The Jesuit's Fourth Vow the Post-Charismatic the Changing Role of Brothers

The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow

The Post-Charismatic

The Changing Role of Brothers

Volume 41 Number 2 March/April, 1982 Rev~t-:w Eor REI.~GIOUS (ISSN 0034-639X), published every two months, is edited in collaboration with the faculty members of the Department of Theological Studies of St. Louis University. The editorial offices are located at Room 428:.~601 Lindell Blvd.: St. Louis, MO 63108. REVIEW For RELIGIOU,’:, is owned by the Missouri Province Educational Institute of the Society of Jesus. St. Louis, MO. © 1982 by REVIEW FOR REI.IGIOIJS. Composed, printed and manufactured in U.S.A. Second class postage paid at St. Louis. MO. Single copies: $2.50. Subscription U.S.A.: $9.00 a year: $17.00 for two years. Other countries: $10.00 a year: $19.00 for two years. For subscription orders or change of address, write: Rt:vlt:w v’or Rt:LWaot~s: P.O. Box 6070; Duluth, MN 55806.

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March/April, 1982 Volume 41 Number 2

Manuscripls, books for review and correspondence wilh Ihe editor should be sent to Rl.:VlEW E(m Rl-:i.l(;Iou.~; Rnom 428; 3601 Lindell Blvd.; St. I.ouis, MO 63108. Questions for answering should be senl to Joseph F. Gallen. S.J.; Jesuit Communily; St. Joseph’s University; (Sity Avenue al 541h St.; Philadelphia, PA 19131. Back issues and reprints should be ordered from R~-:v~-:w ~-ox R~-:LI(;~OUS; Room 428; 3601 Lindell Blvd.; St. Louis, MO 63108. "Out of print" issues and articles not published as reprints are available from University Microfilms Internationah 300 N. Zeeb Rd.; Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Principles of Discernment

Robert F. Morneau

The last article of Bishop Morneau to appear in these pages was "’Dives in Misericordia: Themes and Theses," which appeared in the September issue. Bishop Morneau may be addressed care of the Ministry to Priests Program; 1016 N. Broadway; De Pere, WI 54115.

The journey of life is filled with many choices, the consequences of which can be far-reaching. But as we enter into the decision-making process we are not necessarily alone. Friends and counselors frequently give helpful advice. Also we have the advantage of both personal and collective experience from which we can extract patterns and principles that provide guidance and wisdom. This essay spells out ten such principles that can help us discern God’svoice and respond to the Lord’s call with generosity and courage. A basic belief underlies this endeavor: growth is much more likely to happen when we critically reflect upon our experience and watch for reoccurring patterns than when we simply move from one spontaneous experience to another without~explicitly dealing with any of them. Reflection, done in prayer and with serious ii~tent, provides insight and energy for spiritual development. Growth in the Lord is greatly impeded when reflection and articulation are absent. A three-fold method will be used: l) the articulation of ten principles of discernment; 2) a series of quotations from various authors who reflect some dimension of the basic principle; 3) a tripartite commentary which includes a reference to Scripture, an image illustrating the principle and an example from literature providing a case study of our theme. Discernment is a gift to be exercised; principles are abstractions offering meaning. Both are significant for human and spiritual growth. This essay presents the principles; the reader brings the gift and the experience. The hope is that the roads intersect rather than run parallel.

1. Discernment is a prayerful process by which ~xperiences are interpreted in faith. 161 162 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

By discernment of spirits is meant the process by which we examine, in the light of faith and in the connaturality of love, the nature of the spiritual states we experience in ourselves and in others. The purpose of such examination is to decide, as far as possible, which of the movements we experience lead to the Lord and to a more perfect service of him and our brothers, and which deflect us from this goal.~ Basically, as I see it, Discernment may be defined as the meeting point of prayer and action. That is, discernment is the art of recognizing what God is asking of us--what he would like us to do with our lives, how he wishes us to respond to the concrete life-situations which we encounter in following our vocation? The Christian who reflects on his own experience and on that of the community, who seeks to discern in these the divine voice, and who wants to respond to it by redirecting his life, is--theologically speaking--engaged in prayer.3 "Then he (Jesus) bent down and wrote on the ground again.TM The adulterous woman stood before him; the scribes and pharisees made their accusation; the people observed with keen curiosity. We do not know exactly what happened in the mind and heart of Jesus as he leaned forward and wrote in the sand with his finger. We do know that this immediate experience needed an interpretation. Jesus was a prayerful person; his bending forward in silence may well have been a deep moment of communion with the Father. The Gospel records the Lord’s response to the situation: the accusers could silently withdraw, the accused could depart without condemnation. This is but one example of Jesus’ ministry. Many other times he also turned to the Father for guidance: the prayer on the mountain before choosing the disciples, the garden prayer before his passion and death, the prayer in the desert when tempted to infidelity. The n~cessity for discernment is the experience at a crossroads; the standard for discernment is whether or not the decision leads to God and more complete service; the act of discernment requires a posture of contemplative faith. The combine used in harvesting and threshing grain has given tremendous help to the farmer. It separates the grain from the straw, retaining the former for winter feeding and discharging the latter in neat rows. The wheat and the chaff, the good and the evil, the true and the false, the beautiful and the ugly--throughout history the human spirit has been challenged to distinguish one from the other. This is no simple process. The grey areas are vast, time is often needed and not available, the multiplicity of experiences tends to clog up the task. Even with these obstacles, the spiritual combine of a discerning heart must perform its duty as well as it can. Grounded in prayer and nourished with learning, the spirits of good and evil can

~Discernment of Spirits, introd, by Edward Malatesta (Collegeville, M N: The Liturgical Press, 1970), p. 9. 2Thomas H. Green, S.J., Darkness in the Marketplace (Notre Dame, IN: Ave Mafia Press, 1982), p. 69. 3Gregory Baum, Man Becoming INew York: Herder and Herder, 1970), p. 256. *See Jn 8:8. Principles of Discernment

be sorted out and properly responded to. Graham Greene’s The Power and the Glory is a story about spiritual discernment, its successes and its failures.. The "whiskey priest" must constantly make decisions concerning his person and his ministry as he is confronted with the Mexican religious persecution. The failures of discernment may well be grounded in the reflection: "a prayer demanded an act and he had no intention of acting." His success would demand courage and sanctity; the vision is given but not its reality:

He felt only an immense disappointment because he had to go to God empty-handed, with nothing done at all. It seemed to him at that moment that it would have been quite easy to have been a saint. It would only have needed a little self-restraint and a little courage. He felt like someone who has missed happiness’by seconds at an appointed place. He knew now that at the end there was only one thing that counted--to be a saint) Discernment is that prayerful process allowing each individual and the larger community to move in the direction of sanctity.

2. Discernment must deal with many voices seeking to capture our minds, hearts and energies. Since the mysterious voice of the Spirit is not the only voice we hear but comes to us accompanied by the tumultuous sounds of our own conflicting impulses and the clamorings of the entire creation, it is essential for us to be able to discern the presence of the Spirit in order to choose to say "yes" to him.6 So the soul that waits in silence must learn to disentangle the voice of God from the net of other voices--the ghostly whisperings of the subconscious self, the luring voices of the world, the hindering voices of misguided friendship, the clamor of personal ambition and vanity, the murmur of self-will, the song of unbridled imagination, the thrilling note of religious romance. To learn to keep one’s ear true to so subtle a labyrinth of spiritual sound is indeed at once a great adventure and a liberal education. One hour of such listening may give us a deeper insight into the mysteries of human nature, and surer instinct for divine values, than a year’s hard study or external intercourse with men.7 While his mind had been pursuing its intangible phantoms, and turning in irresolution from such pursuit, he had heard about him the constant voices of his father and of his masters, urging him to be a gentleman above all things and urging him to be a good Catholic above all things. These voices had 9ow come to hollow sounding in his ears. When the gymnasium had been opened he had heard another voice urging him to be strong and manly and healthy and when the movement towards national revival had begun to be felt in the college, yet another voice had bidden him to be true to his country and help to raise up her language and tradition. in the profane world, as he foresaw, a worldly voice would bid him raise up his father’s fallen state by his labors and, meanwhile, the voice of his school comrades urged him to be a decent fellow, to shield others from blame or to beg them off and to do his best to get free days for the school. And it was the din of all these hollow sounding voices that made him halt irresolutely in the pursuit of phantoms. He gave them ear only for a time but he was happy

SGraham Greene, /Tie Power and the Glory (New York: The Viking Press, 1940), p. 284. 6Discernment of Spirits, p. 9. 7Hermann Hesse, Steppenwolf(New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1963), p. 43. 164 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

only when he was far from them, beyond their call, alone or in the company of phantasmal comrades.S The parable of the good shepherd stresses the importance of recognizing the voice of the master.9 Eternal life depends on this; only those who hear and respond enter into the fullness of life. But Jesus’ voice was one among many. Competition for the sheep was great and, given the gift of freedom, there could be no forcing of individual liberty. Though Jesus called some directly, they refused to listen: the rich young man, Judas, the scribes and pharisees. Others, men like John, Stephen and Paul, heard the loving call and became committed disciples. The voice of the risen Lord continues to compete with the sounds of our times. He can be heard in our sacraments of faith, in the sights and sounds of nature, in the revelation of Scripture, in the community of believers, in the words and deeds of our fellow pilgrims. Life itself is a summons to reach out and fulfill our task of becoming fully human in order that we might glorify our God. Radios have a selective apparatus called a tuner through which we can choose the station that pleases us. Many excellent possibilities are available: beautiful music, intelligent conversation, educational programs. Other options expose us to dissonant sounds, inane banality, devious propaganda. With a twist of the dial we have the power to position ourselves in any one of these environments and thus grant permission to certain ideas and images to enter and shape our perspective. In the spiritual realm, discernment tunes itself to God’s message of love and forgiveness in Jesus and lives this deep mystery in word and deed. A novel by Chaim Potok entitled My Name is Asher Lev presents an artisti- cally gifted young man who has to discern among many voices. Early in life Asher Lev recognizes that his ability to draw had not only the potential for self- fulfillment but also the possibility of a serious rupture with his parents and the Jewish community at large. In anger and confusion he argues with God: You don’t want me to use the gift; why did you give it to me? Or did it come to me from the Other Side? it was horrifying to think my gift may have been given to me by the source of evil and ugliness. How can evil and ugliness make a gift of beauty?~0 The pressure from the leaders of the community, the warnings of frie,nds, the intrinsic urgings of the gift, the delicate relationship with his parents were all voices seeking attention and action. Would the gift be heard and exercised regardless of the cost? Discernment calls for radical fidelity to God, self and others. Wisdom and courage are needed to hear the truth and implement it in our personal history.

3. Discernment is cultivated in listening love that allows one to hear the .felt- experience of good and evil movements within oneself, others and society.

a James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (New York: Colonial Press Inc., 1944), pp. 83-84. 9Jn 10: I-5. ~°Chaim Potok, My Name is Asher Lev (New York: Fawcett Crest Books, 1972), p. 116. Principles of Discernment / 165

For these souls, their hearts tell them what God desires. They have only to listen to the promptings of their hearts to interpret his will in the existing circumstances. God’s plans, disguised ,as they are, reveal themselves to us through our intuition rather than through our rea.son. I I Love gives freedom. Love accepts another person as he is, and discerns in the other person hidden strength. Love communicates to the other a new kind of self-possession, and enables the other to act with self-confidence.~2 Only by the supernatural working of grace can a soul pass through its own annihilation to the place where alone it can get the sort of attention which can attend to truth and to affliction. It is the same attention which listens to both of them. The name of this intense, pure, disinter- ested, gratuitous, generous attention is love.~ It is not blind love that is the enduring love, the love that God himself is. It is a seeing love, a knowing love, a love that looks through into the depth of the heart of God, and into the depth of our hearts. There is no strangeness to love; love knows; it is the only power to complete and lasting knowledge?4 Jesus was a listener and a lover. In a powerful exchange with Peter,15 Jesus listens to Peter’s profession that his master is indeed Messiah; Jesus also hears Peter’s unwillingness to embrace the fact that the Messiah must suffer and die. As he listens with love Jesus discerns the first response of Peter as coming from the Father and the second movement and response as coming from mere human standards. This beautiful example of double discernment resonates with many of our own experiences in which we act out of mixed motives and according to diverse and sometimes contradictory criteria. Authentic discernment is possible only when one has the graced ability to listen in love to the deepest impulses, urges and longings of the human heart with great care and exquisite respect. Jesus models for us the very essence of discernment. The sunflower delights both our eye and our imagination. In the morning it faces the east awaiting the dawn; by evening it gazes to the west as though pursuing its god. Two qualities are evident in this docile plant: the "listening" power enabling it to take in the sun’s warm rays and its ability to respond to the flight of the sun in loving fidelity. This image highlights the importance of sensitivity in the discernment process. The slightest, impulse, urging and prompting must be absorbed and responded to if we are to faithfully follow the call of the Master. Such listening and responding is grounded in love. Love pulls us out of self- preoccupation and the parochialism of our narrow lives. The sunflower images a type of listening and love characteristic of a discerning heart. Would that the simplicity, spontaneity and flexibility of the sunflower were ours!

~Jean Pierre De Caussade, Abandonment to Divine Providence (New York: Doubleday Image Book, 1975), p. 105. ~2Man Becoming. p. 50. ~The Simone Weil Reader, p. 333. ~’~Paul Tillich. The Shaking of the Foundations (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1948), p. II0. ~SMt. 16:13-23. 166 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

The movie, Ordinary People, presented a scene in which an emotionally disturbed young man reached out to a psychiatrist for help: Initially the relationship did not go well. Later, with time and patience, the deep loving concern and listening skills of the doctor won out. The boy revealed his story and partial healing took place. More than simple listening’happened here: a deep discernment of the movements of the heart surfaced, were owned and dealt with. More than superficial concern was demonstrated here: a profound, radical trust resulted in giving life and well-being. In such instances heart speaks to heart (cot ad cot) and even though religious language is not used nor God mentioned explicitly, a person of faith can recognize his presence in such an encounter and appreciate the exercise of the gift of discernment.

4. Discernment relies on two mirrors: Jesus and revelation. The disciple living today....does possess one ultimate criterion for correct discernment: i.e., Jesus himself.~6 With the help of the Holy Spirit, it is the task of the entire People of God, especially pastors and theologians, to hear, distinguish and interpret the many voices of our age, and to judge them in the light of the divine Word. In this way, revealed truth can always be more deeply penetrated, better understood, and set forth to greater advantage,t7 Jesus is our m~.ster to whom we do not pay enough attention. He speaks to every heart and utters the word of life, the essential word for each one of us, but we do not hear it. We would like to know what he has said to other people, yet we do not listen to what he says to us.~ The miracle of the loaves as presented in John’s Gospel~9 involves an example of discernment. Many of the disciples who had followed Jesus up to this point now walked away, finding incredible the claim that Jesus himself was the bread of life. The Lord turned to the Twelve and asked if they too would go away. Simon Peter’s. response: "Lord, who shall we go to? You have the message of eternal life.’~0 The specific choice that was made was based on a person and his word. No abstract philosophy here; no esoteric theology; no subtle psychology. Discernment and decision flowed from a relationship of trust and faith. Implicit in such a discernment process is fidelity: decisions are made in terms of personal commitment. Such fidelity secures personal identity because in such an exercise of freedom we protect both the reality of the Creator and the creature. No lies are possible with authentic discernment. The keystone of an arch is in a precarious position. Its presence makes the arch integral, but it is dependent on the two columns which it unites. If either column is missing there simply is no arch and the stone meant to be a key remains just an

~6Jon Sobrino, Christology at the Crossroads. trans. John Drury (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books, 1978), p. 129. ~TThe Documents of Vatican IL Gaudium et Spes New York: Herder and Herder, 1966), p. 246. taAbandonment to Divine Providence. p. 53. ~’~Jn 6:1-71. Principles of Discernment ] 167 ordinary stone. Discernment rests on the personal column of Jesus Christ: his values and affections are the very substance we use in sorting out the many options of life. Discernment also rests on Sacred Scripture which provides a vision of salvation history and the backdrop for measuring what is spiritual and what is not. Blessed are the poor, the peacemakers, the ones who hunger and thirst for justice; ungodly are the self-indulgent, the self-serving, the lukewarm. Revelation clarifies those actions which are life-giving and those which are death-dealing. The person of Jesus leaves unambiguous the path we are to follow. Such lights as Jesus and Scripture are rich and necessary graces for our journey. The Confessions of Augustine of Hippo reveal a man for whom the word of God and the person of Jesus were vital sources of power. It was in St. Paul’s letter to the Romans that God’s word overwhelmed the struggling Augustine; it was in personal relationship with Christ that he perceived reality from a faith perspective. Augustine’s hunger for the truth, nourished for years by the classic philosophers, now found sustenance from Scripture. Augustine’s deep affectivity, once franti- cally seeking fulfillment in an unbridled sensuous life, found its home in the Lord. With these two resources it is no wonder that the bishop of Hippo is noted for his keen, incisive decisions. Both as a judge of human affairs and as an exegete of Scripture, he brought much life to many because his process of discernment was rooted in the Lord and in biblical faith.

5. Discernment assumes that God is continually working in the depth of every individual and community. He (God) revealed himself several times reigning, as is said before, but principally in man’s soul; he has taken there his resting place and his honorable city. Out of this honorable throne he will never rise or depart without end. Marvelous and splendid is the place where the Lord dwells; and therefore he wants us promptly to attend to the touching of his.grace, rejoicing more in his unbroken love than sorrowing over our frequent failings.2~ But whatever we do, we do it because we are diawn to this particular acti6n without knowing why. All we can say can be reduced to this: ~’1 feel drawn to write, to read, to question and examine. I obey this feeling, and God, who is responsible for it, thus builds up within me a kind of spiritual store which, in the future, will develop into a Sore of usefulness for myself and for others." This is what makes it essential for us to be simple-hearted, gentle, compliant and sensitive to the slightest breath of these almost imperceptible promptings.22 Ah, but it is hard to find this track of the divine in the midst of this life we lead, in this besotted humdrum age of spiritual blindness, with its architecture, its business, its politics, its men!2J The realization that God is active in all that happens at every moment is the deepest knowledge we can have in this life of the things of God?4

~°Jn 6:68. 2~Julian of Norwich: Showings. trans. Edmond Colledge, O.S.A., and James Walsh, S.J., Classics of Western Spirituality (New York: Paulist Press, 1978). p. 337. 2~Abandonment to Divine Providence, p. 81. ~Steppenwolf, p. 35. 24Abandonment to Divine Providence, p. 117. 1611 / Review for Religious, March-Apri!, 1982

Creation is God’s presence to us in beauty; the cross is God’s presence to us in our brokenness and twistedness.2~ God’s creative and redemptive power is at work wherever there is life. Whether or not a given individual responds to that presence is dependent upon the working of grace and freedom. The point is that God is always working. John’s Gospel drives this fact home.26 Accepting this in faith, we. are challenged to become increasingly conscious of divine stirrings deep within our individual lives as well as our communities. Focal awareness, a high intensity consciousness, may not be that frequent, but subsidiary awareness, a sense of a background presence, can become a way of life.27 As our faith deepens we become ever more sensitive to the working of God’s Spirit in our minds and hearts. The life story of the grape can provide an image of the discernment captured by the vines and their energy transformed into grapes. Upon. beir~g harvested and crushed, the grape enters into a fermentation process. Through the hidden workings of bacteria surrounded by proper temperatures, darkness and sugars, the grapes are converted into wine. So, too, in our spiritual journey, the need for ongoing conversion is a constant call and is made possible through the perennial movements of God in our innermost being. The sourness of the unredeemed areas of our inner life are turned into the succulent sweetness of a life of union. In her sensitive allegory Hinds’ Feet on High Places, Hannah Hurnard has us journey with the main character Much-Afraid through a fermentation process that eventually results in "much-trust." At first our heroine is enslaved by fear, oppressed by human respect, devoid of joy. Gradually she begins to sense the stirrings of grace within her soul. God’s promptings lead Much-Afraid into free, dom and then on to acts of courage. Her story is symbolic of all those enslaved by fear. Her liberation in grace is greatly aided by an exercise that could well become the model for many: To this place she was in the habit of going very early every morning to meet Him and learn His wishes and commands for the day, and again in the evening to give her report on the day’s work.28 Such conversation and accountability enrich the discerning heart.

2~John Shea, Stories of God: An Unauthorized Biography (Chicago, II1.: Thomas More Association, 1978), p. 152. ~Jn 6. 271n an essay entitled "The study of Man," Michael Polanyi writes: "We may say that when we comprehend a particular set of items as parts of a whole, the focus of our attention is shifted from the hitherto uncomprehended particulars to the understanding of their joint meaning. This shift of attention does not make us lose sight of the particulars, since one can see a whole only by seeing its parts, but it changes altogether the manner in which we are aware of the particulars. We become aware of them now in terms of the whole on which we have fixed our attention. I shall call this a subsidiary awareness of the particulars, by contrast to a focal awareness which would fix attention on the particulars in themselves, and not as parts of a whole. (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1959), pp. 29-30. 28Hannah Hurnard, Hinds’ Feet on High Places (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Com- pany, 1973), p. 13. Principles of Discernment / 169

6. Discernment respects the nature of time and is willing to wait freely for a decision that has need of clarification, detachment and magnanimity. Ligfitning and thunder require time, the light of the stars requires time, deeds require time even after they are done, before they can be seen and heard,z9 Simply by making us wait he increases our desire, which in turn enlarges the capacity of our soul,/naking it able to receive what is to be given usP0 The poet contrasts us in our waiting and in our going ahead. For those who take initiative into their own hands, either in the atheism of pride or in the atheism of despair, the words are weary, faint, and exhausted. The inverse comes with waiting: renewed strength, mounting up, running, walking. But that is in waiting. It is in receiving not grasping, in inheriting and not possessing, in praising and not seizing. It is in knowing that initiative has passed from our hands and we are safer for it.3~ Many of the Lord’s parables deal with the notions of time and waiting. One of these tells of the necessity of being ready for the master’s return from the wedding feast.32 Happy for those who are awake and prepared for the unexpected. Fear, weariness and even impatience are moods that threaten our call to decide to respond to God’s call. Milton’s "they also serve who. only stand and wait" expresses a situation that only the most courageous can accept. Timing in decision- making is most subtle; in’deed, God’s time (kairos) is often not our time (chronos). A basic guideline in the spiritual life is that we "act on our clarities." When things are too muddy we wait, however painful that may be. Without expecting a certi- tude or clarity that is unrealistic, we gradually ’become comfortable with that faith fact that seeking and waiting can be as meritorious and grace-filled as finding. The important thing is that God’s will be done.33 Telephone companies provide a service by which a person can find out the correct time by dialing a certain number. Wo~uld that our inner seasons were as clear as our chronological time frame! It is hard to discern in winter when dor- mancy and coldness immobilize our hearts. People are counseled never to make decisions of major import when depressed; it is simply the wrong time. No~" should decisions be made when romanticism sweeps through the heart blinding the individual to the shadow side of life. We discern on level ground, not on the peaks nor in the valleys. The correct time is known more through intuition than rational deduction--we sense discernment more than figure it out. The phone number locates us and orientates us according to the sun; discernment provides bearings in reference to a much brighter Light. Shakespeare’s King Lear provides an excellent example of timing and discernment. The king was aging and decided to distribute his property and wealth among his daughters, each being given a share in proportion to her profession of

mPeter Berger, A Rumor of Angels (New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1969), p. I I. 3°Thomas H. Green. S.J., When the Well Runs Dry (Notre Dame, IN: Ave Maria Press, 1979), p. 113. 3*Walter Brueggemann, The Prophetic Imagination (Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 1978), pp. 78-79. J~Lk 12:35-40. 17t) / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 love for her father. Not only was Lear unwise in his standard of division, he was misguided in his time. The consequence was eventual insanity and death. Dis- cernment demands a standard, one based on knowledge of reality and deep faith. Discernment demands awareness of the Lord’s timing. Until that surfaces we wait, trusting that the Lord will show us his plan. Detachment allows us to accept whatever is asked; magnanimity provides room to welcome whatever is given. Discernment needs much grace and graciousness.

7. Discernment is a gift which comes to those who are properly attuned through obedience and surrender. In everything else, this soul will preserve a perfect liberty, always ready to obey the stirrings of grace the moment it becomes aware of them, and to surrender itself to the care of providence.34 When a soul has reached the third stage, the love of friendship and filial love, her love is no longer mercenary. Rather she does as very close friends do when one receives a gift from the other. The receiver does not just look at the gift, but at the heart and the love of the giver, and accepts and treasures the gift only because of the friend’s affectionate IoveP~ The hearing of God’s Word requires complete self-surrender.36 The Annunciation narrative in Luke’s GospeP7 presents Mary in a perplexing situation. Her future with Joseph had been determined; plans were made; important decisions were set in motion. Suddenly God breaks into the "best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men." What is to be done? To whom does one listen? What price the surrender of one’s will to the call of God? This biblical account gives us a classic example of discernment. The divine will summons and history hangs in balance. Though struggling with fear and the unknown, Mary discerns the voice of the Lord and in prompt obedience and generous surrender commits her life to the providence of her God. That gift of discernment was rooted in her identity as the handmaid of the Lord. Mary knew who she was and it was from that giftedness of her graced filled life that such an extravagant and total response poured forth from her heart. A hearing aid is a grea’t blessing for those individuals for whom deafness is an encroaching reality. This technical device helps restore the precious gift 6f hearing. One can once again listen to a variety of sounds and calls and through surrender render personal obedience. Physical listening has its counterpart in the spiritual realm, as does deafness. Often we do not hear. Sometimes this is a matter of choice, sometimes a matter of circumstance. Regardless, we fail to discern the words and movements of the Lord because the gift of discernment has not been activated. Hearing aids can be adjusted, even turned off. When God asks what is a~Julian of Norwich: Showings. pp. 195-196. ~Abandonment to Divine Providence, p. 88. J~Catherine of Siena, The Dialogues, trans, and introd. Suzanne Noffke, O.P., Classics of Western Spirituality (New York: Paulist Press, 1980), p. 134. ~6Meister Eckhart, t~ans. Raymond B. Blakney INew York: Harper Torchbooks, 1941), p. 33. ~TLk 1:26-38. Principles of Discernment / 171 demanding or unpleasant we can unconsciously or blatantly turn from his summons and fail to respond. Here we see that the discernment process has’high mutuality: the call and gift from God, thefree response of obedience and surrender from the human person. God respects our freedom too much to force a response. Gradually it becomes evident that discernment isnot just one gift among many: it is a crucial gift determining~destinies. Story of a Soul, the autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux, is a candid revelation of a deep love relationship. Surrender and obedience were qualities that gave constant direction to the saint’s life; these dispositions opened her to the gift of discernment. Therese realized that Christian living demanded not only recognition of what is to be done but also the actual doing: As little birds learn to sing by listening to their parents, so children learn the science of the virtues, the sublime song of Divine Love from souls responsible for forming them.3~ Authentic discernment moves from listening to virtue. God uses many interme- diaries (parents, teachers, friends, "enemies") to both proclaim his message and model a response. In this environment the gift of~ discernment takes root. Therese’s being was receptive to the stirrings of grace. The song of divine love was. heard, the r~esponding melody was also one of deep love.

8. Discernment happily blends faith and pragmatism: it searches out God’s will in radical trust and does it. The People of God believes that it is led by the Spirit of the Lord. who fills the earth. Motivated by this faith, it labors to decipher authentic signs of God’s presence and purpose in the happenings, needs, and desires in which this People has a part along with other men of our age. For faith throws a new light on everything, manifests God’s design for man’s total vocation, and thus directs the mind to solutions which are fully human)9 The will certainly seems to me to be united ir~ some way with the will of God; but it is by the effects of this prayer and the actions which follow it that the genuineness of the experience must be tested and there is no better crucible for doing so than this.’~ Every activity is related to good and evil twice over: by its performance and by its principle.4~ While teaching one day,~2 Jesus was interrupted when some men, carrying their paralyzed friend and lowering him through the roof, ingeniously got’ everyone’s attention. The story is familiar; two things ~hould be noted for ohr purpose. These men had a deep faith in Jesus. They truly believed that this teacher had power and concern. Second!y,~their faith was active. They expended much energy

JsStor), of a Soul." the Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux. trans. John Clarke, O.C.D. (Washing- ton, D.C.: ICS Publications, 1975), p. 113. 3gThe Documents of Vatican II, p. 209. 4°The Complete Works of St. Theresa of Jesus. ed. and trans. E. Allison Peers (London: Sheed & Ward, 1944), 2:238. 4~ The Simone Well Reader, p. 292. 42Lk 5:17-26. 172 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 and subtle creativity.in allowing t.heir faith,filled hearts to be nourished by divine healing. Both their trust and activity were rewarded in the cure of their friend. Discernment is both relational and functional; it is contemplative and active; it is faith-filled and pragmatic. The contemporary concern for integration is similar to the ever present call to discernment. A person of true discernment is integral. No false dichotomy here: action must be consequent to principle.. Grounded in deep faith discernment pushes from below; drawn into active response discernment calls us forth to be agents of change. ¯ H20 is the chemical formula describing our precious gift of water. The blending of these two elements produces a substance necessary for life. Hydrogen without oxygen fails to give us our refreshing liquid and vice versa. So in the spiritual domain: faith without action is dead; action without faith loses its ultimate significance. The water of the spiritual life is the grace of discernment; its basic elements are faith and deed. Depending upon the developmental phases of the community or individual, the w~ight will shift more towards faith, more towards action according to the level of maturity and the needs of the people. Here we realize that. spiritual laws are much more subtle than those of nature. In his journal entitled Markings, Dag Hammarskjold records the diverse movements of his inner life. We come to realize that this inter:national figure, busy with multiple responsibilities of the United Nations, had a very well developed and nurtured spiritual life. He speaks often of faith; he notes the importance of action. One passage will suffice: We act in faith--and miracles occur. In consequence, we are tempted to make the miracles the ground for our faith. The cost of such weakness is that we lose the confidence of faith, Faith is. faith creates, faith carries. It is not derived from, nor created, nor carried by anything except it~ own reality.4J The mixture is right; the roots of the tree blossom forth through the branches carrying and bringing much life. Discernment makes this possible.

9. Discernment looks to consequences for its authenticity: decisions are of God if ultimately leading to life and love. I am quite sure that no one will be deceived in this way for long if he has a gift for the discernment of spirits and if the Lord has given him true humility: such a person will judge the~e spirits by their fruits and their resolutions and their love.’~ To estimate the worth of a spiritual decision, we thus have three criteria at our disposal: the authenticity of our union with God, the unity of the different elements of our being, the cohesion which our action assumes in relation to ourselves, .to others and to the world,aS The work of love not only heals the roots of sin, but nurtures practical goodness. When it is authentic you will be sensitive to every need and respond with a generosity unspoiled by

4~Dag Hammarskjold, Markings (N~w York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. 1966), p. 145. ~The Complete Works of St. Theresa of Jesus, 1:378. 4SFrancois Roustang, S.J., Growth in the Spirit. trans. Kathleen Pond (New York: Sheed & Ward. 1966), p. 122. Principles of Discernment / 173

selfish intent. Anything you attempt to do without this love will certainly be imperfect, for it is sure to be marred by ulterior motives.46 Authentic Christian living results in action and explicit concern. Jesus draws our attention to the fig tree that is rich in foliage but devoid of fruit.47 For a hungry person the fruitless fig tree is worthless, we discern its worth in this case by whether or not it achieves its essential destiny. In our spiritual journey discernment is tested by the effects of our action and the concomitant affectivity. Does our activity give life, i.e., does it foster an increase of love, joy and peace? Or do our actions lead to death, i.e., apathy, sadness and anxiety? Discernment registers at the deepest level of our humanity--in our guts! We come to sequester that which nurtures from that which enervates. As in economic affairs so in spiritual matter we come to the bottom line: the financial world looks to profit/loss and the spiritual world looks to life/death. The stethoscope allows medical personnel to become attuned to the inner physiological movements of the patient. The trained ear can evaluate the proper functionings or pathological stirrings of vital organs. What the naked eye has no way of knowing, the ear with the aid of the stethoscope can easily ascertain, Discernment is a process of listening to the stirrings of the many different spirits constantly at work within the complexity of our lives. A good spiritual director intuitively senses how our life-style and motivational field is impacting on the inner terrain. If congruence is sensed, then God’s word is tak~ing root and bearing proper fruit. If there is dissonance, then dialogue is in order to understand where it is coming from. This is no easy task. The movements of the spirit are mixed and often ambiguous. At times God’s word will cause dissonance while the work of the evil spirit causes apparent harmony. These uncharted waters make us hesitate and call out for help from a good spiritual navigator! Sophie’s Choice, a novel by Willim Styron, narrates the many decisions thata young woman had to make in very dire circumstances. The choice of letting either her son or daughter be sent to the gas chambers is symbolic of the horrendous decisions that confront the human spirit~ Throughout ttiis novel we witness people making choices and dealing with the powerful effects that shape their destinies. These effects basically fall on one or other side of the line: life or death. Sad to say, most of the decisions were not life-affirming~ Any good novel is essentially a study of discernment from an experiential point of view. Situations arise, choices are made, life or death follows. No one is exempt from dealing with the script of his or her own life. The process is universal. Grace is necessary if we are to discern wisely and act with courage.

10. Discernment leads to truth and, through truth, into freedom. The very word "truth" filled my heart with enthusiasm. The beauty of the word shone in my

46The Cloud of Unknowing and the Book of Privy Counseling. ed. William Johnston (New York: Doubleday Image Book, 1973). p. 64. "1"/4 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

eyes like a spiritual sun dispelling all shadows--those of ignorance, of error, of deceit, even those of iniquity, which is an error of measure and a lie. "Knowing the truth"--a pleonasm. With truth there is already knowing, as there is reality and being. To think the word "truth" is to assume a spiritual faculty, in which alone truth can be found. It is to assume the capacity of such a spiritual faculty to conform itself to being, to reality, in order within itself to produce the truth. It is also to raise the question of knowing whether such a faculty exists,as And ira will of iron represents one aspect of the liberated soul, flexibility and detachment of spirit represent a complementary aspect. To obey the inspirations of grace moment by moment, t9 adjust oneself readily to the promptings of a living Master, is a task which demands the glorious liberty that is the high prerogative of the sons of God.49 But at this moment I came upon myself. Previously I had existed, too, but everything had merely happened to me. Now I happened to myself~ Now I knew: I am myself now, now I exist. Previ~ausly I had been willed to do this and that; now I willed.~° God’s w~)rd calls us to truth and freedom. Mary Magdalene wandered in the garden in deep dejection because her master and friend was dead.5~ Death appeared to have had the final say and such news caused enslavement to fear and depression. Then the experience of the Lord! The truth is exposed: sin and death are overcome by the cross and resurrection. God’s fidelity and power are everlasting. The bond of sin is broken; the sting of death destroyed. With this truth came freedom, a freedom overflowing into joy. Mary sees and is able to act. This narrative helps us to see that the gift of discernment brings vision and responsibility. In recognizing the risen Lord we contact reality; in being graced, we become gracious. Through the word of God we deepen our sense of identity and mission. This process allows us to find meaning which allows for motivation, enabling us to risk the use of time and energy in new and creative ways.’For Mary, Jesus was the truth that leads to freedom; for Mary, his person allowed proper discernment. Scientists use two instruments in their work of discovery and invention that are, by nature, tools of discernment, the microscope and telescope. With awe and wonder, we use the microscope to probe cellular structures revealing the deep patterns of life; with anticipation and excitement; we find the telescope pulling us into galaxies undreamt of by our ancestors. Gifted with such tools we come to know invisible worlds and incredible spaces. The spiritual realm is no less astound- ing. With the tools of subtle interior silence and perceptive wisdom we scan the vast plan of God’s creative love. Such dispositions are crucial in coming to know truth and to exercise our freedom. Discernment falters amidst noises; it is blinded and cannot know what is pleasing to God. Discernment is seeing, a seeing that leads to freely doing the truth in love. Lavrans Bjorgulfson, speaking to his wife, says: "I know not. You are so strange--and all you have said tonight. 1 was afraid, Ragnfrid. Like enough 1

47Mk I 1:12-14. ~8Raissa Maritain, We Have Been Friends Together (New York: Green and Co., 1942), p. 80. agE. Herman. Creative Prayer (Cincinnati. Ohio: Forward Movement Publications, n.d.), p. 79. 50C. G. Jung, Memories. Dreams. Reflections. ed. by Aniela Jaffe and trans. Richard and Clara Winston (New York: Vintage Books, 1965). pp. 32-33. ~Jn 20:11-18. Principles of Discernment / 175 understand not the hearts of women...."~2 In Sigrid Undset’s Kristin Lavransdatter, we witness the tragedy of ignorance and the paralyzing power of fear that follows. Lavrans, a good man, does not understand the heart of his wife, Ragnfrid, nor that of his daughter, Kristin. Their loves were mysteries to him and, lacking proper discernment of the movements of their hearts, the tortuous pain of misunderstand- ing was bound to follow. The truth of the heart is a special knowledge all its own. Only when the heart is "informed" and well-known do the waters of freedom flow. Principles clash with the particulars of life. Helpful as they might be, life is lived in experience, not reflection. Yet we need to step back ever so ~ften for perspective and meaning. Hopefully this essay has fulfilled that task. My only hope is that these pages have realized the mandate oncegivEn by Emily Dickinson: Tell all the Truth but tell it slant-- Success in Circuit lies Too bright for our infirm Delight The Truth’s superb surprise As Lightning to the Children eased With explanation kind The Truth must dazzle gradually Or every man be blind--

~2Sigrid Undset, Kristin La,;ransdatter, I The Bridal Wreath, trans. Charles Archer and J. C. Scott (New York: Bantam Books; 1976); p. 232.

Pope John Paul II to Jesuit Superiors, February 27, 1982i In fact, a special bond binds your Society to the Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ oft earth .... St. Ignatius and his companions.., attached capital importance to this bond of love and service to the Roman Pontiff, so much so that they wished this "special vow" to be a characteristic: element of the Society .... It is evident that here we are touching upon the essence of the lgnatian charism and upon that which lies at the very heart of your order. And it is to this that you must always always remain faithful. Prayer and Regression

John O’Regan, O.M.I.

Father O’Regan’s "Unavailability as Poverty" appeared in the issue of July, 1981. His address is: 37 Woniora Road; P.O. Box 70; Hurstville, Australia 2220. i~|he~’ wish to return to childhood is, in most instances, a regressive wish--a desire to abrogate adult responsibilities, and to return to a.state of dependence. But this wish may also have another aspect. To seek after the spontaneity and freedom of the secure child is a different matter and may, perhaps, be what is meant by the saying of Christ: ’Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.’ This is no regression to childishness, but rather, an advance to such security and freedom with our fellowmen that we can be whatever we are and allow them to be the same."~ Scripture scholars may disagree with psychiatrist Storr’s understanding of Matthew 18, but the general drift of his meaning is clear and points to an understanding of scriptural childness that may assist us in our understanding of prayer~ Of course it is quite possible to have regressive prayer and it shows up in many subtle ways. The prayer of the "good Lord" who is a distant, benign, undemanding and wholly pardoning God is surely a childish way of boxing God into a convenient category. The prayer that makes one feel good and somehow seals out the rough and tumble of life is also a childish thing, for it is based on the pleasure principle and we asgume it is good because it makes us feel good, An altogether inistaken notion of spiritual consolation can easily have us thinking that good prayer is always less than painful. There are many variants of regressive prayer that one may use: here we have a general look at the possibility of regression and the proper form of childness that makes prayer authentic.

~The Integrity of Personality. A. Storr (Pelican: Middlesex, 1970), pp, 60-61. Prayer and Regression / 177

Time and Timing Many state that prayer cannot be programmed--that it arises spontaneously and when we feel we need it, we need it. Much can be said in praise of this as long as it is properly understood. Prayer as a habitual state of dependence on God and prayer as the more privileged moments of closeness to God--irrelevant prayer as Father Green calls it2--must be distinguished. The religious whose life is fully given over to God will surely see the need for stated times for formal prayer. Such prayer is often called lower case prayer, while the lifelong attitude of being given over to God gets a capitalized P for Prayer. The reverse may equally be the case, but for the purpose of this article we will stay with this distinction. Thus the religious whose prayer is clear will be bound to find times for prayer and these times will surely manage to have their own rhythm. And we, being creatures ofhabit, will find that such rhythms will be predictable. So that some form of programming will assert itself. Some of us are morning people and like to start the day with a stretch of prolonged prayer. Others are night people and feel more at home with God at that time. Each one to one’s own preference here. The point at issue is that the natural rhythm of life itself will surely dictate a style and timing of prayer that will not be left to chance, still less to mood. Thus to pray when one "feels like it" may lead us into strife if that is the only criterion for prayer. Ruysbroeck, the Flemish mystic, has the idea of the indrawing and outpouring of God’s grace in us: the same imagery may be applied to prayer. We indraw in prayer and we outpour in prayer. This means the withdrawal-involvement rhythm, while not needing the regularity of a metronome, will have its own inner imperative and clock for each of us. The harmony between contemplation and apostolic love (Perfectae caritatis n. 5) is still a task for all of us and we must always work at it. It seems to at least imply that this task (and gift) cannot be left to whim or mood: such a standard would indeed be childish. This of course is not to say that some people may find a long weekend of prayer somehow manages to suit them: all of this is assuredly matter for honest discernment. The well. may run dry rather easily and the land may become parched. For those o~" us whose moods have a sudden~and broad swing, the well and land may easily run dry or parched almost unknown to us. The length of time and the actual time for prayer are important factors when we take our religious commitment seriously.

Time Spent At times there may be a veritable fissure in our lives: what we declare we are and what we in fact are, are often light years apart. We may have a fundamental falseness running right through our lives and manage to survive some way or another. Thus we may spend long hours at prayer and not have its influence felt in

2Opening to God. T.H. Green (Ave. Maria Press, IN, 1977). 1711 / Review for Religious, March-ApriL 1982

our lives or at best allow its impact to be unhealthily muffled. Father Maurice Lefebre, killed in Boliva in the service of the poor, said that "because we live a lie, the truths we bring make no headway." This division between prayer and life--between prayer and Prayer--is surely a result of seeing prayer as a regressive retreat from the harsh and dreadful things that living for love of God and others really means. It is a womblike withdrawal that marks the overdone need for security from the cross that life is bound to hew for each of us who claims to be a follower of Christ. We all know of the piously impatient religious who brooks no interruption of his prayer, no matter what the demands may be from those he is serving. Fair enough: we should try to set up a little poustinia for our prayer-time but to see every interruption on this chosen retreat as an encroachment on our time "with God" is not an adult response, but a petulant reaction. Such a prayer has all the marks of childishness. One is here reminded of Jose Ortega y Gasser3 when he ponders on Commander Peary’s day’s polar trek with his team of dogs. After a hard day’s mushing towards the north, he found at evening that he was much further south than when he started off in the morning! He has been working all day northwards on an immense iceberg being taken to the south by a strong ocean current. Hard times and long hours at prayer that are effectively isolated from life may give the impression of much progress. But the context of this kind of prayer must be taken into account lest we have a disconnected life of prayer, removed from the prayer of life. Like Peary’s hard day’s toil on the iceberg, much movement did not mean any progress at all -- even the reverse! The child is very much his or her own person with a great deal of emphasis on how he sees life. His childish optics give reality meaning that is not always geared to the givenness of reality itself. His childish templet thrown over reality effectively screens out some of its harsher aspects and amplifies its more congenial qualities so that much of his little life is essentially idiosyncratic. Much of his reality lacks consensual validation---effective checking out by way of feedback is too much bother for him. So that a prayer life that is removed too comfortably from the painful course of life is a childish kind of demiolife. As Augustine put it:: we may make many strides, but all outside the course.

Dabar This prayer/life dichotomy is always with us. Only in Jesus were word and deed perfectly and positively corelated and all we do is strive to lessen the abyss that exists for us between what we profess we are and we in fact live. Herbert, the English poet, caught the idea beautifully when he wrote Doctrine and life--colors and light in one, When they combine and mingle, bring A strong regard and awe:

JMeditations on Quixote, .I. OrtEga y Gasser (Norton: New York. 1961). p. 104. Prayer and Regression

But speech alone doth vanish like a flaring thing, And in the ears, not conscience ring. Doctrine--what we believe and say we are, and life--how we actually incarnate this--must be together, like colors and light. Speech alone, outward show and mere protestation, means little and touches no one’s conscience. So that while we try to bridge the gap between doctrine and life, we must be ever aware that it is all too easy to allow the gap to widen. Being Christlike, adopting the mind and heart of Christ will always be an imperative for us, and we must ever be ready to "live the truth in love" (Ep 4:15). This living, or "truthing"--- making word and deed more closely aligned in our lives, is an adult task. It is not for children--they must come a long way to be able to shoulder this project. In us adults, this cleavage between word and deed keeps us humbly on our toes and saves us from arrogance. It is only when we become unaware of this split-level living that we have cause for alarm.

Filial Posture Prayer’s paradigm has been given us once and for all by Jesus when in response to a disciple’s request, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples," he said to them, "When you pray, say: Father..." (Lk 11:i-4). It need hardly be said that the assumption is that the disciple was inspired when he saw Jesus praying "in a certain place." This anonymous disciple, seeing Jesus praying nowhere in particular, may be seen archetypically: we are that disciple and the nameless place may just as easily be seen in the same light, for we have to pray always and everywhere (see Ep 5:20; 6:18-19). Jesus is a model of prayer for us not just because he prayed regularly or had an unwavering prayer schedule. In Luke’s gospel, he prays in practically every third chapter~ but in Mark’s gospel, as scholars tell us, his early morning rising for prayer (i:35) is a typical day in the life of Jesus. But such visible expressions of prayer are but the observable expression of the inner disposition of a Man whose whole being is given over to God. He was not just driven to his knees as in the Mount of Olives (Lk 24:41-44) when the pressure was on: he prayed always and prayed formally on regular occasions. It was the inner oblation of his whole being that gave rise to these intense moments of close union with the Father. He was always addressing the Father and he here tells us that we must have the same filial posture when we come to pray. When we come before God for the more privileged moments of closeness to him (despite the apparent absence we may experience in these moments of apparent closeness) we must come with the filial gesture of "Abba," Father. This cordial posture must be the basis and ground of our prayer, giving it its tone, direction and content. In this word of daring intimacy, "Abba," we come to God with all the confidence of a child and the undeviating trust shown by God’s Son.

