Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Do we live in a "post-truth" era?

I saw The Ides of March last night and would recommend you seeing it if you feel like having all the bitterness you've ever felt towards politics being affirmed (and no I didn't see it just because it feels like I'm seeing myself on the big screen when Philip Seymour Hoffman is acting). The plot moves around the theme of betrayal and deceit and whether an ends justifies a means. It's about a young campaign co-manager, named Steven, that has a strong belief in the ideals of the candidate he's working for and as a result will do anything to get him elected. I won't spoil it, but Steven ends up in a predicament where he's forced to choose between being loyal to the campaign and the ideals the candidate stands for or risking his own career. The movie got me thinking about how pervasive deception and lying is in our culture.

When I got home from the movie I watched this TED talk by Pamela Meyer about how to spot a liar. I thought the talk was pretty interesting though I won't buy or read her book because of her main premise about lies only existing when we agree to them. The ease with which she makes this outrageously morally relativistic claim makes me wonder why she wrote an entire book about how to determine if someone isn't telling the truth. What's it matter if someone is or isn't telling the truth if what's true is only an abstract concept that a majority of people come to agreement on? Regardless, I thought the statistics she sited about how frequently people lie and how from a very early age humans have a tendency to be deceptive were quite eye-opening. She references "one author" who calls the current time we live in as a "post-truth world". I'm assuming she means Ralph Keyes and I will be buying and reading his book.

My first thought after walking out of The Ides of March was: should I really believe people/politics/the world are like this? After watching the TED talk my first thought was: why shouldn't I believe the world/people are like this?

This notion that we live in post-truth world where deception is so common-place that people barely feel guilt about lying seems frighteningly realistic and devastatingly hopeless. Aside from my close friends and family, at some level I expect deceit fueled by selfishness from most people. I realize this is not a very good way to go about being charitable or seeing the world optimistically. But it seems approaching life any other way would be naive and irresponsible just in terms of being able to stand up for oneself. It seems trying to always tell the truth (even with tact), will inevitably lead to being screwed-over, to put it politely. This seems true because if a group of people are placing trust in or building themselves up on lies, one person exposing the truth will be at best ostracized and at worst made so the their voice no longer exists. There's a quote in the movie that loyalty is the only reliable currency. But that begs the question, what's loyalty and does it require deceit? Or is loyalty just a commitment to lie for the sake of someone or something?

Do I value (or even care) what the truth is if a lie creates a perception that is more easily controlled and accepted than truth? Do I really believe that a good intention doesn't justify a lie?

Obviously this a pretty gloomy post. I guess maybe I'm understanding more practically what Benedict XVI meant when he said that, ultimately, suffering is the only weapon love has against hate and that through suffering hope is found.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Weirdest/Creepiest/Funniest Demonstration Ever



The look on the Congressmen's face is hilarious. Then they vote to not even let him speak! I also love how frustrated the guy in red gets when he starts yelling "mic check" at the end.



This stuff is pretty ridiculous and kind of scary that people are actually taking it seriously. I've never seen the call and response like this before and it kind of makes me uncomfortable.

Thursday, September 29, 2011

WYD11 "Way of the Cross" 8th Station: Damian Maria



I got this message from the actual performer after posting a comment on a different youtube video asking what the piece was:

"Dear friend, I'm Damian Maria, who sang the song during the Way of the cross. It is not a song, but a kind of flamenco called 'saeta', which is sung during the Holy Week in the south of Spain, Andalucia, where flamenco was born. All the best. And thanks to the Lord for He touched many hearts trough my 'saeta'."

In the video you can hear the eerie silence in the background. This was one of the most memorable parts of the entire Way of the Cross.


Saturday, September 10, 2011

Colorful Saturday

Some pictures from the Eureka car show and Arcata farmers market





















Monday, September 5, 2011

World Youth Day: What I Experienced

Today marks the 2 week anniversary of the final mass of WYD 2011 in Madrid. Traveling back to California from Madrid with stops in Dublin, Chicago, Detroit, Denver, and Sacramento; overcoming a 9 hour jet-lag, and trying to get up to speed with lots of changes here at St. Bernard's in the midst of the first 2 weeks of school has been nothing short of exhausting. As a result I haven't been able to post anything of my experience. I'll be making another post with my reflections on the entire 2 weeks, but for now this post is meant to be an account of the things I did and experienced without any personal reflections or thoughts about the pilgrimage itself. The entire experience was broken in to two parts: the first week when we traveled to various places around Madrid and the actual WYD events within Madrid. Here is my experience of pilgrimage with the Home of the Mother for World Youth Day 2011 in Madrid.

I traveled alone for 3 days to Madrid, stopping for 2 days in Dublin. Because I did a lot of research beforehand, I had a good idea of what I'd be doing while in Dublin: visiting the major churches and museums. Everything went according to what I had planned while in Dublin until I began traveling to Madrid. I accidentally boarded the wrong bus back to the airport and woke up an hour later going complete opposite way of the airport. I was dropped off at the next stop and was picked up within 10 minutes by another bus headed in the right direction back to the airport. In the end I managed to make my flight with plenty of time to spare.

My flight arrived in Madrid at midnight on Sunday, August 7th. After a night in a hotel I met two friends from college, Vince and Stephanie, that were also attending the pilgrimage with HM. After getting off a bus in what looked like the middle of nowhere on the outskirts of Madrid, walking a ways, and asking some guys on motorcycles, we managed to find the Carmel of La Adehuela guest house where the men of the pilgrimage were to be staying for the first week. The carmel is where St. Maria Maravillas de Jesus lived most of her life. 

