, the above thoughts of sociologist Warren Bennis raise the question, "How do we identify talent, and where is it best found?" Talented persons possess natural aptitude and have a readiness for learning. An excellent example of such a person in history is Russia's Peter the Great. His desire to learn everything about shipbuilding helped Russia create a powerful navy that ruled the seas and enabled it to defend itself against surrounding countries. Peter traveled the world and was forever studying the latest technologies and recruiting those who created them. He knew how to "smell out places that are full of promise and energy." (Click title to read more) |
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Our inspiration for the National Institute for the Renewal of the Priesthood stems from a longstanding friendship with Father John Klein, a priest of the Our work is made possible in part by grants from the Catholic Church Extension Society, the Paluch Family Foundation and Our Sunday Visitor. We are also grateful for the prayers of the Madonna House. In addition, The Arthur J. Schmitt Foundation has generously provided us with a grant in honor of Monsignor Ken Velo, a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago who has been an inspiration to so many for so many years. If there is any way that I can be of service to you, I hope you will take advantage of the link below to send me an email. I would enjoy hearing from you with any comments or questions you may have. Father Gene Hemrick
The National Institute for the Renewal of the Priesthood Washington Theological Union 6896 Laurel Street, Northwest Washington, D.C. Dedicated to energizing the spiritual and intellectual life of the priesthood
through an ongoing dialogue via the Internet. This Web page was created and is maintained by the National Institute for the Renewal of the Priesthood.
Please send comments to Father Hemrick by clicking on his name.  .Last updated May 15, 2012 |
