Destructive division

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with our reluctance to be open to avoiding conflict and anger in our relationships with others. We are invited to be open to more peaceful responses to challenge and change in our lives.

Conflict and anger?

The reading from the Second Letter of Paul to the Corinthians uses a veil image to suggest reluctance to accept the call to the Gospel.

* [3:18] Another application of the veil image. All of us…with unveiled face: Christians (Israelites from whom the veil has been removed) are like Moses, standing in God’s presence, beholding and reflecting his glory. Gazing: the verb may also be translated “contemplating as in a mirror”; 2 Cor 4:6 would suggest that the mirror is Christ himself. Are being transformed: elsewhere Paul speaks of transformation, conformity to Jesus, God’s image, as a reality of the end time, and even 2 Cor 3:12 speaks of the glory as an object of hope. But the life-giving Spirit, the distinctive gift of the new covenant, is already present in the community (cf. 2 Cor 1:22, the “first installment”), and the process of transformation has already begun. Into the same image: into the image of God, which is Christ (2 Cor 4:4).1 

In Psalm 85, a speaker represents the people who wait humbly with open hearts (Ps 85:9–10): God will be active on their behalf (Ps 85:11–13).

* [Psalm 85] A national lament reminding God of past favors and forgiveness (Ps 85:2–4) and begging for forgiveness and grace now (Ps 85:5–8). A speaker represents the people who wait humbly with open hearts (Ps 85:9–10): God will be active on their behalf (Ps 85:11–13). The situation suggests the conditions of Judea during the early postexilic period, the fifth century B.C.; the thoughts are similar to those of postexilic prophets (Hg 1:5–11; 2:6–9).2 

Jesus Sermon on the Mount from the Gospel of Matthew today is a teaching about Anger.

* [5:22] Anger is the motive behind murder, as the insulting epithets are steps that may lead to it. They, as well as the deed, are all forbidden. Raqa: an Aramaic word rēqā’ or rēqâ probably meaning “imbecile,” “blockhead,” a term of abuse. The ascending order of punishment, judgment (by a local council?), trial before the Sanhedrin, condemnation to Gehenna, points to a higher degree of seriousness in each of the offenses. Sanhedrin: the highest judicial body of Judaism. Gehenna: in Hebrew gê-hinnōm, “Valley of Hinnom,” or gê ben-hinnōm, “Valley of the son of Hinnom,” southwest of Jerusalem, the center of an idolatrous cult during the monarchy in which children were offered in sacrifice (see 2 Kgs 23:10; Jer 7:31). In Jos 18:16 (Septuagint, Codex Vaticanus) the Hebrew is transliterated into Greek as gaienna, which appears in the New Testament as geenna. The concept of punishment of sinners by fire either after death or after the final judgment is found in Jewish apocalyptic literature (e.g., Enoch 90:26) but the name geenna is first given to the place of punishment in the New Testament.3 

Tom Shanahan, S.J. recalls a day when young folks received Holy Communion and were obviously affected by the Sacrament. Indeed, Christ was alive and well and acting in and through the Christian community of faith. We are ONE with God and our fellow human persons. None of us is alone or separated from the community of the faithful. He asks how does that union affect us?

What struck me about the First Communion was that none of us is alone in our faith commitment. Just as at Baptism, when we are privileged to join the Body of Christ, here in receiving Christ in the Sacrament of Holy Communion, we are united together are nourished so we can to live our lives devoted to extending the work of Jesus Christ in our world (local and worldwide). What a task!
But also, what a joy to realize that we are ONE with so many others who have this same mission: to humanize a world that spreads division, wars and rumors of war, violence, and Dis-UNITY. The antidote to that lack of unity is the strength of the person of Christ who we receive as nourishing food for our daily lives. To be sure, each of us is unique and significantly blessed by that uniqueness. In that blessing comes the invitation to seek and find our unity in the person of Christ. We’re NOT alone and we need to be proud of that unity with faithful people around our world.4 

Don Schwager quotes “Taming the Tongue,” by Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD).

 "What are we to do? Whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be liable to the hell of fire. But no human being can tame the tongue. Will everyone therefore go to the hell of fire? By no means. Lord, you have become our refuge from generation to generation (Psalm 90:1). Your wrath is just. You send no one to hell unjustly. Where shall I go from your spirit? or where shall I flee from your presence (Psalm 139:7), unless to you? Thus let us understand, my dearly beloved, that if no human being can tame the tongue, we must take refuge in God, who will tame it. Does your own human nature prevent you from taming your tongue? No human being can tame the tongue (James 3:8). Consider this analogy from the animals that we tame. A horse does not tame itself; a camel does not tame itself; an elephant does not tame itself; a snake does not tame itself; a lion does not tame itself. So too a man does not tame himself. In order to tame a horse, an ox, a camel, an elephant, a lion and a snake, a human being is required. Therefore God should be required in order for a human being to be tamed. (excerpt from Sermon 55:2)5

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 5:20-26 claims prayer is our number one weapon against anger. Call on God whenever we need help so that we can keep walking along the road of holiness and humility. An expert on anger is Saint Francis de Sales.

