I haven’t
joined the conversation yet because a close friend passed away this week and my
mind has been mostly . . . there. However, I note the wisdom and
the pain in many of the recent emails and wish to offer my thoughts.
I agree
that we need to firmly distinguish between being disciples of Jesus’ Way of
thinking and living, and the institutional/organized ‘Roman Catholic
Church’. The second only exists to serve the first.
Jesus
also lived in a system and time of primitive institutional thinking.
He saw how this hurt people; his way freed them from the limitations of
that system. He lived and died a Jew; he never left the system
--- though he was killed anyway because the Jewish leadership was
so threatened by the freedom of his teaching that they convinced Roman system
that he was an insurrectionist --- someone trying to overthrow the
system. In some way, they saw correctly that his inner freedom
based on living an authentic life of truth, love, justice, forgiveness,
connectedness, etc. would either overcome or make irrelevant their system of
external power and status. They had to get rid of him; they
thought they did.
Really,
what has changed in 2,000 years? Another religious system that
sometimes tries and often fails to support our discipleship, the truth of who we
and others are – how is this different? Systems, as developed up
until now, create rituals, levels of authority, rules, status for a few ---
regardless of intent, that’s what they are and do. Someday this
may evolve, who knows – but either way, Jesus taught that they need not control
who we are, how we lead our lives, or our inner peace.
It’s
possible that if we are living our truth in a time when an institution has great
‘worldly’ power, we can be hurt, punished, killed. It’s possible
that we may be living our truth in a time where there is a ‘critical moment’ and
we need to throw our support, or even our leadership to effecting
change. But mostly, we simply need to figure out a way to live
our truth while not being controlled by the institution; essentially, ‘working
around’ it, participating in it, leaving it, whatever. Treating
it as what it should be: a support, not the ultimate
reality.
That
‘working around’ should include the recognition that hostility on our part
toward the institution is . . . our issue to resolve.
And we must resolve it because Jesus taught that hostility
is not a good fit with his interior freedom; hence the ‘forgive your enemy’
thing.
I would
go further: someone once said that “anger is like juice in an
orange --- it only leaks out when the orange is cut, but it’s always been
there.” Anger is often our response to perceived threat --- yet
with Jesus as the model, no exterior threat is ‘real’ (including being
crucified) -- we need to seriously evaluate our perception of threat.
There are a number of spiritual guides that effectively tackle this, from
A Course in Miracles to Richard Rohr --- but let’s just note here
that the people we admire – the spiritual masters who’ve effected positive
change in this world – tend to have one thing in common: they have
resolved their anger and hostility issues; they come from a place of peace and
love for everyone – even their oppressors. Only then do they have
the freedom to act if/when the opportunity is right.
And, if
we nurse or think or act out of inner hostility, how are we different from all
those who are hostile toward ____ (fill in the blank: infidels/ progressives/
liberals/conservatives/Obamacare/Unions/this or that tribe in Afganistan or
Africa)? All those who harbor hostility have two things in common:
they know they are ‘right’ in their thinking and that others are ‘wrong’, and
they think their hostility is somehow part of their goodness.
Neither is true: one thinking may be more advanced/evolved
at this point than another but it will be someday become primitive at some point
in the future; hostility (per Jesus) is never part of goodness and
truth.
So,
regarding the institution of the Roman Catholic Church, we can be ‘systemically
free’. We can affirm when Pope Frances teaches something that
moves the world forward while being patient when his teaching is trapped in
primitive thinking. We can accept RCC theology that is rational
and resonates as truth, or choose other more advanced theological models that
better reflect our increased understanding of the world.
If the RCC blocks our living of our ‘calling’ in a
particular way, we can find other ways (in and/or outside the institution) to
live that calling. If discriminated against because of our race
(past), theology or sexual orientation (both present), we can find ways to live
our reality within the institution (or outside it) while we consistently speak
our understanding of truth. We can participate in the RCC rituals
that build discipleship for us, or create new ritual forms that provide greater
support. I know all our hearts ache
for those still suffering from the effects of the sexual abuse; they may never
be free of the pain inflicted on them as children and we can only offer them special care,
healing opportunities, never allowing their experience to be swept under the
rug, etc. The rest of us --- time to move on, folks!
We can
celebrate living in a time when communication and technology make great change
possible, while still being at peace with more primitive thinking, the chaos of
change, and the tendency for those not ready for change to deeply entrench the
most regressive ideas of the past.
But most
and above all – we must be guided by Beatitude orientation of love and
forgiveness; taking care of each other; using our gifts for all because we are
ultimately one reality (OK, that last is a concept from other religious
traditions but relates to our ‘Body of Christ’ wisdom). Only this
brings peace. Only this will put us in the best position to offer
our support or leadership for effective change because it allows us to develop
into a unique expression of God. Nothing else matters -- certainly
not the current state of the institutional RCC!
Peace to
all! Susan
Susan T. Masiak, Spokesperson
Pathways from Poverty to Self-Sustainability
677 Augusta Dr., Rochester Hills, MI 48309
(h) 248.651.5444 (c) 248.705.8868
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