"To Be a Father Means Above All to Be at the Service of Life and Growth"
Here is the address Benedict XVI delivered today upon presiding over a celebration of vespers with local clergy and with representatives of ecclesial movements and of other Christian confessions at the Basilica of Mary Queen of the Apostles.
* * *
Dear Brother Cardinals and Bishops,
Priests and Deacons,
Consecrated Brothers and Sisters,
Friends from other Christian Confessions,
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
It is a great joy to meet here to give thanks to God in this Basilica of Marie Reine des Apôtres in Mvolyé, raised on the site of the first church built by the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit who came to bring the Good News to Cameroon. Reflecting the apostolic fervour of those men whose hearts embraced the whole of your country, this place symbolically contains every portion of your land. And so, dear brothers and sisters, in deep spiritual closeness to all the Christian communities where you render service, we raise our prayer of praise this evening to the Father of lights.
In the presence of the representatives of other Christian confessions, to whom I extend my respectful and fraternal greetings, I wish to reflect on the figure of Saint Joseph, setting out from the words of Scripture offered to us in this evening’s liturgy.
Speaking to the crowd and to his disciples, Jesus declared: "You have only one Father" (Mt 23:9). There is but one fatherhood, that of God the Father, the one Creator of the world, "of all that is seen and unseen". Yet man, created in the image of God, has been granted a share in this one paternity of God (cf. Eph 3:15). Saint Joseph is a striking case of this, since he is a father, without fatherhood according to the flesh. He is not the biological father of Jesus, whose Father is God alone, and yet he lives his fatherhood fully and completely. To be a father means above all to be at the service of life and growth. Saint Joseph, in this sense, gave proof of great devotion. For the sake of Christ he experienced persecution, exile and the poverty which this entails. He had to settle far from his native town. His only reward was to be with Christ. His readiness to do all these things illustrates the words of Saint Paul: "It is Christ the Lord whom you serve" (Col 3:24).
What is important is not to be a useless servant, but rather a "faithful and wise servant". The pairing of the two adjectives is not by chance. It suggests that understanding without fidelity, and fidelity without wisdom, are insufficient. One quality alone, without the other, would not enable us to assume fully the responsibility which God entrusts to us.
Dear brother priests, you are called to live out this fatherhood in the daily tasks of your ministry. In the words of the conciliar Constitution Lumen Gentium: "As their fathers in Christ, priests should care for the faithful whom they have spiritually begotten by Baptism and instruction" (No. 28). If this is the case, how can we not continually return to the very foundation of our priesthood, the Lord Jesus Christ? Our personal relationship with Jesus is constitutive of the way we wish to live our lives. He has called us his friends because everything which he learned from the Father he has made known to us (cf. Jn 15:15). In living out this deep friendship with Christ you will discover true freedom and deep joy. The ministerial priesthood entails a profound relationship with Christ who is given to us in the Eucharist. Let the celebration of the Eucharist be truly the centre of your priestly lives; in this way it will also be the centre of your ecclesial mission. Throughout our lives Christ calls us to share in his mission, to be his witnesses, so that his word may be proclaimed to all. In celebrating this sacrament in the Lord’s name and in his person, the person of the priest cannot occupy centre stage; he is a servant, a humble instrument pointing to Christ, who offers himself in sacrifice for the salvation of the world. As Jesus teaches us, "the leader must become as one who serves" (Lk 22:26). Origen writes that "Joseph understood that Jesus was superior to him even as he submitted to him, and, knowing the superiority of his charge, he commanded him with respect and moderation. Everyone should reflect on this: frequently a lesser man is placed over people who are greater, and it happens at times that an inferior is more worthy than the one who appears to be set above him. If a person of greater dignity understands this, then he will not be puffed up with pride because of his higher rank; he will know that his inferior may well be superior to him, even as Jesus was subject to Joseph" (Homily on Saint Luke XX, 5; S.C. p. 287).
Dear brothers in the priesthood, your pastoral ministry demands many sacrifices, yet it is also a source of great joy. Trusting in your Bishops, united fraternally to the whole presbyterate and supported by the portion of the People of God commended to your care, you will be able to respond faithfully to the Lord who has called you, just as he called Joseph to watch over Mary and the Child Jesus! May you always remain faithful, dear priests, to the promises that you made to God before your Bishop and in the presence of the whole community. The Successor of Peter thanks you for your generous devotion to the service of the Church, and he urges you not to be troubled by the difficulties you encounter along the way. To the young men who are preparing to join you, and to those still discerning a priestly vocation, I hold out once more the joy that comes from giving oneself completely to the service of God and the Church. Be courageous, then, and generously say "yes" to Christ!
Dear brothers and sisters who live out your commitment in the consecrated life or in ecclesial movements, I also encourage you to look to Saint Joseph. When Mary received the visit of the angel at the Annunciation, she was already betrothed to Joseph. In addressing Mary personally, the Lord already closely associates Joseph to the mystery of the Incarnation. Joseph agreed to be part of the great events which God was beginning to bring about in the womb of his spouse. He took Mary into his home. He welcomed the mystery that was in Mary and the mystery that was Mary herself. He loved her with great respect, which is the mark of all authentic love. Joseph teaches us that it is possible to love without possessing. In contemplating Joseph, all men and women can, by God’s grace, come to experience healing from their emotional wounds, if only they embrace the plan that God has begun to bring about in those close to him, just as Joseph entered into the work of redemption through Mary and as a result of what God had already done in her. Dear brothers and sisters from the ecclesial movements, may you be attentive to those around you, and may you reveal the loving face of God to the poor, especially by your works of mercy, your human and Christian education of young people, your programmes for the advancement of women, and in so many other ways!
The spiritual contribution offered by consecrated persons is likewise significant and indispensable for the life of the Church. This call to follow Christ is a gift for the whole People of God. According to your vocation, that of imitating Christ, chaste, poor and obedient, totally consecrated to the glory of his Father and the love of his brothers and sisters, you have the mission of bearing much-needed witness before our world to the primacy of God and of eternal life (cf. Vita Consecrata, 85). By your unreserved fidelity to your commitments, you are for the Church a sapling of life, springing up to serve the coming of God’s Kingdom. At all times, and especially whenever your fidelity is put to the test, Saint Joseph reminds you of the value and meaning of your promises. The consecrated life is a radical imitation of Christ. Hence the way you live ought to show clearly what inspires you, and your actions must not conceal your deepest identity. Do not be afraid of living to the full the self-offering that you have made to God, bearing authentic witness to it wherever you find yourselves. One particular example that can encourage you to strive for holiness of life is that of Father Simon Mpeke, known as Baba Simon. All of you know how this "barefooted missionary" spent all his energies with selfless humility in the loving service of souls, heedless of the cares and sufferings involved in the material service of others.
Dear brothers and sisters, our meditation on the human and spiritual journey of Saint Joseph invites us to ponder his vocation in all its richness, and to see him as a constant model for all those who have devoted their lives to Christ in the priesthood, in the consecrated life or in the different forms of lay engagement. Joseph was caught up at every moment by the mystery of the Incarnation. Not only physically, but in his heart as well, Joseph reveals to us the secret of a humanity which dwells in the presence of mystery and is open to that mystery at every moment of everyday life. In Joseph, faith is not separated from action. His faith had a decisive effect on his actions. Paradoxically, it was by acting, by carrying out his responsibilities, that he stepped aside and left God free to act, placing no obstacles in his way. Joseph is a "just man" (Mt 1:19) because his existence is "ad-justed" to the word of God.
The life of Saint Joseph, lived in obedience to God’s word, is an eloquent sign for all the disciples of Jesus who seek the unity of the Church. His example helps us to understand that it is only by complete submission to the will of God that we become effective workers in the service of his plan to gather together all mankind into one family, one assembly, one "ecclesia". Dear friends from other Christian confessions, this quest for unity among the disciples of Christ represents a great challenge for us. It leads us first of all to be converted to the Person of Christ, to let ourselves be drawn more and more to him. In him, we are called to acknowledge one another as brothers and sisters, children of the same Father. During this year dedicated to the Apostle Paul, the great herald of Jesus Christ and the Apostle of the Nations, let us all turn towards him so as to hear and learn "the faith and truth" which are the deepest reasons for the unity of Christ’s disciples.
In conclusion, let us now turn to the spouse of Saint Joseph, the Virgin Mary, "Queen of Apostles", for under this title she is invoked as Patroness of Cameroon. To her I commend the consecration which each of you has received, as well as your desire to respond ever more faithfully to your calling and to the mission entrusted to you. Finally, I invoke her intercession for your beautiful country. Amen.
Showing posts with label Fatherhood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fatherhood. Show all posts
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Papal Address to the Roman Rota
"The Truth About Marriage and About Its Intrinsic Juridical Nature"
Here is a Vatican translation of the address Benedict XVI gave Jan. 29 to the Tribunal of the Roman Rota on the occasion of the inauguration of the judicial year.
I found this Papal address very interesting for it highlights certain impediments that may prevent both men and women from making
a complete and free gift of self within the marriage vocation. At the house of formation in Rome, we looked at the recent statement from the Congregation for Catholic Education and Priestly formation, that reflects on certain psychological impediments that prevent men from fully participating in Christ's priesthood.
* * *
Distinguished Judges, Officials and Collaborators of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota,
The solemn inauguration of the judiciary activity of your Tribunal offers me again this year the joy of receiving you its distinguished members: Monsignor Dean, who I thank for the noble opening address, the College of Prelate Auditors, the Officials of the Tribunal and the Advocates of the Studio Rotale. I address to all of you my cordial greeting, together with the expression of my appreciation for the important task to which you attend as faithful collaborators of the Pope and of the Holy See.
You are expecting the Pope, at the beginning of your working year, to say a word of light and guidance on carrying out your delicate duties. We could dwell upon many topics in this circumstance, but at the distance of 20 years from the Addresses of John Paul ii on psychiatry's incapacity in the nullification of matrimony, of 5 February 1987 (Address to the Roman Rota, L'Osservatore Romano English edition [ORE], 23 February 1987, p. 6), and of 25 January 1988 (ORE, 15 February 1988, n. 7, p. 7), it seems opportune to ask oneself whether and to what extent these interventions have had an adequate reception in the ecclesiastical tribunals.
This is not the moment to draw up the balance sheet, but the fact of a problem that continues to be very real is visible to everyone. In some cases one can, unfortunately, still sense the pressing need of which my venerable Predecessor spoke: that of preserving the ecclesial community "from the scandal of seeing in practice the value of Christian marriage being destroyed by the exaggerated and almost automatic multiplication of declarations of nullity, in cases of the failure of marriage, on the pretext of some immaturity or psychic weakness on the part of the contracting parties" (Address to the Roman Rota, n. 9, 5 February 1987, ORE, 23 February 1987, p. 7).
