Category Archives: Commentaries

When Students Become Teachers: LGBT students, Catholic University, and the cost of discipleship

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LGBT students at the Catholic University of America (CUA), one of my alma maters, continue to struggle for even simple recognition of their organized group to foster greater awareness and understanding on campus.  This brief film documents that struggle of CUAllies, the unofficial “gay-straight alliance.”  We should all be proud of efforts like this — efforts in which young Catholic Christians stand in respectful opposition to institutional practices that fall short of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.

At about 5 minutes in can be seen several members from Dignity/Washington (including me) who joined in a prayerful vigil last spring in support of these efforts.

“Fundamentalism is always a falsification of religion.”

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On the flight to Lebanon for his current pastoral visit to that troubled part of the world, Benedict XVI answered journalists’ questions.  He was asked:

“Many Catholics are expressing concern about increasing forms of fundamentalism in various parts of the world and about attacks that claim large numbers of Christians as victims. In this difficult and often violent context, how can the Church respond to the imperative of dialogue with Islam, on which you have often insisted?”

Benedict replied:

“Fundamentalism is always a falsification of religion. It goes against the essence of religion, which seeks to reconcile and to create God’s peace throughout the world. … The essential message of religion must be against violence – which is a falsification of that message, like fundamentalism – and it must educate, illuminate and purify consciences so as to make them capable of dialogue, reconciliation and peace”.

I couldn’t agree more!  Fundamentalism — including so-called Christian Fundamentalism and its many iterations here in the United States — falsifies the truths of Christianity and the Gospel of Jesus.  It picks and chooses bits and pieces that serve the narrow purpose of its proponents, usually based in some ideological starting point. In context, such starting points can be understood correctly. But out of context and not seen as part of a larger and unified whole, they can undermine the Truths of the religion they purport to uphold.  As a falsification of religion, fundamentalism is not merely the absence of faithful religious expression; it is its antithesis.

Even within Catholicism we have our “Catholic Fundamentalists” who fail to see the full breadth and depth of our Catholic Christian tradition, choosing instead to limit the power of the Gospel by boundaries of their own making. When the Sacraments are used as tools to exclude rather than heal; when the Scriptures are presented as support for one partisan perspective over another; and when the rules and regulations of human institutions become more important than the mission they are meant to serve … when these things happen, fundamentalism and false religion are present.

MD Del. Emmett Burns Gets a Civics Lesson: Married Gays “won’t magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster”

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“I am requesting that you take the necessary action, as a National Football Franchise Owner, to inhibit such expressions from your employee and that he be ordered to cease and desist from such injurious actions.”

And just what “expressions” and “injurious actions” is Maryland Delegate Emmett Burns (who is, embarrassingly, a Democrat) referring to? It’s simply the public support that Baltimore Ravens player Brendon Ayanbedejo has expressed for marriage equality — the right of same-sex couples to be civilly married. In a letter to the Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti (see below), the delegate from Baltimore County seems to need a basic civics lesson.  Does he not understand the meaning of free speech in an open, democratic society?  Does he not get that people have the right to express their views freely, publicly, openly — without fear of reprisal from either government or employer?  How do such individuals who lack a basic understand of what Democracy is get elected to public office?

Thankfully, a fellow-NFL player responded to Del. Burns in a way that he probably can understand.  While extremely thoughtful, reasonable, and articulate in an NPR interview on the topic, Minnesota Vikings player Chris Kluwe leaves no doubts in his written response supporting Ayanbedejo and reminding Del. Burns of some basic points of history and American Constitutional democracy.  The full letter (and reprinted below) is definitely worth a read — bitingly sarcastic, reasoned, and hilarious all at the same time —  but his final post script sums up pretty well where he’s coming from:

P.S. I’ve also been vocal as hell about the issue of gay marriage so you can take your “I know of no other NFL player who has done what Mr. Ayanbadejo is doing” and shove it in your close-minded, totally lacking in empathy piehole and choke on it. Asshole.

