I DO! (sort of)

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

What if God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone, or the
woman either. I will make an abundance of sex partners for them to experiment with, as often as they get in the mood to do so. They will hook up briefly with little emotional depth, remaining completely separate persons, no commitment required.’??

Today's first reading from the second creation story of Genesis and the passage from the tenth chapter of Mark's Gospel address the issue of marriage permanence. Actually they are about more than whether divorce is allowed. In fact Jesus changes an exception to the law in the Jewish tradition. In the male dominated culture of Palestine in Jesus' day, a man could receive a divorce if his wife was unfaithful. Jesus tells them that God's intention from Creation was that a commitment is a commitment, always and forever. He even goes so far as to say that neither men nor women can ask for a divorce. (In Jesus' world women could never ask for a divorce, since they had no clout.) So Jesus stretches the minds of the law making Pharisees. He tells them that women and men are both equal in the eyes of God, but both are required to live up to their commitments.

Today divorce is a plague. I believe this stems from our insistence on individualism in our culture. We all know what the rules are and what the ideal is. But we also believe that we each have circumstances that cause us to be the exception to the rule. I figure that State Troopers are lenient, so I put my cruise control on "76" rather than "70". I make excuses for friends who fall "in love" and leave the priesthood. I've consoled my aunts and uncles when they tell me of family members choosing divorce over counselling and forgiveness. Don't get me wrong. There are definitely life threatening and unhealthy occasions where the best thing that can happen to a couple is that they divorce. But too many times divorce is chosen as a first option, or at least it is chosen way to quickly.

Jesus' statement on divorce happens in the chapter following where he twice told His disciples what His commitment to them was. He told them twice and again later that He would suffer, die, and rise for them. He asks them to do the same as His followers. Commitment is important in all of the Gospels, but especially in the Gospel of Mark. Today he tells the Pharisees and us that commitment is important in marriage as well. That is the way God intended it from the beginning. God hasn't changed.

peace and blessings,
Fr. Chuck

Is Sin Contagious?

When I was a kid, our family would take trips together. Sometimes it was just the seven miles from Loretto to my Grandmother's home in St. Mary's, KY. But at other times it was a vacation trip to Clearwater or St. Pete Beach, FL. My sister, brother, and I would sit in the backseat of our Ford Galaxie, or LTD. Dad would drive the whole way with Mom in the "shotgun" seat. (She also doubled as the trip disciplinarian!!!) Since I was the oldest and most mischievous I was the one who usually started the trouble that caused Mom to put on her disciplinarian hat and dole out punishments for our (MY) misbehavior. It didn't take much to get my brother in trouble. He was the youngest and thus had the smallest bladder. So I would just start suggesting watery things like swimming, rain, water hoses, and he would start to get the urge. Then I'd step it up a little bit and start talking about flushing toilets and bath rooms, and then he'd start whining about needing to use the toilet. This would cause Dad to get mad (because we had just stopped a few miles back, and besides going to the rest room, Stephen had used some of his vacation money to buy him another Dr. Pepper). When Dad got irritated, Mom was called upon to settle us down. By this time Stephen was crying and begging to stop at the first big bush. I was smirking because my mission was accomplished. My sister Kathy was tougher to get going. She had the patience of a mountain. I'd tease her and call her a "girl" and she'd remain un-flustered. I'd make fun of her dolls that she played with, and still was undaunted. Finally, I'd resort to holding my finger one inch from her ear and whisper the mantra, "I'm not touching you! I'm not touching you!" That would eventually get her to start slapping at me and yelling at me. That in turn got Dad upset, which got Mom in gear, which got her to pull me into the middle of the front seat (to separate us), which is where I wanted to sit all along.

The readings for this Sunday tell me that sin is a virus. The Letter of James (5:1-6) and the Gospel of Mark (9:38 & following) say that how we treat others has an effect on how they behave. James accuses the rich and the high and mighty in society of having the most effect on folks. But because God sees the way that they treat the poor and little ones of the earth, then they will have "HELL" to pay later. Jesus gives His disciples an ominous warning too. If we cause folks to sin then our sins will be punished.

