Religious Experience on Mount Tabor

His face began to shine and

his clothes became dazzling white. (Lk.9:29)

 Religious Experience on Mount Tabor

2^nd Sunday of Lent - February 24^th 2013

 Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18  II Philippians 3:17-4:1  Luke 9:28-36

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

Glory to you, Lord.

 About a week later, Jesus took Peter, John, and James and went up a mountain to pray. While He was praying his face began to shine and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly two men could be seen talking with Him. They were Moses and Elijah who appeared in heavenly glory. They were talking with Jesus about how He would soon fulfill God’s purpose by dying in Jerusalem.

Peter and his companions who were sound asleep awoke and saw Jesus aglow with glory and the two men who were standing with him. As Moses and Elijah were about to leave Jesus, Peter exclaimed, “Oh Master, how good it is for us to be here! Let us build three shelters here: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” (He really didn’t know what he was saying.) While he was still speaking, a cloud appeared and cast a shadow over them, and they became frightened as they entered the cloud. Then there came a voice from the cloud that said, “This is my chosen Son; listen to Him.” After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. The disciples kept quiet about all this, and told no one at that time about what they had seen.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

Second Sunday of Advent: Mt Tabor

On the first Sunday of Lent, the Devil takes Jesus to a high mountain and tempts Him. (Lk. 4:6-7) On this second Sunday of Lent, Jesus is again on a mountain called Tabor in Christian tradition. What happened there is recorded in all three synoptic gospels (Mt. 17:1-8; Mk. 9:2- 8; Lk. 9:28-36), and is testified to by three earthly witnesses (Peter, James and John), and by three heavenly witnesses (Moses, Elijah and a voice from heaven). So the Old Testament law requiring three witnesses to attest to the truth of any fact is superabundantly satisfied on Tabor by six witnesses. (Dt 19:15)

 Peter, one of the three earthly witnesses, writes in his second epistle:

I tell you my own eyes have seen his splendor and his glory. I was there on the holy mountain when He shone forth with the glory given Him by God his Father. I heard a glorious and majestic voice calling down from heaven and saying, “This is my much beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” (II Peter 1:16-18)

A religious experience

Something spectacular took place on Mt. Tabor. Tradition calls it `a transfiguration,’ in which Jesus’ worn and weary figure becomes glowing and glorious. Catholics assign a special feast-day for it: August 6, Feast of the Lord’s Transfiguration. Psychologists have their own way to characterize the event. Believers call Tabor a religious experience. That’s an experience which originates from heaven, and which makes us see things and hear voices. On lofty Tabor Peter, James and John see Jesus’ clothes become dazzling white, and they hear a voice declaring, “This is my chosen Son; listen to Him.”

A religious experience on the road to Damascus

A religious experience can happen not only on a breezy mountain-top but also down in the sweaty valley of human existence. Saul of Tarsus had a religious experience on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians there. (Acts 9:1) Suddenly a light from the sky flashed around him, and he heard a voice crying out, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” (Acts 9:4-5) That experience turned Saul of Tarsus into St. Paul, Apostle to the Gentiles.

A religious experience in a garden

St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430),a `rounder’ who fathered a son out of wedlock, had a religious experience when one day in the garden of his villa he suddenly heard a voice saying, “Take and read! Take and read!” He picked up the Scriptures which lay near at hand, and they fell open to Romans 13:13 where Paul exhorts Christians to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and forget about satisfying your bodily appetites.” That experience turned the `rounder’ into the great Bishop of Hippo in North Africa, who by his voluminous theological writings ruled the Church from the early four hundreds to the thirteenth century.

A religious experience in a dilapidated chapel

St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) had a religious experience when praying one day before an ancient crucifix in a dilapidated chapel of San Damiano. Beseeching the Lord to let him know what He wanted from him, Francis heard a voice saying, “Repair my church!” Being a literal man, he thought it was the Lord calling him to repair the rickety old chapel of San Damiano. It was, in fact, the Lord calling him to repair the Universal Church fallen into ruin because of Medieval excesses. Because of that experience, Francis fathered a huge family of brothers and sisters, who down through the centuries repaired the Church far more lovingly and effectively than the very angry Martin Luther.

