The Progressive Catholic Voice
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In this issue . . .

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The Progressive Catholic Voice is pleased to present the first installment of a 5-part video documentary celebrating the community of St. Stephen’s Catholic Church in South Minneapolis.

Part One of this documentary (see below) introduces a number of parishioners and pastors from the community’s past and present- day life.  Each of these community members will be featured in subsequent installments, sharing in greater detail how they became involved in St. Stephen’s and what this community has meant to them.

By outlining the evolving nature of liturgy at St. Stephen’s, Part One of this documentary also highlights the crisis/opportunity that St. Stephen’s is currently facing, and examines how the community has responded to the April 2008 directive of the chancery of the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis to discontinue its 9:00 o’clock liturgy.  As you’ll see, this directive and the subsequent establishment of the Spirit of St. Stephen’s Catholic Community (where the 9:00 o’clock liturgy continues) has stimulated a range of feelings and responses from those interviewed for this documentary.

Please Note: As with everything we post, we welcome your feedback.  Comments can be e-mailed to progressivecatholicvoice@gmail.com.

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An “Essential Ministry” in Crisis

By Michael V. Tegeder

For Catholic patients in local hospitals Church leadership is “failing in its responsibility to provide the celebration of the sacraments in a timely and available manner,” writes Rev. Michael Tegeder. And under current archdiocesan policies “there is no solution in sight.”

We are blest in Minnesota to have some great medical centers. The Mayo, Fairview-University, and Abbott Northwestern readily come to mind. More locally we have Fairview Southdale and Methodist Hospitals. But when I talk to medical personnel, they often tell me that if they were to be in an accident they would want to be taken to Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC). Indeed, each year the U.S. News and World Report cites the 100 best hospitals in the United States, and HCMC is ranked at the top for critical care.

Patients come with traumatic injuries from all over the Midwest. Last week I was at HCMC visiting a parishioner and was shocked to find out that there is no longer a priest chaplain assigned there. The Chaplain’s Department was told by the Archdiocese that no priest is currently available and that patients should call their parishes to have sacramental care. Of course, many of the patients are poor and homeless and have no home parish, and others are at a great distance from their parishes. The main responsibility of church leadership is to provide the celebration of the sacraments in a timely and available manner. We are failing in this responsibility. And under current policies there is no solution in sight. 

We simply do not have enough priests, and especially those trained to do the very specialized hospital ministry.  In recent years the Archdiocese has been forced to recruit priests from the developing world to fill in at local hospitals as a stop-gap measure. Many of these priests are here as students. Often they are learning English and have no familiarity with our culture or with hospital ministry. (Indeed, one of these priests who needed to drive some distance to get between the multiple hospitals he was assigned to first needed driving lessons!)

It just happens that there are a number of priests trained to do hospital ministry but are not considered acceptable to serve by our church leadership. These are priests who have left active ministry not due to misbehavior but for making the conscientious decision to marry. One priest, an excellent chaplain, recently left after 25 years of ministry. He left in good standing. He continues to work as a chaplain but cannot be hired as a Catholic chaplain. It seems so wasteful that his talents cannot be utilized.

I talked to the director of ministry personnel for the Archdiocese about this, and he said such decisions were above his pay grade. I reminded him that his Christian baptism gives him every right and, indeed, the responsibility to speak the truth and express his convictions.

I shared the above information with some people to get their feedback and received a response from a Catholic I know who works as an administrator in a local public hospital’s Spiritual Care Office. This person’s work includes a training program for those becoming chaplains. One of the recent interns is a Catholic priest who left active ministry after many years for some difficult personal reasons. He would have preferred staying in ministry and indeed is training to work as a chaplain. He also left priesthood in good standing.

The administrator simply concludes, “ . . . He can no longer perform any of the sacraments at a time when we need help so badly. I cannot tell you how many times I have to tell a family we have no one to call – then ask if they have a priest. Many times they are from out of town, or as you stated, out of touch with the church. My own mother, who was such a devout catholic, ended up in a nursing home away from her parish and at the end of her life, had no ‘priest’ to call. I struggle so with a church that won’t let priests marry, woman be ordained. . . . Let alone just give deacons more power instead of limiting what they can do. I’m talking to the choir, I know.”

There is no shortage of ordained hospital ministers for other denominations. The other non-Catholic members of the Chaplains Department are shocked at how this essential ministry is being handled by the Catholic leadership.

Rev. Michael V. Tegeder is the pastor at St. Edward’s Catholic Church in Bloomington, MN.