"Abba" Some writers have almost drooled over this term of piety and have given it a "11~1~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

sentimental flavoring that does no justice to the deep connotation it is meant to have. Terms like "Pappa," "Dad" and the like have been suggested. But the term refuses to bear this lightweight meaning. Apart from familiar uses of the word children use to address their fathers, and beneath it all, there is the deep sense of dependence and trust that gives rise to the closeness of the bond binding child and father. A father may engage in rough and tumble fun with his children, and the little ones delight in it. In the process they may get bumps and even scratches and there is not even a whimper. If these "wounds" were sustained in play with siblings, there would often be a far different reaction--tears and tantrums and the need for succor. But the child’s utter trust in the goodness of the father is ,the rubric under which little aches and pains don’t matter much, for the little one’s unbounded trust makes all safe and sound in the affectionate ambience of a father’s loving care. It is interesting to note that the child has been seen in different ways over the centuries. Time was when he was viewed as a miniature adult, and not a growing person in his own right. He was an adult-in-the-making, so what was good for the adult was good for the child. This gave rise to the assumption that the child saw, felt and judged as did the adult, so that education was getting him to sit still while adults instilled adult lore into his little head. Again the child was (and possibly still is) viewed as born in utter innocence and is tainted by contact with adults. This romantic anthropology seems to have a second inning in transactional analysis with its grossly overrated "child" state. This idyllic state seems at the mercy of interfering and imperious "adult" states. The truth of the child, like the truth of adults, is light and shade. Children are far from being only the cuddlesome angels of nappie commercials, and the endless and undiluted joy they appear to give to adoring mothers is plainly fiction. A child with its bundle of impulses with monumental rages can terrify even a hardy mother, who may easily want to vent her frustration on this demanding little tyrant who is so messily incontinent so much of the time. The incessant demands for neverending attention--the price of survival for the little one, makes life for the dedicated mother quite hectic for most of the time. For dependency is the hallmark of the little child, and his attachment to his mother for all his needs is close to being a symbiotic relationship. Apart from the child’s survival, the groundwork for its wholesome sense of worth and goodness about himself is laid in this period of utter dependence: Not only the quantity of time and output of nurturing love but the very quality of this loving attention has so much to do with the kind of person the child will grow up to be. Childhood thus at this stage, is a state of absolute and almost one-way dependency, with little or no effective control or management on the child’s part. Surely this image of the child has little to do with the childness that is meant to be our basic praying posture. The wish to return to childhood and to alleged lost innocence is surely a regressive wish and a desire to escape adult responsibilities in an effort to reestab- lish utter dependence. Such a desire, while not always on the level of full awareness, is fraught with secret urges to get back to a stage when all was well and no Prayer and Regression / 1111 pressm:es were experienced. In a deep symbolic manner, this is a wish to reenter the womb with its safe and secure amniotic protection. It is a yearning for a prepersonal stage where relationships do not need to be worked at and where needs were superabundantly granted in immediate supplies. It may be likened to a wish to become absolutely recipient to all desires and wants--to be the more or less content receiver of a bountiful providence. The kind of struggle that Paul says must attend our prayer, is anathema to this mentality and the perceptive notion of St. Thomas--that we are non solum provisi sed providentes, is rejected out of hand. St. Thomas was saying that God’s fatherly care is so good that he invites us to share in his providential care: we are, he states, not just provided for; we are, in fact, coproviders. Father A certain style of diction in spirituality easily lends itself to this kind of regressive attitude. The "Good Lord" address-system to God fosters (wittingly or no) this kind of misplaced benevolence: he looks conveniently the other way from our aberrations and closes a grandfatherly eye when we sin. This is a God Who is not supposed to make demands and offers discipleship on the cheap. It is a God whose Son was not wholly in earnest when he laid down the cost of discipleship in totally inconvenient, uncompromising and uncomfortable terms (see Mk 8:31-38; 9:30-32; 10:32-45) and made stern demands of those who answered his call. Following him meant much more than the immediate disciples were ready to pay for they latched on to the "glory" aspect of the Messiah and refused to face the cross: be delivered, condemned, delivered to the Gentiles, mocked, spat upon, scourged, killed. Self-denial, taking up one’s cross and following him are not exertions one expects of a child. They are adult commands and Christianity is for adults. While all of these directives come from a God who is love and who loves us without measure, he does not love us out of, but into suffering or pain or dilemmas.. His attitude is a far cry from the "Good Lord" spirituality who gives all but expects nothing in return. Such an undisturbing deity makes for fascinating study of the adult who would want such a convenient Father. Other such possibly misleading ideas come from a notion of a God who holds us in the palm of his hand and whose massive palm cradles a sleeping babe. Such kitsch theology and art may serve a purpose and does have some merit’, but it also fosters a kind of childishness that is not helpful in our faithgrowth. Isaiah 49 does speak of being held in his hand, and such an image has powerful evocations. But the infant in the palm goes a little much in the "childish" direction. Paul’s "strain- ing forward" (Ph 3:13) and Ephesians’ final admonition with its strongly martial tone (Ep 6:10-20) makes unrelenting effort the mark of the true disciple. "To that end keep alert with all perseverance," having on the breastplate, feet shod with the gospel of peace~ the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit. (Ep 4:14-18). This is the opposite direction to regression, in fact an honest progression to a more mature humanity (Ep 4:13) that leaves behind the things of a child (1 Co 13:il). 1~1~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Childhood: Recovery? In what sense then may we see childness as a faithful image or symbol for prayer? Surely the sense of dependency must enter as well as the sense of freedom. Anthony Storr (op. cir.) says that: "To seek after the spontaneity and freedom of the secure child is a different matter (from regression) and may perhaps be what is meant in the saying of Christ: ’Except ye be converted and become as little children ye shall not enter the kingdom of heaven’ "(Mt 18:3). Storr sees the freedom and spontaneity of childhood as a decided advance rather than a stepping back. But this is hardly enough. The scriptural idea of freedom is, as are many scriptural themes, set in paradox. "Live as free men," we read in I P 2:16, "yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil: but live as servants of God." If freedom is a keynote of Christianity, then we would have to understand it aright. In Christ and in Paul, freedom and bondage are reconciled. Jesus is seen as the self-emptying servant, whose utter abasement was the occasion and condition of his abiding freedom in unique exaltation. Kolb notes that

Certain aspects of the personality may be arrested in their maturing process, with the result that a full and harmonious development never occurs. By...an anxiety-evading mechanism known as regression, the personality may suffer loss of some development already retained and reverting to a lower level of integration, adaption and expression. The retreat to a lower level of personality development is characterized by immature patterns of thought, emotion or behavior? It is not an uncommon happening that when a child gets a new baby brother or sister, and sees all attention of parents leave him for the new arrival he may begin to baby talk all over again and even wet the bed. He regresses to these earlier developmental stages so as to endeavor to recover the attention he had before the birth of his sibling. This is not necessarily pathological and in fact we all resort to nightly regression when we sleep and dream. We let go of our hold on reality, bypass the world of logic, cause-and-effect, space and time and drift into a world of unrealistic ~antasy. This nightly spell of regression is a refreshing and even essential pause to enable us to face the morrow with a fair amount of poise.5 Most of the so-called mental illnesses include more or less severe regression but regression in itself is not an illness. When it goes beyond the level of efficiency and hinders effective relations with others, it is presumed to be unusual. The point of all this is to ask ourselves the question on prayer: is it possible to see ourselves in some regressed childish state when we say "Abba" to God? Before ~3od we may at times feel utterly useless and worthless. Our utter helplessness may even create the impression that once again we are back to a stage of childhood that

4Modern Clinical Psychology. Laurence C. Kolb (W.B. Saunders Company: Phil. 1977). p. 110. ~Personality Development and Psychopathology: Norman Cameron (Houghton Mifflin Co.: Boston. 1963), passim. Ch. 6. Prayer and Regression

can in fact be childishness. God is a loving Father, to be sure, but an omnipotent God as well. Jesus is the Father’s love made flesh for us, but he is Jesus just the same and our best efforts to "put him on" fall pitifully short. Faced with this kind of relationship, it is not possible to see a childish posture as somehow appealing. We may somehow cringe into littleness and close to nothingness and this is surely a childish regression. If we are to grow in moral reasoning and faith-living, then regression seems out. It is possible that our religious "life" lags painfully behind our general personality growth and thus makes for a stunted growth all round. Does it not seem better to see our religion as one for adults and only inchoa- tively for children? Is the Father-child paradigm used misleadingly, or is it a fact that we are simply engaged in child-talk when we come to pray? These are serious questions. I wish here to offer an understanding of childness that includes regression but in a wholesome manner.

Growing Regression In regression, the bonds with reality are loosened and we are in a world where logic and reason as we know them do not hold sway. Time and space evaporate, so we in fantasy flit from Disneyland to Shangri La and back again in a trice. Logical connections no longer bind and we are in a Walter Mitty world of make-believe. This kind of thinking and fantasying is called "primary process thinking" by Freud. One of his pupils, Ernst Kris6 followed up this idea and noted the intrusion of primary process thinking in art, humor and other creative mental functionings. Kris called this ego-controlled regression, or regression in the service of the ego, Kris noted that such regression has two phases: first, a rather passive phase when "the subjective experience is that of a flow of thought and images driving towards expression" (p. 59). He was careful to state that we must distinguish this from the second phase--creativity, "in which the ego controls the primary process and puts it into its service." This is clearly not the psychotic condition in which the ego is overwhelmed by the primary process.

Prayer as Regression Kris says the inspirational and elaborational phases are part of the single process that comprises this adaptive regression. In the first stage the person is rather passive while in the second he takes charge and ideas are deliberately worked out and the secondary process involving logic and reality testing predominates. Applying this theory to the childness attitude in prayer, we may see that the beginning phase is one in which we are purely receivers. Prayer, as we know, is gift and all we do is to receive it. But this "regression" stage is but a preliminary one. It is a necessary but surely not sufficient cause for the posture of prayer. For prayer is never a nirvanic thing and demands effort on our part. Here is where phase two

~Psychoanalytic Explorations in Art. Ernst Kris (International Universities Press, N.Y. 1952). 184 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 emerges: having been passive to the grace of prayer we now respond more actively and strivingly. Paul stresses the earnestness and effortful response one must make in prayer when he states in I Th 3:10 that he "offers his prayer to God as earnestly as possible." The intensity of Paul’s supplications are underlined to indicate that his is no mere quietistic slumbering in his prayers for those to whom he ministers. (see also 2 Th 5:!3; Rm 15:30-32; Col 4:12). Kecharitomen~ The posture of Mary as outlined in Luke offers a prime example of this two-fold phase in "regressive" prayer. When Mary has been given some clarification about her mission from the Angel, she said: "Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord" (Lk l:38)--"let it be to me according to your word." She had been given the title Kecharitornenb ("having-been-favored One") indicating that all she was and is now being done to her is grace or gift. Nothing she has done has merited this special visitation and unique grace. The humble virgin bethrothed to a man named Joseph was content to be quietly anonymous and was addressed by the messenger as one to whom all is done. She is purely receptive. She ratifies all this when she states that she is the handmaid (slave) of the Lord, She, the epitome of the Poor of Yahweh, was indeed a child, a helpless one, but God did mighty things to and through her. For all that mighty uplifting she calls herself a "slave." She is ready to receive the word and will of God. Yet that is not all. The way Luke would have us understand the response of Mary removes forever the almost inert caricature of a passive woman--an image the late Paul VI was at pains to dispel in Marialis Cultus~ From the receptive posture of receiving God’s word, she is energetically and deliberately poised to do God’s bidding. The "let it be to me according to your word" is an anemic rendition of the mind of Luke, It would be better to say that Mary’s mind was that her most ardent desire was to seek and do his word. We often forget that the "with haste" of Lk 1:39 used to describe Mary’s immediate departure to visit her kinswoman Elizabeth, may also be translated as "with deep pondering." In some way we may see Mary as harmonizing her contemplation and apostolic love (Perfectae Caritatis n. 5).

Childness in Prayer This article sought to seek some insights on childhood as a prayer posture that would-,safeguard the maturity of the praying person. Some overenthusiastic preachers in speaking of the "Abba" with which Jewish children address their father, speak of an overdone sentimentalism that does little good for prayer. The notion of childhood evokes many elements in a child that are not in any way appealing. To suggest that we revert to a childhood innocence when we come to pray might seem to .foster an infantilism that inhibits true communion with God and does little to promote our prayer life. The threadbare "where we are shibboleth seems to lose any respectability it ever had as in such a case we have to go back to where we were to pray in this childish manner. The conception of Prayer and Regression / 185

"regression in the service of ego" seems to help here with its two-fold phasing of letting-go and becoming more passive or receptive and then responding in a practical manner by praying earnestly. This kind of "regression" in no way bespeaks immaturity or illness but is the kind of process used by artists in their creative work. Prayer is a work in which we are cocreators with God--we are allowed to share with him in his own inner life and in such a way we are cocreators with him. But this is not an effortless ex nihilo gesture; it is more often than pot hard work. Here is where we work as though it all depended on us. But all the while he is the one who inspired the beginning of the creative effort of prayer and it is due to his prevenient grace that we even dream of praying at all.

Today God Spoke to Me Today God spoke to me. He didn’t say it was God; I didn’t see him; I heard him. It was God. I will never forget what he said-- It was something quietly enormous-- Wait till I tell you. Think of a powerful current on the sea floor... A burst of all-encompassing light shot beyond Jupiter... Music in which I was afloat and wholly dissolved. But that’s only what it was like. I want to tell you just what he said. What he said was...was... Oh, the words... I can’t remember them, none at all, Except one that swept up all the others in everlasting arms. It said everything. It was Love, Love, Love. Louis Hasley 3128 Wilder Drive South Bend, IN 46615 Currents in Spirituality

Trends and Issues in a Secularizing World

George Ashenbrenner, S.J.

For the third year, Father Aschenbrenner offers a survey of the year in matters spiritual. He continues his apostolate on a national scale, while residing at the University of Scranton; Scranton, PA 18510.

This article is the third in a series.1 The first, two years ago, looked at th6 spiritual profile of a decade in a highly summary way, while both last year’s article and this present one, less so but still very summarily and selectively, each sketch the landscape of a single year. I owe much to the editor of this journal, for the opportunity of this assignment. The focused effort to observe, to reflect upon and to articulate some of the developing trends and issues in American spirituality has been instructive and rewarding. A word of thanks, too, to some of my readers. 1 have seriously benefited from reactions and suggestions I have received. When you think of it, the year past, even viewed coldly, has been startling. And yet, how fearfully accustomed, and how quickly forgetful, we become. We heard-- and saw--assassination attempts on President Reagan and Pope John Paul 11; the ecstasy, after 444 days of agony, of the freeing of the hostages from Tehran; the ongoing murders in Central America; the endless floods of refugees throughout the world, in Central America, Africa, Thailand; the persistent "small-scale wars,"

~See Review for Religious, March, 1980, "Currents in Spirituality: The Past Decade." pp. 196-218; and March, 1981, "Trends of 1980: Some Themes and a Few Specifics," pp. 234-51. 186 Trends and Issues in a Secularizing Worm fully sufficient to keep alive the fear and plausibility of World War 111: the continually escalating number of divorces and abortions across this land of ours; and those few, terrifying nuclear missile mistakes that accompanied the deliberate, quite unmistaken increase of nuclear armaments on the part of the major world powers, and minor powers, too. These events warn both author and reader of an article such as this that life is fragile, and that it may be viewed as very cheap; that evil is very real, and that we may easily get numb to its great, dark mystery; and that faith in God as a search for meaning and as love of the reality of our world is not easy--not easy at all. Obviously this article, following so closely upon two other similar surveys, does a good deal of repeating, presupposing, overlapping because spiritual trends and issues ordinarily do not simply appear and vanish within the narrow purview of a single year. Furthermore, the observing and the commenting remain distinctly the~ perspective and the insight of just one single person’s opinion and point of view. And certainly, for this reader of the signs of the times, the four fundamental concerns of last year’s article continue to be of paramount importance for all personal and communal spiritual life in the Church today: concern for the possibility of a profound and faithful love, in the face of our culture’s penchant for sensational, dramatic, immediate (and short-lived) sensual stimulation; concern for a more refined, a more other-centered, Christian personalism; concern for a shared companionship in faith; and concern for the paschal character and quality of faith, a paschal faith requisite to sustain, for the long haul, realistic, apostolic enthusiasm.~ Indeed, because the cultural influences at work in these four areas of concern are still very strong, this present article will relate to them in many ways. In coming toward the close of these introductory comments, I would like to relate and distinguish two words of the title: trends and issues. A trend, here, speaks to a pattern of thought or behavior, the evidence for which would be sufficiently widespread to make it more than a local or exceptional occurrence. Whereas, an issue poses alternatives that, ur~less dodged, invite and eventually even demand a choice. And the choice, of course, often incarnates a whole series of values that relate to and reveal the meaning and un.derstanding of the trend. Often, it is through reflection on the trend that issues are discovered. The more valuable work, I feel, is to look as deeply as possible into current trends in American spirituality, with confidence that this exercise will be of assistance to us in facing issues that surface. Many of these issues, it seems to me, do and will continue to need further recognition and clarification before any firm resolution of them is either possible or suitable. Occasionally, however, an issue is so basic, and where one stands on it, where one shouM stand on it, becomes, even early on, so clear and so fundamental to Christian life, that I have not held back from making a clear judgment about the matter in question. And now to some trends and issues at hand. As 1 have traveled about, con-

2See ibid., March, 1981, pp. 235-243. 11111 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 suited, read, given workshops, courses, retreats and spiritual direction this past year, a very dominant, overarching preoccupation and theme, as I reflect on my own experience and listen to the experience of others, is secularity, secularization, secularism. Humfin spiritual life exists only in a world where ongoing pressures come at us, from every side, to secularize all our experience: of ourselves, of one another, and of all aspects of our world. Certainly, there is nothing new about this observation. The matter has been with us for a century, and more. And in very current forms, it has been an overt preoccupation of the religious community in this country at least since Vatican 11. But I believe that its strength as a trend in serious spiritual life continues very much to grow. And so, after looking about me, 1 have chosen to reflect here, at considerable length, on this tendency toward secularization. Following that, I will, more briefly, discuss a number of trends and issues which, whether implicitly or explicitly, whether as cause or consequence or corollary, relate to this central trend of secularization. In general, as I treat these other trends and issues, 1 will leave to the reflection of the reader their precise relationship to the general theme of secularization.

Secularization It is not uncommon to divide reality into the sacred and the secular. And though this distinction and its significance can be of immense subtlety and compli- cation, with serious traps for the unwary, we can attempt a simple, hopefully usable description here of these two aspects of reality. John Coleman, using Huston Smith, makes the distinction for us: By the "secular" I mean "regions of life that man understands and controls, not necessarily completely but.., for all practical purposes." These are regions toward which humans adopt a basically utilitarian attitude of mastery and control, making judgments on the basis of the technical adequacy of means to achieve stipulated goals) "Secular," then, speaks to a world of human domination, understanding and "control without, at least, any necessary reference to God or appeal to, or nourish- ment from, the experience of faith or of religious affections. Coleman then describes the sacred: By the "sacred" I mean the area of mystery--the incomprehensible, indomitable, and seriously and supremely important; for "the sacred exceeds not only our control but our comprehen- sion." Our characteristic attitudes toward the sacred are all celebration, participatory contemplation, and gratitude rather than mastery.4 "Sacred," then, points to the reverently mysterious, the awesomely (not problemat- ically) uncontrollable and, for articulated Christian belief, to a living, personal, experienced relationship with God in faith and hope and love.

~John A. Coleman, S.J., Theological Studies, December, 1978, "The Situation for Modern Faith," p. 604, citing Huston Smith, "Secularization and the Sacred,~ in Donald Cutler, ed., The Religious Situation 1969, Boston, 1969, p. 583. 4Coleman, Ioc. cit.. citing Huston, art. cit., p. 587. Trends and Issues in a Secularizing Worm / 1119

The tendency toward secularization in a world of human believers is inevitable. It may foster religious faith, or it may corrupt it. The human heart, in this world, however lofty and transcendent its desires may be, is, ought to be, always historical, definite, incarnational. However much travel and communication have mobil- ized us, limitations of space and time still shape our identity. These limits can seem very restrictive and confining. To live in America or Poland or lran as the twentieth century closes may seem a paltry destiny, when compared with the space address that may well be among the options of our twenty-third century descen- dants. But these temporal and spatial limits do identify us now and, rather than confining us, can call forth those precise creative responses which will bring about the reality of space living in the future. As human realities, faith and religion must be planted and grow within this world. And so, they, too, are susceptible to time/space limitations. Though faith will always call us beyond the world, its healthy development always lies in vigorous interaction with the world and its daily round of activities. Spirituality is never simply faith; but rather, it is faith’s interaction with culture. It therefore grows and incarnates itself precisely through a secularizing process and trend. With its central focus on Jesus of Nazareth, and therefore on incarnation, Christian spirituality not only tolerates but embraces, for the sake of its own existence and development, this secularizing interaction with the culture of a specific people and time. And this secularizing process can positively foster faith, because the kingdom of his Father which Jesus preached and lived, for the people of first century Palestine, was meant to be lived in the world. In his parables, Jesus took illustrations from the culture of ordinary people, and he challenged everyone to a whole new way of imagining !ife in this universe. Granted that the fullness of his Father’s kingdom beckoned beyond all this here and now, still the kingdom became an illusion if it did not take flesh in the daily circumstances of a specific culture. Over these twenty centuries, the continually limited situation of human faith has succes- sively called for multiple creative responses in the spirit-responses that lead to developments of both dogma and Christian life and that transform aspects of cultures, as each response incarnates, just a bit more, that loving reign of his Father which Jesus so desired for all. Though it is not always easy to interpret what is or is not providential, history is of course also dotted with instances of mistaken, or at least very tardy, responses of the Church to certain cultural challenges. Speaking summarily, then, we must be careful not to interpret the inevitable trend toward secularization as, of itself, destructive or weakening of Christian faith and witness. There is a healthy, permanent, indispensable secularity to Jesus’ vision of loving and trusting his Father. However, having spoken to the essential character of its positive meaning and purpose, we must frankly notice that this inevitable secularizing tendency, when not carefully purified and focused, can be dangerously corrupting of the life of faith. And we are speaking here of no mere danger, it seems to me, but of an actual 190 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 trend of significant strength. The secularizing tendency of life in our world can and does easily, both consciously and unconsciously, settle into secularism, as an overall view of reality. John Coleman helps us again, this time quoting Guy Swanson:

Secularism is the "denial that sacred order exists, the conviction that the universe is in no meaningful sense an expression or embodiment of purpose, the belief that it is unreasonable, other than anthropomorphically, to have toward the universe or its ’ground" a relationship mediated by communication or by any other interchange of meanings--to have toward it a relationship in any sense interpersonal."~ In this view, the world has become all, has become the ultimate: it has become God. Here we are entirely beyond any secularity, any inevitable and useful tendency toward secularization. As a vision of all reality, secularism has no time for faith, no basis for faith, much less for the intimacy of all true religion’s interpersonal relationship with God. In any explicit debate about secularism, of course, this corrupting danger for faith can be clearly percdived, and so the option to reject it is very available. But even at the theoretical, or notional level, rejection is not so easy, When the inroads are far advanced. However, it is at the operative level, the lived level, the level of heart and eyes and hands, where the danger is especially insidious, and much less detectable--in the midst of our busy, unreflecting life. The human heart, 1 believe, is essentially religious, with desires and Iongings for an interpersonal intimacy that far exceed anything and everything that is of this world. And often, by God’s grace, a resentful, depressing frustration results when our hearts’ settle for less than all that they are made for. But the sensationally sensual immediacy of much of the affective revolution occt~rring in our world can fixate our hearts and distract them from a reverential love of God.6 As the technological explosion more and more shapes our world, and as we, often rightly, professionally train for work that is more secular, there can be less talk and reference to what should also be religious, even overtly religious. Letters, conversations, sometimes, even, participation in religious ceremonies cease to involve any personal religious expression. 1 do not mean to imply here that religious faith is adequately, or even chiefly, measured by overt God-talk. But to keep the basic faith relationship of our hearts alive and growing, we surely need more than academic precision and culturally sophisticated reserve whenexpressing our faith. Faith, as a deep vision of heart, must be regularly expressed with appropriate personal devotion and affection. Otherwise, the vision and personal relationship of faith will, at minimum, lose any serious motivational force for our lives. It may even become something we are actually ashamed of. And when this happens, when our life of faith and devotion becomes entirely privatized, it can escape into a

~Coleman, art. cir.. p. 605, citing Guy E. Swanson, "Modern Secularity," in Cutler, op. cir., pp. 803.-04. 6See Review for Religious, March, 1981, my article referred to above (footnote I), pp. 235-238. Trends and Issues in a Secularizing World childish, uncritical pietism, because so rarely shared with anyone. But there is a third, more ominous possibility, Our faith, from lack of expression, from lack of embodiment, may actually die. This is obviously serious, ,and it is often final, when a person’s love relationship with God in Jesus loses all power, all effect in furthering a Father’s loving justice in our oppressively unjust world. And there is nothing theoretical in this very inadequate thumbnail sketch. Are there readers who have not watched, in themselves or in a friend, as faith weak- ened, the movement from a growing silence regarding faith to an indifference or even an aggressive criticism, until every expression of faith has become uncomfortable and unwelcome? Then, faith no longer plays a role either in choosing or in evaluating action. In a rapidly secularizing world, the possibility is very real that faith may harden into a cold, polite, sophisticated, professional stance to life, with very little warmly affective religious expression. But we always need to talk about our beloved with others, to keep the love affair alive and growing and to let it influence others. Appropriate personal expressions of our faith will usually serve the Holy Spirit’s inspiration of others. And therefore Christian communities of every kind, whether in religious life, or the family, or the parish, become increasingly more valuable as supports of shared religious vision and experience within a world tending more and more to secularism. How can we avoid the ultimate denial of Christian faith that secularism is? One terribly important means is surely that ongoing faith experience which knows, and seeks to experience God as beyond and greater than all the world. We who can so easily shrink God and conveniently fit him into our small universe have Jesus himself, in his experience of his Father, as our example in this matter. As he came to know Yahweh of the Old Testament in his own growing Abba experience, Jesus related most personally to a God whose life and love neither depended on nor were equal to this world, though (and here is the adventure of it) Jesus himself was that Father’s inextricable involvement in love with this world. His commitment to a God so far transcending, though intimately involved within, this world is dramati- cally revealed in Jesus’ Calvary experience of finding a resurrection of lif~ and love (his Father) in his very worldly, earthly dying. There was Someone worth dying for. And so, a cruelly absurd death is rendered beautiful to us and encouraging for our own life and death in this world, in what it reveals of a fullness and presence of life and love that is, in a sense, beyond any experience here and now, but yet which is finally available to all of us in Jesus, our Father’s kept promise of intimate hope. But how do we experience, before death, the Father of Jesus in his transcendence beyond this world?For some, it is available in the dramatic, peak experience of crisis, when choice is both forced and offered between the consolation of a God greater than this world’s absurdity and--nothing. In the critical moment when all of this world seems absurd and inimical, loving surrender to a God greater than all of this and whose love conquers all averts ultimate despair and destruction. People led through this experience learn to root their faith more deeply in God than ever before. Born again, they learn to see the world very seriously, and as much more 19~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 valuable and precious than ever before, because it is the stuff of a beloved Father’s kingdom. Not all are called to, or allowed, such a crisis. But this fundamental and essential experience of God is not available only through crisis. It is, at base, a contemplative experience, a conversion experience, of God which is available to every believer. Nevertheless, as Paul describes in Rm 6: I-I I, and whether it occurs in a resounding’crisis or in a quiet, secret, outwardly ordinary transformation, it does involve sharing Jesus’ death to this world, in order to live for God. There is a choice. And we do make it, whether suddenly or over time~ Either God, or the world~ In being attracted to the choice of God above the world, one then’, of course, can find and live with God, and for God, within the world.7 And then. the apostle is in sight: the one who, having chosen God and not the world, is now available to be called by God, sent by God. to serve the world. God’s world, the world God loved so much he sent his only Son. Through this experience, then, whether critically peak or not, but genuinely assimilated, we learn neither to take the world too seriously nor to take it lightly, either. A heart stretched by such an experience of God is simply not susceptible to an involvement in this world such that this world seems to be its own and our ultimate meaning and justification. For this is secularism pure and simple: no God, really: but if acknowledged at all. a God locked into this world. Jesus in all his serious concern for this world was never involved as though it were all he had. His identity center was never in this world, but in his Father: in his dear Father, whose love was greater than life itself/This was what kept Jesus energetically free in his life in this world, for this world. And so, too, for any disciple of Jesus. This experience of God beyond this world, which is meant to identify all of us in baptism, also prevents a seriously unchristian making light of this world. An excessive dichotomy between heaven and earth can lead people to long for the former and tend almost to view this earth as valueless, or, at best, as dangerous distraction. Such a lack of serious concern for this world can never result from an authentic experience of Jesus’ Father, but only from a failure to appreciate another aspect of Jesus’ Calvary experience--his own embodiment of his Father’s love and care for us sinners in this, however sinful, immensely beautiful and precious world. Jesus is not someone irresponsibly unconcerned with this world, but neither is he someone so in love with this world that his freedom and ultimate identity are limited to it. Rather, his centeris always a dear Father who is a source of all his worldly love and life. This special religious experience, of having our identity in a God beyond the world while being actively involved in it, is no once-in-a-lifetime experience. It is

7To speak of God above the world is, of course, not to make a spatial delineation. Rather, it is to speak of a God whose being and love isfar greater than this world. In .In 12:3Z .Iesus’s words remind us that ultimately we are attracted ("seduced~ is the Old Testament word) to this experience of God. it is not simply our own, Pelagian choice. 8Ps 63:3. Trends and Issues in a Secularizing Worm / 193

rather a lifetime process renewing, deepening, remembering and repeating our God-in-Christ experience. We must recognize the means God sends into our lives to renew this central, identifying experience. We must also find regular (daily?) habits that assist to renew this central focus of our heart’s vision. Together with many service situations each day, liturgy, a healthy practice of mortification, and formal praye’r can be regular reminders of a Father whose love and care for all of us point far beyond’the transitory world to a fullness of Spirit still gifting a dying Son’s trust. The final beauty for us and for our world, God himself, not only shatters any narrow secularism, but invests our proper apostolic concern and action in the world with a paschal force which labors joyfully that everything may belong to Christ, who shall hand all things over to the Father, that God may be all in all? Against this background of a strong secularizing tendency in our world today, I will now treat a number of other trends and issues on the American spiritual scene. Some of these concerns are more directly affected than others by our secularizing world; But all of them, in my judgment, are susceptible to its influence.

Related Trends and Issues 1. A Sacred-Secular Split A division of our world into sacred and secular is one of the chief tendencies of secularization. Father Philip Murnibn recently told the Catholic Theological Society of America that "we are experiencing (a) disaffection from faith and Church and a separation of private Church life from public social life that is the main feature of secularization."~° Many call for a political theology which would heal this split and bring the gospel more to bear on the persons and institutions of our unjust, sinful world. Such a view rightly understands that to theologize and to practice spirituality without a passionate concern for the specifics of our world only exacerbates the sacred-secular split and that the approach is, in any event, unchristian. But conversely, any merely external activity, however much on behalf of justice, is equally insufficient to heal this split wherever it exists, whether within an individual person or within a community. Any attempt at healing which ne- glects the split at the level of interior experience risks a fragile solution that will quickly slip into an unrooted, social externalism. Evangelization must aim deeply and broadly: it must essay healing the split deep within the individual human heart even as it confronts the systemic injustice in our society. Liberation theology needs to be rooted in a liberation spirituality for the individual believer.~l The silence and solitude, the healing purification and conversion of the encounter with God cannot be bypassed. Segundo Galilea articulates it exactly:

’~See I Co 15:22-8. ~01n Origins, August 13, 1981, "The Unmet Challenges of Vatican I1," p. 148. ~Segundo Galilea, ~Liberation as an Encounter with Politics and Contemplation," in Claude Geffr6 and Gustavo Guttii:rez, eds., The Mystical and Political Dimension of the Christian Faith, New York, 1974, p. 20. 194 / Review for Religious, March-ApriL 1982

Authentic Christian contemplation, passing through the desert, transforms contemplatives into prophets and heroes of commitment and militants into mystics. Christianity achieves the synthesis of the politician and the mystic, the militant and the contemplative, and abolishes the false antithesis between the religious-contemplatives and the militantly committed.~-’ The ~bility to deal in faith with a wide range of inner affective experiences in our hearts makes possible finding God in every inner experience. In this way all human experience gradually becomes religious experience and culminates somehow in God, thus healing the split between experiences which are either overtly religious or secular. Without this inner integration in faith of a person’s ongoing experience, political theology and spirituality are both Unroofed, just as the inner faith integration, if left to itself and without the outer word and action, becomes unreal and, finally impossible. A careful discernment of heart expressed in a passionate concern for individual evangelical issues and in a courageous loving presence to the.serious social issues of our world will avoid any unjust, unfaithful, secularistic dichotomy 2. Global Societal Values As we look to the future, there is an urgent summons to transcend overly personalistic, or, perhaps better, individualistic values. In the midst of a growing, democratic stress on the value of each human person, Vatican 11 took as one of its central foci the value of the person. In last year’s survey, while affirming this value as utterly central to the Christian mystery, I nevertheless treated the danger to personalism of a subtle self-centeredness. And 1 suggested we might be ready for a more refined Christian personalism.~3 As we look forward now to the year 2.000, when global and societal problems will be, even more than today, an inescapable reality, our education and religious formation must be founded on global, on societal, values rather than on simply personalistic ones. Learning to cooperate, throughout both national and international society, will become, will have to become, more and more the truest meaning of personal fulfillment. And questions such as these will face us if we take such a global perspective: How do we take account of the millions of poor starving people in our world as we arbitrate labor disputes for excessively high salaries, whether we are talking of air-controllers or of baseball players? How do we overcome the natural tendency to get as much as one can for oneself, rather than to think of sharing with millions upon millions who have much less? We have a long way to go in this shift of value perspective before the year 2000. The heavily personalistic approach (really, it is better to say. individualistic) with its stress on self-fulfillment, will not convert and develop easily~to a global perspective. The conversion involved here will be a new way of thinking. But it must go beyond that, to a change of heart. This global view will finally be shaped in experiences, carefully planned and reflected upon, as a complement to serious

~21bid.. p. 28. ~3See art. cit.. pp. 238-39. Trends and Issues in a Secularizing World / 195

study. True Christian personalism, of course, which is not narrowly individualistic, has no need to renounce any of itself, but will find a ready ally and field for service in global, societal concerns. Indeed, Christian personalism will become fully itself only in a communal, universal perspective which incarnates that justice, love and peace which mark the kingdom of Jesus’ Father. For most of us, the shift we speak of calls for a change of heart that must run deep, get radical and become a revolution in our sensibility. 3. Unity and Diversity On April 8, 1979, at an academic convocation in Cambridge, MA, Karl Rahner, attempting a theological interpretation of Vatican 11, claimed that this Council "is...the Church’s first official gelf-actualization as a world Church."~4 And Rahner claims that as the Church takes this revelation of her global nature ever more seriously, there will necessarily develop a pluralism of proclamations of the one Good News for many new cultures in Asia, Africa, and other places. How shall we find a true unity of faith within such a pluralism, and without again reducing it to a Western, Roman, overly centralized uniformity? Philip Murnion, in commenting on the unmet challenges of Vatican 11, feels that: "It is now the basic ecclesiology of Vatican 11 that confronts us as we grow weary and dissatisfied with so many superficial expressions of this ecclesiology."~5 As this basic ecclesiology of a "world Church" begins to be realized in practice, the pluralis~m which we know already can only radically increase. And as we are very well aware, such rapidly growing diversification often brings in its wake confounding disorientation, highstrung tension, and even hostile, angry charges of disloyalty. The problem is, and will be faith: to seek, and to learn to recognize unity of faith within diversity. That said, however, we cannot simply float with an almost infinite variety, as though diversity, in and of itself, were pure value. Finally, both human intelligibility and Christian faith require a unity. But a unity underneath and within diversity is not always easy to perceive, especially when diversification is rapid and recent. In a time of great diversity, before a clear, profound and pervasive unity has been found, we must learn to live both honestly and charitably, and with inevitable tensions. But even as we are patient, we must also continue to search for, we must ambition and work for, that unity which wiil help us understand how diversity is a blessin~ how it enriches and does not enervate. Simply to settle for a tolerance of plurality is not healthy pluralism. Whether it be a matter of the forms of ministry or orders, or of women priests, of religious garb, of doctrinal expression, or of forms of Church membership, we must continue to grow toward a "coherent consensus that can serve as a basis for common and confident Catholic identity."16 t4Karl Rahner, S.J., Theological Studies, December, 1979, "Towards a Fundamental Theological Interpretation of Vatican II~ (Leo J. O’Donovan, S.J., tr.). p. 717. ~Murnion, Origins, August 13, 1981, loc. cit. ~61bid.. p. 147. ~TSee Jn 17:22. 196 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

As we search for a deeper coherence and discerningly reflect on much experimentation, we must reverence one another and the intricacies of ecclesial authority and development. And the best way we reverence both one another and the issues is by sharing our beliefs as best we can, from deep within our hearts, in the confident hope that a God who is so joyously one, precisely in terms of his own lovely diversity, will guide us together and will help us to see the extent and limit of diversity so that we may be one even as Father, Son, and Spirit are one.~7 When looked at institutionally, the area of ministry may especially seem to reveal a diversifying revolution that verges on the chaotic.J8 We speak of"ministry" now, where before we would have said "apostolate" or, simply~ "work." Many believers, especially tho~e professionally trained, now speak of having a ministry. This explosion of ministries has unhooked the word, and permanently so, I should think, from a past, unambiguous relationship to ordination. Now, in word also, as always before in fact, it is not only priests who minister. And this great multiplication of ministries through the 1970’s is no mere matter of a word. It signals an underlying ideological shift regarding ministry in the Church.J9 Various studies are trying to expose this ideological shift,’ so that it can be seen for all that it may mean for the future, then discussed and carefully experimented with~ before any long- term decisions are made. This development in ministry is very complicated and needs to be studied from many perspectives. Perhaps serious consideration of the renewed ecclesiology of Vatican II will help us appreciate the theological source for much of the develol~men~t regarding ministry in the Church. For if the Church is seriously perceived as mystery and not just as institution, as community and not only, or even primarily, as hierarchy, as mission and not just as haven of the saved, then much of the ministerial multiplication becomes not only intelligible, but rich and welcome.20 Hopefully, then, such study will gradually expose the underlying issue here, so that we can choose our future in a diversity expressive of a profound, commonly shared faith-unity, rather than be trapped in a future diversity which is only the bitter sign of the disunity of unconcerned or warring parties.

4. Spiritual Witness of Religious Life Part of the explanation of the great expansion of,ministries is the urgent sense of the countless challenges with which the modern world confronts the Church. There are so many opportunities, and there is so much to be done. And we have not the leisure to wait; time is runnin.g out. This urgent sense of ministerial opportunity and challenge is affecting religious Congregations in at least two different ways. Some groups, over the past few years,

~sSandra M. Schneiders, I.H.M., The Way, October, 1980, "Theological Trends: Ministry and Ordina- tion I." p. 291. ~gSee John A. Coleman, S.J., America. March 28, 1981, "The Future of Ministry,~ pp. 243-49. 20Schneiders, art. cir., pp. 290-299. Trends and Issues in a Secularizing World / "197 have learned the futility of furious and relentless activity and are now involved in a serious, mature, realistic program of spiritual renewal. And they are doing this without any unrealistic or self-centered withdrawal from apostolic activity. But rather than trying to do as much as they "can," members are taking means and time to improve the prayerful quality of their presence and action in the world. Some leisure, to keep personal spirituality and humanity alive, is not seen as time wasted or selfishly spent, but is encouraged to provide the spiritual, faith motivation requisite for a courageously loving and enlightened presence in the critical situations of our world. There are other religious congregations that would almost certainly not explicitly deny the necessity of serious spirituality to root serious ministry. But at the operative level, they at least seem so taken up with their difficult ministries that fatigue, often verging on burnout, prevents serious growth in prayer and in the inner resources for that personal love relationship with God which alone can motivate authentic apostolic service. In such Congregations, often there is not much specific encouragement from superiors and other leaders for prayer, for careful spiritual reflection, or for time taken for serious retreats alone with God. Members of these congregations sometimes look in vain for such encouragement, and they wonder at an apparent lack of appreciation for ongoing spiritual renewal. These groups are frequently grappling with the crucial issues of our age, and often with great courage. But they are also doing so, often, with an apparent lack of any realistic, informed and detailed concern for that inner life of the Spirit which keeps apostolic life prayerfully focused on Jesus’ revelation of the kingdom of his Father. Within this significant, contemporary trend of religious congregations moving, not theoretically, but operatively, in two different directions, the issue is the subtle integration of the inner and outer, of prayer and ministry. I certainly have no wish or competence to sit in judgment on who attains this integration and who does not. Either of these two directions I have described can be exaggerated. Excessive care of spiritual practices can produce a "hothouse" pietism unconcerned with major issues in our world. And excessively busy activity in our secular world, without sufficient spiritual resources--and taking the time for this---can burn out faith and a prayerful spirit, in a way that does not further the kingdom. As we confront the fact that ministry is not a matter of staying as busy as possible, we can be led to the deeper~ more subtle issue of a careful concern for the quality of our action, a quality determined by the graced availability of our hearts and wills to God in all we do. We will struggle with the fluctuating mixture in our consciousness of grace and sinfulness, of consolation and desolation, and see how seriously related it all is to our service. An actively apostolic spirituality, never a matter of simple busy activity, is as much a matter of this inner quality of heart expressed in a special human faith presence as it is a matter of courageous activity and service for God’s people. As this is more appreciated, the groups now moving in the two directions I’ve sketched above will not judge or belittle one another. No, the3/will increasingly cooperate in diverse ministries, through a shared and prayerful faith. A related trend here concerns the role and understanding of formal prayer in 1911 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 serious spiritual growth and in mature ministry. Obviously, mature ministry is impossible without mature prayer. Here, I do not simply equate formal prayer and mature prayer. By no means. The latter term stretches far beyond the practice of formal prayer, into a whole life of prayer, but only so, 1 suspect~ because of an appropriately regular practice of formal contemplation. Without regular, formal contemplation, a mature, prayerful life in ministry does not seem possible. Most serious believers 1 consult and listen to, in the course of many travels and workshops, would readily agree with this. But many would then squirm a bit, perhaps, as they reflect on their own practice of formal prayer. 1 sense some widely divergent understandings today of"regular formal prayer." Without wanting to suggest any uniformity for all, let me pose some questions that may help us candidly face the issues in this trend. To practice regular formal prayer, does a person need a specific, daily expectation of length and time, rather than leaving it simply to daily spontaneity? Does this daily expectation or ideal then leave one open to days when God "excuses" one for various reasons (his), thus preventing the ideal from becoming ironclad and causing guilt? ls formal prayer always somehow a withdrawal from activity into the intimate solitude of our hearts to be with God there? Is praying formally once or twice a week what is usually meant by "regular" for a mature believer? Is it a different type and quality of prayer that one is capable of when one prays for thirty rather than ten minutes (without letting prayer become too, clock-oriented, like a prayerwheel)? Even in the case of quite advanced spiritual persons, is the disappearance of regular formal prayer, for at least thirty minutes, a bad, or at least very questionable, sign? I think individuals and whole religious communities must give serious thought to questions such as these before they too hastily agree again, even in very beautiful words, how important formal prayer is for busy apostolic lives. I am not entirely sure what reaction these questions may call forth from various people. But 1 do sense a growing desire among religious and others to be more prayerful and to be more honest about the whole question of what it means to pray, and of the necessity of praying if one wishes to be prayerful. Many look for clear, specific guidance and encouragement in this matter. And this desire to grow in the practice of formal prayer, as a means toa life of prayer and service, is no monastic aberration for an active person. I sense we can be carefully more demanding of one i~nother in this area, after a period of vague, rather general guidelines which reacted to some past inflexible, detailed programs of prayer. How these questions about regular formal prayer can be answered by busy parents with small children at home must also be investigated. Though in general their spiritual ideal and program must be different from that of religious and priests, it is still not at all clear that they are incapable of some realistic, regular practice of formal prayer. Without proposing any seminary or convent style of spirituality for busy parents, we must not downplay either their desire for prayer, even at the cost of sacrifice, or the necessary interplay of protracted regular prayer and a developing life of prayer. But much more experimentation and study must be done on the adaptations appropriate to these people, but adaptations which will Trends and Issues in a Secularizing World / 199 not trivialize the often significant spiritual capabilities and desires of these lay men and women.

