Find what you’re looking for
As I reflected on the explosive events of January 6, I couldn’t help but recall from Pope Francis’ newest encyclical the title of Chapter 5: “A Better Kind of Politics.”
The heavens ripped open wide the day Jesus was baptized. From that moment forward, he walked under an open heaven: meaning he walked in his fullness as one loved by the Father.
In this week’s Gospel, Jesus reminds the disciples of the commandments and then tells them that those who have a wealth of possessions will have a difficult time entering heaven.
To take the risk of letting go in a society that promotes “conspicuous consumption”, is indeed an impossible task without God’s help. And yet there’s an element of the Kingdom that pushes us to consider just that.
The moral of Jonah’s story is that God is merciful–more merciful than we are. We do wrong to try to be more just than God.
What must we do to overcome such dangerous polarization? Is there guidance that we can adopt to serve as a unifying thread for the work needed to heal rifts, restore integrity, re-center truth? That guidance is at hand in “Fratelli Tutti.”
The Ninevites gave themselves over to repentance hoping that God would turn away from his anger. God does turn away from his anger. He does not carry out his threats.
The man who longed to be a knight, a man of war, dies a man of peace, at peace with God, with himself, and with all of creation.
Although Pope Francis’ Jesuit roots are solid, in many ways his words and actions have made him the most Franciscan of popes.
Francis of Assisi is a saint many remember for his love of animals, simple lifestyle, and joyful disposition. He also called for a revolutionary change in our relationship to God, nature, and each other.
