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15 January 2018 Monthly Year 2
Toward a Fully Chinese and Fully Catholic Church
The Spiritual Wounds of Sexual .1 o Abuse
Aids for Discerning Deceptive Speech
Politics and Neighbors
OLUME 2, N 2, OLUME V Magnum Principium and the Inculturation of the Liturgy after the 2018 Council
North Korea and the Nuclear Crisis
What Becomes of Religion in a Post- Apocalyptic World?
The Bible: A Library Written by Migrants
CONTENTS 0118
BEATUS POPULUS, CUIUS DOMINUS DEUS EIUS
Copyright, 2017, Union of Catholic Asian Editor-in-chief News ANTONIO SPADARO SJ
All rights reserved. Except for any fair Editorial Board dealing permitted under the Hong Kong Antonio Spadaro SJ – Director Copyright Ordinance, no part of this Giancarlo Pani SJ – Vice-Director publication may be reproduced by any Domenico Ronchitelli SJ – Senior Editor means without prior permission. Inquiries Giovanni Cucci SJ, Diego Fares SJ, should be made to the publisher. Francesco Occhetta SJ, Giovanni Sale SJ
Title: La Civiltà Cattolica, English Edition Emeritus editor Virgilio Fantuzzi SJ, ISSN: 2207-2446 Giandomenico Mucci SJ, GianPaolo Salvini SJ ISBN: 978-1-925612-33-2 (paperback) Contributing Editor 978-1-925612-34-9 (ebook) Luke Hansen SJ 978-1-925612-35-6 (kindle) Published by Union of Catholic Asian News P.O. Box 80488, Cheung Sha Wan, Kowloon, Hong Kong Phone: +852 2727 2018 Fax: +852 2772 7656 www.ucanews.com Publishers: Michael Kelly SJ and Robert Barber Production Manager: Rangsan Panpairee Grithanai Napasrapiwong CONTENTS 0118
15 January 2018 Monthly Year 2
1 Toward a Fully Chinese and Fully Catholic Church The path indicated by Benedict XVI and Francis Federico Lombardi, SJ
16 The Spiritual Wounds of Sexual Abuse Hans Zollner, SJ
27 The Simple and Truthful Language of Jesus Aids for discerning deceptive speech Diego Fares, SJ
41 Politics and Neighbors Where integration takes root Francesco Occhetta, SJ
49 Magnum Principium, and the Inculturation of the Liturgy after the Council Cesare Giraudo, SJ
63 North Korea and the Nuclear Crisis Giovanni Sale, SJ
79 What Becomes of Religion in a Post-Apocalyptic World? Marc Rastoin, SJ
85 The Bible: A Library Written by Migrants Dominik Markl, SJ ABSTRACTS
ARTICLE 1 TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH
Federico Lombardi, SJ
This article outlines Pope Francis’ most prominent messages from a Chinese perspective, namely, those that speak of solidarity, environmental responsibility, peace and mercy. On the 10th anniversary of the Letter of Benedict XVI to the Catholics in China, the article highlights its importance and relevance. The resumption of dialogue between the Holy See and the authorities of the People’s Republic of China has the sole purpose of putting the Chinese Catholic Church in the best condition to carry out its mission of evangelization for the sake of its people so that it can be fully Chinese and fully Catholic. The author is the president of the Joseph Ratzinger-Benedict XVI Vatican Foundation.
ARTICLE 16 THE SPIRITUAL WOUNDS OF SEXUAL ABUSE
Hans Zollner, SJ
In addition to the deep wounds inflicted on the body and the psyche of victims of sexual abuse, these people suffer a spiritual trauma. Abuse committed by a priest or a religious who represents God obscures the very image of God in the victim. This is something that happens in more or less the same form in all religious groups, but in the Catholic Church it has particular connotations. Any attempt to silence the facts can be traumatic, as can finding a Church unwilling to listen to the victim. For many the possibility of believing or trusting in God is compromised or even completely broken. The author is a professor of Psychology and the president of the Centre for Child Protection at the Pontifical Gregorian University. ABSTRACTS
ARTICLE 27 THE SIMPLE AND TRUTHFUL LANGUAGE OF JESUS Aids for discerning deceptive speech
Diego Fares, SJ
Last summer, commenting on the Parable of the Sower during a Sunday Angelus, Pope Francis proposed a brief reflection on the simple language employed by Jesus that goes straight to the heart. This gives us the opportunity to reflect on how to discern whether particular discourse comes from the good spirit and moves us to Jesus, or if it is animated by the evil spirit, even when the person speaking claims to be telling the truth. This is a risk that we may encounter when some in the media use deceptive speech and simplistic language to attack the pope and the Church. In order to learn such discernment we can turn for help to the spiritual experience of St. Peter Faber.
FOCUS 41 POLITICS AND NEIGHBORS Where integration takes root
Francesco Occhetta, SJ
“Neighbors and their needs” has returned to being a subject of public reflection. What remains in politics of the golden rule to treat others as you would like others to treat you? The neighbor is perceived as a danger, and meeting a stranger has become a kind of threat. But politicians are called to recognize the dimension of proximity that changes our perspective on what is far away and different. On the eve of the 70th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights (1948), which affirmed the dignity of our neighbors, those honoring it are the politicians who know the stories and names of the people, build communities and promote social cohesion. ABSTRACTS
ARTICLE 49 MAGNUM PRINCIPIUM AND THE INCULTURATION OF THE LITURGY AFTER THE COUNCIL
Cesare Giraudo, SJ
Pope Francis cares about the relations between the Apostolic See and the episcopal conferences. With the motu proprio Magnum Principium on the particularly delicate and closely watched matter of translating liturgical books, he has returned to the conferences their own “right and task.” In doing so, the pope had to align canon 838 and other documents with the Conciliar legislation. Benefitting from this new measure will surely be liturgical inculturation that is now destined to bring new vitality to the heritage of the Church in prayer. The author is an emeritus lecturer in Liturgy and Theology at the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome and an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of Theology.
FOCUS 63 NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
Giovanni Sale, SJ
For months now, citizens throughout the world have been living in fear of a possible nuclear conflict. This fear has been amplified both by the media and the continuing threats of an imminent war launched by the two protagonists, namely the president of the United States, Donald Trump, and the supreme leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un. Both leaders have shown their strength in recent times: North Korea has increased the number of missile launches and the power of its nuclear tests; the United States has sent several naval and air units to the Pacific. The major risk at this point is that a nuclear conflict could be triggered by an erroneous assessment of the facts or an accident due to human error. ABSTRACTS
ARTICLE 79 WHAT BECOMES OF RELIGION IN A POST- APOCALYPTIC WORLD?
Marc Rastoin, SJ
In contemporary culture, we witness a notable development of the post- apocalyptic theme in works of literature and cinema that describe a humanity seeking to survive in a world destroyed by a catastrophe. More than just fantasizing about the future, these authors have placed their finger on the pulse of our time. What becomes of religion in these works? Is the Church still present? The discussion of this theme reveals the widespread fear of fundamentalism and irrationalism and, via negativa, shows our mission. The author is a Biblical scholar and teaches Sacred Scripture at the Centre Sèvres in Paris.
ARTICLE 85 THE BIBLE: A LIBRARY WRITTEN BY MIGRANTS
Dominik Markl, SJ
Public opinion and governments are confronted with the drama and cyclically recurring challenge of mass migration. But a look at the history of humanity shows that we are all migrants. It is no accident that the Bible is an extended library of migrant stories written for a migrant people, the people of God, from Adam to Jesus and the apostles. The way we travel and are guests, the way we welcome other migrants, shows our attitude before humanity and our mysterious origins and destination. The author is a professor of Exegesis of the Old Testament at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. Annual Digital Subscription $79
Annual Print Subscription Asia: $160* In Edition 0118: Australia/NZ/Oceania: $200* USA/UK/Ireland/ • Toward a Fully Chinese and Fully Catholic Church Europe: $220* Rest of the world: $260* • The Spiritual Wounds of Sexual Abuse Print + Digital Bundle • Aids for discerning deceptive Asia: $200* speech Australia/NZ/Oceania: $240* USA/UK/Ireland/ • Politics and Neighbors Europe: $260* • Magnum Principium and the Rest of the world: $280* Inculturation of the Liturgy after the Council Prices in US Dollars • North Korea and the Nuclear Crisis * Rates include postage & handling
• What Becomes of Religion in a Post-Apocalyptic World? Educational and bulk rates are available, please email [email protected] • The Bible: A Library Written by Migrants Toward a Fully Chinese and Fully Catholic Church The path indicated by Benedict XVI and Francis
Federico Lombardi, SJ
The Chinese people and its great country occupy an important place in the heart of Pope Francis, whose vision is open to the world. He has in fact spoken about China many times in tones of cordial admiration and real trust. It is enough to remember his words when flying over China while going 1 to and from Korea,1 and above all in the interview he granted 2 to Francesco Sisci of the Asia Times. There is no doubt that he would be delighted to finally set foot on Chinese soil. It is also true that the interest of Francis is shared in China, not only by Catholics, but by all those who look beyond the frontiers of the country, desiring an openness to the world and an ever more intense exchange with other peoples and cultures. Such people have understood that they have in Rome an interlocutor – one may well say a friend – on whom they can count for understanding in their effort to insert themselves into the family of peoples. In the eyes of the Chinese, Francis has some advantages with respect to his predecessors: he is not European and therefore does not belong to that continent of colonizing peoples who made China feel their military power and the weight of their economic interests, especially in the 19th and 20th centuries; he was not even directly involved in the historical confrontation with the communist ideology and the regimes it inspired; he comes from another continent, is the child of emigrants, and is
1.During his flight on the trip to Korea, on August 14, 2014, the pope sent a telegram to Chinese President Xi Jingping. 2.Cf. the January 28 interview with F. Sisci, “Pope Francis urges world not to fear China’s rise: AT exclusive,” published online in http://www.atimes.com/at- exclusive-pope-francis-urges-world-not-to-fear-chinas-rise/, February 2, 2016. FEDERICO LOMBARDI, SJ
profoundly rooted in a popular reality to which he continually makes reference. He is a member of a religious family that in its history has drawn near to China with respect and an ability for fruitful dialogue that has been seen for centuries as the high point of the relationship between the great Asian country and the West. We remember here Matteo Ricci, Adam Schall, Ferdinand Verbiest, Giuseppe Castiglione…, all persons the Chinese hold in great respect for their contribution to the cultural history of China: they were Jesuits who had their own Chinese names by which they are remembered and studied even now. Obviously, Francis is the leader of a religious community that has followers in China, people who are therefore especially near to his heart. It seems, however, that the Chinese understand 2 that not only his followers, but all the members of their people are dear to him, because he looks with respect and friendship toward all the peoples of the world, without reserve or exception. When Francis speaks with conviction of the necessity of building peace among peoples, the Chinese feel the echo of the ideal of “harmony” that is familiar3 to them and, given that he can claim no military or economic power, they have no reason to doubt his sincerity. As we have learned in the last four years, Francis does not simply propose words but engages himself in living the “culture of encounter.” It is the ideal of his way of relating with others, revealing himself and engaging in the dialogue on a respectful and equal level, placing in plain view his willingness to listen and to receive what the other brings to the table, but above all what he is, so as to begin a journey that will carry both interlocutors one step forward, and then another, toward a common destination that was foreseen before but that was not yet fully defined. The intensity of Francis’ desire for encounter with the Chinese people emerges in its fullness in the already mentioned interview for the Asia Times, where positive terms abound, expressing a sincere admiration (“great culture,” “inexhaustible
3.On the intercultural value of the subject of harmony, in particular on a theological level, cf. also B. Vermander, “The Birth of a Pan-Asian Theology: Under the sign of harmony,” in Civ. Catt. English ed. Sept. 2017. TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH
wisdom,” “store of wisdom and history”) and a firm trust (“I think the Chinese people is progressing, and this is its greatness”). Maybe too much? But the positive perspective, the “empathy” – another term much loved by Francis – becomes the precise challenge that the interlocutor needs in order to make that step forward to go beyond the limits which up until then restricted and blocked him. With regard to the Chinese, Francis undoubtedly feels empathy that is able to put in motion a dynamic that leads, encounter after encounter, always further ahead. This is, for many Chinese, reciprocal.
Messages for China on its journey Among the most specific subjects of the teaching and action of Francis that inspire positive interest in China, we may first 3 indicate his insistence on solidarity. This translates into a call for the cohesion of the people and a refusal to support division, guarding against all that creates it. The attention to the poor and the denouncing of all forms of exploitation and of that which creates imbalances and social tensions are subjects that are in tune with the context of very rapid economic growth and massive urbanization and the social tensions they bring: the extension of urban boundaries and the phenomena of marginalization challenge a society that was previously very poor but without massive imbalances. As is well-known, the government has become aware of the seriousness in recent years of the phenomenon of corruption and the risk that this represents for the political and social stability of the country. The frequent calls for strict condemnation of every form of corruption by Pope Francis have not therefore passed unobserved. The encyclical Laudato Si’ on the care of the “common home” interests the whole globe and it is well-known that the incredible development of the most populous country on earth constitutes one of the principal components of the impact of human activity on planetary imbalances. The consumption of natural resources, energy balance, climate change, urbanization, different forms of pollution, etc., are questions of the greatest urgency for the Chinese people and government. The authoritative voice of the pope and his calls for universal responsibility have been felt even in Asia. FEDERICO LOMBARDI, SJ
The awareness of the importance of conserving, or of reestablishing a livable and lasting integral harmony between human activity and the environment, respecting the cycles and times of nature, is profoundly inscribed in Chinese culture. We may here call to mind the fruitful dialogue established between the most qualified representatives of that culture and Western science through Matteo Ricci and his Jesuit successors. In a certain sense, one may say that the vision of the great questions of the journey of present-day humanity presented by Laudato Si’ offers to China and to the Chinese dream the framework for the continuation of that wide-ranging scientific, cultural and moral dialogue with the rest of the world that was put in place over centuries by the religious confreres of Francis. 4 The opening of China to the world, which characterizes its current international politics, finds an important point of reference in Francis’ work for peace. In the interview for Asia Times, Pope Francis efficaciously expressed these concepts: “The Western world, the Asian world and China all have the capacity for maintaining the balance of peace and the force to do it. [...] The true balance of peace is obtained through dialogue. Dialogue does not mean ending up with a compromise: half the cake for you and the other half for me. That is what happened at Yalta, and we have seen the results. No, dialogue means: we walk together. And the cake remains whole, traveling together. The cake belongs to everyone: it is humanity, it is culture, and these cannot be cut in pieces. Everyone is able to influence the common good of all.”4 Contemporary experts on China agree in describing the spiritual situation of the country as ambivalent. On the one hand, they emphasize the very grave consequences of a long period of systematic diffusion of an atheist and anti-religious ideology and the destruction of the traditional social and moral values, to which is added a push toward economic growth that spreads a mentality no less materialistic than the preceding one. Even the traditional family fabric and demographic balance were profoundly disturbed and shaken by the violent one-child
4.Cf. F. Sisci, “Pope Francis urges world not to fear China’s rise,” ibid. TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH
policy. As a result many speak of a frightening sense of spiritual emptiness and of a moral crisis that burdens the innumerable population of China today. On the other hand, precisely in this desert, many people – among whom are many representatives of the young generations – feel a profound desire for credible responses to their interior thirst. For this reason, one hears also of a “rebirth of the religious” that is manifested in interest in the diverse religious realities present in the country, among which Christianity exercises a particular attraction. And even the political authorities are aware that the religious dimension should be recognized as a permanent component of the reality of life and as an important contribution to the harmony and to the cohesion of society.5 Here is grafted the more specifically religious and spiritual 5 dimension of the human and Christian discourse that the Church, today represented by Pope Francis, addresses to China. As we know, its nucleus is the announcement of the mercy of God for all. This becomes the source of reconciliation for the wounds of the past and trust in the future. Surprisingly, in the above-mentioned interview, the pope does not limit the talk of mercy to Catholics, but he extends it to the entire Chinese population, inviting it to be reconciled with its history, with its lights and its shadows, including errors themselves. “It is healthy for a people to be merciful toward itself,” Francis says. “When a people assumes the responsibility for its own journey, accepting it for what it has been, this permits its own historical and cultural richness to emerge, even in difficult moments,” and this must happen “in dialogue with the contemporary world” on the basis of its own culture and not giving up in the face of foreign cultural colonization. The pope therefore suggests a “healthy realism” that is reconciled with reality and works “to improve reality and change its direction,” living a creative tension between the present problem and past ancient richness, “a tension that brings fruitfulness when it looks to the future.” And the pope
5.On these subjects cf. also J. Y. Guo Jiang, “Catholicism in 21st Century China,” https://laciviltacattolica.com/may-2017/catholicism-in-21st-century- china/. FEDERICO LOMBARDI, SJ
confidently concludes: “I hold that the greatness of China today is in looking to the future from a present sustained by the memory of its cultural past.”6
Messages for the Chinese Church on its journey Now we come to the messages more directly addressed to believers. The expression of the comprehension and solidarity of the universal Church with the difficulties and limitations or pressures that the Chinese Catholic communities have met in the past and continue to meet is in a certain sense a necessary premise to every speech about and to the Church in China, because it is precisely through these events that it has arrived at the present situation. This has always been made clear by the 6 popes, and it was again expressed with intensity and affection by Benedict XVI at the beginning of his important Letter. This year is its 10th anniversary, and Pope Francis has defined it as “fundamental, relevant today and to be read again.”7 Pope Benedict spoke in very powerful words of the experience of persecution, “of the serious difficulties, misunderstandings and hostilities” (No. 3) and of the suffering of Christians because of their religious faith. In the case of China, one does well to remember that the long period of persecution during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) united all Catholics – not just those who were not adhering to the Patriotic Association, but even those who were members – and, beyond them, all believers of every religious faith. As is well-known, Pope Francis often calls the attention of the Church to and requests its spiritual solidarity with persecuted Christians, widening its gaze not only to Catholics but also to those of other churches, remembering that persecution and suffering are inseparably tied to the completion of the mission of Jesus and his salvific plan. Coming to the positive indications, above all there is no doubt that the discourses of Pope Francis on mercy and reconciliation, culminating in the recent Jubilee Year (which
6.For all of these references, cf. F. Sisci, “Pope Francis urges world not to fear China’s rise,” ibid. 7.Benedict XVI, Letter to the bishops, priests, consecrated persons and the lay faithful of the Catholic Church in the People’s Republic of China, May 27, 2007. TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH in China had a vast following, with the opening of hundreds of “doors of mercy” throughout the whole country), are more than ever relevant to the Chinese Catholic community, which has experienced within itself – and continues to experience – divisions and tensions resulting from the persecutions and pressures undergone and the different ways used to respond and to adapt to them. In all this, Francis is in clear continuity with his predecessor, whose Letter placed the unity of the Church as a priority and indicated the path to realize it in communion, charity and openness to concrete and reciprocal attitudes of mercy and reconciliation at the various levels of the Church, among bishops, priests and the faithful.8 Since then, one may say the situation as a whole has improved, even if it is necessary to distinguish the places where 7 full communion has arrived from those where the tensions have lessened, and still others where they are still very strong. Tensions and polemics, as much as they are understandable in the light of the past, are one of the principal obstacles on the way to witnessing, credibility and the apostolic impulse of the Catholic community. Therefore, they should be courageously overcome. The spirituality of communion is not perfected in a static situation but, through the very vitality of the Spirit who animates it, it is converted into a dynamic vision of the journey of the reconciled ecclesial community. There is a significant journey in the engagement of the lay faithful through the organisms of participation that the Church proposes on all levels. This naturally supposes a formative effort and spiritual animation aimed above all at young people, so that they feel called and enabled to assume an active place in the Church. The expectation of Chinese youth is great9 and fortunately the initiatives in this field are multiplying. The urgency of the subject of the family was already proposed in the Letter of Benedict XVI (No. 15) and, as we know, it was at the center of the recent Synod of Bishops. The apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia now offers an ample and solid basis
8.Cf. P. Seewald (ed.), Light of the World, Ignatius Press. 9.Cf. B. Vermander - C. Xie Hua, “Giovani cattolici delle città cinesi. Un esame della situazione attraverso le loro voci,” in Civ. Catt. 2015 IV 259-266. FEDERICO LOMBARDI, SJ
for the pastoral care of the family, the life and the spirituality of the Christian family. In China, the most dramatic and common family problems are those resulting from the one-child policy, with the wounds that follow upon it, or the separation of parents and children imposed by the economic and social organization of the country. The merciful vision of the painful situations, the proposal of the care of the dialogue between generations, and the tenderness of the relationships of reciprocal hospitality and dialogue between families offer a medicine of love and harmony of which there is great need in China. The Catholic Church has a formidable tradition of effective charity work. For the believer it is natural to work in the service of others. This occurs increasingly in China, including with 8 the organization of efficient social services that are registered officially and much appreciated by the authorities. We remember in particular Jinde Charities, the first non-profit organization of the Chinese Church for social services, founded in 1997 in the province of Hebei, where many Catholics live. It was approved by the government in 1998 and officially registered in 2006. Jinde performs diverse charitable activities and was noted in the emergency of the snowstorms and earthquakes of 2008, in collaboration with the civil authorities and local populations. But the examples could be multiplied. For example, the nongovernmental organization Huiling, active for 30 years, founded and animated by Sister Teresa Meng, is pointed to as a model by the authorities and specializes in the care of the mentally ill. It has opened more than 100 centers in 13 Chinese metropolitan areas and has 300 workers who assist more than 1,000 persons with disabilities and carry out numerous other services. Even in China, the Church is then a “field hospital” as the pope expects, and this greatly favors its positive reception by Chinese society.10 Concluding the considerations on the messages of Francis for the Catholic Church in China in full continuity with those of his predecessor, we wish to make it known that it may all be
10.Cf. K. S. Chiaretto Yan, Il Vangelo oltre la Grande Muraglia, Bologna, Emi, 2015, 135-137; G. Valente, “La Chiesa è un ospedale da campo. Anche in Cina,” in Vati can In side r, November 1, 2013. TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH
summarized in the renewal of evangelization. In his Letter, Benedict XVI took up again the words of John Paul II with regard to “that ‘new evangelization’ which constitutes the essential and pressing task of the Church at the end of the second millennium”11 (No. 13) and his hope that “during the third millennium a great harvest of faith will be reaped in the vast and vibrant Asian continent”12 (No. 3). The entire pontificate of Pope Francis, as is clear from the programmatic document Evangelii Gaudium (EG), is centered on the perspective of evangelization, of an announcement of the Gospel that, beginning with the person and words of Christ, becomes the force of salvation for the whole human person, in her dignity and entirety, and also for society and the human family. Such a force has to express itself in the service of the immense spiritual thirst of the Chinese people. This is the first duty and 9 the first concern of the Catholic Church, which is invited continually to ask itself if it is responding with all of its strength to this call and to the possibilities that arise. The great growth – much more rapid – of the Protestant communities must make us reflect seriously.13 The primacy attributed to evangelization in relation to other problems will favor internal reconciliation, and this will give greater vigor and credibility to evangelization.
