by Seth Evangelho

A digitized world has its advantages, but the drawbacks are dangerous. The constant bombardment of images and slogans, ad campaigns, tweets, blog posts, video games and Facebook 'likes' threatens to dull (or even replace) our deeply human sense of wonder, reflection, and imaginative thought. Why research something when Google has already done the work for you, right?

In order to understand this a little better, let's be clear on what the imagination is. First of all, imagination is NOT reducible to our ability to pretend. To use your imagination does not primarily mean to fantasize or to make things up. The Imagination is a faculty of the human soul and a fundamental means by which God communicates to us the divine realities of faith. When we use this God-given, human faculty we bring to mind images of a reality that isn't immediately present to our senses. It's a faculty of memory, but also of hope and vision for the future. Most important of all maybe, the imagination is a power of the soul that allows us to perceive present realities hidden from physical sensation.

"There is not in the world a kind of life more sweet and delightful, than that of a continual conversation with God; those only can comprehend it who practice and experience it" (Brother Lawrence).

by Seth Evangelho

by Seth Evangelho

Recently, I received a wake-up call from the Holy Father. All quotations below are from paragraphs 186-201 of Pope Francis' apostolic exhortation, "The Joy of the Gospel."

I've added commentary at points but, for the most part, I just want to let him speak. First, we need to hear what he's saying, really hear it. Next, we need to live it out (that's the hard part). Then we can teach it with authenticity and in a way that will change hearts.

The Joy of the Gospel: Evangelii Gaudium

"I fear that these words...may give rise to commentary or discussion with no real practical effect. That being said, I trust in the openness and readiness of all Christians, and I ask you to seek, as a community, creative ways of accepting this renewed call."

What call is that?

"Each individual Christian and every community is called to be an instrument of God for the liberation and promotion of the poor, and for enabling them to be fully a part of society... If we, who are God's means of hearing the poor, turn deaf ears to this plea, we oppose the Father's will and his plan...A lack of solidarity toward his or her needs will directly affect our relationship with God... small daily acts of solidarity in meeting the real needs which we encounter."

What is solidarity?

"The word 'solidarity' is a little worn and at times poorly understood, but it refers to something more than a few sporadic acts of generosity. It presumes the creation of a new mindset which thinks in terms of community and the priority of the life of all... Changing structures without generating new convictions and attitudes will only ensure that those same structures will become, sooner or later, corrupt, oppressive and ineffectual."

The renewed call of solidarity with the poor begins then with a kind of mental and emotional conversion: the creation of a new mindset, new convictions, and new attitudes. (That makes sense since the teaching is as old as the Gospel) 

"This message is so clear and direct, so simple and eloquent, that no ecclesial interpretation has the right to relativize it...Why complicate something so simple?...Why cloud something so clear?"

In Matthew 25, Jesus is definitely clear: whatever you did (or did not do) for the least of these, you did it (or did not do it) to me.

"We may not always be able to reflect adequately the beauty of the Gospel, but there is one sign which we should never lack: the option for those who are least, those whom society discards... Sometimes we prove hard of heart and mind; we are forgetful, distracted and carried away by the limitless possibilities for consumption and distraction offered by contemporary society. This leads to a kind of alienation at every level, for 'a society becomes alienated when its forms of social organization, production and consumption make it more difficult to offer the gift of self and to establish solidarity between people.'" 
(quoting here St. John Paul II)

I am often self-absorbed and distracted by these limitless possibilities. But Pope Francis emphasizes next that my forgetfulness and distance from the poor is really a forgetfulness and distance from the Lord.

"The savior was born in a manger, in the midst of animals, like children of poor families; he was presented at the Temple along with two turtledoves, the offering made by those who could not afford a lamb... This divine preference has consequences for the faith life of all Christians, since we are called to have 'this mind...which was in Jesus Christ' (Philippians 2:5)."

And now for the real challenge.

"This is why I want a Church which is poor and for the poor. They have much to teach us. Not only do they share in the sensus fidei, but in their difficulties they know the suffering of Christ. We need to let ourselves be evangelized by them. The new evangelization is an invitation to acknowledge the saving power at work in their lives and to put them at the center of the Church's pilgrim way. We are called to find Christ in them, to lend our voice to their causes, but also to be their friends, to listen to them, to speak for them and to embrace the mysterious wisdom which God wishes to share with us through them." (You might want to read that again.)

Have you ever been evangelized by the poor? Many of us serve them, I think, but how many of us can truly call them our friends? How many whom society discards truly see ME as a friend? Not enough, that's for sure.

