Pat Collins, C.M.
(A talk given to an ecumenical audience in Ferms in Wexford 11th Nov. 2009)
In modern religious circles there is a good deal of debate about the related notions of secularisation and secularism. In par. 55 of Evangelisation in the Modern World Pope Paul VI spoke about a form of secularisation that involves the legitimate autonomy of the sacred and secular realms. He wrote, “secularisation is the effort, in itself just and legitimate and in no way incompatible with faith or religion, to discover in creation, in each thing or each happening in the universe, the laws which regulate them with a certain autonomy, but with the inner conviction that the Creator has placed these laws there.” However, there is another more negative kind of secularisation, an on-going process whereby religion progressively loses its influence over social life and society. It is a complex phenomenon that has some of the following characteristics,
· A decline of the prestige and influence of religion as an institution.
· An increased focus on ‘this world’ and abandonment of focus on the supernatural, e.g., notions such as
heaven or hell.
· A privatisation of religious practice and a move away from community-based religious activity.
· A shift towards ‘scientific’ and rational explanations for phenomena, which leads to a desacralization of the
world.
· A move from religious authority to empirical here-and-now experience.
This kind of secularisation can end in secularism. In par. 55 of Evangelisation in the Modern World, Pope Paul VI observed that, “secularism is a concept of the world according to which the latter is self-explanatory, without any need for recourse to God, who thus becomes superfluous and an encumbrance. This sort of secularism, in order to recognize the power of man, therefore ends up by doing without God and even by denying Him.” Speaking about this tendency shortly before his death, John Paul II said in par. 9 of The Church in Europe, “European culture gives the impression of “silent apostasy” on the part of people who have all that they need and who live as if God does not exist.”
I would suggest that in the last generation or so, Christian Ireland has experienced secularisation both good and bad. But it also seems to be experiencing secularism to a greater or lesser degree as well. While I realise that Church attendance is not necessarily a sign of deep Christian conviction, all things being equal it is a good indicator of how religious people are. When Pope John Paul II came to the Republic of Ireland 30 years ago nearly 94% of the population was Catholic. Surveys at that time conducted by Michael McGreil and the European Values Systems Report indicated that about 87% of Catholics in the Republic attended weekly Mass.[1] Ten years later the figure was 85%.[2] On the Irish Bishop’s website there is a report entitled, The European Social Survey: A Review of 2005 Religious Practice Data, which indicates that 63% of Catholics were going to weekly Mass.[3] That would indicate that over the last 20 years or so, practice has dropped by more than 20%. While that is a significant drop, more Catholics go to weekly Mass that in any other Catholic country in Western Europe. For example, the figure for Italy is 34.4%; Belgium 22%; Spain 26%; Portugal 33%. I must say that I would query the Irish figures. Certainly they don’t ring true in urban areas. A Monsignor said in our Church in Phibsborough that it was estimated that the practice rate among Catholics in Dublin city is about 17%. I was talking to a curate in a Dublin parish a few days ago and he told me that only about half of the Catholics who died in his parish during the past year came to the church for a funeral Mass. We also know that vocations to the priesthood and religious life have fallen dramatically in recent years. For example, only 15 men were ordained for the priesthood in 2004 for the whole of Ireland,[4] whereas about 160 died. There are currently 4,752 priests in Ireland, in 2028 it is estimated that there will be about 1,500.[5] I have found it hard to get accurate figures for the Protestant Churches in Ireland. Apparently the number of Presbyterians attending church has dropped from just under 50% in 1989 to 40% in 2004, and in the Church of Ireland it fell from 40% in 1989 to 35% in 2004.[6] Bishop Harold Millar of Dromore whose diocese includes Belfast, says that weekly church attendance in his has dropped to 17%.
There are clear indications that church practice has dropped sharply in the last 15 years. It has been due to a multiplicity of factors such as, growing prosperity, increased education, urbanisation, sex scandals, a rejection of Christian sexual ethics, influence of the media, pluralism and the like. However, critics overdramatize the situation when they say that Ireland is a post-Christian country. The statistics indicate that we are still the most religious country in the Western World. But we won’t be for long if present trends continue. What is clearly needed is an all Ireland commitment to renewal in the Holy Spirit and evangelisation.
Who is the focus of Evangelisation?