5. Religious Life: Life in Community Another trend seems also to be moving the understanding of religious life in two quite different directions. Is religious life now, and will it continue to be, life lived in community? Once again, more operatively than theoretically, there seem to be congregations that respond yes to the question, though they may understand "living in community" in various ways. And there are certainly congregations that, at least in the way they act, would clearly seem to be answering no to community life as a necessary element of religious life. Some congregations see the profound unity of the whole group as springing essentially from that shared experience of "being sent" which integrates religious authority, obedience and mission into one life and call.2~ This profound sense of community in mission is then incarnated in each and every person’s living somehow as a member of a local community, with exceptions occurring only because of the necessities of geography or the nature of the particular ministry. In this way there is a clear incarnation of the belief that a member’s heart is given over completely to God and his people, but it is given to God and it is given apostoli- cally precisely through belonging fully to this specific congregation. In this understanding, apostolic community is not an end in itself, but it certainly is a continually essential means to ministry and service and thus is an essential aspect both of religious identity and of apostolic action. In other congregations, life in community seems experienced and desired and chosen as much less essential and pervasive in the group. And these groups are often composed of competently trained, talented, generous people. But their apostolic service seems more an individual concern. They are often found either living alone or, when they live together, they seem to do so more as a matter of conven- ience and/or compatibility than as anything required to express their identity. They often live the vows seriously and carefully, though where ministry is not an experience of "being sent," there would seem to be difficult questions about genuine religious obedience.22 Operatively, whatever the theoretieal aspects may be, there seems to be a different view of religious life here--something more akin to what we have traditionally understood a secular institute to be. The issue, it seems to me, is whether these two clearly differing developments are also contradictory and therefore unable to be seen as authentic variants of one reality: religious life as understood and lived in the Church. Will we continue to see religious life as life in community, which has seemed to be one of its essentials since

:~See my article. "Prayer. Mission and Obedience." The Way Supplement, No. 37. Spring. 1980. pp. 50-57. 221bid., p. 55. 20{I / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Pachomius organized eastern monasticism? It is important not to see community here as simply a geographical, local matter. That is an important meaning, but it is not the first nor is it the essential meaning of religious community life. Rather, vowed community life is fundamentally a profound union and communion in mission, a sense of the corporate, which indeed ordinarily is incarnated in a shared local setting of life and faith. Even now there can be tension and friction between groups of these two very diffe~’ent understandings of religious commitment. And I am not sure that the issue would not become serious enough in the future to cause a break and division in our understanding of religious life. A major superior recently told me that she expected, after the relative peace and the low number of departures during the end of the 70’s, that the early 80’s would bring more upheaval and departures--but all leading to something deep and good, something more gospel-based. So there may be radical purification again! And a sizable part of this upheaval may well concern the precisely communal dimension of our lives as religious. People may leave either because of a desire for more shared life and faith than a particular group has to offer, or conversely, they may leave because of a loss of aptitude or affection for celibate religious living after years of individualistic living and working. In congregations committed to a healthy, contemporary sense of communal living, there is another issue developing: a growing need for leadership on the local level. Groups, in and of themselves, still seem to find it very difficult to make decisions. Rather, they often haggle over each side of a question and often cannot move ahead. Beyond the role of a provincial superior and counselor, a local leader seems needed, a leader who listens, who values the communal and the collegial, but one who is able also compassionately to confront and to call individual members to be honest and prayerfully discerning about their lives, ministries and vocations. Leaders, then, are needed who are willing to accept the burden and service of authority. Without the encouragement of such a leader on the scene, honest, prayerful discernment about serious issues frequently does not happen. Provincials know how often they are confronted with the fair accompli in serious vocational decisions that have had very little consultation and prayerful discernment behind them. Mature, competent, professional adults, overly involved in our secular world, often need this careful but honest dialogue, if they are to stay in touch with, and live out, their_deepest, truest desires in faith. But as provincials know, it is very difficult to find men and women of this leadership caliber, mefi and women both suited and willing to be facilitators and leaders of local community life. And of course there remain in some members authoritarian hangovers which militate against this move toward better community living. Another angle of this issue concerns younger members’ entering religious life. Because of the serious decrease of members in the past decade, there is generally a real age gap developing between members who are about ten years professed and novices or temporary professed, who now face the prospect of joining for life. Can such young persons live and serve with members decidedly older than themselves? Can they live without much peer support? This is an issue which, in its detail and Trends and Issues in a Secularizing World developments and implications, is quite different from anything most of us had to face years ago as we entered religious life. Today, the decision for final profession, for such young religious, will require a strong sense of vocation indeed, a sense of vocation that is rooted in a special inner psychic strength and in a quite different type of trust in God than was asked for in the past. This sense of vocation and commitment must, finally, be rooted deeply in the inner solitude of the individual heart, where God’s call continues to resonate deeply and very lovingly. Now the motivation must run palpably deeper than any horizontal peer support. The community dimension of our vocation, important as it is, can never replace the unique- ness of a vocation rooted in the experience of solitude alone with God in one’s heart. In many ways, today we are being called back to this rooting of the religious vocation in God--in and through, of course, but also far beyond the personal fulfillment of shared support and affirmation. As Ps 73 says of him: "you are...the future that waits for me.ms All these different aspects of this trend concerning community and religious life finally issue forth with decided impact on the level of felt membership. Today, unless one is a major superior or has been chosen for some other special responsibility in the congregation, the felt sense of belonging may grow dim. So many religious today, whether it be their own responsibility or that of others, fe~l disconnected, left out. In past times, there were so many details, such as dress, daily schedule, interaction with local superiors, shared fun on vacation; all of this specified the commitment and gave a person a living sense of membership. But many of these experiences are gone now, and so the sense of membership of the rank and file can get hazy, unspecified, perhaps even unreal. This undefined sense of membership will haunt us, and it will be one of the causes leading to departures as we enter the 80’s. Somehow, our sense of membership must newly and more it~tensely involve a sharing of vision, life, mission and faith, according to the charism of the whole group. But it must also involve careful communication across all levels of the group, and, finally, and maybe most impor- tantly, it must seriously attend to the spiritual and human dynamics that work in the local living scene, and within the province as community, too. Ultimately, though, and deeply connected with this article’s major theme of secularizing tendencies, the matter, while entirely human, must also be seen as entirely about mystery and faith. Faith must be very strong if the practical, daily effects of faith are to have and retain their power to support fidelity, to sustain a life choice of God in the limited, definite way of life which is this particular religious congregation. 6. Distress Over Poverty There is a growing distress and uneasiness about religious poverty in many

2Sln the translation by Huub Oosterhuis et al, Fifty Psalms (New York: Herder and Herder, 1969), p. 74. ~0~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 congregations. It ranges from a paralyzing guilt to a vague uficertainty. And few other matters can so easily occasion anger among members of religious groups. Congregations whose ideal of religious poverty is clearly understood and is often very central to their identity may well not share this distress. Although I am treating this trend here in terms of religious life~ in various ways it affects many other people in the Church. Frankly (and far from all will share this view) I don’t think the precise issue has developed clearly enough yet within the ecclesial community. But I do think that the distress involved is a grace and that it is a stubborn, repeated call from God to rely more on him and to live in solidarity with all our brothers and sisters. If that’s on the mark at all, then of course it would be a serious mistake to reject out of hand this uneasiness, however much we may like to treat even our healthy guilt in this fashion. There surely is some unhealthy guilt involved, too. But a good part of our distress comes, 1 believe, as an invitation from the Father of Jesus to take his love more seriously, especially in our excessively consumer-oriented American society. So we must learn to live calmly and carefully with this annoying concern, until we come to know what in it is of the grace of God, and how we are to respond. In the meantime, of course, we cannot just sit and wait--often the worst thing to do withi~uilt. Rather, we must take whatever steps, large or small, are clear. Careful experimentation, both individual and communal, must be unde.rtaken, together with prayerful discernment of our fears and continuing study of the significance of religious poverty in each congregation’s charism. In a world where billions are equally trapped, whether in the evil of economic poverty or in the parallel e.vil of excessive consumerism, a religiously motivated poverty must be carefully, not narrowly, understood. How do we find today a viable, contemporary apostolic significance for what has been one aspect of the tradition of religious poverty, that "all things are held in common"?. In congregations where poverty was clearly an important element in the forming of the original founding community, how do we renew that aspect of poverty for apostolic community today? How do we all, lay persons, bishops; priests, religious, take seriously Jesus’ invitation to a radical gospel poverty? 1 hope our energy for this issue will not fritter away in excessive anxiety, but will rather generate a more radical discipleship of Jesus, a greater bondedness with one another, and a service that more reveals Jesus’ single-mindedness in furthering his Father’s reign of love in human hearts, hearts learning to trust one another and him, in childlike simplicity. 7. Family: Development or Destruction The state of the family in our culture continues to be cause for Serious alarm. 1 spoke of this trend last year and will add only a few brief comments here.24 As people reflect on the summer 1980 White House Conference on the Family, with

2aSee footnote I, above, my article for March, 1981, pp. 237-38. Trends and Issues in a Secularizing Worm its organized sessions across the country, many feel overwhelmed by the enormous variety of understandings of the family, a variety clearly springing from a confusion .of values held or spurned by various participants. Indeed, there was such lack of agreement o’n basic values that not only was it impossible to make any headway in discussing specific problerfis of the family, but even a satisfactory description of what a family is, in relation to marriage, sexuality and children, proved impossible. An excessive, secularistic tolerance for pluralism seemed to dominate discussion. Though there were some helpful conclusions and recommendations, the conference did not really grapple with the issue of the values clearly involved in this trend of family development. We surely cannot narrowly stick to any past understanding of family which rules out growth or development. Alvin Toffler, author of Future Shock and, more recently, The Third Wave, claims that "only some seven percent of Ameri- cans still live in classical nuclear families. The nuclear family is simply no longer the norm--and it is not likely to become the norm again, no matter how much pulpit-pounding or breast-beating we do about it."~5 As new forms of family multiply at a dizzying rate in our country, it will take great care and a deep sense of Christian moral values to sort through this rapid and very secularistic development, in order to choose new forms that are consonant with our Christian beliefs. It will take great care and great counter-cultural courage.26 8. Women’s Rights in Church Leadership Last year I concluded my article with brief, very tentative comments about sexist language in referring to God. That trend continues with us. But it is even clearer now that the issue runs as deep as the honest acknowledgment of the fundamental human equality of women with men in Church membership .and leadership. The issue, of course, is taking its most public and currently tense expression in the women’s ordination question. The possibility of the ordination of women continues to be researched, discussed and dealt with in some of its many aspects. From December 1979 through July 1980, three dialogues were held by representatives of the Women’s Ordination Conference and the U.S. National Conference of Catholic Bishops. Their purpose was "to discover, understand and promote the full potential of woman as person in the life of the Church.’e7 Many of the difficult questions connected with the issue were seriously investigated, and the sessions concluded with an interim report. Some interested scholars now conclude that "there already exists something approaching theological consensus that there are no intrinsic obstacles to the ordination of women; the Pastoral need for it is evident; it seems probable that it

~Sln Family Weekly Sunday Magazine for March 22. 1981, p. I I. 26See Bishop J. Francis Stafford’s excellent article. America, May 16, 1981, "The Year of the Family Revisited," pp. 399-403. 27Origins, June 25, 1981, ~Dialogue on Women in the Church: Interim Report," p. 81. 204 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

would be acceptable in those parts of the Church which are asking for it."2s Still others would claim that much more than theology is involved: "Theologians must finally decide the properly theological aspects of the women’s ordination question. But in so doing, they need all the help they can get: from biology, sociology, psychology, and the other sciences, yes; from the biblical renewal, yes. But also, from philosophers. For first of all, we need to know who we are, and what our sexuality is, and how we come to know what we know."29 There is also, inevitably, a real spiritual dimension to this issue. Without Roman permission, some women in this country have apparently taken the matter into their own hands.30 Other women feel so put down, so victimized, that they cannot share Eucharist, while still others cannot share active membership in the Roman Catholic Church at all. In certain situations, some priests feel beleagured and fear to preside at celebration of the Eucharist, much less to concelebrate one, when women are present. And they are anxiously careful never to broach the topic in public conversation. I can only renew my hope, in this difficult time, as the issue remains with us and as it develops, that we may all be able--as I wrote two years ago--to grow in a sensitivity to correct past injustices in our own relationships; to beg for light in the Spirit regarding~what is growth in this issue for the future; and to pray to live and serve generously in the present situation, with the humility and the urgent patience of Jesus in his passion.3~ Like all great events in human and ecclesial life, the question of women in the Church, including the question of women’s ordination, is not simply a question or problem. It is also deeply mysterious. And to the extent that it is a great question, it will partake greatly in Jesus’ own paschal adventure, his life-giving meeting, through suffering and dea.th, with his Father. Jesus spoke forthrightly and boldly against injustice and oppression and in behalf of his Father’s little ones. But he was also liberator, and never more powerfully so than when he suffered and was taken advantage of. 9. Lay Colleagueship Institutions that have a religious relationship, e.g., universities, high schools, hospitals, orphanages, and so forth are feeling pressure from many angles. The number of religious working in these institutions has severely decreased. And it requires great sophistication, at best, to secure the federal or state funding needed to keep such works going, and yet have any hope of maintaining an explicit religious orientation. People will usually go to a public institution, where the cost is cheaper, unless the religious institution has something especially unique and valu-

2SSchneiders, The Way. April, 1981, "Theological Trends: Ministry and Ordination 11: The Ordination of Women," p. 148. 29Mary F. Rousseau, The Way. July, 1981, "Theological Trends: The Ordination of Women: A Philosopher’s Viewpoint," p. 224. 3ONational Catholic Reporter, July 17, 1981, p. I. 3tSee footnote I, above, my article for March, 1980, p. 203. Trends and Issues in a Secularizing Worm

able to offer. So, pressures threaten the very survival of these institutions, and more and more of them will fail to pass the survival test. Ideally, the unique values that institutions have to offer must be rooted in the vision of the religious congregation to which the institution in question is related. If this vision is to take effect, however, there must be large-scale cooperation between the religious group, usually very few in number, and the large cadre of lay workers. Without the support of these lay colleagues, the institution will not even survive, much less have a specific, religious vision and spirit. More than just working for religious, lay persons must be seen as working with them. And if the special vision of the religious congregation is to be real and attractive to others, it must be thoroughly understood, believed in, and shared by the competent lay persons who help form the major part of the staff. Many of our lay colleagues are eager to share our vision and to let it energize their lives and their work. But in most instances, there is a long way to go in this matter of lay colleagueship. Do religious believe in their own vision? And can they articulate it for purposes of concrete living and working, and in a way that is attractive to colleagues? How do we help lay colleagues develop spiritually in a way that is appropriate to them? Without violating affirmative-action programs, how do we use our vision, after specifyihg it in goals and objectives and programs, in the hiring process? Underlying this trend, of course, is the enormously seriously issue of lay responsibility in the life of the Church. How much real responsibility is the Church willing to give to lay persons on all levels? Some people feel that "it is becoming increasingly necessary to articulate the place of the lay person in the life and ministry of the Church.’’s2 They wonder: "Is it necessary to become clerical or religious to enjoy true responsibility in the life of the Church?ms The Church in many ways has yet fully to answer this question. She will only do so clearly, one way or another, not mainly by words but by the way she treats lay persons. A serious lay colleagueship, absolutely essential for the survival of religiously related institutions, hangs in the balance. 10. Seminary Training and Preparation for Priesthood In my previous two surveys, I have treated the spirituality of diocesan priests.34 And as I conclude this year’s survey, I want to touch again on a few aspects of this issue, especially as it relates to seminary training. My experience this past year suggests a growing concern for spiritual formation programs in diocesan seminaries. What should be the elements of a serious spiritual formation program in a diocesan seminary, one that does not treat seminarians either as monks or as active religious, but one which also does not

J2Murnion, art. cir.. p. 151. SSlbid. Also Schneiders, The Way, April, 1981, p. 142. s~See footnote I, above, my articles of March, 1980, pp. 214-15 and of March, 1981, pp. 248-49. 906 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 tolerate a spiritual seriousness any less ambitious than that proposed for monastic and active religious? At least one diocese this year will try.a "novitiate" period of intensive spiritual formation. Just as we have academic norms for ordination, how do we develop norms for requisite development, prior to ordination, in matters such as mature prayer, prayerful apostolic zeal, and affective, spiritual maturity? How do we come to that kind of shared vision and seriousness about spiritual formation which will engage the cooperation and collaboration of both academic professors and spiritual directors on seminary staffs? After facilitating a workshop last June for the National Federation of Spiritual Directors (NFSD) in diocesan seminaries, I am a bit more optimistic that the problem is being faced in some seminaries across the country.35 Though this spiritual issue is certainly the most serious one, there are other important concerns affecting diocesan seminaries. Celibacy is one. Priesthood in the western Church at this time is very clearly a celibate affair. However, when there is such a dearth of priests, how seriously do spiritual directors in seminaries investigate a student’s vocation for evidence of a clear, healthy call to celibacy, and in such a way that a genuine call to celibacy becomes a clear norm for entrance into theology and for approval for ordination? The severity in the worldwide shortage of priests continues to increase, leaving many persons and groups throughout the world without the ordinary sacramental ministry of the Church.36 This shortage simply cannot be turned around quickly. It is doubtful that it will be turned around at all. It is a shortage that cries out for a reinterpretation of some of the issues touched upon in this article, e:g., ministry diversification, women’s ordination, lay responsibility. But this severe shortage can also very understand- ably create an excessive, distorting concern over the need for numbers, on the part of bishops and seminary rectors, and it can foster naive hopes, on the part of prospective priests, who wish to respond to such a severe pastoral need. Seminary training these days is surely not easy. A humble confidence is needed on the part of both staff and student, a confidence and trust that can only come from growing spiritual maturity and an expertise that helps us to understand the dynamics of spiritual development and helps, also, to root a priestly yocation deeply and surely in the solitude that must be the cenfi~r of a celibate heart, a heart that relies trustingly and ever more thoroughly on a loving Father, as the heart of Jesus most surely did.

~SFor a challenging, optimistic view of seminary formation for the future, see Bishop Walter Sullivan’s address. "What Priesthood Awaits the Seminarian?~ in Origins, Sept. 17. 1981. pp. 209-215. J6See Coleman. America, March 28. 1981. art. cit., pp. 247-48. Four Rules for Man-Woman Relationships Among Religious

Val £ Peter

In the issue of July of 1978, Father Peter, a priest of the Archdiocese of Omaha, published "Two Models of Christian Spirituality." He continues to teach at Creighton University, and may be addressed there: Department of Theology: 2500 California St.: Omaha, NE 68178.

Current discussions about celibates and their relationships with others are best viewed within the context of the widespread uneasiness about man-woman relationships in our culture. This general uneasiness is clearly seen in changing sex roles, women’s liberation, new patterns of sexual manners and morals, transitional family styles--not to mention media emphasis on the quick fix as normative for love and friendship. Priests, sisters, and brothers have no monopoly on troubling questions about man-woman relationships. They have been told--and quite correctly--that sexuality is a central facet of human life, that its development in the human person is critical to the internal and external integration of the self, and that clergy and religious possess special opportunities for growth and development while at the same time missing out on the more customary opportunities available in marriage and parenthood. Even advocates of behavior modification will admit that sexual pleasure is an important potion in their reinforcement armamentarium, even while denying any usefulness to Jung, Adler, and Freud or any scientific validity to the developmental schemes such as Erikson’s. It is in these circumstances that sisters, priests, and brothers search today for some guidance. The old ways do not work well. The new ways are many and conflicting. There is a felt need to take a strong positive growth posture, especially in the area of man-woman relationships. Accompanying this emphasis is a whole new vocabulary. One does not "talk" with another; you "share" with them. You do not seek things that are "good" or

207 ~01~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

"worthwhile" but rather things that are "fulfilling." One does not "like" something; rather you find it "meaningful." You do not "make progress"; rather you "grow." You do not "leave the past behind"; you seek "liberation" from it. You don’t even "get smart" or "figure things out"; you rather have your "consciousness raised." One does not "tell the truth"; you rather "open up" to others. One does not "use one’s talent"; you "utilize your potential." In the past the jargon was about the purgative, illuminative, and unitive ways to perfection. Today the really unforgiveable sin--perhaps the only unforgiveable sin left--is not to care about "growing." I do not mention this with any purpose except to note the firm hold that one brand of pop psychology has on us today. There is no doubt that psychological growth is a priority item with many. The fact that it is sometimes confused with advances in the spiritual life or substituted for the hunger for the living God should not deceive us into believing it all to be a "bunch of nonsense." For psychological and spiritual growth, though distinct, are interrelated in complex ways. When all the theoretical questions have been asked and all the research has been looked at, there is still one practical question to be asked. Are there any practical rules for guiding sisters, priests, and brothers in their everyday man- woman relationships? Over the years I have developed four such rules. Before sharing them with you, three preliminary remarks are in order. First, the rules given below are written with heterosexual relationships in mind. But they apply with equal force to relationships with the same sex. An esteemed colleague suggested that this would be more clearly understood if the title of the article were changed from "man-woman relationships" to "interpersonal relationships." That is probably true but, since my main focus was on man-woman relationships, I decided to let stand this less extensive expression and hope my readers would understand. Secondly the rules apply to one’s fantasy life as well as to one’s behavior. Thirdly the rules do not give anyone an adequate reason for being celibate. That reason can only be found in God’s call and our response--past, present, and future. The rules only provide practical guidance for religious and priests engaged in the struggle to be free and faithful in Christ. Rule 1: There is a distinction between friends and lovers. That distinction ought to be well understood and well kept. Friends are more than companions. Companionship is between people who do things together. They share a class or a work experience or a trip to Europe or even a war or a prison cell. Companions are not concerned about each other except to the extent that the other’s behavior may inconvenience them. But that is no reason to disparage companionship. For, as C. S. Lewis points out in his classic work The Four Loves, companionship is the matrix of friendship. Many people working together in parishes, hospitals, schools and so forth, start off as companions. Friendship is between people who are really concerned about each other’s welfare on a reciprocal basis, sharing as they do both common interests and a common vision. Friendship includes almost every possible interaction except con- Four Rules / 209

stant criticism of each other. You do not even have to believe anything sensible to be friends as long as you both believe the same nonsense and do not criticize each other too much. You could be Bonnie and Clyde. Friendships can make us worse or better; they can close us off to others or expand our circle immensely. In the case of the great saints who were great friends, the crucial difference was their deep-rooted desire for holiness of life. Think of Catherine of Siena and Raymond of Capua, Teresa of Avila and Jerome Gracian, Francis de Sales and Jane de Chantal, Jordan of Saxony and Diana D’Andal. What are lovers? They are best described as being mutually absorbed in each other and in the psycho-sexual effects on self and the other of this mutual self- absorption. Sexual attraction and interaction, with dating and mating in word, deed, and fantasy, are the hallmark of the relationship. There is nothing that interferes with friendship like dishonest or inappropriate sex. The priest, sister, and brother are called to enter into friendships, to make friends, to appreciate them, to work on keeping them, and to love them. But they are not called to be a "lover" except with God--and there clearly by way of analogy only. There is, then, a reasonably clear distinction in our culture between friends and lovers. It is important that priests and religious ask themselves about this distinction and about their relationships with significant others in their lives. That is not Jansenistic nor puritanical. It is based on the conviction that priestly and religious celibacy, if truly evangelical, calls for the development of the capacity for friendship at all levels while excluding the mutual absorption of lovers and its psychosexual effects. Rule 2: There is a difference between dating behavior and non-dating behavior. That behavioral difference ought to be well understood and well respected. The distinction between dating and other forms ol~ relating is not easy to describe but it is fairly easy to pick out when you see it. Dating patterns are culturally relative; they are dependent on the manners and mores of the culture, home environment, ethnic background, group patterns, social graces, and more. That is why it is so hard--in fact, impossible--to lay down rules that will cover everybody everywhere under the sun. But that does not mean it is impossible in our own context to figure out what counts as dating behavior and what does not. Like the Athenians whom Socrates dealt with, most of us know dating behavior when we see it even if we can’t define it. And if you haven’t learned to differentiate the two yet, then there are people in your community who do know and who will be more than happy to teach you. Most of us do know--except of course when we ourselves are involved in dating behavior. That is why it is important to have a good counselor or spiritual director who has a great deal of common sense--and just as much of God’s grace. Common sense has the unique ability to cut through the thick fog of the priest’s or religious’ dating behavior and see the likely causes and effects of erotic fantasy, sentimentality, and sexy romanticism. Such common sense surely would 2"10 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 have saved a lot of people much sorrow and misery had it not been so terribly uncommon and in such short supply. Some time ago I was doing a seminar on ministry with five priests and three ministers. We were talking about the virtue of chastity. It was very interesting and instructive to listen to the married ministers speak about how they have to watch out for dating behavior. Why would you want to watch out for it? Is it that man-woman relationships are evil for religious? Or for ministers? Or is it not true that such behavior will lead us into situations where we will not manifest the beauty of the vocation that we are called to or the vocation of the other person. There is no doubt that our culture’s confusion of sex and friendship and its emphasis on genital sex as the only good medication for loneliness and frustration provides subtle subliminal motivation for a priest or religious to initiate dating behavior without even knowing it. Add the need to grow, to be involved, to find meaning in relationships--reinforced by peers and significant role models--and the impetus to dating behavior grows stronger. Quite innocently the religious looks for a "meaningful relationship" or what Fr. Vincent Dwyer in Genesis H calls "somebody to be in love with." Failing to notice that the relationship is structured by dating behavior and thus being unable to see the inappropriateness of it, many a religious has found himself/herself caught up in this sudden chemistry which is the starting gun for marital intimacy. Few people ever abandon the expectation that when the magic electricity turns on, it is a sure sign of divine intervention. Everyone, both married and unmarried, endures periods of loneliness, frustration, emotional malnutrition and spiritual undernourishment, periods in which they are bored by the humdrum nature of their existence, sick of being taken for granted, and tired of not being appreciated. It is at moments such as these that the full force of our culture’s exclusive preoccupation with dating and mating in man-woman relationships exerts its full frontal force on us. It is all the more troublesome because such a restricted and limited view of man-woman relationships is so subtle and seductive, not the sort of thing that even highly dedicated Christians would just naturally think of. Rule 3: There is an immense difference between saying "I love you’" and "I am (falling) in love with you." That difference and the reality it expresses ought to be well understood and well respected. There are people to whom it is good and appropriate to say: "I love you." Some people find it hard to say this, even when it is true, even when deep down they want to say it so badly. Some families have made that expression taboo. It falls into the same category as other forbidden words such as toilet paper, hernia, brassiere; and "I’m sorry." Hopefully, as we grow and develop, we are able to tell people that we love them (and allow them to tell us), starting witti our parents, family, and friends, and, as time goes by, our parishioners and those whom we minister to--not to mention God and self. If we do not let people tell us that they love us, how will we ever hear the Good News? If we do not tell them we love them, how will they ever hear? Four Rules / 211

The phrase "1 love you" can be synonymous with either (a) love as duty or (b) love as a feeling or (c) love as something you do for someone because it is really worthwhile. Each of these ways of loving someone can be appropriate for the religious or priest. Let us see how. First there is love that is synonymous with duty. To say that I love you is to tell you ! have a responsibility toward you and am doing my duty, fulfilling my responsibility. My really loving George or Sally means much more than that I will not beat them to a pulp with a poker whenever I get a chance. It means helping George and Sally because that is my duty toward them. To love someone out of a sense of duty falls far short of the heights of which love is capable. But that is no reason to disparage it or reject it completely. But it is a reason to caution that the road is a lonely one if such authoritarian and duty- bound love is all there is in one’s life. But it is also a reason to encourage such a person. For many a priest and religious has discovered how fidelity in the Lord can--if we let it--blossom into freedom and a whole new way of I~eing faithful to ’the Lord. Secondly, in addition to love identified with duty, there is love synonymous with feelings. The opposite is not indifference but hatred. Here love is not duty. It is something you feel. The feelings are often responsive to the ontic and qualitative values of the other. You are delighted with the other person. You feel good in their presence and the appropriateness of these feelings is shown by the harmony of these feelings with the deepest roots of your vocation. They are feelings of friendship, deep and lasting. To say "I love you" is to say you are my friend. And friendship is a wellspring of self donation. But it is a wellspring that can be polluted by self absorption. Our culture tries to reduce or collapse all loving feelings to one, namely the romantic, and in so doing it impoverishes them. In limiting love to romantic feelings, all other fellow feeling is discarded or disparaged. The result is an erosion of relationships and a falsification of the celibate’s identity. That makes it impossible for other fellow feeling to function properly. Thirdly in addition to love as duty and love as feeling, there is another and even more central kind of love, one ~ynonymous with the willingness to do something for someone because it is really worthwhile. Here to say "I love you" means: "I care enough about you to do what is really worthwhile for you." Its opposite is not hatred but indifference, simply not caring. It is Rhett Butler saying to Scarlet O’Hara: "Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn." Real caring is the good samari- tan saying: "No matter what my feelings about half-breeds, 1 deeply want to take care of you, bind up your wounds, and get you to a hospice." It is a deeply thought out concept of love. It comes from using your head as well as your heart. It is not mere repetition of what you are told to do nor is it blindly giving people what they want (which may be at odds with what they need). It is a thought out response to genuine need. 1 was hungry and you gave me to eat. 1 was in the dumps and you cheered me up. I was confused and you brought me light. 1 was wallowing in self-pity and you brought me to my senses. I was rationalizing and you blew the 219 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 whistle in an affirming way. These were all loving acts on your part. Much is written these days about courage and toughness or what is called "tough love." Priests and religious would do well to listen. Hopefully as we grow and develop, we will be able to tell people (starting with our parents and relatives and friends and people to whom we minister) that we love them appropriately in all three of these ways. And hopefully we will let them love us in all these ways as well. And if we do not let them love us, then we are closing off the Lord’s love in our lives. A word of caution seems in order here. To say "1 love you" is not special or exclusive lovers’ language for; as we have seen, it is also used by parents and relatives and friends and those to whom we minister. But if, in ’your group or in your own heart and mind it carries only a lover’s meaning, then your use of it would convey something in opposition to the thrust and direction of your vocation. That would be perilous. There is a phrase, which is special lovers’ language, namely: "I am (falling) in love with you." It is inappropriate for priests and religious because to use it is to speak properly of eros for sexual union. To use it is to speak properly of overcoming, via genital expression, the separateness and isolation to which we are all heirs as individuals, the drive toward the exclusive relationship of lovers. The phrase is frequently debased in the media when it. is used to betoken sex without eros (sex without being in love), which is a mechanical, manipulative release of tension that gives pleasure but not joy. The phenomenon of romantic love which is expressed by saying "l am (falling) in love with you" is quite easily grasped and understood as distinct from the love of friendship. When people fall in love, there is a readily identifiable series of sights and sounds both within and without. The world changes around lovers in the way it looks to them and also in their whole experience of who they are and what they are about. There is an intensity of consciousness of both joy and anxiety which is so exciting that many couples think their love is unique--nobody ever loved like this before. It is my own conviction that everyone falls in love more than once in a lifetime or at least has the potential to do so. This includes not only single and married people but also priests and religious as well. The important question is: what are you going to do about it when you realize it is happening or could happen? What do you do? Hopefully you do the same thing that a married man/woman does who sees himself/herself becoming overly attracted to a coworker. There aren’t any special privileges for celibates in this regard. So you must ask yourself: what effect will this relationship have on my primary commitment in life? Will it allow me to remain faithful to my vocation, to my fundamental commitments, to the basic thrust of my being in light of who I am and who I want to be? Is it really worthwhile in the light of the ~ross and the resurrection of Jesus Christ and my chance to share in that?

Rule 4: The rules for the male celibate’s relationship with the female celibate are Four Rules / 213 the same as for his relationship with a married woman and vice versa. This is probably the least understood and most controversial of the rules given here. It means what it says. There are no special favors, no special privileges, and no special liberties that you are entitled to take with the other person because you are both celibate. There are certain attitudes and behaviors that belong exclusively to spouses to share with each other. They are expressive of the exclusive fidelity that so charac- terizes the relationship of Christian spouses and which mirrors the relationship of exclusive fidelity we all have with God. The exclusive fidelity to God to which all Christians are called is then most clearly mirrored in the sacrament of marriage to which celibates are not called. Foreplay, petting, and other erotic stimulation in both fact and fantasy find their proper place between spouses. The people who disagree with this fourth rule usually fall into one of two categories. One group is really arguing that it is forbidden for a married person to have or seek friendship outside the marriage. That is to say, a spouse would be able to satisfy all the psychological and spiritual needs of the mate. This is a very repressive view of marriage, one that does not foster or strengthen the importance, vitality, and growth potential of permanent commitments, either religious or marital. The other group is really arguing that, because priests and religious have to sacrifice so much, they are thereby somehow entitled to some special compensa- tion or privileges or liberties with each other. Some in this group are saying sex is the language of love and that since all Christians are called to love, they are all called in some way to sexual expression. If they are correct, then Christians above all should be opposed to sexual restraint since Christians are called to love as much and as many as possible. The reduction of love to sex may be a central feature of our culture, but it is in no way a feature (much less a central one) of the gospels. There we do not find all Christians called to sexual activity; we find them all called to love. We should not let the norms of an overly eroticized culture force us to compromise on the truth for the sake of being contemporary. When you are in the grips of incipient passion, it shouts to you that it has power to unleash enormous centripetal forces beyond your control, forces that will sweep you into each other’s arms, no matter how much you may try to resist. Something in the experience of passion tells you that this is the only chance you may have for real happiness and fulfillment, the only opportunity to find satisfaction and personal recognition, the only hope for release from depression and melancholy. To believe all this is to forget the simple truth that passion, when we are in its grips, makes towering promises that it can never keep. It is simply this truth--and the truth of our vocation and vows--that we should not compromise on for the sake of being contemporary. It helps at times to recall that we are stubbornly selfish creatures who are called by God to greatness. We are called by our God into a relationship beyond anything we could ever ask or imagine for ourselves. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow: Can It Extend to What He Teaches?

Jose M. Garcia de Madariaga, S.J.

Father Garcia de Madariaga is a member of the Centro de espiritualidad "lfiigo de Loyola" in Portugalete, Vizcaya, Spain.

"1 further promise a special obedience to the sovereign pontiff in regard to the missions" is the sparse wording of the Fourth Vow taken by those Jesuits whom their Constitutions call the "principal members" of the Society of Jesus [511]. In his first draft of those Constitutions, St. Ignatius termed this vow "our principle and chief foundation"(Part VII, c. 2). By this vow, the Jesuit promises "to carry out whatever the present and future Roman pontiffs may order which pertains to the progress of souls and the propagation of the faith: and to go without subterfuge or excuse ~.. to whatsoever provinces they may choose to send us" (FOrmula of the Institute. [4]). Recently this bond of the Society to the pope has received considerable media attention. Discussion also has risen as to whether the pope could assign the defense of some doctrine of faith or morals in virtue of this vow. The present article is the second of two parts of a study which appeared in Manresa, a Spanish review of Ignatian and Jesuit spirituality. Part I, which appeared in vol. 49 (1977), ppo 215-228; dealt mainly with the official documentation of the Society: the earliest bulls of approbation which contain the so-called "papal legislation" regarding the Society, its fundamental law, and the Constitutions written by Ignatius himself. Part II, our present article, appeared in vol. 53 (1981), pp. 227-256. In this article, the author looks more to Ignatius’s correspondence and the early practice of the Society. This translation was prepared by Daniel T. Costello, S.J., Book Editor of this review. The Editor

To better understand a law’s meaning and scope in the Church, a much used norm is, after examining the text and context, the purpose and source of the law, to attend to the mind of the legislator. A second, derivative norm, itself mentioned in the Code of Canon Law, is to keep in view the practice of the Roman Curia.

214 The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow [ 215

These would seem to be practical norms as well when one is to consider, not the general law of the Church, but the particular law of a given institute. In terms of our present concern, the Fourth Vow of the Jesuits and its extent, we considered the law in its text and context, its purpose and provenance, in our earlier article. Let us now apply these further norms of interpretation to the question at hand. Since Ignatius of Loyola is the legislating author of the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus, since he himself governed the Society during its first fifteen years, and since his manner of governance is amply reflected in his abundant correspondence, this.same correspondence will provide us with the best key to his thought and to the intention of his legislation. In his letters, too, more than in explanations or commentaries, shall we find evidence of the way in which he applied this legislation, the "practice of his curia," which will speak eloquently in giving a clear interpretation of his thought. The fact that it was with the greatest naturalness that Ignatius accepted man- dates to enter upon papal business of a definite doctrinal cast--just as he accepted any other papal mission--coupled with the fact that he himself strove positively to facilitate the attainment of precisely the doctrinal ends of these missions, show that Ignatius considered such assignments like any other papal mission. Hence, for Ignatius, doctrinal and magisterial elements do in practice enter into the Fourth Vow of the Jesuits as its proper object. This conclusion has all the more force when one considers, for example, the startling contrast offered by the way in which Ignatius resisted the acceptance of any ecclesiastical dignity from the pope because, in his judgment, such did not conform with the Institute of the Society.~ First, then, we shall consider as a practical interpretation of the Constitutions some instances in which there is a direct connection between the vow and papal assignments which have doctrinal implications. Secondly, we shall consider other cases in which lgnatius’s spirit and mind are clearly seen in relation to the pope and to matters of doctrine, since it is his spirit which ought to interpret his laws in this matter.

A Direct Relationship Between Doctrine and Vow In September of 1549, three Jesuits, Jay, Salmeron and Canisius were sent to Germany by the pope. A lengthy instruction, penned by Polanco but authenti- cated by Ignatius,2 provides clear evidence of the doctrinal dimension of this

~St. Ignatius left no stone unturned to forestall Le Jay’s being made a bishop. He did the same with St. Peter Canisius. Many times he hindered the appointment of Lainez as a cardinal. The same for St. Francis Borgia. 2Ep. 18: Monumenta Ignatiana (MI) l, Xll. p. 239, nora I. See Polanco, Chronicon Soc. lesu I, Monumenta Historica Societatis lesu (MHSI), I, pp. 410-416. Ep. 39. MI, I, Xll, p. 423: Ep. 5: MI, I, Xll, pp. 492.-496, 524. 216 Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

mission. "The purpose the supreme pontiff intends in sending the fathers is to be kept constantly in view, viz., to assist the University of Ingolstadt and, so far as possible, the whole of Germany in what concerns the purity of faith, obedience to the Church, and, finally, sound and wholesome doctrine and good morals."3 The most important aspect of this mission, indeed its whole purpose, could not be more clearly doctrinal in nature. The Jesuits are to go to a university, where they are to teach sound and solid doctrine and good morals. In itself, this doctrinal character might b~ deemed somewhat vague. However the fathers are also charged with providing for the purity of faith and, still more concretely, for obedience to the Church--evidently the Church of Rome whose head is the pope. There is question, then, of a mission with a specifically doctrinal purpose, one not only to a university, but to the whole of Germany which was at that time progressively separating itself from Rome. The identical point is urged slightly further on in the same instruction: "What is of the utmost importance is that they [the Jesuits] shall distinguish themselves by the solidness of their doctrine in their public lectures, for which principally did the duke request them, and for which the supreme pontiff sent them .... ,,4 Evidently. the pope sent them especially for the purpose of giving eloquent and convincing explanations of "sound" doctrine in their classes as a remedy to the havoc wrought by heresy. To this end they are admonished "to see to it that they are well up in all that concerns the dogmas of the faith which are questioned by the heretics, especially by heretics of this time and in that place .... "~ This is a doctrinal mission, not one that is general in scope, but which is concerned with specific dogmas which are being denied, dogmas which the Jesuits are sent to explain and defend in a way that is clearly Catholic and Roman. The pope sent them to defend his cause, which was at that time in such peril in Germany. This mission had such a Roman cast about it that the danger was foreseen of the Jesuits being excessive in their zeal, thus prejudicing their.cause. Hence the counsel was given: "Let them so defend the Apostolic See and its authority, and let them so draw men back to their true obedience that they do not lose credibility for being papists by reason of incautious exaggerations. In other words, so clear is it that the Jesuits’ mission is to defend the pontifical prerogative, and so certain is it that the Jesuits will discharge this office ardently that what Ignatius warns them against is immoderate enthusiasm, and this precisely because it can embarrass their defense by rendering it less credible and attractive.

3Ep. 18: MI, 1. XII, p. 239. 4Ep. 18; MI, 1, XII, p. 242. 5Ep. 18: MI, I. XII, p. 243. ~’Ep, 18; MI, I, XII, p. 244. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 217

We clearly have a "mission" in the strict sense in this instance,7 for the key word, "send" (enviar), is used at least twice. On September 25, 1539, Alfonso Salmeron wrote a letter in the name of the Society to the father of Diego Lainez. In this letter Salmeron mentions the verbal approbation that had recently been given the Society, and tells Lainez’ father that the pope had sent his son in the company of the papal legate "to preach and to hold discussions with certain heretics and Lutherans.’’~ Again, this papal mission had a very specific doctrinal purpose: to explain and defend precisely those truths which were contested by the heretics. Polanco, too, mentioned this same event, speaking of their being "sent," and of the "sacred lectures" (lecciones sacras) they were to give.9 Without anyone’s suggestion, and without leaving the choice of the individual to the Society, the pope, on his own initiative, had designated Lainez to attend the German Diet. Ignatius had to explain this to the Duchess of Florence who had her own designs for the ministry of Lainez in her states. He wrote: It is true, then, that the pope on his own has named Master Lainez and another of our Society as companions of the legate he has decided to send to this diet. Aside from the fact that this is a journey from which religion can hope for a great and universal good, i.e., assisting in the recall of that nation to the Catholic Church, since we cannot, nor ought we, refuse obedience to the Vicar of Christ our Lord, it was necessary to accept the order given us.~0 This mission of the pope was intended to recall Germany to its obedience to Rome--an undertaking basically doctrinal in its purport since it was the errors and prejudices separating Germany from Rome that had to be removed. The strong terms Ignatius employs in his instruction to the Jesuits show how agreeable the enterprise was to him, and how well he thought it to jibe with the spirit and end of the Society.l~ In this instance, the word "send" is used directly, not of Lainez, but rather of the legate he was to accompany. However, when writing of the event in his Chronicle, Juan Polanco, Ignatius’ secretary, expressly applies it to Lainez and Nadal.~2 Further, Ignatius’s words in Spanish "because we cannot, nor ought we refuse obedience" (por no poder nosotros ni deber resistir) clearly point to something specifically and particularly Jesuit, hence the words cannot refer to a duty incumbent by reason of vows common to all religious. These words can only refer to the Jesuits’ special vow. Furthermore, in other instances Ignatius uses similar wording when speaking of the obligation that the Jesuit has to obey the pope in regard to

7Ep. 18; MI. I, XII, p. 239; Ep. 5; MI, I, XII, p. ~192 8Ep. 22; MI, I, I, p. 153. 9See Polanco, Chronicon 1: MHSI, I, p. 82; P. Fabro, Ep; 11, MHSI, 48, pp. 14-19. t0Ep, 5146; MI, I, VIII. pp. 351-352. ~See Constitutiones. P. VII. c. I° and P. VII, c. 2°, [615, 618, 622, 623, etc.]; MHSI, III, I1, pp. 566-576, etc. t2Polanco. Chroni~on V: MHSI, 9, p. 8-9. ~11~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

missions by reason of this special vow.~3 Again, His Holiness sent Broet and Salmeron to Ireland as his nuncios in September, 1541.14 Ignatius explicitly and repeatedly refers to this journey as a mission.’~5 Because the business was so difficult(though in fact not much came of it), Ignatius gave the fathers extensive instruction.16 What interests us here, though, is the doctrinal character inherent in the mission. Ignatius speaks of this in his third instruction: The general purpose of this mission to Ireland is to further the spiritual good of that land and, as far as possible~ to ease the anxiety of the supreme pontiff.... See whether God’s word is preached in a Catholic sense .... Should you learn of any heretical preacher or parish priest, see to it that he is deprived of the occasion to harm others: and exert yourselves to bring those he has harmed back to the Church by showing them the truth in a spirit of sweetness .... Be sure to give us a wide-ranging report on how the pebple are affected toward the Catholic religion and toward obedience to ’the pope .... ~7 Their going as nuncios makes Broet and Salmeron the authorized representatives of His Holiness in Ireland. They have as their ftinction the discharge of his conscience in regard to his pastoral obligation toward his endangered sheep in Ireland. As was expressly said, the mission was not political but spiritual. His envoys must see to the purity of preaching there, removing heretical pastors and endeavoring to lead everyone to obedience to Rome. As Ignatius describes the nature of this mission, it could not have a more evident thrust in regard to doctrine, and this in the Catholic and papal sense. The great interest he manifests, demonstrated by so many lengthy instructions, shows that Ignatius not only did not oppose this mission with its doctrinal emphasis, but that he embraced it with enthusiasm. This was a mission in the strict sense-- Ignatius termed it so repeatedly. It is also clearly a mission with a doctrinal emphasis. Hence the instance gives evidence that "doctrinal purpose" enters perfectly and naturally into the notion of the mission in the mind of Ignatius. A further instance. To assist towards the fullest possible reconciliation of Germany and Poland, His Holiness sent Salmeron to diets there, as we find in a letter of July 25, 1555: What then happened was that His Holiness spoke in considerable detail to Master Salmeron about the business of this mission to the diet in Germany and later to Poland. He strongly urged him to do as much as he could, though it be necessary to die for the Catholic religion, for the glory of Christ our Lord.~8

’aEp. 45; MI, 1, XII, p. 303: Ep. 1210: MI, I, III. p. 62: Ep. 1302: MI, I, III, p, 143; Ep. 1303: MI, I, 111. p. 145: Ep. 1735: MI, I. III. p. ~114.., ~4Ep. 32: MI, I, 1, p. 181. ~Ep. 31: MI, 1. I, pp, 174-181. 727-733: Ep. 202: MI, I, I. p. 600. ~Ep. 41: MI, I, I, p. 203. ~TEp. 31: MI, I. 1. pp, 728-730. ~aEp. 5559: MI, I, IX, p. 362. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 219

A number of concrete, particular ends, long the concern of the pope, were implied in this mission. Ignatius himself had written of it already, on July 20 of the same year.19 He twice insisted that Salmeron should strictly heed what the pope had told him.20 One could conjecture the tenor of the mission from the circumstances in which Germany and Poland then stood regarding religion--but conjecture is not necessary. Among lgnatius’s remarks on how the mission is to be best accomplished are rules and suggestions on how to debate wit.h heretics2~ and how to act toward bad preachers2~ both of which clearly demonstrate the doctrinal emphasis of the mission, a purpose to which Ignatius makes other references as well.2~ It was this doctrinal mission, chiefly concerned as it was about union with Rome (then so problematic that the life of the emissary could stand in jeopardy) that Ignatius not only accepted but fostered despite the risks. If there was anything involved with doctrine in those days, it was the Council of Trent.24 Lainez, Salmeron:5 and Faber26 were sent with the papal legates to the council as the pope’s theologians. In a letter to Ignatius, Saimeron writes of the great satisfaction all derived from the part the Jesuits played in it. One gave his presentation among the first who spoke, the other making his among the last.2~ Of Lainez, he says: "Many of the outstanding and more learned bishops said openly that his was the most worthwhile voice at Trent."~8 All three Jesuits distinguished themselves there.29 Lainez was especially active in editing the council’s sixth session)0 His discourse on justification was particularly applauded, and had the distinction of being the single discourse by a theologian that was included in the acta of the Council)l The pope’s jurisdiction and primacy were another of the themes Lainez defended with special ardor)~ In the light of all this, it is beyond doubt that we are dealing here with something strictly doctrinal in nature. Equally beyond doubt is the fact that it is a

~gEp. 5554; MI, I. IX, p. 350. 20Ep. 5564: MI, I, IX; pp. 374376. 2~Ep. 5564: MI, I, IX. p. 375. ~2Ep. 5564: MI, I, IX, pp. 376-377. 23Ep. 5543: MI, I, IX, p. 336: Ep. 5544: Ml, I, IX, p. 337: E~. 5552: MI, I, IX, p. 348: Ep. 5555: MI, [, IX, p. 353; Ep. 5582, MI, I, IX, pp. 408-.409. ~4A good treatmenl--and brief--may b," found in El Coneilio de Trento, published by Razon y Fe, Madrid, 1945. Two articles treat of the bibliography on the Council. bolh the Spanish and other. ~SEp. 124: MI, l, I, pp. 393-394. ~Ep. 113: MI, I, 1, p. 360: Ep. 114: MI, I, I, p. 362: Ep. 119: MI, 1, 1, p. 375. 2~Salmeron. Epistolae et aeta, 9: MHSI, 30 pp. 26-27 ~SSalmeron. Epistolae 532: MHSI, 32. p. 737. ~*Ep. 134: MI, I, I, p. 413 ~Okainez, Epistolae et aeta 1672; MHSI, 51, p; 384. 3~A. Astrain, Historia de la CompaKia de Jesus en la Asisteneia de Espafia (Madrid 1902) I, 533-534. ~See Lainez. Disputationes Tridentinae (Ralisbona 1886)Tomus I, Disputatio de Originejurisdictionis episeoporum et de Romani Pontificis primatu. 220 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 pontifical mission since it is called now a papal order.33 or appointment (destino),34 now an express command.35 Moreover, the key word, send, is used of this appointment: "Since pontiffs have the custom ordinarily to send theologians of our Society to councils and diets in which matters of the Faith are discussed...,,~6 (the plural, "councils," refers to the different sessions of Trent). Again, the Society considered this sending a mission since its being such is the precise ground for arguing to the recommendation of its acceptance. Ignatius, for his part, clearly accepted it as a pontifical mission, one with many hopes for God’s glory.37 All of this clearly shows that Ignatius saw matters of doctrine as a possible---even ordinary--matter of the Fourth Vow. Canisius,38 Olave,~9 Lippomani,40 and Nadal~1 were sent by the pope to various diets; Viola and Bob’adilla to one in Poland. All of these diets were intended to treat of doctrinal questions which had become matters of controversy. The missions to Ethiopa (so much to lgnatius’s taste that he offered himself for it~2) was also doctrinal.~3°One could refer to the mission of Xavier~ and to others. But the summary mention Ignatius makes of doctrinal missions in May, 1556 will suffice: ¯.. and in everything of importance when doctrine is at stake the pope makes use of members of the Society. Some of them he does not allow to leave Rome, and others he calls there for this purpose. Thus it is that, the Apostolic See’s approval and confirmation through bulls and briefs apart, the pope has more plainly shown his approval by the fact that he has availed himself of the Society in everything of greater importance which has happened during the sixteen years since its founding--I mean whenever he felt need for the service of faithful and learned men, as on the occasion of the diets in Germany. on that of the Council which has had two sessions in Trent, when he had to send legates or nuncios to the King of the Romans and to the princes of Germany~ and to the King of Poland. We see this now in the case of those he sent recently to the Emperor. to the King of Spain. and to the King of France: in brief. whenever matters of the Faith and of religion and of reformation are at stake: and whenever. lastly, theologians are required by the Apostolic See.45 This is a fine summation of those first sixteen years of the Society’s life, and of

3-~Ep. 113: MI. I, I, p. 360: Ep. 114: MI. I, I. p. 362: Ep. 118: MI, 1. I, p. 368: Ep. 129: MI, 1, I, p. 402. ~Ep. 124: MI, I, I, p. 394. JSEp. 22: MI, I. XII. p. 349, a~’Ep. 55: MI. XII. p. 628. 37Ep. 113; MI, 1. I, p. 360: Ep. 124: MI, I, I, 394: Ep. 129: MI, I, 1, p. 402: Ep. 136: MI, I, I. p. 415; Ep. 188; MI. |, I. p. 578. 38Ep. 6368; MI, I, XI, p. 246. 39Ep. 5924; MI. 1, X, p. 164. ~°Ep. 34; MI, I, XII, p. 274. ’~Ep. 5091: MI, I, VIII, p. 270. 42Ep. 140: MI, I, I, p. 429. a-~Ep. 143; MI, I, I, p. 434. Ep. 5120: MI, 1. VIII, p. 310. Ep. 5195; MI, I, VIII. p. 434. ep. 5198; MI. I, p. 442. Ep. 5195: MI, 1. VIII, p. 434. Ep. 5198; MI. 1, p. 442. Ep. 5199: MI. I, VIII, p. 450. Ep. 5213: MI, I. VIII, p. 485. Ep. 5218: MI, I. VIII. p. 490... ~Ep. 23: MI. I, I, p. 155. ~SEp. 35: MI, I, XII. p. 278. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 2~1 the use which the popes made of the Society in dealing with doctrinal matters in councils, diets, and whenever the Faith or religion or reform was in question. Missions of this sort were not only accepted readily; but they were looked upon as an evidence of the pope’s approval of the Society and his particular good will toward it, and also as the Society’s badge of pride. This very frequent way of proceeding, whereby the pope, for his part, sent Jesuits on missions properly doctrinal and Ignatius together with the Society, for their part, undertook them with the greatest willingness is the most cogent and concrete demonstration of the fact that strictly doctrinal matter does enter into the nature of these missions, and into the Jesuits’ Fourth Vow of obedience to the pope. This way of proceeding shows clea.rly that the first popes who approved the Society so understood the matter, as did Ignatius and the first Jesuits. It is needless to recall that lgnatius and the early Jesuits used the word "mission" only in regard to the Fourth Vow, whether the pope himself was the origina- tor of the mission directly,46 or whether the superior, by delegated authority of the pope, originated it.47 Hence it is certain that, when mention is made of some mission undertaken by papal order, the Fourth V6w is certainly involved.