The first week was organized as a type of Catholic youth camp mixed with pilgrimage. There were 75 guys living in a house designed for 40. Most showered with a hose unless you were crafty enough to get a quick one in one of the two available indoor showers. The order spent little or nothing on food. We ate military issued food for breakfast and whatever could be found for lunch and dinner. As a result of rotten food, almost everyone had some kind of digestion issue, most in the form of diarrhea. The daily schedule consisted of getting up between 6:30 and 7, breakfast, chores, preparing to leave, morning prayer and rosary traveling to the site, mass where we traveled to, information about the place we were visiting, return trip to the convent, shower, prepare dinner, dinner, chores, group sharing, bed. Everything was very structured. Free-time did not exist. Everyone slept on the ground, either outside or on space on the floor. Everything was done with the group as a whole. I learned quickly that answers to questions about what was to happen next was rarely known and that I shouldn't bother myself with future plans. The order adhere's to the Carmelite spirituality and the leaders of the pilgrimage made it a point to stress the importance of sacrifice and discipline, both in the spiritual life and during the pilgrimage. Mass everyday. Prayer was constant. It was quickly apparent to me that all the reading I had done in order to prepare for my trip was no longer something I could expect to do. The idea was to be completely dependent on Divine Providence at every given moment and to humbly do whatever was asked of us without questions. 

Though the majority of the group was in high school, there were a good number of guys my age that were great to get to know. The group wasn't exclusively American but also had members from Ecuador, Spain, England, Canada, and a few other countries. The group got along well as a whole and if there wasn't some type of good conversation going on, game being played, chore being done, or prayer being said, people were usually sleeping. The brothers and priests of the order made it an obvious point to mingle and interact with everyone. In addition, I had the understanding that my friend from Franciscan, Phil, who has joined the order and invited me to come, was going to be attending the pilgrimage for the entire 2 weeks. On the second day of the pilgrimage I found out that none of the novitiates (which Phil is) would be joining the group till the papal WYD events began, this was disappointing to hear.  

During the first week we visited: St. Theresa's first convent in Avila, Cathedral la Almudena in Madrid, Salamanca ("The Oxford of Spain"), Toledo, El Escorial (for a hike, didn't get to see the big building), Valle de los Caidos (valley of the fallen), and several other convents and monasteries. All the places we visited were excellent. We saw the relics and remains of St. Theresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross, the Monstrance of Arfe (largest monstrance in the world, used during the WYD vigil), spoke with cloistered nuns, and prayed mid-day prayer with Trappist monks. 

Monday evening of the second week, we moved to the campus of Instituto de Educacion Secundaria Isabela Catolica in the center of Madrid where the 140 girls had been staying all week. In this school, Home of the Mother had an official world youth day site that the order expected random pilgrims to visit. Home of the Mother had a schedule of events for the week at this site which they expected all their pilgrims to attend. The events consisted of mass, rosary, talks, testimonies, and talent show type performances. Though it was in the middle of the city, the campus was tucked away from major streets and had only one gate to enter/exit that was locked every night. As with the first week, the schedule was very structured and it was expected that everyone would follow the leaders' plan, no questions asked. As you might imagine, there was a lot of frustration for myself and everyone else during this week in trying to respect the wishes of the group leaders and at the same time, not wanting to miss out on the rest of the WYD events. I'll comment on this later.

Tuesday and Wednesday consisted of attending a catechesis session and HM events at the site and attending the opening mass on Wednesday night. I was able to make it to the center for English speakers at the Palacio Deportes where I heard Archbishop Chaput and Dolan speak, as well as a live showing of Life on the Rock (both of which mom was at but we weren't able to connect). On Wednesday Vince and I stopped at Puerta del Sol and saw the crowd of protesters that remained there the entire week; this was a very tense experience. There was not any place in the city where pilgrims were not swarming in large numbers with flags, loud chants, singing accompanied by drums, tambourines, and guitars; and the easily recognizable WYD bags and hats that were distributed. The subways were all very much overcrowded which made for a commute not without it's uneasiness. Thursday the pope arrived. We left the school as a group and walked to Plaza de Cibeles where we stood for nearly 8 hours total, shoulder-to-shoulder, in triple digit heat. The volunteers (and anyone else with water) were spraying all the pilgrims so as to keep cool, so everyone was soaking wet the entire time. The crowd was really enthusiastic and upbeat the whole time thanks to music, MC's, people trying to get on the jumbo-tron (which a girl did in our group), and constant updates about where the Holy Father was at any given moment; here is his address. On the way back Vince and I found an ice-cream vendor off the beaten path and order ourselves some water. After finishing 1.5 liter bottle of water and getting started on a Fanta, we met lone pilgrim from South Africa (whose name I don't remember) and had a good exchange with him. 

The Way of the Cross on Friday was similar to the schedule for Thursday. We left about 4 hours early to get a  spot close to the stage at Cibeles. Maybe not so surprisingly, the size of our group shrank significantly as people "accidentally" lost sight of the group and were forced to go their own way. I stayed with the larger group and we arrived at the plaza only to be met by the same steamy, sardine-like, water-park-dance-party as the day before. I could only endure it for about an hour and as the crowds started pushing even tighter one of the guys in the group and I decided we had had enough. We left, found a bar, and had an interesting conversation over a beer with some Italian guys about European stereotypes of everyone in America owning a gun and carrying it everywhere, Italian birth-rates, Communism in Italy, and whether American super cars belong in the same class as Ferrari and Lamborghini. The Way of the Cross itself was quite a dramatic spectacle of art, music, prayer, and reflection. Of course the pope had great things to say (one of the most moving pieces of music for me during the whole Way of the Cross can be heard at 0:53 of this video, unfortunately, I can't find the whole thing anywhere). 

My friend Phil was at the HM site when I returned Friday evening. 

