An initial reflection on Social Justice

Having been through 8 years of Jesuit schooling, one of the ideals that Jesuit education promotes is the commitment to service and social justice. When I was at Jesuit High School in Sacramento, a class on social justice was a requirement my junior year.  I still look back on that class as the class which first introduced me to the stark inequality that is present in our world.  I remember being angry in the class--angry that so much of the world suffered.  It only made sense to me that the basic necessities that are fulfilled in my life should be fulfilled for everybody. 

Yet, how much of the world is starving? How many have no access to clean water? How much of the world is homeless? How many children die from very treatable diseases? 

In this season of Lent, Isaiah in the first reading from this past Friday declares: 

"This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:

releasing those bound unjustly,

untying the thongs of the yoke;

setting free the oppressed,

breaking every yoke;

Sharing your bread with the hungry,

sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;

Clothing the naked when you see them,

and not turning your back on your own. 

Then your light shall break forth like the dawn"

We are exhorted not only to be conscientious to the suffering of our brothers and sisters, we are asked to truly help them out of their suffering.  

But, boy, are we failures at this.

How often has your heart gone out to someone in need but didn't know how to help her/him? When did you offer help to a homeless, only to realize that they scapegoated you and spent your money on booze and drugs? Why, then, would you want to help any of them? Do we give up because of that one experience? 

I think most of the ways that we know how to help out individually are through charities. We aren't too bad at short-term solutions, and short-term solutions are a necessity for the survival of many, but we must work hard on the long-term solutions by effecting systematic change.  

In General Congregation 34 (I think it was 1995), the Jesuits at the time it was written listed some urgent situations:

• The marginalization of Africa in the "new world order" renders an entire continent paradigmatic of all the marginalized of the world.  Thirty of the world's poorest countries are African.  Two thirds of the world's refugees are African.  Slavery, colonial and neocolonial subjugation, internal problems of ethnic rivalry and corruption have all created an "ocean of misfortunes" there...The Society must do everything possible to stand by them  
  
• Indigenous peoples in many parts of the world, isolated and relegated to marginal social roles, see their identity, cultural legacy, and natural world threatened. Other social groups--an example would be the Dalits, considered "untouchables" in some parts of South Asia--suffer severe social discrimination in civil and even ecclesial society.  The GC calls on the whole Society to renew its long-standing commitment of such peoples.  
• In many parts of the world, even in the most developed countries, economic and social forces are excluding millions of people from the benefits of society. The long-term unemployed, young people without any possibility of employment, exploited and abandoned children of the streets, the aged who live alone without social protection, ex-convicts, victims of drug abuse and those afflicted with AIDS--all these are condemned to lives of dire poverty, social marginalization and precarious cultural existence.  They require of us the attention which our biblical tradition demands for "the orphans, widows, and strangers in your midst."
• There are over forty-five million refugees and displaced persons in today's world, 80 percent of whom are women and children.  Often lodged in the poorest of countries, they face growing impoverishment, loss of a sense of life and culture, with consequent hopelessness and despair...the general congregation appeals to all provinces to support the Jesuit Refugee Service in every way possible.  And we call on the international Society to join efforts with other international institutions and organizations to combat the injustices which uproot peoples from their land and families.  

For Jesuits, the GC calls us in this way:

"In each of our different apostolates, we must create communities of solidarity in seeking justice.  Working together with our colleagues, every Jesuit in his ministry can and should promote justice in one or more of the following way: (a) direct service and accompaniment of the poor, (b) developing awareness of the demands of justice joined to the social responsibility to achieve it, (c) participating in social mobilization for the creation of a more just social order.  

Now, I have written a very cursory reflection on these issues. I do not feel I am offering solutions to the problems--probably I am oversimplifying them.  At minimum, we need to be sensitive and empathetic to the suffering of our world. Ideally, we strive to affect positive change in our world.  

Of course, the question is--what exactly are we trying to change and how are we going to go about making things better? 

I hope to provide more reflections on social justice, and perhaps making it a theme for this upcoming week. And, please, offer your own reflections as I go through them. Probably a lot of you are more educated than I am on these issues.   

"Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more." [Luke 12:48]

Lenten Reflections as a Novice

About two years ago this day, I was on experiment in Pendleton, OR, shadowing the Jesuit there who worked at the Umatilla Reservation at St. Andrew's Mission, Fr. Mike Fitzpatrick. While I was there, one of the tasks I had was to preach at Mass every so often. So, two years ago, I had an opportunity to give an Ash Wednesday reflection for mass.  It was also that day that I received my driver's license for the first time. Since I've never like driving, it's fitting that it happened during the season of Lent.  

It's always interesting to revisit one's own work after being removed from it. I don't think I would offer the same exact reflection as I am today. But, if you are interested to see the musings of when I was a first year Jesuit novice, here it is: 

"Today, we gather together in communion with people from all over the world as we embark on this most Holy time, the season of Lent. It is a truly a graced time for us, a wonderful season of renewing and returning our hearts back to our God. 