Firstly, there are practicing Catholics and Protestants who are sacramentalised and Bibleized but not fully evangelised. As we know, there are many people who, in spite of attending Church on a regular basis, do no seem to have either a personal relationship with Christ or a firm inner conviction that they are justified, not by their personal merit, but by grace through their faith in Christ’s saving death and resurrection (Cf. Gal 2:16). Often the creedal faith that Church goers profess on Sunday fails to have a discernible impact on the way in which they live during the week, e.g. in matters of business and sexual ethics.
Nowadays, there is a good deal of talk about the un-churched, i.e. lapsed people who are inactive for a long time and only turn up in church for baptisms, deaths and marriages. Speaking about them, Paul VI said in Evangelisation in the Modern World par., “There are a great numbers of people who have been baptized and, while they have not formally renounced their membership of the church, are is it were, they are on the fringe of it and do not live according to her teaching.”
Finally there are unbelievers such as agnostics and atheists as well as members of other faiths such as Jews, Moslems, and Hindus. We are called to evangelize them also. We need to be convinced that what Paul said in 1 Tim 2:5 is crucially important: “There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ.” Referring to unbelievers, Pope Paul VI said perceptively in par. 55 of Evangelisation in the Modern World, “one cannot deny the existence of real steppingstones to Christianity, and of evangelical values at least in the form of a sense of emptiness or nostalgia. It would not be an exaggeration to say that there exists a powerful and tragic appeal to be evangelized.
Why Evangelise?
First and foremost there is the great commission of Jesus in Mk 16:15. We proclaim the coming of the
Secondly, unlike the false shepherds of
How can we evangelise?
I will only mention one of many possible ways, i.e. by running an Alpha course. Alpha is a ten-week introduction to the Christian faith that includes fifteen talks. They are available in Nicky Gumbel’s Questions of Life and on DVD. (Incidentally there are 40 min and 20 min versions of the recorded talks). The topics covered include; ‘Christianity; boring, untrue and irrelevant?’ ‘Who is Jesus?’ ‘Why did Jesus die?’ ‘Who is the Holy Spirit?’ and ‘Why and how should I read the bible?’ They are designed primarily to meet the needs of unbelievers and lapsed people. In the past, the traditional notion of evangelisation tended to stress the primary importance of orthodox belief and right behaviour. They were seen as necessary preconditions for a sense of belonging. In secular, postmodern society, where individualism is rampant and social alienation is common, people, esp. the young , have an overriding need for a feeling of unconditional belonging. Alpha takes account of this and puts its primary emphasis on belonging. That is why the meal is such an integral aspect of its approach. If people have a sense of belonging within a caring Christian community, they will be more likely to discover who they are and what they want. They will also be more open to accept the Christian beliefs that inform that community. It is only within this loving context that the issue of right behaviour can be tackled. Ideally, right action should be an expression of a sense of Christian belonging and belief, rather that a dutiful substitute for them both, as it has often seemed to be.
Conclusion
A number of years ago a number of us wrote a booklet entitled Evangelicals and Catholics Together in Ireland. In one section entitled, “We Witness Together,” it said, “The teaching of our Lord is unmistakable. The credibility of His mission in the world (and in Ireland in particular) is dependent upon the unity and love of His disciples as expressed in Jesus’ prayer in John 17: “May they all be one; as you Father are in Me, and I in you, so also may they be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me”. This same connection between unity and witness is strongly echoed in Acts 4:32-36.” Happily, the Alpha board for Ireland is an inter-church one.
I feel so strongly about the urgent need for mission that recently I wrote to the Catholic hierarchy suggesting that it devise and publish a national plan of evangelisation. So far I have received a favourable response from Cardinal Brady and Bishop Lee the secretary to the bishop’s conference. He told me that evangelisation was now the bishop’ s top priority. Just over a year ago a number of us formed a new covenant community called The New Springtime Community which is devoted to evangelisation and training evangelisers. We have just run 6 Alpha courses for the Archdiocese of Dublin which were attended by well over 200 people. Finally, I am currently completing a book entitled, Basic Evangelisation: A Handbook, which will be published by Columba next year. It deals with the nature of kerygmatic evangelisation, the motives we have for engaging in it, and it focuses mainly on different means of doing so. Are we Irish Christians a dying breed? I don’t think so. As a man of faith I believe that our current difficulties are only another word for postponed success.
[1] Irish Values and Attitudes: The Irish Report of the European Values Systems Study, eds., Fogarty, Ryan Lee (Dublin: Dominican Publications, 1984), 134.
[2] Values and Social Change in Ireland, ed. Christopher Whelan (Dublin: Gill & MacMillan, 1994), 22.