Saturday was the longest and hottest day of the entire pilgrimage but also the most memorable. Because of the connections the order had with the WYD organizers, they were able get reserved seating in the front section for the vigil. Because of the close proximity to the stage, cameras, and security; the leaders of the order understood that no one would be allowed to carry a bag to the vigil site. We all received special tickets for the vigil which had our name and passport number printed on it. We went by train to the Cuatro Vietos Airforce base on the edge of Madrid and arrived in the late morning. We arrived to our seats, after having gone through security, with about 6 hours to wait till the vigil was scheduled to begin. As soon as we arrived I was sent with a group of male pilgrims to pick up food. The food was distributed in "picnic" form: each person received a bag with enough food for about 4 meals. There wasn't really any place to get away from the triple digit heat (besides towels and wet hats), boredom (besides people watching), and the dust. However, while on a trek to find a toilette, Vince and I discovered a strip of shade sandwiched between a tent and a mobile home type building filled with bathrooms without running water. There were about 10 people already making use of the shade and everyone was thankful for the relief. Due to the heat, the soothing drone of ambulance sirens circling the compound was constant and stress relieving. Maybe it was my American Puritanical roots, but modesty seemed to be an after-thought, or at least secondary to avoiding heat stroke. Trying to re-fill water bottles at the water trough was slow but surprisingly civilized, considering  the heat and that the event organizers ran out of water to distribute for several hours. Bathrooms were a similar experience. As the waiting continued we watched as the army of Bishops and Cardinals found their place took out their iPhones and iPads and took some pictures. We watched as the papal chair was brought in and the stage was prepared. 

When the Holy Father was finally arriving to the compound the excitement in the air was palpable. As Benedict walked up the stage I was really struck with how lucky I was for having had seats about 100 yards from the stage. As the vigil started the wind started to pick up and the temperature dropped. When the pope began to give his address the wind picked up significantly, blowing directly at the pope. Rain started to pour and lighting covered the sky. Attempts were made to shield the Holy Father from the wind and rain with umbrellas but it was obvious they were not providing much help. There was not a mass exodus when the rain started, instead, the pilgrims remained and were cheering on the pope with the familiar chants from the past week: "Benedito", "We are the youth of the Pope" (in Spanish), "Viva el Papa", and others.  (I've read reports describing the time during the storm as "utter chaos", this was not at all what my experience was like. There was no panic, just an increased level of enthusiasm as whole). An announcement was made to pray that the rain would pass which invoked an immediate screaming of the "Salve Regina" and rosary beads appearing in response. Within about 45 minutes the storm had passed and the pope continued with a shortened version of his reflection. The pope had left the stage to change into formal Adoration vestments. As the Monstrance of Arfe slowly rose from the floor of the stage, there were sustained periods of up to 10 minutes where the only sound that could be heard was the wind. The silence was very impressive.

After the vigil had ended, there was a lot of confusion within the HM group about whether to stay the night outside (no one had appropriate things to sleep with/on since we were not permitted by HM bring them) or to return back to the where we had been staying the whole week. The women and a small part of the men's group left to spend the night at the HM site within Madrid. The rest of the men were first told that we'd be spending the night in the chairs we'd been sitting in for the vigil/all day, then we were told to leave the area, followed by talk of returning back to the HM site. We tried to leave the compound but one of the brother's was told that if we were to stay the night there was a possibility that we'd be able to sit in the front section as we did for the vigil because the seating reservation had been changed to a first-come-first-serve policy. The decision was made to spend the night at the compound and get up at 5am to reserve spots for the group in the front section that we'd been in for the vigil. A small patch of grass was found behind the stage (conveniently under two very bright street lights) and everyone did something that resembled sleeping in the open air which had dropped significantly in temperature, for 4 hours. 

The next morning we made our way to a section of chairs where it was thought we would not be asked to leave, we arrived at around 6am. At around 8:30, people started showing up with tickets which were for the section our group was now seated in and we were asked to leave. The final mass was scheduled to begin at 9:30. We went to our originally assigned section to discover it completely full. The group was forced to split up and find any small piece of open ground among the other sleeping pilgrims. Vince and I stuck together and tried to invite ourselves into the company of some Italian pilgrims that had an ideal space next to the fence where it was assumed the pope would be driving of. Unfortunately out invitation was not received well and we (or mainly I) felt it would be better to find a different sport. We ended up finding a not so curiously free space of gravel next to a pile of trash amid some African pilgrims, that was, fortunately, in front of one of the jumbotrons. Before the final mass started, announcements were made to for pilgrims to clear the isle ways so that the pope could drive around and greet everyone. There was a mad rush to the open spots in the along the barriers as everyone watched and hoped that the pope would pass by our way, but to no avail.

The final mass was quite amazing and I recommend that you read the pope's very pastoral homily. I especially appreciated the quality of music that the full volunteer professional orchestra, directed by Pedro Alfaro, performed that accompanied the mass and all other WYD events. Reserve communion was being housed in tabernacles throughout the compound that were sheltered by tents but were blown over as a result of the storm. Because of this, communion was not distributed to the pilgrims. Despite the garbage and camping gear strewn everywhere, everyone being sleep deprived and covered in a layer of dust and dried sweat everyone that I was around was very reverent and actively participating in the Mass, following along with in the missal that was provided, the readings and responses (this was a trend I noticed for all the major WYD events. Everyone I was around was eager to show the sign of peace which was inspiring. The general atmosphere seemed exhausted but full of hope. 

It took Vince and I nearly 5 hours to travel back to the HM site that would normally have taken about 20 minutes. On our way back there were locals dumping and spraying water of apartment buildings on to the pilgrims. Vince and I stopped for lunch and watched as an endless stream of pilgrims passed by on the street. 

Back at the HM site that evening mass was offered for those that hadn't received, good-byes were said to those leaving that night or early the next morning. More cleaning was done and finally sleep. I left the next day in the late morning with intention of going to the Prado art museum that I had been wanting to get to since I started reading up about Madrid. Unfortunately all the museums in Madrid are closed on Monday's. I spent most of the morning reading by myself in the Parque de Retiro until I ran into a couple of the British guys from the group who I tagged along with around Madrid for few hours with till I made my way to the airport. There were still many pilgrims throughout the city on Monday, still carrying flags, singing songs, dancing, and making a big Catholic scene. It was quite remarkable. 

