Luke,
Chapter 19, Verse 20-21
20 Then the other servant came and
said, ‘Sir, here is your gold coin; I kept it stored away in a handkerchief, 21 for I was afraid of you, because
you are a demanding person; you take up what you did not lay down and you
harvest what you did not plant.’
When I read this verse; I thought of Mathew Kelly’s
writing from his book, “Rediscovering Catholicism.” Kelly speaks about the
various attitudes and philosophies which shape and define the mindset of the
modern secular world. He identifies three key lifestyles: individualism,
hedonism and minimalism.
First, what’s
individualism? Individualism
is an attitude whereby I come to see myself as the center of the universe. The
individualist will typically go through the course of his or her day asking
himself or herself one question: “What’s in it for me?”
Secondly, what’s
hedonism?
Essentially, it is an attitude whereby I come to see the pursuit of my own
personal pleasure as my primary concern in life. The hedonist will typically
ask himself or herself this question: “How
can I maximize the amount of pleasure in my life while minimizing the amount of
pain and inconvenience which I must endure?”
Thirdly, what is
minimalism? This
is a attitude whereby I look to put in the minimum amount of effort that I
possibly can into life, while reaping the maximum amount of reward. The
minimalist will typically ask himself or herself questions such as these:
·
“What’s the least amount I can possibly
do at the workplace and still keep my job?” Or perhaps:
·
“What’s the least amount I can possibly
do at school and still get a good grade?”
There are many people in the world today who might
“self-identify” as being “Christian”, if not “Catholic”, who are still giving
their hearts very much to the so-called “spirit
of the world”;
whether we’re talking about the spirit of individualism, hedonism or
minimalism. For instance, we can say that there are many Catholics in the world
who go to Mass, say their prayers, and perhaps even occasionally eat fish on
Fridays – who still govern most of their conduct by asking themselves this one
simple question: “What’s in it for me?” Many of these
people might still be very “kind” and “generous” to certain persons that they
happen to know. Who isn’t from time to time? But perhaps, this sense of
“kindness” and “generosity” is still governed by a pervasive sense of
selfishness and self-interest. In other words: “I’ll be kind to you, but only
insofar as you’re being kind back onto me!” And what is that but the spirit of
individualism. Let’s take a different example. Again, we can say that there are
many Catholics in the world today who go to Mass, say their prayers, and
perhaps belong to certain religious clubs or organizations who still govern the
bulk of their conduct by asking: “How can I get through the course of my day
while incurring the least amount of pain or inconvenience to myself?” Many of these people might still
be saying their prayers, perhaps even every day, but what’s often the real substance behind
these prayers? “O Lord give me the things that I want, the things that I
desire, the things that I believe to be essential to my own sense of happiness
and well-being. But Lord, whatever you do: do not make me suffer, do not give
me inconvenience, and do not give me pain! In other words, do not give me the
Cross!” And
that is the spirit of hedonism: the relentless and almost single-minded pursuit
of one’s own personal pleasure as one’s ultimate concern. This takes us to our
third example. Again, there are many Catholics in the world who go to church,
go to confession, and even follow the Commandments who still perhaps ask
themselves this question repeatedly: “How can I get myself into the kingdom of
heaven, while putting the least amount of effort into my relationship with God?” These people might try their very
best to avoid all sorts of serious sin. But, as we know from personal
experience, there is a huge difference between simply trying to avoid “serious sin”, and actually trying our very best
to please the Lord in all things, especially in those little details which
perhaps no one else would ever notice, except Christ Himself! But that’s really
the difference between being a “lukewarm Catholic” (or a “minimalist”) and
being a true disciple of the Lord.[1]
World Refugee Day serves to
commemorate the strength, courage and resilience of millions of refugees that
have been forced to flee their homes out of fear of persecution or to escape
disasters. The day also aims to recognize refugees for their contribution to
the world. According to the United Nations, there are more than 50 million
people displaced by war and violence, of which 33 million are internally
displaced while the other 17 million are refugees, mostly in neighboring
nations.
The United Nations General Assembly designated World Refugee Day in December 2000. It is celebrated every June 20th, a day chosen in order to coincide with Africa's previously celebrated Refugee Day.
The United Nations General Assembly designated World Refugee Day in December 2000. It is celebrated every June 20th, a day chosen in order to coincide with Africa's previously celebrated Refugee Day.
Religious Liberty
Attack: Catholic Humanitarian Services[3]
For decades, the U.S.
Conference of Catholic Bishops' Migration and Refugee Services (MRS) has
carried out the commitment of the U.S. Bishops to serve and advocate for
refugees, asylees, and other forced migrants, immigrants, and other people on
the move. Special concern is given to
the most vulnerable among these populations, such as the victims of human
trafficking. This commitment is rooted in the Gospel mandate
that every person is to be welcomed by the disciple as if he or she were Christ
Himself, and in the right of every human being to pursue, without constraint,
the call to holiness. MRS developed years of expertise in actively working to
end human trafficking and protect those adults and children who have been
exploited through trafficking. In 2006, MRS's Anti-Trafficking Services Program
(ATSP) began administering a federal program to provide intensive case
management to foreign national victims of human trafficking identified in the
U.S. and its territories. In 2010, through its network of subcontracting
agencies, ATSP helped survivors of human trafficking from 64 countries, with
the largest number of survivors from India, Mexico, Thailand, the Philippines,
and Haiti. Survivors had been trafficked on farms, in hotels and casinos, in
private homes, in spas, and in other industries for the purposes of forced
labor and/or sex trafficking. However, despite many years of excellent
performance by MRS in administering contract services for victims of human
trafficking, in 2011, the federal government changed its contract
specifications to require MRS to provide or refer for contraceptive and
abortion "services" in violation of Catholic teaching. The federal
government refused to award a grant to MRS despite MRS's earning a far higher
objective score from the government's independent grant evaluators than two
other organizations that were awarded grants. And those two scored so low that
they were deemed unqualified.Religious institutions should not be disqualified from a government contract based on religious belief, and they do not somehow lose their religious identity or liberty upon entering such contracts. Yet a federal court in Massachusetts, turning religious liberty on its head, declared that the First Amendment requires such a disqualification—that the government somehow violates religious liberty by allowing Catholic organizations to participate in contracts in a manner consistent with their beliefs on contraception and abortion. Fortunately, in January 2013, an appeals court vacated this terrible decision. But the possibility of similar suits in the future remains.
Is our most
cherished freedom truly under threat? Among many current challenges, the federal government
has discriminated against Catholic humanitarian services based on their
religious beliefs, even when those beliefs had no impact on performance.
Religious liberty is more than freedom of worship; it includes our ability to
make our contribution to the common good of all Americans without having to
compromise our faith. Without religious liberty properly understood, all of us
suffer, especially victims of human trafficking in need of important
humanitarian services.
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