A Church that is fully Chinese and fully Catholic The Catholic community is born, grows, works and gives its contribution in China not on the strength of an external and foreign bond, but as the fruit of the seed of the Gospel. Planted in Chinese soil and culture, the seed develops coherently with its religious “genetic identity” but produces its fruit taking nourishment and assuming the characteristics of the culture in which it is planted. We may note an analogy with what happens in many fruit-bearing plants that nourish us every day on diverse continents, and that we have considered for centuries as our precious goods even if they came to our land from distant
11.John Paul II, Apostolic exhortation Pastores Dabo Vobis, March 25, 1992, n. 70. 12.John Paul II, Discorso ai delegati della Federazione delle Conferenze Epi- scopali del Continente asiatico, Manila, January 15, 1995, n. 11, in www.vatican.va 13.Cf. K. S. Chiaretto Yan, Il Vangelo oltre la Grande Muraglia, cit., 108-110. FEDERICO LOMBARDI, SJ
countries. In short, the Catholic community in China wants and must be fully Chinese. It wants to be for China, to offer it the Gospel of Jesus without seeking anything for itself. It only wants to serve the good of individual persons and the people as a whole. But to be truly such and to bear its fruit, it must not be separated from the universal Catholic community. For it is precisely from the living union with it, with its roots of faith and the riches of its tradition and experiences, that it draws its vitality and depth of its inspiration and doctrine. Separated from the universal community, particular Churches feel they lack one of their essential dimensions. Besides, this may become more easily comprehensible to the Chinese at a time when they are aware that openness to the world and the insertion of their country in the broader community 10 of peoples are necessary for its growth in multiple directions, both economic and cultural. The fact that isolation limits and suffocates is so much truer from the spiritual and moral point of view. The universality of the Catholic Church, with its natural openness to all peoples, may contribute moral inspiration and spiritual animation to the great effort of China to dialogue with the world, precisely through the Chinese Catholic community, completely inserted into the contemporary historical dynamic of its people. And this must happen – we insist upon this point – from the inside and not from outside. In this light and perspective now the question of the contacts and the dialogue of the authority that governs the universal Catholic Church – the Holy See – with the authorities of the People’s Republic of China finds its meaning. Their finality is in fact, very simply, that of contributing to guarantee the Catholic community in China the essential conditions so that it may be itself, living and performing its service in the best way, being, that is, at the same time fully Chinese and fully Catholic,14 inserted within its people and participating in the universal community of the Church.
14.On the subject of the Chinese Catholic Church with Chinese characteristics and of the relations with the Chinese government, cf. also J. Y. Guo Jiang, “Catholicism in 21st century China”, A. Spadaro, https://laciviltacattolica. com/may-2017/catholicism-in-21st-century-china and “The Church and the Chinese Government: An interview with Fr. Joseph Shih" A. Spadaro, https:// TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH
The dialogue between the Holy See and the Chinese authorities It is useful in this regard to make a brief historical excursus. In fact the dialogue was made necessary after the events connected with the birth of the People’s Republic of China in 1949 and its breaking contact with the Holy See.15 With the establishment of the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association in 1957 and the pressures to adhere to it, a hard period of divisions began among Catholics and within the episcopate. Many bishops were ordained validly but without the approval of the pope. Keeping in mind the difficulty and the complexity of the situation, the Holy See – with great prudence and wisdom – will naturally consider such bishops illegitimate, but will not declare them schismatic or excommunicated. 11 The peak of the difficulties arrived in the chaotic period and violent excesses of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), with manifestations of true persecution for all believers: in these circumstances, all Catholics – whether adhering to the Patriotic Association or not – were united in suffering for their faith. After the death of Mao, there was a discreet tolerance toward religions, and even the Catholic Church found a certain possibility of reorganizing its life and activity with a public dimension. To sustain the life of the Catholic community John Paul II attributes to the legitimate bishops some “special faculties,” including above all the ability to autonomously ordain bishops as their own successors. In this way one comes to have a certain number of bishops who do not belong to the Patriotic Association, with their own following of the faithful and even seminarians. At the same time, there is a growing number of “illegitimate” bishops, members of the Association, who ask
laciviltacattolica.com/free-article/the-church-and-the-chinese-government- an-interview-with-fr-joseph-shih. 15.In 1946, the Holy See was able to unite officially with the Republic of China of Chiang Kai-shek in full diplomatic relations that continue even today with the Republic of China (Taiwan). On the continent, with the new reality of the Chinese People’s Republic, it was not able to establish any relationship whatsoever: in 1951 the nuncio Monsignor Riberi was declared an “enemy of the people” and forced to leave the country. FEDERICO LOMBARDI, SJ
quietly and obtain communion with the Holy Father, finding themselves in this way recognized by both parties.
The Letter of Benedict XVI intends to put a clear and decisive end to this situation, which is improperly described as the coexistence of a “clandestine Church” and a “patriotic Church” in conflict with each other. The Letter affirms without a shadow of doubt that the Catholic Church in China is only one, and in it the role of the bishops is fundamental; it revokes the “special faculties and directives” so as to allow the Church in China to reenter the context of the general canonical laws; it gives pastoral indications and guidelines for the relationships between bishops and their Eucharistic concelebrations or for the participation of 12 the faithful in Eucharistic celebrations, leaving a prudent space for the evaluation and discernment of the interested parties (cf. No. 10); and it proposes as evident and indisputable – coherently with Catholic ecclesiology – the objective of being able to constitute a united episcopal conference to which all the legitimate bishops belong, recognized by the Holy See (Nos. 7-8). Moreover, the Letter of Benedict explicitly looks for the renewal of a dialogue of the Holy See with the Chinese authorities, recognizing that in the life of the Church the fact of finding itself “clandestine” should not be considered normal (No. 8). Dialogue has to aim, above all, at resolving the open questions about the nomination of bishops (it is necessary to recognize that the mandate for ordination must come from the pope); it may also aim at facilitating the full exercise of the faith of Catholics with regard to an authentic religious liberty, and finally, the normalization of relations between the Holy See and the government of Beijing. The dialogue hoped for, after years of coldness, has been systematically taken up again in the course of the pontificate of Francis, thanks to the new climate that was created. We cannot but be happy about this and hope that it may produce positive fruits, steps forward in reciprocal understanding for the good of all. Besides, for those who look back at the situation created more than 60 years ago with the breaking off of relations, the reality today appears entirely different, and one may say with TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH
certainty that progress has been truly great: today what one may do in the ecclesiastical and pastoral life in China was unthinkable a few decades ago.
‘Healthy realism’ and the four principles of Pope Francis Without diverging here into the problems and specific contents of the dialogue,16 we think it is useful to remember those four guiding principles that Pope Francis enunciated in Evangelii Gaudium (Nos. 222-237) and suggests we hold in mind. In our opinion, these may be applied to this dialogue in a very fruitful way. Time is greater than space. We must participate in the processes of change taking place, put in place other ones, and try to guide those that we may influence positively. Few 13 realities in the world of today are characterized by a more rapid and strong dynamic than those of China. And therefore it is the right time to make contact with every possible effort and make sure that the contacts have positive results. This is true with regard both to the journey of the Chinese people more generally and to the life of the Church and relations with the authorities. Remembering the many reasons that in the course of history have caused mistrust (the Rites controversy, European colonialism…) or difficulty of understanding (the interweaving of the spiritual-moral dimension with the social-political in Confucianism, the Marxist economic- political reading of reality…), patience and farsightedness are necessary to arrive at a better understanding of each other and to make concrete steps forward in the dialogue.
16.On the dialogue underway between the Holy See and the Chinese authorities and on a possible agreement, cf. the two important articles published by Cardinal John Tong, then bishop of Hong Kong: “The communion of the Church in China with the universal Church” (July 31, 2016); “The future of Sino- Vatican dialogue from an ecclesiological point of view” (January 25, 2017). Even representatives of the so-called “clandestines” show hope and trust in the results of the contacts underway. One sees, for example, the ample interview with Bishop Julius Jia Zhiugo, who affirms: “We trust in the pope… We are not preoccupied. We know that the pope will not renounce the essential things which are part of the nature of the Church” (cf. G. Valente, “Sul dialogo Cina Vaticano ci fidiamo del Papa. E siamo tranquilli,” in Vati can In side r, February 2, 2016). FEDERICO LOMBARDI, SJ
Unity prevails over conflict. Reality should be accepted as complex and multifaceted in such a way that diversity becomes a source of shared richness and the inevitable tensions and processes of change do not degenerate into disruptive conflicts, impossible to overcome, but contribute to the dynamic of the journey forward. The religions present in China – remember that in the interest of national unity the State recognizes the existence and importance of five: Confucianism, Buddhism, Islam, Protestant Christianity and Catholic Christianity – can and must therefore be considered not just as a “problem,” a cause of division, as much as part of the solution that is active, inspiring forces in the building of national harmony. This is the perspective in which one must place the Catholic Church 14 in China today, ready to be of service and sustained by the universal Church. Realities are more important than ideas. The “healthy realism” to which the pope invites us carries with it a way of looking attentively to the actual reality that is often not adequately described by formal definitions. These in fact present the risk of being abstract or of tracing rigid borders between black and white that do not make sense of the complexity and variety of situations. Therefore, the approach of Francis insists on discernment. In the application of general principles to concrete situations one takes account of the particular circumstances and aspects so as to arrive at an overall judgment more adapted to the attitudes that must be assumed and the decisions to be made. Moreover, reality changes, sometimes profoundly, and even the situation of the Church in China has changed a lot in the course of decades, in particular within the last decade. This is very important in the search for ways that are adequate and acceptable today to favor the civil registration of ecclesial personnel, so to be able to put an end to the undesirable situation of being clandestine. The whole is greater than the part. It is necessary to cultivate a vision of the common good, from which particular situations can also derive benefit. A vision attentive to the particular situation becomes limited in the end if it loses from view the context of the whole. If there are not absolutely insurmountable TOWARD A FULLY CHINESE AND FULLY CATHOLIC CHURCH questions and difficulties in play, to solve particular problems it is right to take account of the broadest and overall good, even at the cost of some sacrifice. In a process of dialogue with a horizon so vast as that between the Holy See and the Chinese authorities, it is necessary that the parts are not sacrificed in an instrumental way to interests that are foreign to them but that, on the contrary, the vision of the whole permits them to attain from a higher point of view that common good from which all the parts derive the most effective conditions for attaining their true end. In conclusion, the fully Chinese Catholic Church in China must work with renewed intensity in the mission of evangelization in order to contribute in the most effective way to the good of the Chinese people, with its religious and moral 15 message and with its charitable and social work: this is the first and greatest priority. In this endeavor, it is accompanied and sustained by the sincere attention and sympathy of Pope Francis for the Chinese people, and by solidarity and spiritual union with the universal Catholic Church. The dialogue of the Holy See with the authorities of the People’s Republic of China aims exclusively at putting the Chinese Catholic Church in the best conditions for accomplishing such a mission, coherently with its religious nature. The Spiritual Wounds of Sexual Abuse
Hans Zollner, SJ
In a meeting with Pope Francis, a victim of sexual abuse said with profound sadness and desperation: “Jesus had his mother nearby when he faced suffering and death. But my mother, the Church, left me all alone in my time of pain.” These few words 16 express the horror of abuse, especially the sexual abuse of minors in the Church. They show how much the Church’s attitude and that of her leaders needs to change. An especially poignant, religious-spiritual factor comes into play when the perpetrator is a man of the Church. When someone is abused by a biological father, there is always someone to turn to for help, namely, God. But when a priest commits abuse, that is someone who by his very office represents God and is referred to theologically as an alter Christus, then the victim’s image of God is obscured and he or she can quickly fall into a dismally dark abyss of loneliness. Of course, this is not limited to cases where the abuser is a man of the Church but when it does involve a priest it takes on a dimension that is qualitatively different and serious, especially in those for whom faith, liturgy and a relationship with God are important realities. For many this results in a compromised or completely broken life of faith and lack of trust in God.
The victims: their perspective and their suffering Those who have been subjected to unspeakable suffering by representatives of the Church and who report the crime and wish to be heard are too frequently simply turned away or reprimanded for being troublemakers who would do better to keep their mouths shut. This can also lead to serious spiritual trauma over and above the psychological and physical trauma of abuse. Yet THE SPIRITUAL WOUNDS OF SEXUAL ABUSE the incredible burden this entails is not clear to everyone in the Church, even to those in positions of responsibility. One would presume that those whose mission it is to preach the Gospel would understand better than anyone the extent to which some events – in this case, one causing extreme trauma – can weigh upon the core of a believer’s spirituality. And yet it is surprising how rarely this is the case. This might also help to explain why some bishops and religious superiors pay greater attention to the political, legal and psychological implications of sexual abuse than the spiritual and theological aspects. So it comes as no surprise that victims often view the Church’s way of reacting to accusations of abuse as if she were an institution concerned only with herself rather than acting as “a loving mother” (significantly, Pope Francis uses these 17 very words to begin his motu proprio by which he admonishes bishops and religious superiors to assume greater responsibility for uncovering and preventing abuse).
The Church: holy and sinful The Church was founded by its Lord Jesus Christ and commissioned by him to announce the Good News: God loves us, is merciful toward us and does everything to save us, even giving us his Son who gave his life for us. For the past 2,000 years, countless people have carried out this task and dedicated their lives to making the Church a marvelous sacrament of salvation to the poor, the sick and those who are especially vulnerable. At the same time, we must acknowledge that in the Church there have always been people who have acted in a way that is diametrically opposed to what they, the Church and Jesus proclaim. It is not without reason that popes have repeatedly and firmly over the last decades asked for pardon for the sins and crimes committed by men of the Church.
The return: searching for and appealing to Christ Confronting the topic of the sexual abuse of minors by priests is inherently upsetting and agonizing. We are speaking of sex and violence, the abuse of trust, ruined lives and hypocrisy, all done within the bosom of the Church. Any attempt to bypass or marginalize these problems arises from an impulse of self- HANS ZOLLNER, SJ
preservation and a desire to protect the institution. Not only modern psychology but Jesus himself and many spiritual masters after him have warned us about the unforeseeable and tragic consequence of such avoidance: whoever refuses to confront a personal dark side will pay for it more dearly sooner or later. The film Spotlight, which expresses contempt for decades of priestly sexual abuse and its cover-up, presents this mechanism very well. We must never forget that the sexual abuse of minors by clergy happens throughout the world.1 Considering the stance of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith – the office of the Church entrusted with handling penal processes against accused priests – and despite the fact that there are places in the world where the data is incomplete, it is clear enough that 18 abuse is occurring in virtually every local Church. The frequently asserted argument that sexual violence toward minors is really only a problem in the crumbling Church of the West is patently false and misleading. It detracts from the fact that there are clearly factors in the Church’s life that are conducive to abuse or that hide or impede its discovery and punishment. Precisely by confronting this problem within a global perspective, we have a clearer perception of how the Catholic Church is a religious community spread throughout the world, infinitely multiform yet stratified, exhibiting remarkable consistency in its daily practice and an invariable set of elements wherever it is found.2 Again, it is not easy to confront openly the evil of sexual abuse and the suffering it causes. This especially holds true when one is not directly responsible for dealing with it. But throughout the world, priests and bishops are held responsible for the good or evil that happens in the Church and for what their brother priests and bishops do. And whatever happens in their daily life, priests are considered representatives of Christ and of his Church, and in fact they effectively are so, according to what is theologically said
1.Cf. B. Böhm - J. Fegert et al. “Child Sexual Abuse in the Context of the Roman Catholic Church. A Review of Literature from 1981-2013.” In the Journal of Child Sexual Abuse 23 (2014) 635-656. 2.Cf. C. J. Scicluna - H. Zollner et al. “Verso la Guarigione e il Rinnovamento. Chiesa e abusi sessuali sui minori.” Pontificia Università Gregoriana, February 6-9, 2012. THE SPIRITUAL WOUNDS OF SEXUAL ABUSE
of them. The more distant one is from the Church, the more it is perceived as a uniform and monolithic entity. This is the reason why every act of abuse committed by one priest is collectively associated with all priests and the Church.
Priests: their state and formation The impact of abuse perpetrated by Catholic clergy is not concerned with their function in itself, that is their priestly function of mediation and their possession of a real, spiritual power. Indeed, abuse is more or less present in every religion, be it Islam (we only have to recall the frightening statistics of abuse committed in the madrasas of Great Britain), Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism or natural religions. Also celibacy is a requirement not only for clerics in the Latin Rite Catholic 19 Church but also in other religions there are priests and monks – both men and women – who live according to the celibate state of life.3 Clearly then the elements that follow are not exclusive to the Catholic Church or reserved to her clerics.
Managing one’s sexuality Living as a sexual being according to one’s state in life is a continual challenge. Many priests who have promised a life of celibacy do not have recourse to sufficient human and spiritual support. The promise should be made only after a serious process that proceeds along the various stages of development, follows a clear program of integration, and includes solid psychological and spiritual support that is ongoing after ordination. Despite the clear and excellent norms developed for priestly formation – repeated in Ratio Fundamentalis published December 8, 2016, by the Congregation for the Clergy4 – formation in human maturation still only occupies a secondary role in the
3.The telling statistics of the two John Jay Reports in the United States and in Australia the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has revealed that abuse committed by clergy in various religious communities, including Muslim spiritual guides and Rabbis, is more or less equivalent to that found in Christian denominations. 4.Cf. G. Cucci - H. Zollner, “Il nuovo documento sulla formazione sacerdotale,” in Civiltà Cattolica, 2017, II, 61-75. HANS ZOLLNER, SJ
overall education of future religious and priests. If we consider that the present vocational crisis is, to a large degree, due to individuals falling in love – many admit doing so for the first time – and that a desire for conjugal and family life only occur subsequently, we should not be surprised that those who have the responsibility of formation do not invest the energy and time where it is needed most.5 In-depth psychology speaks about defense mechanisms that arise from the removal or denial of vital impulses. On a spiritual level, we can call this acedia and inertia: apathy and laziness. We might also attempt to formulate the thesis that the failure of formators to take spiritual experiences and human processes seriously – and to accept the eventual decisions made by 20 those they are responsible for – is transferred either directly or indirectly to those being formed in their own path of formation. These processes of psychological repression can run the risk of leading an individual to act out what he has in theory rejected or disregarded – in this case sexual desire – as it is mixed in with other non-satisfied needs. This happens when one either actively or passively suppresses everything pertaining to sexual desire, or expresses it in an unchecked manner, as happens in the case when one pursues the path of least resistance to act upon impulses: in this case toward children and youth.