Now, let’s be honest for a moment. I know there are many of us out there in which our first reaction to entering this season is…well let’s just say it doesn’t rank as one of our most favorite seasons. “Ugh…it’s that time of the year again.” We have Thanksgiving and the turkey, we have Christmas and all the presents that we receive, we have Valentine’s day and all the candy hearts. And then there’s Lent and all the…um, ashes, that we receive. I mean come on, you can’t even eat ashes! Well, I guess you can, but I wouldn’t particularly recommend it. 

And what do we get when we receive these ashes? We get to fast. We get to give up meat on Fridays. We get to watch family and friends dangle that piece of chocolate in front of your face that you promised you would give up for the next 40 days. And we get to remind ourselves that strangling them is not part of the spirit of the season. Some presents, huh? 

I wonder, after all of that, if you would believe me when I say that Lent has become one of my most favorite seasons of the year. In a culture in which our seasons are more and more marked by what I receive, this Lenten season challenges and invites us to ask the question: “What can I give?” “What can I offer?” It challenges us to move off of ourselves and return to the One most important in our lives. It’s a very counter-cultural season, and it’s a season we need to embrace. 

It’s not about the meat or that chocolate that we give up. And, as we hear in today’s Gospel, it’s not about giving up things so that you can brag what a devout, Holy Catholic you are. It’s not about us and our own selfish desires. 

Rather, the Gospel challenges us to remove the attention off of ourselves and to turn it back to God. How easy it is for us to do things for our own self-glorification, even if we started doing them with the best of intentions. This temptation can especially be destructive for those in positions of power. We start by wanting to do good, but it has the potential to turn into something where we do it only to receive praise and glory. As a priest-in-training, I am very aware of this temptation, and I pray that what I do may always be for the purpose of bringing all of us closer to God and not to feed my pride. 

And ultimately, that is what this Lenten season is about. It is about growing and deepening our relationship with God. It’s about saying: “I would be willing to sacrifice this part of myself because of my love for you.” It’s about having faith that in the dying to ourselves, we will enter into a fuller, richer life with God. 

Lent, one of my most favorite seasons of the year. It really is a retreat experience that the entire church is called to participate in. 

So, as we enter into this most Holy season and receive our ashes, let us pray that we may strive to participate fully in this retreat, to return our hearts back to God. And let us pray that we may strive to remove that attention from ourselves and set our sights on Christ, who himself sacrificed so much for us. Blessings upon all of you during this season of Lent." 

Philosophical Reflections: God and Light

At Yosemite National Park 4-5 years ago

Before I begin, I've been thinking, once again, about my blog. Just looking back through my earlier posts, I always seem to jump from one place to another. I might have a serious discussion about alcoholism, and then later follow up with a silly post/video. Unless I have a weekly theme, like the iconography of St. Ignatius, you never know what I'll be posting about.  Frankly, I never know what I'll be posting about.  In some ways, I could see how people would lose patience with my style because I don't really have a set style.  Or, you may say my style is ADD--it probably is. My interests are vast and diverse, and I try to incorporate my faith and Jesuit spirituality in all of them. I just get really excited about different things, and desire to share them.  It is, in a sense, a blogging with the spirit. So, I hope my blog thus far has not been too jarring for you.  

Anyway, since I am studying to obtain a Master's in Philosophical Resources (just the fancy way of saying the Jesuit degree for philosophy here at Fordham), I will probably be posting every now and then on some philosophical issues.  Today, in our Augustine class, there is one idea that stuck out to me--our discussion of the sun and relating that to God.  

For those of you familiar with the philosophy of Plato, you probably have encountered one of his most famous passages--the allegory of the cave. In this story, Plato depicts a group of people shackled their whole lives in a cave, and all that they see are shadows created from the light of a fire behind them. To them, these shadows are all that they know, since they have not seen anything else.  One day, however, a man is able to break free and emerge out of the cave. Never having seen the sun, he finds the light so bright that it is blinding to him. Soon, however, his eyes are able to adjust, and he is able to see the world anew for the first time in this light.  

Plato, however, is not necessarily talking about physical sight. Immediately following this passage is a discussion of education and knowledge. This allegory, then, is an image that illustrates the "sight" of our mind, of how we may know more rightly and truly.  

Augustine takes this image of the sun in one of his earlier works, the Soliloquies.  He writes: 

"Now listen while I teach you something concerning God from the analogy of sensible things, so far as the present time demands. God, of course, belongs to the realm of intelligible things, and so do these mathematical symbols, though there is a great difference. Similarly the earth and light are visible, but the earth cannot be seen unless it is illumined.  Anyone who knows the mathematical symbols admits that they are true without the shadow of a doubt. But he must also believe that they cannot be known unless they are illumined by something else corresponding to the sun.  About this corporeal sun notice three things. It exists. It shines. It illumines. So in knowing the hidden God you must observe three things. He exists. He is known. He causes other things to be known."

A number of years ago, I went to Yosemite National Park with my family in CA. The picture that I attached shows that it is a nice, sunny day, and you can see the beauty of creation behind. Clearly, those who wish to experience nature in its glory goes during the day. Without the light of the sun, all that you see behind me would be black, especially in more ancient days when we did not have light technology.  Yes, we need eyes in order to see. But, eyes in themselves are not sufficient for sight. Without light, all is dark.  