[3] http://www.catholicbishops.ie/research http://www.catholicbishops.ie/research
[4] Philip Jenkins, God’s Continent: Christianity, Islam and Europe’s Religious Crisis (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007), 33.
[6] http://www.christiantoday.com/article/ireland.survey.reveals.sharp.drop.in.church.attendance/4600.htm
St Valentine Day of Retreat
Talk 1: What on earth is God doing for heaven’s sake?
This reflection begins with a verse about the weather in the Holy Land. In Deut 11:14-15 we read the following divine promise, “then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil.” This undertaking consoled the Jewish people because there was a severe lack of water in Israel. God has fulfilled the promise right down to the present day. As we read in Joel 2:23-24: “Be glad, O people of Zion, rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given you the autumn rains of righteousness. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before. The threshing floors will be filled with grain; the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.” Ironically the crops were planted in the rainy autumn season between September 15 and November 15. The crops matured in the rainy spring season between March 15 and May 15. When they ripened they were harvested.
The early and late rains are mentioned in the New Testament. In Jm 5:7 we read: “Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains.” Over the centuries the notion of the two rains has been understood in a symbolic way to refer to two interrelated anointings of the Spirit which precede the harvesting of a great number of souls for God.
There is a clear symbolic example of the early and late rain of the Spirit in the Acts of the Apostles. In Acts 2:1-41 we read about the metaphorical first rain which enabled the seed of Christianity to take root and to grow. Then when the early Church was being persecuted we read in Acts 4:23-31 about the metaphorical second rain. Peter and John had been interrogated and imprisoned because of their witness to Jesus. When they were released they went to the Christian community and told them what had happened. When the disciples of the Lord heard about the opposition they were facing from the Jews and Romans they prayed fervently to God: “Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus." After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.” What is striking is the fact that the disciples did not ask for a new outpouring of the Spirit. Instead they yearned first for God’s kingdom and his righteousness (Cf. Mt 6:33). As they ardently desired to carry out the great commission the second rain fell upon them when the Holy Spirit was poured upon them anew. That pattern has been repeated many times down through the centuries. I believe that we have already witnessed an early rain of blessing in the 2oth century and are currently awaiting the second rain which will lead to the harvesting of a great number of souls for God.
The Early Springtime Rain
As you are all probably aware, Pope John XIII prayed before the Second Vatican Council, "Renew, Your wonders in this our day, as by a new Pentecost. Grant to Your Church that, being of one mind and steadfast in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and following the lead of blessed Peter, it may advance the reign of our Divine Savior, the reign of truth and justice, the reign of love and peace. Amen." In par. 12 the Church’s document on the Church there was mention of the role of the charisms mentioned in 1 Cor 12:8-
The Winter of Discontent
Over the years the Lord has revealed in a prophetic way what is happening in the church and in the world and why it is happening. It is notoriously hard to know whether such messages come from God or not. However, there are some which have considerable authority because of the circumstances in which they were spoken, the acknowledged giftedness of the people who spoke them, and the way in which they evoked an answering amen of approval in the Christian community. On Pentecost Monday 1975 such a prophecy was given by Ralph Martin in St Peter’s Basilica, Rome, in the presence of Pope Paul VI. It seems to contain a number of distinct but interrelated points which are particularly relevant for the Church, especially in Western countries.
The Lord seemed to predict that a time of purifying darkness was about to afflict the Church.
“Open your eyes, open your hearts to prepare yourselves for me and for the day that I have now begun. My church will be different; my people will be different; difficulties and trials will come upon you…I will lead you into the desert…I will strip you of everything that you are depending on now, so you depend just on me.”
The Lord went on to say more about the purpose of the time of trial and purification. “You need the power of my Holy Spirit in a way that you have not possessed it; you need an understanding of my will and of the ways I work that you do not yet have.” It seemed as if the Lord were saying that before the second rain would come, the Church would go through a Winter period which is usually an arid period between the early and later rain.
Judging by all that has happened over the last 35 years or so, the first section of Ralph Martin’s prophecy in St Peter’s Basilica has been fulfilled. As early as Nov. 15th, 1972, Pope Paul VI suggested that difficulties the church was experiencing had a demonic dimension: “What are the Church's greatest needs at the present time? Don't be surprised at Our answer and don't write it off as simplistic or even superstitious: one of the Church's greatest needs is to be defended against the evil we call the Devil.” In that same year the Pope said the diabolic threat was internal as well as external. "The smoke of Satan,” he warned, “has entered the temple of God." Apparently he was alluding to the sins of Christians, to the devaluation of the moral law, and the growth of moral decadence. Many people have failed in the time of testing. For instance, in western countries practice rates, together with vocations to the priesthood and religious life have fallen rapidly. For instance, in 2004 only 15 men were ordained in Ireland while over 160 priests died. There also has been a decline in Christian morality. This is particularly obvious in the form of rising levels of violence, binge drinking, drug taking, dishonesty etc.