The Spirit of Ignatius Regarding Doctrine and the Pope In order the better to. understand the tenor of Ignatius’s laws and ways of governing, it will help to understand his spirit, his thought, his interior attitude on this matter. Especially must we take into account that not only does a founder’s legislation and governance express the founding charism, but much more so, most especially does the form that his ideal assumed in his own life, personal incarnation of the charism. In terms of this, the founder’s life i~ the best explanation and practical interpretation of the spirit of his order.4s Ignatius’ full and simple acceptance of the teachings of the Church and of the Holy See would seem all the more remarkable, given the greatness of his mystical elevation, and the rich abundance of his interior revelations..9 In later days, speakr ing of Manresa, he could say without boasting, "Did Scripture not exist so as to teach us these matters of the faith, he [Ignatius] would die for them unhesitatingly,

46See the following numbers in the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus: 324, 527, 529, 603, 617, 92, 614, 626. 633, 654. See also the list of the Missions of Father Master Bodadilla, M HSI. 46, pp. 638-639. 47Cf. Constitutions: nos. 618, 620, 621,666. 749. 48More than once the Holy See has urged religious to follow the example of their founders in order to be faithful to their proper religious spirit. This was one of the reasons which led Ribadeneira to write the first life of St. Ignatius, This was one of Nadal’s favorite thoughts. (Nadal. Exhortationes Colonienses 1576; MHSI, 90. p. 780: "In cuius actis tota vita Societatis cominetur ut in principiis et exprimitur." Exhortatones 1554 In Hispania: MHSI, 90, p. 37. Exhortationes 2 Complutenses 1576; MHSI 90, p. 262. Dialogi I1: 90, p. 607...) 49Before his death St. Ignatius spoke of himself and of his life to Fr. Luis GonTalez de Camara, who transcribed faithfully whatever Ignatius said. This transcription is known in the Society as The Autobiography and it is an eloquent testimony in this regard. See Fontes Narrativi (FN) !, 354-507. 222 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

solely because of what he saw."~0 After s~ch interior experiences leading to such an affirmation, he stated during his trial at Salamanca that "he was not a learned man, and he affirmed that, if he was ill-informed on any matter, he submitted himself in all to the mind of Holy Mother Church."~ Quite evidently such a statement extends beyond just dogmatic definitions and reaches to a full embrace of the Church’s teaching. This becomes utterly clear in a fragment, a part of an explanation of Matthew 16, which was carefully copied from an autograph of Ignatius and transmitted to us by J. Witti, secretary of the Society in 1698: The Catholic and apostolic Church ~has never erred in matters of the faith: neither could it ever do so. This fact. ’eminently clear and true. finds its proof in the evident witness of Scripture and in the authority of the orthodox Fathers who attest to it. I Matthew 16 If your brother sin against you, correct him. If he does not hear you, tell the Church: and if he does not hear the Church, let him be to you as the heathen and the publican. This saying of Christ holds true at any time. against any kind of scandal or offense. It is impossible, then, that Christ himself would permit his Church ever to judge falsely regarding anything put before it. It would be repugnant to suppose that Christ should command us to heed a deceitful judge, one who could or would trick us in the face of difficulties and uncertainties bearing upon the salvation of our own souls or those of our neighbors. Christ sends us to the judge of the Church. Therefore it is a true judge.~2 lgnatius’s thumping, unconditioned profession of the Church’s veracity is admirable: All that is lacking is for him explicitly to call it infallible. In this text he envisions every kind of scandal and offense--not just things of more weight, but those that are ephemeral and topical as well, upon which the Church does not stake’"its supreme authority by a definitive judgment. Plainly Ignatius’s faith embraces also those things which cannot be properly considered as dogmatically defined. Ce’rtainly the ordinance of Innocent Ill, promulgated with the unanimous approval of the Fourth Lateran Council, which provided that the sick should not be treated medically before they had been ministered to spiritually,53 could not be considered an infallible declaration of faith, in the course of time, the decree h~d fallen into disuse. Ignatius saw, however, that its abandonment caused many sick to die without the sacraments or to receive them half-consciously. His persistent representation resulted in a reexamination of the matter by the theologians of the Sacred Penitentiary, and, upon their unanimous recommendation,54 in the rein-

¯ ~°Autobiografia 29; FN i, p. 464. 5tPolanco, De vita P. Ignatii. c. V: FN II, p. 551. ~2Ep. 9; MI, I, XII, p. 665. ~Ribadeneira, Vida del P. Ignacio de Loyola. L I11, c. IX; MHSI, 83, pp. 403-,405. UEp. 67 bis; MI, I, I, pp. 263-264. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 993

statement of the decree by Paul Ill. There are extant two skillful defenses of the ordinance from the hand of Ignatius--one in Latin, the other in Italian. The last of his arguments in the Latin version will interest us here: The provisions of the canon in question were enacted by the Council lav~fully and with holy intent: the Holy Spirit was at work in the Council’s transactions, h is impossible, then, that it should decide or propose something against charity~ The Council’s authority alone, then. and its paternal charity are sufficient proof....ss It was in the name of charity that the medical doctors had stubbornly resisted the observance of the canon.S~ For Ignatius, however, the precisely decisive argument in its favor was the authority of the Council, assisted as it was by the Holy Spirit. This had more weight than any reasons, although he adduces these also. No dogma was in question. The dei:ree was disciplinary--one, th.erefore, which could arise from changing circumstances: one which did not have general force before Innocent Ill: one which had fallen into desuetude before Ignatius agitated to reopen the case. He must have known all this. Yet he defended the decree most ardently because he believed it to be for the good of souls. And for him there could be no suggestion that the Council could decree anything against authentic charity. lgnatius’s faith is not only a complete faith in the Church. It is a faith which extends to total adhereflce to the Church’s understanding of any given matter, a faith which can animate his defense even of a council’s disciplinary decrees, It is a faith which is personally concretized in the Vicar of Christ, whom, in the practical order, Ignaiius seems to identify with the Church. There is,,perhaps, an allusion to this practical identification ii~ his commentary on Matthew cited above. Where the sacred text spoke of heeding the Church’s judgment, Ignatius says, "Christ" sends us to the judge of the Church.’’~7 He continues with the remark that this judge cannot be a false one. A detail of this kind could be of sma|! significance: still, it could contain an implicit reference to the pope as judge in the Church, thus bringing to focus in the pope Ignatius’s faith in the Church. Something of this kind becomes clear when Ignatius speaks of the Spiritual Exercises. They had in fact been approved by the pope,Ss yet Ignatius refers to the source of their approbation indifferently, now to the pope, now to the Church-- and that, even in the same paragraph. And when he [the Duke of AIba] had understood that these spiritual exercises had been examined carefully by a commission of the Apostolic See and that. after the Most Reverend Cardinal of Santiago in the office of inquisitor, and after the Master of th’e Sacred Palace and the Vicar of Rome had reported their views to Pope Paul Ill, the Vicar of Christ our Lord had confirmed and praised them and recommended the making of them to the faithful, His Grace could not have but approved and favored them, and thus follow, as he ought, the

SSEp. 68: MI. I, I, p. 265. ~6Ep. 69: MI, I, I, p. 266. ~TEp. 9: MI, I, XII, p. 665: ~SAt the request of Francis Borgia, the then Duke of Gandia, Paul III approved St. Ignatius’s Spiritual Exercises by the brief Pastoralis Officii of 31 July. 1548. Cf. Ep. 35: MI, I, I, p. 279. 22tl / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

authority of Holy Church which cannot err in such matters which touch upon the spiritual good of sotlls.59 The pope had confirmed and praised the Exercises; the Duke of Alba, however, ought to defer to the Church’s authority, which is not subject to mistake in such things. Ignatius here is implicitly assuming that, when the pope approves, it is the Church which approves--thus equating both in practice. The same equival- ence is made on other occasions in other matters.6° The fact is that Ignatius has an absolute faith not only in the Church, but in the pope as well. It is astonishing how, three centuries before its dogmatic definition, he explains the idea of papal infallibility--though he does not use the term: Let them have as ready as possible definitive statements relating to the dogmas regarding which those pe6ple are mistaken, together with the decisions on them by the Apostolic See or by councils of the Chui’ch. when such exist. As long as they accept this single proposition, viz., that the Apostolic See, when it decides as judge in what touches faith or morals, cannot err, they will be more easily persuaded in all else."~ He does not say expressly that the decisions of the Apostolic See and those of councils stand on a’ level. However, he has equated them in the practical order. He used a single expression for both, thus giving the same value to each. It is especially interesting to note the cardinal importance which he gives to papal inerrancy as a key to apostolic strategy by developing the original idea (of definitions by the Apostolic See and by councils) solely in terms of the Apostolic See, thus making clear for us his own preference in the practical order. Given this faith in the pope, he can write quite naturally to Isabel Roser, "As regards dress and usage, whether you have arrived at an opinion or whether you have not, if a thing has been confirmed by the Apostolic See, you can put doubt aside; it is certain that you are in conformity with the di~,ine will and service .... This is a practical consequence of that faith in’the pope which we have seen. If the pope confirms even so simple a thing as dress, there can be no doubt that what the pope says is conformed to the will of God. Thus does lgnatius’s faith reach down even to details so insignificant. The great faith he had in the pope caused Ignatius to seek the pope’s advice about any of his doubts which he could not resolve by himself or with his advisers. Thus, Lainez, who knew him so well, could say, "So we must needs have great devotion to the Apostolic See, just as did°our father, Ignatius. When he was doubtful about a thing, he used to say, ’The Apostolic See will instruct me in this and settle it.’ To that See he would refer himself, and he trusted it."~

59Ep. 6277; MI, I, XI, pp. 110, I 1 I. The letter is a reproof to Fr. Cristobal Mendoza for not showing the papal approbation of the Exercises to the Duke and so averting his unfavorable judgment upon them. ~Ep. 3743; MI, ], VI, p. 469. Ep. 5205. Ml. I, VIII, p. 465. 6tMI, I, VIII, pp, 682-683. 62Ep. 73; Mk l, l; pp. 274-275. ~’3Lainez, Exhortationes in D’brum Examinis 1559: FN II, p. 137. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 225

He evidently did so, for example, when the mission to Ethiopia was in preparation. That country had separated itself from Rome and had taken up practices like circumcision which were not Christian. Ignatius prepared a list of his doubts to put before the pope, e.g., about the validity of Mass celebrated with wine made from raisins, about the possibility of initially tolerating circumcision, about the Greek rite...~--though they could not be settled immediately.~ He recommended this, his usual way of proceeding, to others. Thus, he gave his own opinion to Canisius, who had been made vicar of the diocese of Vienna66 and who had consulted him about some revenues;67 however, he also advised him to have recourse to the pope. This is not posturing in Ignatius, nor a gesture to shrug off responsibility, but an effort to solve problems in the most radical and sure way. His great faith in the pope makes this clear--his faith, not in this or in that pope: but in the Holy See simply, or in the "Apostolic See," as he used to say. Not only his faith in the pope, but also his devotion to the pope and his love for him made Ignatius always leap to his defense. His ardent panegyric of the papal office in a letter he wrote to the emperor of Abyssinia is most eloquent here. The emperor was concerned to reunite his subjects with Rome. Ignatius encouraged him by an enthusiastic defense of the Roman primacy and of the unity of the Church.68 His defense drew its principal arguments from Scripture and Tradition, and contains this among other beautiful expressions: "... entrusting to him [the pope] not some of the sheep but the whole flock together with the unconditioned power to maintain and pasture the faithful, wherever they may be, with the food of life as well as to lead them to the heavenly repast of eternal blessedness. The authority which Christ our Lord gave to the other Apostles had limits; but that which he gave to St. Peter and to his successors was without bound and complete .... ,,69 To appreciate the full impact of this profession of Ignatius, one must ’not lose sight of the fact that conciliarism was defended at that time by such famous names as Cardinal Zabarella, Pierre de Ailly, and Jean Gerson. (Conciliarism is the view that:a general council has more authority than the pope; that such a council could even sit in judgment on a pope and condemn him. Prudential reasons had kept Trent from realizing its intention of going thoroughlY into the doctrine of papal primacy, though, and the question remained unresolved until Vatican 1.) This same note of papal defense is struck in a letter to Father Mannaerts.

~MI, I, VIII. pp. 703-704. ~’SBecause of the death of Paul III. ~6Ep. 4873: MI, I, VII, p. 657, 67Ep. 4964: MI, I, VIII, p. 66. ~sSee Polanco, Chronicon Soc. Jesu. V: M HSI, 9. p, 8. St. Ignatius uses the arguments usual in his day. What interests us, however, is the ardor of his spirit and the firmness of his conviction. ~Ep. 5205: MI, 1, VIII. pp. 469-470. 226 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Ignatius writes to inform the father that a Jesuit of his community--the college of Loretto--had written a letter to his intimates expressing small esteem for religious life and, particularly, for the name of the Society of Jesus. Ignatius takes it as an insult to the pope, who had approved the name: "... it is the custom, as indeed it ought to be, of Catholic men to speak with greater respect of those things which the Apostolic See has approved.’vo He continues by directing Father Mannaerts to recall for his subject that adverse judgments of the religious life and of the Vicar of Christ "are among the errors common to the heretics of this day; and, because we desire his greater good, we beg him to cultivate feelings of greater humility and purity about suchlike things." Evidently, Ignatius took seriously everything that regarded the authority of the pope, even implicitly. He defended not only the pope’s authority, but all that he approved, for the exhortation to humility and purity regards "suchlike things." The ,French Parliament was unwilling to approve the privileges of the Society because they had not been approved by the Council of Trent.7~ Ignatius thus expresses himself to Broet, "Moreover, it is truly a dangerous doctrine--that of those doctors who wish to bind the pope’s hands....~2 The doctors mentioned were maintaining that the pope’s authority alone was not enough. Ignatius could not tolerate the ,idea. His,entire legislation and his practical government must be interpreted in this spirit, If Ignatius will not bear that another should bind the pope’s hands or set a limit to his power, much less will he attempt this himself. And if he places himself at the pope’s disposal, he will not put conditions on the offering. Emphasizing this line of thought, he said in another letter, "...since the Apostolic See has granted them, I cannot see how they can be limited...,m3 Nobody can restrict a privilege which the pope has granted. Ignatius finds it so clear that he cannot understand any other stance. In Spain, Melchor Cano74 was given to defaming the Society, alleging the insufficiency of only papal approval. In this connection, Ignatius wrote as follows: Thirdlyr as to the opinion here about one who says that the pope erred in approving this Society and is mistaken in continuing his favor toward it, as well as other things this father has said in that country, people here reproach him on two or three counts, in the first place, a lack of union and obedience with regard to the Apostolic See. For this censure of his smacks of a schismatical, and even heretical, spirit, in that it misconceives the power of the Apostolic See....75

7°Ep. 6290; MI, I, XI, pp. 37-38 7~See Polanco, Chronicon V: MHSI, 9, pp. 289-301 72Ep. 3743: MI, 1. V. p. 469. 73Ep. 3594: MI, V, p. 251. 74See Polanco, Chronicon VI, M HSI 1 I, pp. 629-632. Cano, who was a Domincan, thought,the Society of Jesus was heretical and had the characteristics of the Antichrist. .7~M I, I, XII, p. 280 (Cf. Ep. 444; MI, I, II, p. 212. Ep. 451; MI, I, II. p. 218. Ep. 550: MI, I, II, pp. 317y 319. Ep. 556; MI, I, II, p. 331...). The Jesuit’s Fourth l/ow / 927

It is not so much the attack on the Society, then, that pains Ignatius; it is rather the lack of union with the Apostolic See, the misconception of its authority-- which involve, in his mind schism and heresy. Paul IV was not as favorable towards the Society as his predecessors had been. Yet, during this pontificate too, Ignatius would countenance no words injurious to the pope--as Ribadeneira pointedly recalls:

He would have no murmuring. And I remember when I went to Flanders in 1555--that was the time Paul IV was watching every move the Society made and when the whole outlook was stormy--our Father warned me to be cautious about how I spoke regarding the pope. I ought to think that whatever I said was going to reach His Holiness’s ears. And because there were things obviously difficult to excuse, he told me that I should ordinarily praise the transactions of Pope Marcellus and his good will toward the Society, and should say nothing of the present pope.7~ This must have been the origin of the saying, familiar in the Society, "Let’s talk about Pope Marcellus." At any rate, lgnatius’s position could not be clearer, i~e., if one cannot speak well of the pope, at least let him not speak badly. As he reproved the one who spoke badly of the pope, so he praised whoever defended his authority, as in the case of Araoz. "We have rejoiced in the Lord because it is known generally here that Your Reverence was one of the two theologians who spoke most distinctly in favor of the authoritative nature of the Apostolic brief"77 (he means the briefs sent by the pope to insure the execution of the Tridentine decrees). Polanco tells us that "in keeping with Ignatius’s recommendation to the members of the Society and to Father Araoz especially, Ours [Jesuits] devoted their whole energy that what the supreme pontiff had decided shbuld be embraced in those kingdoms, as was due."78 There had been no order given particularly by the pope to the Society; however, Ignatius forestalls his sons so that their whole influence should bear in the pope’s favor. And he cannot keep from praising one who defends the pope. Thus, he must praise Father Pedro Sevillano for the defense he made of the pope’s authority in approving the new breviary in 1555: What the father, Fray ,luan Guttierrez, did in speaking against the new breviary, though in his way his intentions be good, is dangerous. He shows that he had little regard for the authority of this Holy Apostolic See, which approved the breviary to begin with and every day continues here to approve its use. This alone ought to suffice for that father, without entering into the question whether he is correct in criticizing the breviary in itself. I don’t think he is right, though, because there are many things in the new breviary of great utility and spiritual consolation. And. after all. it’s all good and holy--the 01d and the new--for the authority of the Apostolic See teaches us so. So. Your Reverence made a good answer in that you insisted on that authority with the said father.79

76Ribadeneira. deactis P. Ignatii, 102, FN I1,389. See !,. Gon;,alez, Memoriale; FN 1. pp. 581-582, 638. 720. I. Polanco, De vita P. Ignatii. 81: FN II, p. 575. "~TEp. 5139: MI, I, VIII, p. 343. 78Polanco, Chronicon, VI: MHSI, 7. p. 441. 79Ep. 5a,63; MI, I, IX, pp. 212-213. 2211 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Neither the old nor the new, merely as such, is of greater value. When to other intrinsic values, the pontifical approbation i~ added, that decides the question finally, it is that fact alone which ought to have been decisive for the father, who is not a Jesuit. How much more should it be so for a Jesuit! Too, if pontifical approval should decide a concrete matter of small importance, it must decide other questions, though they be of great importance. The spirit of Ignatius, the archetype of the Society’s charism, is one of utter submission to the Church, and this, despite the richness of his mystical knowledge. His faith in the Church is complete. It reaches to things not yet defined, as well as to disciplinary decrees. In practice, this faith of his is concretely personalized in and by the Vicar of Christ. The pope’s approbation is the Church’s approbation; similarly, his decisions are on a plane with those of a council. In virtue of this great faith :in the pope, Ignatius resorts to him, and has others resort to him, for the surest solution of all those problems he cannot resolve himself. Such faith becomes transparent when he breaks into enthusiastic praise of the papacy by reason of his faith and because" of his love and devotion for the pope. The kind of presumptive- hess that would limit the prerogatives of the pope was something Ignatius could not comprehend. Reservations regarding the pope’s authority smacked to him of schism and heresy. He would permit nothing of the sort in his sons under any circumstance. He only had praise for those who rose to the defense of papal authority, even in things of no great importance. Nadal perhaps best summarizes this spirit of submission to the Church and to the pope: From the beginning [Ignatius] was outstanding for the careful nicety he displayed in everything regarding the hierarchy of the Church and in all things ecclesial, the rites: the ceremonies, the canons. He understood that God is the source of all this: and in it, too, he honored and worshipped God. Thus. with a magnificent peace of soul he submitted ’all his affairs to the supreme pontiff, to the Church. and even to any whose perception was more correct than his, with supreme confidence in God that what God would have made known to him would be confirmed by all.80 Such was Ignatius, and such ought to be his sons.

Nadal on Doctrine and the Vow After Ignatius, the most authoritative interpreter of the Constitutions of the Society and of its spirit is this same Jerome Nadal.8~ He was more of a theologian than Ignatius, and gave the fuller expression of his thought through the pains he took to explain and interpret the Constitutions to the young Society. He came to the point of putting the Society’s entire teaching mission under the orders of the pope: [The Society] has as its end to serve only the Lord and the Church, his Spouse, under the Roman pontiff, Christ’s Vicar on earth: by dedicating itself ardently tothe defense of the Faith in regard to heretics; to its propagat.ion in regard to

S0Nadal, Dialogi de Societate; FN II, p. 245. ~Ep. 3453; MI, 1, V, p. 109. See Lainez, epistolaeet acta, I. MHSI, 44. p. 285. Prolegomena: FN II, pp. 7#-9#. Nadal, Epistolae. IV, Praefatiura: MHSI 27, pp. xv, x. xi.) The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 229

the infidels; and to the salvation and perfection of souls--our own and those of others--in regard to all....82 In this statement, Nadal places the whole end of the Society in being at the service of God and of his Church under the pope. It is not the Church that Nadal places under the pope, but the end and service of the Society to the Church. The bull from which Nadal drew his thought--itself concerned with asserting the position of the Society, not with formulating an ecclesiology--speaks with equal clarity. A parallel expression is found in the following paragraph of the bull where it speaks of "soldiering for God under faithful obedience to the pope."83 Clearly, then, the purpose of the Society was seen as standing to the orders of the pope. More specifically, the end of the Society is said to be the defense and propagation of the Faith--a basically doctrinal purpose. Nadal goes on to enumerate means to achieve this end, means which will consequently also be under the pope, among which he mentions sermons and "sacred lectures." The bull, then, which is intended to express what is properly characteristic of the Society, and in which the Fourth Vow is a salient item, finds the end of the Society and the means for achieving this end to be in the Jesuits’ being at the pope’s disposal. One ma’y conclude, then, that Nadal understands the bull to say that, by virtue of the vow, doctrinal matters are also subject to the pope. For if there is anything that is special and characteristic of the Society, surely this has to be its end and its special vow. And in the Society, its being subject to the pope in a special and particular way is owing to the vow. In the course of some exhortations given at Alcal~i in 1561, Nadal said: This least Society of the Lord has been specially chosen for this business of defending the Faith--and it is a business of great importance. We may think it has been so chosen because of the use the pope has made of Ours [Jesuits] in those places where he sent nuncios and legates, and because of the fact that, by God’s grace, as yet none of the Society has fallen foul of the Inquisition--but on the contrary it has continually been made use of in Rome for lecturing on controversial subjects,u So, the missions of the pope, among other things, show that the Society has been specially chosen for the defense of the Faith. The missions themselves, therefore, being in defense of the Faith, must be doctrinal; and, since they are "missions," they must be undertaken in virtue of the Fourth Vow. These missions were carried out with a careful regard for doctrinal purity--a regard which was characteristic of the Society’s entire activity. That the Inquisition, so zealous in defending the Faith’s integrity, had condemned none of the Society, but rather had used some of its members for its own business--for that is what the somewhat puzzling

S2Nadal, Apologia Soc. Jesu; MHSI, 27, p. 173. ~Bulla "Exposcit Debitum"; MHSI, II, I. p. 376. 8~Nadal, Exhortationes Complutenses (1561); MHSI, 90, p. 314. 2~11~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 words of Nadal mean--prove it.85 This purity of faith is so great in the Society that it caused the Society to have a singularly zealous vigilance in its regard. This initial vigilance was still in evidence in 1557: Furthermore. Ignatius from the beginning advised us to watch whether preachers spread anything Lutheran in their sermons: for not a few of them were detected cryptically and slyly spreading Luther’s heresies in Italy. Even today according to the Society’s institu.te, careful watch should be made wherever heresy is suspected. The supreme pontiff, Paul [IV]. has desired this to be part of our ministry and has enjoined it on us frequently, as did others of his predecessors.~ Ignatius’s "advice from the beginning" here refers to the arrival of the group in Rome towards the end of 1537 or shortly thereafter, since the persecution pro- voked by this zeal began in the early months of 1538. Hence, from the beginning this has always been something proper and special tb the Society--this ~is the force of the expression "institute" and "ministry" of Jesuits. And this derives not only from lgnatius’s advice but from the repeatedly expressed will of the popes. It is clear that what is at issue here is doctrinal, and thu~ demanding a high degree of purity of faith. But does it involve orders given by virtue of the Fourth Vow? Obviously our answer will have to be yes, since what is most characteristic of the Society and what the pope has commanded coincide in the Fourth Vow. This will be especially clear if we recall that, in the two earlier texts cited, Nadal has included doctrine under the vow. This text will at least serve to demonstrate the degree of clarity with which teaching by Jesuits is placed at the pope’s disposition--a point which had not emerged so clearly from the previous texts. In his exhortations at Alcal~i, Nadal yet more clearly links purity of faith with the vow: We must also work toward this among Catholics: and thus we have a special obligation to assist the Holy Office. which has been established to defend the Faith against heretics. This is our ministry and office. And we are bound to have a special devotion to it and help it in every way, for we are obliged to this not only as Christians and sons of the Church, but in a new way by our own religious institute.~7 Again, he emphasizes that assisting the Holy Office "in all" is a function characteristically and specifically Jesuit. What is new here is that it is the Jesuit order as such that lays this obligation on Jesuits. The discriminating obligation of the Society--that which distinguishes it from other orders--is the Fourth Vow. So, it is but logical to suppose that he derives this new obligation from that vow. The reference could also be to the end of the Society described in the bull, i.e., the defense and propagation of the Faith88; but, since that end itself is embraced by the

8~lbidem. pp. 316-318. 8~Nadal, apologia Soc. Jesu: FN II, p. 89. STNadal, Exhortationes Complutenses (1561): M HSI, 90, p. 320. 8~Bulla "Exposcit Debitum": MI, III, I, p. 376. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 231

Fourth Vow, as we have already shownsg, the same result remains, viz., that mediately or immediately Nadal is referring to an obligation which derives from the Fourth Vow. Nadal says, during the exhortations he gave at Cologne in 1567, that Ignatius and his companions offered to the pope all those ministries which are proper to simple priests. In listing them he places preaching in the first place, lectures in the second. "The foiarth of these ministries," he continues, "is to contend and to write against the heretics. With this end in view, [Jesuits] have been sent many times as companions of legates; and to this end as well, they put out theses and books.-90 The offering of all the usual priestly ministries to the pope was made in the original "Oblation" of the first companions. However, Nadal is not speaking as of something done in the past, but of present practice, for he is expounding the current procedure of the Society. Preaching, then, and sacred lectures, obviously doctrinal functions, are among those ministries which the Society puts at the pope’s disposal in virtue’of the Fourth Vow. Still more doctrinal in nature are contending and writing against heretics. These last are even more explicit when they are performed precisely as "missions" or in virtue of "being sent;" for these are the proper matter of the Fourth Vow. That for Nadal, then, the Fourth Vow can embrace what is doctrinal is clear. And we have already seen the degree of purity Nadal demands. that there be in the doctrine of the Society. His admonitions about speaking well concerning theology in his day make all we have been saying even clearer: And Ours [Jesuits] must always maintain a firm union, subjection, and devotion to the Holy Apostolic See and the supreme pontiff: for God our Lord has united us to that See by such a great privilege as a solemn vow. Let us always be extremely earnest in the assistance we bring to the authority of the Apostolic See and that of the pope....9~ Nadal’s words are unmistakable and expressive. Subjection and devotion to the pope is a privilege? something characteristic and unique about Jesuits which owes its existence to a special vow and which ought to lead them unconditionally to bolster the authority of the Holy See. Though no doctrinal aspect is given actual expression here, yet because the papal magisterium is so prominent among the offices of the Holy See, the subjection of the Society to that See in virtue of the Fourth Vow cannot but include this magisterium, and include it in its fullness. We add a short citation from his Scholia to round off our presentation of Nadal’s thought in this matter:

We make use only of that authority which we have received for the governance and instruction of Ours under the obedience and teaching of the Holy Roman Church and of the

sgSee J.M. Garcia Madariaga, "Entra la materia doctrinal como objeto propio del 4° Voto?": Manresa, 49 (1977). p. 220. 9ONadal, Exhortationes Colonienses (1567): MHSI, 90, p. 785. 9tNadal, Monita: MHSI, 19, p. 676. 232 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

supreme pontiff. Otherwise, should someone be unwilling’to follow the judgment of the Society, ultimately we would not keep him.’~ Once again, although the Fourth Vow is not mentioned explicitly, by joining together obedience and teaching as these are incumbent upon the Society in relation to the Holy See, Nadal takes the vow for granted,just as, in the preceding text, the doctrinal implication was implicit while the Fourth Vow was explicitly mentioned. So one text complements the other; and both offer us Nadal’s thought with final clarity. What is important here is the concept that the Society stands under the teaching of. and under obedience to the Church and the pope--and this "uniquely"---or perhaps better, "fully." It is this posture which is of supreme import in the Society; it is altogether indispensable~ a conditio sine qua non. These spirited words of Nadal might well be a meditation for Jesuits. The texts we have adduced, we think, permit no.ambiguity about the thought of Nadal. We have seen how he places under the pope both doctrinal matters and the end of the Society--that end which, in the bulls cited, coincides with the Fourth Vow. In like manner does he include doctrinal matters within papal missions which are such in virtue of the Fourth Vow. The degree of its doctrinal integrity is attested by the good relations of the Society with the Inquisition, and by its zealous compliance with papal injunctions to safeguard the purity of the Faith. When it offered the entirety of its services to the pope, first in the Oblation and then by the Fourth Vow, the Society also offered its teaching services such as the "sacred lectures." Nadal emphasizes the subjection that is proper to the Society by reason of this privilege of the Fourth Vow--a subjection which, logically, must extend to what it teaches. One may conclude, then, that the Society is subject both in obedience and teaching to the pope, and that this is indispensable to it.93 The Doctrinal Charge of Paul V! to the Society and th~ Fourth Vow It was precisely in recent years, when our present problem had explicitly come to the surface, that a papal order involving doctrinal matters was earnestly given to the whole Society. We submit that it would be of special interest to investigate whether this order involves the Fourth Vow both in the thought and will of the pope who imposed it, and of the: Society which accepted it. In a discourse given by Paul V I to the fathers of the 31st General Congregation on May 7, 1965, after describing the broad diffusion of atheism in modern times, he said to them:

9~Nadal, Scholia in Constitutiones et declarationes S.P. Ignatii (Prato. 1883), p. 10. ~See Nadal, Annotationes in Exarnen; MHSI, 90, pp. 128, 139, 140. Exhortationes Complutenses 1561); MHSI, 90, pp. 304, 306. 312, 33 I, 458-460. Dialogi de Societate; M HSI., 90, pp. 618.732. Circa studia et Mores: M H SI, 19, p. 149. Monumenta Germaniae 32, M H SI, 27, pp. 228-229. Apologia pro Exercitiis," FN I, pp. 321-322. Dialogi de Societate." MHSI, 90, p. 649. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 233

It is the special characteristic of the Society of Jesus to be champion of the Church and holy religion in adversity. To it we ask the service of making a stout, united stand against atheism. under the leadership, and with the help of St. Michael, prince of the heavenly host. His very name is the thunderpeal or token of victory.’~ At bottom, atheism is a doctrine, an idea. Combating ~it effectively implies mounting an offensive which is basically ideological, doctrinal. This papal charge, then, is, above all, doctrinal. This much is beyond doubt. The pope himself continues by speaking of the means to carry out this undertaking: research, education, books, publications, persuasive speech, etc. In the passage cited it is certainly clear that an order has been given--the words themselves make that obvious. They do not, however, make it indubitably clear whether there is question of a strict order, or a very urgent request. The pope recognized this, and he knew, as well, the spirit of the Society which believes in the virtue of obedience. He spoke, therefore, with delicacy; but he did not forsake clarity: You will carry [this injunction] out with greater readiness and enthusiasm if you keep in mind that this task in which you are now engaged and to which you will apply yourselves in the future with renewed vigor is not something arbitrarily taken up by you, but an obligation entrusted to you by the Church and by the supreme pontiff.9~, The Latin word used by the pope to express this assignment was munus. It means, in the first place, duty or obligation. It can also mean task; and this is the translation, used in the official Spanish translation of the decrees and documents of the Congregation.% How to translate the word cannot readily nor definitively be resolved by the first quotation alone. The second, however, in our opinion decides the matter, for it says expressly that this munus is not an object of the Society’s choice, but that it proceeds from the will of the pope. What is at issue is the necessity of doing something not because of one’s own choice but because of the will of another. There is question, therefore, of an order iia the strict sense, from which an obligation results. Accordingly, we have translated munus in the first instance by service, secondly by task, and thirdly, in the citation where the meaning is explained, by obligation. ~ In giving the assignment an obligatory character, no more was intended than to remove uncertainty and to instill enthusiasm in the face of a difficult duty. It was precisely the assurance of this effectiveness that Ignatius and his companions were looking for when they made their vow to the pope.97 The relationship of this papal order to the vow, then, could be a matter of conjecture. But the same pope continues, choosing to refer to that place in the bulls of confirmation where the

’~Paul VI, Acta Apostolicae Sedis (AAS) 57 (1965), p. 514: Acta Romana (AR) 14 (1967), p. 998. 95Paul VI, ibidem. ~Congregacion General XXXI, Documentos (Zaraora, 1966), pp. 14-15. ’~TEp. 16: MI, 1, 1. pp. 132-133. Constituciones de Missionibus, c. 7°: MI. II1, 1. pp. 159-160. 934 Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 vow ~s explained, and to preface his citation by the causal conjunction "wherefore" (quam ob rem). The pope, then, is not engaged in simply developing a topic logically. He is explaining something that has a causal relationship to what has preceded. In other words,,this munus and the Fourth Vow are related causally by the pope himself: in virtue of the vow (which is prior) this obligation (which is subsequent) is imposed. That the whole matter may be even clearer, the pope follows his extensive citation from the bulls with the words: "It should be considered fully consistent with this vow and its characteristic obligation that it is not merely a matter binding in conscience, but one that must also shine forth through actions and become known to all."gs The pope is unwilling that the Vow should remain a matter of inner conscience only-~-a merely potential obligation. He wants the Vow to be efficacious; and therefore he gives’this order to the Society. He continues:

St. Ignatius, your holy Founder, wanted you to be so: We, too, want you to be so, being sure that the trust We place in you will be entirely fulfilled. We are confident also that the fulfillment of these wishes of Ours shall yield to the Society of Jesus. in all parts of the world where it struggles, prays and labors, a plentiful harvest of renewed life and excellent merits which God will fittingly reward.~ These words continue to develop the same idea of the earlier text on which we have already commented, that Ignatius and Paul VI are at one in desiring that the Fourth Vow be put into practical exercise by members of the Society. Pope Paul mentions his confidence in the Society in obvious reference to the munus he had just confided to it. Those desires of the pope, which he hopes to see fulfilled and for whose fulfillment he promises a divine reward, refer to it also. Altogether, then, these passages seem to make clear that the pope understood that the order by which he entrusted this obligation to the Society did involve the Fourth Vow, and that he did wish to give this order in virtue of the vow, precisely so that the vow might come into play. The fathers of the Thirty-first General Congregation to whom he spoke also thus understood him: "The Supreme Pontiff, Paul VI, on the occasion of the gathering of the fathers of the Thirty-first Gengral Congregation, committed to the Society, in view of its special vow of obedience, the task of resisting atheism ’with forces united.’ ,,lOO Thus do they express themselves in the first paragraph of Decree 3, which ends ’with these words:

It is especially recommended to Father General tha~t in conversation with the Holy Father he try to obtain a clear knowledge of his mind with regard to the task he has committed to us and that, with the advice of experts, he direct the entire apostolate of the Society in carrying out that mission as effectively as possible?°~

9sPaul VI, AAS 57 (1965), p. 514: AR 14 (1967), p. 999. ’~’~Paul VI, AAS 57 (1965), p. 515: AR 14 (1967), p. 999. ~00Congregatio Generalis XXXI (AR 14 (1967), p. 855. ~O~ lbidem, p. 860. The Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 235

The fathers of the Thirty-first General Congregation, then, thought the pope’s order about a struggle against atheism had been given in virtue of the Fourth Vow. They called it by the term mission, which is classic in the Society for such orders; they recommend to the general what is set forth in the Constitutions regarding such orders [613]. A comprehensive consideration of what the pope said in his allocution on atheism shows how natural is the congregation’s interpretation. Given this interpretation by the most authoritative body of the Society, it is logical for us to continue to understand it in this sense. Still, there have not been lacking those who have tried to prove the contrary.~°2 Undoubtedly, Paul VI knew of this difference of opinion. At the opening of the Thirty-second General Congregation, he said, on December 3, 1974, "On the occasion of the previous Congregation, we entrusted to you, as a modern expression of your vow of obedience to the pope, the task of confronting atheism."~°3 Here the pope speaks with entire clarity. He imposed the obligation with the thought that it was the practical way in which the Fourth Vow is to be exercised today. This is what he clearly intended. There can be no doubt of it. The Thirty- second General Congregation understood and accepted the pope’s words as obviously related to the Fourth Vow and to the notion of mission:

In his address of December 3, 1974, Pope Paul VI confirmed "as a modern expression of your vow of obedience to the pope" that we offer resistance to the many forms of contemporary atheism. This was the mission he entrusted at the time of the 31st General Congregation.- ..’.Thus if we wish to continue to be faithful to thi~ spe~:ial character of our vocation and to the mission we have received from the pope...."~0~

Both the original French text of the decree and the official Spanish (and also the English) version of it translate the pope’s words, rationem observandi, by expression. This may be more elegant; it is certainly not a~ clear. W~ have preferred to translate: way of fulfilling. Way of Observing would be more literal; however, it too, could be somewhat unclear and variously understood. Though the original text is, in this case, French, the original words of the quotation from the pope are the Latin words. And it is from them that the true meaning is to be gathered,’ which, style apart, must be what we have given, viz., a putting into practice, an exercise, a way of carrying out, or of executing. Action is meant; not significance or symbolism. The Thirty-second General Congregation applies the word mission three times to this order of the pope. True, the congregation understands this word more broadly than was usual, especially in the earlier Society. However, since the con-

~02See, e.g., A. M. Aldama. Repartiendose en la vinHa de Cristo (Rome, 1973), p. 38. ~0~AAS 66, 1974, p. 713: AR 16 (1975), p. 433. ~0~General Congregation 32, AR 16 (1975), p. 309. 236/ Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 gregation says specifically that the mission is a direct one from the pope, clearly it considers it a mission in the strict sense of the word, i.e., one imposed in virtue of the Fourth Vow. Moreover, the congregation makes the relation to the Fourth Vow express by the words we ha.ve just mentioned, and which are quite clear in the Latin original. Too, "the 32nd General Congregation makes its own and confirms all of the declarations and dispositions of the 31st General Congregation unless they are explicitly changed in the present decrees?’~05 Among the decrees of the previous Congregation thus sanctioned and appropriated are those clear-cut statements recognizing that the pope’s order was a mission imposed in virtue of the Fourth Vow--as we have already indicated. Though the words of the Thirty-second General Congregation are not as clear on this point; they have to be understood according to the mind of the previous congregation, since there is no explicit statement to the contrary. If the pope expressed himself with sufficient clarity on first entrusting the mission against atheism to the Society, he was even more unmistakable to the fathers of the Thirty-second Congregation. If this latter also took the pope’s words to refer to a mission involving the Fourth Vow, then this same understanding on the part of the Thirty-first Congregation becomes definitively clear. Hence it is beyond dispute that both the pope and the Society understand the obligation to combat atheism as a mission given to it in virtue of the Fourth Vow. We have, then, a mission in the strict sense, and that mission is evidently doctrinal. This fact further confirms the conclusion that we have been drawing from our study of all the various doc’uments; the bulls by which the Society of Jesus was established and approved, its Constitutions, the correspondence of Ignatius, and the writings of Nadal. Our conclusion, then, is that matter which is doctrinal can indeed form part of the proper object of the Fourth Vow; and that therefore the pope can impose an order which is strictly or purely doctrinal in virtue of that Vow. Conclusion The question we undertook to answer is a recent one--one that has not hitherto been answered adequately. Since the framing of the question is contemporary, we have not met in the sources with an answer that is explicitly couched in the terms of our question. And that not unnaturally. Still, We are convinced that there is an abundance of evidence that is sufficiently clear to afford an affirmative answer. In the earlier article (Manresa, vol. 49 [1977], pp. 215-228), we examined the bulls and Constituiions of the Society in considerable detail, finding them supportive of our claim regarding the Fourth Vow.

~0sG.C. 32. Ar 16 (1975). p. 309. 7he Jesuit’s Fourth Vow / 2~i7

The clarity of this position, emerging from the bulls, becoming more evident from the Constitutions also shows forth with unmistakable certainty from Igna- tius’ correspondence. There we see his understanding mirrored and expressed practically in the exercise of his governance, and in his own legislation. In his correspondence we encounter the word missions--which in the Consti- tutions and in the early days of the Society always bears a relationship with the Fourth Vow--applied to apostolic enterprises which have an eminently doctrinal cast, with this word "doctrinal" always being understood in a thoroughly orthodox and papalist sense. Such enterprises were undertaken as being altogether proper to the Society--indeed their undertaking was deemed an honor to th.e Society. Igna- tius, is wholly enthusiastic for their perfect accomplishment, as attested by his careful instructions. Now if Ignatius understood things in this way, then his own legislatiofi must be understood in the same way. Our search for confirmation and for a more comprehensive basis of interpretation has led us to an investigation of the Founder’s spirit, i.e., to penetrate into the vital, central point of his charism which, despite his great revelations and mystical communications, was manifested in his utter submission and docility in all matters doctrinal not only to the Church, but particularly to the pope, towards whom he professed an unutterable love and fidelity. This is the lgnatian charism ~which he handed on to his Society and which must be grasped if his legislation is to be understood. It was with the same intention that we next turned to Nadal, whom Ignatius had chosen to promulgate and explain the Constitutions. He was conversant with the mind of Ignatius as no other was. Nadal’s words, too, demonstrate how, in practice, matters of doctrine come under the Vow. In one case, he says so all but explicitly in those terms. He lists "sacred lectures," that extensive instrument of public teaching, among the ministries offered to the pope in the early "Oblation" and later by the Vow. He speaks eloquently when he dwells on the entire submissibn we owe the pope precisely in virtue of the Vow which logically includes matters of doctrine. Nadal’s thought, then, is fully in accord with the interpretation of Ignatius that we have found. Lastly, we have assayed an actual and recent case: the papal order to contend against atheism--a doctrinal mission. That the order was given in virtue of the Fourth Vow was clear when the mission was first given. It became even clearer when the pope confirmed his order the second time. If the pope’s explanation was clear, its acceptance by the Thirty-first General Congregation was still more definite, and this was confirmed by .the succeeding congregation. The supreme legislative body of the Society, then, has sanctioned the opinion that doctrinal matters do come under the special vow of obedience. We are convinced that this confirmation by pope and ’Society removes all doubt about an affirmative response to the question we have been examining. In this last instance, the degree to which doctrinal matters came under the vow was not clear. But this point, we believe, became abundantly clear in the other sections of our study. 2~11~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

To say that doctrinal matter enters into the Vow means that the, pope can impose a doct~’inal mission in virtue of the Fourth Vow. He can command the defense of any Catholic truth whatever, even if it is not infallible. Although in the texts we have been commenting upon, no limits have been set down regarding this submissive acceptance of a teaching imposed by the pope, we believe that the limits of rational human possibility must be supposed. These limits, it seems to us, are at the point where, it is imposs!ble to doubt regarding the falsity of some papal teaching. This Vow is eminently apostolic, and therefore it directly obliges personal assent, only insofar as such an assent is necessary to a truly sincere and efficaciously persuasive explanation and defense of the teaching commanded by the pontiff. For the obligation to come into force, there is required a pontifical order given to the Society, or to a group within it, or to a member of it. One’s assent to the totality of pontifi.cal teaching would fall under the spirit of the Vow. This spirit, obviously, looks to the completest possible union of the Society and its members with the popel~ which is itself required as an adequate disposition for ensuring perfect compliance with any future order of the pope in the matter of the truths of papal teaching. Though not positively treated in the texts cited, these final considerations seem reasonable conclusions. The inclusion of matters of doctrine as a proper object of the Fourth Vow, though, and this to the highest degree possible--as this has been explained--is a certain conclusion, if not from each one of the texts cited, surely from the totality of them.

Pbpe John Paul II to Jesuit Superiors. February 27. 1982: The fourth vow of the Society was included by Sti: Ignatius precisely as the living and vital expression of the awareness that the mission of Christ is extended in time and space through those who. called by him to follow him and to share his labors, make his sentiments their own and live in intimate union with him and, for that reason, with his:vicar on earth. That is why St. Ignatius and his first companions, wanting to participate in the mission of Christ which continues in the Church, decided to place themselves unconditionally at the disposition ~f the Vicar of Christ. and to bind themselves to him through "a special vow: since this union with the successor of Peter, which is the principle nucleus of the Society~ has always given the assurance--indeed it is the visible sign--of your communion with Christ, the first and supreme head of the Society which par excellence is his--the Society of Jesus" (Paul VI. AIIocution to the Fathers of the 32nd General Congregation. December 3. 1974). Religious and Their Commitment to the Poor

Anthony Malaviaratchi, C. SS. R.

Father Malaviaratchi is engaged in retreat work and teaches dogmatic theology part time in India and Sri Lanka. He resides at St. Theresa’s Church; 364 Thimbirigasyaya Rd.; Colombo 5: Sri Lanka.