First, try to recognize the first signs of anger as it creeps into your thoughts. Perhaps you recall a past hurt done to you, or perhaps someone just appeared to slight you. Peacefully but deliberately, set the anger aside before it takes root. St. Francis warns, “Give anger ever so little way, and it will become master, like the serpent, who easily works in its body wherever it can once introduce its head.”
Then pray. “When we find that we have been aroused to anger, we must call for God’s help, like the apostles when they were tossed about by the wind and storm waters.” Francis recommends saying something as simple as “Have mercy upon me, O Lord.” Prayer is your number one weapon against anger. Call on God whenever you need help so that you can keep walking along the road of holiness and humility.6 

A Cognitive Behavioral Therapy practice in Los Angeles recommends one skill that may be helpful with anger and prayer. It was developed by Jon Kabat Zinn. It is the mindfulness practice of STOP. It is primarily used to introduce mindful experience throughout your day, when you need it most.

STOP is an acronym that stands for:
S: Stop. Whatever you’re doing, just pause momentarily. T: Take a breath. Re-connect with your breath. The breath is an anchor to the present moment. O: Observe. Notice what is happening. What is happening inside you, and outside of you? Where has your mind gone? What do you feel? What are you doing? P: Proceed. Continue doing what you were doing. Or don’t: Use the information gained during this check-in to change course. Whatever you do, do it mindfully.7 

A post by Franciscan Media offers a reflection on Saint Anthony of Padua.

Anthony should be the patron of those who find their lives completely uprooted and set in a new and unexpected direction. Like all saints, he is a perfect example of turning one’s life completely over to Christ. God did with Anthony as God pleased—and what God pleased was a life of spiritual power and brilliance that still attracts admiration today. He whom popular devotion has nominated as finder of lost objects found himself by losing himself totally to the providence of God.8 

Friar Jude Winkler discusses the idea of Paul about a veil on the Gospel. Jesus spiritual fulfillment of the Law covers a broad range of our behaviour toward others. Friar Jude considers how our fight for the rights of others is connected to Jesus extension of anger.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis, an African American pastor and author, who presents an image of God reminiscent of that created in the Shack, a 2017 American Christian drama film directed by Stuart Hazeldine and written by John Fusco, Andrew Lanham and Destin Cretton, based on the 2007 novel of the same name by William P. Young, Dr. Lewis asserts that it is more than time for all of us to reimagine God and because God is a mystery, we don’t know everything about Her. So out of our imaginations and our yearnings, our hopes and our fears, we make stuff up. At our best, we project goodness, power, kindness, and love onto God. At our worst, we create a God who is punitive, angry, judgmental, and harsh. We do this because we are those things, and we think they make us safe.

 Projection itself is not the problem. The problem occurs when we don’t examine those projections with a critical eye, with a hermeneutic of suspicion. The issue is that we write laws that codify the shadow parts of the god we create, in order to diminish others, to abuse others. The trouble starts when our god is too small, when we reduce our worst projections to fit in our pocket and keep this god on our team. When we neglect to confront this created god, we get the Crusades and the Doctrine of Discovery; the murder of indigenous people and Jews; apartheid and enslaved Africans; sexism, xenophobia, and homophobia—all in the name of the too-puny god that is the worst of ourselves.9

The texts today have connected to a wide scope of our journey in relationship with God and others. Our meditation will invite the Spirit to guide us through living as the shining face of God.

References

1	(n.d.). 2 Corinthians, chapter 3 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/2corinthians/3
2	(n.d.). Psalm 85 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/psalms/85
3	(n.d.). Matthew, chapter 5 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/matthew/5
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - OnlineMinistries - Creighton University. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from https://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/
6	(n.d.). Meditations - The Word Among Us. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from https://wau.org/meditations/2019/06/13/
7	(2014, June 18). Mindfulness STOP Skill — Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Los Angeles. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from http://cogbtherapy.com/mindfulness-meditation-blog/mindfulness-stop-skill
8	(n.d.). Saint Anthony of Padua - Franciscan Media. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-anthony-of-padua/
9	(2019, June 13). She Is Love — Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved June 13, 2019, from https://cac.org/she-is-love-2019-06-13/