The understanding of priesthood in the Catholic Church The way in which the ministry and role of priests in the Catholic Church is conceived plays a major role in the abuse of minors by clergy being revealed only much later. In many parts of the world, priests continue to be viewed as irreproachable messengers of God who exercise special powers, authority and a capacity for governance derived more or less directly from God. Such an image of the priesthood may lead the faithful to an inviolable idealization that makes it difficult, if not impossible, to criticize the figure of the priest or even imagine that he is capable of committing evil.
5.We can also here refer to the data on sexual abuse in the report commissioned by the German Conference of Catholic Bishops (Deutsche Bischofskonferenz, or D.B.K.), and the initial results of an international study carried out by the Centre for Child Protection of the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. THE SPIRITUAL WOUNDS OF SEXUAL ABUSE
This at least partly explains something that is inconceivable to those outside the Church. Those who suffer abuse often say that when the sexual contact occurred, it was they, not the priest, who felt guilty and dirty. Others experienced the physical and emotional attention of a priest as something that made them extraordinary, something that “raised them to the level of the priest.” If we want an answer to why so many victims were not able to speak about their abuse until years or decades later, one of the reasons is the conflicted conscience and the dilemma of perceiving oneself as the victim of an irrepressible act of violence and the enormous weight of having to attribute this cruelty to a priest. In this regard, we should point out that many victims of sexual violence were close to the priests who abused them because they were chaplains or leaders of youth groups or 21 with them in a college setting. Victims were often particularly diligent and trusting of others: a trust that was subsequently taken advantage of and destroyed. Whoever in infancy or youth or as a candidate for priesthood learned that a priest is always blameless can easily develop the mindset that he does not need to justify himself to anyone. Anyone endowed with sacred powers can take anything he wants for himself. That kind of mentality can explain, at least in part, why some priests who have abused children or young people deny doing so or believe that they themselves were victims or merely accomplices (“he seduced me,” “he liked it”), often making them blind to the suffering they have caused. We see that some candidates for the priesthood understand their state as seminarians or priests as a profession in the commonly held sense of the term. Consequently, as soon as the workday is done they do in private things that are not reconcilable with their priestly life. It seems that they are yearning for the privileges, power and beauty of that state in life but they are not ready to pay the price specified in the Gospel – poverty, chastity and obedience – and essentially to give up their lives for Jesus.
A bunker mentality Finally, another ingredient of the typically Catholic mix that makes abuse possible and impedes its discovery is a bunker HANS ZOLLNER, SJ
mentality. The Church wants to resolve her problems from the inside and exclude the public dimension because she is afraid of her own reputation and the reputation of the institution. In this way, the Church forgets both the suffering of the victims (who must be kept silent) and a law of mass media that says: “Sooner or later things will come out in the open. Take the initiative, acknowledge the error, ask for pardon honestly, and you will be believed.” Another factor often comes into play, namely, a unilateral interpretation of the special link and responsibility that binds a bishop to his priests. On the one hand, not enough consideration is given to the fact that paternal care entails not only pardon and mercy but also just punishment. On the other 22 hand, there is an esprit de corps on account of which bishops first think of protecting their own rather than the good of the vulnerable and needy. We should briefly mention that many perpetrators of sexual abuse manage to elude or even manipulate their superiors so that the latter are too prone to believe whatever the former promise them (“I won’t do it anymore”). The result is that they exercise a false mercy. This also leads them to the erroneous reasoning that they need no outside help because they believe they have all the means and strategies necessary to solve the problem themselves. In this way, they dig themselves into their own bunker and fail to see that they have constructed a closed system as we saw in Ireland or in the Catholic communities in the United States and Australia, all places that have seen a string of frighteningly frequent and longstanding abuse. The same is true for some religious congregations and new spiritual communities founded around the time of the Second Vatican Council and which for many years, particularly for the number of vocations they were attracting, held out great hope for the Church. In the last few years, however, we have seen that several of these religious groups – some of which assumed strongly conservative ecclesial positions tied to traditional forms of liturgy and theology – ended up being centers of various forms of serious abuse. Among the more notable cases are the Legionaries of Christ (Mexican foundation), the Community of THE SPIRITUAL WOUNDS OF SEXUAL ABUSE
the Beatitudes (French), the Comunità Missionaria di Villaregia in northern Italy, the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae (primarily in Peru), as well as the group that gravitated around Fr. Fernando Karadima in Santiago de Chile. Such cases did not always involve the abuse of minors but rather of protected persons, including male and female novices and students. Under the pretext of vows of obedience and strict religious observance, extreme relationships of dependence were formed. Criticism was not allowed and fundamental norms of the spiritual tradition were simply ignored, like the separation between the internal and external forums, not to mention abuses of sacramental confession (the seal of confession or the absolutio complicis, that is, the absolution of someone with whom the priest-confessor himself broke the sixth commandment). 23 We could write entire chapters on the personalities of the founders of the above congregations. Some of them, because of sexual abuse, financial irregularities or plagiarism, were expelled from their own communities or sanctioned with ecclesiastical penalties, even including excommunication. Often they were able to boss others around and lord it over the operations of their congregations for decades, and no one would dare question their absolute power and demands, which were speciously justified in a spiritual way. Since there was no control mechanism and no system of checks and balances, they were able to do whatever they wanted. Not all of these founders were or are priests, and this unveils an even more basic problem: when an (ecclesial) environment isolates itself and shuns open communication or an adequate process of formation and human development, the risk of abuse increases exponentially. Blurred lines of governance structures and ambiguous hierarchical boundaries can also create the conditions in which abuse happens too easily. For example, the so-called Deetman Report – a document outlining abuse in the Dutch Church – hints at this. It is shocking to see how many unresolved procedural issues were brought to light by this scandal. When responsibilities are poorly defined, people find it easy to wash their hands of any responsibility. HANS ZOLLNER, SJ
Neither the bunker mentality nor chaotic organization helps matters. The authority and guidance of bishops and religious superiors are necessary precisely because it is a matter of protecting human lives. And in any case, the power associated with these roles necessitates both external control and interior dedication, which help those in authority to truly understand their positions and their duties in the sense given by Jesus: “Whoever is greatest among you must become your servant” (Mt 23:11).
Questions and tasks for everyone In a society that holds credibility as one of its highest values, the crisis provoked by sexual abuse places some decisive questions 24 before us: Are we able to reenvision our way of being Church? We have to ask ourselves to what extent we refuse to do so, to what degree we intend to do away with injustice and the harm that has been caused, to what extent we think we can return to the pastoral work as soon as possible in the wake of the scandals, and to what extent our gaze is fixed upon ourselves, blocking our energies and apostolic creativity. Pope Benedict XVI, who consistently took measures against the perpetrators of abuse, even at the highest levels, left us an excellent example in his retirement of how one can exercise power (in the Church). Pope Francis never tires of condemning the plague of clericalism, careerism and a life of comfort, and of preaching a return to the simplicity and immediacy of the Gospel. Some questions emerge when we apply these considerations to the causes and effects of the spiritual trauma suffered by those who have been subjected to abuse: How can we conform the exercise of power to the Gospel? How can men and women complement one another in their respective ways of exercising and handling power? What can we learn from what the social and economic arena calls corporate governance and compliance so that we can assume an effective co-responsibility and adopt verifiable control mechanisms? What is the true essence of priestly ministry and how much can or should the power of governance exercised by priests in parishes and other institutions be delegated to collaborators? How can THE SPIRITUAL WOUNDS OF SEXUAL ABUSE the discernment of spirits be exercised on an individual and communal level in a manner that will help find a way to effectively navigate between entrenchment and chaos? How can bishops and religious superiors learn to weigh decisions and make them at the right moment? How should they be effective formators of future priests and religious? How much of an investment should be made in the formation of those who are themselves destined to form others? We can see how difficult it is both for those who hold positions of leadership in the Church and for the simple faithful to have faith in Jesus and believe his words, “The truth will set you free” (Jn 8:32). It is not easy to look pure and simple truth in the face. It takes courage and a strong will to place oneself in front of reality, however upsetting and sad it may be. It would 25 be good for Christians to trust God more than themselves, especially in difficult times when faced with individual and institutional failures. In such situations, anyone willing to open his eyes, mind and heart is not only able to know things about himself and others on a human and spiritual level but also to open himself to the grace of conversion and mercy, which is promised to all those who sincerely confess their failures. This also entails a willingness to open oneself to embarrassment, discouragement, doubts and mistrust. None of it is easy. But to anyone willing to shoulder these things with faith in Jesus Christ and find support in the community of the faithful, the help of the Holy Spirit is promised. Such an attitude opens a path that, by penetrating the depths of the human heart through “spiritual desolation” (as St. Ignatius would write), with the help of grace can bring solace and even healing. Because it so happens that after years of unspeakable pain and teetering on the brink of depression and suicide, after years and decades of depression and suffering, there are those who find a road that leads to the source of new hope and life. People like this who – as it is said – “have gone through hell” are credible witnesses of the strength of salvation in Jesus Christ. Many people who have given testimony with their lives – lives filled with fear and the risk of falling back into HANS ZOLLNER, SJ
trauma – have subsequently shown that they have understood in an entirely new way the meaning of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. The battle against sexual abuse will last for a while, so we must not delude ourselves into thinking that the solution simply lies in introducing new rules and guidelines. What is needed is a radical conversion and a decisive attitude to render justice to the victims and to make sure it never happens again. The message of the God of Jesus Christ is the source and strength of our efforts and for our continual reflection on the core of the Gospel: because God loves the little ones and the vulnerable most of all. Of course, no one is able to definitively conquer evil, even the abuse of minors. That would be a fatal presumption. 26 But much can be done to minimize the risk and maximize prevention.6 Today, the scales are beginning to tip – slowly but surely – in the right direction throughout the universal Church. Pope Francis has continued and strengthened the line of his predecessor, especially by setting up the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. He has thus created, at the level of the universal Church, the structural and material conditions that will speed up with effectiveness the protection of children throughout the entire Catholic Church.
6.On strategies for prevention, cf. S. Witte, B. Böhm et al, “E-Learning Curriculum ‘Prävention von sexuellem Kindesmissbrauch für pastorale Berufe. Forschungsergebnisse,’” in Nervenheilkunde 34 (2015), 547-554; K. A. Fuchs - H. Zollner, “Prävention in der katholischen Kirche: Drei Beispiele aus der Praxis katholischer Institutionen,” in J. Fegert and M. Wolff (eds.), Sexueller Missbrauch in Institutionen: Entstehungsbedingungen, Prävention und Intervention (Weinheim - Basel, Beltz), 2015. The Simple and Truthful Language of Jesus Aids for discerning deceptive speech
Diego Fares, SJ
“When Jesus spoke, he used simple words and he also used images that were examples taken from daily life in order to be easily understood by all. This is why they listened to him willingly and appreciated his message that directly touched their heart. It was not a complicated language that was difficult 27 to understand, like that used by the doctors of the law of that time, which was not easily understood, was very rigid and distanced people. With this language, Jesus made the mystery of the Kingdom of God understood; it was not complicated 1 theology.” In a Sunday Angelus last summer, Pope Francis began his comments on the Parable of the Sower with this reflection on the language of Jesus: a simple language that goes straight to the heart. It is the opposite, the pope says, of the complicated language of a rigid theology that distances people from the mystery of the Kingdom. The discernment between the two languages is clear: that which directly brings me closer to the love of Jesus comes from the good spirit; and that which distances me from the love of Jesus comes from the evil spirit. Employing this perspective, what can we say about the language used by some in the media that goes straight to the heart but sows poisonous discord rather than the good seed of wheat? From time to time, one can read articles that attack the Church and the pope. Yes, the Church and the pope because it is an attack on both, even if they say they are attacking the pope in order to defend the doctrine of the Church, just as others say they are defending the pope while they criticize
1.Francis, Angelus, July 16, 2017, in www.vatican.va. DIEGO FARES, SJ
the Church. The language such people use does not appear complicated: clear and direct headlines about plots and power plays, hatred among Church leaders, struggles inside the Curia, notorious pastoral and political errors, and threats to the doctrine of the Church. But a simplistic language is not a simple one, even if it appears to be such, just as the weeds initially resemble good wheat. The man in the parable discerns the situation at first glance: if there are weeds, an enemy must have sowed them there (cf. Mt 13:28). But we should not root them out before the proper time because to do so would run the risk of pulling out the wheat with them. Nevertheless, it is good to cut some away when the weeds begin to suffocate the wheat in order to allow the plants to 28 breathe. In a conversation, when voices are raised and words begin to wound, if one hopes to continue a dialogue it is necessary to lower the tone and pay attention to the language employed. Some try to justify using scandalous language by saying that the facts about which they are speaking are indeed scandalous. If this were a sufficient justification, it should also happen when the pope affirms there is corruption in the Vatican or when he condemns a scandal. But the truth does not consist only in the facts that anyone can reference in a subjective way, without concern for those who are listening or reading. Paraphrasing some comments on this kind of news, one could say that a certain type of language undermines above all the splendor of the truth. Taking greater care of the language we use is no less vital than taking greater care of the quality of the air we breathe. This care for language does not only concern the concepts and images we choose in weaving a rational argument. Rather, it has more to do with the attention and respect that two persons have when they speak or dialogue together in search of the truth. Public discourse is possible because of the respect that we all have for one another, and this should be protected. This is protected differently than the way public space is protected when the streets are entrusted to the army due to the threat of terrorist acts. Public discourse is defended and sustained by speaking well and by denouncing the bad use of language. The choice of not contaminating oneself and not contaminating AIDS FOR DISCERNING DECEPTIVE SPEECH
the language used in public concerns everyone. The only way to make this choice is to grow in discernment. Given the level of sophistication of language today, it is not easy to discern with clarity when discourse is dishonest. Deceit comes in various types, from those who use an obviously frivolous language that insinuates poisonous ideas or images using the style of gossip magazines, to those who use a language that appears serious, utilizing theological concepts – like the demon in the Scriptures who tempts Jesus in the desert – but seek to confuse and distort the incarnate truth who is Christ. This is the kind of discourse the Pharisees and the doctors of the law used, seeking to “find in the coherence (of Jesus) cracks that allow them to think of piety as a disguise,” wrote Jorge Mario Bergoglio. “And, therefore, security is sold as faith, possessions 29 as hope, and egoism as love.”2
Speaking the truth with the spirit of truth St. Peter Faber, the Jesuit companion of Ignatius and Francis Xavier, offers some criteria to help on the path of growth in discernment of language. Faber, in the opinion of Ignatius, was the person who best led the Spiritual Exercises and had the charism of discernment and spiritual conversation. He knew how to dialogue with everyone and used especially respectful and convincing ways in relating to his adversaries. Faber explains the first criterion in this way: “During Mass, another desire was born in me, that is, all the good that I could do comes through the mediation of the holy and good Spirit. And the idea came to me that God does not like the way in which the heretics3 want to make certain reforms in the Church. Even if they say some things that are true, as even demons can, they do not do so with the spirit of truth that is the Holy Spirit.”4
2.J.M. Bergoglio, Meditaciones para religiosos, Buenos Aires, Mensajero, 2013. 3.The word “heretic” comes from the Greek hairesis, which means “division, separation.” A heretic is one who, we would say today, has a sectarian spirit. A heretic is one who puts his own interests above the interests of the common good. 4.P. Faber, Memorie spirituali, Rome, La Civiltà Cattolica – Corriere della Sera, 2014, No. 51. DIEGO FARES, SJ
Peter Faber points out that it is not enough to speak the truth. It is necessary to do so with the spirit of truth that is the Holy Spirit, provided that one really wants what is said to concretely help correct an error or bad behavior. On a practical level Faber distinguishes three truths: true things (facts), the spirit of truth (that is, the disposition of spirit with which true things are said) and the Spirit of truth as a person. Between the truth of facts and the Spirit of truth is placed the spirit of truth or the good spirit that permits everyday experiences – even sin – to be connected to grace, which orders all things for the good. It is helpful to make this kind of discernment when having to judge if something is true or false. One must consider and evaluate the capacity a speech has, taken as a whole and in each 30 individual word, to be used for good by the Spirit. And, on the other hand, it is also necessary to ponder the capacity it has, taken as a whole or in each individual part, to block the action of the good spirit or to reinforce that of the evil one. A disciple once told his spiritual director a story about something that had happened and used a harmful expression – “he’s a rascal” – to describe another person. The director smiled and asked his disciple, “Is this a word found in the Scriptures?” Recalling the passage of Matthew 5:22, in which insults and contempt for a brother are harshly condemned by the Lord, the disciple realized that he had been tempted by the evil spirit. In a single word used in error, therefore, one can discern the presence of the evil spirit who animates the entire argument – even if it is woven into objective facts and rational arguments. It is simply an excuse to give voice to his anger toward a brother. The issue rests in connecting the truth spoken in a good spirit with the innate possibility that the Holy Spirit uses that phrase to do good for someone or to correct an evil. Or to put it negatively, the issue rests in connecting a phrase that is said in an evil spirit, be it true or false, with the impossibility for the Holy Spirit to use it to do good for someone or to effectively correct an evil. This discernment can also take into consideration – and this is very important – the path that runs from the reality to the words used. When one perceives – as happens with many who listen to AIDS FOR DISCERNING DECEPTIVE SPEECH the simple language of Pope Francis – that an attraction toward the good is born inside, or there is a possibility of correcting something that is not right in one’s life, this is a clear sign that the speech that brought about these feelings is true. The Holy Spirit has blessed that language within its limitations and has used it to guide the life of the Church and/or a single person in a certain moment. If, on the other hand, we see – as happens when reading an article or watching a television program – that the desire to do good is blocked within us and darkness and doubt grow in our minds about the possibility of resolving a concrete problem, this is a sign that the discourse is deceitful. They are words that sadden the Holy Spirit because something impedes its beneficial action. 31 Beyond the fact whether it is possible or not to render a trap harmless, it is to be discerned together. Just as there are bombs that cannot be diffused because they will explode anyway, so too there are discourses that cannot be deconstructed because they are only a tool to make something bad happen and to creep into the manner of thinking about another. There is then a language that poisons the soul. In these cases, the only thing to do is to walk away and not ingest the poison. What could seem like a small difference – saying well something true, or saying it with derision, hate and disdain – in reality is capable of making big changes. A truth spoken with humility and respect is a hand extended that builds a bridge. On the other hand, a truth spoken with bitterness and a lack of respect is a slap that blocks dialogue and mutual understanding. The spirit with which one speaks the truth also influences the way of seeing the truth. Speaking ill leads to thinking badly and to seeing things in a bad light and so leads to blindness. The use of offensive and deceptive language ends up obscuring one’s own vision of reality. Finally, the truth does not consist just of facts or abstract definitions: it also has, as an essential part, the respectful and cordial attitude with which things are said, such that they can attract by their splendor and do good not evil. We have all experienced how an intentionally sarcastic tone or look is DIEGO FARES, SJ
capable of completely undermining even the most innocent and peaceful truths by introducing a deadly poison that often does not even leave a trace. The truth must be spoken with the spirit of the truth that is the Holy Spirit.
