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Walking the Talk Well A.K.A. Discerning |
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Sunday, 23 July 2006 |
We know the talk; for eighteen or so years, we’ve walked the walk. But do we do it well?
We are good Catholics, go to Mass and communion every Sunday, we don’t steal or kill and after reading 12 Little Things, we obey traffic rules and ask for receipts. We profess the values of stewardship, simplicity, sharing and service. We attend BCGG meetings, Community Celebration and listen to the Teachings. We do a yearly retreat, serve in the Suyuan and once in a while we even read the Newsletter! More than what is expected from the average Catholic, but is it enough for us who are committed to “more”?
Let’s take a look at the community pot and see what’s been simmering.
1) Overheard at the Sector, Ministry Heads and Shepherds’ meeting on July 4 – twenty-nine couples listened in rapt attention to Claire Palma “revisit” our shepherding program: “it’s all in the (Magis) manual” and the sheepish confession “hindi tayo nagbabasa…”
2) The very preliminary results of a pulse survey which indicated that many shepherds felt neither they nor their BCGGs had achieved the desired goals of shepherding, BUT, when asked how they felt about it, answered they felt SATISFIED. Isn’t this strange, even embarrassing? We realize and readily admit we have not reached our goals – and in almost the same breath say we are satisfied!
3) A couple of months back the anxiety that a poorly written novel like D’Vinci Code with stick characters and sensational plot would rock our faith, did not keep us from asking, did the Church deceive us and suppress the bloodline of Jesus and Mary Magdalen as the novel and subsequent movie assert?
On the surface, the ingredients are easy to identify - pieces of pork, chicken, beef, white kidney beans, merrily simmering for Sunday’s pochero. The smells alone tell us what’s cooking. But we in Magis are used to reflecting on the day’s events, we pray our awareness exercises enough to know there is more than what meets the eye, or the nose. The truly discerning heart does not act on surface feelings and happenings alone.
In the first example, the missing ingredient is obvious, and easily added to the stew. A community concern now being addressed is that many shepherds are confused about what we should do. However, there is a manual. Lord, let me see through your loving eyes, obvious ang pagkukulang, pero mayroon pa ba? May manual pala, why didn’t I read it? Kung wala akong copy, sino kaya ang dapat kulitin ko? Hmm…bakit kaya ngayon ko lang napansin…. Mayroon pa ba Kayong ibig iparating sa akin?
The second example is a bit more subtle. We only have an indication of something out of place, and as Data of Star Trek would say “it does not compute.” During the Ministry-Sector-BCGG heads meeting on July 4, our leaders conducted and summarized the results of a pulse survey designed by Shepherds/Sharers Formation Ministry (see Council Corner), based on the replies of those present. “Lord, the results of the survey indicate a good number of us feel we have not achieved our objectives 100%, but in general, we have rated ourselves SATISFIED. At first glance, ang feeling ko’y mababaw yata ang aming kaligayahan? What is this feeling telling me? Definitely, too soon to draw a conclusion. But it all begins with paying attention to the feeling that “something does not compute” – and as discerning people, we should find out all the data we need and not judge until we are satisfied it does compute.
The third concern has been the more confusing because the issues are simply more vast. Could it be true that Jesus and Mary Magdalen had children and that the Catholic Church covered this up? Again, conflicting feelings and attitudes about justice and inequality within the church, obedience and individual freedom, truth and loyalty cloud the situation and make it difficult for us to decide what to do, think and believe. For us who desire to be in union with God in all things, there is only one issue and one prayer: help me see more clearly so I can follow you more nearly, love you more dearly.
Not just about getting there, but doing it well. Getting as much facts as we can before we can sit in prayer and discover what our Lord wants us to do. Facts which include basic knowledge about what being human means, what our Catholic faith is, how our attitudes as a member of an Ignatian community can shape the conclusions we draw from the facts. It means we should make the effort to study what others have to say about the matter, whether the source of the information is an encyclopedia, a scientific study, an encyclical, a child’s catechism or a speaker at the Community Celebration teaching.
And because we have chosen to be Ignatian in formation, to persevere in studying and experiencing the richness of the love Ignatius felt for “Holy, Mother Church” though it lies buried beneath four centuries of reader-unfriendly language (compare ”Rules for Thinking with the Church” to “How serious are we about our Catholic faith?” And that is why we continually study, invite speakers to give us teachings, why we speak of lights and shadows, high points and low points instead of “consolations and desolations.” That is why we journey in community, accompanying one another, guided by our spiritual directors who have made the same journey before us, guided by our Lord himself, who promised we would always find him when two or more of us are gathered in prayer, and in his name.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 24 July 2006 )
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