The deadly expectation of nothing

Religion is rooted in religious experience with its coin of ecstasy. There is ecstasy up there on lofty Mt. Tabor: Peter is beside himself and is emoting, "Oh how good it is for us to be here!" It’s so good that he wants to dig in and stay up there forever: “Lord, let’s build three shelters up here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” (Lk 9:33)  Not only is Mt. Tabor high, Peter, James and John are also high.

 Where, if not in church on a Sunday morning, should we expect to have a religious experience making us cry out ecstatically, “Oh how good it is for us to be here”? To expect a Tabor experience at every Sunday Mass is perhaps a bit glutinous and unrealistic. But to never expect a Tabor experience in the Sunday assembly is worse yet; it’s deadly!

 Unfortunately, the expectation of nothing at Sunday Mass settles in on some (and perhaps many) parishioners. Some of them simply recede to a center down deep within themselves and pray quietly to God, as Mass is going on around them. Many young people simply grit their teeth and put up with Sunday Mass, until they can get out on their own and can say `good bye’ to Sunday Mass. Sometimes young people’s expectation of nothing is their fault; that’s the case when they lack all yen for the spiritual. Sometimes, however, it is the Church’s fault; that’s the case when in the Sunday liturgy the Word and the Bread are routinely broken poorly. 

Jung in high expectation of a Mt. Tabor

Karl Jung, the father of modern psychology and the son of a minister, relates how he was in high expectation of a Mt. Tabor experience on the day of his First Holy Communion, and how the Bread was so poorly broken as to prove deadly. He writes, 

I waited for the day with eager anticipation, and the day finally dawned. There behind the altar stood my father in his familiar robes. He read prayers from the liturgy. On the white cloth covering the altar lay large trays filled with small pieces of bread which came from the local baker whose goods were nothing to brag about. I watched my father eat a piece of the bread and then sip the wine which came from the local tavern. He then passed the cup to one of the old men.  All were stiff, solemn, and it seemed to me, uninterested. I looked on in suspense, but could not see nor guess whether anything unusual was going on inside the old men. I saw no sadness nor joy in them. Then came my turn to eat the bread which tasted flat, and to sip the wine which tasted sour. After the final prayer, all peeled out of the church with faces that were neither depressed nor illumined with joy—just faces which seemed to say, “Well, that's that!” In a minute or two the whole church was emptied!  Only gradually in the course of the following days did it dawn on me that nothing had happened. (Karl Yung Memories, Dreams, Reflections)

 

That’s a sad description of a congregation which expects nothing and receives nothing from their Sunday church-attendance, and is not disappointed at all! After the final prayer, they don’t linger on in a glow of ecstasy. They don’t cry out, "Oh, how good it is for us to be here! Let’s stay here forever.” Instead, they peel out of church as fast as they can, happy to get back into the real world.

When the sun set on the long anticipated day of his first Communion, Jung found himself exclaiming, “Oh, how bad it was for me to be there! And he promised himself, “I must never go back there again!” He kept his promise: the day of his first Communion turned out to be the day of his very last Communion. 

On moving on

If our church never has us crying out ecstatically “Oh how good it is for us to be here,” we shouldn’t just grin and bear it. We should do what we can to help it be a church which puts us up on Tabor. Then if our efforts fail we should move on and ‘shop’ for another church. We take great pain to shop for a good house or a good car or good food; we should  take as much pain (and even more) to shop for a `good church ‘ -- one that can take us up to Tabor and make us exclaim, “Oh how good it is for us to be here!”  

Conclusion

Tabor: not forever and not for itself

The Tabor high was not forever; Jesus and the Apostles eventually had to get off that lofty height and descend into the real valley of human existence. (Lk. 9:37) The Sunday high too is not forever; we have to leave Mass and descend into the sweaty valley of our weekday lives. What’s more, the great high of Tabor was not for itself; it was for the great low that awaited the apostles in the imminent death of Jesus. The Sunday high too is not for itself; it’s for all the lows which await us in the week ahead.

