Quote for Today - July 27, 2013 "My son is my son, till he marries a wife, But my daughter's my daughter all the days of her life." Saying
Friday, July 26, 2013
LIFE DREAMS
Quote for Today - July 26, 2013 "In dreams begins responsibilities." Willian Butler Yeats [ 1865-1939], Responsibilities [1914], epigram (from an old play)
Thursday, July 25, 2013
CIRCLES
Quote for Today - July 25, 2013 "He drew a circle that shut me out - Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout. But Love and I had the wit to win: We drew a circle that took him in." Edwin Markham [1852-1940], Outwitted.
Quote for Today - July 24, 2013 "Those who wish to sing always find a song." Swedish Proverb
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
VIOLENCE AND GOD
INTRODUCTION
The title of my homily for this 16th Tuesday in
Ordinary Time is, “Violence and God.”
The topic was triggered from today’s first reading from
Exodus 14: 21 to 15:1. It not only tells of God as Savior - but also God as Warrior - killing the Egyptians -
drowning them in the bathtub of the Red Sea.
Is God, Our Father, also a God of violence? So when it comes to God, we all
have to do our thinking and praying about violence and God - how we see and
understand God. I say that because I often hear people say when something goes wrong: "Is God punishing me?"
These are some first draft thoughts. I’ve never been able to
reconcile Biblical texts where God is
described as both saving as well as killing people. I understand a bit - the violence of hurricanes,
tornadoes and tsunamis - that people get killed by weather going wild. I see that as being part of the package called earth. I have problems saying God
is part of humans killing humans - and some of these stories in the scriptures where people are killed and saying God is doing this to kill our enemies - that I have not figured out.
Come Holy Spirit.
THE KORAN
Once upon a time, a Rabbi asked if I had read The Koran. It
was at a wedding reception in WashingtonD.C. I said, “No. I hadn’t.” And he said, “You
better.” So I went to Barnes and Noble and checked out different translations -
and purchased a copy.
When I held The Koran in
my hands, it did not have for me the feeling of the sacred -
as I feel towards our Bible. Yet it
did feel different than other books. And I know for some Muslims - holding TheKoran in one's hands is sacred and for someone to disrespect or even burn a Koran, that is an act of violence.
An analogy that hit me was this. I hope it’s not too far fetched. It would be like the difference between the
following 3 pieces of cloth. Imagine the
feel of a United States
flag for a U.S citizen compared to the feel that same person would have for a
flag of Estonia or Ecuador -
unless that is their roots - and then the feel of a table cloth. All 3 are
different - all 3 are cloth - all 3 elicit different feelings.
As I read The Koran
I saw red. Fire. So I got a magic marker and every time I saw the word, “fire”
or “burn” I highlighted that word in “orange”. Those words appear quite a bit. Now I can
pick up The Koran and page through it
and see “fire” - “orange fire” - on many, many pages. I also wondered how much of that was part of the WorldTradeCenter and Pentagon
crashes - to burn down buildings and bring disaster. Was it from a religious
motive? I think I hear Suicide Bombers saying that.
Surprise, after noticing the words "fire" and "burn" over and
over again, I began to notice mention of
wars and violence and God striking people dead in our scriptures. It taught me that I could get a
magic marker and do the same with our Jewish and Christian scriptures.
So the first comment I’d make is that our scriptures contain
violence and God doing violent acts. Question: is it God or is it only us or what?
So when it comes to religions, I see blood and fire - as well
as the good stuff.
SECOND COMMENT - EVOLUTION
In time there is an evolution of understandings about God as
Warrior and God the Violent - to seeing God as a Peacemaker and God as
Non-Violent.
In time some people discover that there are different
evolving thoughts about what God is like. This can happen to religions as well
as to individuals. We evolve! Question: do I understand God today differently than I did many years ago?
THIRD COMMENT - BOTH
At times we discover different voices and understandings of
God from the same period and the same people. It happens with our understanding
of Jesus as well. Jesus voices violence and gnashing of teeth - and at other
times Jesus says, “Put down the rocks and put down the swords.”
FOURTH COMMENT - VIOLENCE IN THE NAME OF GOD
If we study the
history of the world, we’ll find plenty of violence done in the name of God.
Moses will send men with swords into the camps and kill thousands. In Jesus’ time people were crucified all the
time. Down through A.D. times many are killed in the name of religion - not
just Christians, but also Muslims - and who have you and vice versa. Read history and you’ll read about religious
wars - crusades and massacres.
FIFTH COMMENT - IF YOU TAKE A
STAND FOR NON-VIOLENCE EXPECT VIOLENCE AT TIMES
If you take a stand
for non-violence, expect a tough time of it.
It’s difficult to
turn the other cheek, to go the extra mile, to say from any cross to those who
are violent in any way, “Father forgive them they don’t know what they are
doing.”
SIXTH AND LAST COMMENT
As I began this homily, I said that these are
first draft thoughts. They are. The bottom line is mystery and the bottom line is the
ability to say, “I do not know.”
PRAYING
Quote for Today - July 23, 2013 "If you can't pray - at least say your prayers." George Bernanos [1888-1948]