Welcome, God and All (I think)...
It's been six months since I last completed a reflection and posted it here.
In that time, while trying to maintain a quiet life, I've come to realize that I cannot stay silent or ignorant of the world around me. Social media keeps banging loudly at my virtual door in the latter; and in the former, my Lord and God commands that there are times when I must speak out.
You got me right. As a Catholic Christian disciple, I'm supposed to call out injustice wherever and wherever it exists. Additionally, I have to do so in such a way as to address the issues and not judge those who create such issues or promote said injustice. This is something I shouldn't do rashly.
We are, by and large, a reactionary society. Something is said or done, and we look to see how our neighbors and leaders, and sometimes even our pastors react to it. Our quest to know what the trending reactions are is so great, we turn to media pundits and even former government leaders for their reactions. All this really seems to do, however, is to muddy the murky landscape to the point that it's extremely difficult to navigate.
i don't believe for one minute that political leadership isn't aware of this and will purposely manipulate facts and speculation to state their case on how they intend to deal with an issue. In a society seriously divided, a reaction on one side forces a counter-reaction on the other side in a spiral that digs deeper and deeper so that it would take direct divine intervention to resolve the issue.
Chicago, near my home turf, seems to be at the epicenter of a number of things. Cardinal Blase Cupich was to bestow a lifetime achievement award to retiring Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, for his work in dealing with the plight of impoverished immigrants. This caused immediate reaction from several other bishops as well as some of the Catholic faithful; Durbin's voting record favored the right to procure an abortion and as such, negated his eligibility to receive such an award. Now that we have an American-born, English-speaking pope, Leo XIV was immediately asked to weigh in on the situation. His answer surprised many. Being 'pro-life' is an all-encompassing thing. You can't be against abortion and promote the separation of families torn apart due to the immigration status of one or both parents. Senator Durbin, aware of the scandal this could cause, declined acceptance of the award - a sign, perhaps, that this is another "near occasion" of sin.
And on that immigration front, because of the Trump administration's overstatement of the issue, efforts were stepped up in a big way to remove perceived illegals from the country, especially in 'sanctuary' cities like Chicago and Portland, Oregon, where local officials offer free health care, driver's licenses and deep subsidies on housing and do not cooperate with federal agents executing their mandated orders. That not being enough, the National Guard has been called into these cities, along with Los Angeles and Washington DC, even as state and local authorities say they're not wanted.
The President is well known for going to extremes to advance his agenda. We're split down the middle on it. Some say that he is the first American leader in forty years to effectively get anything done, while others claim that his leadership style resembles that of dictators and royalty from other eras in world history (and other leaders in different parts of the world today). Meanwhile, the Church, as the world's moral mouthpiece, vainly attempts to be apolitical, and it's not working.
And what is our reaction to all this?
One would hope there would be prayer first, that the Holy Spirit would motivate us to appropriate action. What seems to be happening, though, is to turn this situation into a nation-wide protest movement and party at the same time, in a so-called "family-friendly" rally called "No Kings". Now we haven't had "royalty" in America in 250 years, and, to my best knowledge, if we had a king, we would not likely be allowed to hold such a protest.
Organizers and some of the participants say the purpose of this huge gathering is to make a statement to the President and his administration, as well as his backing political party. Excuse me, but they're ignoring you. Not to mention that Congress can't get a spending bill passed and as a result, the government has been effectively shut down for the last two weeks, with no end in sight. Yet congressmen and senators are still getting paid..to do nothing; while furloughed government employees can't pay bills and are lining up at food pantries to be able to feed themselves and their families.
To further draw attention to themselves, some protesters have donned costumes, dressing like frogs, unicorns, and sheep. It's not a Halloween party - and don't get me started on how I see that a sacred time to remember our beloved dead (and to remind us of our own death someday), has been totally bastardized by the culture. They don't realize that God sees the sin within us through the hideous and grotesque costumes we choose to wear. What would Jesus do to a generation that charges admission to scare you out of your skin (and makes you sign affidavits to release them from any liability should someone have an extreme reaction to their creepshow)?
How do I testify the truth in this, especially to colleagues and family and friends who may believe I'm over-reacting?
It's a difficult situation. I am not a big people person. Growing up in a large Catholic household, miles away at the time from anything meaningful, split-up from what neighborhood friends I had because I went to a Catholic school, and later because the public school system couldn't be consistent about where they sent us 'outliers' - and ridiculed by peers because they falsely thought the town I lived in was also home to a state mental hospital - made me something of an isolationist. So I am troubled by having to accept their opinions on issues when I believe they are being misled or under-informed. Or am I the real problem?
Little by little I have come out of my shell, despite having to uproot myself at least four times - and Lord, I love you despite the fact that I am getting too old to keep dealing with the same circular arguments again and again and again.
I acknowledge You, Christ Jesus, and You alone, as my One True King and Lord and Savior. Lead me in your righteousness! Make Thy way plain before my face!!
Amen...
Until we meet again, may God be with you...and may God have mercy on us all,
+the Phoenix
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