At our meeting today I am intent on recalling the attention of lawyers to the need to treat the cases with the due depth required by the ministry of truth and charity that is proper to the Roman Rota. To the need for a rigorous procedure, in fact, the above mentioned Addresses, on the basis of Christian anthropological principles, furnish the basic criteria, not only for the close examination of psychiatric and psychological evidence, but also for the judicial definition of the causes.
In this regard it is opportune to recall again some distinctions that draw the demarcation line above all between "psychic maturity which is seen as the goal of human development" and "canonical maturity which instead, is the basic minimum required for establishing the validity of marriage" (ibid., n. 6, p. 7). Secondly, the distinction between incapacity and difficulty insofar as "only incapacity and not difficulty in giving consent and in realizing a true community of life and love invalidates a marriage" (ibid., n. 7). Thirdly, the distinction between the canonistic dimension of normality, that is inspired by an integral vision of the human person "also includes moderate forms of psychological difficulty", and the clinical dimension that excludes from the concept of it every limitation of maturity and "every form of psychic illness" (Address to the Roman Rota, n. 5, 25 January 1988, ORE, 15 February 1988, p. 6). And lastly, the distinction between the "minimum capacity sufficient for valid consent" and the idealized capacity "of full maturity in relation to happy married life" (ibid., p. 7).
I then attest to the involvement of the faculties of the intellect and the will in the formation of matrimonial consent, Pope John Paul II, in the above mentioned Address of 5 February 1987, reaffirmed the principle according to which a true incapacity "is to be considered only when an anomaly of a serious nature is present which, however it may be defined, must substantially vitiate the capacity to understand and/or to consent" (Address to the Roman Rota, n. 7, ORE, 23 February 1987, p. 7).
In this regard it seems opportune to recall that the Code of Canon Law's norm concerning mental incapacity, and the application thereof, was further enriched and integrated by the recent Instruction "Dignitas connubii" of 25 January 2005. In fact, in order for this incapacity to be recognized, there must be a particular mental anomaly (art. 209 1) that seriously disturbs the use of reason (art. 209 2, n. 1; can. 1095, n. 1), at the time of the celebration of marriage and the use of reason or the critical and elective faculty in regard to grave decisions, particularly in freely choosing a state of life (art. 209 2, n. 2; can. 1095, n. 2) or that puts the contracting party not only under a serious difficulty but even the impossibility of sustaining the actions inherent in the obligations of marriage (art. 209 2, n. 3; can. 1095, n. 3).
However, on this occasion, I would also like to reconsider the theme of the incapacity to contract marriage, of which canon 1095 speaks, in the light of the relationship between human persons and marriage and recalling some fundamental principles that must enlighten lawyers.
First of all it is necessary to rediscover the positive capacity that in principle every human person has to marry by virtue of his very nature as man or woman. Indeed, we run the risk of falling into a form of anthropological pessimism which, in the light of the cultural situation today, considers marriage as almost impossible. Besides the fact that such a situation is not uniform in the various regions of the world, one cannot confuse the real difficulties confronting many, especially young people who conclude that marital union is normally unthinkable and impracticable with the true incapacity of consent. Rather, reaffirming the innate human capacity for marriage is precisely the starting point for helping couples discover the natural reality of marriage and the importance it has for salvation. What is actually at stake is the truth about marriage and about its intrinsic juridical nature (cf. Benedict XVI, Address to the Roman Rota, 27 January 2007), which is an indispensable premise if people are to understand and evaluate the capacity required to wed.
In this sense the capacity must be associated with the essential significance of marriage, that is "the intimate partnership of life and the love which constitutes the married state has been established by the Creator and endowed by him with its own proper laws" (Second Ecumenical Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution, Gaudium et spes, n. 48), and, in a particular way, with the essential obligations inherent to it, that must be assumed by the couple (can. 1095, n. 3).
This capacity is not measured in relation to a determined level of existential or effective realization of the conjugal union through the fulfillment of the essential obligations, but in relation to the effective will of each one of the partners, who makes possible and operative this realization already at the moment of contracting marriage.
The issue of the capacity or incapacity, therefore, has sense in the measure in which it regards the very act of the marriage contract, since the bond put in act by the will of the spouses constitutes the juridical act of a lofty biblical interpretation of "one flesh" (Gn 2: 24; Mk 10: 8; Eph 5: 31; cf. can. 1061 1), whose valid subsistence does not depend on the successive behavior of the couple during their married life.
On the other hand, in the reductionist optic that fails to recognize the truth on matrimony, the effective relationship of a true communion of life and love, idealized on a level of pure human well-being, essentially becomes dependent only on accidental factors, and not, instead, on the exercise of human freedom sustained by grace.
It is true that this freedom of human nature, "wounded in the natural powers" and "inclined to sin" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 405), is limited and imperfect, but not for this reason does it become inauthentic and insufficient to accomplish that act of self-determination of the parties who form the conjugal pact, that give life to matrimony and to the family founded on it.
Obviously some anthropological and "humanistic" currents aimed at self-realization and egocentric self-transcendence idealize human beings and marriage to such an extent that they then deny the mental capacity of many people, basing this on elements that do not correspond to the essential requirements of the conjugal bond.
Faced with this concept, canon law experts cannot fail to take into account the healthy realism that my venerable Predecessor indicated (cf. John Paul ii, Address to the Roman Curia, 27 January 1997, n. 4, ORE, n. 6 5 February 1997, p. 3), because the capacity makes reference to a basic minimum so that the couple can give their being as a male or as a female to establish that bond to which the great majority of human beings are called.
It follows, in principle, that the causes of nullity through mental incapacity require the judge to employ the services of experts to ascertain the existence of a real incapacity (can. 1680; art. 203 1, DC), that is always an exception to the natural principle of the capacity necessary to understand, decide and accomplish the giving of self upon which the conjugal bond is founded.
This is what, venerable members of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota, I wished to set forth on this solemn occasion, that is always a pleasant circumstance for me. In exhorting you to persevere with a lofty Christian conscience in the exercise of your office, whose great importance for the life of the Church emerges also from the things just said. May the Lord accompany you always in your delicate work with the light of his grace, to which the Apostolic Blessing that I impart to each one with deep affection is a pledge.
Here is a Vatican translation of the address Benedict XVI gave Jan. 29 to the Tribunal of the Roman Rota on the occasion of the inauguration of the judicial year.
I found this Papal address very interesting for it highlights certain impediments that may prevent both men and women from making
a complete and free gift of self within the marriage vocation. At the house of formation in Rome, we looked at the recent statement from the Congregation for Catholic Education and Priestly formation, that reflects on certain psychological impediments that prevent men from fully participating in Christ's priesthood.
* * *
Distinguished Judges, Officials and Collaborators of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota,
The solemn inauguration of the judiciary activity of your Tribunal offers me again this year the joy of receiving you its distinguished members: Monsignor Dean, who I thank for the noble opening address, the College of Prelate Auditors, the Officials of the Tribunal and the Advocates of the Studio Rotale. I address to all of you my cordial greeting, together with the expression of my appreciation for the important task to which you attend as faithful collaborators of the Pope and of the Holy See.
You are expecting the Pope, at the beginning of your working year, to say a word of light and guidance on carrying out your delicate duties. We could dwell upon many topics in this circumstance, but at the distance of 20 years from the Addresses of John Paul ii on psychiatry's incapacity in the nullification of matrimony, of 5 February 1987 (Address to the Roman Rota, L'Osservatore Romano English edition [ORE], 23 February 1987, p. 6), and of 25 January 1988 (ORE, 15 February 1988, n. 7, p. 7), it seems opportune to ask oneself whether and to what extent these interventions have had an adequate reception in the ecclesiastical tribunals.
This is not the moment to draw up the balance sheet, but the fact of a problem that continues to be very real is visible to everyone. In some cases one can, unfortunately, still sense the pressing need of which my venerable Predecessor spoke: that of preserving the ecclesial community "from the scandal of seeing in practice the value of Christian marriage being destroyed by the exaggerated and almost automatic multiplication of declarations of nullity, in cases of the failure of marriage, on the pretext of some immaturity or psychic weakness on the part of the contracting parties" (Address to the Roman Rota, n. 9, 5 February 1987, ORE, 23 February 1987, p. 7).
At our meeting today I am intent on recalling the attention of lawyers to the need to treat the cases with the due depth required by the ministry of truth and charity that is proper to the Roman Rota. To the need for a rigorous procedure, in fact, the above mentioned Addresses, on the basis of Christian anthropological principles, furnish the basic criteria, not only for the close examination of psychiatric and psychological evidence, but also for the judicial definition of the causes.
In this regard it is opportune to recall again some distinctions that draw the demarcation line above all between "psychic maturity which is seen as the goal of human development" and "canonical maturity which instead, is the basic minimum required for establishing the validity of marriage" (ibid., n. 6, p. 7). Secondly, the distinction between incapacity and difficulty insofar as "only incapacity and not difficulty in giving consent and in realizing a true community of life and love invalidates a marriage" (ibid., n. 7). Thirdly, the distinction between the canonistic dimension of normality, that is inspired by an integral vision of the human person "also includes moderate forms of psychological difficulty", and the clinical dimension that excludes from the concept of it every limitation of maturity and "every form of psychic illness" (Address to the Roman Rota, n. 5, 25 January 1988, ORE, 15 February 1988, p. 6). And lastly, the distinction between the "minimum capacity sufficient for valid consent" and the idealized capacity "of full maturity in relation to happy married life" (ibid., p. 7).
I then attest to the involvement of the faculties of the intellect and the will in the formation of matrimonial consent, Pope John Paul II, in the above mentioned Address of 5 February 1987, reaffirmed the principle according to which a true incapacity "is to be considered only when an anomaly of a serious nature is present which, however it may be defined, must substantially vitiate the capacity to understand and/or to consent" (Address to the Roman Rota, n. 7, ORE, 23 February 1987, p. 7).
In this regard it seems opportune to recall that the Code of Canon Law's norm concerning mental incapacity, and the application thereof, was further enriched and integrated by the recent Instruction "Dignitas connubii" of 25 January 2005. In fact, in order for this incapacity to be recognized, there must be a particular mental anomaly (art. 209 1) that seriously disturbs the use of reason (art. 209 2, n. 1; can. 1095, n. 1), at the time of the celebration of marriage and the use of reason or the critical and elective faculty in regard to grave decisions, particularly in freely choosing a state of life (art. 209 2, n. 2; can. 1095, n. 2) or that puts the contracting party not only under a serious difficulty but even the impossibility of sustaining the actions inherent in the obligations of marriage (art. 209 2, n. 3; can. 1095, n. 3).
