The purpose of the Church is to reach out and draw all of its members to communion with God through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Church does this by presenting age after age the message of Jesus and also joins us with Jesus through our sacramental life. In carrying out this mission, it tries to convey to the entire world a message based on truth and love, a message that has tremendous implications for justice and fairness. These virtues are affected by the economic system present at any given moment.
For most of the last 2,000 years virtually the entire world’s economy was based on agriculture. That changed with the Industrial Revolution in the late 18th century bringing tremendous change to human life, including a vast increase in wealth and prosperity. But not everyone shared equally in these new developments. In the late 19th century, Pope Leo XIII saw that the Industrial Revolution and its later developments were inflicting tremendous pain and suffering on the poor workers in the urban centers of Europe and North America. He wrote his famous encyclical, Rerum Novarum which laid out a structure of responsibilities reminding employers of their responsibilities to be fair and just with their workers, and that those workers had the right to organize in order to defend their economic interests. In those days, that economy was mostly one of shops and small plants where workers and employers were often in face to face situations.
By the 1930’s, the world of the small plant by an individual or family gave way as nationwide industries developed and thus Pope Pius XI wrote the encyclical Quadragesimo Anno which built on the work of Leo XIII and dealt now with problems related to nation-wide economies.
After World War II with the decolonization of the people of Africa, the possibility of a one world economy expanded tremendously and as a result in 1963 that magnificent pope John XXIII wrote a document that had tremendous impact in the Church and on the world entitled Pacem in Terris, Peace on Earth. It dealt with this new worldwide economy many years before any of us were routinely referring to the reality of an integrated world economy. The document came out in 1963 and made a powerful impression on Church leaders all over world. Fifty years have passed since the encyclicals issued and in the next couple of days I will give you my opinion of the affect that it has had in this painful and agonizing half century.
 

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All of us find ourselves bombarded by the news. It is available now 24 hours a day, seven days a week in many different formats. There is a lot to choose from but I have long held that the top of the line in news programs is public television’s late afternoon program, “The News Hour” which appears Monday through Friday and the best is Friday because on that day Mark Shields, the liberal commentator, and David Brooks, a conservative, discuss the issues in a way that is regretfully rare today. They do it intelligently, calmly, politely, each showing great respect to the opinions of the other.
Mark Shields startled many of his listeners two weeks ago with the amazing statement that there have been 1,384,000 fire arms related deaths in the United States since the night that Robert Kennedy was killed. If that wasn’t bad enough, he went on to say that total civilian deaths from guns in our country exceeds that all the wars in our country’s history from the Revolutionary War through the Civil War, World War I, World War II in those 45 years. The first reaction of many listeners was wide-spread denial. We know that the Civil War took more than a half a million lives and World War II almost as many. There was so much denial that PolitiFact.com went to work and their research justified Shields comments. In the United States history 1.2 million Americans died in wartime and nearly 1.4 million Americans died by fire arms outside the context of war during these 45 years.
The gun right lobby continues to spike terror into the hearts of political candidates in borderline election victories. Sooner or later, America must deal with this awesomely destructive reality.
 

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All thoughtful Americans and citizens across the world were horrified a few weeks ago by that tragic fire in the clothing factory over in Bangladesh. There were no fire exits, no escape plans and hundreds of the employees died in agony and unnecessarily. Those clothes – blouses, shirts, socks, etc. – were being manufactured by near slave labor to be marketed in the United States of America. First the fire, then the sense of shock and now silence. We have heard nothing from the national and international associations of clothing manufacturers. Since their needs and their demand for low wages is at least an indirect cause of the tragedy, shouldn’t they be leading the efforts to make sure that this type of tragedy is avoided in the future? To date, they have been quiet – very, very quiet.
Tragedies like that used to occur in the 19th century in the United States, England and other European countries and mistakes can still occur and tragically kill innocent workers; for example, the explosion of the oil well in the Gulf operated by British Petroleum. However, happily, the developed world began to recognize the need for supervision and regulation, and the number of such tragedies has been greatly lessened. Nevertheless, there is a group in this country that is constantly howling and complaining about regulation. Regulation does increase the cost of production but nothing compared to the cost and damage that can be done by producers and manufacturers if they are not being supervised within proper limits. We would frequently find ourselves in serious trouble and pain if the various supervisory entities were suppressed or eliminated. You would be afraid to go into a drug store if it were not for the Center for Disease Control.