The New Lent

Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert for 40 days. (Lk. 4:1)

The New Lent

1^st Sunday of Lent - February 17, 2013

Deuteronomy 26:4-10         Romans 10:8-13         Luke 4:1-13

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

Glory to you, Lord.

 Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for 40 days, to be tempted by the Devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over He was hungry. The Devil said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ` Man does not live on bread alone[1].’” (Dt. 8:3)

Then the Devil took Jesus up to a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and then said to Jesus, “I will give you all this power and glory, for it was given to me, and I can give it to whomever I wish. All this will be yours, if you kneel down before me.” Jesus said to him in reply, “It is written, `You shall worship the Lord, your God, and Him alone shall you serve.’” (Dt. 6:13)

Then the Devil led Jesus to Jerusalem, set Him on the parapet of the Temple, and said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from this height, for it is written, `God will order his angels to take care of you’ and `They will hold you up so that you do not dash your foot against a stone.’” (Ps. 91, 11 f.) In reply Jesus said to the Devil, “It is also written, `You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.’” (Dt. 6:16) 

When the Devil had exhausted every kind of temptation, he departed to wait for a more opportune time.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

Lent: the Church’s yearly invitation

This past Wednesday, February 13, we liturgically left Ordinary Time and entered the Extraordinary Time of Lent. The liturgical color green for Ordinary Time is now exchanged for purple -- the centuries-old liturgical color for repentance and penance. In honor of the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert praying and fasting, the Council of Laodicea in 360 prescribed a penitential season of 40 days in preparation for Easter. Lent is the Church’s yearly invitation to us to undergo a desert experience, and to take stock of our spiritual lives in preparation for Easter.

The three temptations of Jesus

Jesus’ 40 day ordeal in the desert is related in all three synoptic gospels (Mt. 4:1-11; Mk. 1:12-13; Lk. 4:1-13)[2], and it is always recounted on the first Sunday of Lent in all three liturgical cycles. Mark's account is typically very brief. It simply says that Jesus was tempted for 40 days in the desert; no mention is made that He fasted and got hungry, or that He was tempted three times. On the other hand, Matthew and Luke’s accounts (written later) are filled in with accretions that normally build up around an event, as it is told and retold before being written down. Matthew and Luke relate that Jesus was tempted by the Devil three times, and each time He rejects the Devil’s temptation by quoting Deuteronomy.

The 1^st temptation: the fast-fix?

In the first temptation Jesus, who is very hungry after fasting 40 days, is tempted by the Devil to change a stone, lying nearby on the desert ground, into bread. The other alternative is for Jesus to hike 20 miles to the nearest town for bread. Jesus responds to the Devil by quoting Deuteronomy: "It is written, 'Man doesn't live on bread alone.’” (Lk. 4:4; Dt. 8:3) A stone turned presto into bread to satisfy a man’s hunger! Is the first temptation of Jesus about man’s yen for the fast-fix?

The 2^nd temptation: power and wealth?

When the Devil’s first tempting of Jesus fails, he takes Him to a high mountain, shows Him all the kingdoms of the world, and promises to give it all to Jesus, if He would only fall down and worship him. Jesus again quotes Deuteronomy to the Devil: “It is written, `Worship the Lord your God and serve only Him!’” (Lk. 4:8; Dt. 6:13)) Is the second temptation of Jesus about man’s yen for power and wealth?

The 3^rd temptation: the spectacular?

When the second tempting of Jesus fails, the Devil takes Him to a very high peak of the Temple and challenges Him to prove He’s the Son of God by bungee-jumping from that high peak and counting on God’s angels to snatch Him up before dashing his feet  on the rocks below.  Jesus responds to the Devil by again quoting Deuteronomy:”It is written, ‘You must not put the Lord your God to the test.’” (Lk. 4: 12; Dt. 6:16) Is the third temptation of Jesus about man’s yen for the spectacular?