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

WYD Madrid

I'm getting pretty pumped for World Youth Day and the stuff I've been reading from Benedict XVI has been great (surprise surprise). His message about Madrid is amazing. I've been doing some reading about what a pilgrimage is all about. A pilgrimage is making a physical effort to encounter Christ. It's kind of a microcosm of our life. This is cool because it's going to give me a chance to live on the pilgrimage the way I'd like to be living my whole life. This quote from Benedict XVI struck me as poignant for my life and how I'd like to approach accepting everything that this pilgrimage will offer.  


"Are we not perhaps all afraid in some way? If we let Christ enter fully into our lives, if we open ourselves totally to him, are we not afraid that He might take something away from us? Are we not perhaps afraid to give up something significant, something unique, something that makes life so beautiful? Do we not then risk ending up diminished and deprived of our freedom? . . . No! If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful and great. No! Only in this friendship are the doors of life opened wide. Only in this friendship is the great potential of human existence truly revealed. Only in this friendship do we experience beauty and liberation. And so, today, with great strength and great conviction, on the basis of long personal experience of life, I say to you, dear young people: Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes nothing away, and he gives you everything. When we give ourselves to him, we receive a 
hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ – and you will find true life. Amen."



Tuesday, June 28, 2011

"Contemplation" by Ivan Kramskoy




"There is a forest in winter, and on a roadway through the forest, in absolute solitude, stands a peasant in a torn kaftan and bark shoes. He stands, as it were, lost in thought. Yet he is not thinking; he is 'contemplating.' If any one touched him he would start and look at one as though awakening and bewildered. It's true he would come to himself immediately; but if he were asked what he had been thinking about, he would remember nothing. Yet probably he has, hidden within himself, the impression which had dominated him during the period of contemplation. Those impressions are dear to him and no doubt he hoards them imperceptibly, and even unconsciously. How and why, of course, he does no know either. He may suddenly, after hoarding impressions for many years, abandon everything and go off to Jerusalem on a pilgrimage for his soul's salvation, or perhaps he will suddenly set fire to his native village and perhaps both."  


-The Brothers Karamazov

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Benedict XVI's Address to Artists


Unfortunately, the present time is marked, not only by negative elements in the social and economic sphere, but also by a weakening of hope, by a certain lack of confidence in human relationships, which gives rise to increasing signs of resignation, aggression and despair. The world in which we live runs the risk of being altered beyond recognition because of unwise human actions which, instead of cultivating its beauty, unscrupulously exploit its resources for the advantage of a few and not infrequently disfigure the marvels of nature. What is capable of restoring enthusiasm and confidence, what can encourage the human spirit to rediscover its path, to raise its eyes to the horizon, to dream of a life worthy of its vocation -- if not beauty? Dear friends, as artists you know well that the experience of beauty, beauty that is authentic, not merely transient or artificial, is by no means a supplementary or secondary factor in our search for meaning and happiness; the experience of beauty does not remove us from reality, on the contrary, it leads to a direct encounter with the daily reality of our lives, liberating it from darkness, transfiguring it, making it radiant and beautiful.

Indeed, an essential function of genuine beauty, as emphasized by Plato, is that it gives man a healthy "shock", it draws him out of himself, wrenches him away from resignation and from being content with the humdrum -- it even makes him suffer, piercing him like a dart, but in so doing it "reawakens" him, opening afresh the eyes of his heart and mind, giving him wings, carrying him aloft. Dostoevsky's words that I am about to quote are bold and paradoxical, but they invite reflection. He says this: "Man can live without science, he can live without bread, but without beauty he could no longer live, because there would no longer be anything to do to the world. The whole secret is here, the whole of history is here." The painter Georges Braque echoes this sentiment: "Art is meant to disturb, science reassures." Beauty pulls us up short, but in so doing it reminds us of our final destiny, it sets us back on our path, fills us with new hope, gives us the courage to live to the full the unique gift of life. The quest for beauty that I am describing here is clearly not about escaping into the irrational or into mere aestheticism.

Too often, though, the beauty that is thrust upon us is illusory and deceitful, superficial and blinding, leaving the onlooker dazed; instead of bringing him out of himself and opening him up to horizons of true freedom as it draws him aloft, it imprisons him within himself and further enslaves him, depriving him of hope and joy. It is a seductive but hypocritical beauty that rekindles desire, the will to power, to possess, and to dominate others, it is a beauty which soon turns into its opposite, taking on the guise of indecency, transgression or gratuitous provocation. Authentic beauty, however, unlocks the yearning of the human heart, the profound desire to know, to love, to go towards the Other, to reach for the Beyond. If we acknowledge that beauty touches us intimately, that it wounds us, that it opens our eyes, then we rediscover the joy of seeing, of being able to grasp the profound meaning of our existence, the Mystery of which we are part; from this Mystery we can draw fullness, happiness, the passion to engage with it every day. In this regard, Pope John Paul II, in his Letter to Artists, quotes the following verse from a Polish poet, Cyprian Norwid: "Beauty is to enthuse us for work, and work is to raise us up" (no. 3). And later he adds: "In so far as it seeks the beautiful, fruit of an imagination which rises above the everyday, art is by its nature a kind of appeal to the mystery. Even when they explore the darkest depths of the soul or the most unsettling aspects of evil, the artist gives voice in a way to the universal desire for redemption" (no. 10). And in conclusion he states: "Beauty is a key to the mystery and a call to transcendence" (no. 16).

...Dear artists, as I draw to a conclusion, I too would like to make a cordial, friendly and impassioned appeal to you, as did my Predecessor. You are the custodians of beauty: thanks to your talent, you have the opportunity to speak to the heart of humanity, to touch individual and collective sensibilities, to call forth dreams and hopes, to broaden the horizons of knowledge and of human engagement. Be grateful, then, for the gifts you have received and be fully conscious of your great responsibility to communicate beauty, to communicate in and through beauty! Through your art, you yourselves are to be heralds and witnesses of hope for humanity! And do not be afraid to approach the first and last source of beauty, to enter into dialogue with believers, with those who, like yourselves, consider that they are pilgrims in this world and in history towards infinite Beauty! Faith takes nothing away from your genius or your art: on the contrary, it exalts them and nourishes them, it encourages them to cross the threshold and to contemplate with fascination and emotion the ultimate and definitive goal, the sun that does not set, the sun that illumines this present moment and makes it beautiful.



Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Stereotypical Things That Are Hilarious



Friday, May 6, 2011

The Religious Billionaire

Is it possible for a devoutly religious person to climb the corporate ladder from the bottom and become an owner of a multi-million dollar company without, at some point, compromising a major aspect of their religious belief? Are top teir business executives and the most faithfully religious persons mutually exclusive? Can a person remain charitable in all business affairs and at the same time win the corporate race?

No, it does not seem possible.

Christianity determines success by embracing weakness, buiness determines success by competitive advantage and profit margins. Living a moral life requires silence, self-reflection, and patience. Becoming part of the top 1% in the financial world requires savvy instanteious decisions which have revenue as their soul motivation. Holiness requires self-sacrifice for others, giving without receiving, and completely surrendering personal desires. Successful businessmen require a relentless, competitive, and cut-throat spirit which seeks to satisfy their personal (or business) desire for prestiege and power.

Why does it seem like all of the most financially successfull people have no religious belief?

Could it be as this article suggests that a majority of top executives are psychopaths?

These obvious discrepancies between the Christan message of charity and the pursuit of financial success in secular society leave one guessing. Surely, as in most things, there must be a balance between the two?

Maybe the fundamental flaw can be traced all the way back to Max Weber's study of John Calvin (considered to be the father of capitalism) and Calvin's view of predestination coupled with the Protestant work ethic which sees the pursuit of profit as virtue. Weber's point is that from the perspective of predestination, where one must take an active role in verifying one's own salvation, achieving financial success is a tangible way to demonstrate one's own worthiness. Weber concluded that "once capitalism emerged, the Protestant values were no longer necessary, and their ethic took on a life of its own. We are now locked into the spirit of capitalism because it is so useful for modern economic activity."


It's easy to see from here how Joel Osteen and the Prosperity Gospel could be so popular: more or less validating excess-indeed, capitalism. 


The middle ground would seem to be to strive for financial success but to not allow it to become an end in itself. Rather, once the money is made, controlling where the money will go once in your hands. Still, we're back to square-one in terms of what moral corners have to be cut in order to even have money in your hands. 


I stand by my original thesis: top business executives and deeply religious persons are mutually exclusive.  

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Purpose, Choice, and Possibilities

"For to act with our own purpose, though not wrong, is to limit the actions of life. And for purpose to be true purpose, it must be contained within submission."
         "Is not all choice a limiting of possibilities?"
"Yes. This is necessary. We cannot do or be all things. And within the identity that is our own there are a multitude of choices."

-Island of the World Michael O'Brien

Art and Culture

"I'm saying that through genuine culture man can know himself, even in nations where his identity is denied."
       "But what do you mean by genuine culture?"
"The beautiful and true! In music, in poetry, in literature, even in novels without political or historical references, we can apprehend what is not immediately known through rational thought or the accumulation of objective facts."
       "Antun, you're investing too much faith in culture. Does culture have the power to liberate man from overwhelming historical forces?"
"Culture is the last refuge, the sanctuary, the human place in the midst of the surrounding dehumanization. Through the arts man is able to know himself, even if only on the intuitive level. He senses his own worth, even when he cannot articulate it."
       "Can a poem or a song defeat a tyrant?"
Defeat a killer, defeat atrocities, defeat the bottom falling out of the universe when you least expect it?
"Yes. Yes, it can, given enough time. When a work of art is both beautiful and true, man's freedom is strengthened by it-both his interior need for freedom and his capacity to seek a rational understanding of it."

-Island of the World, Michael O'Brien
There'll be more from this book to come.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Renewed by Love and Unafraid

I gave a talk today for the junior class retreat on leadership. I thought it was received well and decided to post the written version. Before I gave this talk I played a drum solo and had a little call and response of the phrases "Be renewed by love" and "Be not afraid" while I played a beat.

Ever heard the phrase: “Leaders aren’t born, they’re made”? Vince Lombardi said it and I think it’s dead on and reveals part of the mystery of leadership. If it’s true that they’re made and not born, the next question should be: how are they made? Since the theme of this retreat is leadership, I want to give a little reflection on how you can go about making yourself a leader. 

Personally, I don’t really consider myself to be a natural born leader, yet I keep finding myself in positions of leadership. I keep telling God I’m fine with just following and being part of a team, but for some reason he keeps shoving me into places where I end up in a leadership position…I would say today is a prime example. Even me being your theology teacher, I didn’t ask for the job, and I don’t have a theology degree, (honestly, I didn’t apply for the job or even know I’d be teaching theology when I took the job, I thought I’d be in the dorm the whole time) yet for some reason God gave ME the responsibility of teaching YOU about HIM...sometimes I think God is crazy.  Maybe an even more shocking example of someone becoming a leader that didn’t expect it is our current pope: Benedict XVI.

Did you know our current pope did not want to be elected a bishop, a cardinal, his former position as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, or even become pope? He didn’t. Before he was ordained a bishop he was perfectly content teaching university level theology in Germany and writing books. Before the Holy Spirit chose him, our pope was planning on retiring from his very important position in the Church to go back to his homeland to read and play the piano all day. Yet 3 days after his 78th birthday he was ordained the leader of the universal Church of 1.8 billion members. Maybe what’s most significant, is not that he personally didn’t want to take on these leadership positions, but that the leadership positions he’s been given are during what’s perhaps the most difficult time the Church has ever faced. But, he leads the Church with great care, effectiveness, and love.

How does he do it? How do I do it? How can you do it?

Leaders aren’t born, they’re made. The statement definitely seems true based on the Pope’s experience and my experience.  But maybe something even more difficult to understand is that leaders are asked to lead when they least expect it or when they least want to.

So now we have TWO very difficult questions to answer:
How are leaders made?
How can you be best prepared to lead when you least expect it?  