Now I’d just like a theologian to craft a letter like Kluwe’s to Archbishop Timothy Dolan! 🙂

Letter from MD Delegate Emmet C. Burns:

Letter from Vikings punter Chris Kluwe to Delegate Burns:

Dear Emmett C. Burns Jr.,

I find it inconceivable that you are an elected official of Maryland’s state government. Your vitriolic hatred and bigotry make me ashamed and disgusted to think that you are in any way responsible for shaping policy at any level. The views you espouse neglect to consider several fundamental key points, which I will outline in great detail (you may want to hire an intern to help you with the longer words):

1. As I suspect you have not read the Constitution, I would like to remind you that the very first, the VERY FIRST Amendment in this founding document deals with the freedom of speech, particularly the abridgment of said freedom. By using your position as an elected official (when referring to your constituents so as to implicitly threaten the Ravens organization) to state that the Ravens should “inhibit such expressions from your employees,” more specifically Brendon Ayanbadejo, not only are you clearly violating the First Amendment, you also come across as a narcissistic fromunda stain. What on earth would possess you to be so mind-boggingly stupid? It baffles me that a man such as yourself, a man who relies on that same First Amendment to pursue your own religious studies without fear of persecution from the state, could somehow justify stifling another person’s right to speech. To call that hypocritical would be to do a disservice to the word. Mindfucking obscenely hypocritical starts to approach it a little bit.

2. “Many of your fans are opposed to such a view and feel it has no place in a sport that is strictly for pride, entertainment, and excitement.” Holy fucking shitballs. Did you seriously just say that, as someone who’s “deeply involved in government task forces on the legacy of slavery in Maryland”? Have you not heard of Kenny Washington? Jackie Robinson? As recently as 1962 the NFL still had segregation, which was only done away with by brave athletes and coaches daring to speak their mind and do the right thing, and you’re going to say that political views have “no place in a sport”? I can’t even begin to fathom the cognitive dissonance that must be coursing through your rapidly addled mind right now; the mental gymnastics your brain has to tortuously contort itself through to make such a preposterous statement are surely worthy of an Olympic gold medal (the Russian judge gives you a 10 for “beautiful oppressionism”).

3. This is more a personal quibble of mine, but why do you hate freedom? Why do you hate the fact that other people want a chance to live their lives and be happy, even though they may believe in something different than you, or act different than you? How does gay marriage, in any way shape or form, affect your life? If gay marriage becomes legal, are you worried that all of a sudden you’ll start thinking about penis? “Oh shit. Gay marriage just passed. Gotta get me some of that hot dong action!” Will all of your friends suddenly turn gay and refuse to come to your Sunday Ticket grill-outs? (Unlikely, since gay people enjoy watching football too.)

I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won’t come into your house and steal your children. They won’t magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster. They won’t even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of our population—rights like Social Security benefits, child care tax credits, Family and Medical Leave to take care of loved ones, and COBRA healthcare for spouses and children. You know what having these rights will make gays? Full-fledged American citizens just like everyone else, with the freedom to pursue happiness and all that entails. Do the civil-rights struggles of the past 200 years mean absolutely nothing to you?

In closing, I would like to say that I hope this letter, in some small way, causes you to reflect upon the magnitude of the colossal foot in mouth clusterfuck you so brazenly unleashed on a man whose only crime was speaking out for something he believed in. Best of luck in the next election; I’m fairly certain you might need it.

Sincerely,
Chris Kluwe

P.S. I’ve also been vocal as hell about the issue of gay marriage so you can take your “I know of no other NFL player who has done what Mr. Ayanbadejo is doing” and shove it in your close-minded, totally lacking in empathy piehole and choke on it. Asshole.

Always Our Children — 15 Years Ago Today

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Fifteen years ago today the Catholic Bishops of the United States had one of their brighter moments in recent history.  On September 10, 1997, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (now the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB) published Always Our Children, A Pastoral Message to Parents of Homosexual Children and Suggestions for Pastoral Ministers (and available from the USCCB bookstore here).

As the title indicates, this document was addressed not to gays and lesbians directly, but rather to the parents of “homosexual children” and to pastoral ministers.  Nonetheless, it marked a significant milestone in presenting a more positive understanding of God’s gay children, standing squarely on the side of respect for the full human dignity of gay and lesbian people. It even addressed the issue of persons living with HIV/AIDS, stating unequivocally (as the times demanded), “…we reject the idea that HIV/AIDS is a direct punishment from God.”

Sadly, the intervening years since this publication have not seen the hoped-for progress that LGBT Catholics continue to pray for.  May the recognition of this important anniversary reinvigorate our prayers that one day soon, leaders of our Church may — like the man whose ears were opened in the Gospel story from yesterday’s liturgy — be able to hear the stories of their LGBT brothers and sisters and learn from the loving and faith-filled experiences of our lives how the Living God is alive and well, doing wondrous deeds even today.