Scripture’s account of the three temptations of Jesus is mystical, and there are as many interpretations of them as there are mystics and preachers. In Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky, the Grand Inquisitor asks Christ, “Dost thou think that all the combined wisdom of the world could have invented anything in depth and force equal to the three temptations put to thee by the wise and mighty Spirit in the desert?”

The God of the new Lent

A good number of us still remember Lent before Vatican II. The God of the old Lent was one who had gone into a deep pout because of our sins, and He needed to be appeased with 40 days of glum and gloom. The God of the new Lent  is spelled out in a new way: He is the God of the prophet Joel who in the first reading at Mass on Ash Wednesday is described as one “who is rich in mercy, swift with forgiveness and slow with retribution.” (Joel 2:13) 

The fast of the new Lent

The fast of the old Lent concentrated on food: only one full meal a day was allowed, and all Fridays throughout the year were days of strict abstinence from meat. The fast of the new Lent is also spelled out in a new way; Vatican II greatly toned down the Lenten fast in terms of food. Now there are only two obligatory days of fasting from food: Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and only the Fridays of Lent are strict days of abstinence from meat. The new Lent concentrates on a fast imposed on us by life itself. That’s the spirit of the first reading at Mass on the Friday after Ash Wednesday.  

This is the kind of fasting I, the Lord, want from you: release those bound unjustly, untie the yoke of injustice and set free the oppressed. Share your food with the hungry, open your home to the homeless, clothe the naked, and do not turn your back on your own. (Is 58: 6-7)

A preface for the new Lent

Some of us older citizens remember how we used to impose little Lenten penances on ourselves, like not eating candy or not going to movies during the 40 days of Lent. A preface for the new Lent spells out the Lenten penance much more profoundly:

Father, all-powerful and ever-living God, we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks through Jesus Christ our Lord. Each year you give us this joyful season when we prepare to celebrate the Paschal Mystery with mind and heart renewed.

You give us a spirit of loving reverence for you, our Father, and of willing service to our neighbor. As we recall the great events that gave us new life in Christ, you bring the image of your Son to perfection within us.

 

Conclusion

The New Lent

Since Vatican II the new Lent is actually called a “joyful season.” The new Lent doesn’t rehabilitate God who has gone into a deep pout because of our sins, and who needs to be appeased with 40 days of glum and gloom The new Lent is for rehabilitating ourselves by bringing “the image of your Son to perfection within us.” The new Lent does not say “carnevale” – (“goodbye to meat”) or goodbye to movies and candy. Rather it says hello to “willing service to our neighbor.”

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[1] Here Matthew states matter a little more positively: "It is written, 'Man does not live on bread alone, but he lives also on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" (Mt. 4:4)

 

[2] John makes no mention in his gospel of Jesus’ 40 day ordeal in the desert.    

 

Fishing on the 'Right' Side of the Boat

The Miraculous Catch of Fishes by Raphael (1483 - 1520)

They let the nets down and caught such a large number of fish that their nets were about to break. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. (Lk. 5:6-7)

Fishing on the `Right’ Side of the Boat

February 10, 2013, 5^th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Isaiah 6: 1-2, 3-8     I Corinthians 15:1-11    Luke 5: 1-11

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

Glory to you, Lord.

Fishers of men

One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of Lake Gennesaret, great crowds pressed in on Him to listen to the Word of God. He saw two boats pulled up on the beach; the fishermen had left them there, and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats - the one belonging to Simon Peter - He told him to push out a short distance from the shore. Then He sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. After He had finished speaking, He said to Simon,” Push the boat out further into deep water, and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.”

They let the nets down and caught such a large number of fish that their nets were about to break. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” He was awestruck by the great catch of fish. And so were his partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid! From now on you will be fishers of men.” They beached their boats, left everything and followed Jesus. 

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

Ash Wednesday 2013

This coming Wednesday February13, 2013 will be Ash Wednesday, and we will change the liturgical clock from Ordinary Time to the Extraordinary Time of Lent in preparation for Easter March 31, 2013.

