Have you ever noticed that we Americans are often involved in conversations with each other and how
unhappy we are as a nation? We are coming out of deep recession and tremendous suffering was
generated but only for 10% to 15% of the population. That other 85% could easily be more helpful
to those who are suffering but little is being done about it. We all know the litany as these problems
manifest themselves in divorce, drug addiction, acute depression, political divides, anger and bitterness,
widespread discouragement flowing especially today from joblessness, etc., etc. We all know the list.

Well, there are countless complex problems that are facing us. There are an even greater number of
complex causes and the list of solutions seems to be on the weaker side. I recently read reviews of an
excellent book by Eckhart Tolle entitled, Awakening To Your Life’s Purpose. The author writes effectively
and covers many aspects of our lives but I lifted one particular quote that I think is important for many
of us. Tolle is talking about ego needs that disrupt our lives and even when they seem to be fulfilled
create disappointment and unhappiness. Listen to this one.

“The absurd overvaluation of fame is just one of the many manifestations of egoic madness
in our world. Some famous people fall into the same error and identify with the collective
fiction, the image of people and the media have created of them, and they begin to actually see
themselves as superior to ordinary mortals. As a result, they become more and more alienated
from themselves and others, more and more unhappy, more and more dependent on their
continuing popularity. Surrounded only by people who feed their inflated self-image, they
become incapable of genuine relationships.”

Regretfully, this very destructive weakness is common and flows directly from our wounded nature and
Original Sin. Hitler had a bad case of it and 50 million people lost their lives and most of Europe was
flattened. Happily, most of us who live in inordinate appreciation of our virtues, real or imagined, do
not cause damage on that scale, but an exaggerated ego is present in enormous percentage of conflicts
within the family, in the business world and even can affect the international community.

It is very seldom that you see a humble man who is not well liked and deeply appreciated.

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Yesterday I touched on the fact that the Catholic Church is suffering through a number of serious problems. So what’s new? The Church always has problems and always will, as long as most of its members tend to be human beings.
I thought that in the midst of these difficulties it might be a good time to talk about some of the wonderful attributes of Roman Catholicism and blessings that flow from membership within this enormous community of faith. Where to start?

For me personally, one of the joys that I draw from being Catholic is to be able to place myself in a fantastic, interesting and exciting spot in the human story. The Church is now 2000 years old, and it has lived through virtually every possible human experience. Those experiences range from faithfulness and heroism through hard work and struggle on to debauchery and decay, but the Church is here. And that “here-ness” is awesome.
I am a Roman Catholic Bishop. St. Augustine was a Roman Catholic Bishop in the 4th century. We both had the same job description- shepherding a community of faithful followers of Jesus within a certain geographic area. 150 years from now, there will be a Bishop in Austin, Texas, and that person will have the same job that I have just enjoyed. Now that’s unity in time. There is also the Church’s delightful aspect of unity extended across the planet. Naturally, I have known and worked with all the Bishops in the United States, but I have also worked with bishops, clergy and lay people in Mexico, Central America, Ethopia, Ireland, Poland, and other scattered parts of the planet. The miles were many, but the unity of faith was always intact.

As I step back from those realities, I see a gift that for me is wonderfully encouraging. 2000 years ago, a carpenter stood on a hill in Galilee and told eleven battered friends that He was sending them into the whole world to tell the good news of God’s love for the whole human family. All but one of those followers gave their lives in the process of spreading the message. The message is here. Those who believe it are united, and their unity will carry into the future until the end of time.

That’s awesome!

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Running a small organization can be a difficult task but trying to lead, coordinate and keep in unity the world’s largest volunteer organization, namely the Church, is always loaded with difficulties. At the present time, the Church has more than its share of headaches. For example, a few of them are:

• The bishops of Australia called for a meeting with top Vatican officials to calm the situation in that country over the fallout from the abrupt manner in which one of their brother bishops had been removed.

• Ten percent of the priests of Austria are committed to liturgical disobedience on a number of issues.

• Tension is ongoing in Ireland. In the meantime, the Irish government has closed its embassy to the Vatican.

• In Kansas City, Missouri, the diocesan bishop has been indicted.

• In Washington, there is an argument between Archbishop Wuerl, Chair of the Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine, and a famous theologian, Sister Elizabeth Johnson, over who communicated with whom and when regarding the blistering criticism that the committee delivered against her book.

The common thread running through most of this tension is the very widespread view that Vatican officials continue to rollback one aspect or another of the Second Vatican Council. That means that the hope and confidence that was so evident in the Church in the 1960’s and 1970’s is gradually being quashed.

All in all, tension and conflict continues to ripple through the Church and a great deal more work will have to be done in order to return the Church to a relative state of peace and calmness.

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