昔日文章

John the Baptist inaugurated the public life of Jesus. He pointed Him out to others so that they may find Him.  This year, in my parish, is a time for heightened preparation for the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the founding of the parish community, coincidentally, St. John the Baptist Church in 1862. Later, in 1875, a second parish was also established serving the Czechoslovakian immigrants. It was called the Holy Rosary Church. In 1970, the two parishes were merged to become the present Holy Spirit Church. On May 26, 2013 we will officially celebrate the joyous event of Jesus’ continuous presence in the Eucharist for these 150 years. The date itself is not significant. It is merely the most convenient time as it is a long weekend in the United States.  In the United States the last Monday of May is called Memorial Day, originally set aside to remember those who died during the various wars in the history of the country: from War of Independence from the British, the Civil War that ended slavery, to the wars in this past century. But the most significant war for the parish is the battle of souls that Jesus came to rescue for the Father and all those who sacrifice themselves so that the Faith can be celebrated and passed on to the future generations.  150 years ago, in June of 1863, the then bishop dedicated the first church here in Plattsmouth, Nebraska. The territory called Nebraska was just being opened with pioneers heading west looking for a way to reach California as well as places to settle. Christianity has always been the primary religion of the early settlers of the United States, with a minority of Catholics among them. They came from a divided Europe, often times with religion as the battle lines. Many of the young men that came were from poor families looking for a future. Just like many immigrants throughout history, the hopes and dreams of finding a new beginning kept them enthused and adventurous. Along with the Catholic explorers and settlers were priests that dedicated themselves to taking care of the spiritual needs of these young men and later their families. Some of these priests would periodically visit a number of settlements miles from each other, all on horse back. They would ride their horses over open country facing tremendous challenges including avoiding the often-not-so-welcoming Native Americans (otherwise known, no longer politically correctly, as “Indians”). And this was only 150 years ago!  Because of the anniversary, I have been reading the lives of many of the priests that came from Europe and served in the parishes all these years. I also recognize the more recent pastors that preceded me, those I have known personally since I was ordained. I, indeed, stand on the shoulders of giants. Often times I ask myself whether I could have done what they did. I am not so sure that I could have.  But like John the Baptist, my role is to point out to people where Jesus is already waiting for them. In turn, they will find that they are “the beloved son” the Father loves. All of us are to be like John the Baptist, “to be diminished so that He could increase.” And the less we are of ourselves, the more we are in Christ. And the more we are in Christ, the fuller we truly become ourselves, because we are created in His image.  How are you fulfilling your role as “heralds of glad tidings” to those around you? 

Living in London is in a way rather similar to living in Hong Kong as London is just as busy and noisy. Spending a day on a farm in the countryside brings a lot of fun and joy to me.  I visited a farm in Dartmoor this summer with my uncle and aunt and it was a delightful experience. When we went into the farm, we were greeted by the smell and sound made by the sheep and lambs. We brought some feeds（飼料 - 名詞）to feed（餵飼 ﹣動詞） them. It was quite a funny feeling to have an animal eating food in your hands. Then we walked around the farm and visited some other animals such as donkeys, cows and ponies. Part of the meadow was fenced off for some beautiful deer. They graze and rest there. However, some of them kept coming to the fence to get feeds from visitors that day. A pond is found on the farm as well. Children can catch some small fish with the nets provided. There are some other forms of entertainment as well, such as different kinds of performances given by trained animals. There are mazes（迷宮）and towers for children to explore（探索）. Cafes and restaurants serving fresh meat and vegetables grown on the farm are also available.  A day on a farm enjoying the beautiful landscape（景色） and taking photos of the animals is a wonderful treat（樂事）.

