WHAT HAPPENED AT THE 2015 SYNOD? PART O An Urgent and Disturbing Aside (Continued)

We continue our analytical, diagnostic, and sociological look at our Church today in order to understand better what Pope Francis needs to do in order to make the Church better in God’s eyes (and in the eyes of all the people on our planet), and so that we can help him in every knowledgeable way we can in this God-given task. This also will help us better understand the considerable opposition Pope Francis faces because many people (both Catholic and not Catholic) do not like or appreciate what he is trying to do. The truth also is that most of us do not like change (even if it is needed) because it requires work and attention and shakes up the comfortable nests we all have built for ourselves. In sum, change is hard for most people! These are all good and urgent reasons for us to continue to do what we are doing and I ask you for your patience to continue on this journey which is truly a long one because the Catholic Church is quite a complex complicated phenomenon. I also thank you for undertaking this journey with me and I hope and pray that it is life-giving and grace-full for you! This journey really is a journey of coming to a new ecclesiology by understanding and following our Holy Father. And, therefore, it also requires a great deal of praying. Please pray for all of us who are on this journey and I especially beg you for prayers for myself and my work/ministry. Thank you!

At this point I would like to return to the comments made about one of my recent homilies (outlined earlier) that had to do with our Muslim brothers and sisters. I am appalled and frightened by the growing anti- thinking and feeling in our Western culture including Catholics (). Simply put, if we believe in Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Risen Brother and His salvation-giving gospel, we cannot be Islamophobes! It is that simple!

Those Catholics who oppose the Pope and his stance of respect for Islam and his opposition to Islamophobia are really ignorant about today’s Church and the Church of the last fifty years! Francis’ stance towards Islam is not something he initiated and so it is very unfair to blame him because he is following the Church’s tradition since the Council of Vatican II (1962-1965). Here is what Vatican II says about Islam: “Upon the Muslims, too, the Church looks with esteem. They adore one God, living and enduring, merciful and all powerful, Maker of heaven and earth and Speaker to men/women. They strive to submit wholeheartedly even to God’s inscrutable decrees, just as did Abraham, with whom the Islamic faith, is pleased to associate itself. Though they do not acknowledge Jesus as God, they revere Him as a prophet. They also honor Mary, His virgin mother; at times, they call on her, too, with devotion. In addition they await the day of judgment when God will give each person his/her due after raising him/her up. Consequently, they prize the moral life, and give worship to God especially through prayer, almsgiving, and fasting. “Although in the course of the centuries many quarrels and hostilities have arisen between Christians and Muslims, this most sacred Synod [Vatican II] urges all to forget the past and to strive sincerely for mutual understanding. On behalf of all humankind, let them make common cause of safeguarding and fostering social justice, moral values, peace, and freedom.” (Paragraph #3 of the Declaration on the Relationship of the Church to Non-Christian Religions, The documents of Vatican II in a New and Definitive Translation, Father Walter M. Abbott, S.J., General Editor and theologian)

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Please understand, and especially those of us who do not know our Church history, that this Declaration was promulgated by the then-Pope, Blessed Pope Paul VI. Paul prepared for the implementation of this Decree/Declaration by establishing on May 17, 1964, a secretariat for development of relations with non-Christian religions, headed by Paolo Cardinal Marella. “The Secretariat for Non-Christian Religions has an episcopal committee of bishops from all parts of the world, consultors in Rome, and consultors throughout the world, including laity. The secretariat’s aims are to create a climate of cordiality between Christians and followers of other religions, to dissipate prejudice and ignorance, especially among Catholics, and to establish fruitful contact with members of other religions concerning questions of common interest.” (ibid., footnote 1) (emphasis added) The second footnote here has relevance to our present investigation and so does the third footnote. The second reads: “The stress on what men/women have in common was one of Saint Pope John’s [Saint Pope John XXIII who convoked Vatican II] operative principals. As he often made clear, this approach does not deny or neglect differences; it simply gives primary consideration – as this Declaration says – to common goals and interests.” (ibid., footnote 2) The third footnote reads: “The solidarity of humankind was another of Saint Pope John’s operative principles, evident from the very beginning of his pontificate and in his first encyclical. The teaching of this sentence of the Declaration has a detailed history in papal statements running back for decades [the year of this being written is 1966].” (ibid., footnote 3, emphasis added)