However, on this occasion, I would also like to reconsider the theme of the incapacity to contract marriage, of which canon 1095 speaks, in the light of the relationship between human persons and marriage and recalling some fundamental principles that must enlighten lawyers.
First of all it is necessary to rediscover the positive capacity that in principle every human person has to marry by virtue of his very nature as man or woman. Indeed, we run the risk of falling into a form of anthropological pessimism which, in the light of the cultural situation today, considers marriage as almost impossible. Besides the fact that such a situation is not uniform in the various regions of the world, one cannot confuse the real difficulties confronting many, especially young people who conclude that marital union is normally unthinkable and impracticable with the true incapacity of consent. Rather, reaffirming the innate human capacity for marriage is precisely the starting point for helping couples discover the natural reality of marriage and the importance it has for salvation. What is actually at stake is the truth about marriage and about its intrinsic juridical nature (cf. Benedict XVI, Address to the Roman Rota, 27 January 2007), which is an indispensable premise if people are to understand and evaluate the capacity required to wed.
In this sense the capacity must be associated with the essential significance of marriage, that is "the intimate partnership of life and the love which constitutes the married state has been established by the Creator and endowed by him with its own proper laws" (Second Ecumenical Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution, Gaudium et spes, n. 48), and, in a particular way, with the essential obligations inherent to it, that must be assumed by the couple (can. 1095, n. 3).
This capacity is not measured in relation to a determined level of existential or effective realization of the conjugal union through the fulfillment of the essential obligations, but in relation to the effective will of each one of the partners, who makes possible and operative this realization already at the moment of contracting marriage.
The issue of the capacity or incapacity, therefore, has sense in the measure in which it regards the very act of the marriage contract, since the bond put in act by the will of the spouses constitutes the juridical act of a lofty biblical interpretation of "one flesh" (Gn 2: 24; Mk 10: 8; Eph 5: 31; cf. can. 1061 1), whose valid subsistence does not depend on the successive behavior of the couple during their married life.
On the other hand, in the reductionist optic that fails to recognize the truth on matrimony, the effective relationship of a true communion of life and love, idealized on a level of pure human well-being, essentially becomes dependent only on accidental factors, and not, instead, on the exercise of human freedom sustained by grace.
It is true that this freedom of human nature, "wounded in the natural powers" and "inclined to sin" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 405), is limited and imperfect, but not for this reason does it become inauthentic and insufficient to accomplish that act of self-determination of the parties who form the conjugal pact, that give life to matrimony and to the family founded on it.
Obviously some anthropological and "humanistic" currents aimed at self-realization and egocentric self-transcendence idealize human beings and marriage to such an extent that they then deny the mental capacity of many people, basing this on elements that do not correspond to the essential requirements of the conjugal bond.
Faced with this concept, canon law experts cannot fail to take into account the healthy realism that my venerable Predecessor indicated (cf. John Paul ii, Address to the Roman Curia, 27 January 1997, n. 4, ORE, n. 6 5 February 1997, p. 3), because the capacity makes reference to a basic minimum so that the couple can give their being as a male or as a female to establish that bond to which the great majority of human beings are called.
It follows, in principle, that the causes of nullity through mental incapacity require the judge to employ the services of experts to ascertain the existence of a real incapacity (can. 1680; art. 203 1, DC), that is always an exception to the natural principle of the capacity necessary to understand, decide and accomplish the giving of self upon which the conjugal bond is founded.
This is what, venerable members of the Tribunal of the Roman Rota, I wished to set forth on this solemn occasion, that is always a pleasant circumstance for me. In exhorting you to persevere with a lofty Christian conscience in the exercise of your office, whose great importance for the life of the Church emerges also from the things just said. May the Lord accompany you always in your delicate work with the light of his grace, to which the Apostolic Blessing that I impart to each one with deep affection is a pledge.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Benedict XVI: On Christ as Head
"The Whole Cosmos Is Submitted to Him"
Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI delivered during today's general audience in Paul VI Hall.
* * *
Dear brothers and sisters:
Among the letters of the Pauline collection, there are two, those directed to the Colossians and the Ephesians, that to a point could be considered twins. In fact, both have ways of speaking that are only found in those two, and it is calculated that more than a third of the Letter to the Colossians is found also in Ephesians.
For example, while in Colossians the invitation is read literally to "admonish one another in all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God" (3:16), in Ephesians, it is similarly recommended to "address one another (in) psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and playing to the Lord in your hearts" (5:19).
We could meditate on these words: The heart should sing, and also the voice, with psalms and hymns, to enter into the tradition of the prayer of the whole Church of the Old and New Testament. We thus learn to be united among ourselves and with God. Moreover, in both letters is found a "domestic code," missing in the other Pauline letters, that is, a series of recommendations directed to husbands and wives, parents and children, masters and slaves (Cf. Colossians 3:18-4:1 and Ephesians 5:22-6:9).
Even more important is to see that only in these two letters is confirmed the title "head," kefalé, given to Jesus Christ. And this title is used on two levels. In the first sense, Christ is understood as the head of the Church (cf. Colossians 2:18-19 and Ephesians 4:15-16). This means two things: above all, that he is the governor, the director, the one in charge who guides the Christian community as its leader and lord (cf. Colossians 1:18: "He is the head of the body, the church.") And the other meaning is that it is as the head that he raises and vivifies all the members of the body of which he is head. (In fact, according to Colossians 2:19, it is necessary to "stay united to the head, from which the entire body, through ligaments and joints, receives nutrition and cohesion.") That is, he is not just one who directs, but one who is organically connected to us, from whom comes also the strength to act in an upright way.
In both cases, the Church considers itself submitted to Christ, both to follow his superior leading -- the commandments -- and to welcome all of the vital flow that come from him. His commandments are not just words, mandates, but are vital forces that come from him and help us.
This idea is particularly developed in Ephesians, where even the ministries of the Church, instead of being attributed to the Holy Spirit (as in 1 Corinthians 12), are conferred on the Risen Christ. It is he who "gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers" (4:11). And it is because of him that "the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament ... brings about the body's growth and builds itself up in love" (4:16).
Christ in fact is dedicated to "present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish" (5:27). With this he tells us that the strength with which he builds up the Church, with which he guides the Church, with which also he gives correct direction to the Church, is precisely his love.
Therefore the first meaning is Christ, Head of the Church: be it in regard to the leading, be it above all in regard to the inspiration and organic vitalization in virtue of his love.
Then, in a second sense, Christ is considered not only as head of the Church, but as head of the celestial powers and the entire cosmos.
Thus in Colossians, we read that Christ, "despoiling the principalities and the powers, made a public spectacle of them, leading them away in triumph" (2:15). Analogously in Ephesians, we find that with his resurrection, God put Christ "far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come" (1:21).
With these words, the two letters bestow us with a highly positive and fruitful message. It is this: Christ need not fear any eventual competitor, because he is superior to any type of power that would try to humiliate man. Only he has "loved us and handed himself over for us as a sacrificial offering to God" 5:2). That's why, if we are united to Christ, we should fear no enemy and no adversity; but, this also means that we should remain closely united to him, without letting go!
For the pagan world, which believed in a world full of spirits, mostly dangerous and against which one had to defend oneself, the proclamation that Christ is the only victor and that he who is united to Christ did not have to fear anyone, appeared as a true liberation. The same is true also for the paganism of today, because also the current followers of these ideologies see the world as full of dangerous powers. To these people, it is necessary to announce that Christ is the conqueror, such that one who is with Christ, who remains united to him, should not fear anything or anyone. It seems to me that this is also important for us, who should learn to face all fears, because he is above every domination, he is the true Lord of the world.
Even the whole cosmos is submitted to him, and to him it converges as to its own head. Well-known are the words of the Letter to the Ephesians that speak of the project of God to "sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth" (1:10). Analogously in the Letter to the Colossians, it is read that "in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible" (1:16) and that "through the blood of his cross, he has reconciled all things for him and through him whether those on earth or those in heaven" (1:20).
Therefore, there is not, on one hand, a great material world and on the other hand, this small reality of the history of our land, the world of people: Everything is one in Christ. He is the head of the cosmos; also the cosmos has been created by him, it has been created for us insofar as we are united to him. This is a rational and personalistic vision of the universe. And I would add that a more universalistic vision than this one, it was not possible to conceive, and this converges only in the Risen Christ. Christ is the Pantokrátor, to whom are submitted all things: thought goes toward Christ Pantokrátor, who fills the apse of Byzantine churches, sometimes presented seated on high over the entire world, or even above a rainbow to indicate his comparison with God himself, at whose right hand he is seated (cf. Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1), and therefore his unsurpassable role as conductor of human destinies.
A vision of this type is conceivable only by the Church, not in the sense that it wants to wrongfully take for itself that which does not belong to it, but rather in another double sense. On one hand, the Church recognizes that Christ is greater than she is, given that his lordship also extends beyond her limits. On the other hand, only the Church is classified as the body of Christ, not the cosmos. All of this means that we should consider positively earthly realities, because Christ recapitulates them in himself, and at the same time, we should live our specific ecclesial identity in plenitude, which is the most homogeneous to the identity of Christ himself.
There is also a special concept that is typical of these two letters, and it is the concept of "mystery." Once the "mystery of the will" of God is spoken of (Ephesians 1:9) and other times, the "mystery of Christ" (Ephesians 3:4; Colossians 4:3), or even the "mystery of God, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:2-3).
This makes reference to the inscrutable divine design over the destiny of man, of peoples and of the world. With this language, the two epistles tell us that it is in Christ where the fulfillment of this mystery is found. If we are with Christ, even though we cannot intellectually understand everything, we know that we are in the nucleus and on the path of truth. He is in his totality, and not only one aspect of his person or one moment of his existence, he who gathers in himself the plenitude of the unsearchable divine plan of salvation.
In him takes shape what is called the "manifold wisdom of God" (Ephesians 3:10), since in him "dwells the whole fullness of the deity bodily" (Colossians 2:9). From now on, then, it is not possible to think of and adore the approval of God, his sovereign disposition, without confronting ourselves personally with Christ in person, in whom the "mystery" is incarnate and can be tangibly perceived. Thus one comes to contemplate "the inscrutable riches of Christ" (Ephesians 3:8), which is beyond all human understanding.