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Parish Life: St. Mary’s of Mapleton
Scenes of Church People Caught in Conflict

Selected from Waiting for Mozart by Charles Pilon
(To learn more about Waiting for Mozart or to purchase this book, visit Charles' website.)

The Final in a Four-Part Series

Editor’s Note: Waiting for Mozart is the story of a titanic power struggle and the madness it causes in a fictitious Roman Catholic parish, St. Mary’s of Mapleton, twenty-five years after Vatican II.  Following is the final installment of a four-part series featuring an excerpt from the novel and a reflection some years later by one character in the scene selected.

William Coughlin Hunt reviewed Waiting for Mozart in the May 2008 issue of The Progressive Catholic Voice.  To purchase the book, visit www.charlespilon.com.

Introduction

If you are a member of a parish, on its staff or its parish council, you will recognize the characters in this story. You may find yourself there, too.

Father Joseph Burns is the pastor at St. Mary’s in Mapleton, Minnesota, a first-ring suburb of St. Paul. It is late 1989, twenty-five years after the Second Vatican Council; and Father Joe has been finding himself under increasing pressure as the years have passed. He has coaxed and at times steamrolled his parishioners into creating a new kind of Catholic parish envisioned by Vatican II. He has a lay staff and an active parish council.

Together, through good times and bad, they have implemented many of the changes called for by Vatican II. Somehow, however, he seems to have created a monster. Or so he believes. Parishioners have the idea that their baptism makes them the Church – that they are the People of God.

The pastor asked the parish council to prepare a report on how St. Mary’s staff salaries and wages compared to those in comparable parishes. They collect and study the available data, then work on the report for six months before they are ready to present it. At the meeting, the pastor arbitrarily refuses to consider or even receive the report. It’s a waste of time, he says. “There. Is. No. Money.” This indignity is a last straw for the council and their fury becomes the last straw for the pastor, putting him over the edge. The volcanic parish council meeting changes lives – and life at St. Mary’s – for good.

Lorraine Larsen, the parish liturgist, was the fourth person to hold that position in the past seven years. She worked with the pastor, a part-time director of music, and other staff to prepare the worship and other prayer services at St. Mary’s. Joe Burns considered her the most creative and energetic person he had hired for that position in all the years he’d been the pastor. And best of all, she was a team player that a priest could count on when he needed one.

Joe studied the phone on his desk for a moment, then pressed the numbers from memory. Good morning, Lorraine, he thought. Here’s your wake up call. He let it ring twice and hung up.
 
He pressed the numbers again. Jack Larsen picked up on the second ring.

“Hello, Jack. Father Joe. I know it’s early, but may I speak with Lorraine? I’ve stumbled onto a problem this morning and I need her help. Would you be able to put her on the line, please?”
 
“Good morning, Father. Yes, sure. Just a minute.” Joe heard Lorraine’s husband waking her.
She took the phone half-asleep, spluttering at her husband.

“Joe Burns,” the pastor declared with some play in his voice. “You know—your embattled pastor. I’m sorry to call so early, Lorraine, but I’ve got a problem here this morning.” He waited.

“Hello? You awake?”

“Yes, Father Joe. I’m okay. A problem? What problem?”

“I can’t offer the 8:00 Mass. The reason why isn’t important right now. I’ll explain later. I need you to be at the church to distribute Communion.”

“Gosh, Joe, I’m sorry,” the liturgist replied, trying to focus. “I’ve got to take my son to school first thing to meet with his teacher. This really won’t work today.”

“Oh boy, that’s bad, Lorraine. Any chance of moving that to later? Or what about tomorrow? Could you take Jimmy in tomorrow? I really need this.”

“I’m a bit out of it yet, Joe. Can you hold for just a minute?” Lorraine covered the phone mouthpiece, resting it on her stomach. She stretched to a quiver, relaxed and yawned. Her husband, propped up on one elbow regarding her darkening expression, ran his fingers through her jet-black hair.

Lorraine retrieved the phone. “This is not a good morning for me to come early, Joe. As a matter of fact . . .”

“Lorraine, let me stop you. I hate to call like this but I really need the favor. I know—we’ve got to get other members in the parish trained to hold Communion services. We keep talking about it. What do you think?”

“What do I think about what, Joe?”

“What do you think about covering me at 8:00 so I can take care of this problem?”

“What do I think? I can’t, Joe. I told you. I have an appointment. Our son is doing terribly in math this fall.”

“Lorraine, we had a bad council meeting again last night. This Jensen fellow will be the death of me yet. I just got off the phone with Bob Talbot. We’re on for breakfast at 7:30. I need someone for 8:00.”