The trap of the lesser good St. Peter Faber offers a second criterion for discerning the way of speaking in accord with the Spirit of truth. He asks the Lord to teach him to speak well – under the influence of the Holy Spirit – of the things of God and he becomes aware that something is missing. He feels that in his language there is something that, if he is not attentive, can lessen the efficaciousness of the grace he has received, in the moment in which he communicates this 32 experience to another. Faber writes: “[I asked the Lord that] he teach me how to speak of things already intuited, for me or for others, under the influence of the good spirit. Continuously, in fact, I say, write and do a number of things without paying attention to the spirit in which I had previously felt them. For example, if I express informally, with cheerfulness or with a joking spirit something that I had previously felt in a spirit of compassion and with internal pain, those who listen receive less fruit because the truth is told in a less good spirit than that in which it was received.”5 Faber attributes all of this to the fact of having expressed the grace received with a spirit that is less good than that in which it was received. He attributes this lesser good to what we can call a change of tone: he expressed in a joking manner that which had previously caused him to feel compassion. We can apply this criterion to all those discourses where something is taken away from someone (or something) who is more, in order that they appear less. This deals with those ways of speaking in which one notices a change of tone that diminishes the other – disqualifies, denigrates – or speaks of important, even sacred things in a simplistic or reductive manner. St. Ignatius expresses this type of temptation in a rule of discernment that demonstrates how an evil spirit does not always
5.Ibid., No. 52. Italics added. AIDS FOR DISCERNING DECEPTIVE SPEECH
seek the biggest evil: “If, in the case of suggested thoughts, one ends in something evil or futile or less good than what the soul first proposed to do, or it weakens or disturbs, or perturbs the soul, taking away its peace, tranquility and quiet that it previously had, this is a clear sign that it comes from the evil spirit.”6 Moreover, this lesser evil sometimes can be sought out willingly by one who notes that, if he sought to accomplish a greater evil, he would not have success. This is seen often in the discourses made about the pope and the Church and it is the easiest way to make sure that many people consume it without noticing. In order to discern this language that seeks to bring about a lesser evil (which effectively enters into the heart) it is necessary above all to acknowledge this diminishing of the good, and then put it in relation to some background noise produced by the tone 33 of the speech. Here is an example: If one looks at the statistics that point to Pope Francis’ popularity after four years of his pontificate, these have stayed very high throughout the world.7 Even in his own country the prevalent opinion about him is positive.8 And yet, if one follows some local media, the expression “people are angry with the pope” is presented as obvious and very real. If one looks at the statistics, in the heart of the Argentine people their love for Pope Francis is not at all diminished but there is in use a way of thinking that someone has synthesized: “It’s better not to say much about the pope right now because it would start an argument.” This is the deceit of the lesser. This temptation can be recognized in some speeches referring to how Francis engages in politics. We should remember that the pope always seeks to rehabilitate politics as the highest form of charity that seeks the common good.9
6.Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises, No. 333. 7.Cf., “Entre popularidad y críticas, el Papa inicia su quinto año de pontifica- do” in Milenio (www.milenio.com/internacional/papa-francisco-popularidad-vat- icano-plaza_san_pedro-milenio-noticias_0_918508319.html), March 12, 2017. 8.In Argentina, the pope appears to enjoy a positive image among 82 percent of the population. Cf. “La popularidad del papa Francisco es muy grande en el país,” in Infonews, www.infonews.com/nota/306774/la-popularidad-del-papa- francisco-es-muy-grande-en-el-pais), March 29, 2017. 9.Cf. J. L. Narvaja, “Il significato della politica internazionale di Francesco,” in Civ. Catt. III 2017, 15. DIEGO FARES, SJ
In this high sense, he affirms that everything is political, even a homily. Everything that is said in the polis, everything that has to do with the common good has a political meaning. Who could be interested in lessening one who speaks of the common good, the highest form of politics? Only those powers, qualitatively lesser, that move “above” politics rather than putting themselves at its service. That is to say, those powers of money, arms and technocracy. At the same time, on the practical level it is a universally recognized fact that the pope has succeeded in becoming a reference point in many attempts of dialogue between countries in conflict. Who could be interested in discrediting such a mediator in conflicts? Only those who have something to 34 gain from other solutions that are not those of dialogue and democratic consensus. Remembering and making explicit the hierarchy of goods and values allows one to discern when someone proposes a lesser good or value and to recognize those sour notes that reveal the evil spirit. Discourses that seek to rob a part of the good with images and reasoning taken from other contexts (for example, when a psychological concept is used to speak about politics) dazzle for a moment but, soon after, it is seen how they actually obscure the underlying issue. An article was recently published that intended to put forward as obvious the image of a very popular pope on the international level, but who used ineffective methods of governance. This article tried to create the image of a pope who does not eat in the middle of the lunchroom of Santa Marta, but in a corner with only a few selected guests, sitting with his back to the rest of the room. We use the verb “create” here because, even though there exists a photograph that looks like this, that one picture, isolated from its context, is not truthful. The real story of the more than 1,500 lunches Francis has eaten at Santa Marta demonstrates a pope who has chosen to share his table with the people. Initially, he always sat in the middle of the room but after realizing that his arrival caused a certain embarrassment to others who did not know how they were supposed to act, he chose to sit in a more discreet area so as not to disturb them. He AIDS FOR DISCERNING DECEPTIVE SPEECH
has behaved like this for years. Some, sadly, are affected by an unpleasantly poisonous spirit that, by using deceptive pictures, ends up producing a false caricature of the pope in a poorly executed attempt to lessen his image.
Proposing something more that is concrete and good A third criterion among those indicated by Faber that can be useful in this reflection is that of the Ignatianmagis . Saint Ignatius is the man of the magis (more), the “greater glory of God.” But this is not an ideal more, an abstract perfection that needs to be realized, but a more that is concrete, possible and incarnate in life, that takes into account times, places and persons. Ultimately, it is the step forward that pleases the Father and that the Holy Spirit invites us to take. It could be a giant step, like that of the 35 conversion of St. Paul or like the gesture of St. Maximilian Kolbe who gave his own life to save a man condemned to death. Or it could be a small step, like one a child makes when jumping into a puddle. Whether small or giant, this step is a more in the Spirit. Faber affirms: “In general, the higher the goal that you will have proposed for the action, for faith, for hope and for love of people so that he dedicates all of his affective and operative forces, so much more will it be probable that both good and evil spirits will leap into action [...], that is, that which gives strength and that which weakens, that which illuminates and that which dims and obscures, that is, the good and the other which opposes it.”10 This dynamism invites us to take a step forward – possible and concrete – in love for Jesus Christ and for neighbor, and it recurs often in the speeches of Pope Francis. When he preaches or when he writes, he does not follow the way of systematic treatises, animated by logic and a balance among all the topics. His theology is practical, kerygmatic.11 Rather than helping to define things, it is a theology that helps to live, to “love and serve in all things God our Lord.” In order to do so, it moves the heart,
10.P. Faber, Memorie spirituali, cit., Nos. 301-302. Italics added. 11.On kerygmatic theology, cf. M.A. Fiorito, “Apuntes para una teología del discernimiento de espíritus,” in Ciencia y Fe 19 (1963) 401-417; D. Fares, “Aiuti per crescere nella capacità di discernere,” in Civ. Catt. 2017 I 377-389. DIEGO FARES, SJ
provokes the movement of spirits, invites personal discernment of what the Spirit says to each person, and not to think about what is being said in general. In the pope, one sees the reflective conscience of an experience aimed not at entering into discussions with scholars, but of being capable of communicating with those who hunger and thirst for a word that positively affects their lives. The more of practical and kerygmatic theology – and a characteristic of St. Ignatius’ Spiritual Exercises – looks into the heart of people, to help them find the more of the Spirit in their concrete lives, in the step of conversion needed and in the choice of service to which the Lord is calling each person. For this, when Francis decides to treat a topic he deems necessary 36 for the conversion of heart and insists on a specific point, it is not pertinent to ask why he is not talking about other points, or to say that if that single point becomes generalized it would become unattainable.12
The trap of a distorted logic of the more Here we examine how sometimes the logic of the more is used in a way that distorts it. In contrast with the dimension proper to the language of Francis that exhorts each person – even his critics – to think of their personal step forward, there exist statements that call for making a step forward but are actually aimed at singling out which previous pope or which encyclical or dogma of faith Francis is attacking.
12.For this same reason, in the existential realm, if not in the theological one, those criticisms of the pope which ask, “Why did the pope go to Africa and Asia and Sweden and Turkey and various countries in Latin America but not to his own country?” are not pertinent. The logic used in a question of this sort is either systematic (“If he visits ‘all,’ why doesn’t he visit ‘one’”?) or it is a-systematic (“Why doesn’t he favor his country, if he loves it?”) If it is true that the pope follows the logic of seeking the best concrete good possible, the discourse could be widened so as to not discount other possibilities. For example, it could be affirmed that he is seeking the right moment so that his visit could bring about the best possible good. If this logic is followed, the heart can prepare for the visit to come, rather than protest, as do the workers in the Gospel parable (cf. Mt 20:11-15). AIDS FOR DISCERNING DECEPTIVE SPEECH
Fr. Adolfo Nicolás, the former Superior General of the Jesuits, in a homily he gave last year in the Church of the Gesù in Rome on St. Ignatius’ feast day, stated that the discourse of Pope Francis is like that of the prophets. Sometimes it is hard or difficult but if it is received with the attitude of one who wants to take a step forward, it always does good, a concrete good. On the other hand, those who react to it, defending some particular personal interest, always harden their hearts more and more. Here is the criterion for discerning those languages that follow the logic of the Pharisees and the doctors of the law who, when Jesus did something concretely good – for example, healing a man with a paralyzed hand on the Sabbath (cf. Mt 12:9-14) – they accused him of breaking the law. The movement of this language is totally contrary to that of the Incarnation, in 37 which words and specific actions do not seek to attack anyone or destroy anything but intend to transmit grace to a person who is in a particular time and place. This movement contrary to the Incarnation can be misleading, reductive or destructive but it always seeks to produce the same effect: make it so the Word cannot become incarnate in a real heart; or, if it is incarnate there, does not put down roots like the seed in good soil; or yields less fruit than it could have. And if it does not achieve any of this, it at least seeks to disturb the peace and weaken the soul. The claims or insinuations that Francis would attack St. John Paul II’s encyclical Veritatis Splendor (VS) would not even merit a mention were it not for the fact that many people remain perplexed and scandalized when this type of thing is said in a categorical and solemn manner (the more of pharisaical solemnity!). The fact that Francis, in his apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia (AL), which gathers together the results of two synods on the family, says that “not all doctrinal, moral and pastoral discussions have to result in an intervention of the magisterium” (AL 3) is in perfect consonance with the spirit of Veritatis Splendor, in which John Paul II concludes “the discernment of certain tendencies in present-day moral theology” (VS 28-83) with this exhortation: “Dear Brothers in the Episcopate, we must not be content merely to warn the DIEGO FARES, SJ
faithful about the errors and dangers of certain ethical theories. We must first of all show the inviting splendor of that truth which is Jesus Christ himself” (VS 83). Francis takes as his own and builds on this apostolic exhortation of St. John Paul II. In fact, the truth does not shine in definitions, not even in those of Veritatis Splendor, but in the living person.13 Truth can shine in a work of art, a parable, an act of mercy, an announcing of the kerygma, but it cannot shine in abstract definitions because when one defines something, thought tends to continue to define, not to enjoy the defined reality in a contemplative manner. Abstraction, which separates non-essential aspects, is different from splendor, which makes use of all of the accidental realities to shine in them. 38 Let us make one more reflection about the criterion of the more. Francis has succeeded in reawakening – prophetically – the strength of a Word that was imprisoned in abstract schemes and dialogues amid the deafness of ideological enemies. As pontiff, he encourages and creates events in which protagonists interact and dialogue in a concrete manner. In relation to the people – in the geographic and existential peripheries – and also in dialogue with political, cultural and religious interlocutors of all types, his comments are always a real coming into contact with the life of persons and peoples. This captured the attention of the world of communication from the first moment: every writer, every communicator dreams that their own words will come into reality, modify it and point it in a certain direction. This attraction is not only found in those who speak well of Francis, but also in his detractors. In their attempts to imitate Francis, they too seek to invent ingenious metaphors, making use of polar opposites. But in this way they do nothing other than attest negatively to the fact that their own thought, in large measure, lives thanks to the vital creativity of Francis.
13.“The splendor of the truth shines forth in all the works of the Creator and, in a special way, in man, created in the image and likeness of God” (VS, Introduction). The “splendor of the truth” is an expression that refers to the beauty of the truth that is always tied to the good. Beauty is the splendor of the unity of the truth and the good. AIDS FOR DISCERNING DECEPTIVE SPEECH
‘Saving the statements of others’ There is one thing that helps us take on the attitude of the good spirit in speaking and in discourses in which the Holy Spirit can give the efficacy of the truth. It is what St. Ignatius calls “saving the statements of others.” In three phases he offers an entire treatise on dialoguing with anyone with a good spirit: this is an art in which Francis has always distinguished himself. Ignatius states: “One must presuppose that every good Christian must be more ready to save a statement of his neighbor rather than to condemn it. If it cannot be saved, one must seek to know in which sense it was intended, and if it were intended in an incorrect way, it must be corrected with love. If this is not enough, one must seek all suitable means such that, understanding it correctly, it can be saved.”14 39 Here, obviously, Ignatius refers to a dialogue between persons who desire to understand each other and have different opinions on some question, about which they question each other and correct one another with love. In the case of those who write using deceptive language, like those mentioned above, we could think that they have preconceived ideas and so it is useless trying to dialogue with them. But this is not the attitude of Francis in confronting his critics. He has shown many gestures of openness and dialogue toward those who criticize him. For example, in his contacts by telephone, email or letter, his style is that of thanking someone when he sees that the other wants to communicate directly and show dissent in a peaceful way, without aggression or employing statements that are out of place. Those times in which he has had to correct some incorrect information, he has been attentive to do so privately with the person directly involved. And when he has been criticized in an offensive way, he has still had the grace to save the criticism itself, in as much as it could help the individual walk on the path of the Lord. Ultimately, Francis continues to note how humility must always prevail in one’s mode of speaking and sharing information.
14.Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises, No. 22. DIEGO FARES, SJ
The attitudes of the pope, even if they are not always able to change the ideas and communication strategies of those who criticize him, touch everyone’s heart. This reveals the moral stature of a person who disarms the hostility of his adversaries; and it helps understand how, when the pope is criticized, there is no need to defend him or to attack his detractors because the door of dialogue remains open between them. Rather, it is important to reflect on ways that help the Christian who feels affected by this language, in such a way that he can examine it critically and serenely, learning not to get caught up in either the less or the more of the lies that are spoken. Most importantly, we cannot let our love for the Church and for the pope to be stolen away or allowed to grow dim. 40 Politics and Neighbors Where integration takes root
Francesco Occhetta, SJ
In 1958 Eleanor Roosevelt wrote: “Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home …, the neighborhood the person lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, 41 equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere.”1 Ten years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Roosevelt – who had played a major part in drafting the text – chose to remind the political establishment that the idea of “neighbor” materializes above all as a responsibility to the concrete needs of another. During the drafting of the Declaration, approved on December 10, 1948, Jacques Maritain, the French ambassador to the Holy See, resolved tensions by suggesting that countries should seek an agreement on shared practical principles. His pragmatic approach limited its scope to finding a basis for consensus on practical aims, without questioning motivation.2 An agreement was reached on the idea that the human person, “without distinction of any kind” (article 2.1), “is entitled by virtue of being a person to certain rights”3 and that recognizing these rights imposes limitations on the sovereignty of states, whatever their ideological or political nature.
1.E. Roosevelt, In Our Hands, 1958. 2.Cf. Dei diritti dell’uomo. Testi raccolti dall’Unesco, Milan, Edizioni di Comunità, 1952,12. 3.J. Maritain, I diritti dell’uomo e la legge naturale, Milan, Vita e Pensiero, 1977, 60. FRANCESCO OCCHETTA, SJ
Consequently, the content of the Declaration is based on its opening passage: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights” (article 1), for all share the same dignity. This Declaration has handed down through history a sort of moral obligation for governments, a “human-centric revolution” focused on the person, who is constitutively relational and has innate and inalienable rights that demand to be recognized. For forward-thinking political leaders like Eleanor Roosevelt, Jacques Maritain, John P. Humphrey and René Cassin, talking about the “human person” meant opting for the universal value of human dignity, which had been assailed by two world wars. Thus, the Magna Carta of international human rights law – 42 translated into 336 national and local languages – has become a benchmark for government legislation: its principles have inspired 130 international legal conventions currently in force and roughly 90 national constitutions written or revised after 1948. However, the Declaration is like a crystal vase for it is not legally binding for government legislation; it is simply a source of inspiration, requiring politicians to enact it in practice and not just in words. As we approach the 70th anniversary of the Declaration, respect for the dignity of our neighbor is in decline. In many parts of the world, this dignity is affirmed in intent but ignored in practice; in fact, the most fearsome atrocities are justified in the name of dignity. Many of the major issues on the international political agenda illustrate this, like the handling of immigration, citizenship rights and judicial reform, which accentuate punishment over reparation. It is also evident in the violation of subjective rights that has led Belgium to allow euthanasia for sick children under certain conditions, or in the demand that the right to abortion – the right to claim individual freedom in deciding the life of another – be included among human rights. Thus, we ask ourselves, what remains in the political sphere of the golden rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” or of the Judeo-Christian commandment, “Love your neighbor as yourself”? POLITICS AND NEIGHBORS
Distant neighbors In many parts of Europe, we have seen the gradual reappearance of Nazi symbols and attitudes of profound intolerance that, like small flames, could burn down and destroy all the good that has been achieved since World War II. Last August, a fake post on Facebook was all it took to bring out what remains secret and hidden. Two men of color, depicted in a photo at Forte dei Marmi in Tuscany, were described online as “lazy immigrants on benches.” In fact, the two men were Samuel L. Jackson and Magic Johnson – a famous actor and a basketball star, respectively – photographed by a fan while resting on a bench after a shopping trip. Viewing the photo on social media, however, many did not even look at their faces and so the men received a barrage of insults. Anyone different is perceived as a danger, which happens 43 when faces disappear from the public arena and there is no time to meet or listen to personal stories. The social situation worsens when politicians create an enemy to suit their own electoral ambitions, instigating violence, insinuating suspicion regarding real events and inventing fake news. The question of our neighbors and their needs – in other words, the aim of the political mission – is now, once again, an object of reflection for many authoritative academics. Some, like psychoanalyst Luigi Zoja, believe that Western culture is mourning another loss, after the death of God (heralded first by the French Revolution and then by Nietzsche): we now face the death of the neighbor, the person close to us whom we can see, hear and touch. Nearness, on a social level, is perceived as a danger, whereas distance is considered a form of (pseudo) safety. Whereas in the past encountering a stranger was considered enriching, today it is viewed as some kind of threat. But history teaches the opposite. In 1538 the School of Salamanca defined ius communicationis as a natural right, implying the right to freedom of movement and the obligation to respect the penal code and laws of other countries. Today, instead, when someone unfamiliar approaches, our political culture no longer recognizes them as “the other who is close to you” (plēsios in Greek). This new anthropological dimension finds fertile ground in online communication, which favors FRANCESCO OCCHETTA, SJ
closeness between those who are distant and distance between those who are close – those who reside in the same city or the same street, work in the same office, live in the same house. This distancing dynamic is reflected in the interior spaces of people today, a place increasingly less inhabited due to the rhythm and commitments of life. These spaces are where trust or fear takes root. In order to govern these human processes, political actors must recognize the dimension of proximity that changes our perspective on the distant and the different. Worthy of note are those politicians who govern with thorough knowledge of their people and their places, who feel compelled to develop inclusive projects for social cohesion, who build communities and understand the needs of their neighbors. 44 This is what the Gospel teaches, too. The experience of the Good Samaritan is that of the man who becomes “political” on behalf of others when he stops to help his neighbor – to help a man who has been robbed and beaten, left for dead by the side of the road. Luke the Evangelist, in chapter 10 of his Gospel, describes the man who chooses to be a neighbor in the public space with 10 precise verbs: saw, took pity, went over, bent down, bandaged, poured, set him up, brought him, took care and gave; and finally an 11th verb, “I shall settle the bill.” This reads like a political program for all people of goodwill who feel called to public service. According to the Scriptures, our neighbor is an individual with a personal story and specific needs. This breaks the spell of stereotypes and categories of difference: the poor, the infirmed, the immigrants and soon. The Good Samaritan stops because he feels compassion: his “I” is called to a “you” who needs his care.4 In politics, good acts are measured not by theoretical programs but by the needs of people, as a “movement through which one subject approaches and makes contact with another
4.Massimo Cacciari recently reiterated: “The Samaritan sees the man massacred by the side of the road and his heart – in the original Greek terminology – is broken. His heart is injured, just like the other man’s body. It is an injury that can only be healed by healing the injury of the other” (M. Cacciari, “San Francesco in viaggio verso l’altro,” in la Repubblica, September 14, 2017). POLITICS AND NEIGHBORS
in order to help and save.”5 This is why the Gospel turns its original question upside down: “Who is my neighbor?” becomes “Who is being a neighbor?” Ignoring our neighbor leads us to a new solitude. Luigi Zoja writes: “After the death of God, the death of the neighbor is the disappearance of the second fundamental relationship of a person. He falls into profound solitude. He is an orphan without precedent in history. He is orphaned in a vertical sense, since his Celestial Parent has died, but also in a horizontal sense: the one who was close to him has died. He is orphaned wherever he turns his gaze. In a circular way, this is the consequence but also the cause of refusing to meet the eyes of others: in every society, looking at the dead causes discomfort.”6 There is also a different dimension to our alienation. Zoja 45 writes, “We talk about it less, because it is everywhere. Not only in the structures of production, but in the fabric of society, where no one is a neighbor any longer. If everyone is distant, what are they distant from? What they moved away from no longer exists.”7 However, a nostalgic longing for balance and real-life relationships can reawaken the social conscience. This is poignantly expressed in the parody of adult life sung by Lorenzo Fragola and Arisa: “We are the army of the selfie / The ones who tan with their iPhones / But we have no contacts left / Just likes on another post / But I miss you, I miss you, I miss you in the Flesh.” In the relationship between the global and local dimensions, the latter can represent both a problem and a solution. The local political community can create the conditions for encounter and dialogue, starting from the work of education to virtue and the sharing of communal spaces. But this same community, on the other hand, can become a place of closure and separation. This is why some politicians believe that walls are the only solution. “The wall wants to keep someone out but at the same time it closes in the privileged,” Zoja writes, “just as a fear of thieves often means a lifetime behind bars not for the evildoers but for the well-off people who are scared
5.P. Bovati, La porta della Parola. Per vivere di misericordia, Milan, Vita e Pensiero, 2017, 134. 6.L. Zoja, La morte del prossimo, Milan, Einaudi, 2009, 13. 7.Ibid., 24. FRANCESCO OCCHETTA, SJ
of them.”8 We experience the same boomerang effect online when we choose to join closed, narrow-minded groups. When there is an exodus, when seas are crossed – by those who survive – and walls are scaled, they become monuments to our history of separation. The building of bridges, with their controls and laws, is based on the premise described by Umberto Eco: “The ethical dimension begins when the other enters the scene. Any law, whether moral or juridical, always regulates interpersonal relationships, including those with the other who imposes it. … This is not a vague, sentimental inclination but a foundational condition.”9
Political choices and our neighbors 46 All of this has practical implications. Here, we limit ourselves to two examples: the political handling of immigration and of employment. We know the number of migrants arriving on Italian shores has fallen in recent months: 21,229 immigrants arrived in July 2016, while only 2,245 arrived in July 2017. Libya has stepped up its patrols on shore and at sea, but according to the British press agency Reuters the same people who made money trafficking migrants by boat are now working with the Libyan coast guard, funded by the European Union and Italy. Fewer migrants are making the crossing but the power of Libyan militias has increased. What are the living conditions of these migrants? Is their dignity respected? What does “security” mean, if Libya cannot guarantee fundamental human rights? What human price are we willing to pay in suffering and trampled rights in order to ensure social stability? All these questions can be condensed into one: “Who is my neighbor?” In his Message for the 104th World Day of Migrants and Refugees10 (January 14, 2018), Pope Francis uses four verbs to draw the coordinates of political action for human integration: welcoming, protecting, promoting and integrating.