It is not that God has not left the mark of his passing, since Christ himself is the footprint of God, his maximum mark, but rather that one realizes "what is the breadth and length and height and depth" of this mystery "that surpasses knowledge" (Ephesians 3:18-19). Mere intellectual categories here prove insufficient, and recognizing that many things are beyond our rational capacities, we should trust in the humble and joyful contemplation, not just of the mind, but also of the heart. The fathers of the Church, on the other hand, tell us that love understands much more than reason alone.
A last word should be said on the concept, already indicated before, concerning the Church as spouse of Christ.
In the Second Letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul had compared the Christian community to a bride, writing: "For I am jealous of you with the jealousy of God, since I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:2). The Letter to the Ephesians develops this image, specifying that the Church is not just a fiancé, but the real spouse of Christ. He, we could say, has conquered her for himself, and he has done this with the price of his life. As the text says, he "handed himself over for her" (Ephesians 5:25).
What demonstration of love can be grander than this one? But moreover, he is concerned for her beauty, not just that already acquired in baptism, but also that which should grow each day thanks to a blameless life, "without wrinkle or spot" in her moral behavior (cf. Ephesians 5:26-27).
From here to the common experience of Christian marriage, the step is a small one; conversely, it's not even clear what is the author's point of initial reference -- whether it is the relationship Christ-Church, from whose light the union between man and woman should be conceived; or if instead it is the datum of the experience of conjugal union, from whose light the relationship between Christ and the Church should be conceived.
But both aspects mutually enlighten one another: We lean what matrimony is in the light of the communion between Christ and the Church; and we learn how Christ unites himself to us thinking of the mystery of matrimony. In any case, our letter is situated almost at the halfway point between the Prophet Hosea, who indicated the relationship between God and his people in terms of a wedding that has already occurred (cf. Hosea 2:4, 16, 21); and the prophet of Revelation, who will announce the eschatological encounter between the Church and the Lamb as a joyful and indestructible wedding (cf. Revelation 19:7-9; 21:9).
There is much more to say, but it seems to me that, from what I have presented, it can be understood that these two letters are a great catechesis, from which we can learn not just how to be good Christians, but also how to come to be truly persons. If we begin to understand that the cosmos is the footprint of Christ, we learn our right relationship with the cosmos, with all of the problems of its conservation. We learn to see [the problems] with reason, but with reason moved by love, and with the humility and the respect that permits acting in a correct way.
And if we think that the Church is the body of Christ, that Christ has given himself for her, we learn how to live with Christ in reciprocal love, the love that unites us to God and that makes us see the other as an image of Christ, as Christ himself.
Let us pray to the Lord so that he helps us to meditate well on sacred Scripture, his Word, and thus truly learn to live well.
[Translation by ZENIT]
[At the end of the audience, the Holy Father greeted the people in several languages. In English, he said:]
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Continuing our catechesis on Saint Paul, we turn to the "twin" letters: Colossians and Ephesians. Similar in language, they are unique in developing the theme of Christ as "head" - kephalé - not only of the Church, but also of the entire universe. These letters assure us that Christ is above any hostile earthly power. Christ alone "loved us and gave himself up for us" (Eph 5:2), so that if we remain close to him, we need not fear any adversity. It was God's plan to "recapitulate" all things in Jesus "through whom all things were created", so that "by the blood of his Cross" we might be reconciled to the Father. Christ's headship also implies that, in a certain sense, he is greater than the Church in that his dominion extends beyond her boundaries, and that the Church, rather than the entire cosmos, is referred to as the Body of Christ. These letters are also notable for the spousal image they use to describe how Christ has "won" his bride - the Church - by giving his life for her (cf. Eph 5:25). What greater sign of love could there be than this? Christ thus desires that we grow more beautiful each day through irreproachable moral conduct, "without wrinkle or defect" (Eph 5:27). By living uprightly and justly, may we bear witness to the nuptial union which has already taken place in Christ as we await its fulfilment in the wedding feast to come.
I extend a warm welcome to all the English-speaking pilgrims present at today's audience. May your time in Rome strengthen you to imitate Saint Paul in "giving thanks always and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father" (Eph 5:20)!
Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI delivered during today's general audience in Paul VI Hall.
* * *
Dear brothers and sisters:
Among the letters of the Pauline collection, there are two, those directed to the Colossians and the Ephesians, that to a point could be considered twins. In fact, both have ways of speaking that are only found in those two, and it is calculated that more than a third of the Letter to the Colossians is found also in Ephesians.
For example, while in Colossians the invitation is read literally to "admonish one another in all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God" (3:16), in Ephesians, it is similarly recommended to "address one another (in) psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and playing to the Lord in your hearts" (5:19).
We could meditate on these words: The heart should sing, and also the voice, with psalms and hymns, to enter into the tradition of the prayer of the whole Church of the Old and New Testament. We thus learn to be united among ourselves and with God. Moreover, in both letters is found a "domestic code," missing in the other Pauline letters, that is, a series of recommendations directed to husbands and wives, parents and children, masters and slaves (Cf. Colossians 3:18-4:1 and Ephesians 5:22-6:9).
Even more important is to see that only in these two letters is confirmed the title "head," kefalé, given to Jesus Christ. And this title is used on two levels. In the first sense, Christ is understood as the head of the Church (cf. Colossians 2:18-19 and Ephesians 4:15-16). This means two things: above all, that he is the governor, the director, the one in charge who guides the Christian community as its leader and lord (cf. Colossians 1:18: "He is the head of the body, the church.") And the other meaning is that it is as the head that he raises and vivifies all the members of the body of which he is head. (In fact, according to Colossians 2:19, it is necessary to "stay united to the head, from which the entire body, through ligaments and joints, receives nutrition and cohesion.") That is, he is not just one who directs, but one who is organically connected to us, from whom comes also the strength to act in an upright way.
In both cases, the Church considers itself submitted to Christ, both to follow his superior leading -- the commandments -- and to welcome all of the vital flow that come from him. His commandments are not just words, mandates, but are vital forces that come from him and help us.
This idea is particularly developed in Ephesians, where even the ministries of the Church, instead of being attributed to the Holy Spirit (as in 1 Corinthians 12), are conferred on the Risen Christ. It is he who "gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers" (4:11). And it is because of him that "the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament ... brings about the body's growth and builds itself up in love" (4:16).
Christ in fact is dedicated to "present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish" (5:27). With this he tells us that the strength with which he builds up the Church, with which he guides the Church, with which also he gives correct direction to the Church, is precisely his love.
Therefore the first meaning is Christ, Head of the Church: be it in regard to the leading, be it above all in regard to the inspiration and organic vitalization in virtue of his love.
Then, in a second sense, Christ is considered not only as head of the Church, but as head of the celestial powers and the entire cosmos.
Thus in Colossians, we read that Christ, "despoiling the principalities and the powers, made a public spectacle of them, leading them away in triumph" (2:15). Analogously in Ephesians, we find that with his resurrection, God put Christ "far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come" (1:21).
With these words, the two letters bestow us with a highly positive and fruitful message. It is this: Christ need not fear any eventual competitor, because he is superior to any type of power that would try to humiliate man. Only he has "loved us and handed himself over for us as a sacrificial offering to God" 5:2). That's why, if we are united to Christ, we should fear no enemy and no adversity; but, this also means that we should remain closely united to him, without letting go!
For the pagan world, which believed in a world full of spirits, mostly dangerous and against which one had to defend oneself, the proclamation that Christ is the only victor and that he who is united to Christ did not have to fear anyone, appeared as a true liberation. The same is true also for the paganism of today, because also the current followers of these ideologies see the world as full of dangerous powers. To these people, it is necessary to announce that Christ is the conqueror, such that one who is with Christ, who remains united to him, should not fear anything or anyone. It seems to me that this is also important for us, who should learn to face all fears, because he is above every domination, he is the true Lord of the world.
Even the whole cosmos is submitted to him, and to him it converges as to its own head. Well-known are the words of the Letter to the Ephesians that speak of the project of God to "sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth" (1:10). Analogously in the Letter to the Colossians, it is read that "in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible" (1:16) and that "through the blood of his cross, he has reconciled all things for him and through him whether those on earth or those in heaven" (1:20).
Therefore, there is not, on one hand, a great material world and on the other hand, this small reality of the history of our land, the world of people: Everything is one in Christ. He is the head of the cosmos; also the cosmos has been created by him, it has been created for us insofar as we are united to him. This is a rational and personalistic vision of the universe. And I would add that a more universalistic vision than this one, it was not possible to conceive, and this converges only in the Risen Christ. Christ is the Pantokrátor, to whom are submitted all things: thought goes toward Christ Pantokrátor, who fills the apse of Byzantine churches, sometimes presented seated on high over the entire world, or even above a rainbow to indicate his comparison with God himself, at whose right hand he is seated (cf. Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1), and therefore his unsurpassable role as conductor of human destinies.
A vision of this type is conceivable only by the Church, not in the sense that it wants to wrongfully take for itself that which does not belong to it, but rather in another double sense. On one hand, the Church recognizes that Christ is greater than she is, given that his lordship also extends beyond her limits. On the other hand, only the Church is classified as the body of Christ, not the cosmos. All of this means that we should consider positively earthly realities, because Christ recapitulates them in himself, and at the same time, we should live our specific ecclesial identity in plenitude, which is the most homogeneous to the identity of Christ himself.
There is also a special concept that is typical of these two letters, and it is the concept of "mystery." Once the "mystery of the will" of God is spoken of (Ephesians 1:9) and other times, the "mystery of Christ" (Ephesians 3:4; Colossians 4:3), or even the "mystery of God, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:2-3).
This makes reference to the inscrutable divine design over the destiny of man, of peoples and of the world. With this language, the two epistles tell us that it is in Christ where the fulfillment of this mystery is found. If we are with Christ, even though we cannot intellectually understand everything, we know that we are in the nucleus and on the path of truth. He is in his totality, and not only one aspect of his person or one moment of his existence, he who gathers in himself the plenitude of the unsearchable divine plan of salvation.
In him takes shape what is called the "manifold wisdom of God" (Ephesians 3:10), since in him "dwells the whole fullness of the deity bodily" (Colossians 2:9). From now on, then, it is not possible to think of and adore the approval of God, his sovereign disposition, without confronting ourselves personally with Christ in person, in whom the "mystery" is incarnate and can be tangibly perceived. Thus one comes to contemplate "the inscrutable riches of Christ" (Ephesians 3:8), which is beyond all human understanding.