A growing concern for the poor, be they communities, natio~ns or continents, is an undeniable phenomenon of our times. This worldwide phenomenon has its counterpart in the Church and is evident in liberation theologies, the declarations of the Bishops’ Conferences of Asia and Latin America and a number of recent Papal documents. Religious have, in more than one way, been in the forefront of the Church’s endeavor to manifest its concern for the underprivileged. A number of congregations have issued what could amount to a manifesto’ for action in this regard. These statements of policy are the outcome of seminars, semi-official congresses, official chapters and circulars of major superiors. A study of a few available statements should, hopefully, be a help for further clarifications; those documents having a special reference to the situation in South Asia, to some extent, form the basis of this article. Underlying Factors One noticeable feature in these declarations is its varying emphasis. The particular flavor of each statement is due, perhaps, to one of the following factors: A mere echoing of slogans--readily available in the intellectual market of our day. Such slogan-filled statements can, perhaps, breed only cynicism; they sound empty and pretentious. These statements betray the fact that they probably originated through a single seminar which fired the imagination of the participants. In such instances, the statement is in itself the ultimate (and often the hidden) objective. Religious groups are not alone in this regard. Commitment to the cause of the 239 241~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 world’s poor is, more often than not, a commitment that produces only a grandil- oquent statement. The poor who have no bread are offered the cake of a grandiose statement. Statements, no doubt, have their value. But in making them it is worth taking into account that today statements are greeted with an initial scepticism. Perhaps sensitive to this mood, most statements are more modest and unpreten- tious, but, nevertheless, also outline a viable course of action in reaching out to the poor. The second factor that surely has influenced the statements is the call of Vatican II, taken up by most general chapters of congregations, to interpret the signs of our times. Religious have, to some degree at least, become aware of those areas of apostolate that wil! bring them closer to the poor. Thus, the poor and the underprivileged are increasingly the beneficiaries of the traditional apostolates such as education, medicare, catechesis and the like. On the one hand, there is a clearly discernible trend to make the poor more and more ihe beneficiaries of the traditional apostolates; on the other, some statements underscore the need to modify and readjust the apostolates in view of serving the poor more effectively. Hence, in choosing their priorities in the areas of the apostolate, religious seem to show a growing preference for informal rather than formal education, for preven- tive medicine more than for curative health care, for mobile teams instead of institutional service centers, and so forth. All this, needless to say, is by far better suited to the needs of the poor, particularly, those of the rural poor in various countries. As far as religious are concerned, this call of Vatican II was also accompanied by yet another guiding principle of the Council, viz. the invitation to return to the spirit of the founder/foundress. Here, more than in any other area, religious have found the grea.test incentive towards a more enlightened commitment to the poor. R~ecent statements go to great lengths in emphasizing precisely the spirit of the founder as their vital source of inspiration. The statements available are mostly. from congregations of recent origin, with a clear bias for a particular type of apostolate as their special response to concrete situations of need. Consequently, most non-clerical congregations are committed to "works of mercy" as they were known at the time of their origin. Thus, these congregations, as far as the statements go, show little or no pain of growth in reaching out to further horizons that the contemporary and indigenous situation places before them. The charism of most congregations is a variation of the gospel love for the neighbor. "The neighbor," in their historical origin, was a particular group of people who were needy, uncared for andabandoned. Alert to the signs of the times, the statements categor- ically identify the rural poor and the ever growing masses of urban slum dwellers as the "needy ones" of our day. In one statement, the middle class is also mentioned as. one that is most crushed by inflationary economies. Thus, many congregations have discovered a remarkable similarity b~etween~the present situation of poor nations and that of eighteenth and nineteenth century Europe in which period most of these groups of religious, were founded. Hence, often a simple appeal to the charism of the founder seems to provide sufficient justification Religious and Their Commitment to the Poor / 2lll for their present apostolates to the poor. Where there has been the necessary reorientation, the transition has been a smooth one. This, to a great extent, is due to the commonly accepted principle that fidelity to the charism of the founder necessarily involves reinterpretation in the local context. A mere imitation of the founder is not always a badge of fidelity to his or her charism, while a reinterpretation is, more often than not, the finest form of faithfulness to the raison d’etre of a congregation. The field of education seems to be one area in which a smooth transition is not found. The situation, no doubt, varied from congregation to congregation and from country to country. Nevertheless, the entire field of education, at the level of discussion at least, is perhaps the most confused, and seemingly has brought about a polarization of views. The education system is, on the one hand, accused of being the most powerful tool in perpetuating social injustice. On the other, the same system is hailed as the greatest contribution to the building up of a nation. Apart from the fact that it is an area in which religious are involved in large numbers, no reason can be detected in the statements for singling education out as a special target of attack, while the economic system, production-distribution system, political system, if measured by the same values, can hardly be called just. In the meantime, a large number of religious continue to serve in schools and colleges. Some remain unaffected by criticism while others concentrate on a great social awareness as one of the objectives of formal education. The critics of the present educational system, in the views of those actually in the field, seem to be blissfully unaware of the absence of a viable system that can immediately replace the present one, nor do they seem to take into account that the field of education, unlike other apostolic works, is not under the control of religious. Another feature that emerges from the statements is the broad vision and the note of resilience that pervade the declarations of international congregations in contrast to those of local institutes. The wide variety of situations that challenges these congregations, and continue to surface at their general chapters, seems to be the major contributory factor for this noticeable difference. Interestingly, it is generally members of these congregations that seem, at times, to clash with the more traditional sectors of the local Church. Are these congregations adopting methods and resorting to strategies that are alien to the local ethos? Or are they merely asserting their newly gained spirit of freedom under the cover of a new apostolate? Or will these new methods spearhead a lasting movement towards solidarity with the poor? Such are the questions to which only time will provide a final answer. Statements which identify groups of people as specially deserving love and service, at least in passing, mention the nonexclusive character of commitment to the poor. This seems to have been necessitated by a danger, obviously a real one, of an element of bigotry entering in. Religious seem to have sensed that the deliberate exclusion of any class of people would make their love no longer evangelical. 242 / Review for Religious~ March-April, 1982

Related Problems The declarations of religious, with all the positive thrust they intend to give, nevertheless raise certain doubts, and betray possibly serious problems. Remarks, couched often in diplomatic language, perhaps hint at actual aberrations. The "appeal of unity," for instance, in this context, is undoubtedly the tip of an iceberg, polarization being often a real danger. That such hazards should have arisen is no cause for alarm. However, an early diagnosis is better than a postmortem. Hence, to face up to these difficulties resolutely and to adopt a levelheaded approach in resolving them, is a task that religious may not brush aside with impunity. The stance adopted by some statements leaves the reader with the impression that certain groups of religious are prepared to launch out on a program of action that will entail nothing less than embracing the entire mission of the Church. In fact, these at times sound quixotic. The gap between the total social transformation that a just society requires and the near negligible contribution that a single congregation can possibly make is often glossed over, if not totally ignored. No single congregation can realistically even attempt to embrace the total mission of the Church. The charism of a congregation is the reason for its existence in the Church. And the charism, when lived, is translated into a role within the community of the Church. ’Religious of a given congregation will justify their existence only by playing that role and no other. A role is always specific, and necessarily limited. To take St. Paul’s example of the human body, it means the eye can only see and ear can only hear. The solidarity of religious with the Church, precisely in their attempt to reach out to the poor, is therefore, a necessary prerequisite, the achievement of which will entail their readiness to play just that role, however unnewsworthy it may be. This function is a congregation’s special contribution to the evangelizing mission of the Church, through which alone religious may pave the way for that just society which is not merely a human dream but, above all, a divine offer. Religious, or any Christian for that matter, who opt to take on the entire task of Church, can do so only by pretending to messianic status. Hence, many more religious will have to divert themselves of the outlook which makes them think that they can do everything the Church does, and learn anew to take on the limited role allotted to them by their charism. Nor can this be done without the conviction that, in the area of social justice as much as in aiay other, various roles’; lay, clerical and religious, are interdependent within the ambit of the Church’s own role. Hence, it does not suffice to admit the validity of another role in order to take it unto oneself. This also requires the recognition that often only another can effectively play that role. The easiest way to suppress a role is to play it oneself, the most telling example of which is the clericalism that too often suppressed the lay role in the Church’s recent past. Therefore religious might as well learn to be content in fulfilling their proper role. And the confused situation, not infrequently found in their ranks, is perhaps telling them: "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s role." In this sphere, congregations of priests seem to face a greater level of confusion Religious and Their Commitment to the Poor / 243 and uncertainty than do non-clerical institutes of religious. Their declarations mention the fact that a numerically small number of their members are engaged in types of apostolate which involve them directly in social issues. In the first place, there are priests who, while performing their traditional priestly ministry, are also engaged in ameliorating oppressive social situations. For those congregations that have traditionally accepted the professional-priest: teacher-priest, principal-priest, research scholar-priest, the emergence of the social catalyst-priest seems to cause no serious problem. The same cannot be said, however, of those congregations whose apostolate has been a direct exercise of pastoral ministry and hence, have had no professional-priest tradition in their midst. These latter tend to view their pastoral ministry as their specific contribution and are, generally, ready to give the social values of the Gospel the limited priority they deserve. Thus, parish priests of these congregations who attempt to remedy injustices committed against the poor in their flocks seem to receive all-round support within the congregation. How- ever, it is hardly surprising that the emergence of a social-catalyst priest in their ranks should cause difficulties. Such men, because of the particular nature of their congregations, have had to make a choice between the exercise of their priestly ministry or direct social involvement. In the case of those who opt for the latter, the priesthood, more often than not, is a mere appendage. Such individuals seem, at best, to be grudgingly tolerated. Moreover, there seems to be a third category of individual religious priests, namely those who have lost their faith in the meaning of the priesthood, but are fully committed to the cause of the poor. They have preferred not to "opt out," sometimes honestly admitting the importance of the status that the priesthood and religious life gives, without which their commitment to the poor would lose much of its impact. It is easy enough to decry such situations. But before one does so, one cannot forget that the priesttiood has also been used, at times, to amass wealth, gather degrees, and gain positions. What is often at stake is the very nature of a congregation based on its charism. The charism of certain congregations is very specific and hence, limited. In congregations of priests it is further delineated by their clerical nature. Fidelity to a charism necessarily implies the ready acceptance of its limitations. Appeal to the principle of unity in diversity has not always helped. The problem, in its final analysis, is not the question of diversity but how much of diversity. It goes without saying that only the highest authority of each congregation can provide a definitive answer. The matter, however, is not made easier by the individualism so characteristic of our day. Religious & Prol~hetic Role Witness of Life The statements draw the attention of the members of their congregations to the prophetic role that is an essential element of religious life. In most instances, this is done in the context of dealing with the need for the denunciation of injustice, while calling for a more Effective witness of life--these two elements being necessary and complementary aspects of the prophetic role in the Church. 944 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

The need for religious to embrace anew their special task of being witnesses is unquestioned. The certainty with which the statements affirm this is more than sufficient proof. That religious are sincere and earnest about it is evidenced in their search for life-styles that are more in keeping with the living standards of the lower-income brackets of the people they serve. The questions raised are never about validity of this search, but about its practical mode of implementation. Thus, in opening new houses, religious seem to show a preference for poorer areas. A few have adopted the policy that every member, as far as possible, should earn his or her living, thus making religious have only that security which the poor have: their hard earned income. It is almost unanimously stated in the documents that the goal of this endeavor is to give witness to the solidarity of religious with the poor through the attempt to share their life and their needs. In their search for a radically simple life-style, religious are also engaged in an act of denunciation which is silent but no less forceful. The more religious discover the true meaning of their vocation, the less they will be ill at ease ,in this form of denunciation. It goes back to the very origins of religious life which arose, to some degree at least, as a protest against the growing secularism within the Church. The deeply religious message that this form of denunciation conveys is its greatest strength. By their silent denunciation, religious would increasingly raise a loud protest against consumerism which is fast enveloping the poorer nations as well as the rich; against the near idolatrous amassing of wealth by a few; against greed-- the root cause of most social injustices, one from which not even the poorest are altogether free. It is worth remembering here that the ordinary citizen is, at best, deeply suspicious and, at worst, pays little or no attention to vociferous denunciations--having had plenty, especially from politicians. In contrast, the silent denunciation of lived example stands out in relief by its transparent authenticity. It should come as no surprise if religious, in embracing a simple style of life, should touch the religious pulse of the Asian continent in particular. Religiosity and poverty have always gone hand in hand in the religious traditions of Asia. A religious person is always a poor person, even if the opposite is not always true. If, for example, Mahatma Gandhi endeared himself to the Asian masses, it was because he captured in his life-style a deep seated value in the religious ethos of Asian peoples. Religious in Asia, then, may hardly consider themselves pioneers in this field. They may well be treading a beaten track in the Asian religious experience. Religious, in their dedication to the silent witness of life, have also begun to reaffirm the superiority of being over doing--a value deeply rooted in the Asians as much as in the traditions of religious but, not infrequently, forgotten amidst their bustling apostolic activity. At least in passing it should be mentioned that, in this area, non-clerical religious, and women religious in particular, seem to be ahead of their clerical counterparts. Admittedly, non-clerical congregations have greater leeway. Caught up as they are in pastoral care, religious priests have to reside, more often by Religious and Their Commitment to the Poor [ 245 necessity than by choice, in central places in order to be more accessible to outlying areas. Moreover, communities of priests who have taken up residence in a village have faced criticism from the diocesan clergy for over-concentration and waste of manpower.

Denunciation of Injustice The entire discussion on life-style is surrounded by an aura of freshness, openness and real search. The same, however, cannot be said about the other aspect of prophetic witness viz. the explicit denunciation of social injustice. Its necessity is never denied. In fact, it is affirmed as an essential element without which the proclamation of the Gospel would not be complete. That Old Testament prophets and, above all, Christ himself stand out in the Scriptures as vehement denouncers of the evils of their day is an undeniable fact. Fidelity to the word of God calls forth such denunciation. Yet it can hardly be denied that religious, as much as anyone else, find it much easier to keep silent, particularly when faced with the magnitude of the problem of social injustice. The problems to which the attempt to fulfill this aspect of the prophetic role has given rise are mentioned, but are not dealt with in the statements. The need for caution and prudence is also mentioned, alongside the call for a fearless and undiluted preaching of the Gospel. For obvious reasons, clerical congregations seem to be beset with many problems in this sphere. The problems clustered around this question are so varied and complex that they defy even a mere enumeration--to say nothing of clarifications and answers. However, at the risk of generalization, a few are worth identifying.

Related Problems Christian audiences that rave over pulpit condemnation of drunkenness, gambling, corruption, sexual immorality and so forth, are not equally receptive to denunciations of social injustice; labeling such denunciations "leftist," is not altogether rare. However, insensitivity to the above audience reaction on the part of the preacher merely aggravates an already deplorable situation. A good educator’s rule of thumb--begin, from where the listeners are--is not always adhered to. The intolerance and the obsession shown in the heyday of the Catholic pulpit towards sexual sins is, at times, transferred to the area of social injustice. By the same token, the sympathy, the understanding, and even the occasional belittling of sexual sin shown in our times is rarely if ever extended to the sin of injustice. Should an audience sense the same imbalance and offer a negative reaction, a denouncer of injustice has only himself to blame. The adoption of total silence on the part of some often enough comes as a reaction to just such a one-sided emphasis on social justice. Need it be said that this reaction is at least as much one-sided, ignoring as it does the recent social teaching of the Church? The minimum that is incumbent upon those called to prophetic witness in word is to situate the traditional emphasis on charity for the neighbor in the generally accepted 946 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 context of mass poverty, oppression and exploitation. The adoption of the "shock technique," in theory, is not always and necessarily wrong. Times there are when individuals and groups can only be shocked into reality. Renowned leaders, Christ included, have not hesitated to use the tactic. But, in practice, it has sometimes meant the bandying of leftist-sounding slogans, the inciting of what, for all practical purposes, amounts to class hatred, and the adopting of a harshness that can only be destructive. It is worth remembering that the Old Testament prophets, and Christ himself, shocked their audiences not by adopting doubtful phraseology or controverted tenets but by unrelentingly proclaiming the severity of God’s judgment. Moreover, the severe words of Christ and the prophets we’re always accompanied with equally effective words of healing, reconciliation and edification--an element not always present in today’s shock technique. No Christian audience worth its name is likely to take scandal if the prophets of our day take the biblical messengers of God as their sole models. If anything was outstanding in Christ the Prophet and his Old Testament predecessors, it was their God-centered religiosity. Even at the risk of overdoing it, they firmly took their stand on God. Not only were they religious but they also appeared to be so. This they did with unremitting force when confronting public issues. In a word, political evil and socioeconomic injustices were for them religious evils; and the listener was never left in doubt about it. Though often labeled "social revolutionaries" today, it is not always that we are reminded that they were so only because they were religious conservatives seeking to revive the genuine core of traditional religion and the ethical values it enshrined. Moreover, the biblical messengers of God could denounce evils and demand changes because the standards to which they appealed were shared by the people before whom they appeared. Need it be said that this is not the case today with so many audiences? Many today still fail to associate religion with socioeconomic issues; for them religion is and ought to be otherworldly; social issues are for socialists and activists. In certain Christian~ and in many non-Christian contexts, religion often gives justification to what is rightly considered today to be. injustice and oppression. When this has happened, to challenge injustice is to question religion itself, which, indeed, has often been done by avowed secularists. To make matters worse, the cause of the poor and the downtrodden is often championed by those suspected by the general public of vested political interests. It is no surprise, then, that the proclamation of the social values of the Gospel is not always heard as a religious message. It becomes vital, therefore, that one who proclaims this message not only be religious but must appear as one proclaiming an unequivocally religious message. It should be seen clearly that he is a prophet for no other reason except that "he speaks God’s message" (I Co 14:24). The community alone can recognize and discern a prophet (14:29); and a human community can discern only what it sees and hears. Instances in which the Gospel is made to subserve ideologies are not altogether uncommon; instances iia which the ideological emphasis comes out louder than the Gospel dimension are still more common. Hence it has become a generally felt need in religious congi’egations to remind their members that even in Religious and Their Commitment to the Poor

the sphere of social justice, it is their commitment to the Gospel that should stand out in transparent clarity. In more than one statement, religious are cautioned against dabbling in ideologies--a euphemism, no doubt, for Marxism. The same warning has also come in more recent times from major superiors. Only a few religious are, perhaps, naive enough to believe that any contact with Marxism can be attempted without serious discernment. Certainly~ Marxists feel the need for just that in their own contacts with Christianity. There seem to be within the Christian fold as many Marxists as there are Christian-Marxists. Nevertheless, the seriousness of this issue as it confronts religious is outlined in a recent letter of Fr. Pedro Arrupe, Superior General of the Society of Jesus. In it Fr. Arrupe affirms that "we can admit a certain number of methodological viewpoints which to a greater or lesser extent arise from Marxist analysis [of society] as long as we do not attribute an exclusive character to them. For instance, an attention to economic factors, to propert~ structures .... In practice, however," he goes on to state, "the adoption of Marxist analysis is rarely the adoption of only a method or an ’approach.’ Usually it means accepting the substance of the explanations Marx provided for the social reality. ¯ . ." On the oft-stated Marxist-Christian stand of not accepting the Marxist ideology and philosophy while subscribing to its social analysis, Ft. Arrupe has this to say: "According to a good number of Christians who are themselves sympathetic to Marxist analysis, even if it does not imply either ’dialectical materialism’ or a fortiori, atheism, it nonetheless encompasses ’historical materialism’ and, in the view of some, is even identical with it .... [lq one’s reasoning assumes that everything is intimately a function of productive relations, as if these determined reality, then the content of religion and Christianity is very quickly relati- vised and diminished .... Even in cases where it is not taken as implying a rigorous historical materialism, Marxist social analysis contains as an essential element a radical theory of antagonism and class struggle. It is no exaggeration to say that it is social analysis in service of class struggle" (Civilta Cattolica, April, 1981. Eng. tr., FABC Reprint). Religious are certainly not faced with die-hard Marxists in their ranks. Rather are theyfaced with those who have adopted superficially (this, for sure, would be the view of Marxists themselves) what can barely pass as Marxist. It is therefore rightly asked: Does the adoption of an element here and a viewpoint there make one a Marxist? Presumably that is as good as asking: Does lighting candles make one a Catholic? It has also been noticed that the title "Marxist" in our context is not an award from the Supreme Soviet, but often a self-awarded mantle donned before the Christian community (and hardly, if ever, before a Marxist audience). One can hardly help wondering whether this is more a symptom of the need for self-assertion than a sign of firm conviction. Religious who speak out against injustice have, at times, also to suffer the malicious attempt to discredit them with the label of being "Marxist." No one need be surprised if politicians and business magnates, when their vested interests are at stake, pick up the commonest ~weapon from their arsenal--the destruction of an 2tll~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 opponent’s credibility with the public. In any event, religious may have to learn to live with the fear of being labeled thus if they espouse the cause of the poor. Among the many problems that religious face, mention should also be made of difficulties that arise from personality traits. The problem here is neither in the issue, nor in the method adopted, but in the person.-Here, as elsewhere, the inability of the person himself, frequently, to see it, and of others to mention it, only adds to the confusion. The uncontrolled need for self-assertion, for recognition, for power and position, unresolved authority complexes, elitism that carica- tures all other views and methods except one’s own, the uncontrolled need to be free-lancers and lone rangers, the subjective confusion of the. prophetic role with mere non-conformism are some of the underlying causes that religious themselves identify in this regard. In fact, these are so inextricably interwoven with an individual’s commitment to social issues that it can lead him or her to an intract- able position, and the majority of members in a congregation to take up the weapon of silent resistance. The irony of it all is that, while the individual basks in the limelight of controversy, the cause of the poor, in the very attempt to serve them, becomes marginal. In the cry against social injustice, often and rightly, the call is for a total and revolutionary transformation of social structures. Reports, however, show that the attempts made are centered around single issues which, according to others, if successful will at best give a more human face to an otherwise oppressive social system. The solution of single issues, no doubt, is a service rendered to particular groups among the poor. Nevertheless, the gap between the rhetoric and the achievement has contributed no small share to the confusion of issues at stake. The commitment to the poor, judging from the statements as well as from the experience of many congregations, is undeniably an area of tension among religious. The variance in visions, options and highly individualistic styles of involvement make anything like a common approach next to impossible. It would be a tragedy if a congregation, in order to preserve its basic unity, were forced to jettison its avowed preference for the poor. Nevertheless, for the vast majority of religious, hope seems to lie as much, if not more, in their silent but persevering dedication to the totality of their tradition and charism as in any pioneering breakthrough.

Role of the Laity and’ Religious Missing in many statements is the much needed cognizance of the role of the laity in the sphere of social justice. All that was said above regarding the limitation of the charism of a congregation and the temptation to embrace the mission of the entire Church, a fortiori, applies here. More attention, therefore, has to be paid to the exercise of the congregational charism in relationship to the role of the laity in the Church. This is all the more true in that the mission of the laity is essential to the~ Church’s presence in the world. According to Vatican II, it is the right and duty of laymen and women, as citizens of the world, to be involved in spheres over which the Church has no direct authority; the Christian response, not Specifically Religious and Their Commitment to the Poor [ 249 determined in the Word of God, it is their privilege to discover, among other things, from the social situation. Among the many possible solutions to the issues of our day, it is the layman who has the responsibility of making the choice--a responsibility which the official Church is not empowered to fulfill (Vatican 11, Apostolicam Actuositatem, art. 7). Moreover, if anything like a just society is ever arrived at, it will, in all prob- ability, come about through political action. The remedy for even many localized injustices, as is being increasingly realized, can be found only in a global solution. This only serves to underline the vital role that politics and its solutions will have to play. To deny to politics the most prominent place in social transformation is the best way to ensure that justice remains mere talk. The statements are, for a variety of reasons, justifiably wary about their members entering the field of politics in its popular understanding of the term. "No politics for religious," however, is a far cry from saying "no politics." In fact, it means the recognition that politics is for the laity, which the statements do not emphasize adequately. Hence, it is not a question of religious opting out of politics, for they were never called to it in the first place; but of opting for politics insofar as they foster, as never before, the lay role in the Church as also a political one--"an honorable profession" according to Vatican II (ibid.). When clerics and religious take upon themselves the responsibility a layman should shoulder, often enough it is construed as interference on the part of the official Church. And the ensuing argument only succeeds in helping to sidestep the real issue at stake. To denounce injustice in the light of the Gospel is one thing and, as many are painfully aware, to find solutions which the Gospel does not offer is quite another. Nor should it be forgotten that the Church, much less religious, may not offer solutions without overstepping its competence. In the long history of clericalism, clerics and religious have proved themselves notoriously adept at arrogating to themselves the most prominent place in the currently prominent sphere. Once, when ritual and worship occupied the privileged place, they held the monopoly. Now that social involvement is in the forefront, to oust the layman and take his place is a temptation not all clerics and religious will find easy to resist. For centuries, i’eligious having benignly given the laity advice, material aid, education, development schemes, and so forth. It now comes most natural to offer socio-political solutions as well. In the first place, therefore, religious congregations need to pay adequate attention to the fact that they are entering a field in which, unlike so many past apostolates, the layman is not a mere beneficiary but must himself become the protagonist. Religious who militantly guard their own charism must now be among the first to activate the all-important role of the laity in the Church. Hence, there is a crying need for them so to channel their apostolic service that the layman is prepared, motivated and equipped to be in the forefront of the search for justice in our world. The first steps in this direction are already being taken by some congregations, noticeably those involved in the field of education. In this endeavor religious would do well to respect and uphold the many other facets of lay Chris- 950 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 tian life. In brief, laymen and women should in no way be reduced merely to the role of being agents of social change, thereby creating an imbalance for which ultimately they, and not we who introduce it, will have to pay the price. As anyone acquainted with its history will readily concede, religious life has, at its deepest levels, the ability to answer the call of the hour. Religious are challenged once more to prove just that in our own times. This they would fail to do if energies were allowed to be dissipated and measures taken which do not succeed in making available to the service of the poor the real resource of religious--their charism. If history is any guide, this is the only path they may tread without having to face disastrous consequences for themselves. In doing this, they will be able to contribute their modest share towards a solution to the problems that baffle all but the naive, both in magnitude and in complexity.

An Apostolic Spirituality for the Ministry of Social Justice

by Max Oliva, S.J.

Price: $.50 per copy, plus postage.

Address: Review for Religious Rm 428 3601 Lindell Blvd. St. Louis, Missouri 63108 Let Us Not Lose Sight of Jesus

Donald Macdonald, S, M. M.

Father Macdonald’s last article in these pages was entitled: "To Experience God"(March, 1981). He is master of novices for his community, residing at Baria Bhavan: D.R. College P.O.; Banga- lore 560029: lndia.

In attempting to approach the presence of God, it seems as though the religious is like a child faced with the Matterhorn. He reaches the nursery slopes only because a ski lift carried him there. It would never occur to him that he could reach the peak. He got up this morning, had breakfast, and spent a day much like other people on the citizens’ roll. How many of them aspire to such heights? The religious is as ordinary as they come, perhaps. Why, then, should he aspire to be different? In any case, is he really different? What does he believe? Is he prepared to go to the stake for anyone or anything? Much of the background of the religious is the same as that of so many today. He, too, can find faith, belief, or trust particularly difficult. Experience may have taught him that the credibility-gap between what one is told officially and what, often, one later finds to be the case, would tend to make of him a subscriber to the local equivalent of The Washington Post. Apparently nothing is what it seems. Personal relationships are equally suspect in an age when a man leaving his wife says, "Sorry, I am a ’today’ person." He may have loved her yesterday, but he feels differently today. For the religious a number of his married friends are divorced or apart. Close friends and colleagues in ttie community are no longer beside him. He, too, may wonder to whom he can speak in cbnfidence at a time when a son, invited to a private meeting by his father, secretly tapes his fath~er’s speech, and later has it published in a journal in a way highly detrimental to his father. The conventions once taken for granted no longer seem to hold. Against such a background, would his Reader’s Digest psychology suggest to the 251 252/ Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 religious that his belief in the permanence and fidelity of God’s presence, and his professed commitment to God for life are but a "return to the womb"?. These questions and this environment are real. It may be worthwhile thinking them over. An Anchor as Sure as It Is Firm For centuries, largely anonymous men and women have believed in and worshipped God, at times against colossal odds. The author of the Letter to the Hebrews reflecting on this concludes, "With so many witnesses in a great cloud on every side of us, we, too, then, should throw off everything that hinders us, especially the sin that clings so easily, and keep running steadily in the race we have started" (Heb 12:1). The religious is welcomed into the company of so many people, dead and alive, of obvious faith and anonymity. He too is one of the crowd. There is immense comfort here, if only he let them surround and encourage him. Above all, "Let us not lose sight of Jesus who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection" (Heb 12:2). We are to keep running the race of faith when everything in us is telling us to stop. We can do this and break through "the pain barrier" as long as we do not take our eyes off Jesus. He stands above the crowd, the inspiration of so many. Look at him in such company, and perhaps the fragmented person can be put together in faith, for "His power to save is utterly certain, since he is living forever to intercede for all who come to God through him" (Heb 7:25). In Jesus, the religious is surrounded by the faith of so many who, too, live to make interces- sion for him. The comfort comes not from counting heads but from sharing faith. So "in Jesus, the Son of God... we must never let go of the faith that we have professed" (Heb 4:14). The Christian universe is peopled by so many who love him as one of them. But the question has to be asked, can the religious live in that world? Does the pattern really fit? Can he honestly rank himself with these men and women, "all heroes of, the faith" (Heb 11:39)? Evidently he is one of the crowd. But is it self-evident that he belongs to a Christian crowd? Is his place rather with the anonymous crowds on the sidewalks outside? Surrounded as he is by ephemeral faith and trust, the unease returns like a half-buried worry. He wears similar clothes, uses the same deodorants, eats much as other people do, the jokes he tells he heard from them. He may, too, be aware of "the sin that clings so easily," with so much that he wishes was not there. When, further, the religious considers the apophatic tradition--which suggests that little can be said of God by a creature--how can he, in any real sense, come into the presence of God? Whatever "God’s presence" means, it must be beyond anything he can comprehend. So the welcoming crowd centered on Christ, which Hebrews says surrounds and encourages him, may be yet another false substitute leaving him still light-years from God. In the quest for authenticity in his faith, shouldn’t the religious seek a more traditional and accurate picture, that of people in terror at the voice and presence of God? Or Let Us Not Lose Sight of Jesus / 253 that of Moses before the mystery of the burning bush? Or Isaiah, awestruck as he glimpses something of the holiness of God? "1 saw the glory of the God of Israel approaching .... a sound came with it, like the sound of the ocean, and the earth shone with his glory. Then 1 prostrated myself" (Ezk 43:!,7). Against that background, has not Hebrews rather domesticated divinity? What, then, does it mean to come into the presence of God? Let the author of Hebrews speak further: What you have come to is nothing known to the senses: not a blazing fire, or a gloom turning to total darkness, or a storm; or trumpeting thunder, or the great voice speaking which made everyone that heard it beg that no more should be said to them .... The whole scene was so terrible that Moses said: "’1 am afraid,"and was trembling with fright. But what you have come to is Mount Zion, and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, where the millions of angels have gathered for the festival, with the whole Church, in’which everyone is a "first-born son" and a citizen of heaven. You have come to God himself, the Supreme Judge, and are placed with the spirits of the saints who have been made perfect; and to Jesus... (Heb 12:18-19). The author recognizes that the presence of God "is nothing known to the senses." It is literally indescribable, but under the inspiration of God he must speak. Here, then, the religious is celebrating a festival with the whole Church, and he is there as of right as a "first-born son." He has not gate-crashed the festival by pretending to the faith of someone else. This is possible because of Jesus who went "to heaven itself, so that he could appear in the actual presence of God on our behalf .... through... Jesus we have the right to enter ¯.." (Heb 9:24, 10:19). With his eyes on Jesus the religious can scale any wall and have entry into the presence of God himself. The question for faith is whether he is prepared to accept this and unself-consciously take God at his word? Does hi habitually think in terms of a "first-born Son" or is he more aware of his own mediocrity than of the status given him by the love of God in Christ? Can he begin to see something of the pleasure God takes in his company? Is he at one with the author of Hebrews in the security the latter finds in the presence of God, so that he, too, can share his logic, "so that we, now we have found safety, should have a strong encouragement to take a firm grip on the hope that is held out to us. Here we have an anchor for our’soul, as sure as it is firm, and reaching right through beyond the veil where Jesus has entered before us and on our behalf..-." (Heb 6:!8-20). The same point is simply but attractively driven home by St. Paul, himself a late arrival at the festival: "And last of all he [Christ] appeared to me too; it was as though 1 was born when no one expected it" ( ! Co 15:8). He never quite got over the wonder of being there. Paul was keen therefore to share what he was enjoying with "pagans everywhere to bring them to the obedience of faith" (Rm 16:26 see 1:5). Perhaps the essence of what Paul experienced is best seen thus: "The spirit you received is not the spirit of slaves bringing fear into your lives again; it is the spirit of sons and it makes us cry out ’Abba, Father!’ 254 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

¯ .. we are children of God... heirs as well . . . of God and coheirs with Christ" (Rm 8:15-17). Abba is practically the first word a child would be taught to say. No contemporary of Christ would have dared use such a word of God. It is generally agreed that if any word in the New Testament can be said to come literally from the lips of Christ it must be this. It is the word given to the few, not to the many. It is for those brought into the presence of God by Christ. That is why St. Paul, who never took his eyes off Christ, was so captivated by it. "Abba, Father... It is this that makes you a son.., not a slave any more" (Ga 4:7). So the religious who wonders about the genuineness of his faith in the presence of God can begin by using the word first given him by God to enable him to speak. It is the word of the inarticulate, so he shou, ld not be afraid of using it, "for when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, the spirit himself expresses our plea in a way that could never be put into words" (Rm 8:26). The Spirit of God is loving him to speak, just as the adult gives words to a child. The child may one day have the vocabulary of a Shakes- peare, meanwhile he does not have to apologize for the language of the nursery. The great thing is to belong. We can say, "Abba, Father"! It is sheer gift, given, not earned, as with a baby coming to terms with iife.~ Prayer of Silent Realization So the religious has come to God, not because God needs him, but because God loves him. Even the shyest and most superficial can pray Abba, and his voice will not be lost in the crowd. The mature Christian can use the word to carry for him the faith and experience of a lifetime. Whenever it be, it is then, I suggest, that it begins to dawn on the religious just who he is and where he is, and all given bY God; that he begins to sound the depths which can only.be expressed in awe, wonder and adoration. In view of his possibly fragile faith and his desire for genuineness in living in the presence of God, he could spend more time with the whole Church celebrating the festival of "Christ among you, your hope of glory" (Col 1:27). Using what has been called "a prayer of silent realization,’’~ he can take a word or a phrase or a sentence from the pooled experience of life and faith which is Scripture, and, quietly reflecting on it, he can use it then as the very stuff of prayer and so allow the word, and God behind the word, to possess him. Notionally he probably knows all that he needs to know of Scripture, but by consistently subordinating himself to

~For those religious who find the masculine, paternal overtones hard to take, why not use it or another term as an expression of intimacy, a private language between God and oneself. It need have no meaning other than intimacy and affection. Remember that "what you have come to is nothing known to the senses." ’°Abba" probably was originally given to the disciples to give them a sense of identity and belonging. On this topic see The Prayers of Jesus, J. Jeremias, S.C.M., 1967. 2Introducing The Christian Faith, A.M. Ramsey, S.C.M., 1970, p. 20. Let Us Not Lose Sight of Jesus / 255 the word of God in this way he may find that "the word of God is something alive and active: it cuts like any double-edged sword but more finely; it can slip through the place where the soul is divided from the spirit or joints from the marrow; it can judge the secret emotions and thoughts" (Heb 4:12). So, for example, following the main thrust of this article, the religious may recall Paul’s conviction that "God is faithful." This is no platitude but an attitude of mind so real that it invariably leads him to say with as much emphasis as he can command, "Faithful is God" (2 Th 3:3; I Co 1:9; 2 Co !:18). It is so refreshingly real. What does Paul see that perhaps the religious does not? This, after all, is a man who admits that "we are in difficulties on all sides ..... see no answer to our problems .... persecuted .... knocked down " (2 Co 4:8-9), or, in one of the saddest fragments in the New Testament, "the first time 1 had to present defense there was not a single witness to support me. Every one of them deserted me" (2 Tm 4:16). Paul knows what it is to be "let down by so-called friends" (2 Co 11:26), "but I have not lost confidence because I know who it is that 1 have put my trust in"(2 Tm i:i2). Time spent in that man’s company--one of a cloud of witnesses--with a word or a phrase from his experience, may so cut through to the core of the religious’ being that, in time, he may see that "the Son of God, the Christ Jesus that we proclaimed among you.., was never Yes and No: with him it was always Yes, and however many the promises God made, the yes to them all is in him" (2 Co 1:19-20). Does the religious realize that this is Christ? In God We Trust Perhaps enough has been said to show that so much is so positive in Hebrews and Paul, not because they do not see problems, but because they see Christ. They never lose sight of him. So, for example, Paul, believing as he does, is "not ashamed of the gospel" (Rm 1:16). Today, people who are so certain of the presence of Christ are sometimes labeled "fundamentalist," while those Christians who are not slow in giving expression to their joy in his presence may be called "charismatic." By implication they enjoy the security of a closed mind. After all, confidence is what one has before one knows the problem. And so spreads slowly an enveloping, omnipresent fog of bogus authenticity, one which practically equates faith with doubt. "I see that you have broken your leg. I am sorry. I shall break my leg and lie beside you." This is sympathy of a kind genuinely meant, considering it a more authentic expression of Christian feeling to share completely the insecurity of the person hurt and upset. Of course 1 have generalized a nuanced position, but many religious may recognize the note. ! suggest, in the light of the New Testament, that "you did not so learn Christ!" (Ep 4:20). At times, religious seem in the position of passengers in an ocean-liner which has just been sunk, to adapt an analogy of C.H. Dodd in his Commentary on Romans, when it is dark, we are all in the water, and all around we hear voices calling for help. The conviction of the New Testament is that we are in the lifeboat. 256 / Review for Religious, March-April," 1982

We won’t drown! "We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him" (Rm 8:28). Our main concern should be outgoing and positive. Believing in the presence of God, how best can we help the many in the water calling for help? I have tried to give a glimpse of the whole Church celebrating the festival of-God’s loving presence--"Christ among you, your hope of glory" (Col !:27). It is not the whole picture, but I do not think it a false picture. This is what the Gospel says. As with practically everything in life the religious was never asked about it. His opinion was not sought. He is invited to believe, and accept this from God. The question for him is, what is he going to do? He can turn his face to the wall in disbelief, saying it is all beyond him signifying nothing, that life is a production of the theatre of the absurd. Again, Walter Mitty may offe~ another avenue of approach--but faith built on imagination has no present, much less a future. Surely it is best to stand up to life and the Gospel. Drive "them" into a corner and let "them" turn on him--not necessarily following the Queensberry Rules--and he can see for himself just what his faith in the Gospel is worth. The religious makes the decision to trust God and means God himself. He may then find that, in spite of "the sin that clings so easily," he is not discouraged; it can be dealt with in Christ. It is on the periphery. Equally, if the presence of God has less appeal than an itinerant fly on the chapel wall, or if Scripture is dead on the page, it changes nothing. Even if the life the religious is asked to live defies logic it matters little, for "these are the trials through which we triumph by the power of ’him who loved us" (Rm 8:37). Ultimately his trust is not in his intellect nor in a university degree. His trust is not in his ability to piece life together, nor in the opinion of his friends. He does not lay down what he considers acceptable limits to the behavior of God. As Abraham Heschel used to stress, the point is not that we do not know, rather that God does know. What matters is not our feeling close to God, but our certainty and conviction of his being close to us. So it may be for the religious, as for Christ, that "during his life on earth, he offered up prayer and entreaty aloud and in silent tears, to the one who had the power to save him out of death, and he submitted so humbly that his prayer was heard. Although he was Son he learned to obey t,hrough suffering" (Heb 5:7-8). He faces life and takes it as it comes, with no preconditions, even in the paradoxical situations where God, ii appears, "has given you the privilege not only of believing in Christ but of suffering for him as well" (Ph 1:29). As Paul was careful to .say when telling us that we can say "Abba, Father!" and therefore that we are heirs of God and coheirs with Christ, our identity with Christ excludes nothing of life--even to "sharing his sufferings so as to share his glory" (Rm 8:17). The Post-Charismatic Phenomenon: A Theological Interpretation

Robert Wild

This article is excerpted from a chapter of a book that Father Wild hopes soon to publish. Father is a member of the community of Madonna House; Combermere. Ontario; Canada KOJ ILO.

In 1975, I wrote a book on the charismatic renewal (CR) entitled Enthusiasm in the Spirit. It dealt with some theological aspects of the renewal with which 1 had been struggling since my first contact in 1970. Let me say clearly and unambigu- ously that 1 still believe wholeheartedly in the work of the Spirit in the renewal. More, I have deepened my conviction that it would be a wonderful blessing if what is happening in the CR was experienced by all of God’s people. My concern in this article, however, is with "enthusiasm in the Spirit ten years after." It is a fact that, presently, there are tens of thousands of people who are no longer formally involved in the CR. I do not mean to say that they now live without the gifts operative in their lives. No. But they no longer regularly attend prayer meetings, are not involved in conventions, do not help with Ltfe in the Spirit seminars, and so forth. In shbrt, they have no formal, ongoing charismatic "conn.ections:" Charismatic activities are no longer the focus of their Christian lives as they used to be. I call this the post-charismatic phenomenon. Frequently, this phenomenon is interpreted negatively, i.e., people are "cop- ping out" of the renewal, refusing to follow the leading of the Spirit, and so forth. While a certain lack of generosity and discernment may be true of some people, I believe, from my own experience and that of many others, that much--perhaps the greater part--of this post-charismatic phenomenon is positive: people are simply being led by the Spirit into other pathways. 1 think it would show a great deal of mistrust in the power of the Spirit if we really believed that so many people, after having been so profoundly touched by the Lord, were now simply sliding 257 2511 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 back into a new apathy) , It is becoming more and more obvious that the conscious, experiential awareness of the Spirit, his gifts and fruits, is a factor in our catechesis and the understanding of Christian life which has been sadly neglected. I don’t know about the reader, but I had it somewhere in my Catholic psyche that grace cannot really be experienced. Karl Rahner has disassociated himself from this particular school which would make the life of grace occur in a totally unconscious realm of the human person. He simply asks the question: "Have we ever actually experienced grace’?.", then answers in the affirmative by describing human experiences of self-sacrificing love. Example: "Have we ever forgiven someone even though we got no thanks for it and our silent forgiveness was taken for granted? Once we experience the Spirit in this way, we (at least, we as Christians who live in faith) have also in fact experienced the supernatural. ’~ In more recent writings he expands this teaching and concludes that a definite theological interpretation can be given to intense conversion experiences, the reception of the Spirit, baptism in the Spirit, and other such phenomena .3 I continue to believe that the experiential nature of the CR is one of its most important aspects, and a key to where post-charismatic spirituality is headed. It seems clear that the Father really wants to give each of his children an experience of his great love for them. It is this experience which makes the transition from Jesus as "Savior of the world" to Jesus as "my Savior." Only the living Spirit of Jesus can make this truth a felt reality in the heart. Rahner points to the function of such religious experience. He says that it helps people break out of a piety which rests solely on conceptual and propositional reflection. Through such experiences, people come face to face with their own inner reference to God. Many Christians live on religious concepts, and do not have a personal relationship with God on any clear level.4 Surely one of the main thrusts of the Spirit’s work in the CR has been to give people an experience of God which then becomes central to their lives, unifying-- conceptually and practically--all their other religious knowledge and experience. What is the situation, then, of ordinary Christians in their daily piety? They have at their

tThroughout this article, I never wish to imply that the charismatic way is the only way for the Christian. I believe whatever is at the heart of the Gospel is not optional, but that this heart can be acquired in a variety of ways. And when I speak of the "post-charismatic spirituhlity," I do not wish to imply that anyone must have passed through the CR in order to enter this phase of the spiritual life. But I will be interpreting these further stages of our life with God in specifically Charismatic terms since ! am trying to relate especially to those who, as a matter of fact, have ~passed through" the CR. ZTheological Investigations, Volume II!, The Theology of the Spiritual Life. Trans. KarI-H and Boniface Kruger (Baltimore: Helicon Press, 1967), pp. 87-88. ~ Theological Investigations. Volume XVI, Experience of the Spirit: Source of Theology, Trans. David Morland. O.S.B. (New York: The Seabury Press, 1979), p. 51. *Ibid., p. 44. The Post-Charismatic Phenomenon / 259

disposal a large store of religious concepts, propositions, motivations and patterns of behavior ~which all perform an important function in guiding their daily life and action. But in their d,.aily affairs they do not encounter with any clarity either the heart of their own subjectivity or God himself in his true self-communication,s This is basically what the Spirit has taught us in the CR--the tremendous importance of such an experiential encounter with God. We have discovered that without this, most of our catechesis is backwards. Trying to give "religious instruction" to people who have not experienced God the Father through the Spirit of Jesus is not only enormously difficult, but one wonders if it should be done at all. On the other hand, we have discovered that once people have really accepted Christ in their hearts and experienced his personal love for them, then further instruction is a genuine pleasure. People gobble up conferences and tapes and books and (yes) even homilies like thirsty wanderers in the desert. What a joy it is to address people who are really eager to hear about Christ and the teachings~of the Church! Isn’t this~what "teaching Christian doctrine" is all about--what it really should be? Can we continue to disregard these implications of religious experience for catechesis? Can we continue to operate on a theory of "unconscious grace"?. ’But all these things have been said before. The question which concerns me now is: Where does the charismatic, experiential spirituality of the CR "fit in" in the total journey of the soul towards God? Is a charismatic spirituality--can it be, should it be--a phase in the Christian journey? If and when people leave the formal gatherings of the CR, are they losing some vital aspects of life in the Spirit? This is a very tricky and delicate question. After struggling with it in prayer and study for years’, 1 am. convinced that it does not admit of any easy or simplistic answers. But I think it is possible to give, if not definitive, at least some tentative directions in which to pursue the matter. ’My conclusion will be that it is perfectly possible to move into other dimensions of life in the Spirit after the~ CR without in any way being unfaithful to the leading of this same Spirit. Whether that is actually what is happening or not will be a matter of individual discernment. "Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect." In the course of the centuries, various names have been given to this perfection. In the second century, Clement of Alexandria saw the Christian as the true "Gnostic," the one who possessed the true "knowledge" of God. In the fourth century, Evagrius,of Ponticus used the word "mystic" to describe the heights of Christian perfection. In the course of time, the word "mystic" took on special connotations so that, after a while, only certain people were described as "mystics." How would we put it today? What would be an unequivocal way of saying to what we believe all Christians are called? 1 think the word we would use is love: we are all called to the perfection of love. But for my purposes here, and because of 260 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Rahner’s position that grace--the self-communication of God---can be experienced, 1 also wish to use the word "mysticism" as synonymous with love. The word "mystic" usually connotes somebody who has experiences of God. All Chris- tians, then, if they are living the life of grace, must experience this grace in some way, but differently, in different forms. Hence, I want to use our various experiences of God as a way of locating different persons’ relationship to the CR. In his very important article,6 Rahner makes a distinction between "genuine" mysticism and "mysticism in ordinary dress," or "mysticism for the masses.~ He uses the’ term "mysticism for the masses" to designate "experiences of.the Spirit, glossolalia, the experience of a radical transformation of the ’old man’ into a new person . . . a radical conversion, and ’similar events which occur today in the various charismatic movements .... "~ Let us take a brief look at his description of each of these kinds of mysticism. God can be consciously experienced, says Rahner, but this can happen in a variety of ways. He uses the term "genuine" for a very rarified kind of experience of God in absolute faith, with the bare minimum, you might say, of mediation through sense, locutions, and the like. He says a "clear dose" of this kind of mysticism is rare. And in an earlier article, he gave the opinion that the majority of Christians "do not end up in mysticism (at least if we take mysticism in the sense in which it was understood by the classical Spanish mystics).’~ But, he continues, all Christians are called to the perfection of love. If all do not "end up" in "genuine mysticism," there must be ways of having God communicate himself to us which is available to all. This takes place, Rahner says, in what he calls "mysticism for the masses;" "mysticism in ordinary dress." These latter terms are in no way meant to be derogatory. They are quite positive, and mean to give a theological interpretation to the action of the Spirit. Such experiences really reach God in himself, and touch the religious subject in his or her very center. But because we are dealing here, in "mysticism for the masses," with words, emotions, psychological states, and so forth, which are the .media for such experience, discernment and critical’judgment are required. The point is that God can and does use such media to communicate himself: "We are not faced with the alternatives of being forced either to recognize expressions of religious enthusiasm.., as the unadulterated operation of the Holy Spirit, or to discount them from the start.., as the result of human religious impulses going off the rails."9 The whole point of his article is to validate religious experiences as true experiences of grace, and that God uses the human receiver as a medium for that experience. Two clarifications. I don’t know what German word Rahner used for

61bid., p. 47. 71bid., p. 35. 8Investigations i11, p. 22. 9Investigations XVI, pp. 47-48. The Post-Charismatic Phenomenon / 261

"genuine,~ but he certainly means that the "mysticism for the masses" is also "gefiuine" in our ordinary English understanding of that word. Secondly, I don’t think Rahner means to imply (and 1 certainly don’t) that the phenomena he mentioned--glossolalia "and similar events which occur today in the various charismatic movements"--are the only kind of mysticism for the masses. It seems clear that he was addressing himself to the charismatic movement, but does not intend to exclude a variety of experiences from "mysticism for the masses." At this point, if I may, 1 would like to inject a personal sharing. As part of my own spiritual journey, I was in a Trappist monastery before I was eighteen, and in a Carthusian monastery before I was twenty-one. (I "kid" people that I am now writing a book on stability!) I can truthfully say that my deepest experiences of the transcendence of God were in those monasteries, in an atmosphere of silence, solitude, prayer, community, and hard manual work. Dur- ing those years I never sang in tongues, prophesied, healed anyone physically, or even prayed out loud spontaneously. There was no real "witnessing" in the sense we know it in the CR (although there was much talk about God). I had never attended a charismatic convention (they hadn’t begun then), nor seen anyone arrested in the Spirit. When I left the Carthusians I surely was not a "charismatic" in the renewal sense of that word. In 1970 1 came into contact with the CR. I helped to start a prayer group. I learned many things about the gifts and about prayer meetings. 1 cannot say 1 "came to Christ" in the CR, or had a "conversion." I just experienced a wonderful new dimension of my Christian life, a deepening. For all these blessings 1 have never ceased praising and thanking God. It really was--and still is--a marvelous part of my spiritual journey, another way in which I encounter God. But even now, after ten years of varying degrees of formal involvement in the renewal, I can still honestly say that no experiences I had of God in the renewal were more profound than what I experienced in the monasteries. The former were often more joyful, more exuberant, had other tonalities which the latter often lacked. But I believe my monastic experiences were the deeper of the two. ~ :Very early into the renewal, the desire for this kind of mysticism (what to call it?) which I had experienced in the monasteries began to surface. There was a longing within me for these quieter waters, a nostalgia for a way to God that was less filled with words and songs and ideas, and, yes, even less filled with imagina- tive visions and displays of power. There was a longing for an "en-thusiasm," a "being-in-God" which was more direct, more simple. Here is where I have to be careful. This was (is) my experience. Am I going to say that this is where post-charismatics are headed also? The matter can be put differently: Is my experience part of a wider pattern, a larger movement of the Spirit, which is also ordinary in the lives of Christians? Is this tendency towards a simpler kind of religious experience (mysticism) part of the Spirit’s activity among Christians of e~,ery age? Can people reach a stage in their spiritual growth where God calls them to radically deemphasize experiential medi- ums of religious enthusiasm and meet him more in the darkness of faith? 962 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

My answer would be, yes, of course. Between the "genuine" mysticism of the rarified kind, and the "mysticism of the masses," must there not be a wide landscape and spectrum of mysticism? Assuredly there is. And 1 think its articulation is to be found quite obviously in what is traditionally known as the "three ages of the spiritual life,’~ the "purgative, illuminative, and unitive ways." These stage.s have their origins in the works of Gregory of Nyssa, were more specifically delineated by Pseudo-Denis (who was-the first to use these three terms), and subsequently elaborated upon by many spiritual writ.ers down through the ages. Before briefly looking at Gregory of Nyssa, a few comments about how I hope to use’this schema in the present discussion are in order. Rahner has. sho~wn how problematic it is to come up with a schema or paradigm of spiritual growth into which everyone can be inserted. He believes it is possible, but that we do not yet have one. Each individual is,unique, and God’s grace is free. Having pointed out the problems, however, he makes the following statement: There is first of all the fact that in some sense or other, and in some form or other, there must be something like a way to Christian perfection, a way which is formed by or divisible into different stages: for unless this be presupposed, the continual and always renewed attempt to define these stages in greater detail--as found in the whole of Christian religion--becomes absolutely incomprehensible and absurd.~0 Also, I wish to make it clear that I am not equating involvement in the CR with any of the three stages. The individual couM be in any of the three stages and be involved in the CR. What I Wish to point out is that, t’n the framework of these traditional three ways, there is theological justification for people to move outof a charismatic mysticism into a mysticism described in other stages of the spiritual life. Let us now turn to Gregory and a brief account of these stages. ~ In the l~istory of spirituality it is commonly accepted today that St. Gregory of Nyssa (4th cent.) is a towering figure. His thought on the spiritual life was so fertile and rich that, in Louis Bouyer’s opinion, it inspired.three of the strongest currents of spirituality emanating from the early centuries. The teachings of Evagrius, Macarius, and Pseudo-Denis are all dependent upon Gregory, each developing different ’aspects of his thought.1~ In one of the most beautiful books I have ever read, Jean Danielou’s Plato- nisme et Theologie Mystique, Doctrine Sph’ituelle de Saint Gregoire de Nysse, we find a synthesis of the Saint’s teaching on the spiritual life. The book’s three main divisions indicate the three stages of the journey. Part lis called "Night or Purifica- tion"; Part 2 is "The Cloud or Contemplation"; Part 3 is "Darkness or Love." For Gregory, the figure of Moses as the friend of God forms the biblical

~Olbid., p. I0. The Spirituality of the New Testament and the Fathers, Trans. Mary P. Ryan (Londoni Burns & Oates Ltd. and Desclee & Co., Inc., 1963)~ pp. 369-70. The Post-Charismatic Phenomenon / 263 framework for his understanding of the spiritual life: The manifestation of God was first made to Moses in light; then he spoke with him under the cloud; finally~ having become perfect. Moses contemplated God in darkness. The,passage from darkness to light is the first separationfrom false and erroneous ideas abgut God. Then~ the intelligence, more attentive to hidden things~ leads the soul by visible realities to the invisible reality. This is like a cloud which obscures everything sensible and accustoms the soul to hidden c0iatemplation. Finally. the soul which has moved along by these roads towards things on high.., penetrates into the sanctuary of divine knowledge surrounded 0n’all sides by the divine darkness.~2 Danielou comments: Th~ beginning of the spiritual life is presented under the double aspect of separation and illumination . .~2 illumination of the soul by the burning bush which is the Word Incarnate .... calling us higher~ The crossing of the desert under the cloud situates us in the second way: disaffection from earthly things and accustoming ourselves to live a life of faith. Finally. on, the top of Mr. Sinai. the entrance into the darkness draws us into the mystical life.~3 The illumination by the burning bush, the crossing of the desert, and the: envelopment by the divine darkness are not, of course, mutually exclusive experiences, but they definitely do describe the predominant spiritual atmosphere and path of the soul on its journey towards God. As Rahner said, there must be "something to it," if countless spiritual masters have used this paradigm. It is not simply a theoretical construct into which spiritual experiences are fitted. Rather, people have been experiencing these stages, and have sought to describe them. ’ The temptation now would be simply and neatly to say that the CR is the burning bush experience. It isnot that easy. People come into contact with the CR at/all different stages of their spiritual journeys. For- some, the CR may well have been the "burning bush experience," the wonder experience of God breaking in on their sheepherding. It may well have been an individual’s first encounter with the living God in the midst of the fire. It may well have been the passing from cold and/or no faith into the transcendent experience of light and purification. It may well have been the difference between Christ and no Christ, betv~een light and darkness. On the other hand, many may already have really met Christ and given him their lives. They may have seen the burning bush halfway across the desert. For them, the CR was a further ma.nifestation of God’s presence and guidance, but not their first real encounter with him. Still others may already have been ascending the mount of divine darkness and experienced no real attraction to remain in the CR. (I think this is the reason why monastic communities, who live by a different kind of mysticism, often choose not to incorporate the CR into their spirituality.) Therefore, while it is not possible to make a perfect equation of the CR with

~2(Aubier. Editions Montaigne). pp, 18-19. ~31bid., pp. 22-23. 264 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

the first stage (burning bush) of a person’s journey towards God, it is possible to equate it with the "mysticism for the masses," which, by definition, emphasizes religious enthusiasm and therefore illumination. In one very important sense, then, the CR is a burning bushy.experience, understood as the conscious awareness of the Spirit and his gifts. It may have occurred at Horeb (Ex. 3), at the beginning of one’s spiritua! journey; it may have occurred d.uring one’s desert journey; it may have occurred closer to one’s approach to the divine .mountain. The precise meaning of this illumination must be determined in the context of each individual life. I would like to return, now, to the different kinds of mysticism. Without implying that those who remain in a more charismatic kind of mysticism remain standing in front of the burning bush, that is, remain in the first stage of illumination; without trying to measure love or to assay who is progressing better, I wish to give as my opinion th’at many post-charistmatics are moving away from a mysticism of relig{ous enthusiasm into a kind of mysticism which corresponds more to the second stage, the journey through the desert. And this movement away from more experiential media in our life with God accords very well with what the spiritual.masters describe as the characteristics of the journey. It is not my intention to give the classical descriptions of these ~characteristics. One can read them in any number of treatises.14 While some people may be called all their lives to travel within a pronounced charismatic framework, we must see clearly that: many people will also be called to a different kind of spirituality. It will be a spirituality fully conscious of the gifts, and free to use them when the occasions present themselves, but it will not make the use of the gifts the focal points for Christian existence. It will be a spirituality drawn to channel the Spirit’s energies into deeper si!ence, more private prayer, a prayer which emphasizes stillness and repose rather than external expressions. It will be a spirituality where people pray over each other for healing, but at home, using less formulae and techniques, simply allowing the healing love of Jesus to pass through them. It will be a s, pirituality where prophetic words of life are spoken more as integrated parts of conversations, like Jesus speaking with the woman at the well. It will be a spirituality where witnessing occurs more naturally, more effortlessly, waiting for the graced moment at home, work, or play in order to share with other.s the wonderful works of God. It will be a spirituality where bible reading, alone or with others, is as common and as essential as eating food. It will be a spirituality where people, having become more sensitized to their own~interior needs, are able to pursue their individual paths with the help of a director or a "prayer partner," so~meone with whom they meet on a regular basis for mutual prayer and discernment. It will be a’ spirituality where prayers of exorcism are said frequently for protection, and where the power of love, the

~4R. Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P.. The Three Ages of the Interior Life; Trans. Sr. M. Timothea Doyle, O.P. (St. Louis, Mo.: B. Herder Book Co., 1949), 2 vols. ~ The Post-Charismatic Phenomenon / 265 sacraments and sacramentals, and constant vigilance, safeguard people from the attacks of the evil ones. It will be a spirituality attuned to the Spirit as he attempts to integrate the charisms, in his own gentle way, into the ordinary structures of parish, family, and neighborhood. It will be a spirituality less dependent upon religious enthusiasm, and more desirous of drinking at quieter fountains of grace. This progression towards greater simplicity, integration, and ordinariness is, in all the great religious traditions, quite normal. In The Inner Eye of Love, William Johnson writes: Mystical experience may at first be delightful and filled with froth and joy: but eventually the call comes to go deeper and (wonder of wonders) this going deeper in all the great mystical traditions is a passage to the ordinary . . . an almost boring silence of penetration and familiarity, a "becoming at home."... And I wonder if it does not take another enlightenment of the Spirit to recognize this seemingly humdrum experience as a real experience of God.~ 1 believe the post-charismatic spirituality is such a second enlightenment. Besides the dazzling fire of the burning bush, there is the quiet ordinariness of the desert journey, day after day, the envelopment in the cloud. And still beyond that, the "penetration into the sanctuary of divine knowledge surrounded on all sides by the divine darkness." The conscious use and experience of the charismatic gifts are never opposed to life in the Spirit at any phase of our journey. But, according to the traditional understanding of the mystical life, the Spirit often reduces the vividness of such experience; he may call us less frequently to the use of such charismatic expressions in order to purify deeper levels of our hearts.