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The union movement has grown steadily weaker over the last thirty years. This bad development has been assisted along the way by corporate hostility and by an indifferent media. In my opinion, all of us should be more appreciative of the sacrifices made for the common good by construction workers. Everyone has heard about the electrician or the plumber who is highly paid when their wages are figured by the hour, but the real test of how good his income is would be a question of how much he worked in the course of the year. Construction is a painfully on and off situation as jobs begin and end quickly, and they do not do that neatly one right after the other.

• Nearly 45% of construction workers live below the poverty line.
• One in five construction workers has experienced wage theft in Austin, Texas.
• 76% of construction workers do not have health insurance.
• Every 2.5 days a construction worker dies on the job in Texas.

There were 141 construction deaths in Texas. The next largest was California at 58. Why the difference?

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As we walk through life together, we often hear ourselves saying strange things to each other. Because I am a parish priest, one thing that I frequently hear is people (following the death of a friend) saying, “I simply don’t know what to say to her.” Or, “I don’t have the right words when I talk to him”. In my opinion, this is an unnecessary shyness and sensitivity on the part of the speaker. You don’t have to SAY anything! You walk up to the person who has just experienced the loss, and give them a hug. If you are walking down the center aisle and you see them at the end of the pew, put a hand on their shoulder and squeeze it. Bodies speak to bodies. A grieving person can get more out of that hug than any fifty well-chosen words.

Does that mean words are not necessary? Not at all. In an extended visit, it helps strengthen the bonds and alleviate the sadness present in this situation. But what IS important, is in whatever way possible, REACH OUT, touch people, let them know that you share in some limited sense in their suffering, and that you will BE THERE. Words are not important, but presence is everything. Presence is not restricted to standing beside them. We are present with that hug, with a phone call, the scribbled notes or a solid promise to come by as soon as possible. Each of these, and many others, are forms of presence.

We always need to try and support each other and such support is especially needed in times of the loss of a loved one.

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I’m 82 years old, or as a rather insensitive friend said to me last week, “not right, John, you are actually only 8 years from 90″. That mathematical switch went through me like a knife. I thought it over and realized that while the math was identical, the emotional response varied somewhat.

I wonder if it’s because I am in the ninth decade that I am suddenly becoming aware that people I have known for so long have a tendency to move on ahead of me. It certainly is food for thought…and I’m thinking!

I have been molded and formed by the Roman Catholic faith, and although it has many rough edges, it is extraordinarily optimistic. Catholicism has always held that human nature is essentially good, but weak. Martin Luther, on the other hand (who has a moderate amount of influence in the Christian story) always taught that human nature was essentially corrupt, and only faith in Jesus Christ could overcome the evil that was innate in the human condition. These thoughts pass through my mind as I find myself journeying from funeral to funeral. Funerals are profoundly important. They bring together people who have not seen each other in years. They create an atmosphere that calls for reconciliation. Tears flow. But laughter abounds!

All of this is even more true for people who are Irish. “Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy which sustained him through temporary periods of joy” (W.B. Yeats).

If I said that I enjoyed funerals, I would be misunderstood, because they are usually connected with sadness. But, if a person is committed to the Christian faith, that sadness should be seen as a short term, immediate reality, and beyond the pain is a vestibule opening into eternal life & eternal joy.
There is so much real tragedy, so much agonizingly unnecessary suffering in the world, that we Christians should give an example of hope, optimism and joy when someone we love escapes into eternal life.

Does that mean we are not to cry, not to shed tears when we experience the agonizing loss of a loved one? Not at all. But with the eyes of faith, look beyond that casket. See through that tombstone. See the purpose for which each one of us came into being, which is now being fulfilled.

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A few centuries back when the Catholic Church enjoyed (suffered?) tremendous power, that power was frequently misused and abused. Those desiring to push the anti-Catholic agenda are quick to draw historic images of the Crusades, the Inquisition, and even the obvious wealth of the Church today, a wealth that is most obvious in buildings and real estate, which frequently are far more of a liability than an asset.

Putting all that aside, however, it is necessary that Christians should become more sensitive to the fact that they are an oppressed people, not in the West, but across much of the globe. The Catholic relief agency (Aid to the Church in Need) estimates that 150,000 Christians die for their faith every year in locales ranging from the Middle East to Southeast Asia to sub-Sahara Africa and parts of Latin America. This means that every hour of every day roughly 17 Christians are killed somewhere in the world either out of hatred for the faith or hatred for works of charity and justice that their faith compels them to perform.