It is not that God has not left the mark of his passing, since Christ himself is the footprint of God, his maximum mark, but rather that one realizes "what is the breadth and length and height and depth" of this mystery "that surpasses knowledge" (Ephesians 3:18-19). Mere intellectual categories here prove insufficient, and recognizing that many things are beyond our rational capacities, we should trust in the humble and joyful contemplation, not just of the mind, but also of the heart. The fathers of the Church, on the other hand, tell us that love understands much more than reason alone.
A last word should be said on the concept, already indicated before, concerning the Church as spouse of Christ.
In the Second Letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul had compared the Christian community to a bride, writing: "For I am jealous of you with the jealousy of God, since I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:2). The Letter to the Ephesians develops this image, specifying that the Church is not just a fiancé, but the real spouse of Christ. He, we could say, has conquered her for himself, and he has done this with the price of his life. As the text says, he "handed himself over for her" (Ephesians 5:25).
What demonstration of love can be grander than this one? But moreover, he is concerned for her beauty, not just that already acquired in baptism, but also that which should grow each day thanks to a blameless life, "without wrinkle or spot" in her moral behavior (cf. Ephesians 5:26-27).
From here to the common experience of Christian marriage, the step is a small one; conversely, it's not even clear what is the author's point of initial reference -- whether it is the relationship Christ-Church, from whose light the union between man and woman should be conceived; or if instead it is the datum of the experience of conjugal union, from whose light the relationship between Christ and the Church should be conceived.
But both aspects mutually enlighten one another: We lean what matrimony is in the light of the communion between Christ and the Church; and we learn how Christ unites himself to us thinking of the mystery of matrimony. In any case, our letter is situated almost at the halfway point between the Prophet Hosea, who indicated the relationship between God and his people in terms of a wedding that has already occurred (cf. Hosea 2:4, 16, 21); and the prophet of Revelation, who will announce the eschatological encounter between the Church and the Lamb as a joyful and indestructible wedding (cf. Revelation 19:7-9; 21:9).
There is much more to say, but it seems to me that, from what I have presented, it can be understood that these two letters are a great catechesis, from which we can learn not just how to be good Christians, but also how to come to be truly persons. If we begin to understand that the cosmos is the footprint of Christ, we learn our right relationship with the cosmos, with all of the problems of its conservation. We learn to see [the problems] with reason, but with reason moved by love, and with the humility and the respect that permits acting in a correct way.
And if we think that the Church is the body of Christ, that Christ has given himself for her, we learn how to live with Christ in reciprocal love, the love that unites us to God and that makes us see the other as an image of Christ, as Christ himself.
Let us pray to the Lord so that he helps us to meditate well on sacred Scripture, his Word, and thus truly learn to live well.
[Translation by ZENIT]
[At the end of the audience, the Holy Father greeted the people in several languages. In English, he said:]
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Continuing our catechesis on Saint Paul, we turn to the "twin" letters: Colossians and Ephesians. Similar in language, they are unique in developing the theme of Christ as "head" - kephalé - not only of the Church, but also of the entire universe. These letters assure us that Christ is above any hostile earthly power. Christ alone "loved us and gave himself up for us" (Eph 5:2), so that if we remain close to him, we need not fear any adversity. It was God's plan to "recapitulate" all things in Jesus "through whom all things were created", so that "by the blood of his Cross" we might be reconciled to the Father. Christ's headship also implies that, in a certain sense, he is greater than the Church in that his dominion extends beyond her boundaries, and that the Church, rather than the entire cosmos, is referred to as the Body of Christ. These letters are also notable for the spousal image they use to describe how Christ has "won" his bride - the Church - by giving his life for her (cf. Eph 5:25). What greater sign of love could there be than this? Christ thus desires that we grow more beautiful each day through irreproachable moral conduct, "without wrinkle or defect" (Eph 5:27). By living uprightly and justly, may we bear witness to the nuptial union which has already taken place in Christ as we await its fulfilment in the wedding feast to come.
I extend a warm welcome to all the English-speaking pilgrims present at today's audience. May your time in Rome strengthen you to imitate Saint Paul in "giving thanks always and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father" (Eph 5:20)!
New Website dedicated to Fatherhood
Welcome to Fathers for Good, an initiative for men by the Knights of Columbus.
Whether you are a seasoned dad, a new dad, a dad to be, or a single guy wanting to know more about fatherhood, this Web site is for you.
There is a role only a father can fill and gifts only a father can give. In a culture that often does not favor fatherhood or masculine virtue, we wish to highlight the unique contributions of men, husbands and fathers. The world would be lacking without them.
We also welcome wives who want to support their husbands in becoming the best fathers they can be.
On this Web site you will find –
• Information
• Inspiration
• Expert Advice
• Answers to your Questions
• Interactive Features
• A Forum for Your Stories
• A Look at Living the Fatherhood Vocation
• Ways to Strengthen Your Marriage
• St. Joseph Booklet Series
A Father is … a work in progress. Indeed, a dad’s work is never done – in what he can learn from his family and what he can teach his children, in the sacrifices he can make and the rich rewards he can be given, in the love he can live out and also receive.
A Father is … called by God the Father. This is the vocation that is the foundation of fatherhood. Of course, no earthly father will be like “our Father who art in heaven,” but God does give certain graces to fathers who seek him out and follow his way.
A Father is … an ordinary man who is called and equipped to do extraordinary things from day to day – work, provide, protect, pray, get involved with his family and be there as an example for his children and faithful to his wife.
http://www.fathersforgood.org/
Whether you are a seasoned dad, a new dad, a dad to be, or a single guy wanting to know more about fatherhood, this Web site is for you.
There is a role only a father can fill and gifts only a father can give. In a culture that often does not favor fatherhood or masculine virtue, we wish to highlight the unique contributions of men, husbands and fathers. The world would be lacking without them.
We also welcome wives who want to support their husbands in becoming the best fathers they can be.
On this Web site you will find –
• Information
• Inspiration
• Expert Advice
• Answers to your Questions
• Interactive Features
• A Forum for Your Stories
• A Look at Living the Fatherhood Vocation
• Ways to Strengthen Your Marriage
• St. Joseph Booklet Series
A Father is … a work in progress. Indeed, a dad’s work is never done – in what he can learn from his family and what he can teach his children, in the sacrifices he can make and the rich rewards he can be given, in the love he can live out and also receive.
A Father is … called by God the Father. This is the vocation that is the foundation of fatherhood. Of course, no earthly father will be like “our Father who art in heaven,” but God does give certain graces to fathers who seek him out and follow his way.
A Father is … an ordinary man who is called and equipped to do extraordinary things from day to day – work, provide, protect, pray, get involved with his family and be there as an example for his children and faithful to his wife.
http://www.fathersforgood.org/
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
A Crisis Bigger Than the Economy
Catholics and Orthodox Look at the Family in Europe
A joint Catholic-Orthodox forum says the family crisis in Europe is much deeper than the economic one, and they have recommendations for improving the situation.
A final statement from the 1st European Catholic-Orthodox forum was released today. The Wednesday-Sunday forum focused on "The Family: A Good for Humanity."
The forum, the statement explained, "[was] not to discuss theological issues that are treated at other levels. Our task rather is to concentrate on anthropological issues of crucial importance for the present and future of humanity. The goal of the forum is to help define common positions on social and moral questions."
The document gives a summary of basic tenets held by Orthodox and Catholics on the family, which revealed their largely shared beliefs and concerns.
Then, the statement goes on to consider three points of mutual focus: the importance of the family for the transmission of life, the right and duty of parents to educate, and the current crisis in society.
Supporting moms
Regarding the transmission of life, the Catholic and Orthodox leaders agreed: "We do not give life to ourselves, nor are parents the sole source of human life, since divine intervention is necessary. The sacredness of human life from conception to natural death should be fully respected. […]
"In the past the family and childbirth were regarded as something sacred. In recent years, however, these notions are questioned. There is an attempt to change language and introduce ambiguity into international documents under the ideological introduction of the gender theory."
The ecumenical leaders expressed worry that the "possibilities of bearing and rearing children are drastically reduced" in situations where both parents are "equally busy with the realization of their professional potential, and both have to bear the burden of financial responsibility for the family."
And they mentioned the problem of migration, which often causes "great suffering to children, with many of them being deprived of the presence of their parents' love and care."
The Christian leaders further lamented that society often "undermines the notion of motherhood as a personal vocation."
They affirmed: "We, Orthodox and Catholics together, insist on the sacredness of motherhood and on the need for society to respect it. Mothers who stay at home in order to raise and educate children should be afforded support both morally and financially. Their mission is in no way less important than that of other respected professions.
"Motherhood is a mission, and as such it deserves unconditional support and respect. The idea of fatherhood is also fundamental for society and it too needs to be rediscovered by contemporary society. It's impossible to speak of a fraternal society without fatherhood."
Sex education
The Christian leaders recalled that parents are the first educators for children and that others who collaborate in educating children must do so in accord with parents.
They gave special attention to sex education: "The principle aim of such teaching is directed toward forming young people in the meaning of married love. […] Furthermore, parents must provide information proportionate to each stage of the individual development of their children. Other bodies, such as the school, for example, constitute, in this sense, an aid for parents."
The forum participants cautioned against the influence of the media, noting that "alongside many positives aspects […] the means of communication unfortunately and increasingly present pornographic material and an individualist, egoistic culture."
The Church leaders ended with an affirmation on the importance of family life for culture: "Families that teach their children well, attentive to establishing proper relationships between all family members, constitute a valuable human capital that has great importance for society in both its economic and spiritual well-being. Family life creates culture: Man learns the essential language of life and all that helps him become fully human. All culture, in its beginnings and in its development is a family event."
Real crisis
The Catholic and Orthodox leaders contended that there is a "deep crisis in the vision of what it is to be human and family life."
They explained: "The demographic trends alone in Europe are clear signals of a crisis much greater than the financial one. The family, born of marriage between man and woman that gives rise to children and an extended network of relationships, needs to be rediscovered as valuable social capital."
Birth rates across Europe are remarkably low; Spain and Austria, for example, do not arrive to 0.1% and Germany and Italy are among those nations with a negative population growth percentage.
The Church representatives appealed to social and political leaders to give attention to this issue "before it is too late."
With that, the final statement offered six recommendations and appeals.
Among these, they affirmed: "Much effort needs to be invested in the promotion of family life. The family needs to be rediscovered for what it offers society. […]
"The family is not an outdated notion! Rightly rediscovered, it is the future. Without the mutual love of the family our society dies."
The final statement continued: "We see a great danger in the apparent subordination of the needs of children and the well-being of the family to economic interests.