~5(New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1978), pp. 37-38. Psychotherapy: The Healing of the Mind

Thomas A. Kane

Father Kane, a priest of the Diocese of Worcester, is a psychotherapist~and a founder of the House of Affirmation, with communities in Massacfiusetts, California, Missouri and England. He is Interna- tional Executive Director of this therapeutic center for clergy and religious; and may be addressed at 456 Hill St.; Whitinsville, MA 01588.

The field of psychotherapy is characterized by a profusion of therapeutic schools, with new ones continually surfacing, each of which claims that its particular approach is more successful than those of its rivals: To date, with minor exceptions, research evidence has failed to substantiate these claims. Just today I received a new book entitled Innovative Psychotherapies.~ The author states that there are today sixty-six innovative psychotherapies accepted by the psychological and psychiatric professional community. The author continues to report that he cannot really point to many similarities that make these psy- ~hotherapies acceptable. In the preface to his lengthy tome, the author asks and answers the question, "What is psychotherapy? Frankly, I don’t know whether I can define the term. Beyond saying that it is a formal way of operating based on some theory and coordinated procedures for changing the behavior, the thinking, and the feelings of individuals in ways desired either by the individual in question or by others, there is little I can add. ’’~ This "little" that the author has to add then takes him nine hundred and sixty-nine pages to develop! During my lecture circuit, 1 often find priests and religious asking me 1. to define psychotherapy 2. to point out some of the therapeutic components of the various psychotherapies

~Corsini, Raymond J. (ed.) Handbook of Innovative Psy(’holherapies. New York, N.Y.: Wiley- Interscience Publication, 1981. 21bid., p. xi. 266 Psychotherapy." The Healing of the Mind / 967

3. to explain the shared therapeutic functions of the various psychotherapies. In this article I hope to respond to some of these questions and issues revolving aroun’d the area of psychottierapy. All the multitudinous forms of psychotherapy rampant in America today can be encompassed by the following definition given to us’by Dr: Jerome D. Frank: "psychotherapy is a process whereby a socially sanctioned healer seeks to help persons overCome psychologically caused distress and disability by a systematic procedure,linked to a theory of the source and nature’of the sufferer’s difficulties and how to alleviate them."3 Often the therapeutic goal: also includes helping the patient accept and endure the suffering that life inevitably brings and use it as an opportunity for growth and maturation.

Therapeutic Components of All Psychotherapies All forms of psychotherapy help the patient to overcome his sense of alienation an/:l d(spair and regain a sense of control over internal feelings’and ~xternal events, if th~ following four featurds are present: I.’A tfusting, confiding, emotionally responsible relationship between a patient who =seeks help ~nd a therapist who offers it, often with the participation of a gibup. The patient lets himself be dependent on the therapist because of his confidence in the therapist’s competence and goodwill. The relationship has clear spatiotemporal limits and is st~ructured by the therapist’s,conception of his role. While these limits place constraints on both participants, they also facilitate the’ patient’s spontaneity through the assurance they convey that the relationship will remain within bounds. , The therapist’s attitude is one of acceptance and of respect for the patient, not necessarily for what he is but for what he could become. Since this also implies that he believes the patient can be helped, it raises the patient’s hopes. Moreover, because he is a prestigious representative of the larger society, and usually of the patient’s subculture as well, the therapist’s acceptance combats the patient’s sense of isolation and reestablishes his sense of connectedness with his group. 2. Features of the settings in which psychotherapy is conducted help to combat the inhibition against expres.sing oneself freely that often accompanies demoralization. Settings are ordinarily sharply distinguished from areas of daily living by features that identify them as healing sanctuaries. The aura of the ,healing temple still clings to the therapist’s office, which symbolizes his healing function in several ways. If located in a hospital or clinic, it shares the image of the institution.4 If a private office, it typically contains the accoutrements of psychotherapy: book-

Frank, Jerome D., "Psychotherapy: The Restoration of Morale," Am. J. Psychiat. 131:271-274, 1974. 4Polcino, Sr. Anna, SCMM, "Psychotheological Community~ in The Priest, vol. 31, No. 9, 1974. 2611 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

shelves, desk, couch, and easy chair, as well as a portrait of the founder of the therapist’s school and diplomas attesting to the therapist’s training. In this sanctuary, presided over by a tolerant and understanding protector, the patient can dare to face unacceptable aspects of himself, release pent-up emotions, or~ try unaccus- tomed ways of behaving, secure in the knowledge that he is safe from retaliation. 3. A rationale or conceptual scheme that explains the cause of the patient’s difficulties and prescribes a ritual for combating them. The rationales of Western psychotherapy resemble those of primitive ones in that they are not subject to disproof--they cannot be shaken by therapeutic failure. No school of psychotherapy has voluntarily disbanded because its adherents became convinced that a rival school had a better rationale or obtained better results.5 To be therapeutically effective, the rationale must be convincing to both the patient and the therapist; hence it is linked to the dominant world view of their ¯ culture. In the Middle Ages, the belief system underlying what we today call psychotherapy Was demonology and treatment was exorcism. In the United States today, it is science, so most schools claim a scientific basis for their procedures. Now, reflecting the growing disillusionment with science, therapies are emerging based on religious or mythical beliefs. 4. A procedure or ritual that requires the active participation of both patient and therapist and is believed by both to be the means of restoring the patient’s health. This performs several therapeutic functions. It neutralizes anxiety through repeated exposure to anxiety-arousing stimuli in a supportive context, serves as a vehicle for therapist,patient interaction, enables the patient to become conscious of feelings or maladaptive behavior of which he had been unaware, and encourages him to experiment with new responses. In addition; the therapeutic procedure enables the patient to try out the behavioral implication of his broadened awareness in the protection of the therapeutic setting before venturing to use them in the outside world. Differences in length of therapy practiced by different schools depend in part on the expectations of both patients and therapists. Behavior therapies are expected to be brief; analytically oriented ones long. Within each school, differences in length depend on how long it takes to establish a therapeutic relationship and how much repetition and practice is required to extinguish maladaptive patterns and ingrain healthier ones. Extinction of inapprop~’iate emotional responses may require considerable time, since the autonomic system learns slowly. If the procedure is sufficiently impressive, it affords the patient a face-saving device for relinquishing symptoms when he no longer needs them. This is generally true of dramatic procedures, such as hypnosis or emotional flooding.

SLuborsky. L.. Singer. B.. Luborsky. L., "Comparative Studies of Psychotherapies: Is It True that ’Everyone Has Won and All Must Have Prizes’?." in Evaluation of Psychological Therapies: Psycho- therapies, Behavior Therapies, Drug Therapies, and Their Interactions, Eds.. R. L. SpitZer~ D. F. Klein. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. 1976. pp. 3-22. Psychotherapy: The Healing of the Mind / 269

From the view point of the therapist, mastery of a specific rationale and procedure sustains his interest and helps him maintain his own confidence when therapy is not going well. Proponents of all psychotherapeutic schools claim special virtues for their particular rationales and procedures. To oversimplify vastly, one way of classifying rationales is in terms of whether they view the causes of the patient’s difficulties as lying primarily in his view of the past, present, or future. Psychoanalytically oriented therapies stress unresolved inner conflicts or arrests in development resulting from destructive early life experiences and seek to undo their effects by procedures that lead the patient to relive them emotionally in a context that enables him to resolve or otherwise dispel them. Many of the newer abreactive techniques, although based on a variety of rationales, seem to,belong in this category. Behav- ior therapies view the patient’s distress as resulting from his present behavior, which is maintained by current environmental contingencies, and seek to overcome his difficulties primarily by showing him that he can change his reactions on the spot, thereby also changing the responses of others that have maintained them. Existential-humanistic therapies, finally, stress the patient’s view of his future as closed and seek to enable him to widen his options through his encounter with a therapist who combats his feelings of meaninglessness and despair. Therapeutic rationales and their associated rituals may also be classified according to whether they view psychopathology as lying within the patient or in his interactions with others. E.xistentialist, psychoanalytically oriented, and abreactive therapies, including those that foster altered states of consciousness, assume that resolution of inner conflicts will lead to improvement in behavior. Behavior therapies hold that appropriate changes in behavior, by eliciting more favorable responses from others, will reduce disturbing thoughts and feelings. Many group and family approaches carry this concept a step further by view- ing the patient’s psychic distress as resulting from disturbance in a pathological communication network in which he is immersed, whether it be his family, a neighborhood network, or a therapy group. These therapies focus on resolving the pathology of the network as a whole as the means of reducing the patient’s disturbed behavior and feelings.6

Shared Therapeutic Functions of All Psychotherapies Despite marked differences in conti~nt, all therapeutic rationales and procedures should perform six therapeutic functions, although their relative importance differs among therapies. 1. Strengthening and maintaining the therapeutic relationship. A shared belief system is a major unifying force of all groups, including the patient-therapist

~’Jean, Sister Gabrielle L. "Affirmation: Healing in Community," Review for Religious. vol. 34, 1975. 271) / Review for Religious,~March-April, 1982 dyad.7 The rationale and ritual, moreover, serve as vehicles that keep both patient and therapist interested and interacting~ especially during the inevitable arid stretches of therapy. 2. Inspiring and maintainingthe patient’s hope for help. Hope not only keeps the patient in therapy but is ~ powerful healing emotion in itself. Since hope is sustained by linking it to concrete expectations, experienced therapists of all schools spend considerable time’~teaching the patient their particular therapeutic modality and Shapirig his expectations to acc6rd with What he will actually receive. Hope is initially aroused by the therapist’s acceptance of the patient for treatment and is maintained by evidence of progress through gaining new depths of self- understanding, relieving dysphoric’emotions, overcoming behavioral blocks, or other changes regarded as evidence of improvement by the conceptual scheme of the therapy. 3. Provision of opportunity for cognitive and experiential’ learning. Cogni- tively, therapies offer the patii~nt~new information about his problems and ways of dealing frith them or new ways of conceptualizing what he already knows. This informati6n is supplied through self-e£ploration, interpretations, or direct instruction. Experientially, all therapies give’the patient opportunities to model himself on the therapist, to experience transference reactions, to release strong emotions, or to venture into situations he had hitherto avoided. All therapeutic schools agree that cognitive learning by itself is s~ldom adequate to produce significant change. To be effective, it must be linked to new experiences, whether related to reliving the past, discovering symptom-eliciting and reinforcing stimuli in the environment or becoming painfully aware of distortions in interpersonal communications. 4, Eliciting emotional arousal This accompanies experiential learning. Reve- lations emerging in insight psychotherapy are often unsettling shocks,as the patient discoversrfeatures of himself that he had been afraid to recognize. Behavior therapy arouses anxiety by urging~the patient into situations he had feared to enter, ~while flooding therapies seek to arouse emotions directly. Emotional arousal supplies the motivating powevfor changes in attitudes and behavior and also cements the thbrapeutic bond. Animal studies and clir]ical observations have shown that arousal of intense emotions of any sort strengthens relationships. Hate, fear, or anger can forge as strong bonds as love.s 5. Enhancement of the sense ofmaster.v. The sense of being unable to control one’s own thoughts, feelings;or behavior, usually accompanied by failure to control the environment, is a powerful source of anxiety and other manifestations of demoralization. Successful psychotherapy increases the patient’s sense of mast~ery in at least two ways. The first is by supplying a conceptual scheme that enables the patient to name~and order his previously inchoate and mysterious experiences.

7Kane, Thomas A., ~Psychotheological Therapy." New Catholic Encyclopedia. 1979, Vol. XVII, pp. 546-548. 8Bush, S.,~., Bernard J., "Healing Grace", Living In His Love. Whitinsville, MA: Affirmation Books, 1978. p. 77. Psychotherapy: The Healing of the Mind /271

That naming a phenomenon is for humans a major way of gaining dominance over it is a common theme in folklore and religion; witness the fairy tale of Rumpelstiltskin and the story of Genesis, in which the first task God assigned to Adam was to name the animals, thereby asserting his dominion over them. The second means of increasing the sense of mastery is through experiences of success, which all therapies provide in one form or another. These also serve to keep the patient in therapy by providing signs of progress. Behavior therapies provide successes by being structured so as to convey to the patient that he is making steady progress. Emotional flooding therapies, by proving to the patient that he can survive the full impact of feelings he feared would destroy him, provide powerful success experiences. Psychoanalytically and existentially oriented therapies provide more subtle, but equally potent, successes by enabling the patient to achieve new insights or to formulate a previously inchoate state of mind. Such experiences are particularly confidence-building in patients who ’rely primarily on words to. master the world. 6. Solidifying therapeutic gains. Finally, all therapies tacitly or openly encourage thepatient to digest or work through what he has learned and apply it in his daily living. Some therapies actually, assign homework; for others, that patients will practice what they have learned remains a tacit, but nevertheless strong, expectation. 1 believe that it would be appropriate to conclude from the preceding paragraphs that, until the specific effectiveness of different therapies has been demonstrated, a person should look for a therapist who has had experience with a variety of approaches and wh6 has tried to master those elements that best suit his personal style. ~ It is important that therapists keep in mind a client’s right to self-determination as well as a client’s right to choice of fundamental value system.

Postscript There is no doubt that the reader of this article, knowing the author is one of the founders of the House of Affirmation and who has written extensively on affirmation, might ask, "Has the author founded a new sghool of psychotherapy?" 1 make no claims to having discovered a new theory of affirmation. Those who do make such claims often appear to lack any scientific or theological foundations on which to base them. I am indebted to the writings and scholarship of Martin Buber, and to the German Thomistic philosopher Josef Pieper. Affirmation is basically gospel living, and though my psychotheological approach to this topic is original, certainly this approach is one of emphasis and explanation rather than discovery.9 The first encounter with the term "psychotheological" could evoke the image of some new hybrid science with its own independent subject matter and means of

9Kane. Thomas A., Happy Are You Who Affirm. Whitinsville, MA: Affirmation Books, 1980. 272 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 inquiry. However, strictly speaking, psychotheology is not a science. It is rather an approach to life which draws on secular and religious sources of truth combined to better our response to the total human person as created, redeemed, and called by God in Christ Jesus. This view of the human person is an acknowledgment of the integration of the human and divine which already exists perfectly in Christ and which serves as the inspiring vision, the reassuring reality, the very way to the Father, shared by all. Christians on the journey to their own hearts. Primarily, integration of the human and divine must .begin to take place within the heart of the human person. The open heart is the only soil in which the word of God and his grace can take root. God does not work in a vacuum nor does he say no to his own creation. Whatever helps us to find our true hearts and opensthem to God in our life experience is good mental health at work. It is also God at work; The integration of the human and divine that a psychotheological approach to the human person seeks is what Christ seeks.~0 There is also an integration of psychology and theology at a secondary level which guides us in our attempts to achie~,e the primary integration in our hearts. ~ This union occurs at the level of knowledge and insight. It must be emphasized that such an integration does not blur the distinction between nature and grace, between the natural and the supernatural; between psychology and theology. Neither does it deny the palpable presence of God in many people who cannot achieve the primary integration of the human and divine. If anything, this union heightens our appreciation of both psychology and theology and prompts us to listen more respectfully to God speaking in them by honoring the noblest traditions of each science. The knowledge and insight gained by a dialogue between these areas of God’s truth comes from the mutual highlighting of areas of human experience produced,,in turn, by both theology and psychology. Each science, in its own way, provides an increased awareness, an illumination and unraveling of the human experience, in which God speaks and responds to his precious creation, leading especially to personal growth within a family or community setting.

~0Harnan, M.S.C., Nicholas, "Who Fears Psychotherapy," Doctrine and Ltfe. No. 78, Nov. 1980. pp. 142-148. t~Kane. Thomas A., "An Affirming Heart," With A Human Heart. E. J. Cuskelley. M.S.C,~ ed., Kensington, Australia, Chevalier Press, 1981, pp. 145-166. The Integration of Faith and Justice: Spiritual Renewal for Our Times

Max Oliva, S.J.

Author of two earlier articles towards formulating a spirituality fo,r social activists, Father Oliva is in his second year of ~free-lance" ministry, giving talks, workshops and, more recently, eight-day retreats to facilitate the integration bf faith and justice. He is also National Coordinator of Companions for Justice, a program for his fellow-Jesuits. He resides at The Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley; 1735 LeRoy Ave.; Berkeley, CA 94709.

~have been engaged in what might be called, "free-lance" ministry since August of 1980. Thi~ ministry has as its focus the integration of faith and justice and it has put me into close personal contact with a variety of people and organizations, both lay and religious, youth and adults. More and more people, I find, are seriously reflecting on the iss’ues of the world in light of their faith. In this article I want to shar~ with you; the reader, some reflections on this modern call to holiness, to be Christian in our world: the integration of our faith with actions for peace and justice.

The Call Renewal is a term we have become accustomed to hearing and reading about since the days of the Second Vatican Council when the Holy Spirit breathed fresh winds into the Church. Many significant changes have taken place since Vatican II: a renewed emphasis on community, an increased participation of the laity in the ministries of the Church, Mass in the vernacular, a greater understanding and appreciation of the place of the Scriptures in one’s life, growth in ecumenism, a deeper appreciation of the importance of human collaboration with God in building the kingdom, and a growing spirit of collegiality through Bishops’ Synods in advising the pope. Renewal, like conversion, is ongoing. New times, new understandings of the world and of human nature call us to a kind of awareness and 273 274/ Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

renewal that perhaps.even a short time before we scarcely noticed. Such is the case with the faith that does justice. ~ ~ The call to integrate faith and justice is coming to us from a variety of sources.

Church Teaching We have a rich heritage of social teachings in the Roman Catholic Church. The reader may be familiar with the modern social encyclicals, beginning with "On the Condition of Labor" (published in 1891 by Pope Leo XIll), though actually the early Fathers--like Basil the Great, Clement of Alexandria, John Chrysostom, and St. Augustine--also spoke eloquently of the needs of the materially poor and the responsibility of the non-poor to share their goods. Central to every church document on social morality is the dignity of the human person. To quote Pope John XXIII in his 1963 encyclical, "Peace on Earth": Any human society, if it is to be well-ordered and productive, must lay down as a foundation this principle, namely, that every human being is a person, that is. his nature is endowed with intelligence and free will. Indeed, precisely because he is a person he has rights and obligations flowing directly and simultaneously from his very nature. And as these rights and obligations are universal and inviolable so they cannot in any way be surrendered (#’9). As Christians we belleve tha.t human nature has been raised to a new dignity by the Incarnation of Jesus. As the bishops wrote at the Second Vatican Council, in the document "Church in the Modern World": ’~ He who is "the image of the invisible God" (Col 1:15). is himself the perfect person. To the children of Adam and Eve he restores the divine likeness which had been disfigured from the first sin onward. Since human nature, as he assumed it, was not annulled, by that very fact it has been raised up to a divine dignity in our respect too. For by his incarnation, the Son of God has united himself in some f~shion with every person. He worked with tiuman hands, he thought with a human mind, acted by human choice, and loved with a human l~eart (#22). In the 1971 Synod, "Justice in the° World," the bishgps recognized that many of the fo~rce.s that act to dehumanize people are structural in nature. They point out how economic injustices, for .example, keep people from attaining their basic human and civil rights. Unless combated and overcome by social and political action, the influence of the new industrial and technological order favors the concentration of wealth, power and decision- making in the hands of a small public or private controlling group. the bishfps also acknOwledge "the objective obstacles whiizh social structures place in the way of onversion of hearts, or even of the realization df the ideal of charity." " ’ However, it is in this often quoted statement of".lusti~e in’~he World" that the call to integrate faith and justice is rfiost clearly heard: Action on behalf of justice~and participation in the transformation of the world fully appear to us as a constitutive (emphasis added) dimension of the preaching of the Gospel, or, in other words, of the Church’s mission for the redemption of the human race and its liberation from every,oppressiv~ ~ituation. ~ 7he Integration of Faith and Justice/~275

The word constitutive, as Fr. Bryan Hehir explains, means that work forjugtice is essential to the Church, pertaining to its innermost nature and mission. The constitutive tasks of the Church, he says, traditionally have been understood as .the celebration of the sacraments and the preaching of the Gospel. In our day the teaching authority of the Church through the Synod has expanded this vital category of constitutive tasks to include the ministry for justice. Constitutiv~ takes the mission of justice out of the hands of a few "specialists" and places it in the heart of each Christian. it is what living our faith in the modern world means. Pope Paul VI, in his Apostolic Letter "A Call to Action," written just prior to the Synod, called on all Christians to examine themseiyes to see what they, have done up to now and wha’t they ought to do to act for justice and peace. He wrote: "It is not enough to recall principles, state intentions, point to crying injustices and utter prophe~tic denunciations; these words will lack real weight unless they are accompanied for each individuai by a livelier awareness of personal responsibility and by effectix~e, action." The Scriptures Secondly, the call to integrate .our faith with actions for peace and justice comes to us from the Scriptu~-es. The Old Testament account in Exodus of Yah- weh liberating his people from enslavement by ~the Egyptians finds its echo in modern liberation movements that seek to free oppressed peoples from economic and political constraints. One sees these movements in the United States in various ethnic and racial groups as well as among women and in the gay community. Elsewhere, the Theology oL~Liberation which takes as its starting point human b~eings in their concrete historical situations has as its goal the freedom of .the~ people from both interior and exterior oppression. Latin America and the Philip- pines are most notable for utilizing this kind of theology, .but its principles of understanding the world as capable of change, the existence of social as well as P, ersonal sin, and that G~od is a God of 01iberation are found in many Third World countries. In the Old Test~ament the covenant is central. John Donahue, S~J. describes the biblical idea of justice as fidelity io the demands of a relationship: to live is to,~be united with others either by bond of family or by covenant relationship. When Israel forgets the covenant, Yahweh sends the prophets, espec.ially Amos, Isaiah and Jeremiah, to summon he{ bac~k to the relationship. The prophets proclaim to the~people (and to us) that their fidelity to the covenant Lord must be manifest in concern for the poor and the oppressed. I hate, I spurn your feasts. I take no pleasure in your solemnities. If you would offer me holocausts, then let justice surge like water, and goodness like an unfailing stream. (Am 5:21.

Furth.er,,the prophets affirm Yahweh’s concern for the poor and show, as John Donahue points out, that faith in God involves the doing of justice. In fact, the kn0wi0g of God--intimate knowledge and p~ersonal commitment--is equated 276/ Review for Religious, March-April. 1982 with the doing of justice. , In the following passage Jeremiah reproaches the King Jehoiakim for his lack of justice: Woe to him who builds his house on wrong, his terraces on injustice: who works his neighbor without pay, and gives him no wages~... Did not your father eat and drink? He did what was right and just, and it went well with him. Because he dispensed justice to the weak and the poor, it went well with him. Is this not true knowledge of me? says the Lord (Jr 22:13, 15, 16). The knowing of Yahweh is taking the cause of thi~ poor and the needy. There is no division, no dichotomy between faith and the doing of justice. Isaiah continues the liturgical theme of Amos quoted above when he talks to the people about their way of fasting:

Is this the manner of fasting I wish, of keeping a day of penzance: That a man bow his head like a reed. and lie in sackcloth and ashes? Do you call this a fast. a day acceptable to the Lord? This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing tho~e bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke: setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke: sharing your bread with the hungry: sheltering the oppressed and the homeless: clothing the naked when you see them. and not turning your back on your own (Is 58:5-7). The model for our compassion is the Compassionate One, Yahweh. Just as God freed the defenseless Israelites from the hands of their oppressors, we are encouraged to come to the aid of those in distress, And, like the prophets, we are called not only to speak on behalf of Yahweh to unjust persons and structures but also to speak, as Pope John Paul II has often said, on behalf of those who have no voice. In the New Testament our faith is in the person of Jesus. He is the justice of the Father, ’the revelation of the Father’s justice. To know Jesus is to know the Father. To be a Christian means believing in Jesus as the Son of God. Being a Christian involveS imitation of Jesus, walking in his footsteps, "putting on his mind and his heart. ’~ It means being like him in our world, being like him in our time. It is well to spend some time contemplating Jesus and some of his values that we may be as true to him as possible, true to his call. He valued human nature so much that he became human. ’By means of the Incarnation, Jesus has raised our nature to a new dignity. In the light of divinely revealed truth we know that each person is redeemed by the blood of Jesus and is thus by grace a child and friend of God and an heir of eternal~glory. When we look at the issues that plague our world, issues like world hunger, the arms race, inflation, and une~aployment, we need to ask ourselves: What is being said here about the dignity.of people? Is it being built up or torn d6wn? Jesus proclaimed one Father of us all and prayed for unity among all. "l pray that all may be one as you, Father, are in me, and I in you"On 17:21). The bishops at Vatican 11 said it this way:

God. who has loving concern for everyone, has willed that all people should constitute family and treat one another in a spirit of brotherhood and sisterhood (GS. #24). This unity involves one human, global family composed of different races, The Integration of Faith and Justice / 277 cultures, languages and customs. The value of unity is what lies behind the modern call to solidarity, especially with the poor and the forgotten. As we look at the world around us, in what ways does the human family need to be united? Where do the bonds need to be healed, reconciled, strengthened? Jesus gave us a new commandment: "Love one another. Such as my love has been for you, so must your love be for one another" (Jn 13:34)Y,This" command takes us beyond the Old Testament covenant law, for love is the fulfillment of the law. However, fidelity to the demands of a relationship continues, this time with the person of Jesus. In the 1971 Synod, "Justice in the World," the bishops spoke of the intimate connection between love and justice. Christian love o1" neighbor and justice cannot be separated. For love implies an absolute demand for justice, namely a recognition of the dignity and rights of one’s neighbor. Because everyone is truly a visible image of the invisible God and a brother or sister of Christ. the Christian finds in every man and woman God himself and God’s absolute demand for justice and love. ~ At the Second Vatican Council, in the document "Church in the Modern World," we read that a special obligatioH binds" us’to make ourselvesqhe neighbor of absolutely every person and of actively helping each when he or she comes across our path (#27). Jesus was a living model of all that he taught. :He reached out in a special’way to those who were ~onsidered marginal, those whom we might term "unproduc- tiv’e": lepers, cripples, the deformed, the blind, the possessed. He told the messengers sent by John the Baptist while John was in prison: Go back and report to John what you hear and see: the blind recover their sight, cripples walk, lepers are cure~d, the d~af hear. dead people are raised to life and the poor have the good news preached to them (Mt I 1:4,5). He challenges us to do the same in these famous words from St. Matthew’s Gospel: Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you or see you thirsty and give you drink? When did we welcome you away from home or clothe you in your nakedness? When did we visit you when you were ill or in prison? I assure you, as often as you did it for one of my least brothers, you did it for me (Mt 25:37-40). To take up the cause of the poor is to take up Christ’s own cause. This is what is behind the phrase "preferential option for the poor." As the Latin American bishops wrote, in their 1979 meeting in Puebla, Mexico: Service of the poor is the privileged, non-exclusive means of our following Christ (#1141). Jesus’ option for the poor was preferential without being exclusive, a partiality consciously chosen in order to mediate a universality (#1134-1165). Pope John Paul 11 echoes these words in a talk he gave in the Philippines in February, 1980: 27~i / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

The Church proclaims her p{eference for the poor within the totality of her mission of evangelization that is direcled to all people so that all may come to know Christ and find in the love of Grid and of neighbor their highest fulfillment, The Gospel is addressed to every human being, but in it there is a predilection for the poor, because it is the poor person who suffers from injustice and neglect. Preferential option for the poor involves seeing life and measuring institutions whether they are jus~ or not. pro~ective~of human dignity or. not--through the eyes of the oppressed. It is making the situation of the~ oppressed one’s own. To have a preferential love for the poor. for it is in reality love that is b,eing written about here. one must allow oneself to be evangelized by those who are considered marginal. Bishop James Lyke describes well how the materially poor can evangelize us. First. the poor can open our eyes to the needs, the injustices they suffer and to the sinftil stru~:ture~ and system,s which oppress’them. Second. they communicate to us a sense of ur~gency and help us to understand the causes of their anger. Third. the poor call us to a greater faithfulness to the Gospel:,to a deeper spirit of sparing and sharing, generosity, hospitality, service, a greater spirit of simplicity. Fourth. the poor call us to reexamine our life-style. Does our life-style bear witness to the Gospel? F[fih, the l~oor chailenge us to a theology and spiritua!- ity of thee total Gospel and the total Church. Whether concerning doctrine or morality, the poor raise our minds and hearts to the social dimensions of the Christian message--they tell us t.hat we are not saved as individuals but as a" people and that all doctrine is s~cial doctrine. Thus. the poor assure us that we frill always keep in balance and proper per~spective those issues commonly (but mistakenly) classified under "individual m~orality" with questions frequently refe.rred to as "social issues." The poor are. m Leonardo Boff’s wo~ds. "God’s sacrament of self communication." They mediate an experience of God. In them we mee~t the Christ of the Gospels in a new way and. paradoxically, are ourselves liberated from our own blindness of prejudice and racism. In addition to having a preferential love for the poor. Jesus stands in the tradition of the prophets as one who challenged those who mis.treated the poor. In the fourth of six "woes," in which he attacked the teachings of the scribes and pharisees, Jesus objects to the interest they show in trivia while they ignore the more important commandments. Woe to you scribes and pharisees, you frauds! You pay tithes on mint and herbs and seeds while neglecting the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and good faith. It is these you should have practiced, without neglecting the others (Mr 23:23). Jesus’ stance is what the bishops termed at Puebla "a prophetic option for the poor": thel proclamation 9f love and justice on behalf of the poor and oppressed. Whereas the preferential option for the poor has a~s i.ts objective to liberate the poor from their material and spiritual poverty, the prophetic option has as its goal to awaken consciences so that all people might make a real commitment to fight for justice and for the construction of a free and just society. The Integration of Faith and Justice / 279

Jesus was a peacemaker. He reconciled all people to the Father through the cross?He came to bring the good news of peace and calls us to have a high regard for peace. "Blessed are the peacemakers; they shall be called children of God" (Mt 5:9)~ Jean Vanier gives us a contemporary version of this Beatitude: "Blessed are you because at all times and at every moment you want to be an instrument of peace; seeking unity, understanding, and reconciliation above all things." .Perhaps the strongest modern statements for peace and an end to war come from the pen ofPope’John XXII1, in his encyclical "Peace on Earth," published in 1963. He laments the enormous stocks of armaments that exist in the more economically developed countries and the fear that these create in people. He writes: Justice. then. right reason and consideration for human dignity and life urgently demand that the arms race should cease: that the stockpiles which;exist in various countries should be reduced equally and simultaneously by the parties concerned: that nuclear weapons should be banned: and finally that all come to an agreement on a fitting program of disarmament. employing mutual and effective controls (#112). The fundamental principle must be that the true and solid peace of nations consists not in equality of arms but in mutual trust alone (#113). Bishop Thomas Gumbleton said in a recent interview: "As a public policy in which we [Americans] participate, the nuclear arms race is a structured social injustice, a sin. This policy is an act of aggression against the poor [emphasis added], even if the weapons are never used. More than four hundred billion dollars a year is spent on arms. What would this money mean in relieving the sufferings of the poor?" And former Chancdloi" bf West Germany Willy Brandt points out thai history has taught us that though wars produce hunger we are less aware that mass poverty can lead to war or end in chaos. While hunger rules, peace cannot prevail. Morally it makes no difference whether a human being is killed in war or is condemned to starve to death because of the indifference of others, These then are some of the values of Jesus: human dignity, the unity of the human family, love as the new commandment, the intimate connection between love and justice, a preferential love for the materially poor, a prop, hetic option for the rights of the oppressed, the role of peacemaker. Each value calls us to a greater awareness, a deeper conversion and a stronger commitment to be Christ in the world.

The Cry of the Poor Thirdly, the call to integrate faith and justice comes to us in the cries of the poor: in their anguish and distress, in their hopes and dreams for a better life. God speaks to us in the eyes and the hearts of the poor, inviting us to work against forces and change people that dehumanize others. The Campaign for Human Develol~ment of the United States Catholic Con- 211~1 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 ference defines poverty as: a condition of powerlessness which prevents the human development of any person or groups of persons. That powerlessness can be so.cio-economic--little power over the physical environment to provide for the basic needs of food, clothing, shelter or medical needs; psychological--lack of self-esteem or self-worth created by ~how one is viewed in the larger society; spiritual--an inability to cope with life, a loss of hope that may drive one to drugs or aicohol~ One develops humanly when he or she has the personal ability to: I) identify and select possible alternatives intheir life; and 2) effect necessary changes in those conditions or structures which block their human development. The poor are: - the peasants being killed in El Salvador for wanting a better life for themselves and their families; - the. over two hundred fifty thousand destitute who live on the sidewalks in Calcutta, eking out a meager existence; - the young m~:n in our cohntry’s inner-cities who spend their days fixing up cars in their neighborhood because they are unable to find work in industry; - the elderly who live on fixed incomes unable to meet the rising cost of inflation and who are especially hard-hit by rises in the cost of food and energy; - the refugees in Somalia and Cambodia and Hong Kong and . . .; - Native Americans who are continually forced to struggle to keep what little land they have from developers, both business and government; - single parent mothers in our urban centers who are forced to be away from their children all day as they work to be able to feed them. The World Bank estimates that more than one billion people, one quarter of the human race, suffer from chronic undernutrition. Four hundred million of them are threatened by starvation each year. In the United States, the poor may number upward to forty million. Consider these words of Mother Teresa: "We should recognize the presence of the poor Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor." What is God saying to us here about sparing and sharing, about acting for justice, about change of heart?

Signs of the Times ~; The fourth source that summons us to integrate our faith with actions for justice and peace is the "Signs of the Times." The phrase, "signs of the times," was first used in modern times by Pope John XXIll in the encyclical "Peace on Earth." It refers to the concrete issues and events of the day--economic, political, social, cultural, religious--arid the human response to these issues and events. In the words of Vatican II: The Church has always had the duty of scrutin,i,,ging the signs of the times and of interpreting them in the light of the Gospel. The Integration of Faith and Justice

The people of God... labors to decipher authentic signs of God’s presence and purpose in the happeoings, needs, and desires in which this People has a part along with other men and women of our age. For faith throws a new light on everything (emphasis added), manifests God’s design for our total vocation, and thus directs the mind to solutions which are fully human (GS, #4 and I1). Andat the 1971 Synod, "Justice in the World," the bishops wrote: Scrutinizing the signs of the times and seeking to detect the meaning of emerging history, we have listened to the Word of God that we might be converted (emphasis added) to the fulfilling of the divine plan for the salvation of the world.

God reveals himself to us in the signs of the times. They are locations of his Revelation, his self-disclosure; places, moments in which he calls us to conversion and commitment. Jesus spoke of signs when he addressed the crowds in these words: "When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say immediately that rain is coming--and so it does. When the wind blows from the south, you say it is going to be hot--and so it is. You hypocrites! If you can interpret the portents of earth and sky, why can you not interpret the present time? Tell me, why do you not judge for yourselves what is just?" (Lk 12:54-57). We have already looked at some of the economic and political signs of the times in this article. Signs of the times also refers to the human response to these issues and events. We are witnessing in our time a tremendous increase in the number of organizations which are taking seriously the faith that does justice.

A. Resources for Justice One thinks immediately of such well-known organizations as Amnesty International, Catholic Relief Services, Common Cause and so forth. Within the United States there are a variety of groups concerned with many different issues: banking in South Africa, sending arms to El Salvador, racism here at home, women’s rights, domestic and international legislation, undocumented workers in the United States, gay people’s rights, hunger at home and in the world, and so on. Public interest groups such :as the Network lobbying effort, Bread for the World, Center for Science in the Public Interest, National Impact, and Coali- tion for a New Foreign and Military Policy have seen their founding in the last fifteen years. There are very credible resource centers which publish materials for educators and other interested people: Center of Concern in Washington, D.C., The Institute for Peace and Justice in St. Louis, the Mexican-American Cultural Center in San Antonio, and the Institute for Food and Development Policy in San Francisco to name a few. One can follow a definite course of study in justice and peace. At Manhattan College in New York, for example, there is a Master’s Degree program in Reli- gious Studies with a concentration in social justice and peace. The Maryknoll School of Theology, also in New York, is now offering a one-year plus two 21t9 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 summers Institute for Justice and Peace that is a Master’s Degree. In addition, many seminaries and theologates offer courses in the social teaching of the Church, liberation theology and human rights. In addition to this proliferation of centers and organizations, there are many excellent books being written about the faith that does justice. Maryknoll’s Orbis Publishing Company and Paulist Press consistently publish such resource materials. Magazines such as Maryknoll, Sojourners and Salt, audio-visual materials and seminars add to the array of consciousness-raising materials. As we read about this litany of resources, what do they say to us of hope, of people of good will, of the Holy Spirit present !n our midst? Are not these "signs of the times" indications of God’s call being heard and acted upon? B. Renewal among Religious It was Pope Paul V1 who, in his first encyclical "Ecclesiam Suam, (August 1964), called for a renewal of Christian witness within the Church. He asked for an "enlightening of the Church’s prophetic consciousness" so as to "offer the world her message of brotherhood and salvation." Eleven years later in his apostolic exhortation "On Evangelization in, the Modern World," he continued this call for renewal. In addition to these general statements addressed to the whole Church, Pope Paul VI challenged men and religious to be at the forefront of prophetic renewal. He wrote in 1975: You hear ris!ng up, more pressing than ever, from their personal distress and coilective misery, ’the cry of the poor.’ Was it not in order to respond to their appeal as God’s privileged ones that Christ came, even going so far as to identify himself with them? In a world experiencing the full flood of development this persistence of poverty-stricken masses and individuals constitutes a pressing call for a ’conversion of minds and attitudes" especially for you who follow Christ more closely in this earthly condition of self-emptying. It is a call to love (# 17). Wayne Hellmann, O.F.M., Conv., explains how response to the "cry of the poor" is at the heart of each of the three religious vows. Commitment to chastity lies in opening our ears to the cry of the poor and in letting that cry find an echo in the hearts of those .who make this commitment; the Vow of Poverty obliges all religious to form the vanguard of identity with those who beg ~by the wayside, because evangelical poverty.is a call to love; fidelity to the cry of the poor inspires the profession of obedience, because obedience is the "firmer commitment to the ministry of the Church and of one’s brethren." Today this commitment is commitment to justice! In my experience this call to religious has been heard, In their process of renewal, following on the Second Vatican Councill many religious congregations are studying the charism of their founders in order to understand that charism in light of present realities. In my own religious order,-the Society of Jesus, it was at our Thirty-Second General’ Congregation, held in Rome in 1975, that this renewal saw its clearest expression. "The mission of the Society of Jesus today is the service of faith, of which the promotion of justice is an absolute requirement" (Our Mission Today The Integration of Faith and Justice / 21t3

#2). "What is it to be a companion of Jesus today? It is to engage, under the standard of the cross, in the crucial struggle of our time: the struggle for faith and that struggle for justice which it includes" (Jesuit~ Today #2). To insure that every Jesuit heard this call as speaking to him personally, the delegates wrote: Moreover. the service of faith and the promotion of justice cannot be for us simply one ministry among others. It must be the integrating factor (emphasis added) of all our ministries: andnot only of our ministries but of our inner life as individuals, as communities, and as a worldwide brotherhood (Jesuits Today #9). The Christian Brothers have reinterpreted their original fourth vow, of gratuitous service, to the vow to serve the poor through education, and are about the process of seeing how to implement this in their schools throughout the world. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet began a group process for their entire congregation, last year, called, "Reflections Toward Justice." One goal of the process is to study "how our heritage of aneantissement [self-emptying] from Father Medaille [their founder] and its contemporary expression in a ttieology of relinquishment can assist our understanding of the Church’s prophetic mission in promoting socio-economic justice." Worhen religious are leadi~ng the way in this renewal. When one checks the stock proxy coalitions (one way to exercise a pyophetic role) which call business corporations to issues of human dignity and justice, it is the women’s congregations that stand out. And women’s communities seem to be better able to issue corporate statements for justice and peace than men’s communities. The litany of religious congregations engaged in this renewal process continues to grow, reports the Union of Superiors General in Rome. In its 1980 Report which attempted to evaluate the involvement of religious in general in the promotion of justice and peace, the USG noted: In the Generalates: Following the 1971 Synod, many congregations took social justice as a theme for their general chapters. A,s generalates became more involved, they gave official approval and encouragement to a movement already in existence. Several generalates established departments for the promotion of justice and peace in and through their communities. Although generalates concentrated on universal issues, they also maintained a definite com.mitment to the promotion of justice in Rome itself. Beyond the Generalates: An increasing number of religious engaged in full-time promotion of social justice; an increasing participation of religious in national, regional and diocesan offices of justice and peace; the setting up of centers in collaboration with other religious for the promotion of justice and peace (there is a national convergence of justice and peace centers in the United States that now numbers eighty-eight groups); a greater awareness of justice and peace issues, and an integration of this awareness in the apostoli~ commitments of the congregation. What these religious and their lay counterparts represent is a worldwide "Sign of the Times": a willingness to be converted by the Spirit to engage in the primary effort of our times for the salvation of the world, the commitment to justice and peace. 2~14 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

In summary, then, renewal for the Church in the 1980’s and 1990’s is the integration of faith and justice. This call from God is coming to us through a variety of sources. We have looked at four of these sources: the teaching of the Church, the Sacred Scriptures, the cries of the poor, and the signs of the times. Conclusion In stating that the integration of faith and justice is spiritual renewal for our time it is important to note that it is not a matter of"adding on" new things to do, though one’s priorities may undergo a change. The integration is a new vision, a new perspective, a reexamination of values and long-held beliefs. The process involves the whole person, our inner lives, our families and communities, our ministry a.nd professional life, our life-style. One may decide to join an organiza- tion like Bread for the World or volunteer for community service in one’s parish and these are certainly worthwhile activities. However, integration goes much deeper than extra-curricular actions. We may need to ask ourselves, how am I incorporating Gospel values of justice and peace into the way 1 raise my children, into my profession as teacher or administrator, as one who works in industry or in the medical profession, into my decisions to buy this or that new appliance, and so forth. In other words, there are many ways to act for justice and peace. Not all are inclined to join a picket line or write letters to congresspersons. Gene Sharp, in his book "The Politics of Nonviolent Action," lists one hundred ninety-four methods of non-violent protest and persuasion, everything from formal statements and actions by consumers to refusal to pay taxes and civil disobedience. The problem is not finding things to do, it’s allowing the Spirit to work its ongoing conversion of values and vision within us. We all experience resistances to change, to integrate justice and peace. It is important to acknowledge these obstacles and to view them not as "dead ends," forever paralyzing us, be they fear, insecurity, guilt, feelings of powerlessness, cynicism, or debilitating anger, but to see them as "avenues of conversion" and to bring them to God for healing, for liberation. Feelings of powerlessness, for example, can lead to a deeper dependence on God’s power. Facing one’s fears in a positive way can be a real source of personal growth. We may need God’s liberating grace to free us to be able to face our fears. Feelings of helplessness and isolation can draw us to a greater sense of community and collaboration with other interested people. There is another important reason to acknowledge one’s resistances. One of the best kept secrets of the twentieth century is the existence of the devil. Evil is not only present in ttie injustices and divisions of the world--in unjust structures and unloving acts of people--it is also present in the midst of people of good will, playing on our fears and insecurities, on our feelings of powerlessness, trying to get us either to retreat from our commitment to build a more just and peaceful world or not to begin in the first place. The devil seeks to deceive us, to discourage us, and to make us doubt the efficacy of our actions. Rather than be discouraged by this, it is important to keep in mind that we are people of the Resurrection. We The Integration of Faith and Justice / 2115 have access to "the power flowing from the Resurrection." We have the presence of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit, gifts of courage, wisdom, hope and joy. I have found the following passage from St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians especially helpful. Put on the armor of God so that you may stand firm against the tactics of the devil. Our battle is not againsl human forces but against the principalities and powers, the rulers of this world of darkness, the evil spirits in regions above. You must put on the armor of God if you are to resist on the evil day" do all that your duty requires, and hold your ground. Stand fast. with the truth as the belt around your waist, justice as your breastplate, and zeal to propagate the Gospel of peace as your footgear. In all circumstances hold faith up before you as your shield: it will help you extinguish the fiery d~irts of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit, the word of God. At every opportunity pray in the Spirit using prayers and petitions of every sort (6:11-18). In the ongoing integration process of one’s faith with actions for justice and peace, it is helpful to be attentive to the "signs of hope" around one. In one’s personal life this may take the form of rejoicing in small victories. In our relationships with others--friends and fellow workers--we discover support and encouragement. There are people around us and some who we read about in the newspaper or in magazines who live what they preach, who give of themselves generously, often at some risk, who can be an inspiration to us. There are hopeful events occurring in the world each day such as, the overwhelming response of concerned citizens to stop our government from sending arms and military advi- sors to El Salvador and the outstanding generosity of people who have given not only a donation but their very selves in volunteer service to the refugees in Cam- bodia. Finally, we need to be aware of how we are signs of hope to others as we face our fears in faith and trust-and persevere in good works. The integration that we have been considering in this article is very much a faith experience. We encounter God in new ways--in new situations and different cultures~, in our vulnerability as we face events and issues for which we haven’t all the answers, and in a deeper appreciation that what we are about in the faith that does justice, is the establishment of the kingdom. The Changing Role and Image of Brothers in Clerical Institutes

David F. O’Connor, S.T.