All three synoptic gospels recount how Jesus was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit, where He fasted and prayed for forty days and nights. (Mt. 4:1-11; Mk. 1:12-13; Lk. 4:1-13) In honor of the Lord’s 40 days of fasting and praying, the Council of Laodicaea (360 A.D.) prescribed a 40 day penitential season in preparation for Easter.

 It’s interesting to note that the only word that Latin has for `Lent’ is Quadragesima, and that simply means Forty. Counting back 40 penitential days from Easter (Sundays not included)  gives us Ash Wednesday as the opening day of Lent. In the course of time the Church created a simple ritual to initiate the Lenten season: the old dried-up palms from the previous Palm Sunday were burned into ashes, to be smudged on the foreheads of the faithful on Ash Wednesday, as they were admonished to “Remember man that thou are dust, and unto dust thou shall return.” Strange to say, the faithful pack the churches on Ash Wednesday to have their clean foreheads smudged with ashes, and to be reminded that they are dust and unto dust they shall return.

Poor fishing on the Sea of Galilee

Twice the gospels report poor fishing on the Sea of Galilee. In Luke’s gospel today Simon Peter complains to Jesus that he and the others were fishing all night but didn’t catch a thing. Jesus tells the apostles to push their boat out further into deep water, and lower their nets for a catch. They obey and make such a huge catch of fish that Simon Peter falls to his knees and protests his sinfulness, and Jesus responds by making the apostles “fishers of men.” (Lk. 5:1-11)

 After Jesus’ crucifixion, the apostles went back to fishing on the Sea of Galilee, and one day the fishing was poor again. The risen Lord appears and tells the apostles to “Cast your net out on the right side of the boat, and you will find fish.” (Jn. 21:5-6) They obey, and again they make a huge catch of fish. In fact, evangelist John mentions the very exact number of fish they caught: 153! (Jn. 21:11) (St. Jerome of the 4^th century tells us that ancient zoologists calculated the number of different kinds of fishes in the sea to be 153.)

A critical shortage of fishers of men

Twice the gospel says that the heart of Jesus was moved with compassion for the crowds who were “like sheep without a shepherd.” (Mt. 9: 36, Mk. 6: 34) Like Jesus the Church should be moved with compassion for the faithful, who are daily becoming “like sheep without a shepherd.” The Church has a crisis on her hands:  a critical shortage of fishers of men – a critical shortage of priests. And band-aids won’t fix the crisis! Importing priests from other countries (whose poor English the faithful can’t understand) is nothing but a band-aid which won’t fix the crisis. And `clustering parishes’ under the supervision of an over-worked pastor is also a band-aid which won’t fix the crisis.

 

Addressing the shortage innovatively and courageously

Former Archbishop of Milwaukee, Rembert Weakland OSB, addressed the priest-shortage crisis in his Archdiocese in a very innovative and courageous manner. In a pastoral letter he wrote:

If it became evident that no resident priest would be available for a parish, and that there was no prospect of getting one in the near future, I would be willing to help the community surface a qualified candidate for ordained priesthood – even if a married man - and without raising false expectations or unfounded hope for him or the community, present such a candidate to the Pastor of the Universal Church [the Pope] for light and guidance. (Catholic Herald, January 10, 1991) 

Rome’s response

Rome’s response to Weakland’s shockingly innovative and courageous suggestion was unambiguous. When he went to Rome in 1993 for his ad limina visit to the Pope, a letter was hand-delivered to him from the Congregation for Bishops, which unequivocally made it clear to Weakland that,

Among the requirements of Catholic unity there is the need to accept the tradition of the Church. According to ecclesial practice, reinforced by a Synod of Bishops, it is not possible to present married men for ordination to the priesthood.

 The same letter also unequivocally addressed Weakland’s stand on the ordination of women:

On the question of the ordination of women, your position is perceived to be in opposition to the teaching of the Church. Moreover, the charge of ‘intransigency’ – a word used by your Excellency – on the part of the Church in this matter, can seriously damage Church authority and Church government.

 

Not much has changed.