"This entails appreciating the poor in their goodness, in their experience of life, in their culture, and in their ways of living the faith. True love is always contemplative, and permits us to serve the other not out of necessity or vanity, but rather because he or she is beautiful above and beyond mere appearances."

I think, personally, I harbor many (hidden even from myself) prejudices which are often in the way and create obstacles in my ability to contemplate beyond the 'mere appearances' of people who live outside of what is familiar to me, especially (I have to admit) when they haven't showered in a while. And those prejudices, I think, are precisely what Pope Francis is calling me first to admit, and then to 'crucify' in the merciful love of Christ. Sometimes, in my lingering fear and discomfort, I'd love to say that I'm not called to that kind of 'ministry,' but the Holy Father isn't buying it. Like he said, "the message is so clear and direct."

"No one must say that they cannot be close to the poor because their own lifestyle demands more attention to other areas. This is an excuse commonly heard in academic, business or professional, and even ecclesial circles."

If I could summarize in a sentence what I've learned from this papal challenge, it would be this: The Preferential Option for the Poor is not merely a call to prioritize the poor when thinking about tithing, or economic structures, or other financial dimensions of life; rather, the Preferential Option calls us to prioritize Christ's poor in all things, to let their personalities permeate and change our lives, to opt for the poor not just with our finances but with our time and with our affection, in a word, with our sincere friendship. 

by Seth Evangelho

by Seth Evangelho

by Seth Evangelho

Last week I briefly highlighted five general goals for ministry, stressing the need to be intentional with our time and recognize the different goals we seek to achieve through various things we do. This week I want to give a prime example:


Nothing is ever simply a fundraiser. 

Are fundraisers helpful? They certainly can be. Are we in this for the money? Definitely not. Is it enough that the money we raise will help fund important aspects of ministry? Yes... but we can still be intentional and make fundraisers far more fruitful.

A second element present in (most) fundraisers is fellowship (also evangelization!). Be sure and foster the relationships between those helping out. Be intentional about building friendships as you go about completing your tasks. Maybe even celebrate together a job well done when it's all over.

A concrete example at our parish is the pancake breakfasts put on by the youth ministry over the past few years. We raise money to fund various activities, but our number one goal is the service we provide: the opportunity for our parish family to grow in community.

Fellowship is a primary concern, both for the parishioners who will enjoy our breakfasts as well as for the high school youth and adult volunteers who serve. In addition to the community building, these breakfasts also provide opportunities for our high school students (and our amazing kitchen crew) to serve. Service and fellowship are the primary goals, and we raise some funds as well. (Case in point: there are ways in which we could make more money at our breakfasts, but which would risk sacrificing our primary goals of service and fellowship. So we make less money.) Three birds, one stone.

by Seth Evangelho

by Seth Evangelho

In its simplest definition, a priest mediates, he connects people... to God and to one another. Israel was God's "chosen race," a people set apart with a special mission to mediate God's covenant to the nations. Although they failed, the entire nation of Israel was called to be God's "priests."

Jesus fulfills the mission perfectly and becomes "the one mediator between God and man" (1 Timothy 2:5). He extends the peace and freedom of God's kingdom to all the world, and he does it through his Church. In communion with Christ, we've been taken up into his mission. As our first Pope tells us, through baptism we'rethe New Israel, the fulfillment of Jesus' redemptive work. "Come to him, to that living stone, rejected by men but in God's sight chosen and precious; and like living stones be yourselves built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ...you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:4-9). 

We are called to mediate God's covenant to the "nations" (i.e. our friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers). It of course means evangelization (helping people to encounter the Person of Jesus), but I want to focus on something more basic right now, the soil for fruitful evangelizing efforts.The covenant we mediate is the family of God.   it also means that we're community builders. Part of our priestly role is to connect people, to help foster friendships and to grow community. The full beauty of Christ is seen when we encounter his Body, thefamily of God. This happens through fostering friendships and cultivating opportunities for people to get to know one another. 

When I think about it, I have a number of friends who've never met. Many of them would probably enjoy one another's company very much; and it could be a tremendous boost to their faith as well. My job, then, is to try and create opportunities for them to get to know each other. I stand as a mediator between them, as the "priest" God has "ordained" to help connect these specific members in the Body of Christ. 

Obviously not all of our friends will necessarily hit it off, but many of them might. Share the love, pray for new friendships, and watch what God can do in your community.