Fidelity
Fr Jamies McMorrin of Edinburgh Cathedral on fidelity to his calling, Tony Luby writes about evangelising culture through accompaniment and dialogue and we celebrate St Serf - Apostle to the Ochils.
Last week the clergy of my Archdiocese gathered, somewhat belatedly, for the annual Chrism Mass. Belatedly, because this celebration ought, in normal times, to take place during Holy Week, preferably on Maundy Thursday. During this Mass, the Bishop, with his presbyterate gathered around him, blesses the sacramental oils that will be used during the coming year: the Oil of Catechumens, administered immediately before baptism; the Oil of the Sick, for the strengthening of bodies and souls weakened by illness and infirmity and the Oil of Chrism, used in the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and priestly ordination.
These oils are, so to speak, some of the tools of the priestly trade. There’s something appropriate, then, about the inclusion in the Chrism Mass of an opportunity for priests to renew the promises of their ordination. Although something of an innovation in the history of the liturgy, it’s one for which I, at least, am grateful. Just as the sacramental oils, if not regularly renewed and replenished, are likely to become dry and stale, so too, perhaps, our commitment to our priestly vocation.
As part of their penance, I have sometimes encouraged penitents in confession to think back to the day of their wedding, or the birth of their children and, in that way, to recommit themselves to the high ideals of marriage and parenthood to which they first gave their lives. In a similar way, the Chrism Mass invites priests to recall and renew the promises they made to their own bride, the Church, on the day of their ordination.
The rite reminds us that these promises were made on that day, “prompted by love of Christ”: the love of Christ which “urged on” St Paul (2 Cor 5: 14) likewise, the liturgy suggests, ought to be our own primary motivation. Just as St Peter’s encounter with the Risen Christ on the shores of the Sea of Galilee revolved around that question of love, so too the promises of ordination are set in this context (cf. John 21: 15-19). Indeed, we might think of the Lord’s posing of this question to Peter as constituting the renewal of his own priestly promises made, implicitly, in the Upper Room, and the renewal also of his call to follow the Good Shepherd and to share lovingly in his ministry.
If ‘lovingly’ is the implicit adverb, two others follow immediately: “willingly and joyfully.” It is in this spirit, the liturgy tells us, that we are to fulfil the duties of our calling, as they’re presented in the everyday demands of priestly life, whether in the form of the telephone, the doorbell or the email inbox. It recalls St Peter’s admonition to the presbyters addressed in his first letter that their tending of the flock ought to be motivated not by love of money or lust for power but with eager willingness to humble service (cf. 1 Pet 5: 2-4) or, as the Chrism Mass puts it, “not seeking any gain, but moved only by zeal for souls.”
So much for the spirit of the promises. Their content is also spelled out and prioritised: the celebration of the sacraments (“the mysteries of God”) and the proclamation of the Gospel (“the sacred office of teaching”). Particular mention is made of the celebration of the Eucharist, which the Second Vatican Council calls the priest’s “chief duty” (PO, 13). In his homily, our own Archbishop called on the priests to celebrate the liturgy not only in fidelity to the liturgical books, but with an attractive beauty that will raise the heart and mind to God.
A tall order! And so it’s something of a relief that the Rite concludes with the Archbishop imploring the congregation (and, by extension, you who read this article): “pray for your priests!” Pray that we will be faithful. Pray that we will be holy. Pray that we will be the priests that God calls us to be, the priests we promised to be on the day of our ordination and the priests, deep down, we really want to be.
Two days after the Chrism Mass I celebrated the fifth anniversary of my own priestly ordination. I remember a priest celebrating a much more significant anniversary commenting (with humility that was typical of him) that the best way to mark such a milestone was with a good act of contrition. If so, then the Chrism Mass provides ample material for an annual examination of conscience.
Renewal is perhaps a somewhat overused term in the lexicon of pastoral theology, but the history of the Church suggests that the authentic and transformative renewal for which so many of us hope, will only come about through a deeper fidelity to the promises of our own Christian vocations – as spouses, parents, priests and baptised disciples – as we are bound more closely to Christ and to one another with every passing year.
Fr Jamie McMorrin | Assistant Priest at Edinburgh Cathedral
Evangelising Secular Culture through Accompaniment and Dialogue
As a viewer of Michael Matt’s Remnant, a sometimes reader of the blog 1 Peter 5, and a student of such works as Taylor Marshall’s Infiltration and Christopher Ferrara’s The Great Façade, it is apparent that, from a traditionalist perspective within the Church, Pope Francis can do little right. I have sympathy with their view that something has gone awry since Vatican II since even Saint Pope Paul VI acknowledged that ‘the smoke of Satan’ has entered the Church. The substance, though, of their main critique – that Pope Francis is too concerned with the needs of this world at the expense of the evangelisation of souls – does cause me concern. I believe that it is based on a misunderstanding of the role of the Catholic Church.