8.Ibid., 59. 9.U. Eco, Cinque scritti morali, Milan, Bompiani, 1997, 85. 10.https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/migration/docu- ments/papa-francesco_20170815_world-migrants-day-2018.html. POLITICS AND NEIGHBORS
Returning from his apostolic journey in Colombia, the pope also explained the method to implement these actions: “Governments must handle this problem with the virtue of the rulers, which is prudence. What does this mean? First, how much space do I have? Second, not only to receive but also to integrate.” Following the teachings of Benedict XVI, Pope Francis invites us to put personal security before national security, to avoid relapsing into the ethnic conflicts that led to dramatic ethnic cleansings throughout the 20th century. Finally, we have the respect for human dignity established by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. These three elements – aim, method and basic principles for action – constitute a model for the integration of migrants built on legality and security. 47 Our second example is that of employment, which is afflicted today by seven great failures that harm the dignity of people: investments without long-term vision, markets without responsibility, affluence without sobriety, technical efficiency without principled conscience, politics without society, privilege without redistribution, and development without employment. Change is possible, but it requires us to substitute a “with” for every “without,” creating cultural change and making concrete choices that demonstrate that people are worth more than any profit. There is no shortage of good examples to inspire us, but we need legislators to pressure employers by creating incentives and tax breaks for those who place the dignity of workers and the importance of community at the heart of their businesses.
Faces and sharing Christian action in politics is based on these anthropological and moral principles. Today, however, it is at risk of becoming a sort of retreat, a “counter-exodus” similar to the experience of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus – described in the Gospel according to Luke (24:13-25) – who walked sad and disappointed alongside a stranger. According to the Scripture, mutual recognition or acknowledgment in a public space is based on the act of sharing bread. In this episode of the Gospel, the Lord appears as an unknown person. For the two disciples, he is the stranger par excellence: his FRANCESCO OCCHETTA, SJ
proximity to us always overrides our borders and is manifested in the person who needs to be clothed, visited, cured and fed. The Jesuit Michel de Certeau recalls this when he says that, in the experience of the believer, God remains unknown, “the other to us, but also ignored, the one we refuse to acknowledge and welcome.” It is not a question of seeking “higher above” but “always further away from where we look.”11 We experience the infinite, de Certeau says, by taking an extra step and not by defending our own positions. Those who stop moving – cultures, political parties or communities – continue to live “on this side” and to deny the future.12 This is a personal and political attitude that must be overcome in order to avoid becoming sterile. The ancient Greeks spoke of “uprooting” (xeniteia): “This 48 movement … consists of leaving for somewhere else,”13 just like Abraham, the father of the monotheistic religions. Knowledge and relationships are strengthened in those cultural, geographic, social and intellectual areas where we experience the recognition in the other. Ultimately, the same differences that can provoke fear and discomfort are also a source of richness. It is not enough to affirm – as the political theorists do – that politics should no longer be concerned with principles of action. Of course, the secularization of ideas based on weak, shortsighted proposals has caused many to forget the aim for which we should be striving, ceding ground to emotionalism that legitimates particular beliefs as absolute truths. Politics, however, is neither a sum of principles nor a form of government, but rather the premise and condition for political action. A Christian presence in politics, as well as nourishing ongoing processes, must necessarily defend dignity. The shared golden rule of all major religions and cultures reminds us of this: “So in everything, do to others as you would have them do unto you” (Mt 7:12). All this begins from an encounter, from the need to acknowledge our neighbor and be acknowledged as a neighbor within a relationship that welcomes, protects, promotes and integrates.
11.M. de Certeau, Mai senza l’altro. Viaggio nella differenza, Magnano (Bi), Qiqajon, 1993, 29. 12.Ibid., 30. 13.Ibid., 15. Magnum Principium and the Inculturation of the Liturgy after the Council
Cesare Giraudo, SJ
God and the assembly: the surprise of speaking the same language The Second Vatican Council’s Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium proclaimed a “great principle” in article 36, recognizing the right of each liturgical assembly to pray to God in its own language. Historians remind us that the problem 49 of liturgical language had already been faced and successfully resolved in the middle of the ninth century thanks to Saints Cyril and Methodius. Responding to those who limited to only three the languages “in which it is licit to praise God, specifically Hebrew, Greek and Latin” – those used for the inscription on the cross – the two brother saints listed liturgical language among the goods that belong to all, like the rain “that God lets fall on all humans,” the sun “that shines on all in the same way” (cf. Mt 5:45) and the air “that everyone breathes.”1 The apostolic mission of Cyril and Methodius was to the Slavic peoples. Only several centuries later did the problem arise for the Latin peoples, but this time without a successful outcome. It was the 16th century, a time full of promise but rocked by doctrinal turbulence. The Council of Trent took place in that aggravated atmosphere and was committed to containing the divisions that had afflicted parts of Christianity, and so was unable to welcome the appeals of those reformers in favor of the vernacular in the liturgy. Even if the Council anathematized everyone who said that “the Mass should be celebrated only in the language of the people” (Denzinger-Schönmetzer, No.
1.For historical and bibliographical references, cf. C. Giraudo, “La costituzione Sacrosanctum Concilium: il primo grande dono del Vaticano II,” in Civ. Catt. 2003 IV 521-533, here 527-529. CESARE GIRAUDO, SJ
1759)2, it recommended to pastors and others entrusted with the “care of souls, to frequently explain during the celebration of the Eucharist, directly or through others, some of the things which were being said during the Mass” (DS 1749). In Italy, the first who dared to put into the hands of Christian people the translation of the prayers for Mass, including the Roman Canon, was Ludovico Antonio Muratori, in his pamphlet Della regolata divozione de’ Cristiani (“The Regulated Devotion of Christians”), published in 1747. He did so “for the glory of God and the benefit of all the ignorant,” as he put it. In addition to this brave attempt, there were also others, in Italy and elsewhere. Yet it should be acknowledged that there is a significant gap between putting the text of the Mass – particularly the canon – into the hands of the people in their 50 own language, and of actually adopting these languages for the communal celebration of the liturgy. The Second Vatican Council with its Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy was finally able to respond to the long wait and fill that gap. This was possible thanks to a new ecclesial context and to the fact that the animosity between Catholicism and the Reformation traditions was now dormant. Furthermore, a healthy sense of aggiornamento was in the air during the time of the Council. Article 36 of Sacrosanctum Concilium says: “1. Particular law remaining in force, the use of the Latin language is to be preserved in the Latin rites. 2. But since the use of the mother tongue, whether in the Mass, the administration of the sacraments, or other parts of the liturgy, frequently may be of great advantage to the people, the limits of its employment may be extended. This will apply in the first place to the readings and directives, and to some of the prayers and chants, according to the regulations on this matter to be laid down separately in subsequent chapters. 3. These norms being observed, it is for the competent territorial ecclesiastical authority mentioned in Art. 22, 2, to decide whether, and to what extent, the vernacular language is to be used; their decrees are to be approved, that is, confirmed, by the Apostolic See. … 4. Translations from the
2.Denzinger-Schönmetzer (DS) is a volume of excerpts from Church documents commonly known by the names of its editors. Originally published in 1854, the actual title is Enchiridion Symbolorum. ‘MAGNUM PRINCIPIUM’, INCULTURATION OF THE LITURGY
Latin text into the mother tongue intended for use in the liturgy must be approved (approbari debet) by the competent territorial ecclesiastical authority mentioned above.” With the creation of the Committee for Implementing the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Consilium ad Exsequendam Constititionem de Sacra Liturgia) by Paul VI with the motu proprio Sacram Liturgiam of January 25, 1964, the liturgical reform began, setting off on a path that was marked by the first great instructions: Inter Oecumenici (1964), Tres Abhinc Annos (1967), Comme le Prévoit (1969) and Liturgicæ Instaurationes (1970). Although not always considered among the great instructions for ideological reasons, the instruction Comme le Prévoit – the letter of Cardinal Giacomo Lecaro to the presidents of episcopal conferences on the translation of liturgical texts – remains of equal importance, and should be 51 understood as such. Those who had the opportunity to live in those years remember the enthusiasm accompanying the progressive rediscovery of the original profile of the liturgical structure3 that had been heavily modified through the centuries. Together with these aspects in favor of reform, we have to say that at the practical level of reception, almost immediately – and certainly in those early years – it was not unusual to find a certain lack of seriousness that could obscure the good impulses of the Council. We can think of the too-often superficial reception of the reform, which led to easy changes, the identification of spontaneity with improvisation, the loss of a sense of the sacred, the indiscriminate abandonment of Latin and of the musical heritage that characterized the whole Western tradition. These were signs of weakness, against which there have been authoritative admonitions in recent years.4 These first great instructions were joined by two further instructions of the Congregation for Divine Worship and
3.On the original semantic value of the pairing instaurare/instauratio, which in the text of the Constitution has usually been rendered “restore/reform” and “reformation,” cf. C. Giraudo, “La riforma liturgica a 50 anni dal Vaticano II,” in Civ. Catt. 2016 IV 432-445, here 433. 4.Regarding the motu proprio Summorum Pontificum of Benedict XVI (July 7, 2007), cf. the editorial, “La liturgia nel solco della tradizione,” in Civ. Catt. 2007 III 455-460. CESARE GIRAUDO, SJ
the Discipline of the Sacraments: Varietates Legitimæ (1994) and Liturgiam Authenticam (2001). The latter has been systematically presented as a normative reference – as it is specified in the subtitle – not only “for the use of the vernacular language in the edition of books of the Roman liturgy” but also “for the correct application of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (article 36).”
Liturgiam Authenticam: strengths and weaknesses What can we say about this Instruction? First of all, it is not an isolated document. As it says in its subtitle, it is the “Fifth instruction for the right implementation of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of the Second Vatican Council.” There are, 52 therefore, previous instructions seeking to manage the liturgical reform desired by the Council. Obviously, the person most qualified for understanding the directives of this instruction is someone who is expert in liturgy, theology and pastoral ministry. The liturgist is pleased with the attention devoted to the vernacular languages, which are the central concern of the document. It is important that God the Father and the liturgical assembly can dialogue on the same wavelength. At the same time it is good to see that the instruction reminds us that “the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council in its deliberations and decrees assigned a singular importance to the liturgical rites … proper to those particular churches, especially of the East, which are distinguished by their venerable antiquity, manifesting in various ways the Tradition received through the Fathers from the Apostles” (LA, 4). The instruction reaffirms that translations must be made “directly from the original texts, namely the Latin as regards texts of ecclesiastical composition, or the Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek, as the case may be, as regards the texts of Sacred Scripture” (LA, 24). It points out the necessity to elaborate for each linguistic area “a sacred style that will come to be recognized as proper to liturgical language” (LA, 27, cf. 47, 50). The instruction recommends against the flattening of liturgical expression with abstract and vague language, as “the literal translation of terms which may initially sound odd in ‘MAGNUM PRINCIPIUM’, INCULTURATION OF THE LITURGY the vernacular may for this very reason provoke inquisitiveness in the hearer and provide an occasion for catechesis” (LA, 43). “Since liturgical texts, by their very nature, are intended to be proclaimed orally and to be heard during the liturgical celebration,” the instruction encourages translators to be aware of techniques of oral transmission, like “recurring and recognizable patterns of syntax and style, a solemn or exalted tone, alliteration and assonance, concrete and vivid images, repetition, parallelism and contrast, a certain rhythm, and at times, the lyric of poetic compositions” (LA, 59). While the liturgist appreciates and shares these emphases, there is some perplexity in seeing that, for example, the notion of “liturgical reform” is entrusted to only six frugal occurrences of the expression instauratio liturgica (liturgical renewal) in the 53 whole instruction (cf. Liturgiam authenticam, 2, 3, 6, 7, 20, and 76.) It raises the question: Why hide with such modesty the ecclesiastical event which was of such great proportions, that is, the liturgical reform willed by the Second Vatican Council and prudently executed by Paul VI himself? Why such emphasis, in relation to necessary verification, on a centralization that risks harming the role of the episcopal conferences and infringing on the dignity of the local Church? Sometimes it is difficult to see the logic of the arguments made. After reminding us that “the Roman Rite is itself a precious example and instrument of true inculturation,” it is stated in contrast that “in preparing all translations of liturgical books, the greatest care is to be taken to maintain the identity and unitary expression of the Roman Rite,” and furthermore that “the work of inculturation, of which the translation into vernacular languages is a part, is not therefore to be considered an avenue for the creation of new varieties or families of rites; on the contrary, it should be recognized that any adaptations introduced out of a cultural or pastoral necessity thereby become part of the Roman Rite, and are to be inserted into it in an harmonious way” (LA, 5). In other words: Does the notion of inculturation mean openness to new forms and structures, or is it intended only to maintain the forms and structures currently received? CESARE GIRAUDO, SJ
The same uncertainty arises from the statement that “the norms set forth in this instruction are to be substituted (substituantur) for all norms previously published on the matter, with the exception of the instruction Varietates Legitmæ…” (LA, 8). In the face of such a definitive declaration, the liturgist cannot help but ask: Is it possible that the instructions Inter Oecumenici, Tres Abhinc Annos, Comme le Prévoit, and Liturgicæ Instaurationes have nothing else to say to us today? How is it possible that their message, which guided the liturgical reform after the Second Vatican Council, has exhausted itself all of a sudden? If we stop considering the first important instructions and continue considering just Varietates Legitimæ, does it not also seem that in this case we are closing the door to eventual future pronouncements on this matter? Reading 54 and rereading Liturgiam Authenticam, perhaps more than one person will have asked if we have arrived at the end of managing the vernacular languages in the editions of future liturgical books. But the recent motu proprio Magnum Principium has offered a clear and important response. Whoever is involved in the translation of liturgical books, whether professionally or for any other reason, is aware how complicated the approval process has become. The explanation is the frequent recurrence in paragraph 80 of Liturgiam 5 Authenticam of the pairing recognoscere/recognitio. In order to understand the meaning of the term it is sufficient to open any etymological dictionary which, noting the prefix re-, will state that re-cognoscere means knowing again what is already known by oneself or by others, in order to be able to review or correct the text. This is confirmed by the Explanatory Note of the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legislative Texts of April 28, 2006, which says: “The recognitio of juridical or liturgical texts is not a generic or a summary approval, nor a mere ‘authorization.’ On the contrary, it is a careful and detailed examination, or review, to judge the legitimacy and compatibility of universal or liturgical norms of the relevant texts with what the episcopal conferences want to promulgate or publish” (Note, 4).
5.In Liturgiam authenticam the pair recognoscere/recognitio appears 35 times: Nos. 4, 8, 15, 18, 22, 39, 60, 67 (2x), 68 (2x), 71, 73, 77, 79, 80 (4x), 81, 82, 83, 87, 97, 104, 106, 108, 114, 126, 127 (2x), 128, 130 (2x) and 131. ‘MAGNUM PRINCIPIUM’, INCULTURATION OF THE LITURGY
However, this Note depends on the instruction Liturgiam Authenticam, since it extensively quotes it later on to confirm the adopted interpretation.6 In short, someone looking in the Note for the definition of the termrecognitio in the instruction has the impression of entering into a kind of circular argument where, in order to explain something, the object of the explanation is in the premise itself. By taking on the responsibility to review seriously the translations developed by the various episcopal conferences, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments took on a task that is beyond its competence. In fact, even if its officials are very efficient, they cannot have the requisite knowledge for the evaluation of numerous languages, especially those that are non-European. But, besides this logistical 55 problem, there is another, more relevant concern. That is the role of the episcopal conferences which have seen a progressive downgrading of the competencies that the Conciliar constitutions and complementary documents had recognized in them. Let us consider above all Sacrosanctum Concilium, which says: “In virtue of power conceded by the law, the regulation of the liturgy within certain defined limits belongs also to various kinds of competent territorial bodies of bishops legitimately established.” (SC 22.2). Pope Francis has decided that he had to intervene in order to streamline a process that had stagnated due to an excessive focus on the notion of recognitio, and especially to restore to the territorial episcopal conferences the liturgical competencies that were unduly taken from them.