"We call upon all public institutions to ensure that policies regarding remuneration for work are consistent with establishing and maintaining a family with dignity. […] It should be such that both parents need not necessarily be obliged to work full time outside the home to the detriment of family life and especially to the detriment of the education of children.
"We call upon the public institutions to recognize and respect the work of the mother in the home because of its value for the family and for society. The issue of 'child care' needs further consideration with the best interests of the child as the guiding principle."
The Catholic and Orthodox leaders concluded expressing the intention to again join forces in regular meetings "to strengthen our mutual relations and address common challenges facing Europe."
A joint Catholic-Orthodox forum says the family crisis in Europe is much deeper than the economic one, and they have recommendations for improving the situation.
A final statement from the 1st European Catholic-Orthodox forum was released today. The Wednesday-Sunday forum focused on "The Family: A Good for Humanity."
The forum, the statement explained, "[was] not to discuss theological issues that are treated at other levels. Our task rather is to concentrate on anthropological issues of crucial importance for the present and future of humanity. The goal of the forum is to help define common positions on social and moral questions."
The document gives a summary of basic tenets held by Orthodox and Catholics on the family, which revealed their largely shared beliefs and concerns.
Then, the statement goes on to consider three points of mutual focus: the importance of the family for the transmission of life, the right and duty of parents to educate, and the current crisis in society.
Supporting moms
Regarding the transmission of life, the Catholic and Orthodox leaders agreed: "We do not give life to ourselves, nor are parents the sole source of human life, since divine intervention is necessary. The sacredness of human life from conception to natural death should be fully respected. […]
"In the past the family and childbirth were regarded as something sacred. In recent years, however, these notions are questioned. There is an attempt to change language and introduce ambiguity into international documents under the ideological introduction of the gender theory."
The ecumenical leaders expressed worry that the "possibilities of bearing and rearing children are drastically reduced" in situations where both parents are "equally busy with the realization of their professional potential, and both have to bear the burden of financial responsibility for the family."
And they mentioned the problem of migration, which often causes "great suffering to children, with many of them being deprived of the presence of their parents' love and care."
The Christian leaders further lamented that society often "undermines the notion of motherhood as a personal vocation."
They affirmed: "We, Orthodox and Catholics together, insist on the sacredness of motherhood and on the need for society to respect it. Mothers who stay at home in order to raise and educate children should be afforded support both morally and financially. Their mission is in no way less important than that of other respected professions.
"Motherhood is a mission, and as such it deserves unconditional support and respect. The idea of fatherhood is also fundamental for society and it too needs to be rediscovered by contemporary society. It's impossible to speak of a fraternal society without fatherhood."
Sex education
The Christian leaders recalled that parents are the first educators for children and that others who collaborate in educating children must do so in accord with parents.
They gave special attention to sex education: "The principle aim of such teaching is directed toward forming young people in the meaning of married love. […] Furthermore, parents must provide information proportionate to each stage of the individual development of their children. Other bodies, such as the school, for example, constitute, in this sense, an aid for parents."
The forum participants cautioned against the influence of the media, noting that "alongside many positives aspects […] the means of communication unfortunately and increasingly present pornographic material and an individualist, egoistic culture."
The Church leaders ended with an affirmation on the importance of family life for culture: "Families that teach their children well, attentive to establishing proper relationships between all family members, constitute a valuable human capital that has great importance for society in both its economic and spiritual well-being. Family life creates culture: Man learns the essential language of life and all that helps him become fully human. All culture, in its beginnings and in its development is a family event."
Real crisis
The Catholic and Orthodox leaders contended that there is a "deep crisis in the vision of what it is to be human and family life."
They explained: "The demographic trends alone in Europe are clear signals of a crisis much greater than the financial one. The family, born of marriage between man and woman that gives rise to children and an extended network of relationships, needs to be rediscovered as valuable social capital."
Birth rates across Europe are remarkably low; Spain and Austria, for example, do not arrive to 0.1% and Germany and Italy are among those nations with a negative population growth percentage.
The Church representatives appealed to social and political leaders to give attention to this issue "before it is too late."
With that, the final statement offered six recommendations and appeals.
Among these, they affirmed: "Much effort needs to be invested in the promotion of family life. The family needs to be rediscovered for what it offers society. […]
"The family is not an outdated notion! Rightly rediscovered, it is the future. Without the mutual love of the family our society dies."
The final statement continued: "We see a great danger in the apparent subordination of the needs of children and the well-being of the family to economic interests.
"We call upon all public institutions to ensure that policies regarding remuneration for work are consistent with establishing and maintaining a family with dignity. […] It should be such that both parents need not necessarily be obliged to work full time outside the home to the detriment of family life and especially to the detriment of the education of children.
"We call upon the public institutions to recognize and respect the work of the mother in the home because of its value for the family and for society. The issue of 'child care' needs further consideration with the best interests of the child as the guiding principle."
The Catholic and Orthodox leaders concluded expressing the intention to again join forces in regular meetings "to strengthen our mutual relations and address common challenges facing Europe."
Saturday, January 3, 2009
On the Feast of the Holy Family
"Family of Nazareth, Expert in Suffering, Give Peace to the World"
Here is a translation of Benedict XVI's address last Sunday, feast of the Holy Family, before and after the praying of the midday Angelus in St. Peter's Square. He gave the address in Spanish and Italian.
* * *
Dear brothers and sisters:
On this Sunday that follows the birth of the Lord, we celebrate with joy the Holy Family of Nazareth. The context is more than adequate, since Christmas is the feast of the family, par excellence. So many traditions and social customs demonstrate this, especially that of gathering together, in family, for the festive meals and the congratulations and the interchange of gifts. And, how can we not see that in these circumstances, the discontent and the sorrow caused by family strife is amplified?
Jesus wanted to be born and grow up in a human family; he wanted the Virgin Mary to be his mom and Joseph to fulfill the role of father. They raised and educated him with immense love. Jesus' family truly merits the title of "holy," since it is entirely focused on the desire of fulfilling the will of God, incarnated in the adorable presence of Jesus. In one sense it is a family like all others, and as such, it is a model of conjugal love, collaboration, sacrifice, confidence in divine providence, a spirit of work and solidarity. Certainly, it presents all these values that the family protects and promotes, contributing in a basic sense to form the fabric of every society.
At the same time, though, the family of Nazareth is unique, different from all others, because of its singular vocation, linked to the mission of the Son of God. Precisely because of its unique character, it presents to every family, and in the first place to Christian families, the horizon of God, the sweet and demanding priority of his will, the perspective of heaven, to which we are destined.
For all of this, today let us give thanks to God, like the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph, who with such faith and willingness cooperated in the Lord's plan of salvation.
To express the beauty and the value of the family, today thousands of people have gathered in Madrid. To them, I want to address myself in Spanish:
I offer now a cordial greeting to the participants who are gathered in Madrid in this intimate gathering to pray for the family and to commit oneself to work in favor of the family with strength and hope. The family is certainly a grace from God, which reveals what he, himself, is: love. A love that is entirely gratuitous, that sustains fidelity without limits, even in the moments of difficulty or dejection.
These qualities are incarnated in an eminent way in the Holy Family, in which Jesus came to the world and grew and filled himself with wisdom, with the exquisite care of Mary and the faithful guardianship of St. Joseph.
Dear families, do not allow the love, openness to life, and the incomparable bonds that unite your homes to be spoiled. Ask this constantly of the Lord, pray together, so that your resolutions are enlightened by faith and extolled by divine grace in the path toward sanctity.
In this way, with the joy of your sharing everything in love, you will give to the world a beautiful testimony of how important the family is for the human being and for society. The Pope is at your side, praying especially to the Lord for those in each family who have greatest need of health, work, consolation and company. In this prayer of the Angelus, I entrust all of you to our Mother in heaven, the most holy Virgin Mary.
Dear brothers and sisters, speaking of the family, I cannot fail to recall that from the 14th to 18th of January, 2009, the 6th World Meeting of Families will take place in Mexico City. Let us pray starting now for this important ecclesial event and entrust to the Lord every family, especially those most tried by the difficulties of life and the wounds of misunderstanding and division. May the Redeemer, born in Bethlehem, give to all the serenity and the strength to walk united in the path of good.
[After praying the Angelus, the Pope continued:]
Dear brothers and sisters:
The Holy Land, which in these days of Christmas is in the center of the thoughts and the affections of the faithful of every part of the world, finds itself again jolted by an explosion of unparalleled violence. I am deeply bereaved for those who have died and the wounded, by the material damages, the suffering and the tears of the populations that are victims of this tragic chain of attacks and retaliation.
Jesus' homeland cannot continue to be witness of so much bloodshed, which continues endlessly! I implore an end to the violence, which must be condemned in every one of its manifestations, and the re-establishment of the truce in the Gaza Strip. I ask for a show of humanity and wisdom from all those who have responsibility in the situation. I implore the international community to do everything possible to help Israelis and Palestinians to get out of this dead-end street and to not resign themselves -- as I said a few days ago in the "urbi et orbi" message -- to the perverse logic of confrontation and violence, but rather to give priority to the path of dialogue and negotiation.
Let us entrust to Jesus, Prince of Peace, our fervent prayer for these intentions, and to him, to Mary and Joseph, let us implore: "Family of Nazareth, expert in suffering, give peace to the world." Give peace today above all to the Holy Land!
[The Holy Father then greeted the people in various languages. In English, he said:]
I welcome all the English-speaking pilgrims at this Angelus. Today we recall how Mary and Joseph, after presenting Jesus in the temple, took the child to Nazareth and began their life as a family. May all families strive to imitate their faith, hope and charity, so as to bear greater witness to the singular importance of the "domestic church" for the life of the universal Church and for society. God bless you all!
Here is a translation of Benedict XVI's address last Sunday, feast of the Holy Family, before and after the praying of the midday Angelus in St. Peter's Square. He gave the address in Spanish and Italian.
* * *
Dear brothers and sisters:
On this Sunday that follows the birth of the Lord, we celebrate with joy the Holy Family of Nazareth. The context is more than adequate, since Christmas is the feast of the family, par excellence. So many traditions and social customs demonstrate this, especially that of gathering together, in family, for the festive meals and the congratulations and the interchange of gifts. And, how can we not see that in these circumstances, the discontent and the sorrow caused by family strife is amplified?