Lorraine had been in this bind before with the pastor. She tapped her forehead with the back of the receiver, pondering what she should do.

A Communion service isn’t the same as Mass, but don’t forget—people are gathered in the name of Jesus to hear the Scriptures and to receive the Eucharist; so, true to his word, Jesus must be there, present. It foreshadows the day when a woman will actually be the priest.

“Hold on a minute, Joe.” She covered the mouthpiece again and turned to her husband.

“I’ll take Jimmy, if it’s important,” he said. “Go ahead.”

“Joe, look, okay,” Lorraine conceded. “I’ve told you before that I like to be given notice about these things, but okay again this time. My husband will take our son and I’ll be there before 8:00. Have a good breakfast. I hope you get this fixed. What happened anyway?”

“I’ve got to go, Lorraine. I’ll fill you in later. Pray for your pastor, will you?”

A Reflection by Lorraine Larsen Some Years Later

Working closely with the pastor, as I did, I knew first hand the pervasive manipulation – the abuse – that marked this man’s behavior and, therefore, employment at St. Mary’s. 

It was his trademark to disdain and discount members of the staff.  At meetings or alone with him in his office, he would attack someone verbally – subtly, indeed – but consistently, until that person chose to resign – and therefore was, in fact, fired. 

In a discussion or difference of opinion, he would simply walk away, thereby dismissing you.  Or he’d get up from his chair to exit the room, leaving you to wonder what just went wrong.  He didn’t confront people directly.  He’d talk behind your back or jest at your expense.  He took credit for results achieved by others.  Daily you’d see pain and stress on the faces of staff – in every careful, measured gesture, in every look over your shoulder before you spoke.

Honestly?  I felt violated – in the worst way possible, I’m saying.  Many people began to hate him, and it was hard to hate only what he did or the results of his behavior.  You began to detest the man himself.  You despised everything about him and lost any objectivity or recognition of the good things he may have done.  I’ll say it again.  It was like the ultimate violation. 

Charles Pilon lives with his wife Ana in Roseville, Minnesota, where they raised their three children. Chuck was ordained a Catholic priest in 1962 and left the priesthood in 1970. He did not leave the Church, however, and has remained an active member from the people’s side of the altar.

To learn more about Waiting for Mozart or to purchase this book, visit Charles Pilon's website.

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Reflections on World Youth Day

By Margaret and Gordon Bayly

World Youth Day activities have concluded and it’s time to reflect.  In keeping with the WYD theme, may we all receive guidance from the Holy Spirit and be a Light to the World.

There are so many thoughts crowding our minds.

The increased workload for clergy, religious and pastoral assistants – the generosity of volunteers and host families – the massive organization – the joyous and prayerful behavior of the pilgrims – the great TV coverage which gave us beautiful images and kept us informed – the understanding of the general public and the disappointment with the few who felt the need to protest in a disrespectful manner.
 
We must admit, we have always found it difficult to equate Jesus with the fine robes worn by the Pope, cardinals and bishops.

We were impressed by the Pope’s heartfelt apology to the sexual abuse victims but sorry he wasn’t able to emphasize that when confronted initially with the scandal of sexual abuse there was a lack of leadership from the highest levels of the Church (including Rome). For some victims their cases were mishandled. An opportunity for additional healing was prevented when the Pope spoke to the Church’s selected victims and excluded the Broken Rites group and Anthony and Christine Foster.  What model of Church are we presenting to our young pilgrims?

On a positive note, the Church is alive and well with regard to some social justice issues. We pay tribute to the many wonderful groups and individuals who are achieving great results.

Dissent in the Church is obvious. Parishioners are expressing their views in many and varied ways.

In the past, it was accepted that we should always approach Communion with reverence – now it is dictated that we must incorporate a bow – yet another rule to adhere to. Is this really necessary? This may be viewed as a trivial matter but many are ignoring the request.

According to the Powers that Be, the Eucharist should be denied to those who practice artificial birth control, are divorced and living in defacto relationships or irregular marriage situations, due to not gaining an annulment. Yet many of these parishioners disregard this ruling and present themselves for Communion.

For clergy and religious there is always the fear of being reprimanded if they offer advice that is contrary to the hierarchy. They must encounter many hurt and confused people who feel alienated from their faith family.

The following we cannot understand: the Catholic Church can accept and ordain a married Anglican minister but will not consider reviewing celibacy issues for its own priests.  Also, leadership roles for women are not open for discussion. We should always pose the question, “What would Jesus do?”