Not much has changed since 1993. On Oct. 4, 2012, the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith announced that Fr. Roy Bourgeois, a Maryknoll priest for 45 years, had been canonically `dismissed’ both from Maryknoll and the Roman Catholic priesthood. Why was Fr. Bourgeois so soundly punished with canonical dismissal from Maryknoll and the priesthood? It was because he actively endorsed the ordination of women! A priest `guilty’ of advocating the ordination of women is soundly punished by the Church with dismissal from the priesthood, but priests and bishops guilty of child sex abuse are not! 

A parting shot

Weakland delivers a parting salvo at the Church’s exclusion of women, when he writes in his book A Pilgrim in a Pilgrim Church (p. 340):

When historians, decades from now, talk about the lack of vocations to the priesthood in the Catholic Church at the end of the twentieth and beginning of the twenty-first century, or when they try to analyze the reasons for the falling off of active church participation, I hope they do not forget to include as a contributing factor this silent group that left the Church – or at least stood by the sidelines – not because of the sexual abuse by 4 percent of its priests, but because of closing the discussion on the inclusion of women at all levels. From generation to generation, women have always been the most significant bearers of the Church’s life and tradition; to lose them was tantamount to losing the future.

 

Innovative and courageous Presbyterians

The Rev. Sarah Sarchet Butter (an ordained Presbyterian minister) officiated at the funeral of her mother-in-law, Margaret Butter - a pioneer CEO, philanthropist and patron of the arts in Milwaukee.  Rev. Sarah officiated powerfully, as with great expression and obvious feeling she read from the Book of Proverbs, chapter 31, which sings the praises of a woman who is a good mother, wife, and manager of her household. At the final commendation she invited the crowd in the cemetery to draw near to the casket kissed by a setting sun on a day filled with the fine feel of fall. She pulled everyone into a heartfelt final good-bye.

See how innovative and courageous these Presbyterians are! See how they resist the temptation to have recourse to an “ecclesial practice, reinforced by a Synod of Bishops,” or recourse to “a long unbroken tradition” of ordaining only men! See how they have fixed their critical shortage of fishers of men: not only do they ordain married men, they even ordain women!

Priest - good at mystery, poetry, ecstasy

At the end of the day, the priest-shortage forces us to ask a pared-down and bare-boned question: What is a priest in the first place? When we, the priestly people, go looking for a priestly head, what should we be looking for?

 We should be looking for someone who is good at mystery - good at the `more-than-meets-the-eye’. We should be looking for someone who, because of his (or her) demeanor and words at Mass, the faithful see the `more-than-meets-the-eye,’ when he (or she) elevates the Bread on high.

We should be looking for someone who’s good at poetry - good at using words which say more than what they seem to say. Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner says, “The perfect priest is perfect poet."

We should be looking for someone who’s good at ecstasy— good at lifting up the Sunday congregation and having it cry out, like Peter, James, and John at the Transfiguration: “Oh, how good it is for us to be here! Let’s dig in and stay up here forever.”(Mt. 17:4)  Good at lifting up the Sunday congregation and having it cry out: “Oh how good it is for us to be here! We’re indeed coming back next Sunday!”

 We solve our priest-shortage crisis by obeying Jesus’ command to launch off into the deep and cast our net on the `right’ side of the boat. (Jn. 21:6) We are fishing on the `wrong’ side of the boat, when we strenuously insist that our priests be celibates or even males. We are fishing on the `right ‘side of the boat when, looking for a priestly head for the priestly people, we spend our energy looking for someone who is good at mystery, poetry and ecstasy. 

Conclusion

Crisis - `a blessed moment of opportunity’

An old oriental wisdom looks upon a crisis positively -- as `a blessed moment of opportunity.’ In the priest- crisis before us we hear the Church praying “for young men who will be generous enough to devote their lives to the priesthood.” Perhaps it would be much more profitable for the Church to look upon the priest-crisis as `a blessed moment of opportunity.’ That will send the Church launching off into the deep, and fishing on the `right’ side of boat, as the Lord commanded.