If you want to be made a leader: be renewed by love and be not afraid.
If you want to be ready to lead when you least expect it: be renewed by love and be not afraid.

What does this mean?

God makes us strong through our weaknesses, when this happens we are renewed by love.

When it comes down to it, everybody is imperfect and weak. If someone tries to convince you that they have no faults, they’re lying which means they have a fault. Leaders are strong. Leaders need courage. Leaders must be basically everything that a weak person is not.  But we’re all weak!  The amazing thing about God is that he loves every part of us, even the parts of us that are weak. In fact, it is through the very parts of us that are weak that we will be made strong. God makes us strong through our weaknesses, when this happens we are: RENEWED BY LOVE!

In order to be renewed by love we must be willing to let God work through our weaknesses which means we must be not afraid.

Now, being renewed by love can be difficult. When the parts of us that are weak are challenged we get scared. It feels safer and more comfortable to just ignore those weak areas and go about living mediocre lives of complacency. To me, it’d be so much easier if I could just lay in bed, watch Conan, and eat Klondike bars all day. But that’s not what you’re made for, and that’s not what I’m made for. What you’re made for is GREATNESS! So in order to be renewed by love we must be willing to let God work through our weaknesses which means we must:  BE NOT AFRAID!

But there’s one more question: How can you best be prepared to lead when you least expect it? I already gave the answer and you might already know what I’m going to say, but I’ll hack it out one more time.  

God enables us to lead. If we are constantly being renewed by love we unite ourselves to God. We have nothing to fear as a leader if we are united to God. What could we possibly be afraid of? We are united to the creator of the universe, the person who is responsible for our very lives; the person that gives us meaning in our lives; the person whose life we participate in when we love. We are united to the ultimate and perfect leader. If we are united to God at all times we’ll always be prepared to lead because we’ll always be united to the one that enables us to lead. So how can you be prepared to lead when you least expect it: BE RENEWED BY LOVE AND BE NOT AFRAID!

There you have it:

1)    Leaders aren’t born, leaders are made
2)    How can you be made a leader? Be renewed by love and be not afraid.
3)    How can you be best prepared to lead when you least expect it? Be renewed by love and be not afraid.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Mother Teresa

"People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. 
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. 
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway. 
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway. 
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. 
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway. 
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway." 

Monday, March 28, 2011

John Paul II

"It is Jesus that you seek when you dream of happiness; He is waiting for you when nothing else you find satisfies you; He is the beauty to which you are so attracted; it is He who provoked you with that thirst for fullness that will not let you settle for compromise; it is He who urges you to shed the masks of a false life; it is He who reads in your hearts you most genuine choices, the choices that others try to stifle.

It is Jesus who stirs in you the desire to do something great with your lives, the will to follow an ideal, the refusal to allow yourselves to be ground down by mediocrity, the courage to commit yourselves humbly and patiently to improving yourselves and society, making the world more human and more fraternal."

World Youth Day 2000

Friday, January 7, 2011

Propaganda Music








Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Read this dad

The Dynamite in Prayer by Peter Kreeft


Sal: Well, Chris, what do we talk about today?

Chris: How about talking about dynamite?

Sal: Dynamite?

Chris: The dynamite in prayer.

Sal: Wow! What’s that?

Chris: The Holy Spirit.

Sal: Oh

Chris: You sound disappointed.

Sal: Well... you have to admit, “dynamite” is more of an attention-getter than “the Holy Spirit”. I thought you were going to talk about something more well, more practical.

Chris: I couldn’t possibly do that, Sal.

Sal: Why not?

Chris: Because there’s nothing more practical than the Holy Spirit.

Sal: Oh? What practical difference does it make, then?

Chris: Not “it”, “he”. He’s a person, remember?

Sal: O.K. But what difference does he make? Or is that a wrong question to ask?

Chris: It’s a very good question. If something makes no practical difference, no difference to your life, then you don’t care about it. Who cares whether the moon has 1,000 or 2,000 craters on its dark side? Only astronomers. But we care about dynamite, if it’s in our neighborhood. Because dynamite can make a difference, right?

Sal: Right. And the Holy Spirit can make as big a difference as dynamite?

Chris: The Holy Spirit is dynamite. The word “dynamite” comes from one of the Greek words used in the New Testament to describe the Holy Spirit: dynamis. It means “power”.

Sal: Oh, I think I understand. You mean unless there were a Holy Spirit, there couldn’t be the power to start the Church and the power to inspire the writers of the Bible and so on. He’s sort of like spiritual electricity?

Chris: That’s part of it. But you seem disappointed again.

Sal: Because that’s theoretical, theological. I want to know what practical difference he makes here and now. If he’s spiritual electricity, I don’t just want to know that he happens to be the source of power, I want to know if I can get a shock.

Chris: Good question. That’s the other part of it, the practical difference he makes. Yes, you can get a shock. You can touch him.

Sal: He makes a difference, then. Good. But what difference?

Chris: The same kind of difference Jesus does. Just as Jesus gives you a new relationship with God the Father, the Holy Spirit gives you a new relationship with Jesus.

Sal: What new relationship?

Chris: There are a lot of aspects to it, but the heart of it is that Jesus becomes real to you, not just ideal or abstract. You know him, not just know about him. It’s as big a change as Job found at the end of his story, when the God he had been praying to and complaining to and calling on finally came to him. When that happened, Job said, “I had heard of you with the hearing of the ear, but now I see you with the seeing of the eye.” Firsthand knowing instead of secondhand. And that’s as big a difference as weIl, imagine your father had left home to fight in some foreign war when you were born, and you never saw him. You only got letters from him (that’s like the Bible), and your mother told you about him (she’s like the Church). Then one day he shows up at your front door and comes in, and you hug him and talk with him and play with him—you meet him.

Sal: I see. You mean the Holy Spirit brings Jesus home to me, sort of?

Chris: Exactly.

Sal: That is a tremendous difference.

Chris: Like the difference between a photograph and a person.