Our middle son, Michael, is Catholic, compassionate, caring, and gay. The USA is home for him. He gained his Masters in Theology from the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, Minnesota and is employed as an educator and events coordinator by the Catholic Pastoral Committee on Sexual Minorities (CPCSM).  He is a wonderful advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people and their families.
 
We have come to accept that homosexuality is not a “lifestyle” that people choose; it is an “orientation” you are born with. The terminology that the Vatican uses to describe homosexuality is so distressing for us. Examples include “intrinsically evil,” and “objectively disordered.” Unfortunately, such terms fuel homophobia. Yes, it does exist!

There are many gay Catholics who desire to be accepted for who they are.  We love equally, Michael and his two straight brothers. They fill us with pride and joy. Our family continues to embrace and support Michael. We have been questioned by some as to whether or not we should do this as it is contrary to Church teaching. Being “out” parents of a gay Catholic child is challenging and frustrating!

In a recent Diocesan article an Auxiliary Bishop stated “that coming to Communion is not a matter of ‘Come As You Are’ – a most misleading hymn”. To read this filled us with sadness as this hymn is a favorite of ours.

The following appeared as part of a reflection written by Michael and describes how this “misleading hymn” sustained him as he came to terms with his sexuality: “Yet, still the words of that hymn from my childhood stayed with me – like a warm, indestructible light flickering deep within. It restored my hope, and perhaps even saved my life.”

We continue to pray that those in power within the Catholic Church will consider acceptance and understanding towards those who are considered not worthy to receive the Eucharist. For some, the waiting time is over. The feeling of rejection can result in their faith journey following another path. Sadly, for others, dealing with not being welcome at the Lord’s table means a loss of faith.

Our Catholic teaching tells us there will be a Judgment Day. Preoccupation with the hereafter should not distract us from the here and now. Unfortunately some lose sight of the many good deeds and social justice issues that require attention in our daily lives.
 
In closing, we wish to share a quote from a dear friend, “Didn’t Jesus have some strong words for authoritarian people who were known to judge others by adherence to the letter of the law rather than by the love within their hearts?” 

Gordon and Margaret Bayly are the parents of Progressive Catholic Voice editor, Michael Bayly.  They live in Port Macquarie, Australia, and their commentary was first published by CatholicaAustralia.com.

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I had just turned thirteen the month before the startling news was broadcast into my 8th grade classroom: President John F. Kennedy was shot in Dallas and had been rushed to the hospital. It was followed by the bulletin that the President was dead. Lorenzo, my fellow classmate, an Italian Catholic, burst into tears. I sat quietly thinking: at least we got that Papist out of the White House! The anti-Catholic indoctrination I received from my church and parents never allowed me to see JFK as a person, only a symbol of a false religion to reject. Oh, and he was a Democrat as well!

Had I known the JFK that Jim Douglass reveals in his new book, I would have had more reasons to dismiss him: a President engaging in peacemaking activities with the Premier of the godless Communists, Nikita Khrushchev, passing letters back and forth that even members of his Cabinet were unaware! A US President secretly arranging for face-to-face consultations with Fidel Castro to resume normal diplomatic relations with a communist Cuba! The man who issued the secret National Security Action Memorandum 263 ordering the removal of 1,000 US Military advisors from Vietnam by the end of 1963 and ALL US Troops by the end of 1965. Under the guise of “peacemaking” President John F. Kennedy was urging “capitulation” to the Soviets in the Cold War – at least from my junior high school analysis.

Jim Douglass describes JFK’s “turning” – his movement toward peace rather than “victory” after the almost catastrophic “Cuban Missile Crisis” the year before in 1962. While the world was on the brink of nuclear devastation, I had practiced the “duck and cover” technique at school in the event the Ruskies dropped “the big one”. My own personal “turning” toward peace began five years later when I had to register for the military draft when I turned 18 in the fall of 1968. Fortunately, I was no longer dependent on getting political perspective from US News and World Report (The Commies are killing our missionaries in Vietnam!) nor my theology from my evangelical/fundamentalist church (Jesus’ call to “Love your enemies” was trumped by St. Paul’s admonition to the Christians in Rome: “Let every soul obey the governing authorities”).