Paragraph three of this important Vatican II document has a very interesting and informative footnote: “Students of the history of relations between Christians and Muslims will find this section a remarkable change in the Church’s approach. One thinks inevitably of the Crusades (but note that there were Muslim crusaders as well as Christian). Those were ideological wars. This Council [Vatican II], as it also makes clear in the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, wants to disassociate itself from war. “Many readers will no doubt find it surprising to see how much Christians and Muslims actually have in common in their beliefs. Many Christians have thought of Muslims as fanatical followers of a religion of power and ignorance, sexually excessive (polygamy, ideas about heaven) etc. [However, this thinking is not correct in regards to Islam!].” (ibid., footnote 13)

There is another place in the Vatican II documents where Islam is mentioned favourably and this is in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium). Here it is: “The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator. In the first place among these there are the Muslims, who, professing to hold the faith of Abraham, along with us adores the one and merciful God, who on the last day will judge humankind. Nor is God Himself/Herself [or GodSelf] far distant from those who in shadow and images seek the unknown God, for it is God who gives to all persons life and breath and every other gift (cf. [see] Acts 17:25-28), and who as Savior wills that all people be saved (cf. 1 Timothy 2:4): [Here the Constitution is moving into the situation of people who have “primitive” religions or who have no clear communal religion like Islam or Judaism, etc.].” (paragraph #16 of the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, The Documents of Vatican II in a New And Definitive Translation, Father Walter M. Abbott, S.J., General Editor and theologian)

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In the preceding reference, Doctor Claud Nelson gave a response to this document (this is done for all the individual Vatican II documents included in the above reference). His response was interesting. Here are his comments on the part of the document that speaks about Islam. These comments are preceded (and followed) by his comments about the document’s views on Judaism; for him this was a mixed bag. Here is what he said about the document’s view of the other world religions including Islam: “In a very long run, those sections of the Declaration dealing with Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and primitive religions may prove to be even more important than the section on the Jewish religion. One is grateful for their inclusion, and for their respectful and cordial tone … [Overall,] the Declaration calls forth our commendation and gratitude.” (Doctor Claud Nelson, official Religious News Services correspondent at Vatican II for the National Conference of Christians and Jews, and a theologian)

All of the above gives us the historical background needed to understanding how Pope Francis today relates to Muslims and the Islamic Faith. Maybe at this time the following needs to be said loudly and strongly and clearly: if a person does not know the above history and if the same person has not done his/her homework or any digging in regards to the question, maybe he/she should simply keep quiet instead of blaming Francis for continuing Catholic tradition and development in this area. Simply put, if a person does not understand an area like this from the Catholic context, please just keep quiet and not make ignorant statements about the matter. Thank you! Not to do this is to expose yourself to becoming a non-Gospel Islamophobe who stereotypes and scapegoats! And yes, I do feel strongly about this!

A good modern look at this question is to read the short exposition of Islam put out by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops last year (2015). It is available at www.cccb.ca Let us now bring this investigation/reflections to the modern period of Francis’ papacy – to today. We begin with the fact that Francis consistently has spoken out for refugees and particularly for those of the Islamic Faith. And do not forget his February (2016) visit to the Muslim country of Turkey; he also prayed in Istanbul’s famous Blue .

