Thursday, October 26, 2017

Baseball and Religious Faith


Like a lot of other people, I am glued to the television watching the World Series this time of year.  Baseball is something I grew up with.  It has been my favorite sport ever since my brother and I bought, sold and collected baseball cards back in the 1950s when I was barely out of the “toddler” stages of life.  For example, I remember vividly when Don Larson pitched his perfect game in the 1956 World Series (when I was 8 years old).  The scene where Larson struck out Dale Mitchell to end the game and Yogi Berra stood up from his position behind home plate and ran out toward the mound to meet him and jump all over him lives on in my mind.  I’ve been addicted ever since.

Today, I’m thinking of the two books I possess that make a connection between baseball and faith.  One is Baseball as a Road to God:  Seeing Beyond the Game by John Sexton and the other is And God Said, Play Ball:  Amusing and Thought-Provoking Parallels Between the Bible and Baseball by Gary Graff.  Knowing me, as you do, having the modern-day compulsion that I have toward religious faith, now also knowing that I have a modern-day compulsion toward baseball, you can understand why I am interested in books with such titles. 

Here is an example from Graff’s book that makes me proud to have these compulsions.  Graff mentions the last words of Jesus from the cross as a reason for hope in our lives, saying “By listening to Christ’s words from the cross we learn everything we need to know to be saved:  forgive others, take care of one another, thirst for spiritual union, trust in God.  By being blessed by the Lord’s resurrection we are given the one thing we need to see us through our darkest days.”  And the parallel with baseball?  He says this:  “Hope abounds every spring with players, coaches, and fans alike look forward to a new season, with all errors and failed opportunities of the past erased with renewed opportunity to reach the Promised Land.” 

And Sexton, who served as president of New York University from 2002 to 2015, teaches a course on the connection between baseball and religion.  One quote from near the end of the book especially caught my eye.  “In our times, it is fashionable to force a choice between science and religion, of the mind and the soul.  Either/or.  This, in my view, is a false dichotomy – and perhaps this collection of baseball stories analyzed through a lens (and intellectual tradition) usually reserved for a study of what are obviously religious experiences can cause some to see why.  I embrace enthusiastically the joys of intellectual life, but I reject the notion that, as a consequence, I must forfeit the wonders of a deeply transformative religious life.”  In other words, one should never reject religion just because of advances in scientific knowledge. 

Good stuff!  I am so happy I discovered baseball early on in my life, but even happier that as I grew from that day in 1956 to the present day, I have simultaneously discovered my transformative faith.  God is so good!

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Lambs Among Wolves


Today, I’m thinking about the Scripture passages that discuss the commissioning of Jesus’ disciples to evangelize and the reference to them as “lambs among wolves” in this process.  (Luke 10:1-20 and Matt 10:5-33).  In Jesus’ time, it appears that the idea was to spread the faith far and wide by moving from house to house talking about the Good News of salvation, saying “the kingdom of God is at hand for you.”  (Luke 10:9).  Some would receive them in peace and some would not.  Jesus warned that those that would not receive them in peace (the “wolves”) may hand them over to the courts and scourge them (Matt 10:17-18) or turn them in to “governors and kings” for judgement (Matt 10:18).  Jesus also said this:  “Whoever listens to you, listens to me.  Whoever rejects you rejects me.  And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”  (Luke 10:16).  Through all of this, Jesus tells them repeatedly to not be afraid.  (Matt 10:26, 10:28, 10:31).

Today’s secular world is the same in many ways, but also different in many ways.  There are those who evangelize as the disciples were requested to do, but there are also those who are just trying to practice their faith as authentically and devotedly as they can.  Through all of this, we are lambs among wolves.  Who are the wolves in the modern world?  Just as in Jesus’ day, they are those who oppose Christ’s Church and her teachings.  But, they are also those who would kill.  They are those who would rape.  They are those who would physically abuse innocent people.  They are those who would sexually harass people.  They are those who would pass laws that go against what we believe.  They are those who reduce human dignity to nothingness.  They are those who support killing the unborn.  They are those who bully people.  On and on.

What should our response be?  We must know our faith.  We must remain true to the practice our faith against all odds.  We must not be afraid.  We must evangelize when given the opportunity.  We must lead by our example.  We must support our faithful Church leaders.  We must love our fellow man.  On and on!  Above all, we must pray. 

Here is my prayer.  Lord, help me to not be afraid.  Help me to remain true to you.  Help me to give good example to my friends and relatives.  Help me in my opposition to modern-day wolves.  Help me to love you above all things and my neighbor as myself.  Amen.