Having been issued a uniform and rifle for the compulsory ROTC class when I registered for my college freshman year, I had an epiphany on the rifle range when I realized that even though the targets were circular, they were, in reality, the bodies of the “Viet Cong”.  Under no reading of Jesus’ teaching could I justify pulling the trigger; so I registered as a conscientious objector. I had begun my own turning. Little did I know that one year later, I would be marching on the local Wheaton, IL draft board arm-in-arm with a Catholic priest! Another year later would find me taking some courses with that priest at the nearby Catholic Maryknoll Seminary. Soon I would discover Jim Douglass’ The Non-Violent Cross after I had left behind my anti-Catholic upbringing and was open to hearing the “Gospel” through a new lens. My own turning toward peace.

Why would a legendary peace theologian get caught up in conspiracy theory? That was my first question when I received an invitation to attend a Pax Christi retreat 5 or 6 years ago led by Jim Douglass. I’d read virtually all his excellent books, followed his campaign against the Trident and the White Train delivering nuclear weapons to those submarines, and had met him at several conferences on peacemaking. When he and his wife Shelly moved to Birmingham to form a Catholic Worker House, I anticipated seeing more of him because I was only four or five hours away in southwest Georgia. However, soon after they arrived, our family moved to Minnesota. Now here was a chance to re-connect with this insightful theologian-activist. But his retreat topic was on the connections between the assassinations of the Kennedy brothers, Martin King and Malcolm X! He talked about how American deals with its prophets – in similar fashion to the way the Romans dealt with the notorious Galilean troublemaker during the administration of Pilate and Felix. At the time, Jim was only beginning the long research project that has led to this first of what promises to be a trilogy of books on the killings of prophets and peacemakers in the 60s in America.

Research indeed! JFK and the Unspeakable has close to 100 pages of small-print footnotes to document and explain his sources about the JFK most of us did not know. However, a small but powerful force within the government, namely the CIA, the FBI, the Joint Chiefs of the military, and even some of his own Cabinet and advisors, came to feel the need to remove him as a danger to an American strategy of global domination. Kennedy, recognizing that the use of nuclear weapons against the Soviets would leave an estimated 140 million dead, decided you could not “win” the Cold War. The others in that military-industrial-intelligence complex felt that with “only” a few million Americans killed if America struck with a first-strike, we could “win”. The window for such an advantage in the nuclear arsenal and delivery systems would narrow and begin to close after 1964, leading some to conclude that the obstacle that the President embodied would have to be removed before the end of 1963.

The “unspeakable” in the title comes from Trappist monk/peacemaker Thomas Merton’s book, Raids on the Unspeakable. It is a term he used to describe the confluence of evil within systems like governments, corporations, and other power centers. Walter Wink uses the term “the Domination System”. St. Paul referred to “the Principalities and Powers”. President Eisenhower coined the phrase “the Military Industrial Complex”. Catholic Worker Dorothy Day talked about “this filthy, rotten system. The “unspeakable” that conspired (breathed together) against JFK (and later his brother as well) was the manifestation of the national security state that insisted on total allegiance to both its ideology and methodology. Kennedy ran for office as a Cold Warrior. Only his glimpse into the abyss that was the Cuban Missile Crisis allowed him to see how close that system pushed toward a nuclear holocaust.

Kennedy was truly saved by his enemy – Nikita Khrushchev. The irony this book discloses that all three antagonists, Castro, Kennedy, and Khrushchev, all had struggled for peaceful co-existence in opposition to their own advisors. Each leader was trapped within national systems that had a vested interest in keeping the conflict going rather than risking a negotiated resolution.

Through extensive interviews and research, Douglass paints a compelling portrait of the supposed assassin/”patsy”, Lee Harvey Oswald. While the Warren Commission (conveniently controlled by ex-CIA Chief, Allen Dulles) failed to interview numerous witnesses that might challenge the “lone gunman” theory, Douglass sought out the stories that convincingly (to me) argued for at least one or more “Oswald” doubles. Douglass argues that the CIA hoped to pin blame for the assassination of the US President on both Cuba and the Soviets, urging the new President, Lyndon Johnson to “retaliate” with their desired preemptive nuclear strike.
 
It was the successful cover-up orchestrated by the Warren Commission Report that led to the subsequent assassinations of Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, followed by Kennedy’s brother, Bobby is the argument Douglass puts forth. JFK and the Unspeakable is the first of a trilogy of books attempting to unmask or at least begin to demystify this force of evil that has so captivated our national soul.

Besides attempting to portray John Kennedy’s courage in his “turning,” Douglass also wants to steel his readers who are committed to peacemaking to be realistic about the challenges we face. If the “unspeakable” is willing to kill a sitting President, what should we expect if we attempt to follow Jesus down that same road?  The Kennedy that Douglass portrays is less overtly religious than Martin King in his last days (“I only want to do God’s will.”). JFK “looked into the abyss” and chose his path of change or turning when he decided that the fate of the world’s children were at stake if these nukes were ever used again. Kennedy realized that even just the atmospheric testing of these weapons imperiled the health of all humanity with the radioactive fallout.