While all of this was happening, however, there has also been a growing minority of Christian men and women, some of whom are members of the new ecclesial communions that have sprung up in recent years, have not only remained faithful during the years of darkness, but have grown in age, wisdom, and grace. For example, they adhere to the teaching authority of the Church while refusing to water down religious truths in order to make them more acceptable to a modern audience. Nowadays there is a significant number of praying people who are firmly committed to Christ and who try conscientiously to answer the universal calls to holiness and evangelization.
Disruption and breakdown in the secular world
The prophecy given in St Peter’s in 1975 seemed to say that the time of darkness in the church would be followed by a time of darkness in the secular world.
“Days of darkness are coming on the world, days of tribulation.”
I have believed for many years that a time was coming when there would be great disruption and even breakdown in the secular world. Indeed I can remember saying something on those lines in Unveiling the Heart which was published in the mid 90s. At one point I suggested that,
“In the coming years it is possible that, as a result of growing irrationality and moral blindness, we may have to endure a time of economic and political disruption…No matter how painful the dislocation of society may be, it could lead many people to reject questionable philosophical and economic beliefs, just as it has already done in the former Soviet Union.”
As breakdown occurs it will have three predictable effects. It will tend to unleash the dark irrational aspects of the human unconscious. As unrest increases it will cause some people to say despairingly, “let us eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die!” (Cf. Eccl 8:15), and others to say, “let us seek the Lord while he may still be found” (Is 55:6). It now looks as if the predicted time of secular darkness has already begun in the form of collapsing financial institutions, a falling share price and the likelihood of a world wide recession or even depression. I suspect that it will be longer and more severe than politicians and economists expect.
I believe that God will use the darkness of the secular world for providential purposes. It is my conviction that the Lord has allowed the affliction of secular society for a purpose. As scripture says, “The Lord has led you … in the wilderness, in order to humble you, testing you to know what is in your heart” Deut 8:2-3. Many of the un-churched and the unfaithful of our day are like the prodigal son of old, who left his father’s house to travel into an alien place where, apparently, he forgot about his religious upbringing and spent his money in an amoral pursuit of pleasures of different kinds. In Lk 15:14-15 we are told about an economic downturn that effected that foreign country, “After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.” Having endured hunger and humiliation the prodigal son, “came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father” Lk 15:17-18. It would not be surprising to find that many of our contemporaries will become so disillusioned with the false values that have led to the current economic downturn that they will become spiritual pilgrims who seek to recover Christian beliefs, values and attitudes that served them well in the past.
Purification followed by a new Springtime for the Church
This brings us to a third point in the prophecy. The Lord intends to use his committed followers, whom he has raised up and equipped during the church’s time of darkness, to evangelize those who will seek him during the time of darkness in the secular world. As the Lord said in the prophecy in St Peter’s,
“A time of darkness is coming on the world, but a time of glory is coming for my church, a time of glory is coming for my people…I will prepare you for a time of evangelism that the world has not seen.”
On the 7th February 2003, a Church of Ireland clergyman spoke the following words during a time of intercession in Belfast. In view of their origin, they are as surprising as they are encouraging. They seem to suggest that the second rain will fall in a particularly heavy way in the Catholic Church. Part of the prophetic message reads:
“The Lord has been shaking the Roman Catholic Church. He holds the church in the palm of His hand and he has been shaking it for 20 to 25 years. The church has been rattling around like a nut in a nutshell. All the time the Lord has been shaking it from the outside. Now He is going to work on the inside. He throws the church down and cracks it open. A holy and pure church is exposed, what was hidden before can now be seen. As the church, broken, flows out, the Glory of God flows in, like a river of liquid gold… This will spread through the Catholic Church infrastructure worldwide, producing great love and devotion for the Lord. For the Glory of God to come it will be enough to be associated with the Catholic Church, to go to a Catholic Church or to be called a Catholic, even to have contact with the Catholic Church through occasional ceremonies such as baptism, confirmation, first communion, marriage, funerals. By identifying with the church you will be giving the Lord permission to manifest His glory.”