The redistribution of competencies between the center and the periphery The apostolic letter in the form of motu proprio is dated September 3, 2017.7 Its opening words “Magnum Principium”
6.“Also in nos. 79-84 of the Instruction of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline for the Sacraments, Liturgiam authenticam, especially regarding liturgical texts, the argument of recognitio has been widely developed. It reads: ... [the note goes on with the text quotation no. 80].” 7.The motu proprio was published in L’Osservatore Romano on September 10, 2017, pp 4-5, and came into force October 1, 2017. CESARE GIRAUDO, SJ
refer to article 36 of the Conciliar Constitution. Aware that the provision addresses what is in canon 838 of the Latin Code, the pope prepares its modification with the title. The document begins by recognizing the “weighty task (grave mandatum) of introducing the vernacular language into the liturgy, and of preparing and approving the versions of the liturgical books, a charge that was entrusted to the bishops” (MP, 1). Then it recalls that the Latin Church was aware not only “of the attendant sacrifice involved in the partial loss of liturgical Latin” (MP, 2) but also “of the difficulties that might present themselves in this regard” in the belief that “the vernacular languages themselves, often only in a progressive manner, would be able to become liturgical languages, standing out in a not dissimilar way 56 to liturgical Latin, for their elegance of style and the profundity of their concepts with the aim of nourishing the faith” (MP, 3). After mentioning the difficulties concerning the translations due to the delicate relationship between the single word and the context in which it is found as well as the broader context of the Catholic tradition, the document comes to the point: “It is no surprise that difficulties have arisen between the episcopal conferences and … the dicastery of the Apostolic See that exercises the task of promoting the sacred liturgy, i.e., the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments” (MP, 8). What follows is a section of recommendations that can be summarized in three points: 1) “Some principles handed on since the time of the Council should be more clearly reaffirmed and put into practice”; 2) “Nor must the right and duty (ius et munus) of episcopal conferences be forgotten, who … must ensure and establish that, while the character of each language is safeguarded, the sense of the original text is fully and faithfully rendered”; 3) “The canonical discipline currently in force, in canon 838 of the [Code of Canon Law] be made more clear,” in the sense that it should be realigned with Sacrosanctum Concilium, and also with Sacram Liturgiam, the motu proprio promulgated by Paul VI toward the end of the Council. Concretely, paragraphs 2 and 3 of canon 838, now modified, state: “§2. It is for the Apostolic See to order the sacred liturgy of the universal Church, publish liturgical books, recognize ‘MAGNUM PRINCIPIUM’, INCULTURATION OF THE LITURGY
(recognoscere) adaptations approved by the Episcopal Conference according to the norm of law, and exercise vigilance that liturgical regulations are observed faithfully everywhere. §3. It pertains to the Episcopal Conferences to faithfully prepare versions of the liturgical books in vernacular languages, suitably accommodated within defined limits, and to approve and publish the liturgical books for the regions for which they are responsible after the confirmation (post confirmationem) of the Apostolic See.” Since the regulations of the Congregation, which based its competence for the recognitio of the liturgical text on article 64 §3 of the apostolic constitution Pastor Bonus (1988) – “The Congregation reviews (recognoscit) the translations of liturgical books and their adaptations that have been lawfully prepared by conferences of bishops” – the motu proprio establishes that 57 from now on the article and regulation should be understood according to the new discipline. This is done by removing the verb “review” (recognoscit) from the first object (the translation of liturgical books), maintaining it only for the second (the adaptation of liturgical texts). As before, so today, everything continues to revolve around the key term recognitio (review). However, while in the past the Congregation had competence for the recognitio of liturgical translations that had been previously produced by episcopal conferences and were subject to the severe limitations of Liturgiam Authenticam, from now on, the entire competence for translations is restored to the episcopal conferences, the sole authoritative guarantors of their fidelity. For its part, the Congregation will continue to exercise the confirmatio of translations – the guarantee that procedures are respected and texts fully translated – and the recognitio of any adaptations proposed by the episcopal conferences that are not present in the Latin text. Official documents are often accompanied by attachments that illustrate their importance and further define their effects. The same thing happened with Magnum Principium. It was promulgated with a note and a commentary, both signed by the secretary of the Congregation, Archbishop Arthur Roche, dated September 9, 2017, and published as attachments to the motu proprio itself. CESARE GIRAUDO, SJ
The note, titled “Canon 838 in the Light of Conciliar and Postconciliar Sources” offers a review of the sources for paragraphs 2 and 3 of the canon, with particular attention to the meaning of the verb recognoscere and of the expression probare seu confirmare. Then it underlines the novelty that is found in the aforementioned paragraphs of the canon. The following explanation is pertinent: “The confirmatio is an authoritative act by which the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments ratifies the approval of the bishops, leaving the responsibility of translation, understood to be faithful, to the doctrinal and pastoral munus of the conferences of bishops. In brief, the confirmatio, ordinarily granted based on trust and confidence, supposes a positive evaluation of the 58 faithfulness and congruence of the texts produced with respect to the typical Latin text, above all taking account of the texts of greatest importance (e.g., the sacramental formulae, which require the approval of the Holy Father, and the Order of Mass, the Eucharistic Prayers, and the Prayers of Ordination, which all require a detailed review). The note is followed by a comment on the motu proprio, titled A Key to Reading the motu proprio Magnum Principium, which is a brief analysis of what has been said so far. But just when everything seemed quite clear, the question was reopened.
A further interpretation and an authoritative answer Between October 12 and 14, a handful of media reported, first in Italian translation and then in the original French, a lengthy letter titled Humble contribution pour une meilleure et juste compréhension du motu proprio ‘Magnum Principium.’ It was written by Cardinal Robert Sarah and addressed to the pope on October 1, 2017.8 The prelate mentions twice in the letter another letter of September 26 that had been sent to the episcopal conferences from the Congregation, and he intends this present
8.The text appeared on October 12, 2017, in Italian translation on the website “La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana” (http://www.lanuovabq.it), and on October 14, 2017, the original French was published exclusively in the print version of L’Homme Nouveau (page 9) and on its website (http://www.hommenouveau.fr) by October 20, 2017. ‘MAGNUM PRINCIPIUM’, INCULTURATION OF THE LITURGY
one as a continuation thereof, as a “humble contribution.” This letter, analogous to the two attachments published with the motu proprio, is composed of two parts: a comparison of the text of canon 838 before and after the motu proprio, and a commentary. The prefect of the congregation points out that, “for our dicastery, collaboration in the episcopal conferences’ work of adaptation and translation is fully included in these two words of canon 838: recognitio and confirmatio. What do they really mean?” In answering the question, however, he links the new praxis to the previous situation. In fact, while acknowledging that from now on the recognitio on the side of the Congregation will be exercised only on adaptations suggested by episcopal conferences, he gives to the notion of 59 confirmatio the understanding of strict control over translations that had previously applied to the understanding of the term recognitio. After the premise in which he says that “the authoritative text concerning liturgical translations remains the instruction Liturgiam Authenticam,” the conclusion follows: “There is therefore no noticeable change regarding the imposed standards and the result which must follow from them for each liturgical book. As will be seen below, given that the words recognitio and confirmatio without being strictly synonymous are nevertheless interchangeable, it suffices to replace the first by the second in the Instruction (Liturgiam Authenticam). This applies in particular to Nos. 79-84.” But then, one is compelled to ask, if this is the case, why the magisterial intervention? In the face of this interpretation, the pope felt obliged to intervene – in a way that observers are calling “unprecedented” – addressing a personal letter to his eminent interlocutor, and asking him to publish it on the same websites where his commentary had been published, as well as to “all episcopal conferences, and to the members and consultors of the dicastery.” The compliance with these requests brought the letter to public notice. Since the discussion here goes beyond the technicalities of translations, as it involves the relationship between the Holy See and the episcopal conferences, we try to summarize in the CESARE GIRAUDO, SJ
following eight points the pope’s clarifications concerning the suggested interpretations. First of all, (1) “the importance of the clear difference that the new motu proprio establishes between recognitio and confirmatio as stated in 838 §2 and §3 to repeal the practice adopted by the dicastery following Liturgiam Authenticam.” It is noted that (2) the “new canon 838, through the distinction between recognitio and confirmatio, states the different responsibility of the Apostolic See in exercising these two actions as well as the one proper to the episcopal conferences.” An important clarification follows, (3) “Magnum Principium does not support the idea that translations should be in conformity on all points with the norms of Liturgiam Authenticam, as was the case in the past. Therefore, 60 the paragraphs of Liturgiam Authenticam should be carefully reconsidered, including 79-84, to discern what is required by the Code for the translations and what is required for legitimate adaptations. Thus it is clear that some paragraphs of Liturgiam Authenticam have been repealed or rendered obsolete, and reformulated according to the new canon of the motu proprio (e.g., Nos. 76 and 80).” Therefore (4) the episcopal conferences have again their full competence with regard to translations, which means “the faculty to judge the quality and coherence of one and the other term in the translations from the original, while in dialogue with the Holy See.” Another consequence: (5) When it is not the case of “a relevant formula … like the Eucharistic prayers and in particular the sacramental formulas approved by the Holy Father,” the confirmatio is limited to verification “that all the parts which compose the typical edition have been translated.” It recalls that (6) the fideliter “in §3 of the canon implies a threefold fidelity: to the original text in primis; to the particular language into which it is being translated; and finally to the intelligibility of the text to its recipients.” It is highlighted (7) that the new recognitio exercised by the dicastery over adaptations, as well as on the translation of relevant formulas, “indicates only the verification and safeguarding of conformity to the law and the communion of the Church.” Finally, (8) it declares it impossible to give confirmatio the same attribute as the old recognitio concerning the fidelity of translations. ‘MAGNUM PRINCIPIUM’, INCULTURATION OF THE LITURGY
The continuity of liturgical reform in the wake of the Council By restoring competence over the translation of liturgical texts to the episcopal conferences, the motu proprio intended to reaffirm the principle of subsidiarity, according to which a higher authority should not overlap nor substitute for a lower or more local authority in the exercise of roles that are licitly attributed to the latter.9 Besides, who better to judge the conformity of the translations with the original texts than the episcopal conferences that have the experts who produced them? Every translation is itself an interpretation. After all, do we not call the translation of the Septuagint, the “iuxta Septuaginta interpretes”? And St. 10 Jerome, was he not considered the interpreter par excellence? A pure, sterile translation does not exist. Whoever pretends to translate in such a way will, sooner or later, face formulations 61 that do not translate but betray the original. For this reason we are grateful to the motu proprio because it restored the voice of the instruction Comme le Prévoit, with which the directives of Liturgiam Authenticam should now be harmonized and integrated. The liturgical tradition is not handed down as if by making photocopies, but only and always on the sure foundation of an organic progress, composed of suitable adaptations and providential enrichment. Another reason to be grateful is that the motu proprio recovers the impetus of liturgical inculturation, in particular that which is in harmony with the Church Fathers, Vatican II and the first synod of the Churches of Africa and Madagascar (1994), and looks for the “seeds of the Word” in the pre-Christian
9.For the application of the principle to the components of civil society, cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, No. 1883. If this wise principle regulates internal relationships within the societal body, it will also have something to say about the relationship between the various components of the ecclesial body. 10.“Sidonio Apollinare, writing from Gallia to ‘Pope’ Euphronius, bishop of Autun, united Origen ‘the allegorist’ to Jerome ‘the translator’ (Hieronymus interpres) and to Augustine ‘the dialectic’ in a common hymn of praise [...]” H. de Lubac, Exegèse médiévale, I, Paris, Aubier, 1959, 221. For the Latin quotation and references, an English translation is available in Medieval Exegesis: The Four Senses of Scripture, Vol I, Eerdmans, 1998. CESARE GIRAUDO, SJ
heritage of the young Churches.11 In keeping with the theme of inculturation – and consequently with the translation of the texts that are deeply linked to it – we can conclude with a quote from St. Ambrose who, in defending the practice proper to the Church of Milan, said, “In omnibus cupio sequi Ecclesiam 12 Romanam; sed tamen et nos hominis sensum habemus!” In applying and adapting to themselves this legitimate and much needed assertion of rights, representatives of the young Churches today could say: “We also desire to follow the Roman Church in all things; but we are also blessed with common wisdom! Let us translate our liturgical prayers for ourselves, in harmony with the gifts of grace that the Sower of the Word has always planted in the fertile furrows of our field.” Not only will the 62 communion of their praying faith with the Church of Rome continue – and with the rite that historically belongs to them – but they can also be of help to give new vitality to the lex orandi of the other Churches13: above all to that prayer with which the Church has always celebrated the Eucharist.
11.In this sense it is useful to reread paragraph 67 of the post-Synodal exhortation Ecclesia in Africa (1995), where it is stated that the positive values of the African traditional religions “can even be seen as a preparation for the Gospel, because they contain precious semin a Ve rbi which can lead, as already happened in the past, a great number of people ‘to be open to the fullness of Revelation in Jesus Christ through the proclamation of the Gospel.’” 12.Ambrose, De Sacramentis, 3.5. 13.There may be a providential liturgical enrichment here, similar to what is related in the history of the so-called Pontificale Romano-Germanicum of the 10th century. Originating in Rome, this already rich compilation of material was adapted to the Germanic Churches, to later return to Rome even further enriched. In fact it was used for the preparation of the Roman pontifical of the 12th century. North Korea and the Nuclear Crisis
Giovanni Sale, SJ
For months now, global public opinion has been living in fear of a possible nuclear war; a fear at times irresponsibly amplified by both the media and the continuous threats of war and mutual insults launched by the two protagonists of the moment, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, and the supreme 63 leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un. There are no precedents in recent history for such exchanges, or rather ad hominem insults. In the years of the Cold War, even at the most critical moments, the political clash between the two superpowers (U.S. and USSR) was mediated by the correctness of diplomatic form (the rest, including personal attacks, was left to the party newspapers and the various news agencies). In this way many occasions for conflict – including nuclear conflict – were avoided, like the famous Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, where in order to ensure peace, even Pope John XXIII was asked to mediate. The great fear is that the war of words could gradually lead to nuclear war. Both rivals have recently made shows of force: North Korea has expanded the number of missile launches and nuclear tests of increasingly more powerful weapons; meanwhile the United States has sent various naval and air units to the Pacific. This has led to a further increase of tensions. At this point the big risk is that a nuclear conflict could be triggered by either an erroneous assessment of the facts or an accident due to human error.
The hard work of parallel diplomacy While Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un exchange concrete threats of atomic war, U.S. and North Korean diplomats continue to meet prudently and carefully at the United Nations in New GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
1 York, according to the U.S. magazine The Atlantic. The hope is to lay the groundwork for formal negotiations between the two powers in the future, to reach an agreement on the controversial issues, and interrupt the dangerous escalation that could lead to a disastrous nuclear war. It is a question that has kept the international community on edge for months now. This is the so-called “New York channel” that began to function with a certain regularity at the beginning of the 1990s. It should be recalled that after the Korean War (1950-1953) and the resulting division of the peninsula into two, following the geopolitical logic of the Cold War (the North, with its capital in Pyongyang, under Soviet influence, and the South, with Seoul as its capital, under U.S. influence), diplomatic relations between 64 the United States and North Korea were interrupted.2 From that time on, Washington attempted to isolate North Korea in every way possible (as it had done with Cuba). This strategy began to change under the Reagan administration, which worried about the start of Pyongyang’s nuclear program. It was then that the “parallel diplomacy” between the two countries began. The two delegations met first in Beijing. Then, when the North Korean nuclear program began to intensify – at the beginning of the 1990s – the location chosen for the meetings, which became more frequent, was the United Nations in New York, to ensure neutrality and guarantee international coverage. In 1994 the parties succeeded in producing a shared document, a sort of framework agreement, that provided for concessions by both sides. In particular, Pyongyang agreed to freeze its nuclear program and
1.Cf. J. S. Wit, “Back Channel to North Korea,” in The Atlantic (www. theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/08/back-channel-to-north- korea/536721), August 13, 2017. 2.According to Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong, president of the Episcopal Conference of Korea, his country was forced from the outside to epitomize the Cold War tensions between Russia and the U.S. “The battle between these superpowers for their national interests,” the archbishop said, “was the principal cause of the fact that our territory is still today trapped in the geopolitical tensions of the second half of the 1900s.” (A. Spadaro, “Korea’s Present and Future: An interview with Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong” in Civ. Catt. English edition 1117 78-89). NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
Washington to withdraw from any plans for war against North Korea, and also to guarantee economic aid. In 2000 President Bill Clinton had even planned a visit to North Korea, although it did not take place because his second term in office was by then essentially over. While in the 1990s the relationship between the two countries seemed to have entered a phase of détente, after the year 2000 moments of tension and crisis arose, in particular toward the end of the Obama administration. In order to start official negotiations with the North Korean government, the White House had set the precondition that Pyongyang abandon its ambitious nuclear program, while North Korea requested that denuclearization be a subject of discussion within the meetings themselves. In July 2016, when U.S. sanctions against North 65 Korea targeted President Kim himself, the relations between the two countries reached a low point, and the “New York channel,” despite its earlier results, was immediately suspended in the hope it could be revived with the arrival of a new administration. According to Joel Wit, a political commentator at The Atlantic, new meetings then took place in August 2017, although in a political situation that had further deteriorated due to both the frequent missile and nuclear experiments conducted by the North Korean regime and the intensification of the verbal clashes between the two leaders. It should first of all be said that the positions held by the two delegations were very distant from the start, almost irreconcilable. The North Koreans argued that as a condition to start formal negotiations, they could accept a temporary suspension of missile launches and nuclear tests, but only on the condition that the United States commit to stopping joint military exercises with South Korea that were allegedly aimed at threatening President Kim and the North Korean leadership. For its part, the United States, continuing the political direction of Barack Obama, refused to come to the negotiating table as long as Pyongyang insisted on conducting nuclear tests and maintaining a bellicose attitude toward the United States and its allies. In Joel Wit’s view, if in 2014 during the Obama administration the United States had more carefully examined the proposal GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
from the North Korean regime, it would have recognized that Pyongyang “did not mean the complete cancellation of all exercises, only the end of activities intended to show that the U.S. and South Korea could remove Kim Jong-un from power and use nuclear weapons against the regime.” Essentially, if in 2015 Pyongyang had interrupted its missile launches and nuclear tests, today “Washington wouldn’t be facing the imminent threat of a North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile,”3 which apparently is capable of reaching the territory of the United States. The reality is that now it is difficult, if not impossible, for the two sides to start negotiations again as if nothing had happened in the meantime, even though both parties have good reasons to put an end to the 66 crisis and save face in the eyes of the international community and public opinion. According to Alex Wellerstein, a specialist in military strategy, no antimissile defense system is perfect. Thus if even only a single nuclear warhead were to strike Seoul or a city in California, it would cause approximately 400,000 deaths.4 Such considerations compel the senior leadership of the Trump administration to rule out the military option to deal with the North Korean crisis at this time. During a visit to Beijing last September 30, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told the press that the U.S. is trying “multiple direct channels of communication with Pyongyang.” Immediately, Trump, in a tweet praising Tillerson’s good intentions, wrote that he was ultimately only wasting time. Two weeks later the president contradicted his earlier statements, announcing that he was not against following the path of negotiations.5 To stop the escalation toward war, some say that at this point, in addition to the role of parallel diplomacy, a regional
3.J. S. Wit, “Una via pacifica per superare la crisi,” in Internazionale, August 18, 2017. 4.Cf. G. Sarcina, “B-52 nucleari pronti a decollare. Contro Kim?” in Corriere della Sera, October 24, 2017. 5.Cf. F. Venturini, “Quanto manca all’ora X,” in Corriere della Sera, October 29, 2017. NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS conference is also necessary with the participation of the states involved in the crisis along with China, Japan and Russia. Europe should also participate in the conference, as it “could facilitate the channels of which Tillerson speaks.”6 But that needs to happen quickly, before the situation deteriorates. On November 5, Trump began his long 12-day trip to Asia, which took him to five important Pacific countries (Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines). The president attempted to reassure his allies that Washington is able to eliminate the North Korean threat at any time and guarantee their security. In South Korea his words were conciliatory, despite defining North Korea as “a hell that nobody deserves.” Addressing U.S. military personnel, he said, optimistically: “In the end everything will be fine, you’ll see.” 67 Speaking in Seoul – almost consecrating the “Tillerson doctrine” – he stated that reaching an agreement would be the best thing for the two Koreas, and stressed that he already saw some signs in that direction. His words were enigmatic, but interesting. The most important meeting was with the president of China, Xi Jinping. As anticipated, Trump asked his counterpart to use his influence over North Korea to “force” Kim to block his nuclear program. Xi stated that he wants to collaborate to defuse tensions (i.e., with new sanctions and denuclearization) but promised nothing concrete.7 Some analysts have appropriately defined the current situation as a “slow-motion Cuban Missile Crisis.” In this regard, we should remember that the Cuban crisis was solved not with nuclear threats and verbal intemperance, but with patient and discreet diplomatic activity that allowed both sides to save face by making small concessions. To understand the North Korean crisis it is necessary to clear the mind of certain prejudices and “myths,” placed into
6.Ibid. 7.Trump’s trip to Asia produced reasonably good results on an economic level: Beijing and Washington signed agreements for $9 billion while Chinese financiers promised to spend an additional $250 billion that will be “spread out” over 10 years on contracts still to be defined. GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
circulation for reasons of political strategy, that have presented the Pyongyang regime to the world as cruel, corrupt and inefficient, and its leaders, in particular the members of the Kim dynasty, as crazy and unreliable.
A communist country? The most common myth circulated by the media regards the sanity of Kim Jong-un. They allege he is affected by serious mental problems, representing a grave danger to international security. It must be said that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is a communist state only in appearance: the Marxist- Leninist ideology adopted at the beginning by the founder of the Republic and father of the State, Kim Il-sung, “was a 68 superficial varnishing of an anti-colonial geopolitics”8 that at the time of the Cold War was aimed at obtaining political protection and considerable economic resources from Moscow. This way the North Korean regime protected itself against the so-called “imperialist threat” represented by the United States, allied with South Korea, that was interested in regime change on the peninsula for the benefit of Seoul, and the creation of a single democratic, pro-Western state, friendly to Washington. Some scholars actually consider the North Korean regime not to be communist in the common sense of the term, but simply fascist and authoritarian, military and racist, obsessed by the need to challenge outside enemies.9 Moreover, in this country power is transmitted at the family level, as if it were a hereditary monarchy. In fact, until now the position of Head of State has been passed from father to son (Kim Il-sung, founder of the “dynasty,” Kim Jong-il, and most recently, Kim Jong-un), although the latter appears to have launched internal clashes in the Kim clan. This would explain the murder of the current leader’s uncle in 2013, accused of high treason, and the killing of his half-brother (whose strange assassination by poison took place in a Malaysian airport), who was considered pro-Chinese and thus unreliable.