But Kennedy’s religious tradition also spoke to him clearly – especially through the powerful words of the initiator of Vatican II, Pope John XXIII with his final masterpiece, Pacem in Terris. The impact of this work so moved Nikita Khrushchev that he is reported to have kept a medallion given to him by this beloved pontiff on his desk in the Kremlin as a way to irritate some of his own Politburo advisors.  Kennedy’s own commencement speech given at American University five months before his death certainly owed some of its power and insight to the recently deceased pope who died two weeks prior to that June 1963 address. In that speech which ironically was carried more widely over the radio to Soviet citizens (and ignored by most US media), Kennedy cautioned Americans not to demonize the other side. His words,“… not to see only a distorted and desperate view of the other side, not to see conflict as inevitable, accommodation as impossible, and communication as nothing more than an exchange of threats. No government or social system is so evil that its people must be considered as lacking in virtue,” could (and should) be readily applied today to Ahmadinejad’s Iran.

The book also raises a very disturbing portrait of how this National Security State imperils our democracy.  The idea of a group of secretive men (although there are probably some women in the mix today) deciding who can be or remain President exposes the figure-head nature of the power of that office.  The collusion of un-elected agents, military officers, wealthy business elites, “diplomats,” and others plotting behind the scenes to replace the elected head-of-state is not just something that happens in Third World nations. Was what happened in November 1963 in Dallas really a coup-d’etat?

Back in the mid-70s, William Stringfellow raised questions about the compatibility between democracy and the apparatus of a National Security State. Stringfellow, drawing on the insights of Biblical prophets and the writings of Jewish theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel, called the allegiance demanded of citizens by this obsession with “security” during the Cold War by its Biblical name: idolatry. With the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet empire, cold warriors searched about for new adversaries so they could continue to justify our dependence on and subservience to the military industrial complex out of fear. Terrorism conveniently became the new whipping boy and the anticipated “peace dividend” disappeared.

While Douglass’ JFK story harkens back to the Cold War, the idolatry of the National Security State is as strong as ever – and its practitioners stand ready to remove or marginalize any who stand in its way. How else could one explain the almost universal condemnation of former-President Jimmy Carter’s sit-down with the leadership of Hamas and Syria this spring? Or the annual rite of genuflecting before the power of AIPAC by both Democrats and Republicans – each vying to out-do the other in pandering to the Israeli state, ignoring and neglecting the cries for justice emanating from behind the 26 ft. tall “security barrier”, the new Berlin Wall that Carter has identified as apartheid?

This book is sobering, disturbing – but ultimately hopeful as well. If even such a stout Cold Warrior as John Fitzgerald Kennedy could decide to “turn toward peace” – albeit at a terrible price – can we too break the shackles of fear and greed and begin that same turning ourselves? As Jim Douglass reminded a friend of mine: who is the real “hero,” the prime mover of this story? It is God - God working through JFK, Khrushchev, and others who had the courage to take risks for peace.  “After all,” Douglass reminded him, “the nuclear holocaust didn’t happen!”

We must open ourselves to recognize the common humanity we share, as “we all inhabit this small planet.  We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children’s futures. And we are all mortal.” When we recognize and act on this, we join hands with the Creator and work together to build a world of peace. One place to start is exposing, unmasking, naming the truth behind this system. Exposing it to the light. It might put us in its target but only by escaping its clutches can we truly be free and healed of that primal urge to dominate.

Further information on JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2008), and how it may be purchased, can be found at the website for Orbis Books. New and used copies of this book may also be purchased from Amazon.com.

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Becoming Instruments of Peace and Healing

by Ron Joki

A message of peace delivered June 25, 2008, by Ron at the Church of St. Joan of Arc, Minneapolis, MN.

From the writings of Martin Luther King, Jr.:

Now, I say to you, life is hard . . . at times as hard as crucible steel; It has its bleak and difficult moments.  Like the ever-flowing waters of the river, life has its moments of drought and its moments of flood.  Like the ever-changing cycle of the seasons, life has the soothing warmth of its summers and the piercing chill of its winters.  But, if one will hold on, you will discover that God walks with you, and that God is able to lift you from the fatigue of despair to the buoyancy of hope, and transform dark and desolate valleys into sunlit paths of inner peace.