I was interested to see that Ralph Martin said in Goodnews (May/June 1999) that he had reason to believe that the fulfilment of the 1975 prophecy might not be too far off. He wrote:
“I believe that we are now in a time of visitation… we are on the verge of a significant action of God [my italics], an action that will function as a two edged sword, depending on our preparation and willingness to respond to the prophetic message we are being given. And is it not possible that the fullness of the “new springtime” will not come until we are first purified through judgement or chastisement, and awakened to the holiness of God?”
When this process is well advanced in the secular realm the Lord will bring in the new Springtime by means of widespread evangelization.
Conclusion
Pope Paul VI said in Evangelization in the Modern World:
“I earnestly exhort you to generously open your minds and heart to receive a large outpouring of divine gift, the Holy Spirit. May a new Pentecost descend on you so you will be spiritually renewed and continue on a new road to evangelical witness"
As this occurs, and we engage in Spirit filled evangelization we will be enabled to experience the new springtime that was often referred to by John Paul II. Ironically, it will be a time of harvesting, harvesting souls for God. Speaking to a gathering in Nov. 1996 the Holy Father said: “God is preparing a great springtime for Christianity, and we can already see its first signs." It would probably be true to say that the Springtime blessing, the Holy Father spoke about, is an intimation of the second coming of Christ.
Talk Two: Thanking God in All Circumstances
In Tob 12:6; 22, the messenger Raphael says to Tobit and his son Tobias: "Praise God and give thanks to him; exalt him and give thanks to him in the presence of all the living for what he has done for you. It is good to acknowledge God and to exalt his name, worthily declaring the works of God. Do not be slow to give him thanks...... they stood up.....and confessed the great and wonderful works of God.” We can thank God, especially in the Eucharist, for an endless list of blessings, such as salvation, health, special abilities, education, financial security etc.
Thankful appreciation as an act of fundamental religious importance. By contemplating the existence and beauty of the created world a rational human being can perceive the existence and character of its Maker. As 2 Mac
Then Paul goes on to make an all important observation about unbelievers, “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him” Rom
Thanksgiving Always and for Everything
In marked contrast, St Paul not only thanks God repeatedly himself, he says to people of faith in tomorrow’s gospel: “pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus,” 1Thes 5:17-
It is clear that we should thank God for the graces and blessings of life. It is good not to take them for granted, but rather to call them to mind with gratitude. But
There was an outstanding biblical example of what I mean in this week’s liturgical readings from the Book of Genesis. We are told that Joseph was the first child of Rachel and his father's favorite son. This is most clearly shown by the special coat that Jacob gave to Joseph. His ten older brothers envied him because he was their father’s pet and because Joseph had dreams that he interpreted to his brothers in a rather conceited way. Joseph and his family were shepherds in the
Joseph was taken to
Joseph’s statement is a remarkable one when you think about it. God used the heartless treachery of his brothers as the providential source of their future blessing. There is an intimation in this story of the way in which another brother would be delivered into the hands of the chief priests and the Roman authorities who would cruelly murder him. And just as Joseph’s suffering became a source of blessing for those who inflicted it, so Jesus’ suffering and death would become the providential source of salvation and healing for those who had caused it. “O happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam, which gained for us so great a Redeemer!” It is significant surely, that at the last supper, which anticipated Jesus’ death on the cross, he gave thanks and praise to God, thereby anticipating his resurrection and victory over Satan, sin, and ultimately sin and death.