From the Muslim end of things, there was an amazing Spirit-filled document released near the end of January 2016; I wonder how many of today’s Islamophobes even know anything about it! Here is The Catholic Register’s editorial report on it. “A remarkable statement signed by more than 200 prominent political and religious leaders from the has boldly asserted that Islamic persecution of Christians and others is ‘unconscionable’ and must end if the world is to find peace. “More obvious words have seldom been spoken, of course. But they deserve applause just the same. The oppression of religious minorities in the name of Islam – from simple discrimination and imprisonment to killings to religious and cultural – is a scourge on the 21st century that will continue unless peaceable Muslims rally to end it. So the Marrakesh Declaration, signed January 27 [2016] in by leaders from 120 predominantly Muslim states, merits praise and support as a vital step towards peaceful coexistence. “The declaration was written to honour the Medina Charter, which Muslims believe was penned 1400 years ago by the Prophet to assure religious for the people of the multireligious state of Medina [in Saudi Arabia]. The Marrakesh Declaration revives the spirit and acknowledges that modern extremists have created a crisis by using warfare to undermine legitimate governments, terrorize citizens and enforce a rigid interpretation of the [Koran – the Muslim Scriptures] that distorts Islamic principles. It unequivocally affirms that it is ‘unconscionable to employ religion’ as justification to persecute minorities, and urges Muslim states to reject bigotry and violence, while enshrining religious rights. 3

“These sentiments have been expressed often by Western leaders and moderate Muslims. But a joint declaration of this clarity and breadth from religious and political leaders representing most of the Muslim World is unprecedented.” (Editorial, “It’s a start,” The Catholic Register, February 7, 2016) American Cardinal Theodore McCarrick was one of the 50 non-Muslim religious leaders at the Conference where this document was signed said it is really a “truly great document, one that will influence our times and our history.” He added that this is a document for which our world has been waiting. “Declarations alone will not strip weapons from terrorist organizations like the Islamic State [a real misnomer!], al-Qaeda, Boko Haram [Nigeria] and al-Shabab [another group of terrorists in Africa], but perhaps strong words can begin to disarm their legitimacy. That is why this declaration can become important. Repeated often and widely enough with conviction, maybe these decent words by well-intentioned people can spark a groundswell to isolate the fundamentalists from ordinary Islamic society. Jihadist [terrorist] armies rely on sympathizers and radicalized recruits. These people need exposure to sincere teachings of respect and tolerance from their political and religious leaders. This declaration sketches a blueprint for that message. “Much of the world regards [the corruption of true Islam] and its war on others as a global cancer. The Marrakesh Declaration alone is no cancer cure but it offers encouragement that a cure may someday be found.” (ibid.) Amen! This Declaration gives all of us hope. Please pray that it will influence people; also please pray for those Muslims that are trying to bring peace to the world and also for those who are trying to blow up our world as well – pray for the latter’s conversion! And take a moment to thank God and Allah for this Declaration! P.S. Do not panic here because Arabic Christians address God as “Allah”!

Please also realize that there are official dialogues throughout the world between Catholics and Muslims where great progress is being made. This is nothing new! And there are a large number of events too of collaboration among Catholics, Muslims, and Jews. An example was “A Trialogue: Mercy in the Scriptures” which was a discussion at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers, New York, sponsored by the Jesuits and America Media, the publisher and ministry that puts out America magazine. This was held on Sunday afternoon on March 6, 2016. The presenters included Father Patrick Ryan, S.J. (theologian and author), Father Matt Malone, S.J. (theologian, author, and editor- in-chief and president of America Media), Doctor Mehnaz Afridi (Islamic), and Doctor/Rabbi Daniel Polish. I would have loved to have been there but I was unable to make it!

One more thing. Please be respectful when you speak and write about Muslims. Muslim is always capitalized and not written with a small-case “m” (this usage is seen a belittlement of Islam and so should be avoided). Do not use the antiquated Moslem; Muslim is proper form. And do not refer to Muslims as Mohammedans or Muhammadans – this is really insulting and condescending and is akin to Catholics being called papists or spicks or micks – all degrading! Thank you for following this proper etiquette.

TO BE CONTINUED

Father Fred Scinto, C.R., Resurrection Ministries, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada ([email protected]) (519-885-4370 or toll free 1-877-242-7935)

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