From the words of Jesus:

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.  (John 14:27)

Peace to you.  In my thoughts of peace, I think of some of my heroes: Gandhi and Mother Theresa and their wonderful example of peace in the face of adversity and oppression.  I think of those whom I have known: a dear friend, Mark, who has passed on, but in his life, through diabetes, blindness, and multiple amputations expressed an incredible personal peace.  I think of Martin Luther King, Jr., and his wonderful and inspiring words of hope . . . and I have a dream too.

I have a dream that people around the world will one day stop hating those who are different from them simply because they don’t fit the mold; that they will stop torturing and killing those who have different political views, or religious preferences, or skin color, or sexual orientation.

Where in the message of Jesus, or Mohammed, Buddha, or Moses do we get that it’s OK to hate and ridicule and denigrate?  Where did Jesus say to hate?

Whether from misguided patriotism that launches us into war or religious zeal that twists us into terrorism, why do we hear and respond so readily to the call of our fear and basest desires for violence?   As we know, violence begets violence.

Scripture tells us that what we need fear is not those who kill the body, but those who attempt to kill the soul.  Their methods may be perfectly legal and even socially acceptable.  Their way eats away slowly at the spirit of both individuals and community . . . if we let it!  If we let the forces of hatred and violence disturb our peace and draw us in, we risk becoming what we fear.

How do we instead become instruments of peace and healing?  We must acknowledge our fear, our anger and outrage and all else that boils up within us, but if we dwell on it, it not only holds us back, but it eats us up inside.  Instead we must transcend our limitations and welcome the Spirit of God to work through us.  We must maintain that connection to God at every step on the march.  Some of those steps will be small ones, taken haltingly, but we must keep challenging ourselves to expand our comfort zone, to let God inspire us to perhaps become bigger than our biggest dreams, better than our highest aspirations.

It is crucial, however, that we don’t become bitter and negative for that isn’t the energy that nourishes and builds our souls. When those feelings arise, we must turn them into something positive and beautiful for that will reflect the Spirit of God.  I like the way that Christian de la Huerta (author of Coming Out Spiritually: The Next Step) puts it:

We must shine.  We must all shine now – not out of rebelliousness or to prove anything to anybody – but because being us to the best of our capacity is the only thing that will really fulfill us.  Life truly is about becoming all that we can be. . . . ‘To do one’s best is the ultimate of all human achievement.’  That is the goal toward which to stretch, step by step, or leap by leap, in our own time, at our own pace.  As our beauty unfolds and our hearts open, we become gentler and more compassionate, yet brighter, more empowered, and fearless. We have been holding on, holding back, playing small, hiding our light under a bushel. Enough of that. It is time to let go. We are needed now – all of us. . . . The effect we can have on the world is unimaginable.  The world needs us now.  The earth needs us now.  Spirit needs us.  We need us.  Will you help heal our community?  Will you help change the world?

Ron Joki is a long-time member of the Church of St. Joan of Arc in Minneapolis, MN.

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Upcoming Events – September 2008

Nancy Carlsson-Paige
“Small Actions – Big Changes: Creating a Future of Healthy Children”

When: 6:30 – 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, September 17, 2008.

Where: East Side Neighborhood Services (1700 2nd St. SE, Minneapolis).

Author Nancy Carlsson-Paige discusses her latest book, Taking Back Childhood, which focuses on “helping your kids thrive in a fast-paced, media-saturated, violence-filled world.”  Topics covered will include: reclaiming play and imagination; sharing power with kids; countering media violence and stereotypes; and resolving conflicts creatively.

Free and open to the community.

For Registration, call 612-787-4063.  Need childcare?  Indicate number and ages of children when registering.

For information about the special 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. session for educators and professionals, call 612-787-4063.

Cirque de Guerre
A Play about the Just War Theory

When: 7:00 p.m., Friday, September 19, 2008.

Where: University of St. Thomas, O’Shaughnessy Center, 2115 Summit Ave., St. Paul..

“Cirque de Guerre” (French for “Circus of War”), uses a circus motif to present a series of comedic and satirical acts or scenes about the absurdity and immorality of the Just War theory.

Tickets: $20.00 (Students: $10.00).

Sponsored by Every Church a Peace Church (ECAPC).

Preemptive Peacemaking: Just Peace vs. Just War

When: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., Saturday, September 20, 2008.

Where: University of St. Thomas, O’Shaughnessy Center, 2115 Summit Ave., St. Paul.