Jesus wanted to be born and grow up in a human family; he wanted the Virgin Mary to be his mom and Joseph to fulfill the role of father. They raised and educated him with immense love. Jesus' family truly merits the title of "holy," since it is entirely focused on the desire of fulfilling the will of God, incarnated in the adorable presence of Jesus. In one sense it is a family like all others, and as such, it is a model of conjugal love, collaboration, sacrifice, confidence in divine providence, a spirit of work and solidarity. Certainly, it presents all these values that the family protects and promotes, contributing in a basic sense to form the fabric of every society.
At the same time, though, the family of Nazareth is unique, different from all others, because of its singular vocation, linked to the mission of the Son of God. Precisely because of its unique character, it presents to every family, and in the first place to Christian families, the horizon of God, the sweet and demanding priority of his will, the perspective of heaven, to which we are destined.
For all of this, today let us give thanks to God, like the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph, who with such faith and willingness cooperated in the Lord's plan of salvation.
To express the beauty and the value of the family, today thousands of people have gathered in Madrid. To them, I want to address myself in Spanish:
I offer now a cordial greeting to the participants who are gathered in Madrid in this intimate gathering to pray for the family and to commit oneself to work in favor of the family with strength and hope. The family is certainly a grace from God, which reveals what he, himself, is: love. A love that is entirely gratuitous, that sustains fidelity without limits, even in the moments of difficulty or dejection.
These qualities are incarnated in an eminent way in the Holy Family, in which Jesus came to the world and grew and filled himself with wisdom, with the exquisite care of Mary and the faithful guardianship of St. Joseph.
Dear families, do not allow the love, openness to life, and the incomparable bonds that unite your homes to be spoiled. Ask this constantly of the Lord, pray together, so that your resolutions are enlightened by faith and extolled by divine grace in the path toward sanctity.
In this way, with the joy of your sharing everything in love, you will give to the world a beautiful testimony of how important the family is for the human being and for society. The Pope is at your side, praying especially to the Lord for those in each family who have greatest need of health, work, consolation and company. In this prayer of the Angelus, I entrust all of you to our Mother in heaven, the most holy Virgin Mary.
Dear brothers and sisters, speaking of the family, I cannot fail to recall that from the 14th to 18th of January, 2009, the 6th World Meeting of Families will take place in Mexico City. Let us pray starting now for this important ecclesial event and entrust to the Lord every family, especially those most tried by the difficulties of life and the wounds of misunderstanding and division. May the Redeemer, born in Bethlehem, give to all the serenity and the strength to walk united in the path of good.
[After praying the Angelus, the Pope continued:]
Dear brothers and sisters:
The Holy Land, which in these days of Christmas is in the center of the thoughts and the affections of the faithful of every part of the world, finds itself again jolted by an explosion of unparalleled violence. I am deeply bereaved for those who have died and the wounded, by the material damages, the suffering and the tears of the populations that are victims of this tragic chain of attacks and retaliation.
Jesus' homeland cannot continue to be witness of so much bloodshed, which continues endlessly! I implore an end to the violence, which must be condemned in every one of its manifestations, and the re-establishment of the truce in the Gaza Strip. I ask for a show of humanity and wisdom from all those who have responsibility in the situation. I implore the international community to do everything possible to help Israelis and Palestinians to get out of this dead-end street and to not resign themselves -- as I said a few days ago in the "urbi et orbi" message -- to the perverse logic of confrontation and violence, but rather to give priority to the path of dialogue and negotiation.
Let us entrust to Jesus, Prince of Peace, our fervent prayer for these intentions, and to him, to Mary and Joseph, let us implore: "Family of Nazareth, expert in suffering, give peace to the world." Give peace today above all to the Holy Land!
[The Holy Father then greeted the people in various languages. In English, he said:]
I welcome all the English-speaking pilgrims at this Angelus. Today we recall how Mary and Joseph, after presenting Jesus in the temple, took the child to Nazareth and began their life as a family. May all families strive to imitate their faith, hope and charity, so as to bear greater witness to the singular importance of the "domestic church" for the life of the universal Church and for society. God bless you all!
Friday, December 26, 2008
On Joseph -Fr. Tom Rosica
Biblical Reflection for the Feast of Holy Family
Father Thomas Rosica, CSB
For another great text on the role and mission of St. Joseph see Pope John Paul II's REDEMPTORIS CUSTOS -ON THE PERSON AND MISSION OF SAINT JOSEPH IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST AND OF THE CHURCH
In the afterglow of Christmas, the Church celebrates the feast of the Holy Family. This weekend we are invited to reflect on the gift and mystery of life and the blessing of family life in particular.
In Luke's Gospel scene of the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple in Jerusalem, we encounter four individuals who embrace the new life of Jesus held in their arms: the elderly and faithful Simeon, the old, wise prophetess Anna, and the young couple, Mary and Joseph, who in faithful obedience offer their child to the Lord. Simeon’s beautiful prayer is nothing more than an anthology of the prayer of ancient Israel:
“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 2:29-32).
The whole scene of the Presentation, and the carefully chosen words of Simeon's prayer raise several questions for us: How do I see God's glory in my life? Do I thirst for justice and peace? What are the new situations and who are the new people who have entered my life in the last little while? How am I light and salvation for other people?
Today I would like to borrow from my new profession of television production and zoom in on Joseph, one of the characters found in this most touching Gospel scene of the Presentation. To “zoom” in on the foster father of the Lord gives us some profound insights into the family background of our Savior.
Joseph is often overshadowed by the glory of Christ and the purity of Mary. But he, too, waited for God to speak to him and then responded with obedience. Luke and Matthew both mark Joseph’s descent from David, the greatest king of Israel (Matthew 1:1-16 and Luke 3:23-38). Scripture has left us with the most important knowledge about him: he was "a righteous man" (Matthew 1:18).
Joseph was a compassionate, caring man. When he discovered Mary was pregnant after they had been engaged, he knew the child was not his but was as yet unaware that she was carrying the Son of God. He planned to divorce Mary according to the law but he was concerned for her suffering and safety. Joseph was also a man of faith, obedient to whatever God asked of him without knowing the outcome. When the angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him the truth about the child Mary was carrying, Joseph immediately and without question or concern for gossip, took Mary as his wife. When the angel came again to tell him that his family was in danger, he immediately left everything he owned, all his family and friends, and fled to a strange country with his young wife and the baby. He waited in Egypt until the angel told him it was safe to go back (Matthew 2:13-23).
We are told that Joseph was a carpenter, (more likely a builder), a man who worked to provide for his family. Joseph wasn't a wealthy man, for when he took Jesus to the Temple to be circumcised and Mary to be purified he offered the sacrifice of two turtledoves or a pair of pigeons, allowed only for those who could not afford a lamb.
Joseph revealed in his humanity the unique role of fathers to proclaim God's truth by word and deed. His paradoxical situation of "foster father to Jesus" draws attention to the truth about fatherhood, which is more than a mere fact of biological generation. A man is a father most when he invests himself in the spiritual and moral formation of his children. He was keenly aware, as every father should be, that he served as the representative of God the Father.
Joseph protected and provided for Jesus and Mary. He named Jesus, taught him how to pray, how to work, how to be a man. While no words or texts are attributed to him, we can be sure that Joseph pronounced two of the most important words that could ever be spoken when he named his son "Jesus" and called him "Emmanuel." When the child stayed behind in the Temple we are told Joseph (along with Mary) searched with great anxiety for three days for him (Luke 2:48).
Joseph’s life reminds us that a home or community is not built on power and possessions but goodness; not on riches and wealth, but on faith, fidelity, purity and mutual love.
The present challenges to fatherhood and masculinity cannot be understood in isolation from the culture in which we live. The effect of fatherlessness on children is deeply alarming. How many young people today have been affected by the crisis of fatherhood and paternity! How many have been deprived of a father or grandfather in their life?
It is not for naught that St. Joseph is patron of the Universal Church and principal patron of Canada. If there was ever a time when we needed a strong, saintly male role model who is a father, it is our time. And the feast of the Holy Family is a very significant day to go to Joseph and beg him to send us good fathers who will head families.
Joseph and Mary, more than anyone else, were the first to behold the glory of their One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). May St. Joseph make of us good priests, religious and laymen who will imitate the humble worker from Nazareth, who listened to the Lord, treasured a gift that was not his, all the while modeling to Jesus how the Word becomes flesh and lives among us.
* * *
Basilian Father Thomas Rosica is the chief executive officer of the Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation and Television Network in Canada.
He can be reached at: rosica@saltandlighttv.org.
Father Thomas Rosica, CSB
For another great text on the role and mission of St. Joseph see Pope John Paul II's REDEMPTORIS CUSTOS -ON THE PERSON AND MISSION OF SAINT JOSEPH IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST AND OF THE CHURCH
In the afterglow of Christmas, the Church celebrates the feast of the Holy Family. This weekend we are invited to reflect on the gift and mystery of life and the blessing of family life in particular.
In Luke's Gospel scene of the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple in Jerusalem, we encounter four individuals who embrace the new life of Jesus held in their arms: the elderly and faithful Simeon, the old, wise prophetess Anna, and the young couple, Mary and Joseph, who in faithful obedience offer their child to the Lord. Simeon’s beautiful prayer is nothing more than an anthology of the prayer of ancient Israel:
“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 2:29-32).
The whole scene of the Presentation, and the carefully chosen words of Simeon's prayer raise several questions for us: How do I see God's glory in my life? Do I thirst for justice and peace? What are the new situations and who are the new people who have entered my life in the last little while? How am I light and salvation for other people?
Today I would like to borrow from my new profession of television production and zoom in on Joseph, one of the characters found in this most touching Gospel scene of the Presentation. To “zoom” in on the foster father of the Lord gives us some profound insights into the family background of our Savior.
Joseph is often overshadowed by the glory of Christ and the purity of Mary. But he, too, waited for God to speak to him and then responded with obedience. Luke and Matthew both mark Joseph’s descent from David, the greatest king of Israel (Matthew 1:1-16 and Luke 3:23-38). Scripture has left us with the most important knowledge about him: he was "a righteous man" (Matthew 1:18).
Joseph was a compassionate, caring man. When he discovered Mary was pregnant after they had been engaged, he knew the child was not his but was as yet unaware that she was carrying the Son of God. He planned to divorce Mary according to the law but he was concerned for her suffering and safety. Joseph was also a man of faith, obedient to whatever God asked of him without knowing the outcome. When the angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him the truth about the child Mary was carrying, Joseph immediately and without question or concern for gossip, took Mary as his wife. When the angel came again to tell him that his family was in danger, he immediately left everything he owned, all his family and friends, and fled to a strange country with his young wife and the baby. He waited in Egypt until the angel told him it was safe to go back (Matthew 2:13-23).