Thursday, October 12, 2017

This Welcoming Church


I’ve heard it said that the reason some people no longer attend Holy Mass on Sunday is that they don’t feel welcome in the Catholic Church and that a Catholic church is a cold, uncomfortable place.   Some parishes have tried to solve this “problem” by having faithful parishioners stand in the vestibule of the church on Sunday mornings and personally welcome the people to the church by opening the door of the church for them and by providing a warm, friendly greeting, such as “Good morning!”  I have no problem with that. 

However, some parishes have taken this one step further and made a very public statement, saying that they are “a welcoming Catholic community,” even apparently using this as a sort of “motto” for their parish.  This bothers me.  It implies that other Catholic parishes in general are somehow not welcoming.  Of course, that is not true.  The focus of any Catholic Church should be on the Eucharist … the Real Presence of the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ in the tabernacle.  Hence the atmosphere should be one of quiet reverence, love for God, and prayer.  People should always feel welcome in any Catholic church at any time because of this Real Presence.  I fear that it is more a faith issue than a “welcome” issue, and a sign of the secular times we live in.  It seems that some people think a Catholic church should be a place of social gathering rather than worship.

Perhaps in some people’s minds this perception (that of a Catholic church being unwelcoming) stems from the Catholic stance against divorced and re-married Catholics receiving Holy Communion.  Perhaps it stems from the Catholic stance against gay marriage, cohabitation before marriage, premarital sex, artificial means of birth control, etc., etc.  Of course, this bothers me too!  I believe that Christ instituted our beloved Catholic Church to assist us on our journey toward our eternal salvation.  This means that it must take a public stance against serious sin and provide the means of repentance instituted by Christ.  We must not think of the Church’s stance in these matters as a sign that we are somehow unwelcome or unwanted.  Quite the opposite!  We rather must think long and hard about how the Church’s stance protects us against sin and then take advantage of God’s mercy and love through his Church.  Our eternal salvation depends on this. The Church has your eternal welfare in mind!

So, if you feel you are at odds with the Catholic Church for whatever reason, please please, please … come into any Catholic Church near you and kneel and pray before the Real Presence.  The Church, this welcoming Church, and Christ himself, in his divine mercy, are there for you.  Amen.

Thursday, October 5, 2017

St. Francis of Assisi

Every October 4, the Catholic Church celebrates the life and holiness of St. Francis of Assisi.  I had the privilege of spending some time in Assisi last fall during a wonderful pilgrimage to Italy.  Except for modern day automobiles that line some of the streets during the day (see photograph), the city in general appears ancient, perhaps just as it was in the time of St. Francis.  Francis was born in 1182 and died in 1226, living a life of only 44 years.  The city sits on a hill.  On one end sits the huge basilica, the Basilica of St. Francis.  At night this basilica is lit up from one end to the other (see photograph), making it quite a sight to behold.  On the other end is the Basilica of St. Clare, who was one of Francis’ contemporaries and early followers.  In between are the ancient buildings and narrow streets (see photograph).

Most people are familiar with St. Francis because he was the founder of a religious order known as the Franciscans.  But there is so much more.  He was the son of a wealthy cloth merchant and, early in his life, was known for his love of parties and good times.  He was enamored by the glory of knighthood, but in his pursuit of such fame, was taken prisoner of war.  After his return from war and while praying in the small chapel of San Damiano (see lower right in photograph), he is said to have heard the voice of Christ asking him to rebuild his Church, which eventually Francis interpreted to mean living the simple gospel life of extreme poverty, in imitation of Christ himself.  In 1209, Francis sought and obtained the Pope’s approval of the “Rule of St. Francis” and thus began the early days of the Franciscan order.

Francis is known for his love for God’s creation, especially animals.  One could consider him the first environmentalist.  He invented the Christmas “crèche,” the modern day manger scene depicting the birth of Christ in the stable.  He is known to have had a special love of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, unlike many of the heretical groups of his day.  Two years before he died, God blessed him with the five crucifixion wounds of Jesus on his body, the “stigmata.”  He especially loved one particular depiction of the crucified Christ (see photograph).  He was canonized in 1228, only two years after his death.  Pope Francis honored him by taking his name at his papal installation.  Remarkably, he is memorialized by several Protestant denominations, also on October 4. 

I tried to take more photographs inside the basilica, but was rebuffed by a security guard, who didn’t believe me when I told him I did not see the signs stating that photographs were not allowed in the building.  I thought he was going to confiscate my camera!