Just Listen to Pope Francis

I was at Comic Con last weekend. No, not a pass-holding attendee of the event, but a people-watcher. It's fascinating to watch thousands upon thousands of people milling about downtown San Diego, dressed in various costumes, some very weird and others very authentic (which, in turn, made them very, very, very weird.)

As I walked down the sidewalk, I passed many men holding signs - big black signs with white lettering - all heralding the end of the world, the condemnation of sinners, and the Good News of Jesus. I hesitate to call these men Christian; while they did, apparently, believe that Jesus is the Savior of the World, they happened to be obnoxious These people were yelling into their portable mic-and-speaker systems, berating everyone, making sweeping judgmental statements, and generally working against a spirit of Christian kindness and gentleness. If there were a book written on "how to approach non-believers regarding conversion," these fellows would be breaking every rule.

Worse than their obnoxious strategy, however, was the nonsense that they were yelling. My favorite/least favorite quote of the day (depending on whether I choose to laugh or cry at this memory) was this: "YES, IT IS TRUE THAT YOUR BODY IS DYING. BUT YOUR SOUL - THE PERSON LIVING INSIDE OF YOUR BODY - WILL LIVE FOREVER!!!" The wrongness of such a statement boggled my mind. I confess that I had visions of wresting the microphones from these individuals and telling them to stop spouting nonsense, please, for the love of all that is holy and true.

As obnoxious, erroneous, and potentially harmful as these men might have been, however, I consoled myself with the fact that they weren't claiming to be Catholic. These men, doing and saying things that were questionable, at best, were not doing so in the name of the Catholic Church.

But that exception, that moment of "oh, well, it's just some crazy non-denominational Christians," is like looking down a tunnel and claiming to see the world. My experience that day at Comic Con is a particular instance of where the name of Catholicism was not being besmirched by Catholics. There are plenty of examples of where those within the Church - those claiming to be Catholic and assuming authority that they do not possess - do a very fine job of turning people away from it, from Jesus, and inventing needless obstacles to grace.

Some might justify their obnoxious, cruel, harsh, and judgmental language because "Jesus berated people, too. He even got angry and flipped tables. He cursed a tree once, too."

But let me just stop that train before it leaves the station and ask a question: wasn't Jesus the only person to flip tables in the Gospels?

... yeah?

WELL, HE WAS GOD.

Well, then, if you are God Incarnate, you can curse trees, berate people for their sins, and flip the freaking tables, because YOU ARE GOD. Oh, you're not God? Then put down the cyber rock and back away from the "publish" button on your blog, twitter, facebook, etc.

[Another note on the righteously angry Jesus episode involving table-flipping: it happened in the Temple. This did not occur in a Roman market or another place under the reign of Caesar. It was in the Temple, the place where God's chosen people gathered to pray. So if you're going to flip tables just like Jesus, might it not have to be the ones you find holding donuts on Sundays at your parish?]

So, then, if you're not God, you don't get to flip tables or condemn people. You don't even get to judge people.

That doesn't mean you are a moral relativist or that you don't believe an action is morally wrong. It doesn't mean that when you hear about what Planned Parenthood does - performing abortions in specific ways, so as to preserve various organs for whatever research facility happens to want them - it doesn't make you vomit and/or cry.

It means that you love those people. It means that you respect those people because they have just as much human dignity as you do. God doesn't love you more than He loves them. Yeah, read that sentence again. It's important.

I have come to believe that most people are sincerely good people. People want good things for themselves, probably primarily, but they also want good things for others. They recognize that there are just and unjust ways to treat people, they endeavor to act rightly. I don't believe the world is overrun by malicious, vengeful people. I do believe that the world is overrun by sinners. I believe that there is no human person living upon this earth who stands as an exception to that. There is blood on every human being's hands, and it's the infinitely most Precious Blood in existence.

I can believe all of these things and still firmly believe that abortion is always wrong. It always involves killing a human being. There is no contradiction, no tension, between the ways of truth and the ways of love. Pope Francis has declared the upcoming liturgical year to be a year of mercy. He is putting the spotlight back on human actions and the necessity of them being primarily & essentially merciful. He is becoming famous for his treatment of others, for his words and actions that emulate Christ's mercy. In doing so, he is following a tradition as old as the Church herself.

To appease those who might prefer to take a Doctor of the Church as an authority on these things, here's what St. Thomas Aquinas has to say: "Now is the time for mercy, whereas the time to come will be the time for justice only. Thus the present time is ours, but the future will be God's alone." 

I pray that the love and peace of Christ be with you all.

"Holier Than Thou"

This article brought this subject to my attention this morning. The subject, however, does not have a limited audience. It's a lesson that has to be learned throughout the world. It's a lesson that has to be learned by every single person.

The election of Pope Francis brought about many, many reactions. Some were pretty extreme. The extreme ones involved kicking and screaming. At one extreme, people were screaming about His Holiness being "too holy." At the other extreme, people were screaming about His Holiness being "not holy enough."

Whoa.

In reply to the first, one has to give them a little bit of slack. The media's portrayal of the pope is never very kind. The image presented is a "holier than thou" image. There are pictures of the pope praying and quotes from the pope, which, out of context, sound judgmental and harsh.

But this Pope is not a "holier than thou" man.

Exhibit A: In the first minutes of his papacy, before extending his blessing over the world, he asked for our blessing, bowing his head to receive it.

Exhibit B: This morning, after praying before an icon of our Blessed Mother, he told the confessors at the church to "be merciful, the souls of the faithful need your mercy."

He hasn't been pope for 24 hours and he has shown to us the importance of humility and mercy.

But how do we respond to those who accuse Pope Francis of not being holy enough?

Dare we point to the same examples?

Holiness is not praying 15 decades of the rosary a day. It is not adhering to only the 1962 missal. It is not about how long you can kneel in front of the Blessed Sacrament. It is not how well you can (carefully and haltingly) explain a little bit about the mystery of the Trinity.

Holiness is about intention. 

Now, before all of my more traditional readers wig out and declare me a relativist heretic, let me explain.

I do not mean that you can do whatever you want as long as it is done with the right intentions. What I do mean to do is echo Christ, who says, "Not every one who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.' (Matthew 7: 21-23)

Let's reflect for a moment on what doing God's will looks like. Christ says blatantly that it's not about doing stuff. Expelling demons? Doesn't do it. Mighty works? Nope. What did Jesus do? Jesus is Love Incarnate.

He loved with humility.

He scolded the Scribes and Pharisees who militantly followed the letter of the law. He rescued the woman who was going to be stoned to death for adultery. He ate with tax collectors. He did all things with humility and love.

And no matter how many times I have heard people accuse Catholics of being "holier than thou," I have never once heard anyone say that of Jesus.

No matter the level of your devotion, you will probably be "more pious" than someone else in the world. But you should never assume that you are more or less holy than any other person.

How do we convey that? By being ever-humble and ever-merciful. Nothing says "non-judgmental" like showing a little mercy. That's what Jesus did. Remember: we can judge the morality of an ACTION. But we can never, EVER judge the morality of the PERSON doing the action. Ever.

Whatever you do, do it with a humble heart. Love everyone. Everyone. No more hate talk. No more condescension. Go ahead with your devotions. Pray. Fast. Give. But do not, under any circumstances, judge another person.