8.“Venti di guerra in Corea,” Limes, September 2017, 12. 9.Ibid. NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
According to North Korean political doctrine, the “body of the nation” is seen as a unitary entity, with a hierarchical order. At the top is the “father of the country,” benevolent and provident toward all. He is considered a sort of demigod to whom special public worship is dedicated, in which Koreans are educated from the time they are children. In particular, this cult is due to the founder of the state, Kim Il-sung, whose gigantic portraits are everywhere.10 From the beginning, that is, from 2011, the power of Kim Jong-un has been consolidated with the development of the nuclear and missile programs that were started by his predecessor. In recent years, four nuclear tests have been carried out, of increasing size and power (to the point of testing a powerful H-bomb, it appears), along with 85 missile launches. 69 During the government of Kim Jong-il there had been two nuclear tests and only 15 ballistic missile launches, carried out not for purposes of war but rather to obtain funding from the international community in exchange for periodic controls on its nuclear program. In 2012, just a year after his rise to power, Kim Jong- un changed the Constitution, identifying North Korea as a “nuclear state.” That same year, the “strategic missile command” was transformed into an independent body placed at the same level as the other military bodies. Furthermore, in 2013 the supreme leader announced the Pyongjin noson policy, which emphasizes the parallel development of the national economy and the nuclear program and – in Kim’s words – has the aim of “discouraging and repelling aggression and the attack of the enemy against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”11 It should also be recalled that until this time the central pillar of North Korean military policy has been the army, and in particular the infantry, whose light and heavy weaponry have
10.Moreover, the social structure is affected by the ancient tradition of castes in the country. This distinguishes the citizens-subjects (25 million) into different groups that are more or less favored by the regime based on their presumed loyalty to the chief and the elite in power. Cf. Ibid., 14. 11.A. Fiori, “Kim Jong-un gioca bene le sue carte,” in Limes, September 2017, 59. GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
been supplied by the Soviet Union. The North Korean army is still one of the largest in number in the world: it includes about 1 million soldiers on active service, although their weaponry is not modern. Now, since the regime has preferred to invest more in nuclear weapons than in the army, Kim is in the position of “having to produce sensational results in order to not risk disappointing the military that could threaten his power.” On the other hand, for the Pyongyang regime the so-called “nuclear choice” has been obligatory in a certain sense, to combat the presumed “imperialist threat.” The cost of creating a small atomic arsenal, which is relatively minor compared to the overall costs of the defense sector, “clearly shows that the nuclear deterrent has a higher cost-benefit ratio than a potential 70 rush to narrow the conventional gap with other nations.”12 The belligerence shown by Kim can be read in the context of this terrible plan that, despite being rash and irresponsible, is certainly effective from the standpoint of deterrence. After the grave famine of the 1990s caused more than half a million deaths, the regime abandoned the collectivist and statist economy of the Soviet model and adopted a sort of informal capitalism that over time improved the living conditions of certain sectors of the population, giving rise to an urban middle class. Under Kim Jong-il, the improvement of living conditions was assisted by funding from the international community in exchange for the limitation of the nuclear program. In more recent years, with the choice to increase the nuclear arsenal, these funds have ceased, and the economy is based on the development of private enterprises as well as a flourishing “illegal economy” based on contraband of all kinds that nevertheless benefits from the protection of the state apparatus. Despite the repeated economic sanctions imposed on the regime by the United Nations, in 2016 North Korean gross domestic product seems to have grown by 3.9 percent, even exceeding that of South Korea (2.8 percent) by a percentage point.13
12.Ibid., 61. 13.Cf. G. Olimpio - G. Santevecchi, “Corea del Nord Srl: Kim è un pazzo o un manager dinamico?” in Corriere.it, September 4, 2017. NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
Although the famine is over, living conditions for most of the population are still harsh: approximately 18 million North Koreans do not yet have electricity, nor do they have the most basic sanitary services (like water and sewers). Furthermore, malnutrition still causes one in four children to have rickets.14 Those who bet on the collapse of the Kim regime under the pressure of the economic crisis have been contradicted by reality, at least until now.
The presumed folly of the Kim dynasty As regards the alleged insanity of Kim Jong-un and the irrationality of the choices made by the North Korean leadership – above all that of nuclear weapons – this is a question that needs to be verified. Recently, some U.S. political scientists have argued 71 that the simple denigration and demonization of an adversary is actually counterproductive and risks hiding reality from the people who are called on to make the most important political decisions. Refusing to comprehend the reasoning of the enemy – it has been said – means not being able to create a true strategy for defense. To understand the decisions of the Pyongyang regime regarding nuclear weapons, we need to start from the recognition that from their point of view, the choices are fully rational, as they aim to produce important (or indispensable) political and strategic effects for the country, both internally and externally. In February 2017, a report on the North Korean regime drawn up by the Wilson Center, a U.S. government agency, noted this point: “American strategic thinking on North Korea has long been muddled by unproductively vague myths of irrationality, unpredictability and aggression. [...] This limits our ability to deal with North Korea effectively and respond to the threats.”15 Apparently President Trump does not agree with the analysis of this government agency; he seems to prefer information from other sources. If the decision of the North Korean regime to proceed with nuclear weapons is a fully rational option, we must understand the concrete political-strategic reasons behind it.
14.Cf. N. Kristof, “Nel regno di Kim,” in la Repubblica, October 7, 2017. 15.“Understanding the North Korean Regime,” Wilson Center, April 2017. GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
According to some analysts, the principal motivation is to preserve North Korea as an autonomous and independent state entity, and thus prevent it from being absorbed into the richer and more powerful South Korea, through the use of American weapons. That would mean the (probably bloody) end of the Kim dynasty, and for the leadership class, the loss of the privileges they hold. All of this means that North Korea is moving forward decisively with its nuclear program to keep an aggressive stance toward the U.S. and its allies, essentially to guarantee the preservation of the status quo. Now, if this situation has been preserved one way or another for more than 70 years, it means that despite the propaganda, the powers in the region also have an interest in maintaining this 72 situation. For China, an armed North Korea is a persuasive way to keep its regional rivals (Japan and South Korea) at bay, along with the United States. For the U.S., a nuclear North Korea is the crucial element that cements their system of alliances in a region that is very important from both a strategic-military standpoint and also an economic-trade standpoint.16 For most political analysts, the ultimate aim of North Korean nuclear strategy is to force the United States to negotiate an agreement that certifies the status of North Korea as a regional power. This view is also held by Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong, president of the Episcopal Conference of Korea, who stated in an interview given to our journal that “the demonstrative missile launches represent a strong message: the willingness to dialogue with the United States, but only on an equal footing. As a precondition for dialogue some people ask that North Korea, in advance, renounce nuclear experiments,”17 but according to the archbishop, that is exactly the aim of the negotiations, and cannot be a prior condition. This argument was recently supported by the declarations of North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho before the General Assembly of the United Nations on September 23: “Our ultimate goal,” the Minister said, “is to establish the balance of power
16.Cf. J. Heer, “Guerra di parole,” in Internazionale, August 18, 2017, 18. 17.A. Spadaro, “Korea’s Present and Future: An interview with Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong,” Cir. Catl. December 2017.. NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
[of North Korea] with the United States.” For the Pyongyang regime, such an agreement is of vital importance, not to defend itself from a U.S. attack, but to guarantee its political and economic autonomy from China. The regime is linked to China by the Friendship Treaty of 1961, according to which each of the two partners is obliged to assist the other if attacked. Kim’s nightmare is to become a simple vassal of Xi Jinping, who was reconfirmed as leader of the party and the state by the last Congress of the Communist Party of China. The growth of Chinese influence in North Korea, with the passage of time, would throw the current political and economic system into crisis, because it would push the sectors of the population less favored by the regime to demand reforms, and this could lead to the start of all kinds of disturbances. 73 According to these analysts, the goal pursued by Kim is clear and fully rational: “Reach an agreement with the United States in order to avoid being dominated by China, with the conviction that Washington and Pyongyang share the urgency of preventing Beijing from structuring its own sphere of influence in Asia on land and sea, which is a precondition for global hegemony.” Thus there is a certain logic in the presumed folly of the North Korean leader, “unless his continuous challenges, in terms of both rhetoric and nuclear weapons, get out of control, leading him to strike first, which would mean suicide, or if Trump loses his patience and activates the military option.”18
Kim’s nuclear choice Pyongyang’s upgrading of its nuclear program in recent years has both internal and external motives and is aimed at guaranteeing the survival of the authoritarian and violent regime that on an international level appears to be anachronistic and reactionary. From an internal point of view, Kim Jong-un uses nuclear weapons for propaganda, to show his subjects that he has solid control of the state and that North Korea is constantly threatened by its historical enemies. This is to justify the many hardships
18.“Venti di guerra in Corea,” Limes, ibid., 19. GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
to which the population submits with great patience, while also being indoctrinated by media entirely controlled by the regime. Actually, according to some reporting by Western journalists, North Koreans think that in the event of a war with the United States, their country would win, thanks to atomic weapons: “We will win,” the people say in unison, “without any doubt.”19 In relations with the outside, however, the nuclear arsenal represents an indispensable element of deterrence, and not only toward the United States. The abandonment of the program “would delegitimize [Kim] enormously, transforming him into a weak leader inclined to give into the threats of the great powers,” writes Antonio Fiori. “The precedents of Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi, in fact, corroborate the North 74 Korean conviction that the nuclear arsenal represents not only the sole negotiating chip they have to achieve geopolitical balance on the peninsula and more advantageous conditions for Pyongyang, but also a policy to avoid the ‘decapitation’ of Kim Jong-un himself.”20 We must not forget that North Korea is located in the heart of a vast region where there are numerous nuclear states (Israel, Russia, India, Pakistan, China and, of course, the United States), so it does not seem easy to persuade the North Korean leader to give up his ambitious program. During negotiations, however, he could make a deal with Washington to allow for inspections and probably limit his nuclear arsenal. Despite the constant insults launched on Twitter between “the most powerful man in the world and a little Asian despot”21 and the increasingly massive deployment of American air and naval forces in the Pacific, the U.S. military chiefs now believe that for the good of everyone it is necessary to stay calm and not make any mistakes, to avoid provoking the adversary. They
19.N. Kristof, “Nel regno di Kim,” ibid. Furthermore, according to Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong, many North Koreans think that the superpowers involved in the crisis exploit the dramatic situation “for their national interests,” whether geostrategic or economic, which certainly does not simplify the situation. Cf. A. Spadaro, “Korea’s Present and Future …,” ibid., 88. 20.A. Fiori, “Kim Jong-un gioca bene le sue carte,” ibid. 61. 21.V. Zucconi, “La gara di insulti tra Kim e Trump, bulli che fanno tremare il mondo,” in la Repubblica, September 23, 2017. NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS believe that on the American side there are no military options planned against North Korea. The Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, Mike Pompeo, despite pointing out the danger represented by the Pyongyang regime, which in his view “is on the cusp of obtaining an intercontinental ballistic missile armed with a nuclear warhead, capable of reaching the United States,” has stated, “Although Trump continues to personally deny it on Twitter, he prefers to leave the door open to diplomacy; a military intervention is only one of the options.”22 In any event, both Pompeo and U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis are in agreement. Mattis has said that the United States would be able to deal with a nuclear attack by North Korea “with a massive, effective and overwhelming response.”23 75 Not all military specialists concur, however. Some consider the time for diplomatic action to have already expired. Such action has not only been ineffective but has given Pyongyang precious time to carry out new missile launches and increasingly menacing nuclear tests. According to the geopolitical analyst Jacob Shapiro, the United States can in no way tolerate “a development that would expose the West Coast to possible nuclear attacks and would upset the dynamics of the Asia-Pacific quadrant. Thus the military option – launching American bombs against North Korean nuclear and missile sites – has become more realistic now.”24 Such an intervention would destroy most of the existing arsenal, causing incalculable damage to the enemy. It would also serve as a warning to those little dictators who share the same ambitions as Kim Jong-un.25 In short, the scholar (who appears
22.“Corea del Nord, il direttore della Cia: “Kim Jong-un a un passo dal colpire gli Usa. È panico nucleare,” in Libero (www.liberoquotidiano.it/news/ esteri/13266441/corea-del-nord-direttore-cia-mike-pompeo-a-un-passo-dal-colpire- Stati-Uniti.html), October 20, 2017. 23.Secretary Mattis recently said: “Our goal is not war, but denuclearization of the peninsula. Any nuclear weapon will be met with a military response” (F. Venturini, “Quanto manca all’ora X,” ibid.). 24.Cf. J. L. Shapiro, “L’America deve attaccare adesso o mai più,” in Limes, September 2017, 65. 25.Ibid., 69. GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
to be highly regarded by Trump) proposes a solution to the North Korean problem based on “preventive war,” which has already been tried by the United States against Saddam Hussein in Iraq, with results we are already familiar with.
The role of China in the current crisis The United States expects China, the historical ally of North Korea, to resolve the current crisis, and to force Kim, one way or another, to stop the nuclear experiments. In this regard, Trump said during a press conference, “It’s up to China to solve the North Korean problem.” Yet this is not the viewpoint of the Middle Kingdom, which continues to maintain a prudent and at times rather ambiguous attitude on the question. In fact, 76 Beijing has never gone beyond an apparent cooperation with Washington to slow the bellicose actions of Kim Jong-un. At the United Nations, China voted for the economic sanctions against Pyongyang proposed by the U.S., but at the same time it did not allow a total oil embargo to be included, thus allowing the “rogue state” to survive. In the current situation, China is making an effort (and probably will do so more decisively in the future) to encourage the two sides to resume negotiations, hoping to initiate a de- escalation with the so-called “double freeze”: the United States and South Korea will suspend joint military maneuvers, and Pyongyang will stop – at least for the moment – missile and nuclear tests in the Pacific. In the meantime, the Global Times, a Chinese pro-government newspaper, made it known that “if North Korea launches missiles that threaten U.S. territory, and the U.S. retaliates, China will remain neutral,”26 despite the cited Friendship Treaty of 1961. Washington and its allies interpreted this as a warning from Beijing to Pyongyang. In reality, nothing proves that this is China’s official position if a conflict were to break out. China knows well that maintaining strategic ambiguity on that question will push the United States not to launch
26.“Reckless game over the Korean Peninsula runs risk of real war,” Global Times, August 10, 2017. NORTH KOREA AND THE NUCLEAR CRISIS a preventive attack against the enemy, and thus to prefer the path of negotiations. It should be recalled that, during the Korean War of 1953, the United States did not expect China to intervene in the conflict in support of North Korea, but that is what happened, and the result was the division of the Korean Peninsula into two rival states.27 Ultimately for Beijing, North Korea is not an enemy to eliminate or neutralize, but only a problem to be managed. Actually, from a strategic viewpoint, it represents a sort of buffer state between the Chinese area of influence and that of the United States. China knows well that in a reunified Korean peninsula, U.S. soldiers (there are currently 30,000 of them present) would control the northeast border of the Middle Kingdom, which would be intolerable for Beijing. If the Kim regime were to 77 collapse due to implosion or be wiped out by the U.S. military, China would certainly demand the withdrawal of American troops from the peninsula. Moreover, China would immediately request the dismantling of the THAAD missile defense system recently installed in South Korea by the Americans. A potential collapse of the North Korean regime would provoke a chain reaction of other problems that are difficult to solve: the two great global powers would find themselves in an almost face-to-face confrontation in the Pacific. This explains why China prefers diplomacy and negotiations to the military option (whether preventive or not) and is unlikely to change its mind on this point.28 To emerge from the grave situation that is keeping the world on edge due to the fear of a possible, although limited, nuclear war, the two powers – the small one (North Korea)
27.Ibid. 28.Cf. R. Banzato, “Pechino non molla l’utile despota,” in Limes, September 2017, 117. Furthermore, from the Chinese point of view, the crisis between North Korea and the United States actually benefits China, because it shows a decline in U.S. leadership in the world and in the Pacific in particular, tarnishing the reputation of the United States also in the eyes of its historical allies, i.e., South Korea, Japan and the Philippines, who feel threatened by Trump’s bellicose and unpredictable rhetoric. It has been said, in the new international context, that President Trump, due also to his excesses, acts as a “useful idiot who contributes to accelerating the strengthening of Beijing as a reliable global power.” GIOVANNI SALE, SJ
and the large one (the United States) – must sit down and negotiate, as Pyongyang has requested since the 1970s, in order to seek a diplomatic solution that is acceptable to both sides. This does not mean to reward the bullying of a little Asian dictator, but to fulfill the serious duty of political mediation (even in difficult situations like this one) that is required of the largest global power. The Holy See recently brought together the leadership of the United Nations, NATO and the representatives of the states involved in the Korean crisis (as well as 11 Nobel Peace Prize winners) to discuss the urgent issue of nuclear disarmament, on which the pontiff has insisted for some time. On this occasion the current North Korean crisis was also discussed, along with 78 the need to avoid an armed conflict between North Korea and the United States. In receiving the delegation, Pope Francis, referring to the complexity of the challenges in the current international scenario, said, “Nor can we fail to be genuinely concerned by the catastrophic humanitarian and environmental effects of any employment of nuclear devices.” Their very existence, he continued, “is in the service of a mentality of fear that affects not only the parties in conflict but the entire human race. International relations cannot be held captive to military force, mutual intimidation and the parading of stockpiles of arms.” These, according to Pope Francis, “cannot constitute the basis for peaceful coexistence between members of the human family, which must rather be inspired by an ethics of solidarity.”29
29.Francis, “Prospects for a world free of nuclear weapons and for integral disarmament,” Clementine Hall, Vatican, November 10, 2017. What Becomes of Religion in a Post-Apocalyptic World?
Marc Rastoin, SJ
In recent decades, there has been a literary genre that has developed exponentially: the post-apocalyptic genre. These are works of a cultural nature, particularly films and novels, that describe the human condition following a major catastrophe, which, regardless of the reasons that caused it (wars, deadly 79 viruses, climate change, extraterrestrial invasion and so on), has destroyed civilization as we know it and has left a small group of survivors who are in search of a way to salvation. Although there were some works of this type prior to 1945, it is a widespread opinion that the accumulation of atomic bombs by the superpowers following Hiroshima and Nagasaki was the underlying cause of this new genre.1 With the ecological and climate crisis becoming increasingly recognized, works in this vast genre have gradually developed in a parallel manner.2 Some of these have even become iconic works, winning literary awards and leaving a mark on popular culture. One only needs to think 3 of the Mad Max series in the movies, or the influence of the novel by Cormac McCarthy, The Road, which was published in 2006, won the Pulitzer Prize in 2007 and was brought to the big screen in 2009. In addition, there are several authors known in other literary genres who have also experimented in this direction and have
1.Cf. H.-S. Afeissa, La fin du monde et de l’humanité. Essai de généalogie du discours écologique, Paris, Puf, 2014. 2.Cf. N. Magne, “Le catastrophisme climatique dans le cinéma grand public,” in Ethnologie francais 39, 2009, 687-695: available at www.cairn.info/ revue-ethnologie-francaise-2009-4-page-687.htm 3.The implicitly critical dimension of religion as support for an elite dictatorship (and of an irrational fanaticism) has been highlighted by the critics of the latest film by George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road, released in 2015. MARC RASTOIN, SJ
had great success. This is the case for one of the greatest thriller authors in the world, Stephen King, with The Stand (1978), and for the unmistakably British author of detective stories, P.D. James, with the extraordinary The Children of Men (1992), filmed by Alfonso Cuaron in 2006. These works clearly express something about our contemporary culture and its fears. However, how is religion perceived? And faith? Is there a place for Christ in “the world which will come after,” and what will become of religion?