Amazing Grace
Surely this principle can be extended not only to our sins but also to our sufferings. We can thank God in all circumstances, rather than for all circumstances, in the knowledge that they can become the springboards to God's grace either sooner or later. I can remember an occasion that occurred many years ago. I was due to attend a conference for priests. I travelled to it by motorbike. As I went along the road I was singing hymns. At one point I prayed; "Lord if you have any message for the conference please speak to me." Then I felt inwardly that the Lord was saying, "tell your fellow priests about the pearl of great price." While I was glad to get that word, I didn't really know what it meant. When I got to the conference there was a preparatory prayer session. During a quiet time the image of an oyster came to mind. It was on the mud of the sea floor surrounded by water. I understood that the sea floor was the world, the sea the Spirit, and the oyster, the human person. Then I felt that the Lord was saying. "Think of how a pearl is formed. Grit and dirt from the sea-bed get into the oyster. It cannot expel it. So it secretes a milky liquid which surrounds the grit over a seven year period. The greater the irritation the greater the pearl that is finally formed. It is the same with the human heart. Sin makes an entry. But in my compassion I weave the pearl of mercy around it. The greater the sin or suffering, the greater the pearl that is finally formed. Tell the priests not to be disheartened by their weaknesses. I will bring good from evil, blessing from failure.” As St Paul proclaimed: “where sin increased, grace increased all the more” Rom
In this context I’m reminded that Fr Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus has suggested in I Want to See God that St Therese of Lisiux’s understanding of God’s mercy led her to cultivate the “art of failure.” She would intend to do some good act but would sometimes fail to do so, for one reason or another. Apparently, she would then say: “If I had been faithful I would have received the reward of merit. I was unfaithful, I am humiliated, I am going to receive the reward of my poverty and humiliation.” She believed that she would be rewarded in times of humiliating failure by God’s understanding and merciful love. What an extraordinary insight into the loving kindness of the heart of our God. I suspect that Therese’s failures were small compared to our own. Nevertheless, the principle she enunciates remains the same. Indeed, it could be argued that the greater and the more humiliating the failure the greater the graces that are lavished upon the grieving heart. We thank God for his amazing grace.
Like many others I have found that thanksgiving opens up my heart to the liberating power of God. I’m not surprised that Anthony de Mello said in Sadhana that if he had to choose the one form of prayer that made Christ’s presence most real in his life it would be the prayer of thanksgiving. He explained, “The prayer consists, quite simply in thanking God for everything. It is based on the belief that nothing happens in our life that is not foreseen and planned by God – just nothing, not even our sins.” I’m sure that Merlin Carothers is correct when he says in his books such as Prison to Praise and Power in Praise that if, in adverse circumstances, we thank God in an unconditional way, the circumstances themselves can change in a remarkable manner.
Conclusion
Why not try this suggestion: Think of something in the past or present that is causing you pain, distress, guilt or frustration. If you are in any way to blame for this thing express your regret and sorrow to the Lord. Now explicitly thank God for this, praise the Lord for it...Tell God that you believe that even this fits into the divine plan for you and so God will draw great good from this for you and for others, even though you may not see the good. Leave this thing and all the other events of your life, past present and to come, in the hands of God and rest in the peace and relief that this will bring. As two Greek Orthodox writers observe: “Lips forever giving thanks receive God’s blessing, and a heart filled with gratitude unexpectedly receives grace.”
There is a simple method which can be used by groups in order to read the reflect on the scriptures in a prayerful way. It consists of eight steps.
1. Opening prayer for inspiration.
“In the scriptures by the Spirit;
May we see the Savior's face;
Hear his word and heed his calling
Know his will and grow in grace.”
2. One person slowly reads the chosen passage out loud. Everyone else listens to the reading.
3. Everyone spends one minute reflecting on what they heard.
4. The passage is again read slowly out loud by another person.
5. Everyone prayerfully reflects on the passage for seven minutes. They consider these two questions,
· What did it mean?
· How does it relate to my life and the life of the community?
6. Everyone share in twos for seven to ten minutes.
7. The facilitator invites people to share from the floor, either what they got from the passage or what their neighbor shared with them. This can go for up to 20 mins.
8. There is a final prayer of thanksgiving.
Acts 27
When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment… and we put out to sea.…. We moved along the coast with difficulty … Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Fast. So Paul warned them, "Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also." But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship. Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided that we should sail on, hoping to reach Phoenix and winter there. This was a harbor in Crete, facing both southwest and northwest.
When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they had obtained what they wanted; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the "northeaster," swept down from the island. The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along. As we passed to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were hardly able to make the lifeboat secure. When the men had hoisted it aboard, they passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together. Fearing that they would run aground on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and let the ship be driven along. We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard. On the third day, they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands. When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved. After the men had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up before them and said: "Men, you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete; then you would have spared yourselves this damage and loss. But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, 'Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.' So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. Nevertheless, we must run aground on some island."
On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic Sea, when about midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. They took soundings and found that the water was a hundred and twenty feet deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet deep. Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, "Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved." So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it fall away.
Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. "For the last fourteen days," he said, "you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food-you haven't eaten anything. Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head." After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. Altogether there were 276 of us on board. When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.
When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they saw a bay with a sandy beach, where they decided to run the ship aground if they could. Cutting loose the anchors, they left them in the sea and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach. But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken to pieces by the pounding of the surf.
