Pastor’s Notes

Perfectly NON-HARMING

At the University of New Mexico a few years back, a professor gave his students an opportunity to evaluate his course at the end of the semester.  One student said…”I liked the course, but I felt that the professor put too much responsibility for learning on the students.” Imagine?

How does one learn holiness?  Whose responsibility is it at the end of the day? Maybe first we must define it.  Holiness is being whole, entire, and complete; a person transparent, a person equalized between what’s on the inside and what’s on the outside. “Compassionate” is the word used in Luke’s Gospel.  As God is compassionate be compassionate.  WHY?  Because that’s the way things really are inside.  That is our truest self as God created it. Holiness belongs to the whole church not just a few. We all have a place in it.

In Hindu Sanskrit, there is a word for non-injury or non-harming.  When Mahatma Gandhi began his resistance to the British rule in India, he called his campaign the “NONHARMING TRUTH MOVEMENT.”  He believed that if he met violence with violence, the war would go on forever.  He believed that you could only see the deeper truth in people through the eyes of non-violence and compassion.  He was not interested so much in political victory, but in meeting friend or enemy … with respect, kindness and mercy. But that’s India, not the streets of Phoenix. RIGHT?

WHY NOT RETALIATE? It works in the movies.  A lot of people in the streets of our big cities and the armed forces spend a lot of time on the retaliation cycle. You insult my mother, I’m gonna hit your cousin.  I’m gonna do to your’s – what you did to mine.  And that hurt is going to make you stop doing it to me.

I’m not sure that is the way it works.  History says no.  Some Buddhists take a vow of non-harming… to treat all sentient beings with respect, love and care.  Franciscans have a soft spot for that kind of reverence too.  When we start that violent cycle inside with self-criticism, cynicism, pickiness, judgmental-ness, we turn it toward ourselves and we give it to our children.  Sometimes they act it out without really knowing why. Lent is the season of turning things around.

Join us as we walk this season of Lent as a parish community: Friday fast and abstinence from meat, generosity with the poor and lavish prayer.  Friday Stations of the Cross, the sacrament of Penance on Fridays and Saturdays, Solemn Evening Prayers at 5PM on the Sundays of Lent.  All our groups gear up with mark of Ashes on the coming Wednesday.   We will sponsor a Parish mission led by our former parishioner and recently professed Franciscan Sister, Sr. Eileen Ripsin on “The Gospel of Abundant Life ” on Friday March 13^th 7PM, Saturday March 14^th 7PM and Sunday Evening Prayer 5PM on Sunday March 15^th.  Simple meals and Lenten receptions will be provided.

A gentle week,
Fr. Michael Weldon, OFM