The keynote speaker at this conference is Glen Harold Stassen, Professor of Christian Ethics, Fuller Theological Seminary, and winner of the Christianity Today Award for Best Book of 2004 in Theology or Ethics, for Just Peacemaking: The New Paradigm for the Ethics of Peace and War.

Break-out sessions will include: The nonviolence of Jesus; What is the ECAPC movement and how can we be part of i; How does the arts community speak peace; Just Peacemaking: A better answer for terrorism and the nuclear threat; and more.

Tickets: $35.00 (Student: $15.00).

Sponsored by Every Church a Peace Church (ECAPC).

For more information, call 612-722-5957.

Join us for a 6-part workshop for committed LGBT couples. Improve relationship skills and communication, deepen trust and more.

Cost: $75; childcare is free
Contact: (612) 871-5303 or visit www.haumc.org

Dignity Twin Cities Liturgy

When:  7:30 pm
            Friday, September 26, 2008.

Where: Prospect Park United Methodist Church
            22 Orlin Ave. SE
            Minneapolis

Dignity Twin Cities meets every second and fourth Friday of the month at 7:30 p.m. at United Methodist Church.  Celebrating its 33rd anniversary this year, Dignity Twin Cities is one of 70+ Dignity chapters across the nation.  Dignity encourages and helps LGBT people experience dignity through the integration of their spirituality and their sexuality.  The organization envisions and works for a time when LGBT Catholics are affirmed as beloved persons of God and, as such, can participate fully in all aspects of life within both the church and society.

For directions, click here.

When: Saturday, September 27, 2008

Where: Hotel Sofitel
             Bloomington, MN

The following notice comes to us from Deb LeMay, Office Administrator at PFLAG St. Paul / Minneapolis:

On Saturday, September 27, 2008 PFLAG St. Paul / Minneapolis will host a regional conference “PFLAG – Links to the Future” which will draw individuals from PFLAG chapters from the five-state area as well as from the many community connections we already have. It will be a day of networking, workshops (16 to choose from), discussions and celebration for the LGBT community and allies.

We expect to draw roughly 200 attendees to the conference. What will be unique about the PFLAG conference is that even though the focus will be on LGBT issues, more than half of the attendees will be straight allies coming from both metro and rural areas to gain further education and support, critical to the advocacy of our LGBT loved ones.

PFLAG would like to invite you to be part of this conference! Maybe you would like to present one or more workshops; host a resource table; or simply attend the conference. Whatever your commitment, please know we value your presence.

For conference information as well as workshop and exhibitor applications, please access our website at www.pflagtc.org

Thank you in advance as you consider sharing your time and resources. Please forward this information to any persons and organizations you’d like to see included in this event!

Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) 24th Annual Silent Auction

When: 5:00 – 8:00 p.m., Sunday, September 28, 2008.

Where: St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church (4537 3rd Ave. S., Minneapolis).

The WAMM Silent Auction features over 200 items such as gift certificates, vacation homes, restaurants, health and wellness services, theater tickets, artwork, gourmet dinners and much more.

Be sure to stop by the Hot Buys tables where you will find small items to go. Enjoy a substantial complimentary buffet. Supervised children’s activities available.

Suggested Donation: $10 to $30 (no one turned away). Reserve a table for eight in advance for $200.00 and sit with your friends.

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Looking Ahead . . .

Critical Dialogues: An Examination of Racism and White Privilege in Our Community and Our Families

When: 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m., October 6, November 3, December 1, 2008

Where: Location TBD

Rainbow Families, the Midwest Office of Family Equality Council, is hosting a this four-part series addressing issues of racism and white privilege. (Part 1 was held on September 15th.)

Contact: (651) 644-4848 or abby@rainbowfamilies.org

15th Annual National Coming Out Day Luncheon
A celebration of all wise and courageous GLBTA people living openly and authentically.  Sponsor opportunities available.

When: 11:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m., Friday, October 10, 2008

Where: Minneapolis Convention Center

Cost: $37/$30

Contact: (651) 646-1029, info@twincitiesquorum.com or visit www.twincitiesquorum.com/ncod

Next Steps: Developing Catholic Lesbian/Gay Ministry
For Pastoral Ministers, Catholic Leaders, and All Interested in Lesbian/Gay Ministry

When: November 14-16, 2008

Where: St. Paul's Monastery, 2675 Larpenteur Avenue East, Maplewood, MN 55109-5097

This weekend of prayer, presentations, dialogue, and planning is designed to assist those seeking ways to include lesbian/gay people and issues in their home parishes, schools, or other ministerial settings.

For more information, see the downloadable (.pdf) brochure for this event.

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