The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners to prevent any of them from swimming away and escaping. But the centurion wanted to spare Paul's life and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. The rest were to get there on planks or on pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land in safety.
Today is the Feast of St Benedict who created the Lectio Divina method of praying the Scriptures. Here is a brief description.
Reading and Praying The Sacred Scriptures
In it Pope John Paul II declared : “In order to recognize who Christ truly is, Christians should turn with renewed interest to the Bible, ‘whether it be through the liturgy, rich in the divine word, or through devotional reading, or through instructions suitable for the purpose and other aids.” I’m firmly persuaded that there will be no genuine long lasting renewal and revival in the contemporary Church unless it is rooted in and nourished by the word of God.
All the books of the Old Testament, point to Christ and find their fulfillment in him. Jesus himself made this clear to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Having poured out their sorrows to their companion, “Jesus replied: ‘You foolish men! So slow to believe the full message of the prophets! Was it not ordained that the Christ should suffer and so enter his glory?’ Then starting with Moses and going through all the prophets he explained to them the passages throughout the scriptures that were about himself” Lk 24:25-28.
The Gospels record the words and actions of Jesus himself. They are like so many panes in the stained glass window of his humanity. When they are illuminated by the Spirit and contemplated with the eyes of faith, they can become a unique source of revelation. Through them we begin to see what God is like. As Jesus said: “To have seen me is to have seen the Father” Jn 14:9. The remaining books of the New Testament record the impact and implications of Christ for the first Christians.
The world is awash with words, written words, spoken words, and words that are broadcast on radio and T.V. But no matter how eloquent and profound they may be, they are merely human words. The bible is unique because it is the only book that contains the inspired and inspiring word of God. However, commenting on contemporary culture T S Eliot observed in Choruses from the Rock:
The endless cycle of idea and action,
Endless invention, endless experiment,
Brings knowledge of motion, but not of stillness;
Knowledge of speech, but not of silence;
Knowledge of words, and ignorance of the Word.
In Western society words describe pre-existing reality. In the bible, however, God’s word is constitutive of reality. It contains the power to effect what it says. As George Montague points out, “When the Hebrew speaks a word, he is not taking in the outside world and shaping it within himself. Rather he is thrusting something creative and powerful outward from himself into the external world and actually changing that world.”[2] As Is 55:10-11 testifies: “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” For example, in Gen 1:3 “God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” In Jer 49:13 the Lord swears by his own divine authority and faithfulness to act in accord with the divine promises. In a unique way, God has both the intention, and the ability to carry out the divine undertakings. Outstanding people of faith said amen to those undertakings. The word is derived from a Hebrew root ’mn which means, “to show oneself firm and stable.” So to say amen to God’s word of promise is tantamount to saying “So be it, it is a fact because God is dependable”[3] As Heb 11 points out, the heroes and heroines of faith in the Old Testament were blessed, precisely because they trusted, with unwavering faith, in the sure and certain promises of God. When the Angel Gabriel assured Mary that nothing was impossible to God and promised that Jesus would be conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, she said, “let it be to me according to your word” Lk 1:38. Later when Mary visited Elizabeth, her cousin declared: “Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord” Lk
The best known means of paying attention to God’s word in the scriptures is the Benedictine Method. It is known as the Lectio Divina, or sacred reading. [9] It’s a personal or communal reading of a scripture passage of any length, received as the Word of God, which through the impulse of the Holy Spirit leads to meditation, prayer and contemplation.[10] A 12th century writer described its purpose in these words: “Reading you should seek; meditating you will find; praying you shall call; and contemplating the door will be opened to you.” Before engaging in the Lectio Divina, we ask the Lord to bless our prayer time. There is a succinct prayer that I sometimes say: “Bright as fire in darkness, sharper than a sword, lives throughout the ages, God’s eternal word. May that word dwell richly in my heart and bear the fruit of good works. Amen” A shorter prayer says: “I open the scriptures to meet you again. Reveal yourself to me.”