Look at Iraq for example. Prior to the first Gulf War, there were more than 2 million Christians in Iraq, the vast majority being Roman Catholic while today, there are between three and four hundred thousand. This is a tragic loss on the world scene and no one seems to be paying much attention to it.

Catholics should endeavor to ease up on their inner family conflicts between liberals and conservatives, and rekindle the missionary thrust that is so much a part of its essential nature. Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again. Yes, that is true. But his coming greatly depends on the missionary element of his Church.

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Two weeks back, I was startled to read an article in America magazine by a very well known and successful female Catholic scholar, writer and psychologist who admits that as she ages her fear of dying increases. She experiences surges of anxiety and finds them very dispiriting. She is a woman of deep faith but that does not remove the fear.

I think that most of us can agree that we share a less than enthusiastic reaction to our approaching death (and let’s remember, death is approaching for every single one of us!) She was not talking about the vast number of deaths that are simply hideous and the horror, dreadfulness and the desolation that so many human beings suffer as victims of disease, accidents, natural disasters, war and cruel torture. Her fear of death even applies to those situations where the person is surrounded by loved ones and relatively comfortable. She speaks of the desolation and agony of a disintegrating self, an intense sadness arising over giving up one’s part of the ongoing drama of daily life.

I was very saddened by the article. I believe it is perfectly normal to fear the process of dying but not the fact of being dead. We are created for eternal life. We have been redeemed by Jesus Christ. In death, our faith tells us we enter into an unimaginable, extraordinary existence of joy forever. The wonders that are beyond the door to eternal life are worth infinitely more than any burdens we have carried in this life.

The oft repeated cliché is, “the only thing in life about which we can be absolutely, totally certain is the fact of our death.” That statement is true and it challenges us to prepare for our death a little more realistically.

Onward through that door!

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When I was a kid in the middle of the last century, Catholics were constantly asking themselves this question: What does the Church say about that? What is the Church’s teaching on that? What does the Church say?

The question might be about a new movie, a best selling book, some unusual conduct or activity present in our society. We had great faith in the Church and looked to her for moral guidance on everything from minute aspects of daily living to profound theological questions.

Because the Church’s moral standing has been so badly damaged by recent scandals, her members, still faithful to the basic teachings, such as about Jesus Christ and the sacramental life of the Church, are, however, somewhat more hesitant to accept the Church’s answer on every aspect of daily living, especially when new situations develop that have not existed in the past.

One example of this would be organ transplants. Remember when that South African doctor, for the first time, successfully transplanted a human heart? Since then, medical science has gone forward at a terrific rate of speed, and awesome things are being accomplished and the donation of organs presents a major aspect on the medical scene. For the most part, organs are donated in one of two ways. When a person dies suddenly one or another of his organs, if removed quickly, can be salvaged to be given to a person who is alive but in need of such a transplant. Another is that friends and family occasionally give one of their own healthy organs to someone they love or care about. For example, this often happens in the case with kidneys.

What does the Church say about that? In this case, it is a positive answer. This development in modern medical science is to be commended and the donors, especially those making a gift from their own body, should be praised for their extraordinary generosity and concern for others. In all of these cases, the intention is not to deform the human body but to stretch its possible accomplishments to a greater extent. Such cases are almost always examples of heroism of generous friends and relatives.

What does the Church say about that? May God bless those who make this possible.

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On June 30th, the New York Times reported that federal investigators stated that the owner of Massey Energy, which is also the owner of the West Virginia mine where 29 men were killed in an explosion last year, misled government inspectors by keeping accounts of hazardous conditions out of social record books where inspectors would see them. The owners kept a dual accounting system regarding safety problems and efforts to fix them were recorded in an internal set of books out of sight of inspectors, the official books that the law required them to keep.

Twenty-nine people are dead because of the company’s greater concern for the bottom line. Two people have been indicted. One is a foreman and the other is director of security. No Massey managers have been charged, including 18 executives who refused to be interviewed for the federal investigation, invoking their Fifth Amendment rights.

This picture shows the top of our Supreme Court building, with the engraved words, “Equal Justice Under Law.” I know that the wheels of justice grind slowly but I hope that they are still grinding.
Let’s pray that they will.

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