The good news is that we can influence people positively too. We usually don't notice that our small acts of kindness and virtue also have a ripple effect on others. They do! Sin and virtue are always personal choices. I choose to do good or bad. But my choices and behaviors always effect others. I choose to make a snide remark about my boss, or the president, or a family member. That may cause a shadow of doubt and negativity to be formed in the mind or heart of another. I show kindness to someone who may have a bad reputation, or someone who is low on the social totem pole. That may cause someone else to have second thoughts about how "bad" that person might be. If someone sees me picking up a piece of litter on the sidewalk, it may make them hesitate the next time they're tempted to drop a candy wrapper on the ground.

We're in this world and in the Kingdom of God together. Everything we do has an influence on our planet and the rest of the Body of Christ. Let us pray for the strength and the grace to act virtuously, so that that God's will may be done and not thwarted.

peace,
Fr. Chuck Walker

Last But Not A Loser!!!

I am in some football pools this fall, as I have been for the past several years. One of these involves $1 a week. The others are bragging rights pools. When I see the NCAA or NFL games that I need to choose from each week I go to the different polls, blogs, and Internet sites that rank teams from top to bottom in relationship to the team they are playing each week. I factor in which team is the home team and if I have some prejudice for or against a team. (i.e. I'll never pick UK or the Cowboys and I'll always pick UofL and the Packers.)(Don't hate me. I'm just being honest!!) I do put a lot of credence in the ways that the different gurus rank the teams though. They are professional sports writers, coaches, and analysts, so I respect what they have to say. Their rankings are important to my decisions.

Jesus tells us in the ninth chapter of Mark's Gospel that if we want to be first in God's rankings, then we have to place ourselves last and servant or slave to God and others. This may be the hardest lesson that Jesus teaches us. This is a tough thought for our American minds to get around. We are very big into building ourselves up, keeping up with the Jones', being the best, or at least being better than the next guy or gal. I do not think we are selfish people when we dig below the surface, but I think we are trained to make sure we take care of ourselves financially, educationally, physically, militarily, and about every other "ly" we can consider. Jesus and the Gospel fly in the face of any thing remotely selfish. Jesus' life and teaching make us constantly question our tendencies to take care of our self and to live for God and others first.

The good news is that our efforts at living and trusting in God can be and are acceptable if they are even incremental. One step at a time and one day at a time is fine with God. God is Love, Mercy, and Forgiveness. So He accepts our minute human efforts in living in His image as baby steps toward the goal of fully imitating Him in our next life.

May your prayer and your efforts at living for God's Will and God's Kingdom increase in being selfless. May your actions and thoughts today be steps toward be first later and last now.

paz,
Fr. Chuck

Come On And Do It!

"Preach the Gospel at all times; if necessary use words."

This quote is attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. While St. Francis wrote a lot of songs, prayers, and letters, he is most known for his acts of faith. He started an order of religious men and women based on living the Gospel as simply as possible. His rule (IE. set of standards) ,for the religious order to follow in order to be part of his order, was himself. He led them in living simply. He led them in making the scriptures an integrated part of his life. He led them in trying to imitate Jesus' love, forgiveness, and sacrifice. He did this because he got a message from God to "rebuild My Church." When he heard God calling him to rebuild, he changed his life. He went from a rich kid living off of his father's wealth, to a man determined to rebuild the Church spiritually by simple and holy living. In doing that he found that the only wealth that mattered was the love that God had for him and the reward he got for being poor and serving the poor.

Jesus in today's Gospel says, "Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow me." Living a holy life has little to do with talking about a holy life. Living discipleship means preaching the Gospel without words.

What steps can you and I take to put our faith into action a little more each day? How can we prayerfully and practically show our love of God through the ways we treat others? How can we simplify our lives and embrace the only way to real happiness now? How are you being called to preach the Gospel at all times??

peace,
Fr. Chuck