Father O’Connor is Chairman of the Department of Church Law at the Washington Theological Union and is a member of the Religious Affairs Committee of the Canon Law Society of America. He resides at Holy Trinity Mission Seminary: 9001 New Hampshire Avenue; Silver Spring, MD 20903.

II religious communities of women and men have been going through many years of change and transformation since Vatican If. However, clerical institutes which have both priests and brothers as members are still in the process of ironing out issues peculiar to their way of life. Until the Special Chapters of renewal called for by the post-Conciliar documents, there were many distinctions and differences in the way of life of the two classes of members, despite common membership in their communities. Many of these have been resolved. However, not all institutes have come to the same solutions nor gone about it in the same manner, despite~ clear trends. Many factors influence developments. This article, therefore, intends to examine the changing life and role of brothers in clerical institutes. It is not concerned with lay institutes that have some clerical members, priests or deacons, although some of the issues may be similar. There are historical roots to the development of the lay brotherhood. A look at these and recent post-Conciliar developments may throw some light on the resolution of the issues that are still a source of tension for some.

Clerical and Lay Institutes The Code of Canon Law ( 1918) stated in canon 488, n. 4 that a clerical institute is one in which "...plerique sodales sacerdotio augentur; secus est laicalis." That is, an institute in which a notable part of the members are destined for the priesthood is a clerical institute; otherwise it is a lay institute. This definition included monastic institutes and those of friars. It marked a change from pre-Code practice and The Changing Role of the Brother the long tradition of the Church in which monastic orders were considered distinct from all other institutes, clerical or lay. It prescinded from the tradition of the friars not to recognize distinctions among their members. This definition of clerical institute was intended to be a broad one, stating the basic norms for determining whether or not an institute of men was clerical or lay. It did not exclude other distinctive characteristics of a clerical institute. Conse- quently, mere accidental changes in the number of clerics in an institute would not alter the character of the institute. Also, if the ends of the institute were sacerdotal, or if the government has been administered by the priest members, there has been no doubt that the Church was erecting or recognizing the institute as a clerical one, even though the lay members at one time or another were more numerous than the clerics. The latest draft of the new Code in 1980 states in canon 516, 2, that an institute is clerical "... ratione finis seu propositi a Fundatore intenti vel vi legitmae traditionis, sub moderamine est clericorum, exercitium ordinis sacri assumit et uti tale ab Ecclesiae auctoritate agnoscitur." That is, when by reason of its purpose.or because of the aim intended by the Founder, or by reason of legitima.te tradition, it is under the government of clerics, assumes the exercise of sacred orders, and is recognized by the authority of the Church as such, it is a clerical institute. The same canon 516, 3, defines a lay institute "... vi charismatisproprii exercitium ordinis sacri non includentis, munus habet proprium in Ecclesia a Fundatore vel vi legitimae traditionis definitum, et uti tale ab Ecclesia agnoscitur." That is, an institute is called lay when, by reason of its own charism, it does not include the exercise of sacred orders, has its bwn function in the Church, determine~l by the founder or through legitimate tradition, and is recognized by the Church as such. Moreover, canon 602 of the 1980 draft states that lay institutes of men or women fulfill their pastoral function in the Church by eng~.ging in the spiritual and corporal works of mercy through a variety of services to people. Also, it should be noted that while an institute may be a lafinstitute, the members are religious and not laity. They are sisters or brothers, not laywomen or laymen. Early Development of the Religious Life For the first five centuries ofChristianity, those who chose the ascetical life of the desert, the anchorite, the hermit, and even the first members of cenobitical communities that developed into the great monastic movements, were lay people, not clerics. The aim of this special Christian vocation was the development of sanctity through prayer and penance apart from the secular world. The life of the clergy was one of pastoral service to people and appeared to be out of harmony with a life spent apart in silence and solitude. In order that the sacramental needs of the monks might be met properly, the local bishop would send a priest to minister to them or the monks would go to the nearest church. But it was not the practice initially to ordain monks or let priests enter the monastery. Eventually, clerics were permitted to enter the monastic life and some of the monks were selected by the abbot and sent ~to the bishop to be ordained. This is 21~1~ / Review for Religious, March-ApriL 1982 evident from the Rule of St. Benedict, ever cognizant of the fact that the priest was not to be considered any more the monk than his nonordained brothers in the monastery. Indeed, it seems that a priest was only admitted to the monaster.y with some reluctance, after serious consideration was given to his ability to observe the rule: if any ordained priest asks to be received into the monastery, do not, agree too quickly. However, if he is fully persistent in his request~ he must recognize that he will have to observe the full discipline of the rule without any mitigation, knowing that it is written: Friend. what have you come for (Mt 25:50)? He should, however, be allowed to stand next to the abbot, to give blessings and to celebrate Mass, provided that the abbot bids him. Otherwise. he must recognize that he is subject to the discipline of the rtile, and not make exception for himself. but rather give everyone an example of humility. Whenever there is a question of an appointment or of any other business in the monastery, he takes the place that corresponds to the date of his entry into the community, and not that granted him out of respect for his priesthood (The Rule of St. Benedict, T. Fry. ed. [The Liturgical Press. Collegeville. MN 1980]. Chapter 60, pp. 273-274).

Gradual Clericalization of the Monastery In the sixth and seventh centuries there were developments that brought about the ordination of many monks. Monastic profession began to be considered the equivalent of minor orders and the bishops turned to the monasteries for priests to meet the growing pastoral and missionary needs of the Church. Local Church councils forbade bishops to ordain any monk without the permission of his abbot, but did not discourage them fi’om turning to the monastery as a source of priestly helpers. Pope Gregory the Great (590-604), a former monk himself, was ambival- ent about the ordination of monks because he desired to prdtect the monastery from encroachments from outside the cloister. Yet, he did not hesitate to send ordained monks to evangelize distant lands. Nor did he discourage bishops from enlisting priests from the monastery to undertake missionary labors. Hence, the very needs of the growing Church tended to bring about the practice of increasingly ordaining all qualified monks. Another influence on the monasteries was the development of the Canons Regular which brought a form of the monastic life to the clergy. They were priests who followed a rule of life. The Canons Regular professed sanctity and poverty, and their lives were dedicated to the praises of God through the choir obligation, as were the monks. However, they were essentially clergy arid engaged in priestly ministry by preaching, teaching, "administering the sacraments, and caring for the sick and the needy. They accepted the service of parishes and public oratories but strove to live some form of common life. A great number of p~’iests joined these orders of Canons Regular. Their life had a direct effect upon the life of the monks and added to the clericalization of monastic life. The Canons Regular were among the first religious to be fully involved in some form of clerical ministry by the very nature of their life. They would be followed in succeeding centuries by the mendicants, congregations and societies of pries.ts who would, in their respective times, assume the burden of meeting the missionary needs of the Church. Except for the lay congregations of brothers and sisters, The Changing Role of the Brother developing in the post-French Revolutionary period, the clericalization of men’s religious life was accomplished in the early middle ages. Even the monastic communities of men became predominantly clerical, in fact. This would remain the direction right up to the middle of the twentieth century, when in the renewal following Vatican II, the cloistered monasteries began to return to their earliest traditions.

Origin of the Lay Brotherhood or "Conversi" The monks in early Benedictine life were differentiated according to their entrance into the monastery. Those who were presented to the monastery at an early ageby their parents were called "the offered" or oblati. The other group was called "the converted" or conversi because they entered later in life and were considered to have been converted from a worldly way of life to the monastic life. When the monks began to undertake new work in the apostolate and in education, the oblati became synonymous with the educated and the lettered because of their long and painstaking education from a tender age in the monastery. The conversi, on the other hand, became identified with the uneducated and the unlettered because they entered the monastery later in life without the benefit of the education received by the young monks who were oblati. When the monasteries became wealthy and self-contained communities in feudal times, the peasants hired to do heavy farm work outside the monastery grounds were also called conversi because they did the same type of work as the lay brothers of previous generations. The monastic reforms of the eleventh and twelfth centuries, such as Citeaux, which made all Cistercian monasteries subject to one central government and became the first centralized order in the history of the Church, abolished the renting of monastic properties to tenants and mitigated the worst effects of feudal- ism on declining monastic life. The establishment of the conversi as lay brothers and as religious, in the strict sense, was essential to the. reform movement. While Citeaux included manual labor as Part of the life of all the monks, the very purpose of the conversi was to supplement whatever the choir monks could not do themselves. The conversi were selected from the working class, had their own postulancy, novitiate and habit, all differentfrom the choir monks. They were subordinated to the choir monks and a strict separation was maintained between the two classes. They had no voice in chapter and did not participate in the election of the abbot. They gave themselves to manual labor and helped provide the necessities of iife for the monastery. Among them were craftsmen, artisans, tailors, tanners and shoemakers. They served the monastery guests and staffed the kitchen. They were auxiliary monks who enabled the choir monks and clerics to observe the demands of an authentic medieval monastic life. The model of the conversi or lay brother was adopted and adapted by the Canons Regular, the Carthusians, the Dominicgns, and other orders. The function of the Dominican conversi was to relieve their clerical confreres of any tasks that became a hindrance to study and ministerial service (see Mulhern, P., The Early 290 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Dominican Laybrother [Dominican College, Washington, D.C., 1944], pp. 21-24 and 67-68). With the exception of the Friars Minor, the mendicants established a lay brotherhood subordinate to the clerical brothers, even though they were to be considered full members of the order. Orders of women also had conversae or extern sisters who lived a similar religious life. In some instances, conversi were also attached to monasteries of women religious. An Austere and Demanding Vocation Because of changing social and cultural conditions, what was appropriate in medieval monasteries began to be recognized as, indeed it was, a difficult and humble life to be embraced in the twentieth century. Dom David Knowles has written: It was thus a hard life of extreme simplicity, and presupposed the existence of a large class of men wholly illiterate. In England at the present day it is hard to reconstruct even in the imagination the social conditions of the twelfth century, but in the rural districts of south Germany and elsewhere in Europe lay brothers in great numbers may still be found living the same life of absolute simplicity. In the early twelfth century the appeal made by this vocation to the illiterate, who had for many centuries been neglected by monasticism, was immediate and widespread ( The Monastic Order in England. 2nd Edition. [Cambridge: At the University Press, 1966]. p. 215). In 191 I, the Sacred Congregation of Religious issued regulations concerning the acceptance, training and profession of conversi. While it was~ permitted to accept young men who had completed their seventeenth birthday to the postulancy, which was to be a minimum of two years, the novitiate was not to be entered before the age of twenty-one, The novitiate was to be for one or two years, after which simple vows were to be professed for no less than six years. Only with the completion of his thirtieth year could a lay brother make perpetual vows (see Codicis luris Canonici Fontes, 9 vols., [Romae, 1923-29], n. 4407). It was the recognition that the choice of such a humble vocation in religion should be made only by mature men, aware of the implications of their choice. In 1924, Pope Pius XI addressed religious, noting the demanding life of those who are lay brothers: We can not refrai~ here, dearly beloved sons. from exhortin~ you to reflect on what a grave duty you have of watching that the conversi, both during their novitiate and throughout their lives be furnished with spiritual helps they need to go forward and persevere, these helps being perhaps the greater in proportion to the lowliness of their status and the humble work they do ¯ . . (Acta Apostolicae Sedis. [Romae. Vol. XVI, 1924]. pp. 146-147).

From the Code of Canon Law to the !i Vatican Council (1918-1962) The 1918 Code of Canon Law did not deviate from the accepted role of the lay brother in religious institutes and gave regulations based on the traditional understanding that the conversi would be devoted principally to a life of manual labor, would be separated in their training and life from the other religious, and that they would enter without much education. Therefore, canons 539 and 540 required a postulancy of six months for conversi made under a tried and tested religious in The Changing Role of the Brother / 291 the novitiate or in a house of the institute where the discipline was well observed. Canon 588 stated that in religious institutes whose members are divided into two classes, the novitiate made for a person’s incorporation in one such group was not good for his membership in the other group. Canon 564 legislated that a separate place was to be assigned the conversi novices. Canon 565 demanded that the conversi should receive instructions in Christian doctrine once a week, besides the other requirements of the novitiate, and during the novitiate year "the conversi were to stay at home in the religious house and perform only such tasks of the lay brothers, always in a subordinate capacity, as will not occasion hindrance in the exercise prescribed for the novitiate." The assumption that the lay brothers would not be well educated in doctrine when they entered religious life is further indicated by the demands placed upon local superiors in canon 509 that "at least twice a month instruction in Christian doctrine be held for the conversi and domestic servants, adapted to their understanding .... Therefore, the whole tradition of the lay brother living a dedicated life of service, especially in the area of manual labor, in a secondary and auxiliary role in his community, was brought into the twentieth century and accepted as a viable form of life even by the religious living in the modern democratic societies of the west. Lay brothers were to be found in lay institutes as well as clerical institutes. The assumption was that these men responded to a personal vocation which demanded great humility and abnegation. Spiritual writers tended to urge them to model their lives after that of St. Joseph, serving their brothers in religion as Joseph did Jesus and Mary, exalting the dignity of manual labor. It was also assumed that men who chose this humble status in religion did so because they did not want, or possibly, could not succeed in, an academic or professional education that would prepare them for teaching or nursing or for priesthood. Either because they were older men, years removed from previous schooling, or because of a personal desire to serve in some non-academic apostolate, they chose not to join a lay institute of teaching or nursing brothers, but chose to enter a clerical institute or mission society. Typical of modern institutes is the description of the brother in the constitutions of an American community which received pontifical approbation in 1957:

The vocation of the brothers is to wait on the Lord, This they shall do by assisting in th~ sphere of temporalities and by engaging in missionary activities. They should pray for a spirit of faith and generous service, and strive.to realize the joy and privilege of working for God in the person of the priest and being associated with him in his labors and merits.

The constitutions regulated the life of the brothers in conformity with the Code and with the expected norms and practices of the Church. Emphasis was given to periods of instruction in prayer and in Christian doctrine. Times were set aside for days of recollection and periods of spiritual retreat. Therefore, both the general law of the Church and the particular law of religious institutes, with some adaptations, perpetuated the traditional role of the lay brother. His was the role of the 292 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 coadjutor, the associate, the assistant, the auxiliary. Office and positions of authority were not to be his. Education was, generally, limited to what would prepare him for whatever task the community so decided. It could involve great responsibility when it concerned the maintenance of buildings, the programming of com- puters, the administration of community funds, the direction of youth programs, and more. Depending upon the individuals involved and the particular community, many fraternal friendships developed between priests and brothers. This tended to manifest what was best in community life. It happened more frequently than not in the experience of American religious. However, the built-in distinctions, at times, were glaring between the two classes of members and there was ample room for abuses, uncharitableness, injustice and unnecessary pain. The structures were ready to be changed and brought into greater harmony with the lived experience of the religious where the value of each man was recognized and where both priest and brother served the community and the Church with dedication.

The I1 Vatican Council (1962-1965) and Post Conciliar Developments The 11 Vatican Council document, Perfectae caritatis, on the renewal of religious life, was issued’ October 28, 1965. In n. 15 of this decree, in the context of a treatment of community life and charity, men and women religious were urged to eliminate any inappropriate distinctions which existed in community life. The decree stated: "In order to strengthen the bond of brotherhood between the members of an institute, those who are called lay brothers, cooperators, or some such name should be associated more closely with the life and work of the community." Then the motu proprio, Ecclesiae sanctae, was issued by Pope Paul VI on August 6, 1966, implementing the Vatican II documents; In n. 27 of this document, it was stated that general chapters must study the manner "... in which religious who are called lay brothers, cooperators or any similar name, may, gradually, obtain a vote in specified community activities and in elections, and may even become eligible for certain offices. They will thus become more directly involved in the life and activities of the community and the priests will have greater freedom to perform those ministries which are reserved to them." Religious communities took this to heart and began with great enthusiasm to initiate changes in their institutional lives. In 1967, the general chapter of the Order of Friars Minor, while wishing to retain the clerical nature of the community, voted to regard all members as friars without distinction as to their lay or clerical status, thus insuring absolute equality in whatever pertained to. the religious life, including all offices and responsibilities within the order. The Minister General of the order submitted these recommendations of the chapter to the Sacred Congre- gation of Religious and Secular Institutes in early 1968. The SCRSI replied that the modifications were of the utmost importance since they dealt with the very nature of the order and that the definitive reply would be given only after study at the highest level (see O’Connor, J., The Canon Law Digest, Vol. VII, [Chicago, 1975], pp. 468-471). The Changing Role of the Brother

The Sacred Congregation decided that its response would apply to all clerical institutes and not just the Friars Minor. The SCRSI sought the advice of its own official consultors and the superiors general of clerical institutes. It then forwarded a complete dossier to all the cardinals, archbishops, bishops and superior generals who were the official members of the SCRSI. They met in a plenary session in October of 1969 and submitted their conclusions to Pope Paul VI the following month. Finally, on November 27, 1969 the decree Clericalia instituta was published. It stated: I. General Chapters of clerical religious institutes can decree that lay religious can be allowed to exercise purely administrative offices such as treasurer, bookkeeper, and others of that kind which do not have a direct relation to the ministry which is properly priestly. 2. The said chapters can likewise grant them active and passive voice regarding chapters on any level, elections and the handling of business matters which must be taken up in these chapters, according to the measure and conditions imposed by the very nature of things or as stipulated by the general chapter. 3. In addition, they can decree that, within the same limitations, nonclerical members can discharge the function of councilor on any level. 4. On the other hand, nonclerical members will not be able to assume the office of superior or of vicar, general, provincial or local. A "Delaration" of the SCRSI that followed the decree was circulated in April of 1970. It stated that the Sacred Congregation was not motivated by any considerations of excessive "clericalism," nor on any supposed principle that a priest member of a religious institute could never be subject to a lay religious in what pertains to the religious life. Neither, it stated, was any important role played by canon 118 of the Code of Canon Law, which demands clerical status for the exercise of ecclesiastical jurisdiction. While recognizing that both clerical and lay members of a community have equal rights and obligations, nevertheless, the document stated, a new element comes into the picture in clerical institutes. In such institutes, the role of a superior on any level involves in varying degrees the direction and supervision of the priestly ministry. Because of the particular obligations entailed by the administration of the sacraments, especially the celebration of the Eucharist, the official preaching of the word of God, and so forth, the priestly ministry calls for special competence and preparation, plus the particular ministerial grace which is one of the main fruits of the sacrament of Orders. The "Declaration" went On to state that "... for the priestly ministry the lay religious has neither the special preparation nor the particular ’social’ grace or charism demanded for priestly ministrations." It urged that it is not fair to view things as "discriminatory" unless the discussion starts with the false supposition that lay and clerical religioias are equal in all aspects of their religious life and apostolate, the priestly ministry included. Even the suggestions that a lay religious might be a superior as far as the religious life is concerned, while a priest could be charged with the special ministerial aspects of priestly life and activity is to concede implicitly, states the document, "... that the lay religious is not equipped for the direction of the ecclesiastical ministry .... " This seems to be the underlying reason why the Holy See is reluctant to make 294 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 sweeping concessions for clerical institutes which are concerned, by their very nature, with the sacramental ministry and the preaching of the Word, While granting indults in particular cases for lay religious to be superiors or vicars (see Canonical Documents on Consecrated Ltfe 1963-1976 [Ottawa~ Saint Paul Uni- versity, 1977], p, 442), Rome expects that the sacramental-pastoral-spiritual supervision of the clerical institute and its members, both priests and brothers, will remain under the direction of the ordained members. For the clerical institute is, essentially, sacerdotal in its life, ministry and purposes. Those who knowingly join a clerical institute, or any religious community, freely accept the consequences of membership in that institute which has been recognized and established by the Church. Therefore, a recent decision of the Pontifical Commission for the Revision of the Code of Canon Law, in the 1980 draft, may not be as important as it might first appear. The decision was to slightly alter canons 126 and 244 of the new Code by removing the phrases referring to jurisdiction "... in sacra ordine non innixa...’" so that jurisdiction can be given to lay persons. When a plenary session of the Commission met in Rome on October 20-29, 1981, this decision was upheld for the draft which will be presented to Pope John Paul 11 for acceptance and eventual promulgation. In the past, one of the reasons given for restricting the role of major supbriors and their vicars to clerics was that they are considered to be Ordinaries, that is, they enjoy personal ecclesiastical jurisdiction over members. However, the "Decla- ration" of the SCRSI in 1970 stated that this was not an important factor in not permitting lay religious in clerical institutes to be superiors. Yet, it does appear that it has been a consideration in the minds of some of those associated with the SCRSI, if one can accept the opinions of those who have been consulting with the Congregation in recent years on this very matter (see CMSM Information, December 14, 1979 [Conference of Major Superiors of Men, 3330 Massachusetts Ave., N. W., Washington, D. C.], p. 4). Therefore, the best that can be said about this matter is that the subject of jurisdiction will not be a consideration in the election or appointment of a religious as a major religious superior or a vicar, once the new Code goes into effect as the universal law of the Church.

Sweeping Changes for the Brother While all religious communities have been experiencing similar changes, especially the loss of members and fewer vocations entering during the past fifteen or twenty years, the role and image of the brother in clerical institutes have been going through a transformation. To begin with, almost without exception, the brothers enjoy active and passive voice for general and provincial chapters. All offices in the community are open to them, with the exception of that of major superiors and their vicars. Moreover, either in practice or by indult, brothers serve as local superiors or vicars. As a matter of course, they are counselors, treasurers and secretaries on the generalate, provincialate and local levels. Many brothers have continued their education, earning degrees in a variety of The Changing Role of the Brother / 295 fields. Retreats, workshops, and congregational commissions and committees are open to either priest or brother members in the community. The formation programs from the candidacy to final vows invariably are shared by those preparing for the priesthood or brotherhood and are adjusted only to meet the specific needs of particular groups. The day-to-day life of the members differs only according to the role or function of each man in the community. Obvious differences are built-in when the priest is engaged in specifically sacerdotal functions, such as the administration of the sacraments, the preaching apostolate, the liturgical celebra- tions and his roles on the parochial level. Different Models of the Brother Periods of change and transformation have their own dynamics. This may be reflected in the diverse ways some brothers appear to perceive themselves and their role. Many quite consciously have chosen to remain in a traditional role in which they have served their community long before the changes occurred. They serve, seemingly with great personal satisfaction and with obvious benefits for the community, in traditional positions as office-workers, maintenance men, supervisors of the kitchen, and similar roles. While opportunities exist to make changes, they remain comfortable in such traditional roles of service with no indications of a personal sense of inferiority or that they are being abused by choosing to do so. They quietly and prayerfully go about making their own important contribution to their community and are often a source of edification to everyone. They therefore, maintain a rather traditional image or model of the brotherhood in clerical institutes. Another phenomenon in a period of great change is seen in the number of brothers who have decided to study for the priesthood and seek ordination in their own community or in a diocese or another institute. Probably, there is not a Catholic seminary or divinity school in the United States that does not have brothers or former brothers preparing for ordination. Also, although still relatively few at this writing, other brothers are preparing for or have been ordained to the permanent diaconate. Moreover, besides those brothers who have chosen to be ordained, there is a ~ignificant number who appear to have opted for a "clerical" rather than a "lay" image. This is evident in their choice of clerical clothing and their selection of "diaconal" or quasisacramental ministries. While, as countless laywomen, laymen and women religious, they may be lectors at the liturgy or extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, or serve in hospitals and other institutions, the overall impression that they leave is that of a clergyman. They, therefore, have consciously or unconsciously chosen a "clerical" model for themselves. The third model of the new brotherhood is neither the "traditional" nor a "clerical" one. In this group are those brothers in clerical institutes who have’ benefited from the changed climate of the post-Vatican 11 years and undertaken studies which have earned them degrees to engage in teaching, counseling, nursing, social work and similar professions. They are considered by many to be in the forefront of the development of a new image or model of the brotherhood in 296 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 clerical communities. The image presented is that of the "professional" who makes his contribution to the Church and to his community alongside of the priest confrere. Only the passage of time will indicate what model or models of the brotherhood in clerical institutes will survive and become the norm. The "clerical" model appears to be a transitional one. It will pass from the scene because most brothers do not want to present an image that is not genuine and not a "lay" one. While the "professional" model has very evident benefits to recommend it, the "traditional" model may not only survive in some adapted and adjusted fashion, but may predominate. We may well see some type of melding between the "traditional" and the "professional" models, but much will depend upon how each institute faces the future and leaves room for continuing development. A Variety of Institutional Responses Not every institute has responded to the changing role of the brother in the same way. The responses are quite diverse. Firstly, most monastic institutes, especially the cloistered-contemplative communities, have been returning to their ancient traditions. They now make no distinction among their members. All of them are choir monks, wear the same color habit, have the same training, and live the same monastic life. No longer is ordination promised or inevitable for any monk. Only some monks will be ordained and that depends upon the needs of the monastery. Most monks will not be ordained. Secondly, as in the past, the resolution of tensions between priests and brothers in the same institute may be approached by administrative partition. That is, for the most part, the brothers constitute one or more provinces with their own apostolates and superiors. The priests are similarily structured. Both may share the same general administration and equally participate in the general chapter and the elections of the general officers of the community. But, for all practical purposes,~ they live their religious lives separately. Thirdly, there are those provinces or institutes which have yery few brothers and, intentionally, are not recruiting more. While they respect and honor the brothers who are among them, there seems to be the rarely spoken conviction that the.changing culture and changing Church have rendered their calling obsolete. Therefore, they are not accepting any new candidates and are going to let the brotherhood pass out of existence in their provinces or communities. The fourth approach appears to be that which most institutes are taking. That ¯ is, they are reassessing the criteria for acceptance into the institute and adjusting the training and education of brother candidates. Now, inevitably, they require a high school .education as the bare minimum. They expect the brothers to be able to undertake advanced studies so that they can prepare themselves to serve in a variety of ministries in the community and in the apostolate. One institute, not untypical, has recognized that equality of membership must be based on an essential equality in formal education..In other words, the formal preparation and education of the brother must parallel that of the members studying for ordination The Changing Role of the Brother / ~97

to the priesthood. The brother candidates will be expected to study theology and, where possible, acquire the appropriate degree, just as the priest candidate is expected to do. The manual of formation reads: We accept the fact that in the last two decades the Church and the Order have participated in profound cultural, psychological and theological shifts relative to our understanding of Church .... It is incongruous to allow any candidate to remain unfamiliar with sacred scripture, theology and other related disciplines. Just as the Provincial would not call a man to ordination who lacked a contemporary theological knowledge, so too it is unfair to profess solemnly a man without some exposure to theological education. Theology is no longer viewed simply as a ministerial tool. Theology, in fact, is a way of thinking, a way of speaking, a way of structuring our very lives. It would be sad to bring someone into our midst who is denied the ability and opportunity to understand his life in the Church and Order from an enlightened perspective. It would be unfair to ask a person to become part of the community ,without sharing with him those areas of theology we take for granted, and which are often part of our everyday lives and conversation. With these thoughts in mind, we recommend a Bachelor or Associate degree as a prerequisite for entrance into the novitiate. By exception, older men may be accepted with a craft, trade, or positive life experience equivalent to the academic degree. Furthermore, it seems advisable to continue every brother’s post-novitiate training and formation parallel with the training of our future ordained ministers.

Conclusion We have reviewed the history and development of the lay brotherhood, the conversi. It is evident that its roots are found in the practice of accepting unlettered and uneducated men into the religious life to serve in a secondary and totally auxiliary manner, especially in the area of manual labor. A few years ago, Dora David Knowles wrote: "There are some indications that we have reached another moment of destiny, when the "lay-brother" will vanish in a "classless" society, while the laici monachi (lay monks) return" (see op. cit., p. 755). There is every indication that this is what is actually happening. For while there is no intention of devaluat- ing the sacredness of manual labor (it will certainly remain part of the ongoing tradition of many communities), religious institutes will accept only candidates who can be trained and educated to serve the needs of the Church, and who can live happily and productively in community life. Men must be able to develop ¯ supportive fraternal relationships, share their faith, and reach out to serve the needs of the people of God. This presumes a maturity that has been tested by experience. It also presumes a general education that ’is basic for all the members of an institute, an education that will also be theological if one is to live in religious life today. Fraternity will be promoted by having the same essential criteria for the acceptance of any member into the community. The education and training of brothers in clerical institutes should parallel that of those members preparing for the priesthood. At the same time, there ought to be room for exceptions and for a variety of services and professions for which the brothers can be trained and educated. In this post-Vatican II Church, as the role and contributions of the laity are expanded, it is appropriate that the role of the "lay" brotherhood should also be in the process of adaptation and expansion. It is evident that a clerical institute is sacerdotal in its very life, ministry and 2~tll / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

purpose. Almost always predominantly consisting of priest members, the primary aim, direction and mission of a clerical institute are inextricably associated with that which priests do: administer the sacraments and preach the Word of God; Invariably, this involves such ministries as the assumption of parish and mission’ work. All of these things are directed toward the fulfillment of the very reasons why the institute was founded and why it is officially recognized by the Chu~’ch as a clerical institute. It is the "clerical" nature of the institute, therefore, that is the reason why certain positions are reserved to the ordained members. (Just as in lay institutes, because of their "lay" character, certain offices or positions may be reserved to the lay members and not open to clerical members.) However, the lay members of a clerical institute are no less members for that fact. Both the priest members and the brother members have theii" own distinct and special vocations to be lived faithfully as confreres in the same institutes. Although there can be no toleration of "clericalism," a derogatory term connoting exaggerated and undue privilege or status foreign to a genuinely priestly life, neither should that offensive label be given to that which is properly sacerdotal and clerical. For each member of the institute makes his own contribution to the community and is entitled to the respect that is due him as a brother in Christ. Therefore, it is hoped that the transformation and changes taking place in clerical institutes will help foster a greater sense of unity and mutual respect so that both classes of members, priests and brothers, can better reach out to serve others in the name of Jesus.

Pope John Paul II to Jesuit Superiors, February 27, 1982." As the Second Vatican Council explained. the Roman Pontiff also employs the de~aartments of the Roman Curia in ,the exercise of his service to the universal Church (cf. Christus Dominus, 9). This fact itself requires a loyal collaboration between the Society of Jesus and these departments. Because of the exigencies of your vows and the reality of my ministry it could not be otherwise .... On his part the Roman Pontiff offers you in the name of Chri~i. whose vicar he is, the full measure Of his grateful love for your collaboration with him personally, with the college of bishops and with the whole Roman Curia, which the Society of Jesus has been generously assisting in so many ways for years. Views News Previews

Summer Programs The College of Notre Dame of Maryland is offering an institute designed for sisters who are contemplating a change in apostolate. The institute, combining theology, psychology, spirituality, life-planning; and ~recreation will be held June 27 to July 24, under an experienced faculty to facilitate personal assessment and expansion of horizons. For brochure send a self-addressed business envelope to Sister Patricia McLaughlin; New Horizons: Personal and Apostolic; College of Notre Dame of Maryland; Baltimore, MD 21210. Boston’s Emmanuel College, through its Center for Educational and Pastoral Ministry, is offering two sessions this summer: June 2-18; June 21-July 30. It seeks to establish a learning community that strives for social justice through student- faculty interaction and the holistic study of human development, religion and society. Among the courses: Scripture and Ministry, Church as Prophetic Com- munity, Christian Ethics, Pastoral Care and Counseling. There are opportunities for full or part-time involvement during the summer or academic year. Contact: Claudia Blanchette, S.N.D.; 400 The Fenway; Boston, MA 02155. Emmanuel is also sponsoring an institute, Social Justice: a New Perspective. Pedagogy for the Non-Poor. Under the direction of Sr. Marie Augusta Neal, S.N.D., the institute will seek responses to the question: when the poor reach out to take what is rightfully theirs, what does the gospel mandate the non-poor to do? For further information, contact: Helen Morris; Division of Continuing Educa- tion; Emmanuel College; Boston, MA 02115. Burlington’s Trinity College is sponsoring its 17th annual Biblical Institute, June 20-25. Faculty and topics include: Donald Senior, "The Gospels and the Universal Mission of the Church"; David Stanley, "Call to Discipleship in the Marcan Gospel"; Bernhard Anderson, "The Old Testament and Christian Faith"; Marl- 299 3~11~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 anne Micks, "Parables and the Theology of Story." For details, write: Sister Miriam Ward; Trinity College; Burlington, VT 05401. Mundelein College has announced its 1982 summer program in Graduate Reli- gious Studies from June 21 "to July 30. The flexible curriculum offers six-week, three-week, and two-week courses in all areas. Special institutes, workshops and Hispanic courses are available. For further information, write: Graduate Religious Studies; Mundelein College; 6363 N. Sheridan Rd.; Chicago, IL 60660.

Retreats, Prayer Opportunities Abba House of Prayer (Albany, NY), now in its i lth year, offers opportunity for private or directed retreats, Daily Life Retreats, spiritual guidance, instruction in prayer and scripture. Men and women, lay and clerical are welcome for several days, weeks, months. The house is available all months of the year except August. Write: Sister Elizabeth Hoye; 647 Western Ave.; Albany, NY 12203. Help Wanted The Minneapolis-area Cenacle Retreat House and Conference Center is seeking a priest staff member for retreat and pastoral ministry. The position offers retreat work of all kinds, with a broad-based, diverse public. The work includes liturgical and sacramental priestly ministry, spiritual direction, preaching, training of lay directors. There are also opportunities for outside work, study. Write: Sr. Rose Mary Reid, r.c., Director, Search Committee; Cenacle Retreat House; 1221 Way- zata Blvd.; Wayzata, MN 55391. The Catholic Education Office of the Diocese of Pueblo (Colorado) is seeking qualified persons for two positions: -Catechetical Leader/Director of Religious Education: a person with a degree in Religious Education, Pastoral Theology or its equivalent; experience in administration; ability to communicate and work well with people. -Youth Minister: a person capable of directing the program, of recruiting and training adults; and of relating to youth. A background in Mexican-American culture and experience in rural ministry are recommended for both positions. Write: Director of Religious Education; Diocese of Pueblo; 1001 N. Grand Ave.; Pueblo, CO 81003, before April 30. Notre Dame de Lourdes (Swarthmore, PA) is seeking a religious man or woman for Principal of its elementary school with an enrollment of 180 pupils, beginning September, 1982. Contact: Fr. William Benonis; Notre Dame de Lourdes; Swarthmore, PA 19081. Publication The Canon Law Digest: Supplement, 1980 is now available ($6.00 plus shipping charges). Address: Canon Law Digest; Chicago Province of the Society of Jesus; St. Mary of the Lake Seminary; Mundelein, IL 60060. Questions and Answers

The following answers are given by Joseph F. Gallen, S.J.; SI. Joseph’s University; City Avenue at 54th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19131.

The general norm on the number of votes required by the proposed can. 76, 1) originally read: "...If, after the third ballot, there is an equal division of votes, the presiding officer may break the tie; if, however, he does not wish to do so, that person is elected who is older in age.~ After its Roman correction, the same number reads: "...after two ineffective ballots, a balloting is to be made between the two candidates who secured the larger number of votes but if there are more than two, on the two senior by age. If a parity remains, the senior by age is elected.~ Why is it not established on this limited and final ballot that the two candidates themselves shall not vote, as was the common practice in the four- ballot election, at least in lay institutes, for the general superior, provincial superior, the superior of a monastery of nuns, and the presidents of federations and confederations of nuns? The first reason for the omission cited by the questioner is that the four-ballot election now is from the proper law of institutes, even when inserted by a sacred congregation, not from the universal law of the Church. The candidates in such cases are either perfectly tied or very close in the number of votes received, at least ordinarily. This closeness is even more apt to remain in the fourth ballot. A majority of only one vote is consequently quite possible. Elections, to my basely inclined judgment, are one of the matters in which the moral sense can readily suffer an unconscious regression. They have an affinity to the period of a full moon. One of the two candidates may vote for himself or herself. (Even in moral regressions we must respect the equality of women.) This is a reason why the present canon law invalidates a vote for oneself. It is not an effective means. The vote and the invalidity are secret or an embarrassing process is required for its detection. The proposed canon law neither invalidates, prohibits 301 302 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 nor encourage~ a vote for oneself. Therefore, under this latter law, an election decided by a vote for oneself would be a valid °and licit election. In the present law and in the supposition that the only two receiving votes, A and B, obtained the same number of votes in the third ballot, 25-25 valid votes, supposing further that in the fourth ballot A hands in a blank vote or ballot but B votes ~’or A and all other electors persist in the same vote as in the preceding balloting, A would be elected by having 25 whereas B would have only 24 valid votes. The proposed code excludes this case by changing the basic norm from the number of valid votes cast, 49, to the number of electors present, 50. The 25 votes therefore would not constitute an absolute majority, which would be 26. Conse- quently the withholding of a vote would not effect a victory (see RfR, 23 [1964], p. 138). These arguments manifest the futility of excluding the two highest from voting on the third and final ballot. They also prove that not only diseases but also elections are subject to complications. The norm for breaking a tie, "but if there are more than tWO, on the two senior by age. If a parity remains, the senior by age is elected," is obscure and may also be literally inaccurate, even though the sense intended can be certainly derived. If on the second ballot A receives 24 votes, B 10, C 10 and D 6, it is evident that A is certainly a candidate on the third and final ballot and that the norm of age for breaking a tie is between B and C to secure the second candidate, even though A may be the youngest of the three. The last sentence is also defective. It states that a parity "remains" on the third and final ballot. Certainly a parity can occur on the final ballot alone, not also on the preceding ballot, for example, A and B 25 votes on the final ballot; A 24, B I !, C 10 and D 5 on the preceding ballot. 1, as is to be expected, prefer my own phrasing "A tie is broken by seniority of age on the only, limiting, or decisive balloting of an election" (see RfR, ibid.).

A nun wishes to transfer from one monastery to another of our order. This transfer requires the deliberative vote of the chapter of each monastery and the approval of the bishops of both monasteries. Is this vote of~the chapters demanded by canon law? There is no legal problem about the requisites of the approval of both bishops and of the deliberative vote of the second or receiving monastery. However, the requirement of the deliberative vote of the chapter of the first or present monastery and even the permission of this monastery seems strange. According to the present canon law, the transfer of ~i professed religious from one religious institute to another or from one autonomous monastery to another of the sam6 order requires: (1) the authorization of the Apostolic See or, if both institutes are diocesan, of the local ordinary (can. 632); (2) testimonial letters of a higher superior of the first institute (can. 544, § 5). Nothing is said in the present canon law about the permission or authorization of a superior of the first institute or monastery or about a vote of the council Questions and Answers / 303 or chapter in either the first or the second institute or monastery. A law that prescribes a deliberative vote of a council or chapter for acceptance of a transfer into the second institute causes no difficulty. The institute or monastery should admit only suitable persons, and either vote is a reasonable aid to this judgment on suitability. For the admission of candidates who are not transfers, canon law permits a consultative or deliberative vote of a council or chapter for admission to the postulancy and noviceship (can. 543). A deliberative vote was most rarely found for admission to the postulancy, but it has been the common practice in lay institutes for admission to the noviceship. As I stated above, I find the requisite of the deliberative vote of the chapter of the first monastery strange. The present canon law demands essentially only the authorization of the Holy See for a transfer. If this is had, the professed religious has a canonical right to transfer, but the deliberative vote of the first chapter can frustrate this right. It also is strange in itself that an institute or monastery which a religious presumably finds unsuitable, less suitable, or harmful to his or her religious aspirations should be able of itself to block a transfer to another institute or monastery more satisfying at least to the aspirations of the religious. Certainly today there are institutes and monasteries whose principles on the religious life can be deeply and evidently questioned, and such deficiencies can be either tO the right or the left. Such a law is actually demanding the consent of the superior of the first institute or monastery to the transfer, and the superior alone could block the transfer. He may not consent to the transfer without the deliberative vote of the council or chapter but, having this vote, he is not obliged to act on it (see REVIEW FOR RELIGIOUS, 19 [1960], 141). The proposed new canon law directly demands the consent of the superior of the first’monastery, and the argumentation just given extends to such a consent. Can. 105, par. 1, of this legislation declares: "The transfer from one monastery to’ another of the same monastic family or rule can be effected by the consent of both moderators with the deliberative vote of the chapter of the receiving monastery, particular law always being observed."

If we have temporary promises to the institute rather than temporary vows, what should be the object of the promises? Since the evangelical counsels constitute the essential means of an institute of consecrated life, 1 believe that the object of temporary promises should be chastity, poverty and obedience and that their objects should be understood in the same way as they are in religious vows, which are promises to God. I cannot understand why it would be on a lesser element of the consecrated state, for example, of fidelity to the obervance of the rules and constitutions, or to obey the rules of the institute; much less can I understand a promise that has no object. On the grave or light character of the obligation of the temporary 304 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 promises, see REVIEW FOR RELIGIOUS, 28 (1969), 897-9.

In the present common law, can. 577, par. 2, gives the following faculty: "However, for a just reason superiors may permit the renewal of temporary vows to be anticipated but not by more than a month." The Instruction on the Renewal of Religious Formation, no. 26, states: "The higher superior may, for a just cause, allow first profession to be anticipated, but not be~yond fifteen days." Does this mean that the common law minimum of three years of temporary commitment and twelve months of noviceship may be shortened respectively by a month and fifteen days? To be clear and brief with the solution, the answer is no to the abbreviation of the three years of temporary commitment but yes to the abbreviation of the twelve months of noviceship. The three years of temporary commitment may not be abbreviated by the permitted anticipation of renewal. This has been the understanding of can. 577, par. 2. The faculty of the Instruction can be interpreted in the same way as excluding any abbreviation of the twelve months of noviceship. The precise question is whether it must be so interpreted. This intepretation would be based on the fact that the canon law and Instruction faculties are expressed in practically the same words, as can be seen from their quotation in the question. The relevant other norms are equally identical. The Instruction states: "to be valid, the noviceship.., must last twelve months" (no. 21) and that the time of temporary vows or other temporary commitment: "shall last for no less than three years..." (no. 27). Can. 574, par. 1, expresses the latter as: "This profession.., must last for three years .... " Some authors almost immediately after the publication of the Instruction, but with varying clarity, began to interpret the faculty of the Instruction as permitting the actual abbreviation of the noviceship up to fifteen days. 1 can see this interpretation when the noviceship, according to the prescription of the particular constitutions, is beyond a year for liceity and there is no danger of shortening the twelve months that are required by common law for the validity of the noviceship. The interpretation is’not clear at all in the latter case. I therefore had an inquiry made at Rome and learned that this interpretation is accepted in the Sacred Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes and is therefore the norm to be followed, that is, the twelve months of noviceship required by common law for the validity of the noviceship may be actually abbreviated for a just cause. Admittedly law is not a commentary on law but law should not be contradictory in itself. I therefore believe that the faculty of the Instruction (no. 26) should have been expressed as follows: "The major superior may, for a just cause, allow first profession to be anticipated but not beyond fifteen days. This faculty extends also to the actual abbreviation of the prescribed twelve months of noviceship" (no. 21). Book Reviews

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Your Daughters Shall Prophesy: Feminist Alternatives in Theological Education. By the Cornwall Collective. New York: The Pffgrim Press, 1980. Pp. xxio 161. Paper. $6.96. Nineteen women from nine departments or schools of theology from around the country gathered at the Grail Center in Cornwall-on-Hudson for a planned consultation on their situation and that of women associates regarding equality with men at their respective institutions. This excellent little book is the fruit of their reflection and collective writing. It would be of interest to women and to men in similar professional settings. Participant groups considered such topics as: racism and the responsibilities of white women in theological education: marginality: leadership styles, institutional change and alternative structures. The reader will find an honest and direct approach to these topics. There was. fortunately, no need to lash out at ~male oppressors," no invective, no self pity. Differences of approach from those of men were emphasized. The women saw themselves as concerned with a contextual, interdisciplinary, wholis- tic approach, with process as well as product, with the validity of subjective insights as well as objective judgments. However. differences even among the women present also surfaced and were described. A white middle-class frame of reference was recognized as not necessarily representing a black or other minority perspective. There was also an underlying tension between heterosexual and lesbian participants that was never resolved. Participants acknowledged that women are in "midstream" in their liberation: they therefore proposed strategies and tactics to achieve full equality. The reader may wonder here about the concern for "process as well as product": seizing power and confronting the administration, publishing "with intent to maim or kill" discriminatory practices, building an internal power base. disrupting the institution, "surprising" a dean by coming to a meeting accompanied by a large uninvited .group and a tape recorder. These means, though recommended only when the normal channels are perceived to be closed, do not seem to be an improvement over strategies and tactics long familiar to men. One might also wish that. as the title suggests, the theological insights of the women participants had been brought 305 306 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 more to bear on the subjects considered. Perhaps when a companion volume appears and women have paddled even more past midstream extraordinarily articulate and capable women theologians will be able to gather not to share how they are surviving and in what ways they differ from men but what collectively they reflect about men and women and God.--Ellen Greeley, R.S.M.; Campus Ministry: John Carroll University; Cleveland, OH 44118.

The Synoptic Gospels: An Introduction. By Keith F. Nickle. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1980~ Pp. 198. $6.95. Paper. If you are looking for a text for an undergraduate Gospels course--or if you would like to suggest a good review book at the l~gi~ning of’a professional or graduate level course--you should investigate the possibilities of this paperback. Although it is suitable for adult study groups. 1 think that most of today’s Catholic Bible study groups would miss the discussion questions and prayer suggestions that they are accustomed to find in their study aids. Since the book has been written for the academically inclined end of the spectrum of readers, the individual browser who is willing to draw personal conclusions for contemporary situations without having them spelled out will probably best appreciate the book. The author writes from his mainline (i.e.. German-U.S.) exegetical persuasions and from his experience as both a Presbyterian pastor-seminary professor and a professor-administrator in a Jesuit divinity schooi. The result is an approach that for Roman Catholic readers is both understandable and a bit exotic. Despite, its introductory task and its consensus positions, the book does establish an independent identity. I find the book to be clear, filled with apt examples and written from a finely tuned sense of the essential. Though it is uncluttered with distracting details, the book carefully spells out groundwork often mistakenly taken for granted while adding apt information not usually included in a book this size.--Paul M. Jurkowitz; Department of Religious FMucation, Diocese of Columbus; 197 East Gay Street, Columbu.( OH 43215~

The God For Every Day By William Maestri. Chicago, Thomas More Press, 1981. pp 204. $8.95. The titled theme of God and the everyday of our lives is detailed in the four main sections of this book: God with us: God for .us: God within us: Everyday Concerns. Each of these main sections is further developed in a series of short reflective chapters on the workings of Father, Son and Spirit in the ordinary of human,existence, The content of these chapters is probably quite familiar to most Christians, if they are churchgoers at all, expressing, for example, that God allows us to call him "Daddy": that sin is more a matter of being than of doing: that growth in the Spirit is very gradual and uniquely individual. Though most of the chapters are titled with such traditional themes as "Freedom," "Divine Love" and "Wisdom," a few are more intriguing. "East of Eden" for instance, points out that neither improved communication, nor cultural advancement have solved man’s problems after the fall: "Beware of Trojan Horses" calls attention to our human reluctance to lose some of our freedom through giving or receiving gifts. The most completely developed section of this book is the one titled "Everyday Affairs" where the author discusses his understanding of "The World" and the Christian’s need to relate to it and presents Jesus as the disclosure model of God’s choice between "Coercion and Persuasion" in winning the human person’s love. Other chapters on "Community," "Courage to Pray" and "Stubborn Facts" also show how contemporary assumptions of individualism, priority of self-development and empiricism challenge traditional Christian values. The question this reviewer would ask: for whom is this book intended? It would seem that anyone who would be attracted to reading brief treatments of such familiar themes would expect to find either freshness of material or expression. He might well be disappointed to find so little of either here.-- Sister Marie Beha, O.S.C., 1916 N. Pleasantburg Drive, Greenville, SC 29609. Book Reviews / 307

The Bible and Christ: The Unity of the Two Testaments. B.v Leopold Sabourin, S.J. New York: Alba House, 1980. Pp. xx, 188. Paper. $6.95. The author’s stated purpose is "to demonstrate that the unity of the two Testaments rests in’Christ"[p. xi). The treatise "is addressed to both scholar and general reader alike." and in pursuing this end, Sabourin touches upon many of the great themes found in the Old and New Testaments: covenant: promise: prophecy: apocalyptic: eschatology: Messiah: Son of God, ani:l others. A final chapter deals explicitly with several hermeneutical terms: the "fuller"sense: typology. In his brief general conclusion, .the author cites 2 Co 3:14 and Ep 1:10 as pertinent texts that substantiate his contention: the Old Testament finds its perfect fulfillment in Christ. Sabourin has compressed a huge amount of information into a very small space. The work includes an immense bibliography, both at the end of the individual chapters and at the conclusion of the whole treatise, which is, in effect, a survey of modern scholarship on the themes in question, rather than a biblical theology properly so-called. Such surveys, it is true, run the risk of becoming mere catalogs of scholarly opinion, and here, little room has been left for a thorough investigation and exposition, in orderly fashion, of the individual themes. To many already committed Catholic readers, however, Sabourin~ vast erudmon can serve to open new vistas onto previously unknown intellectual and spiritual riches.--Casimir Bernas, O.C.S.O.; Holy Trinity Abbey; Huntsville. UT84317.