One goes on to select a passage to read. It might come from the liturgy of the day, or the following Sunday, or one could choose a passage that would speak to one’s needs at that particular time, such as how to cope with bereavement, anger, temptation etc. Admittedly, one needs to have a fairly good knowledge of the bible in order to choose such an apt passage. Others buy booklets which contain thematic scripture meditations. The bible societies in different English speaking countries, such as those in
We can usefully begin this section with a succinct definition from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. “Meditation is a prayerful quest engaging thought, imagination, emotion and desire. Its goal is to make our own in faith the subject considered, by confronting it with the reality of our own life.”[11] In Prov 4:20-5:1 we are told how to internalize a scripture text: “My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for they are life to those who find them ..... Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life....My child, pay attention to my wisdom, listen well to my words of insight” I often read a bible commentary as part of my meditative exploration of the passage. It can throw light on the context and the true meaning of the verses. During the meditative stage, one ponders the meaning of the text, thinks about obscure or difficult points, and tries to see how these truths relate to one’s own life and the life of the world about us. For example, one might consider how, regardless of their education and material prosperity many people in modern society also seem to be harassed and dejected like the people in the gospel story. Indeed one might reluctantly have to admit that, because of personal unhappiness, emotional problems, addictions or obsessions, one could personally identify with the needy crowd.
There are two ways of meditating. If you are reflecting on a doctrinal point, for example, from the letters of
· See the scene and the people who are mentioned. You may choose to see yourself as one of the characters involved.
· Hear what is said. You may want to add to the dialogue that is recorded in the text.
· Notice what the characters do.
· Finally, try to sense what the people feel. I have found that if the story is about Jesus I can try to empathize with him empathizing with the people of his time.
As a person begins to react at a personal level to the text, meditation gives way to prayer. Rational thinking gives way to the disclosure of the feelings and desires that have been evoked by one’s reading and reflection. Speaking about this transition, St Vincent de Paul once said that when at nightfall a person wants to illumine a room, what asks the saint should be done? “He takes his flint and steel,” he says, “strikes a spark and lights his candle. When he has done so, he does not go on striking the flint, he does not go looking about for another flint and steel to strike a light, for he does not need it; the light he has suffices for all his needs.”[12] When inspiration comes, meditation gives way to heartfelt prayer. The pray-er may be moved to offer prayers of contrition, petition, intercession, thanksgiving, praise and adoration. In this connection St Benedict counseled, “let the prayer be brief and pure.”
In the Catechism of the Catholic Church we read: “Contemplative prayer is the simple expression of the mystery of prayer. It is a gaze of faith fixed on Jesus, an attentiveness to the Word of God, a silent love. It achieves real union with the prayer of Christ to the extent that it makes us share in his mystery.”[13] As a person reads, meditates and prays, there can be moments when these activities give way to a graced sense of God’s loving and merciful presence. Speaking about this kind of religious experience St Vincent de Paul wrote, “It is not the result of human teaching. It is not attainable by human effort, and it is not bestowed on everyone....In this state of quiet, the soul finds itself suddenly filled with spiritual illuminations and holy affections (i.e. feelings and desires).”[14] I suspect that such experiences are not only religious but at least mildly mystical in nature. The phrase "religious experience" refers not so much to talk or thought about transcendental reality, as conscious, mediated awareness of that reality. A religious experience therefore is an experience in which one has intimations of the immediate presence of “the divine.”
[1] New Creation, (Nov. 1997), 5-8.
[2] Riding the Wind, (Ann Arbor: Word of Life, 1977), 56-57.
[3] Cf. Leon-Dufour, Dictionary of the New Testament, (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1980), 91
[4] Cf. Jean Laplace, Prayer According to the Scriptures (Dublin: Veritas, 1991)
[5] Cf Pat Collins, Prayer in Practice: A Biblical Approach (
[6] CTS Pocket Classics, The Little Way Of St Therese of Lisieux: From the Saint’s Own Writings, (London: CTS, 1997), 18.
[7] Christopher O’ Mahoney, St Therese of Lisieux by those Who knew Her (
[8] Divini Amoris Scientia: Apostolic Letter of the Holy Father John Paul II for the proclamation of St Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face as a Doctor of the Universal Church, par. 9.
[9] Michael de Verteuil, Your Word is a Light for My Steps: Lectio Divina (Dublin: Veritas, 1997); Mario Masini, Lectio Divina (New York: Alba House, 1998)
[10] Section 2, Interpretation of the Bible in the Church (Pauline Books and Media, 1993).
[11] Par 2723, (Dublin: Veritas, 1994), 579.
[12] Quoted by Abbe Arnaud D’angel, St Vincent de Paul: A Guide for Priests, (London: Burns Oates & Washbourne, 1932), 49.
[13] Par. 2724, (Dublin: Veritas, 1994), 579.
[14] Coste, Collected Works, XI, 420.
[15] St Vincent de Paul: A Guide for Priests, op. cit., 51.