Sal: So the Holy Spirit makes Jesus more than just “thought about”.

Chris: Yes.

Sal: More than “believed in” too? Beyond faith?

Chris: Not beyond faith, no; your faith deepens. It becomes more than an intellectual faith. You believe in Jesus, not just believe things about Jesus. You trust him. You get to know him, as you get to know a friend. By experience.

Sal: By feeling? Is that what you mean by “experience”?

Chris: No, not just feeling. Feeling is only a part of it. It’s deeper than feeling, just as human love and human friendship is deeper than feelings. Feelings can change, but the relationship can endure. The feelings are only in you, but the relationship is between you and your friend. Feelings are subjective, but relationships are objective. The change the Holy Spirit makes is more than a subjective thing, a change in your feelings. It’s a change in the real relationship between you and God.

Sal: And this is true about my prayer and about my life, right?

Chris: Right.

Sal: O.K., I think I see where the change is: in the relationship, not just in me. But I’m not clear what the change is.

Chris: One part of it is that the action doesn’t come only from you, but from God. The energy of God comes into your prayer and into your life.

Sal: Is that what the Holy Spirit is, “the energy of God”?

Chris: Yes, but remember, he’s a Person, not just energy in the abstract.

Sal: But he’s like electricity in that you can get a shock. You can touch him.

Chris: Yes. Actually, he touches you.

Sal: Not physically, of course?

Chris: No, but spirits can really touch too.

Sal: It sounds exciting. He sounds exciting. He must make prayer exciting.

Chris: Yes, but he doesn’t give you a perpetual high. Remember, it’s not primarily a matter of feeling. So even when you don’t feel God is there, you still know he is.

Sal: With your mind?

Chris: No, it’s more than intellectual, just as it’s more than emotional. Deeper than both: the real presence of a person—a divine Person. All three of them, in fact.

Sal: It sounds incredibly precious.

Chris: It is. More precious than anything in this world. So precious that even if only one person who reads this book believes this one point and decides to ask God for the Holy Spirit (and everyone who asks, receives), then it will be infinitely worth all the time and effort of writing and publishing and distributing it to thousands of others, just for that one.

Sal: It sounds too good to be true, too good for me. I’m not good enough for it, I mean.

Chris: That’s right. You’re not. Nobody is. Nobody deserves God. God works by love, not justice. It’s sheer grace, sheer gift. And he’s free. He comes with the package deal. The Spirit comes with the Father and the Son.

Sal: Aren’t there a lot of people who are living on only a third or two thirds of the package?

Chris: Yes! They’re like the family of immigrants on a ship from Europe to America. They were so poor that they had to spend almost all their money on the ticket, and what they had left over for food was only enough to buy bread and cheese. So for the first couple of days all they ate was cheese sandwiches. Then the littie boy said to his father, “Daddy, please, can I have money for an ice cream cone, just this once? I hate cheese sandwiches!” His father said, “We have almost no money left. And cheese sandwiches will keep you alive till we get to New York. Once we’re there, there are golden streets and everybody’s rich.” The boy wouldn’t stop asking, so his father finally gave him some change for an ice cream cone and waited. The boy didn’t come back for two hours. His father was getting worried when the boy finally came back with a fat tummy and a smile on his face. “Did you get your ice cream cone?” “Oh, sure, Dad. And then another one, and then a steak, and then apple pie.” “What? You bought all that with the money I gave you?” “Oh, no, Dad. It’s free. It comes with the ticket!”

Sal: Ouch! I see the point. A lot of Christians are living on spiritual cheese sandwiches, and the Holy Spirit is steak, right?

Chris: Right. There’s a passage in Acts where Paul goes into a church in Ephesus and asks the question: “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” And they answer, “Who’s that? We never heard about the Holy Spirit.” Why do you think Paul asked that question? I think he saw spiritual cheese instead of spiritual steak there. He sensed something missing: the power, the certainty, the joy. Maybe he’d ask the same question if he came to most of our churches.

Sal: This still sounds too good to be true. Are you sure it’s for me? Not only for saints?

Chris: The Bible calls all Christians “saints”.

Sal: Isn’t it only for charismatics? Pentecostals? Holy Spirit people?

Chris: Don’t let denominational lines and theological labels and walls of words keep you out. The Holy Spirit is for all Christians. That’s very clear in the New Testament.

Sal: But this experience of him—the joy, the power, the certainty—is that what they call “the baptism it the Holy Spirit”?

Chris: That’s what charismatics call it, yes, but it's not just for one group of Christians, not just for charismatics. In fact, that’s just what charismatics say too.

Sal: You know, I’ve been impressed throughout these conversations of ours with how much solid substance there is in the Christianity common to all the different churches, Protestant and Catholic, charismatic an noncharismatic.

Chris: That’s because I’ve tried to stick to the center.

Sal: The center?

Chris: God himself, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He’s for everyone, not just one group. For all who will have him.

Sal: Are you saying denominational differences don’t matter?

Chris: Not at all. The differences are very important. But even those very important differences can’t compare with the deep agreement all Christians have about the center. We agree much more than we disagree.

Sal: Do all Christians agree about “the baptism in the Holy Spirit”?

Chris: No, but he’s for everyone, whatever they think of him.

Sal: Is “the baptism in the Holy Spirit” necessary for salvation?

Chris: No. Steak isn’t necessary for food either; cheese sandwiches will keep you alive. But when the steak is free, why not take it?

Sal: I thought the Holy Spirit was given to everybody who’s saved, everyone who’s a Christian. Didn’t Jesus promise the Holy Spirit to all his disciples?

Chris: Yes, he did. The “baptism in the Holy Spirit” isn’t the same as Christ giving us the Holy Spirit in the first place. The Holy Spirit is given to us as soon as we believe.

Sal: What’s the “baptism in the Spirit” then?

Chris: A release of the power of the Spirit who’s already there.

Sal: O.K., that point is cleared up. But I’m still not Clear how you know the “baptism in the Spirit” is for all Christians, just as the giving of the Spirit in the first place is. Only a few seem to have it.