I am with the traditionalists when they support the claim of Saint Pope Paul VI in his great apostolic exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi (Evangelisation in the Modern World) that ‘Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity.’
However, the how of evangelisation is up for debate. I listen to the great Doctor Angelicus, Saint Thomas Aquinas when he points out that the pursuit of the ultimate end (evangelisation of souls) is not an exclusive and so does not rule out the pursuit of a subordinate end e.g. the common good. The ultimate end and “vocation proper” of the Catholic Church is the evangelisation of souls but fashioning the common good is a relevant subordinate end and, indeed, the pursuit of this subordinate end may enhance the realisation of the ultimate end. How so?
Our prevailing secular culture is not a rich soil for the propagation of the faith since theologian Tracy Rowland and scholarly George Weigel coruscate the secular environment as ‘toxic.’ Indeed, the toxicity of this secular culture moves Rod Dreher to argue for the “Benedict Option” whereby the Church separates herself from Western societies: but how can the Church evangelise at a distance? No, rather those who seek to evangelise should, as a first step, accompany those lost souls. Are their lives blighted by drugs, disordered sexuality, excesses of alcohol? Whatever their particular poison it is fruitful to accompany them at their point of need – through dialogue. The first step in dialogue is ‘cumulative talk’ i.e. seeking consensus and building up trust. There is no judgement; rather there is a seeking of common ground. How do our lives overlap? What do we share?
The life of the “lost soul” may have been blighted by living in an area of socio-economic deprivation; but these poor social conditions may also have been the experience of the Catholic soul. If so, then they have a commonality of experience and, perhaps, much to share and so a bond of trust may be formed. Hence, their conversations may be focused on the subordinate end of helping this lost soul to achieve a more virtuous life evidenced by freedom from harmful dependencies. In so doing, this supports the common good of society. During this first stage of their developing relationship there may be no talk of Jesus, redemption, or salvation – all efforts are directed at restoring the wayward one to a more fruitful moral life within society.
When such a bond is established, then the second step of ‘exploratory talk’ takes place. This type of dialogue entails constructive criticism as a process of hypothesising, making statements and counter-statements. Once there is fellowship between the souls then the ground has been laid for the beginnings of evangelisation: subordinate ends are making way for ultimate ends. Some limited evidence for the success of this approach is to be found in education research. Strangely, it begins at the turn of the millennium - with UFOs!
Whilst teaching Aquinas’ Five Ways for the existence of God, I was somewhat discomfited when a clearly unimpressed student addressed the following remark: “Sir, there is more evidence for the existence of UFOs than there is for the existence of God.” Initially miffed with my lack of success, I paused, reflected and began a process of accompaniment. I thought, “if I wish this young student to be interested in my topic, the existence of God, then I have to show interest in his topic, UFOs.” And so began an investigation into ufology, the Nephilim and a multi-dimensional universe. As a then classroom teacher of religious education (RE) I was enriched by this study. Not only did the class of 2000 benefit from this new knowledge but so too did many later RE classes.
Study of dialogue grew throughout the noughties. Faced with teaching Roman Catholic RE to students attending state secondary schools I was caught in a dilemma. Should I catechise or should I give way to mainstream RE? Or is there another way? Eventually, another way presented itself through Pope Saint John Paul II (1990: 56) and his encyclical letter Redemptoris Missio:
Dialogue does not originate from tactical concerns or self-interest, but is an activity with its own guiding principles, requirements and dignity… Those engaged in this dialogue must be consistent with their own religious traditions and convictions, and be open to understanding those of the other party without pretense or close-mindedness, but with truth, humility and frankness, knowing that dialogue can enrich each side. There must be no abandonment of principles nor false irenicism, but instead a witness given and received for mutual advancement…
Through genuine dialogue each and all of the participants are enriched; each and all come closer to truth. And, of course, there is only one “Way, Truth and Life” (John 14:6). Through cumulative talk, an accompaniment takes place and a fellowship begins. Through exploratory talk, a true dialogue is born and truth emerges – and where there is truth, here is Our Lord.
Our secular culture is not closed to evangelisation – it awaits accompaniment and it seeks dialogue: both of which are keys from our current St Peter.
Dr Antony Luby | St Columba’s parish, Banchory
July: Month of His Most Precious Blood
Over the course of July we will post some links and other things looking a bit more at the blood of Jesus. Why did Jesus have to die? Why did God come as a man? Those and other questions that go right to the heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This month is a good moment to look once again at what and why Jesus died for us and how it effects our entire lives.
To kick off our month, the Ogilvie Centre in Elgin presents a short video on the basis of the blood of Jesus; Jesus Our Redeemer from its brillant Five Minute Ambo Series.
St Serf: Feast Day 1st of July
God Bless from Eric and Team