Breakthrough: Meister Eckhart’s Creation Spirituality in New Translation, with Introduction and Commentaries by Matthew Fox, O.P. Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1980. Pp. 580. Cloth. $15.95. Paper. $7.95. Meister Eckhart (1260-1327), Dominican mystic and scholar, inaugurated the school of Rhineland mysticism. His mysticism is speculative and intellectual. Eckhart~ doctrine is chiefly known to is through his vernacular sermons delivered at Strassburg. Towards the end of his life the Church began inquisitorial proceedings. Eckhart explained his thinking in a report and appealed to the Holy See, submitting in advance to its decision. He died before his case was concluded, but twenty-eight of his propositions were condemned as savoring of pantheism and quietism. John Tauler and BI. Henry Suso were influenced by Meister Eckhart and handed on their master’s teaching in completely orthodox theology. Father Matthew Fox finds a brother and mentor in Eckhart and presents him to us in thirty-seven sermons with commentary. The sermons are divided into four "Paths" which give Eckhart’s doctrine: "Creation." "l.etting Go and Letting Be?’ "’Breakthrough and Giving Birth to Self and God" and "The New Creation: Compassion and Social Justice." Ft. Fox begins the volume with a helpful, extensive and indispensable introduction. A brief sketch of Eckhart’s thought seems in order: God alone is for "being is God": therefore the creature has no being or existence of itself. "The word Sum can be spoken by no creature but by God only: for it becomes the creature to testify of itself Non Sum." To return to God the creature must participate in the being that truly is. must allow the Father to generate the Word in him. The part of the soul most in contact with God is thus intellectual in essence. In this uncreated part of the soul the Word is born and herein the soul’s resemblance to God is realized. This "birthing" is the experience of "breakthrough." Silence, withdrawal of the soul’s powers from work and images, and passive receptiv- ity are the necessary conditions for New Birth. Only in a full surrender to the ontological condition of nothingness can the soul become one with the Deity as he is and not as we might think him to be. Compassion and justice become the fruit of this union. Reflecting on Eckhart’s ~panentheistic theology of inness," Fox quotes Eckhart as saying that his theology is for the person who is not "out for a walk." Indeed, Eckhart might be for marathon runners! He abounds in paradox for one thing. Furthermore, analysis of Eckhart leads to some hard questions. To a reader who might be confused over how Eckhart’s pantheism can be as orthodox as Fox claims. the latter replies that Eckhart "urges us to alter our consciousness." To one who might wonder if there is room for original sin in Eckhart’s theology, Fox assures him that "Eckhart neatly slides over the subject of original sin...which can be an obstacle for trusting the cosmos and trusting self and creation." Such 301~ / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 difficulties require more extensive explanation than has.been accorded them in this volume. Certainly there are intimations and intuitions of a profound nature in Eckhart, and the commentary by Fr.Fox is in itself a "breakthrough." Eckhart is tantalizingly attractive in an intellectual way. Matthew Fox is convinced that Eckhart’s "holistic" creation-centered spirituality is the most biblical, Jewish and Christlike spirituality for our times. It is plainly evident that Fox finds western spirituality rigid and narrow, that its dualism and that of all fall/redemption spiritualities have "hung like an albatross around the neck of the mystical body of Christ in the west for centuries." This is where a study of Eckhart and his present day commentator becomes exciting and challenging. Is Eckhart the answer in the search for genuine integration? Is Fox himself too one-sided in his rejection of Western spirituality? And, given the wounds human nature has suffered because of original sin, isn’t it possible that notwithstanding either Eckhartian dialectic or western dualism, complete wholeness is beyond us so long as we live on the face of this earth?--Sr. Chiara Marie St. Germain, P.C.C.; Monastery of Poor Clares; 215 E. Los Olivos St.; Santa Barbara. CA 93105.

Towards A New Mysticism: Teilhard de Chardin and Eastern Religions. By Ursula King. The Seabury Press, 1980. Pp. 318. $14.95. This volume is an exposition, largely from unpublished sources, of the vision, ideas and writings of Jesuit Father Pierre Teilhard de Chardin on the "Road of the East~ and the "Road of the West" in mysticism, the implications of their convergence, and the necessity for a new dynamic in spirituality and mysticism for today’s world. Dr. Ursula King, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies in the University of Leeds in England, drawing on her studies in Bonn, Munich, Paris and five years in India plus her personal contacts with Teilhard’s own milieu in France, has woven a fascinating account of Teilhard’s search for a spirituality adequate and suitable for modern man. Teilhard’s mystical experiences were nurtured and matured through his war experiences, teaching assignment in Egypt, long sojourns in the Sahara and Gobi deserts, travels, encounters and scientific ventures in Asia, his prolonged visit to China, contacts with the World Congress of Faith and his extensive reading. Teilhard’s lifelong quest for communion with God and communion with the great earth on which we live can be summarized in his formulated synthesis "Communion with God through earth." He honestly felt that science and religion were bent on the same quest and he longed to reconcile them. Because of misunderstandings with Superiors of his own Society a great number of Teilhard’s formative years were spent in the Orient, especially in China. This gave him knowledge of and insight into eastern religions and ways of thought. But he never deeply delved into them or studied them so oftentimes his opinions of them were nega.tive, critical and uncomplimentary. But then he was sometimes critical of today’s Christianity claiming it did not fully supply man’s inner need or give him a sense of purpose. He felt a reinterpretation of Christianity is needed today to enable mankind to reap the benefits of scientific and technological advances while at the same time becoming more immersed in a deeper personal relationship with the divine. Teilhard saw signs of convergence between the living religions of the east and west and felt that this was not only desirable but necessary "for the greater economic, political and cultural unity of mankind." His vision of God in the world and of man’s ascent to God was based on the incarnational aspect of Christianity and on his own vibrant faith, enduring hope, and burning love with its dynamic, transforming quality. This lifelong vision sustained Teilhard in the face of opposition and humiliating letdowns. It even enabled him to say, near the end of his life, "1 now live permanently in the Presence of God." In his later years Teilhard changed many of his views on Oriental religions and realized that they were contributing new insights to a newly emerging mysticism. Those who are interested in knowing Teilhard’s views on Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism and Japanese spirituality will find them in Dr. King’s very scholarly and well-documented book. It gives a ztimulating and challenging view of Teilhard as a person, religious and scientist who had a mystical vision that was "experiential, existential and action-oriented." Book Reviews / 309

An inspiring epilogue on "Contemporary Spirituality at the Crossroads," an interesting foreword by Dr. Joseph Needham, a chronology of Teilhard’s years in the Orient and another of his writings, a comprehensive bibliography, detailed notes for each chapter and an appendix augment the value of this book.--Sr. Virginia Th’e~ese Johnson. M.M.; Maryknoll. NY 10545.

Liturgy and Social Justice. Edited by Mark Searle. Collegeville, Minnesota." The Liturgical Press, 1980. Pp. 102. $5.50. Out of conferences on Pastoral Liturgy held at Notre Dame University in 1977 and 1979, comes this collection of four essays that, according to a foreword by J. Bryan Heir, address "the theological linkage between social ministry and liturgical life." It is the purpose of the book to prove the need for systematic integration of worship and witness. In "Serving the Lord with Justice," Mark Searle, using the symbolism of the Holy Grail, explores the dichotomy between the inner life and social reform, contemplation and service. Only when Parsifal learns to ask of the people of the desolate land, "Whom do you serve when you serve the Grail?" and "What is your sorrow?" is the power of the Grail, sign of total healing, personal, social, spiritual and communal, released, the vitality of the land restored and the well-being of the people effected. Searle treats of the importance of the liturgy for Christians committed to social justice under three headings: I. Justice in liturgy and in Christian life: 2. Justice as revealed in the liturgy; 3. Liturgy as social criticism. Under the second heading, he subsumes the kinds of relationship that constitute the justice of the kingdom: relationship with God, with one another and with material creation. In "Preaching the Just Word." Walter J. Burghardt, S.J., a patristic scholar and editor of Theologi- cal Studies, asks, "How do we preach justice?" He answers that as Christianity is concerned with the relationship of the soul to eternity, the Church has an obligation to speak out for justice in the socio-political and economic activities of the world because if it does not, it runs the risk of allying itself with the oppressors. The homilist must not hesitate to face the controversial; he must give biblical imperatives immediacy by applying them to concrete human living. Although the author concludes that the pulpit is not the place to pontificate on complicated issues, he insists that the preacher must raise them, not to impose his personal convictions on his captive audience, but to quicken their Christian conscience. Liturgy should not be so much didactic as evocative. In it the social and political message must be divinized. Burghardt, throughout, heightens interest and conviction with timely examples right out of today’s headlines. His paper evidences the result of what he says it cost him to write it: Three months of relentless research and reflection, mountains of paper and a million words. In "The Sacrifice of Thanksgiving and Social Justice," Edward J. Kilmartin, S.J.. professor of liturgy at the University of Notre Dame, is mainly concerned with the question of the application of Roman Catholic theology to liturgical practice. He follows through history the changing rationale of the Church toward collections taken up at the Offertory of the Mass and concludes with some innovative opinions of his own. Surely, a feasible defense of his proposal that parishioners who, we realize, are feeling a citizen’s tax crunch, should support the poor as the sole recipients of these collections and then, in another context, funding church buildings, schools, and more, would require another essay. In the final paper, Regis Duffy, O.F.M., provides insights into biblical symbols of abundance and need. Utilizing the parables of the rich fool (Lk 12:13-21) and the rich man and Lazarus (Lk 16:19-31) as images of sinful satiety which argues that it does not need God’s fullness, he notes that only those who hunger and thirst for God’s feast now will enjoy it in the future. "Before Isaiah’s panoramic image of God’s feast of rich foods and vintage wines on the tops of mountains (25:6), who would not begin to discover their hunger for his abundance?" Liturgy, "which expresses experience and molds it," (p. 42) must open our eyes and make us ,see our own need and the others’. I do not hesitate to call this book a classic, a work of lasting value for content and style. It will prove a practical resource. The writers contribute profound knowledge of spiritual and secular matters in 31{} / Review for Religious, March-ApriL 1982

language that is notable for beauty and clarity. Written by scholars, sensitive to pastoral problems, pastors, seminarians and pastoral ministers, it should also, ,because of a pervading unction (I use the word in its best sense), appeal to college students, eager to participate in liturgical planning, as well as to all who should be well-informed parishioners since, as Walter Burghardt notes, "All of us are in this together" (p. 50). There is no bibliography, but a list of key texts and conciliar documents prefaces the volume. Extensive notes will facilitate further research.--Sister Aloise Jones, O,P.; St, Scholastica Convent; Detroit. MI 48219.

Let Us Be What We., Are. By Clarence J. Engler, Denville, N.J.: Dimension Books, Inc. 1978. Pp. 140. $4.95. This book reveals the inner life of a man who has thought, prayed and studied about his relationship to God and has had the humility and courage to share his findings with others. It is the sharing of his own ascetical life as he has lived it out, mindful of the history of the saints and spiritual writers of the Church as well as the demands of the present day. In the first two sections of the book he writes about his own spiritual journey. In the third section he writes to offer encouragement for all to become saints. His work was interrupted by his death, so that the third section did not have the intimacy of prayerful conversation with God that his first two sections carried. The reader admires the frankness of the author about his life. The prayer form of the first two sections gives the reader a sense of privileged position in the interior life of another believer. The style gives a beauty and fragrance to the,work. The content seems ~old Church" and the conclusions are predictably traditional. The author, as a married deacon, has a unique perspective from which to share his thoughts. This is perhaps one of the most refreshing aspects of a book which covers much familiar asceticism. He returns:frequently to the writing and thought of St. Francis de Sales, one of the great Christian humanists, to formulate his convictions. This book would be well received by the sincere, thoughtful average Catholic of the day, who wants to accept the challenge of livinga saintly life amidst the complexities of today’s society.--Gerald E Keefe; Church of St. Rita; Cottage Grove. MN 55016.

The Message of St. John--The Spiritual Teaching of the Beloved Disciple. By Rev. Thomas E. Crane. New York, Alba House, 1980. Pp. xii, 184. Paper. $5.95. This compact and handy book presents excellent spiritual and historical critical interpretation of the writings attributed to John in Christian tradition. For that reason. Crane includes the Apocalypse (Book of Revelation) in.this guide carefully noting it is not the same author as the Gospel and Epistles of John. The format for each of the three writings of "John" is the same: I. A summa~ry statement from the Scriptures which gives the spirit of the section. 2. Preliminary reading suggestions and selection of themes. 3. An integrated interpretation of the content, that is, one that is both scholarly and meditative. 4. A set of questibns for consideration and reflection. Crane accomplishes his purpose: to draw from the Johannine writings a source of spiritual nour- ishment. His insights are orderly, manifest a sound biblical approach, and offer solid spiritual reflection. Crane says the reading of John is presented as "people’s experience of God in their lives and the way in which they re~pond to this experience.., in everyday activity, as well as in their progressive religious growth over a period of years" (p. ix). Crane presents a short helpful introduction to the background of the Johannine Church (pp. I-8) which he affirms is Ephesus. He then presents the First Epistle of John saying that it is composed prior to the Gospel because of its more simple and general approach (pp. 9-18). The Gospel is the central section of the book. Here one can easily come to understand its message, purpose and structure and still Book Reviews / 311

have a spiritual aid to meditation on the texts., Crane’s exegesis is contemporary and balanced. I found his treatment of the Book of Revelation (Apocalypse) clear and orderly. Some may question why he included it in the Johannine Corpus, but from the point of view of a long-standing tradition, it is a worthwhile and refreshing addition. There is an excellent summary of the message of John (pp. 169-180). I would recommend this book for those interested in studying and praying the Johannine scriptures. It is a valuable book for people in religious education, in parish ministry, and for religious and seminarians. Homilists would also find it a good resource for the context and background of their preparation of the Scriptures.--Bertrand A. Buby, S.M.: Marianist Provincial of Cincinnati Province: 4435 E. Patterson Rd.: Dayton, OH 45430.

The Living Word: Scripture and Myth. By William J. O’Malley, S.J. New York: Paulist Press, 1980. Pp. 168. Paper. $4.95. The Living Word: How the Gospels Work. By William J. O’Malley, S.J. New York: Paulist Press, 1980. Pp. 171. Paper. $4.95. This two volume work offers a comprehensive and thorough examination of the way in which one can deepen an underslanding of the meaning and message of the Scripture. In Volume I, the author presents a clear and concise analysis of the use of language and its function in Scripture and today. Through illustrations from our present experience of language, he opens out the fuller meaning of language in Scripture. This volume would be particularly helpful to a class or group interested in exploring the fuller possibilities of Scripture for today. In Volume 2, the author focuses attention on the way in which the understandings and insights of Volume I can illuminate the Gospels, particularly the three synoptics. This volume seems more inspirational as contrasted with the more technical quality of volume I. Together they offer a challenging look at the realities of Scripture. This work is invaluable for anyone interested in deepening and challenging scriptural meanings and applications. It would be very threatening to anyone Who clings tenaciously to the strictly literal interpretation of the Scripture.--Joan Specht. R.S.M.; St. Ethelreda Church; Chicago, IL 60620.

We Die Before We Live. By Daniel Berrigan, S.J. New York." The ~Seabury Press, 1980. Pp. 144. $9.95. In true Berrigan rhetoric, the non-glamorous image of terminal illness, as well as its beauty, are brought before the reader. This book describes the desolate, lonely, dying individuals that came to, what we might term, a free-standing hospice. It describes the life-giving attention and support of a caring staff, dedicated to bringing comfort and love to dying persons. The reader is confronted with the gut-level realities of dying, and of the transformation"that can take place during the stages of dying. However, at times the reader is left with feelings of uncomfort- ableness, of helplessness, and of sinfulness--it makes one deal with his/her own feelings concerning death and dying. The book provides an insight into the overall concept of"hospice." It has a definite message for any fledgling embarking on the mission of providing care for the dying, particularly for those in the medical and ministry professions, as well as for the seasoned care giver. Correlations of Scripture passages are used to emphasize the relationship of the human to the afterlife--what life is all about. If a person is looking for an easy-to-read book, then We Die Before We Live is not for them. It is a book that needs a meditative approach and a global insight of people to bridge the rhetoric such as, "So death was common, vulgar, nefarious, encompassing, would make us all his brutalized yoke beasts." The book can be recommended to those who are interested in providing care and concern for people.- Naomi C. Janson; Cardinal Ritter Institute; St. Louis, MO 63108, ~112 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Word and Spirit. A monastic review: 2. In honor of Saints Benedict and Scholas- tica (b. 480): Still River, MA: St. Bede’s Publications, 1981. Pp. xxii, 166. Paper. No price. Word and Spirit: 2 is a collection of eleven essays--purportedly in honor of Saints Benedict and his twin. Scholastica, but actually about Benedict and Benedictinism. It is an unusual--and uneven--series of excursions and insights into monasticism, which despite its unevenness, comes out in the end giving the reader a rich and rewarding view of a way of life most of us have perhaps forgotten--or were never aware of. Historical essays by Jean Gribomont, Jean Lelercq (of Love of Learning and Desire For God fame), and Adalbert de Vogue situate the Benedictine genius in rapport with its antecedents and its social concomitants; Cyril Karam, Basil Pennington, Martin Cawley and Julian Stead do a superb job of illuminating the Relevance and Profound Validit, v of Benedictine principles for today. Hubert van Zeller sounds a warning about the possibility of losing the speci.al gift of Benedictinism; two non- Benedictines (Jordan Aumann, O.P., Hans Urs yon Balthasar) situate Benedict within the wider contexts of the contemplative life and eastern mysticism; while Andre Louf presents with great attrac- tiveness the faith-rooted, integral sanity of the Benedictine ethos. Two paragraphs bear sharing with the reader: they represent the tone and atmosphere of this unprepos~ssing little volume: Above all else, the Rule of St. Benedict insures an environment for prayer. This constitutes its essential contribution and sums up centuries of monastic wisdom. Devoting oneself to prayer does not oblige one to escape from time and from things. Rather it implies discovering a new rhythm in things in order that each may disclose itself in depth and thereby become a support and accessory of prayer. For those who compare the monastic rhythm to that of life in the world, such an effort may appear somewhat contrived. This is so in appearance only. For the goal is simply to rediscover from within, from the deepest core of things and of life, their own essential rhythm--which predisposes to prayer because it is, as it were, itself the secret prayer inherent in each thing--a prayer that man alone is able to capture and to express externally. This interior harmony of things--their essential prayer, if we may dare call it that--is found inscribed in the rhythm of the succession of days and nights, of light and darkness, of summer and winter. A kind of prefabricated liturgy lies hidden within the visible universe and silently awaits the man of prayer to disengage it and to make known its splendor (p. 119). The rhythm externally inscribed in the daily monastic horarium--prayer, lectio, work--thus becomes, little by little, the internal rhythm of each monk; and the liturgy he celebrates with his brothers in church echoes tirelessly through the vaults of his heart, in this interior temple where he nearer ceases to officiate before the Lord. This reciprocal harmony and fecundity of external framework and internal contemplative reality constitute, if I may dare say so, one of the secrets of time-honored monastic tradition in the matter of prayer (p. 123). Word a~nd Spirit 2 (the first was in honor of St. Basil the Great; a volume a year is projected) is recommended to anyone curious about kinds of religious life and the validity of distinctions and differences--and especially to anyone who wonders if monasticism is a thing of its own and alive today. The answer is Yes. A small warning: for anyone totally ignorant of Benedictine history and ideals, the volume may appear undu~ly esoteric. It isn’t, however.--Fara Impastato, O.P.; Department of Reli- gious Studies; Lo,vola University; New Orleans. LA 70118.

The DRE Reader: A Sourcebook on Education and Ministry. Edited by Maria Harris, Winona, MN; Saint Mary’s Press, 1980. Pp. 183. $6.95. In 1970, Saint Mary’s Press began its publication of Pace (Professional Approaches for Christian Educators), a monthly periodical of articles pertaining to the professional Director of Religious Educa- tion. Dr. Maria Harris, an editorial consultant for Pace, has selected thirty-one articles related directly to the identity and profession of DRE. This collection of articles gives a bit of a history of the profession. By so doing, we can see a growth in self-understanding and identity. Book Reviews

The role and/or roles of the DRE pull in two directions, that of ministry and the area of religious education. They seem to be related in the person of the DRE, in the activities of administering, teaching~ theologizing, and so forth. Whether or not these roles produce in the DRE tension or motivation is within the grasp of those carving a relatively new profession. The book is divided into two parts. Part One aims to give a view of Who the religious educators are, i.e. Coordinators, Catechists, DREs at the parish level. There follow articles on the profession of religious education, and the profession of ministry. The selections on the profession of ministry impressed me as helpful in clarifying the diverse pastoral, theological and educational roles as ministry, as official, as commissioned in the local Church. The title speaks for itself.--Mary Helen Kane, CS.J.; St. John Vianney Parish. Houston. TX 77079.

Hosea. The Anchor Bible. VoL 24. Francis L Andersen and David Noel Freed- man. Garden Oty, New York: Doubleday & Company, lnc., 1980. Pp. xvii, 701. $14.00. This volume in The Anchor Bible follows the general contours of the series. The translation occurs in its entirety at the beginning and then again before each section of the notes. The introduction contains a general discussion of eighth century Israel and Judah: "Hosea and the Prophet" with subsections on the eighth century prophets in general and Hosea in particular; "Hosea as Literature" discusses the literary history, texture and text; a section which surveys the secondary literature on the book; and a conclud- ing note on the *syllable counting" of Hebrew poetry. A selected bibliography is given. The "translation with introduction and commentary" is divided into "Hosea’s Marriage~ 1:1--3:5 and "Hosea’s Prophe- cies"4:1--14:10. Each of these sections has an introduction which recognizes the different problems of the two parts of the book. The work concludes with a brief appendix on "Hosea’s References to Pagan Gods" where one finds lists of epithets identified by Freedman and Andersen but not generally recognized by other scholars. The four indices (author, subject, words and scriptural references) are extensive and enormously useful. A total of seven hundred pages means the reader is getting a massive work on fourteen chapters of Hebrew! Several critical comments would be helpful to those interested in Hosea studies. First. the complicated nature of the Hebrew text of Hosea lends itself to diverse translations. There are many proposals backed by poetic, literary, historical and rhetorical arguments. One example would be the famous line found in Hosea 1:2 which reads in the Revised Standard Version When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea. "Go, take to yourself a wife of harlotry and have children of harlotry, for the ’land commits great harlotry by forsaking the Lord." Freedman and Anderson translate the line At the beginning, when Yahweh spoke with Hosea, then Yahweh said to Hosea: ~Go, take for yourself a promiscuous wife and children of promiscuity, for the land has been promiscuous away from Yahweh," The reader is guided through this new translation by headings which indicate many of the turns these translators wish to make in their interpretation. Second, some of the older critical views find renewed expression in this work. For example, the view that Gomer is a woman gone bad ~after a good start in marriage" is developed with some new arguments. This counters the more popular "realistic" view held now that understands the woman as a prostitute or the "metaphorical-ritual" interpretation which thinks of her as an Israelite woman who had participated in the then common Canaanite bridal ritual of initiation (Wolff). Third, the effort to go beyond "form criticism" is expressed explicitly. This surfaces in introductory discussions and shows itself explicitly when comparing literary units as seen by Wolff and this new work. Nevertheless, the regard for Wolfl~s work is high when it comes to the "positive and appreciative tone of his theological exposition." 314 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Finally, one must ask--for whom this work will be most necessary and beneficial? The introductory articles are concise and usually fair to those with whom the authors disagree. This can assist the pastor or seminarian interested in an updating. The more serious and advanced Hosea critic will find a great deal with which to contend. This will range from the technicalities of Hebrew poetics to the broader issues of the context and message of the Hosea book. These observations lead this reviewer to once again in a review of an Anchor Bible volume to say that these works morefrequently than not are for the specialist. The non-specialist will be lost in discussion after discussion which demands historical sensitivities and linguistic knowledge beyond that of the general reader. The goal stated in every Anchor Bible preface of making "the Bible accessible to the modern reader" is not realized. Either the goal must be changed or the format revised so that the purpose and the reality more nearly correspond.--Kent Harold Riehards; The Iliff School of Theology; 2201 S. University Blvd.; Denver, CO 80210.

Guidelines for Spiritual Direction. By Carolyn Gratton. Volume Three of Studies in Formative Spirituality. Denville, NJ: Dimension Books, 1980. Pp. 225. Paper. $8.95. Transformation of the heart is the central goal of the person who seeks Christian spiritual direction. Dr. Gratton begins her study with a brief biblical description of Jesus as spiritual guide, and the early Christian tradition, setting out the basic framework in which the connections between psychology and spiritual direction are~to be sought. She makes a very helpful survey of what spiritual direction is not, contrasting it with the superficially similar but fundamentally distinct directional possibilities of psychotherapy, pastoral counseling and other types of religious counseling. The aim of personal transformation specific to Christian direction, as distinct from these other types of guidance, is the gradual permeation of our being by the divine life implanted at baptism. Metanoia is not only a change of consciousness, but a surrender of one’s whole person to Jesus Christ. Gratton stresses the central importance of the director’s basic image of the human person, outlines some tasks common to director, counselor and therapist and distinguishes those which are proper only to the spiritual director. Gratton is a practicing psychologist who has worked for years with Adrian Van Kaam in the Institute of Formative Spirituality at Duquesne University. This fact should indicate to readers that her approach is a very integrated and holistic one, resulting from wide practical experience and much team interaction. Only occasionally is there a sense that the chapters did in fact originate as nine separate articles. Her style is simple and clear, technically correct but avoiding jargon. The use of the feminine pronoun throughout is a refreshing switch from centuries of male-doininated writings, reflective of the reality of the growing number of competent women directors. Footnotes indicate the extensive literature of psychology, phenomenology, and spirituality from which the author draws, and furnish an excellent bibliography for further study. Although the title precisely indicates lhe contents of the book, it does not convey its richness and depth. Gratton’s originality and clarity will be very helpful especially for those recently moving into the field of spiritual direction, showing how they can benefit from background in contemporary phenomenology, and psychology without confusing it with,their proper task. The book should also be rewarding for teachers, parish leaders, pastoral counselors, and all whose Christian ministry so frequently bears on the ways of the Holy Spirit’s action within the Christians they deal with.--Sister Mary Celeste Rouleau, S.M.; 2300 Adeline Drive; Burlingame. C,4 94010.

Discipleship: Towards an Understanding of Religious Life. By John M. Lozano, C.M.F. Chicago: Claret Center for Resources in Spirituality, 1980. Pp. xvi, 321. Paper. $8.95. In recent years, the ferment of renewal in religious life has prompted a great deal of serious theological reflection on the nature of religious life. This book attempts to bring together some of this thinking in a manner that is within the grasp of the average religious, both theologically and by ~lacing it in a coherent context. The strongest point in the book is its solid patristic base, and this work can be Book Reviews ] 315 recommended as a useful text for courses in formation programs. The treatment of the vows, especially of celibacy, is excellent, clear and succinct. The book makes no attempt to be exhaustive, however and it is primarily a basic introduction to the tradition. It does not treat contemporary issues, nor does it take up such questions as the theology of the apostolate, psychosexual development or community living. What it does do, however, in treating the theology of the vowed life, it does very well.--Norbert C. Brockman, S.M.; Marianist Seminary; 657 Spadina Avenue; Toronto. ON M5S-2Hg.

Natural Family Planning: Nature’s Way--God’s Way. Coordinated by Anthony Zimmerman, S.V.D., S.T.D. De Rance, Inc. 1980..Pp. 262. Paper. $6.95. The purpose of this work is to present a basic knowledge of Natural Family Planning and to inform people of the significant advances in NFP that have taken place over the past two decades. The book is not just another instruction manual, but aims at a larger audience that includes pastors of souls and those associated with them in the pastoral care of families--physicians, educators, counselors, catechists, and those involved in NFP promotional and educational efforts. The first of the book’s three parts is intended to show that NFP works (its reliability) and offers the experiences of couples and teachers who are successful NFP practitioners. There are thirty short pieces (the typical being of two or three pages) in this section, representing a good variety of conditions and cultures. The second part offers information on scientific studies that are included to show how NFP works. Here, a world-wide range of NFP researchers is presented. The final and longest part is a witness of the Catholic tradition that places particular emphasis on the teaching of recent Popes, the 2nd Vatican Council, and many Bishops’ Conferences throughout the world. This theological section purports to explain the ultimate reasons why NFP works. NFP is not simply a technique to be used in the interest of avoiding pregnancy, but involves a fundamental approach to human sexuality that places conjugal intimacy in the larger context of marital rights and responsibilities. NFP works, as the various contributors show, on the level of its reliability. but it also "works" on deeper levels--those of self-possession, mutual respect, harmony with nature, respect for God’s laws and marital happiness. The worldwide array of contributors who record their ideas and experiences in this book present, emphasize and document these points in a manner that is clear, cogent, comprehensive and convincing.--Donald De Marco; Philosophy Department; University of St. Jerome’s College; Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G3.

Faith: Conversations with Contemporary Theologians. Ed., Teof!lo Cabestrero. Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1981. Pp. 203. Paper. $7.95. Orbis Books brings us another fine treatment of contemporary theology, this time as it is propounded by twenty-six Central European, Spanish and Latin American theologians. The format is semi- journalistic, with Cabestrero tape-interviewing such theologians as Boros. Comblin, Dussel, Kung. Mo!tmann, Segundo, Schillebeeckx and Rahner. He succeeds in this way in getting theme,to speak less ponderously and more to !he point than they often write. Faith in the title is both misleading and right on target. The authors speak less about the classical doctrinal issues of faith as knowledge, as girl, as endurance and so forth, and more about things like Church identity, membership and mission, about the relationship of Church to modern society, about the mood of the times and the Timeless, All the same, they speak with a passionate conviction that tells us much of their personal faith. They warn of the destructive power that can sit at the heart of religion: they wonder about the state of that Church which seems at times a "forced solution" to the development of the kingdom (much the way socialism is called an interim stage inevitably required before the advent of true communism). They tie faith closely to a capacity for change. One author describes the greatest danger to faith the danger of not being able to have faith at all because we do not trust what we must change into if the kingdom is to come. They coin new phrases for time-honored foul-ups, e.g,, ’°heteropraxis" as a description of our saying one thing as Christians even as we do something else. They worry about the "abduction of 316 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

Christ" by his own supposed supporters. Central to their preoccupations is the relation of the Church to the liberation movements of Latin America (obviously this is Cabestrero’s issue). The canny old~timers among them appeal to Church documents (e,g., from Pius XI) to bolster their own openness to radical developments. Kung comes off very well here. but so does Ratzinger. Schillebeeckx sounds frightfully down to earth and might well be the sleeper in the crowd. Negatively, one wonders about the absence of a woman’s voice and about the lack of any English and American input. All the talk about society and its legitimate impact on Christian categories goes on without any explicit enrichment from social and psychological sciences which happen to be largely the expertise of Anglo-Americans. The one major proponent of such behavioral sciences (Jean-Marie Tillard) is, symbolically, a native of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon, an island off Newfoundland which claims to be French. That’s close but not close enough. Despite the arrogation (le motjuste) of theology to the realms and authors surveyed here. this is an excellent book.--George McCauley, S.J.; Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education; Fordham University; New York 10458.

Joyful In Hope. By Cardinal Eduardo Pironio. Slough, Great Britain: St. Paul Publications, 1979. Pp. 182. Paper. £3.50. This little book is a compilation of twelve articles on the religious life written by Cardinal Eduardo Pironio of Argentina, since 1975 the Pro-Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for Religious and for Secular Institutes at the Vatican. Cardinal Pironio deals in a popular vein with a good many aspects of the life of religious, both active and contemplative. One of the articles deals essentially with priestly spirituality. The rest are concerned with renewal in the religious life. loyalty to the Church (both universal and local), and dedication to the charism of the founders of religious groups. While non-technical in language, the presentation is balanced and competent."Cardinal Pironio is particularly impressive in relating the religious state to the Paschal Mystery of the cross and resurrection of Jesus. As is obvious from the title, he emphasizes both joy and hope as hallmarks of the committed religious. This is worthwhile reading for religious and for all who are interested in the religious life.-- Walter C. McCauley, S.J.; Ignatius House," 6700 Riverside Drive. N. W.; Atlanta, GA 30328.

Becoming a Prophetic Community. By Jack Corbett and Elizabeth Smith. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1980. Pp. 201. Paper. $7.95. Practical Christianity. in the spirit of the Letter of James. is the concern of this unusually direct. informative and motivating work by Corbett and Smith. Corbett, an activist for,peace, world order. energy conservation campaigns and a variety of social/societal movements for the United Methodist Church, elaborates on his conviction that the Church (any church) today must be not only a worship- ping church but a "doing church." In Part One of the book he fulfills his proposed "attempt to lay the theoretical groundwork for laypersons developing an ~action church’" by setting forth persuasively his insight that the call to prophecy today is not so much issued to individual witnesses as to whole communities--local and parochial, denominational, ecumenical, or coalitional, integrating the efforts of believers, social service organizations, government agencies, and more. Corbett perceives the contemporary prophetic task as a fourfold one: I) dealing with specific issues (not just taking a vague, pious stand for peace and justice): 2) speaking the truth to those who hold positions of power: 3) proposing precise, particular alternatives (not merely registering protests): and 4) actively seeking social change. His discussion of the decision-making process in a "prophetic" church community, the actualization of projects, and the concrete ways in which churchmen and churchwomen can have an impact on social, economic, political and international affairs is interesting and presented in su~:h a way that Corbett’s inspirations and ideas seem blessedly possible to implement, Becoming a Prophetic Community is clearly intended to be a practical and practicable book. Part Book Revows / 317

Two, equal in length to Part One. contains Elizabeth Smith’s painstaking assembly of facts about ninety-seven programs which range from peace and educational/informational initiatives through various social service systems to special projects in housing, prison ministry, disaster relief, and advo- cacy. These Church-founded or church-related programs range from modest volunteer projects with a very limited outreach to extensive operations (such as health clinics and counseling services) which touch the lives of thousands. For each program described in Part Two there is an outline of goals and services, a presentation of basic organizational data, and a ~.isting of the name and address of a con~.acl person or group willing to help others who might like to develop similar programs. The great virtue of the book is that its two parts show how the promptings of faith can be put into pragmatic, people-serving operation--as, for example, in the Matthew 25 Health Clinic of Fort Wayne, Indiana, which began as a non-violent "study group~ and grew into a free medical and dental clinic ministering to the poor. The one serious objection one might make to the contents of the book is that the representation of ecumenical. Jewish, and Roman Catholic "prophetic" efforts seems dispropor- tionately low. The preponderance of United Methodist and, it seems, midwestern American programs makes the presentation less inclusive than it might be. Despite this flaw. however, Becoming a Pro- phetic Community is a model ideabook for pastors, pastoral ministers, lay leaders and all who wish to "be doers of the word, and not hearers only."--Sister M. Pamela Smith. SS.C.M.: Andrean High Schook 5959 Broadway, Merrillville. IN 46410,

Challenge To the Laity’. By Ed Marciniak, Michael Novak, John A. Coleman, S.J., Sargent Shriver. Edited by Russell Barta. Huntington, Indiana: Our Sunday Visitor, Inc. 1980. Pp. 135. Paper. $2.95. The challenging vision presented in this small book is the result of a discernment process that began in December, 1977. when forty-seven prominent Chicago Catholics issued the Chicago Declaration of Christian Concern. The Chicago document argued that the Christian role of the laity as trade unionists, business executives, professionals and government officials was being overlooked in official Catholic circles. The volume under review is the result of a second gathering held at the University of Notre Dame in 1979. called the National Assembly of the Laity. The report issued by the participants of that meeting as well as the four major papers read make up the heart of this stimula~.ing volume. The ideas could unsettle those whose ministerial energy is directed to encouraging lay persons to accept responsibilities for Church-related activities. The theological, historical and sociological insights of the authors of this symposium pick up the baton from Vatican II as well as Pope John Paul II at Puebla in 1979 and break new ground in discussing the issues raised by ~he Chicago Declaration. Sargent Shriver pinpoints the discussion in a concrete way: "... our understanding of holiness has probably become.., too ’churchy.’... Yet the task for lay Christians has much to do with.., highly conflictual, highly technical, highly politicized situations in which intelligent, decisive and . . . even aggressive action is required... This call of holiness Jesus picks up and speaks of in such simple and secular terms that the people around him were often shocked." The book can be read quickly, but the challenge to me as a priest and college instructor lingers on in a haunting way.--Rev. John M. Ballweg; Religious Studies Department; Seton Hall University; South Orange, NJ 07079.

Praying With Mary. By Msgr. David E. Rosage. Locust Valley, N.Y. 11560. Living Flame Press, 1980. Pp. 122. Paper. $2.50. Pray With the Psalmist. By Sr. Evel.vn Ann Schumacher, O.S.F. Living Flame Press etc., 1980. Pp. 94. Paper. $1.95. The chance arises to commend this small rural press for the growing number of worthwhile inexpensive books it offers our insatiable maw for what concerns prayer. Whether the reader be one in search of sustained personal relationship with God so appreciated when viewed in the charismatic group, or be in exciting transit from meditation to contemplation, or else is just the more withered outmoded per- 3111 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982 former, he/she is provided in these two books with an ample enticement for hope. Monsignor Rosage, comfortable as usual with the Ignatian framework, has disciplined his contents mainly to the modest delineation of Mary that we have from the gospels. His work would be of particular service to retreatants emerging from the thirty-day retreat with reaffirmed Marian attractions. Praying With Mar), has the helpful how-to daily suggestions without which many a valid retreat inspiration can subsequently fall on its face. In a different way, through what she describes as her intensified familiarity with the medieval florilegia, Sr. Evelyn Ann shares with us her current prayer style for invading the psalms. Her treatment of Psalm 51 is an example of how possible attitudinal changes are enacted in so doing. Boih books represent the generous exposure of self. on the part of authors willing to pay in the coin of privacy for others’ gain in spiritual vitality. It’is reassuring for someone with such a penchant to note what fresh supplies can still be mined from traditional sources.--Sr. I’Vinifred Corrigan r.c.; Cenacle; 11600 Longwood Drive. Chicago IL 60643.

The CathoDic As Citizen. By Frank Morriss. Chicago, Illinois: Franciscan HeraM Press, 1979. Pp. 126. $6.95. This small book is well intentioned but dogmatic and simplistic in its viewpoint and manner of presentation. The effort is to highlight the social teaching of the Catholic Church for its members and to clearly state their duties and obligations as citizens. The effort is made at the expense of removing the citizen from the complex situation that is involved in being an American Catholic today, and the theological orientation of the author seems to ignore the ecumenical context in which theological dialogue takes place since Vatican II. There appears to be little sensitivity or openness to the plurality of opinion, nuance of perspective and honest diversity which exists in the Catholic Church as part of contemporary society. The tendency to close discussion with papal quotes is strong and a frustrating experience for the reader accustomed to creative learning. A judgmental stance is obvious especially in reference to the "antinomian hippies"! This trait coupled with a legalistic approach will hardly attract those who feel acceptance, though sometimes disagreement, with the personal, sensitive and warm approach of Pope John Paul II. Words about duties and obligations, superficial treatment of human and complex problems, firm statements of social teaching, either-or dictums--all ring hollow to this reviewer, especially when the tone is so unbending and the price is so exaggerated.--Rev. John M. Ballweg; Religious Studies Department; Seton Hall University; South Orange. N.J. 07079.

Job Speaks to Us Today. By John B. Job. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1980. Pp. 128. Paper. $4.25. In this short work the author gives us an overview of the entire book of Job. He does this by presenting thematic studies of several of the more important theological and literary questions inherent in this very difficult book. Overviews of this sort are not easy to do. In recent decades most scholars have been content to explain their overall analyses of biblical books at widely scattered points within verse by verse commentaries. This blending of overview and technical commentary makes modern biblical study very difficult for scholars, students and interested non-professionals alike. One recent attempt to break out of this pattern is the 1978 monograph of David Clines entitled The Theme of the Pentateuch, which,focuses on the literary and theological unity of the entire Pentateuch. ~, Mr. Job’s similar study of themes in the book of Job is by and large very well done. He examines the figure of Satan, the meaning of death for Job, and questions about righteousness, depression and sympathy. His essays on suffering (69-8 I) and the meaning of wisdom (99- I 14) are better than any that I have found to date. The reader should be aware, h.owever, that this overiew is the result of Mr. Job’s considerable skills in several fields. He moves about through logic, philosophy, psychology, systematic theology, exegesis. Book Reviews 319

New Testament parallels and hermeneutics. His own book can at times be hard to follow as he jumps from a literary or theological problem to make remarks applicable to present day Christian life or to current psychological advances, and so forth. In the area of exegesis the author appears to be very cautious in evaluating disputed verse readings. This caution is quite understandable, since current text criticism is moving far away from the speculative changes made in earlier commentaries. The reader should be aware that the writings of E. Dhorme. cited several times by the author, are not as helpful as they once were. I think this study will be very useful to anyone who has tried to wrestle with this profoundly moving section of the Old Testament over a number of years: it need not be restricted only to scholars and teachers.--William T. Miller. S.J.; Department of Theological Studies; St. Louis University: St. Louis MO 63108.

BOOKS RECEIVED

ARGO BOOKS: Letters to the Third Millennium: An Experiment in East-West Communication, by Clinton C. Gardner, pp. xiv. 257, paper, $7.95. ARGUS CCOMMUNICATIONS: Abortion: The Silent Holocaust, by John Powell. S.J., pp. 183. paper, $3.50. AVE MARIA PPRSS: Alone with the Alone: An Eight-day Retreat, by George A. Maloney, S.J., pp. 204, paper, $4.95. An Experience of Celibacy: A Creative Reflection on Intimacy, Loneliness, Sexuality and Commitment, by Keith Clark, O.F.M., pp. 176. paper. $4.95. COSEN BOOKS: Jesus’ World, by Jamic Buckingham, pp. 132, paper, $4.95. CROSSROAD: A Letter from Jesus Christ, by John of Landsberg, pp. 144, cloth, $8.95. A Letter of Private Direction. by The Author of the Cloud of Unknowing, pp. 128, cloth, $8.95. Call to Integration: A New Theology of Religious Life, by Vadakcthala F. Vineeth, pp. 128, paper, $6.95. Concern for the Church, by Karl Rahner, pp. vi, 191, cloth. $12.95. Dictionary of Theology, by Karl Rahner and Herbert Vorgrimler, pp. 541. cloth, $24.50. Once More Astonished: The Parables of Jesus, by Jan Lambrecht, pp. xiv, 245. paper, $9.95. Religion and Pain: The Spiritual Dimensions of Health Care, by Joseph H. Fichter, pp. 143, cloth $9.95. Tales of a Magic Monastery, by Theophane the Monk. pp. 95, paper, $6.96. The Cell of Self-knowledge: Seven Early English Mystical Treatises, by Margery Kempe and Others. pp. 128, cloth, $8.95. The Mirror for Simple Souls, by An Anonymous 13th.Century Mystic, pp. 160, cloth, $9.95. EEt~O~aANS: Kingdoms of the Lord, by David F. Payne, pp. xviii, 310. cloth, $13.95. FORTRESS PRESS: Fiction from Prison: Gathering Up the Past, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. pp. xiv, 210, cloth, $14.95. Jesus, Symbol-Maker for the Kingdom, by Bernard Brandon Scott, pp. 192, cloth, $15.95. Sharing Possessions: Mandate and Symbol of Faith, by Luke T. Johnson. pp. 178, paper. $8.95. The Ethos of the Bible, by Birger Gerhardsson. pp. 160, paper, $8.95. INSTt’rUTE OF JEst.liT SOURCES: Other Apostolates Today: Selected Letters and Addresses-Ill, by Pedro Arrupe, S.J.. pp. xvi. 366. paperbound and sewn: $8.00, clothbound: $9.00. Ir~’rERVARSO’V P~ESS: What Color is Your God? by Columbus Salley and Ronald Behm, pp. 124, paper, $4.50. Furnace of Renewal: A Vision for the Church, by George Mallone, pp. 201. paper, $5.25. God’s Words: Studies of Key Bible Themes, by J.I. Packer, pp. 223, paper. $4.95. Know Your Christian Life, by Sinclair B. Ferguson, pp. xii, 179, paper, $5.95. Love to the Loveless, The Message of Hosea, by Derek Kidner. pp. 142, paper, $4.25. 320 / Review for Religious, March-April, 1982

KTAV PUBI.ISUING HOUSE: The Jew and the Christian Missionary, by Gerald Sigal. pp. xix, 31 I, cloth. $17.50. LANDMARK BOOKS: The Madam, by Celeste Horvath, pp. 280. paper, $5.95. L/~ J~CO PUaI.ISHI~’~ Ircc.: Inside Christian Community, by St. Rosine Hammer! and Bro. Loughlan Sofield, pp. xxiv, 149, cloth, no price. LII"tJRGIeAI. PRESS: The Good News of Suffering, by George W. Kosicki, C.S.B., pp. 87, paper, $1.95. MUt.’CF~’OMA, PRESS: The Trauma of Transparency: A Biblical Approach to Inter-Personal Communi- cation, by Grant Howard, pp. 235, paper. $5.95. ORIels: Following Christ in a Consumer Society: The Spirituality of Cultural Resistance, by John Francis Kavanaugh, pp. xix. 167. paper, $6.95. P~.GRIM PRESS: Converts, Dropouts, Returnees: A Study of Religious Change among Catholics, by Dean R. Hoge, pp. xii, 266, cloth: $14.95. paper, $7.95. The Meaning of Being Human, by Norman Pittenger. pp. ix, 163. paper, $9.95. SEAI~URV PRESS: The Diaconate--A Full and Equal Order, by James Monroe Barnett. pp. xvi, 230, paper, $11.95. TF~OMAS MORE PRESS: The New Enthusiasts and What They Are Doing to the Catholic Church, by James Hitchock, pp. 164, cloth, $9.95. UNIVERSITy OF CALIFORNIA PRESS: A Contemporary Critique of Historical Materialism: vol. I: Power, Property, and the State, by Anthony Giddens, pp. viii. 294, cloth, $24.50, paper. $10.95. Circumstantial Deliveries, by Rodney Needham, pp. xiii, 119, cloth, $12.95. Getting Saved from the Sixties: Moral Meaning in Conversion and Cultural Change, by Robert N. Ballah. pp. xviii. 364. cloth. $19.95. UNiVERSiTY OF CHICAGO PRESS: Ethics from a Theocentric Perspective, vol. I: Theology and Ethics. by James M. Gustafson, pp. xii, 345, cloth, $20.00. UNiVERSiTY OF GEORGIA PRESS: The Promise of American Law: A Theological, Humanistic View of Legal Process. by Milner S. Ball, pp, xii, 209. cloth, $15.00. UNiVERSiTY ON" NOTRE DAME PRESS: Power and Authority in the Catholic Church: Cardinal Cody in Chicago, by Charles W. Dahm, pp~ xviii, 288, cloth,,$16.95. UN’~VERSITY PRESS OF AMERtCA: From Why to Yes: Pain Uncovers the Meaningful Life to a Philoso- pher. by Joseph H. Casey, pp. 108, paper, $7.95. God So Loved the World, by Joseph F. Sica, pp. x, 110, paper, $7.50. Making the Jesuits More Modern, by Thomas Philip Faase, pp. xx, 457, paper. $15.75. INFORMATION FOR SUBSCRIBERS

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