We are told that Joseph was a carpenter, (more likely a builder), a man who worked to provide for his family. Joseph wasn't a wealthy man, for when he took Jesus to the Temple to be circumcised and Mary to be purified he offered the sacrifice of two turtledoves or a pair of pigeons, allowed only for those who could not afford a lamb.
Joseph revealed in his humanity the unique role of fathers to proclaim God's truth by word and deed. His paradoxical situation of "foster father to Jesus" draws attention to the truth about fatherhood, which is more than a mere fact of biological generation. A man is a father most when he invests himself in the spiritual and moral formation of his children. He was keenly aware, as every father should be, that he served as the representative of God the Father.
Joseph protected and provided for Jesus and Mary. He named Jesus, taught him how to pray, how to work, how to be a man. While no words or texts are attributed to him, we can be sure that Joseph pronounced two of the most important words that could ever be spoken when he named his son "Jesus" and called him "Emmanuel." When the child stayed behind in the Temple we are told Joseph (along with Mary) searched with great anxiety for three days for him (Luke 2:48).
Joseph’s life reminds us that a home or community is not built on power and possessions but goodness; not on riches and wealth, but on faith, fidelity, purity and mutual love.
The present challenges to fatherhood and masculinity cannot be understood in isolation from the culture in which we live. The effect of fatherlessness on children is deeply alarming. How many young people today have been affected by the crisis of fatherhood and paternity! How many have been deprived of a father or grandfather in their life?
It is not for naught that St. Joseph is patron of the Universal Church and principal patron of Canada. If there was ever a time when we needed a strong, saintly male role model who is a father, it is our time. And the feast of the Holy Family is a very significant day to go to Joseph and beg him to send us good fathers who will head families.
Joseph and Mary, more than anyone else, were the first to behold the glory of their One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). May St. Joseph make of us good priests, religious and laymen who will imitate the humble worker from Nazareth, who listened to the Lord, treasured a gift that was not his, all the while modeling to Jesus how the Word becomes flesh and lives among us.
* * *
Basilian Father Thomas Rosica is the chief executive officer of the Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation and Television Network in Canada.
He can be reached at: rosica@saltandlighttv.org.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Finding the Masculine Genius
Here is an enlightening article about masculinity, and how we are currently experiencing a crisis in both masculinity and femininity.
Finding the Masculine Genius
Interview With English Professor Anthony Esolen
PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island, APRIL 23, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Men must learn to seek the company of other men for the sake of women, the Church and the world, says a Catholic author and English professor.In this interview with ZENIT, Anthony Esolen discusses the growing trend in rediscovering masculinity, and what it takes to make men and boys flourish.
Esolen is a professor of English at Providence College and senior editor of Touchstone Magazine. He has recently translated and edited Dante's "Divine Comedy," in three volumes, for Modern Library. His book, “Ironies of Faith,” is forthcoming this summer from ISI Press.
Q: In your recent articles you have discussed masculinity and manhood. How do you see your own understanding of these differ from the way others use these terms?
Esolen: When a virtue falls by the wayside, when it is no longer a lived reality recognized by a community in its manifold forms, we recall only a scrap of it here or there, or we can only imagine a gaudy caricature of it.
That, I think, is the case now for both manhood and womanhood.
Many millions of boys in America, for instance, are growing up in homes without fathers, so they find "fathers" of their own on the streets or in the diseased and silly fantasies of mass entertainment, musclemen who can take down a city, or charismatic gang leaders who move caches of drugs and make exciting things happen.
They miss the more subtle fortitude of moral vision and farsighted self-sacrifice. Male heroes in popular literature for boys, 80 or 90 years ago, might be all right with a gun or a sword, but they might also be bespectacled dons like Mr. Chips whose discipline was a form of love.
I see manhood as the drive to lead -- to serve by leading, or to lead by following loyally the true leadership of one's father or priest or captain.
The man exercises charity by training himself to be self-reliant in ordinary things, not out of pride, but out of a sincere desire to free others up for their own duties, and to free himself for things that are not ordinary.
The man also must refuse -- this is a difficult form of self-sacrifice -- to allow his feelings to turn him from duty, including his duty to learn the truth and to follow it.
A man loves his own family, but he also loves his family by refusing to subject the entire civil order to the welfare of his family; he understands that if he performs his duty, other families besides his own will profit by it.
A man must consider his life dispensable for the sake of those he leads; he must obey his legitimate superior; if and only if he does so will he become really necessary and really worthy of the obedience he claims, with scriptural authority that need not embarrass anyone.
Q: Books on manhood, such as "Wild at Heart" by Christian author John Eldredge, have been gaining popularity recently. What is it about our society and Church that is making men look at new ways of understanding their manhood?
Esolen: Men are lonely -- and they are also not universally fooled by the androgyny that is preached to them every day, in school, at church, in the workplace and in the media.
Unfortunately, I don't think they are finding "new" ways of looking at their manhood. They are finding very old ways of looking at it, or rather, they are finding a strange and finally unsatisfying version of those old ways.
Really, the human race has not changed since the days of Homer and Moses; men and women have not changed. And the mysteries of manhood and womanhood have been probed in literature for thousands of years. So we need to step back a little, take a look at that literature, or take a look at what men within our own lifetimes used to do.
For instance, though men are certainly wilder creatures than women -- the source of both their dynamism and their destructiveness -- it is men, not women, who create the civil order, as it is women, not men, who create the domestic order.
Our inability to distinguish between these orders, and our neglect of both of them in the pursuit of individual "dreams," has left us with a poor and thin domestic life, while in most places in America and probably Europe a vibrant civic life is hardly a memory.
Q: There has been a lot of discussion based upon Pope John Paul II's discussion of "the feminine genius." What about the "the masculine genius"?
Esolen: Men have a passion for the truth, and they seek that truth not generally by means of the affections, but by complex structures of various sorts.
These may be structures of authority or intellect, so you have the great university system invented by the friars and the student guilds in Europe, whose curriculum was often a kind of Euclidean geometry or Newtonian calculus of theological and philosophical propositions.
Men fashion "grammars" -- means of organizing and understanding almost impossibly disparate phenomena. Even the humble back of a baseball card, with its grid work of subtle statistics, testifies to this fascination.
Without this literal "discernment," I mean the clear separation of what may be predicated of a thing and what may not, with systematic means for judging the matter, there can be nothing so intricate as law, the government of a city, higher learning, a church -- not to mention philosophy and theology.
Even men who do not possess powerful intellects naturally fall in with such structures of order, and here the affections do play a vital role; men will fall in admiration of a leader, with a powerful combination of loyalty and friendship, as naturally as they will fall in love with a woman they may wish to marry.
If a society does not train boys to become such men, or if it does not allow mature men to form such natural alliances with other men for the benefit of civic life, it will degenerate.
I won't claim that this is a theory. It's a fact borne out by American and European cities right now.
Q: What could men learn from Christ, the ultimate man, in terms of developing masculinity?
Esolen: The first thing they could learn is not to be embarrassed by their manhood. It is holy! It has been created by God, and for a reason.
Then they might notice that Jesus is not the cute boyfriend that many of our churches make him out to be, the one who never goes too far -- forgive me if that is a little coarse.
Jesus loves women, as all good men must; Jesus obeys his mother at Cana; but Jesus does not hang around the skirts of women; he speaks gently, but as a man speaks gently, and when he rebukes, he rebukes forthrightly and clearly, as a man.
His closest comrades are men, though they are not necessarily the people he loves best in the world. He organizes them into a battalion of sacrifice.
He is remarkably sparing in his praise of them; certainly, as is the case with many good and wise men, he is much more desirous that they should come to know him than that they should feel comfortable about themselves.
From his apostles he seems to prefer the love that accompanies apprehension of the truth, rather than love born of his own affectionate actions toward them.
In fact, they respond to him as men often respond: They admire and follow with all the greater loyalty the man who rebukes them for, of all things, being frightened when it appears their ship will capsize in the stormy Sea of Galilee!
Men can learn from Jesus to seek the company of other men, at least in part for the sake of women, and certainly for the sake of the village, the nation, the Church and the world.
They can learn that there are two ways at least in which man is not meant to be alone: He needs the complementary virtues of woman, and he needs other men.
A soldier alone is no soldier.
Q: From your study of ancient and medieval works, such as Dante, what remedies could be applied to the many relational ills that plague society, such as high divorce rates, low birthrates and high numbers of children born out of wedlock?
Esolen: A good question. People can learn from both the Catholic and the Protestant literature of the past an appreciation for the wonder of the body, and of the virtue of chaste love.
They can learn from Dante that the love of man and woman is a glorious motif in the symphony of love fashioned by him who moves the sun and the other stars.
From Torquato Tasso and Edmund Spenser they can learn that the typical sin against love, occasioned by unchastity, does not so much stoke the flame of desire as it dampens it, making both the heart and the mind feeble, ineffectual.
From Spenser they can learn that marriage is not a private matter -- one of our greatest and silliest errors -- but a deeply social bond that unites those two fascinatingly different sorts of creatures, man and woman, in such a way as to link them to the families who have gone before them and to the families that will be born from their love.
If you have a view of marriage that does not include all mankind, all the natural world, the physical cosmos, heaven and earth, the dawn of time and its consummation in eternity, then your view of marriage is a cramped and hole-and-corner affair. So at least the old poets teach.
Maybe the most important thing they teach, though, is the delightfulness of the good: the lovely and modest woman -- Miranda in Shakespeare's "Tempest" -- and the brave and gentle young man -- Florizel in Shakespeare's "Winter's Tale."
Our children's imaginations now are a war zone, or what is left of fields and hills after the bombs have blasted them and the poison gas has infested them for 15 years.
Even fairy tales, those deeply Christian and incarnational folk parables of the West have been poisoned by feminist revisers.
So I guess I am saying that we will cure none of those ills, not one, unless we rediscover the virtue of purity, and we will not rediscover that virtue unless our imaginations are engaged by its beauty, and that from our childhoods.
Q: Are there things you are doing to raise your own son that is different from the way men of your own generation were raised?
Esolen: My son, my greatest blessing from God, is autistic. He can talk to you all day about computer systems and then take your computer apart with screwdrivers to fix it.
Most of these troubles of our time cannot touch him, especially since we teach him at home.
I'll say that the public schools in America are so poor, and are so universally slanted against both how boys learn and what they enjoy learning, that I would move heaven and earth rather than place a son of mine in any of them.
We desperately need single-sex schools for boys, and we need not apologize for them, either. Boys thrive in them, and unless the boys thrive, our society is finished.
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