Post-apocalyptic works as critiques of the present The typical trait of these frightening future situations does not consist of simply making another science-fiction fantasy 80 but of putting forth a critique, often biting, of the present time in which we live. They can, therefore, be placed in a lengthy history that began with Thomas More’s Utopia (1516), although there may be lesser-known precedents. In 1984 George Orwell (1948) denounced totalitarian danger in a world following the atomic bomb, while Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury (1953), questioned culture and the freedom to read and think in a world made uniform and depersonalized. It is also striking how the paradigm of the monastery survives in the middle of a world dominated by barbarians. In A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter Miller (1954),4 this theme is at the center of the plot. An abbey in the 26th century has the mission of saving books and restoring a culture of study. It is not surprising to find out that Miller, as a former soldier, remained deeply affected by the destruction of the Abbey of Monte Cassino during the Second World War. Still existing in the year 3781, the abbey plays a key role during a nuclear catastrophe, and the pope is at the center of a plan aimed at saving humanity on other planets. This is one of the few novels in which the Church, despite the difficulties in communication, maintains a central
4.This work inspired many other authors, like Carl Amery with Der Untergang der Stadt Passau (The Fall of the City of Passau), 1975. A protagonist in The Stand is named Mother Abigail, like the beautiful and clever wife of David in the Bible. WHAT BECOMES OF RELIGION IN A POST-APOCALYPTIC WORLD?
structure. In fact, in most cases, the intensity of the catastrophe has practically deprived humanity of rules, and almost all of the former political or religious structures have disappeared. Sometimes a single individual is the guardian of the book with all the risks it entails, as in The Book of Eli (2010), by Albert and Allen Hughes, where a strange soldier feels called to save the Bible from total destruction. We notice that when humanity is not 99 percent annihilated, as occurs in most of the literature and post-apocalyptic films, there are more “classic” works of science fiction that keep the Church as we know it, with its historic religious orders. The Sparrow (1996) comes to mind, in which Mary Doria Russell placed at the center of her story an expedition into space organized by the Society of Jesus,5 with the protagonist being an 81 eminent Cuban Jesuit linguist. Even in the filmArrival , by Denis Villeneuve (2016), the linguistic dimension is fundamental: How can one enter into contact with a universe where the systems of communication are radically different from our own?6 Yet in the majority of these stories, it is not the expedition into space that creates the point of reference, but rather the most mundane and basic activities in human life: eating, keeping warm, protecting oneself from bandits – basically, how to survive in a world without laws. We see a sort of “return to nature” where all of the devices from our technical world, to which we are so attached (computers, cellphones, cars, etc.), are nonexistent.
Is there still hope? In her extraordinary 2014 novel Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel describes a world reduced to a handful of individuals trying to survive. About 20 years after the catastrophe, a small, wandering group tries to make it possible for surviving humans to once again have access, through culture, to their ravaged
5.Ten years earlier, in his novel Fiasco (1986), the great Polish science fiction author Stanislaw Lem spoke of a similar expedition in which there was a Dominican friar. 6.Cf. Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell (2004), brought to the screen in 2012 by L. and L. Wachowski, where the English spoken several centuries after our time has greatly changed and simplified. MARC RASTOIN, SJ
humanity: they have chosen to continue to perform Shakespeare. At a certain point during their odyssey, they come across a group of people being led by a self-proclaimed prophet who holds an absolute and perverse authority over the group. The fact that at first their fanaticism does not seem obvious contributes to making these individuals even more terrifying. In the aforementioned The Children of Men, by P.D. James, the religious dimension is also present. The United Kingdom is dominated by a moderate dictatorship. In a world devastated by disasters, babies are no longer being born. Infertility is seemingly the fate of humanity, and the last children born are like living idols. At the same time, on street corners it is easy to get euthanasia kits (appropriately named “Quietus”), and 82 the population, numbed by a submissive media, are shown to be somewhat apathetic. The Christians seem to be divided into two categories. Some of them have formed groups of “Flagellants,” similar to their popular medieval ancestors,7 who call for repentance and are not interested in the usual politics or the huge camps where immigrants from the rest of the world are being held and are living in horrendous conditions. Others have chosen to join the resistance that opposes the dictatorship. They call themselves “Fish.” Is it by chance?8 For the good of humanity, they reject neither rationality nor collaboration with others. But not everyone has a pure heart… At the center of this novel, which is extremely complex on the theological level, there is also the question of hope: Is it reasonable to still believe that there exists real hope at the social level, or should it be given up? But is giving up such hope something that is actually bearable for the human species? It is striking that, following the example of Hannah Arendt in The 9 Human Condition (1958), the author chose the birth of a child
7.It is said that they originated in Italy, in Perugia, around 1260 with the hermit Raniero Fasani. 8.In ancient times the word Ichthys, which in Greek means “fish,” was used as a code of recognition among Christians. This is because the Greek letters for the word form an acronym for the words: Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior. 9.It seems that Hannah Arendt has said that she had this interior enlightenment about birth in a radically philosophical sense while listening to The Messiah, by Handel, specifically Isaiah 9:6 (“for unto us a child is born”), which she connected WHAT BECOMES OF RELIGION IN A POST-APOCALYPTIC WORLD?
as the sign of hope that is strongest of all.10 Here we find a deep connection with the core of Christian faith: a nativity in the middle of a violent world. St. Mathew would have appreciated the parable.
The risk of fundamentalism The contemporary obsessions with the confrontation of religion are emerging as if originating in these works: the fear of self-styled prophets and blind fanaticism provides simplistic responses to a situation where fear tends to prevail, extinguishing humanity and reason. Thus, as in periods of financial crisis when Gresham’s Law says that “bad money drives out good,”11 in most of these works during times of crisis “bad religion” tends to drive out the “good.” 83 What reasons do these authors find for hope? First of all, the memory of monasteries, seen as places of refuge, provide an often- repeated analogy, from Walter Miller onward. Second, one or two books still exist. Culture, which includes religious culture, can make it possible to reconnect to the past, prior to the catastrophe. In fact, it is difficult to understand how the Christian faith can survive without making any reference to the New Testament. All of these authors are very aware of the religious disguises, as well as the risk of tight control exercised by a handful of fanatics, or by the powerful, in this deep spring present in people. The last Mad Max is exemplary in this regard. In his novel 2084: The End of the World (2015), a tribute to George Orwell, the Algerian author Boualem Sansal brings to in an amazing way – but not without reason! – to the Gospel, and with which the author concludes chapter 5. Cf. A. Cavarero, “‘A Child Has Been Born unto Us.’ Arendt on Birth,” in PhiloSOPHIA 4 (2014) 12-30. 10.An element that also comes up in The Stand, with Frances Goldsmith’s much anticipated son. 11.Gresham’s Law was enunciated by the British merchant and banker Thomas Gresham in the 16th century. It emphasized the tendency of economic operators to pay exclusively with damaged coins (therefore with a lower intrinsic value than the metal used) in comparison to their nominal value and, at the same time, only accept new coins, whose intrinsic value reflected the nominal value. As a result, more and more “good” coins are held onto by those who receive them, while “bad” coins are used increasingly for transactions. MARC RASTOIN, SJ
narrative form his rejection of a totalitarian Muslim religion. However, since most of these works focused on Western civilization, a neo-fundamentalist Christianity is placed at the center of the criticism, as can be seen in the book The Parable of the Talents (1998), by the Californian author Octavia E. Butler, and in The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), by the Canadian Margaret Atwood. Not even Emily St. John Mandel’s prophet is very far from this tendency. In a certain sense, to perceive which aspects of religion are more or less necessary, one must read between the lines of these stories to see the fears of our time. They deal with a religion that values respect for reason and for the other in general, that promotes dialogue and communion, that rejects fear and 84 violence, and that makes it possible for everyone to find enough resources to sacrifice for others, not only for their own family or ethnic group. The tendency to the fragmentation and reduction of religion to the private sphere, increasingly confined to an intimate feeling, little or not-at-all inclined to communicating it with others, means, in effect, the transformation of Christianity to insignificance. These stories invite us, therefore, to value more than ever working with others for the betterment of humanity and for the preservation of an authentic community, even if it is restricted to an ongoing dialogue among believers. The goal is to avoid faith becoming a vague form of sentimentality, arbitrary and a scarcely believable refuge in the face of the crisis that humanity already knows (or cannot fail to know). If it is clear that the vast majority of these works comes from a primarily Christian frame of reference, it is equally clear that it concerns all the religions of the world. “The writing on the wall.”12
12.“The writing on the wall” is a recurring expression (inspired by Daniel 5:24-25) in these works, as in the film Stalker by Andrei Tarkovsky (1979), and in the novel A Maze of Death, by Philip K. Dick (1970) The Bible: A Library Written by Migrants
Dominik Markl, SJ
We have all seen too many migrants being pulled out of the sea: men, women and children who have drowned during their journeys. Many schools now have refugees in the classrooms: children and young people who by the grace of God have survived the crossing. And in many European countries there 85 are now many who are born with migrant backgrounds. These are sufficient reasons to reflect on flight and migration. A look at the history of humanity shows to what level we are all migrants. In the Bible we can see how frequently people thought of fleeing and migration already 2,000 years ago.
Human beings as migrants The human race reached Europe from the African continent 40,000 years ago. It had its origins there and spent 100,000 years of its evolution there. Humans were forced into being travelers to follow the herds of animals and horses to escape the other mammals. They were able to chase down gazelles and knock them out with stones. Only when the deserts of North Africa and Arabia began to appear did they cross the rift, the continental tectonic border, to India and then Australia and later to Europe. At the end of the last Ice Age Homo sapiens meandered even farther, crossing Siberia to reach America. And so it was as migrants that human beings discovered the world. In evolved civilizations humans organized themselves into large groups and left to find and conquer new lands, causing other populations to flee or become prisoners. In ancient times thousands of people were forced into exile through violence. And in times of peace hunger drove populations to move to new parts of the earth. Those seeking better opportunities DOMINIK MARKL, SJ
became economic refugees, thus avoiding the freezing European winters. The people we now call Americans were mostly economic migrants and refugees from Europe. Those dwelling in the North transported millions of people from Africa to the America’s pushing the original inhabitants into the remotest corners of the continents. Whether by force or temptation, humanity shaped its own existence with these travels and quests and depicted its great mobility in the ancient myths, touring the Mediterranean in the Odyssey, across the sea and the desert in biblical exodus. And the Bible too is a small library written by and for migrants that can be carried in your carry-on luggage.1
86 Adam, chased from Paradise: the origins of humanity Adam or “man” and Eve or “life” were forced to leave their dwelling place, Paradise, after the temptation to be dishonest overcame them, forcing them into a cowardly game of “hide and seek” (cf. Gen 3:8) and, after the shame of the vulnerability of their being naked, led them to hide themselves (cf. Gen 2:25; 3:10). This account of our origins in the Book of Genesis seems to fathom the psychic depths of the restless and unsettled nature of humankind. It has something to do with distrust, with an incomprehensible fear that stops the human person from standing up before God in freedom and truth. This appears evident as soon as guilt takes on real and dramatic form. Cain kills his brother Abel and after a brief period of insolent, arrogant denial – “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Gen 4:9) – he is soon overwhelmed by fear: “My punishment is greater than I can bear! Today you have driven me away from the soil, and I shall be hidden from your face; I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and anyone who meets me may kill me” (Gen 4:13-14). So just as God clothed Adam and Eve with leather garments (cf. Gen 3:21) in the same way God protects Cain with a mark to make his life bearable (Gen 4:15).
1.This article develops an earlier work, “Flucht und Migration! Was sagt die Bibel dazu?” in Religion lehren und lernen in der Schule 17/2 (2017) 4-7. THE BIBLE: A LIBRARY WRITTEN BY MIGRANTS
The remainder of the Book of Genesis is brimming with episodes of flight and migration. Only the family of Noah survives the flood. Crammed into the ark on Mount Ararat, humankind starts anew under the sign of the rainbow (8:13- 9:16). The construction of the Tower of Babel – by which humankind sought to make its own name – actually resulted in division by language and land (11:1-9). Abraham, the patriarch of Israel, came from Ur in the south of what is now Iraq and emigrated with his father Terah to Haran in the north of Syria (11:31). Then came the call from God who led him into a new land (12:1). But his family had to flee again. Famine forced him and later the entire family of Jacob (Israel) to head for Egypt (12:10; 46:6). The great biblical stories like those of Joseph and his 87 brothers, and Naomi and Ruth, all take place in foreign lands. In a land of strangers and insecurity, relations reach dramatic depths. It is in a foreign land that the reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers occurs (cf. Gen 45:1); there, absolute faithfulness is seen in two women (The Book of Ruth). On the basis of resolved conflicts, the family of Israel grows in Egypt and becomes a people (cf. Ex 1:1-7); and King David comes from the faithfulness of Ruth (cf. Ruth 4:22). In foreign lands, in exile and diaspora we see the wisdom of Daniel, the strength of Esther and the religious faith of Tobias. While they were fleeing or traveling, Jacob (cf. Gen 28; 32:25-33), Elijah (cf. 1 Kings 17:1-7) and Jonah meet God who is very close, overwhelming and surprising. Amid the dangers of his journey Tobias feels the protection of the angel Raphael, becoming in turn a healer. Many stories in the Bible develop what Genesis shows as the history of the origin of humanity: journeying is the aim of humankind; it is prophetic and full of development as it opens up ever-new perspectives.
Exodus: founding myth and fundamental ethos Before the burning bush, in the middle of the desert, under Mount Sinai with its red-brown granite, and with nothing on his feet and a covered face, Moses asks God for God’s name. God replied, “I am who I am,” or “I will be what I will be” DOMINIK MARKL, SJ
(Ex 3:14). At that point the meaning of the name YHWH at the burning bush is mysterious and in a tangible way the very characteristics of God are presented. YHWH appeared to Moses because he listened to the cry of the Israelites in Egypt (cf. Ex 2:23-25; 3:7, 9) and wanted to engage with them fully and liberate them from the power of the Pharaoh (cf. Ex 3:8, 15-22). The flight across the Red Sea (cf. Ex 14) in fact leads to the birth of a people. It is as a people of refugees that Israel becomes the people of God. With Mount Sinai, what seemed to be a romantic myth or tale full of suspense turns out to be an important principle of social ethics. In making the alliance at Sinai (cf. Ex 19-24), God asks from his liberated people a commitment that is connected 88 to its liberation: “You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt” (Ex 23:9). The God of the Bible is a God of liberation, a God of migrants. Laws protecting foreigners are found throughout the Pentateuch and increase as in a symphonic crescendo. While the Book of the Covenant (cf. Ex 21-23) limited itself to prohibiting the oppression of foreigners, the Holiness Code goes much further: “The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God” (Lev 19:34). While the Holiness Code recommends that human love be shown to the foreigner, Moses takes this further in Deuteronomy. It is indeed God “who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and who loves the strangers, providing them food and clothing. You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Dt 10:18-19). This fundamental phrase recurs as a refrain throughout the laws of the Pentateuch. The experience of the Exodus by Israel is the basis for its ethos (particular character), as is explained in the Torah, already at the beginning of the Decalogue (cf. Ex 20:2; Dt 5:6) and in the teaching given to children (cf. Dt 6:20-25). The experience of freedom brings with it a commitment. THE BIBLE: A LIBRARY WRITTEN BY MIGRANTS
The trauma of exile and the dream of a homeland From Abraham setting out on his journey to the death of Moses, the Pentateuch brings our attention to the Promised Land that Israel finally reaches, being led by Joshua (cf. Gen 12:1; 13:14-15; Dt 34:1-4). The remainder of the (Deuteronomic) history of the people, however, precipitates the loss of that same land. Around 720 B.C. the Israelites of the Northern Kingdom were deported by the Assyrians to Mesopotamia (cf. 2 Kings 17), and the same destiny befell Jerusalem and Judah around 587 B.C. under the Babylonians (cf. 2 Kings 25). Those who were not forced to go to Babylonia fled to Egypt (cf. 2 Kings 25:26): it is the anti-exodus, prohibited by God (cf. Dt 17:16; Jer 42:13- 19) but already foreseen by Moses (cf. Dt 26:68). This is how the story finishes. The reason for the catastrophe, according to the 89 Deuteronomists, is the anger of God, at the end of the day the fault of the kings and the people (cf. 2 Kings 24:20). Moses had already foreseen, in his worst curses, the horrors of siege and of being a stranger (cf. Dt 28:48-68). In what Moses says, however, hope for the future is clearly stated: “When all these things have happened to you, the blessings and the curses that I have set before you, if you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God has driven you, and return to the Lord your God, and you and your children obey him with all your heart and with all your soul, just as I am commanding you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you, gathering you again from all the peoples among whom the Lord your God has scattered you. Even if you are exiled to the ends of the world, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there he will bring you back” (Dt 30:1- 4). The choice between life and death depends on obedience to the Torah (cf. Dt 30:15-20) that nevertheless is very easy to observe as it is close to the faithful, “in your mouth and in your heart” (Dt 30:14). The Torah, written down by Moses (cf. Dt 31:9), becomes the word of life taken to heart by those who live in the diaspora and those who returned to the Promised Land (cf. Dt 32:46). DOMINIK MARKL, SJ
Songs of lament and books of consolation Even so, the trauma of the destruction of Jerusalem was not forgotten. “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and there we wept when we remembered Zion” (Psalm 137:1). The Book of Lamentations illustrates the pain in detail with poems organized alphabetically. They culminate in a desperate appeal: “Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored; renew our days as of old, unless you have utterly rejected us, and are angry with us beyond measure (Lam 5:21-22). The great prophets were deeply influenced by exile and flight. Ezekiel was among the exiles on the Euphrates (cf. Ez 1:1-3). Jeremiah disappeared among those who fled to Egypt (cf. Jer 43-44). The Book of Isaiah is like it is divided into 90 two: a sort of abyss opens up between the proclamation of the imminent exile (cf. Is 39) and the prediction of its ending (cf. Is 40). There is an indescribable pain that unleashes heated words of consolation that bring to mind the dominant themes of the exile. “Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term … A voice cries out: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God’” (Is 40:1-3). The experience of prison transforms into a call to freedom. “I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness” (Is 42:6-7). Jeremiah is the one who relentlessly proclaims and develops the catastrophe of exile. But the central part of his extensive accusation against Israel contains a passage of consolation (cf. Jer 30-31), sometimes expressed with male images, at other times with female ones: “But as for you, have no fear, my servant Jacob, says the Lord, and do not be dismayed, O Israel; for I am going to save you from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease, and no one shall make him afraid … I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. Again I will build you, and you shall be THE BIBLE: A LIBRARY WRITTEN BY MIGRANTS
built, O virgin Israel! Again you shall take your tambourines, and go forth in the dance of the merrymakers” (Jer 30:10; 31:3-4). The affirmation of Jeremiah about returning home culminates in the promise of a “new covenant” (Jer 31:31) that gives the name to the New Testament.
“Foxes have dens … Go and make disciples of all nations” Israel’s flight to Egypt and the exodus are echoed inthe infancy narrative of Jesus of Nazareth, according to Matthew (cf. Mt 2:13-21). Jesus himself, when he begins his mission, becomes restless. It is in Jordan – on the continental rift, the point of transit for the human race and where Israel entered the 2 Promised Land – that Jesus receives baptism (cf. Mt 3:13) . He becomes an itinerant preacher, he has no den as foxes do, nor a 91 nest like the birds (cf. Mt 8:20; Lk 9:58). His disciples go all over the world with him. During his life he sends them to the villages and cities of Palestine (cf. Mt 10; Lk 10). After his resurrection he extends his mission to the entire world: “Go then and make disciples of all nations” (Mt 28:19). Those who undertake this journey come to know all the dangers of the life of a wanderer: xenophobia, robbery, shipwreck (cf. 2 Cor 11:25-27). The early Church begins with missionary journeys, as the Acts of the Apostles narrates. There is no surprise that the earliest Christian documents are letters, written according to the stops made by Paul, motivated by concern for those who have remained behind. The politically subversive stubbornness of the Christians, who refused to kneel down before the statues of Roman emperors, forces them into exile again. For those who did not flee, there was the hope of one last journey: that toward the heavenly Jerusalem (cf. Rev 21-22).
We are all migrants, with the Bible in our carry-on luggage We all come from Africa. Human beings are migrants by nature: since Genesis we have always been fleeing. Adam
2.Cf. Jean-Pierre Sonnet, Le chant des montées. Marcher à Bible ouverte, Paris: Desclee de Brouwer, 2015, 85-88. DOMINIK MARKL, SJ
was chased from Paradise and remains restless, tormented by sweat and anxiety. In history the Hebrew diaspora and the Christian mission encounter Islamic expansion with the caravans, the Silk Road, colonization, the discovery of new worlds. The history of religion is intertwined with the history of the mobility of human beings. What an enormous contrast there is between the story full of hope of the liberation through the Red Sea and, in our time, the flight across the Mediterranean! The latter has become the horror story of our times. This is the Mediterranean that since Phoenician times connected Africa, Asia and Europe in one single cultural area and allowed Rome to become a world empire on three continents. Now it has become the moat in front of the European 92 Fortress. The founding Judeo-Christian myth reminds us of its foundational ethos. The entire world is entrusted for safekeeping to humanity in its entirety. There is no other alternative than to cultivate together this immense treasure. We have always been migrants on the road toward eternity. We are guests on the Earth, and in our carry-on luggage we bring the Bible with its wisdom accumulated over thousands of years, together with other great books. Only on our lips and in our hearts can it become the word of life. The way in which we travel and are guests and reach out to other migrants shows our attitude before our mysterious origin and destination.