Catechesis from the diocesis of Vienna:
Creation and Evolution
In the beginning...
Each thing according to its kind
He upholds the universe
You govern all things
What is man?
January 7, 2006
Democratic Personalism
About 3 years ago, when I was living in Rome at the Emmanuel School of Mission , one evening we were visited by George Pell, the archbishop of Sidney, which is a good friend to the director of the School, Steve.
The archbishop had dinner with us, and afterwards we (he and all the students) had a very interesting conversation. I remember we were at the time just before the beginning of war in Irak, and I spoke about the subject and raised several questions. At the time, I was shocked at the way some of my american schoolmates discussed the subject. I wandered if the simple fact that we were christians shouldn't be enough for us to be against all wars. The archbishop gave me an answer full of wisdom and balance, which was like a lesson to me. He showed me where he thought I was right and where I was being unrealistic. Among other things he said that any christian , in order to be a real one, ought to desire peace with all his strength, but that not all wars could be avoided. That a country cannot do without an army, just as it cannot do without a police force. That Christ has always been peaceful, yet He did not avoid the military. Neither did John the Baptist, when preaching to the soldiers, command them to abandon arms.
A few months later, while I was still in Rome, the archbishop was appointed a Cardinal.
These days I found a very lucid proposition by him on how we could face the crisis of democracy we are going through. It is worth reading.
http://www.acton.org/publicat/m_and_m/new/article.php?article=7
Advent
Advent has become a strange time, difficult to really live.
That is so because it is a time of waiting.
And we are not used to waiting anymore.
We try that everything is done as quick as possible. We fill our schedules until there is no free time. Sometimes until there are overlaps. We even come to a state in which we feel weird everytime we simply have a time to stop. The young mothers no longer wait for their babies, they just make a stop in their frenetic life when it really has to be, a few weeks before labour. ... And to speak about waiting in the context of dating is almost sarcastic.
However, some things have more value when they are waited for.
A wide range of things, from the ones I mentioned above to the meal who was cooking for hours and filled the kitchen with a delicious smell which opened our appettite. In the eagerness of wanting everything right now, I am afraid we have lost much of the flavour of life.
I will certainly be accused of machism and of being reactionary beyond any possible defense, but I am convinced that one of the reasons for this lack of the capacity to wait, as well as for the frenzy the world has become today, is in the lack of the feminine element. The subject would deserve a blog of its own, or a small book, but truth is I believe there is a lack of feminine in the world because women quit being feminine.
I am not going to defend the position that women belong at home, on the contrary. I am stating the much more subtle claim that the role of women in society should be found in such a way that would allow women to remain feminine. And that remaining feminine implies admitting that there is a fundamental and most valuable role that they have in the families, that no one can do instead of them.
But here perhaps the best thing to do is to shut up and let them do the talking: I have found this couple of blogs, which say what I would like to say, only much better than I actually could.
http://www.amodaantiga.blogger.com.br/2005_03_01_archive.html#35703169
(translation to english soon)
http://okiehillgirl.blogspot.com/2005/12/it-aint-snow.html
And in order to be capable of waiting again (now, specifically we men), we could follow the invitation done by the Pope last sunday:
"Let's allow ourselves to be "infected" by the silence of St. Joseph! It is so lacking in this world which is often too noisy, which is not favorable to recollection and listening to the voice of God. In this time of preparation for Christmas, let us cultivate interior recollection so as to receive and keep Jesus in our lives.
That is so because it is a time of waiting.
And we are not used to waiting anymore.
We try that everything is done as quick as possible. We fill our schedules until there is no free time. Sometimes until there are overlaps. We even come to a state in which we feel weird everytime we simply have a time to stop. The young mothers no longer wait for their babies, they just make a stop in their frenetic life when it really has to be, a few weeks before labour. ... And to speak about waiting in the context of dating is almost sarcastic.
However, some things have more value when they are waited for.
A wide range of things, from the ones I mentioned above to the meal who was cooking for hours and filled the kitchen with a delicious smell which opened our appettite. In the eagerness of wanting everything right now, I am afraid we have lost much of the flavour of life.
I will certainly be accused of machism and of being reactionary beyond any possible defense, but I am convinced that one of the reasons for this lack of the capacity to wait, as well as for the frenzy the world has become today, is in the lack of the feminine element. The subject would deserve a blog of its own, or a small book, but truth is I believe there is a lack of feminine in the world because women quit being feminine.
I am not going to defend the position that women belong at home, on the contrary. I am stating the much more subtle claim that the role of women in society should be found in such a way that would allow women to remain feminine. And that remaining feminine implies admitting that there is a fundamental and most valuable role that they have in the families, that no one can do instead of them.
But here perhaps the best thing to do is to shut up and let them do the talking: I have found this couple of blogs, which say what I would like to say, only much better than I actually could.
http://www.amodaantiga.blogger.com.br/2005_03_01_archive.html#35703169
(translation to english soon)
http://okiehillgirl.blogspot.com/2005/12/it-aint-snow.html
And in order to be capable of waiting again (now, specifically we men), we could follow the invitation done by the Pope last sunday:
"Let's allow ourselves to be "infected" by the silence of St. Joseph! It is so lacking in this world which is often too noisy, which is not favorable to recollection and listening to the voice of God. In this time of preparation for Christmas, let us cultivate interior recollection so as to receive and keep Jesus in our lives.
December 7, 2005
Blog Beginning
Ok!... It seems that now I have my own Blog! Maybe this time I will be able to keep my diary, something I have tried for a long time, with no success!... Now all I have to do is to find the time to configure it properly... The title may sound bizarre... the expression ocurred to me a few days ago, when I was explaining to a friend that what I would really like was to be able to make soul transplants... to be able to take what I have had the privilege of living and to patch it right into others. I have the feeling of living in an absurd world, since we hardly ever talk about the really important things, we live as if they didn't exist... and we are constantly being bombarded with the terrible importance of those things which do not have it. I hope to be able to go beyond the average superficiality. The blog structure has the advantage of being flexible enough for my disorganization. Maybe this time I can really keep a diary.
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