Augustine, then, uses that image of the sun to speak about how we see with our mind. For Augustine, we could not have clear vision without the power of God at work. Left to our own devices, our minds are caught up in the shadows of the world. In order to free ourselves from these shackles, three things are necessary: faith, hope, and love--"without these three no soul is healed so that it may see, that is, know God." 

Ideally, for Christians, we seek to see the world as God sees it. One may call a "seeing for the first time" a conversion experience, as Ignatius had while recovering from his critical wound at Pamplona. Many of us may have had those experiences where you have an "a ha!" moment.  You see something new that you never saw before in something quite old.  

That moment is real beauty.  That moment is a grace of God.  

When Jesuits pray the examen, we pray for the grace to see the day as God sees our day.  We strive to ground our understanding and our experiences in the light of Christ. This is difficult to do, especially when you are in the thick of things. This is why Ignatius felt the examen so important for us--so that we may look back on our day, seeing what transpired in a new light.  Ideally, we learn from this and try to integrate these graces for the next day. Yet, in reality, this is a lifelong process for us.  

It makes our life interesting. And, it means we have faith to find new light in all we do every day of our lives.  

I would like to end with a prayer from Fr. Pedro Arrupe

Grant me, O Lord, to see everything now with new eyes,

to discern and test the spirits

that help me read the signs of the times,

to relish the things that are yours, and to communicate

     them to others. 

Give me the clarity of understanding that you gave 

     Ignatius 

Today's Gospel: The Paralytic Man

In today's gospel reading (Mark 2:1-12), we hear the account in which four men open a hole in the roof of a home and lower a paralytic man to where Jesus is staying. Jesus, moved by their faith, tells the paralytic that his sins are forgiven.  Some scribes question how anyone except God can forgive sins. Jesus, knowing what is on their minds, poses them the question: which is easier, to say 'your sins are forgiven' or to say, 'rise, pick up your mat and walk'?  

So that the scribes would know his authority, he tells the paralytic: "I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home." The paralytic rises in the sight of everyone, picks up his mat, and goes on his way, astonishing everyone.  They say: "We have never seen anything like this."

Is there anything paralyzing you in your life today that you need to bring to Christ? Who are your friends and family who are willing to poke a hole in the roof for you? Are you willing to do the same? Do you have faith in Christ's healing and freeing power? Are there any sins you have that need reconciling, sins that are stifling your life? 

3 Questions

On the right of my webpage, you will find a blog entitled Acts: Jesuit Vocations in the Northwest. The page is updated about every week with different reflections. During these updates, a young Jesuit in our province is asked a number of questions for reflection.  

This week, I offer to that blog my own reflections to 3 questions asked of me:

1) Would you describe a particular time when it was a great joy to be a Jesuit?

2) What would you say are your greatest talents, skills, or gifts you enjoy in your life?

(I would have written a little bit about writing, but at the time that I sent in my answers, I hadn't received permission for the blog. I also didn't want to send in a thesis)

3) What are the key needs of the world today and how do you experience that in ministry?

If you are interested in my answers, you may visit our Jesuit Vocations blog. It's about two posts down.  

More information about the Financial Situation

I had mentioned last post that I would shift gears, but I thought it was worthwhile to share the recently updated Oregon Province Website.   

On the left side of the screen, you will find a number of different links with information about the current situation.  There, you will find a press release, a letter from our provincial, Fr. Pat Lee, and a Q&A which answers a number of different questions.  I recommend visiting it if you are interested to learn more.  

Please Pray For Us

This is an early morning post for me, since my phone rang at 3am (don't know why, no one left a message) and I haven't been able to go to bed since.  

To hear the phone call itself ring at that time of night is unusual in itself. But, with recent news that we've just received, I found myself lying in bed just thinking about it. The Jesuits of the Oregon Province have officially filed for Chapter 11 reorganization. It's front news on the Seattle Times.  

Ever since I was a first year novice, this financial situation has always been looming over our heads. This news of bankruptcy is not shocking for us since we have been preparing for this reality. But, with the news being official, I find myself early this morning with a heavy heart. 

At this point, I'm at a loss for words. All I can do is pray. 

I do not wish to dwell upon this on my blog, so I will probably shift gears by tomorrow and change the subject. I would like to offer, however, a more in-depth reflection about this, hopefully by the end of next week. I may not, however, if I think it not prudent to post anymore about this for the time being.   

Please pray for all of us during this time.  

"Lord, I pray fervently that you may bring about true healing and reconciliation during this time. For the victims of real abuse, that they may be healed from the wounds of their past and that they may know that our hearts go out to them. I have witnessed a true desire for real healing in this matter and for forgiveness. For my Jesuit companions who have been wrongly accused, that this stigma may not pull them into despair. For the province, that you may lead us during this time of reorganization, that all we do may be rooted and grounded in you. Guide all of our hearts and our minds, that it may be directed by your love and tender mercy."