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All those who were my friends
are on the watch for any misstep of mine. “Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail, and take our vengeance on him.” But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph. In their failure they will be put to utter shame,
to lasting, unforgettable confusion.
Predictably, the long knives come out when the Catholic Church celebrates a new pope. They believe with the cynical Stark in Robert Warren's All the King's Men, who assigned Jack to find some dirt on the new judge:
Jack: But suppose there isn't anything to find. Stark: There is always something. Jack: Maybe not on the Judge. Stark: Man is conceived in sin and born in corruption and he passeth from the stink of the diddie [ed. diaper] to the stench of the shroud. There is always something.Perhaps they would blame anyone who survived Argentina's Dirty War for not dying as a martyr. They said evil things about the popes Pius XII, John Paul II and Benedict XVI. Anyone who survives our tumultuous times, even in the United States, is tainted with evil. Haven't I paid taxes to support the largest war machine in history, the School of the Americas, and the torture of innocent men in Guantanamo?
To live in our world is to be guilty. We call it "Original Sin," a doctrine which many pious naifs deny.
But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion:On Sunday Catholics will stand through the Passion Narrative of Saint Luke and shout, "Crucify Him!" and "Release Barabas to us." Thus do we claim our own guilt for the death of Jesus.
my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.
In their failure they will be put to utter shame,
to lasting, unforgettable confusion.
The story is told of the prisoner who stood before a fellow prisoner in a Nazi prison camp. When the clerk asked his name the fellow said, "But you've got to understand. I've done nothing wrong!"
Jesus, as he stood before Annas, Caiphas, Herod Antipas and Pontius Pilate, made no such claim.
He who consecrates and those who are being consecrated all have one origin. Therefore, he is not ashamed to call them “brothers [and "sisters,"] saying: “I will proclaim your name to my brothers [and sisters], in the midst of the assembly I will praise you”; and again: “I will put my trust in him”; and again: “Behold, I and the children God has given me.” Hebrews 2:11-13As we enter Holy Week we stand with our Holy Father Pope Francis -- and with our God.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.