In the last few weeks, we looked at what faith and hope should mean to us as Catholic Christians. Jesus showed us that our faith is an encounter with Him who is God becoming man. Our faith in Him and His Promise is the foundation for our hope of what life is really about. Pope John Paul II wrote in the opening paragraph of his encyclical “Faith and Reason”（《信仰與理性》通諭）： ….ancient history shows clearly how in different parts of the world, with their different cultures, there arises at the same time the fundamental questions which pervade human life: Who am I? Where have I come from and where am I going? Why is there evil? What is there after this life? These are the questions which we find in the sacred writings of Israel, ……..….. Confucius（孔子）and Lao-Tze（老子）, and in the preaching of …. Buddha（佛祖）; they appear in ……. writings of Plato and Aristotle. They are questions which …….. compelled the human heart. In fact, the answer given to these questions decides the direction which people seek to give to their lives.  It is this ANSWER that has influenced each culture and society so much so that when we look at establishing relationship with others, individually and collectively, we need to take into account the different philosophical foundations from which we came. Let me try to give a couple of SIMPLE differences between Christianity other religions. 1. Christianity believes that each individual person is created in the image of God, no matter the religion, race or gender. This means that each person has a dignity, a value, that is based on God Himself. This dignity cannot be taken away no matter how I feel or am being treated. Other religions do not believe that. So, depending on the particular religious conviction, each person may have a different value.  Hinduism, with its basic belief in Karma（因果）, views each person’s worth according to their status in society. Confucianism（孔學）teaches us that we should treat each other according to a set of manners（禮）because it reflects on how we have been taught and brought up. That is, it is not how you are treated that is important, but how I treat you. It is my value that has been affected. If I do not treat you as you should, I have disgraced, devalued, myself. In Islam, the person is not important at all. It is only if one submits to Allah that gives the person a right even to live. So if one is not a Muslim one has offended Allah by rejecting Him and therefore can be killed without consequence. 2. Christianity believes that Jesus died for us on the Cross for our salvation. This is because God is Love and He loves us. None of the other religions really believes in a Loving God.  Muslims are actually offended by our making God too intimate.  Buddhism believes that God is unknowable and therefore “unlovable”. Love is a passion（情慾）that should be avoided anyway.（I do not really understand how the Dalai Lama（達賴喇嘛）talks about love.） These fundamental outlooks on the human person have shaped each culture, East and West, and set them on different courses of politics, economics and societal structures. They determine the way we treat our friends, our enemies and our casual acquaintances. We will look at some of these next time.

Oscar Pistorius did not win the 400 meters in the 2012 Olympic Games. Where did he win a gold medal in a 400 meters event? In the 2012 Paralympics with the time of 46.68 seconds, and the 400 relay in 41.78, both new records. To any runner, the relay event is a much tougher race. It requires not only that each individual runs his best, but that he also has a flawless exchange of the baton.  Similarly, in the Catholic Church, the hope of our faith is not just an individual desire. Jesus gave us the Church as His Mystical Body. Take a few moments to read Eph 4: 1-6. In verse 3, St. Paul tells us that we have ONE call, “striving to preserve the UNITY of the spirit through the bond of peace.” This UNITY, he continued throughout his letters, is for us to be together in the unity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Because we are created in His image, we are to be like Him. This, God intends to achieve, for us all, through His Son’s dying on the Cross. We adore You, O Christ. Because by Your Holy Cross, You have redeemed the world. The Cross, to us Catholics, is our source of Hope. To me, it seems very strange, that non-Catholic Christians let go of the Crucifix and opt for a simple Cross to emphasize the Resurrected Christ. When we look at the Crucifix, we are reminded of the price of Love and the Promise that comes with it. This is our worth. I’d like to digress here a bit. When I work with people with depression, however temporary or long term it may be, I try to draw them back to the Cross. “Look at the Cross each day,” I tell them. “Know that you are loved, and think about what you mean to Jesus.” A person depressed looks at everything hopelessly. But the Cross gives them an anchor on hope that they do not have by themselves. That is why Christianity is so essential to struggling people, whatever the cause of hardship.  “I will never forget you, my people.” (Is. 49) So, when we study the Bible, the retelling (therefore, history) of God’s intervention into the lives of the Jewish people, we can call them the “chosen people of God.” They are chosen not because of any particular privilege or status. They are chosen because God wants to use them to be His instrument, His teaching tool, to tell the whole world of His love for us. In the New Testament, God completes His lesson – with His Son and the appointing of the Church as the New Israel. Now, there are no national or ethic boundaries. All are restored in Christ. Through Baptism, we have now become the Chosen People of God. On our part, we must run our relay with focus. We must be sure that we do not run only our leg of the relay, even if at our very best. We must also make sure to hand on the baton, the most difficult part of the race. And the Church has been doing it for 2000 years! Not always successfully, faithfully, with dedication or lovingly. Yet, in every age is the same Call, the same Vocation, because God is faithful, dedicated and loving. That is the amazing story of God. He does not abandon us even when we fail. He keeps urging us to strive on. He will not give up on us even when we give up on ourselves or others. This is why the Christian “mentality” is so different from other religions; and also different is the affect they have on the culture, which I’d like to write on next.