Chris: Because when it first happened, on Pentecost, Peter said to the thousands there, who heard the mighty wind and saw the tongues of fire and heard the apostles speaking in tongues. “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”—that’s the three parts of the Christian package deal: repentance to the Father, salvation by the Son and receiving the Holy Spirit. Peter then went on to say that “the promise (the whole promise, including the Holy Spirit) is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls”. It’s as if Peter was looking down the centuries, over the heads of his listeners, and saw us, and said to us, “This is for you too.” Look; it makes sense. God is love, and what’s the gift a lover longs most to give? What do flowers or a wedding ring symbolize?

Sal: The lover himself. The gift of self.

Chris: So God wants to give each one of us himself, his whole self, Father and Son and Holy Spirit. God is pure love, pure generosity, and the aim of love is always intimacy, oneness with the beloved. Doesn’t the lover always want to get closer and closer, to get inside the beloved’s soul? You want to give your whole self to the one you love. That’s why God gave us the Holy Spirit. And that’s why it’s better to have the Holy Spirit than to have Jesus only physically present, as the first disciples did.

Sal: Better even than having Jesus here on earth?

Chris: Yes, that’s what he said himself. He said, “It is better for you that I go away (he was speaking of his ascension into Heaven) because if I do not go away, the Spirit will not come to you, but if I go away, I will send him to you.”

Sal: Why is that?

Chris: Because no matter how close you are to Jesus, without the Holy Spirit, Jesus is still somebody outside you. He’s close beside you, but the Holy Spirit is inside you. That’s even closer, and that’s what love wants, remember: closeness.

Sal: You mean we’re really better off now without Jesus, with the Holy Spirit instead?

Chris: No, no, not “instead”. Jesus is with us too. He promised that: “Behold, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” The Holy Spirit is his Spirit. The Holy Spirit reveals Jesus to us.

Sal: But we’re better off without Jesus’ bodily presence? Better off after Jesus’ ascension into Heaven than before?

Chris: Yes.

Sal: That’s pretty hard to believe. Frankly, I should think it would be fantastic if we could talk to him now, directly.

Chris: Ah, but you can!

Sal: Oh. Prayer, you mean?

Chris: Yes. Because Jesus sent us his Spirit instead of leaving us his human body, our prayers can be more intimate.

Sal: How?

Chris: You know the one you talk to. He’s your friend, not a stranger. And he talks back, and you hear him. Not usually in words... we’ll talk later about that. And here’s another difference he makes: he lights up Scripture. When you read it, it’s not a dead book, but alive.

Sal: What do you mean by that? It sounds pretty vague.

Chris: What’s the difference between a love letter and an encyclopedia?

Sal: I see: the first one is alive.

Chris: And the whole Bible becomes a love letter written to you personally, not some old, historical encyclopedia.

Sal: To me personally?

Chris: Yes. God doesn’t address his mail “Dear Occupant”.

Sal: You can really see that big of a difference in the way you read the Bible?

Chris: Yes. It reads you now. It becomes like a sword: not dead on the ground, but alive because Somebody’s hand is using it.

Sal: That Somebody is the Holy Spirit?

Chris: Yes. The Bible calls itself “the Sword of the Spirit”, you know.

Sal: It sounds almost scary.

Chris: It can be—like looking through a keyhole and seeing an eye looking back at you. But it’s the eye of Infinite Love. Here’s another way to put the difference it makes: Did you ever see one of those kids’ puzzles in the Sunday papers, where there’s a jungle scene or something, and the puzzle reads, “Find the man in the picture”? After you squint and turn it sideways you notice that that tree trunk is his mouth, and that elephant ear is his chin, and so on. Then, once you see all the lines as part of his face, you can never see that picture the same again. It’s not just a jungle; it’s a man. It’s a little like seeing the “man in the moon". But in the case of Scripture, he’s really there—though he’s not just a man, he’s God. Every word becomes part of his face, tells you about him. You meet him now when you read.

Sal: Really? You’re not exaggerating or idealizing?

Chris: No. It really happens.

Sal: That’s a way to pray, then: reading Scripture.

Chris: Yes. We’ll talk about that later too.

Sal: And I suppose the Holy Spirit makes a difference to your life too, right?

Chris: Of course. One difference is that he gives you a sense of direction, of guidance. You need more than written rules, you know.

Sal: Why?

Chris: Because no set of rules can cover everything. Situations and personalities are different. There are rules, but we have to apply them to different situations. That’s where the Holy Spirit helps. You sense what his will is because you know him—just as you can tell what your father would want you to do in a situation because you know him. But you don’t know what some stranger would want you to do, because you just don’t know him personally.

Sal: O.K., enough! It’s for me. What do I do? How do I get it?

Chris: Only ask.

Sal: That’s all?

Chris: That’s all.

Sal: No, that can’t be. It’s too simple, too easy. What’s the catch?

Chris: No catch.

Sal: What are my chances?

Chris: Chances?

Sal: Of getting all these great things you described.

Chris: Oh, 100 percent.

Sal: Can you prove that?

Chris: I sure can. Read Luke 11.... Here it is. Don’t believe me; believe Jesus. Here’s what he says: “I say to you, ask and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”

Sal: How can it be that simple? And how do you know that Jesus was talking about the Holy Spirit in that passage?

Chris: He himself answers both of those questions in the next few verses: “If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Sal: Just “those who ask”? That’s all it says?

Chris: That’s all.

Sal: It’s just too good to be true.

Chris: If it isn’t true, Jesus is a liar. Isn’t that even harder to believe?

Sal: Of course, but maybe we’re misinterpreting his words.

Chris: How much clearer and simpler could they be? In fact, it’s too simple for you! That’s your objection: “It just can’t be that simple.” But it is. Love is very simple-hearted. It just loves to give gifts, just because it’s love. That’s what God is: just love.

Sal: I think love just trapped me in a corner. And I don’t want to escape.