The Right, the Left, and Bible as “alternative history”

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I don’t think I ever knew the origins for “right” and “left” in terms of politics, but it’s interesting how the original meanings of some terms give insight into current usage!

Also, what fundamentalist preacher would describe the Bible as “alternative history from the side of the enslaved, the dominated, the oppressed, and the poor…”???

Why I Will Vote for Obama: Appointments to the Federal Bench are Every President’s Lasting Legacy

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All the news these days centers on the Republican Convention in Tampa and the storm battering the Gulf coast. In the midst of that, let’s not forget stories like this:  Texas redistricting discriminates against minorities, federal court says.  The unanimous decision — handed down by three judges appointed by George W. Bush and one appointed by President Obama — is clear and direct:  the congressional redistricting plan developed by the GOP leaders of Texas is discriminatory and cannot stand.

We all have good reasons (hopefully!) for making the choices we do at the ballot box. The President of the US has many powers and influences our country in countless ways. But long after any president forwards his mail from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, one of those presidential powers stands alone in significance:  it’s his (her?) prerogative of nominating judges to the Federal Courts. Certainly the bench of the US Supreme Court is paramount there.  But, as the story above reminds us, federal judges at all levels play a critically important role in implementing the laws of our country and ensuring that America — as the inscription over the Supreme Court building  says — is a place where there is Equal Justice Under Law.

There’s no doubt that the next president will appoint at least one new justice to the Supreme Court, with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg turning 80 next March (2013).  Not far behind are Justices Antonin Scalia and Anthony Kennedy, both of whom are over 76 yrs.  The next Court will have an enormous impact on the lives of LGBT people for years, perhaps decades, to come as it rules eventually on the cases that have challenged the federal “Defense of Marriage Act” (DOMA). This decision will proclaim to the world whether LGBT Americans truly do enjoy the full blessings of liberty enshrined in our Constitution, or whether we will continue to live in a country where “some are more equal than others.” 

This fact alone — the president’s right of nominating justices to the US Supreme Court — is sufficient for for me to support President Obama in his bid for re-election.  What’s your reason for your choice this election year?

Not the Republican Party of Yesteryear

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Most of us who are “of a certain age” know that the Republican Party of 2012 is very different than the one we saw in our formative years during the 60’s, 70’s and early 80’s.  Although I’ve always had a sense of this — having grown up in Massachusetts where African American Ed Brooks, a Republican, was one of our Senators — but I probably couldn’t name the specifics behind this change.  This article in today’s Washington Post, GOP platform through the years shows party’s shift from moderate to conservative, helps fill in those blanks.

The full story is worth reading, but the graphic puts in in visual perspective.

 

Silence, Not Pushing, and the Stillness of God

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Silence is the necessary space around things that allows them to develop and flourish without my pushing. God takes it from there, and there is not much point in comparing who is better, right, higher or lower, or supposedly saved.

(from Silence, by Richard Rohr)

One of my many Achilles’ heels is the tendency to push, to poke, to analyze, to discuss, to pull-apart a situation until there’s nothing left. Today I pray for the gift of allowing this dimension of Silence to surround all my work, my relationships, and my encounters with others.

As Fr. Rohr says, let us listen to Stillness, the language  of God.

Red Rock Canyon, Nevada

My Agrarian Roots

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“Georgic,” today’s Merriam-Webster Word of the Day, is the root of my surname. Those who know me well would probably see humor in this, especially since I have never lived on a farm, have never been known for a particularly green thumb, and consider successfully growing jalapeño peppers and basil on the roof deck to be a major agricultural achievement.

Nonetheless, there must be something deep inside me that longs for connection with those earthy roots. I remember fondly stories of my grandmother growing up on a farm in Ireland. Along with her, some of the people closest to me in life have been great gardeners.  This includes, oddly enough, every guy I’d put in the category of partner  / boyfriend / significant love interest.

Through the latter I’ve had the chance to get my hands dirtier than I would naturally tend to do. There is something very primal and satisfying about digging in the dirt, about watching a seed planted in the darkness and silence of the earth emerge, in time, into the the light of day.

The earth’s cycles are the cycles of our souls: Life, Death, Rebirth to New Life.