Our Father…

Our Father who art in heaven…. in a hushed whisper those words escape from the lips of a toddler in my home.   Its a moment of beauty beyond words.

It is the tradition in our home to gather each morning for the reading of the scriptures.  We follow the mass readings that the Church puts out.   If there is something one of us notices, sometimes me, sometimes my wife, or my older child, we comment on it.   Then we follow with a prayer. 

Our youngest likes to pray.  But he doesn’t know how to pray.   In child like simplicity he would offer the “Dear Jesus thank you for this food AB”.   Which is his own silly variation on the sound of Amen.

My wife and I discussed it and decided we should help the youngster by teaching him some prayers.   I didn’t have time to find a short one for a tyke before next morning so that morning I started with the Our Father.

Father teach us to pray……

This is what we are now doing.  Instead of reciting in unison we recite with myself speaking the words, then the family repeating, “Our father who art in heaven”   “Our father who art in heaven”, etc.   This is done so that the lad can participate in the recitation as he learns it.

The first morning he didn’t recite.  Now after several days the youngster starts to repeat, but in a whisper.   Today spontaneously the other two family members remained silent and it was just me and my son reciting.    Me speaking, him in a whisper.

In this simple act my toddler will always know the prayer that Christ taught us.  But at the same time it teaches us as well.  It teaches us how the simple recitation of prayer reaches across age, across education level, and indeed across languages were that to be present.   It shows us in a practical way how the faith was spread and maintained across centuries, among the uneducated peasants, the largest portion of the Church, learned and shared with the educated of the Church.    It shows us how the old passed the faith on to the young and likewise shared in its celebration.    Reading, age, etc. is not a requirement for the faith.    The act of passing the faith on in this way in my home shows to me far more clearly than talking about how the faith was shared.

The youngster learns the words, and later the meaning.   Those who can read have benefit of knowledge even when printed material is unavailable.   Those who cannot read or who are just starting to read, in the case of those in my home, learn and permanently retain the Faith.

At the beginning of Lent this year, in addition to fasting and charity,  we started the morning readings, intending to keep it up for all of Lent.    It was me doing this as I was the only one observing Lent.

To our morning ritual I would like to add two more things, to help the children learn and know their faith.    The recitation of some portion of creed or other learning.    I will start with the apostles creed and occasionally some other thing like the beatitudes, etc. then the morning readings, then prayer.

Martyred By Reform

Looking through “The Book of Saints” by Rodney Castleden over the last week I find the following names of interest.

St. Alban : Remains destroyed in the looting of churches in Henry VIII’s days
St. Thomas More : 1535 Martyred in England by the Reformation
St. John Fisher : 1535 Martyred in England by the Reformation
St. Edmund Arrowsmith : 1628 Martyred in England by the Reformation
St. Edmund Campion : 1581 Martyred in England by the Reformation
St. Margaret Clitherow : 1586 Martyred in England for being Catholic

One of the above was listed among the “40 English Martyrs” which list I pasted below from Wikipedia.

Saint John Almond Saint Edmund Arrowsmith Saint Ambrose Barlow Saint John Boste Saint Alexander Briant Saint Edmund Campion Saint Margaret Clitherow Saint Philip Evans Saint Thomas Garnet Saint Edmund Gennings Saint Richard Gwyn Saint John Houghton Saint Philip Howard Saint John Jones

Saint John Kemble Saint Luke Kirby Saint Robert Lawrence Saint David Lewis Saint Anne Line Saint John Lloyd Saint Cuthbert Mayne Saint Henry Morse Saint Nicholas Owen Saint John Payne Saint Polydore Plasden Saint John Plessington Saint Richard Reynolds Saint John Rigby

Saint John Roberts Saint Alban Roe Saint Ralph Sherwin Saint John Southworth Saint Robert Southwell Saint John Stone Saint John Wall Saint Henry Walpole Saint Margaret Ward Saint Augustine Webster Saint Swithun Wells Saint Eustace White

The idea that the reformation was out committing these atrocities isn’t mentioned, it isn’t even known among most of us protestants.   The same sort of nonsense was happening in Germany, Switzerland and the like during the “reformation” over there.   And all were busy looting the Church of all precious metal, destroying libraries, destroying buildings, desecrating the remains of pious people and persecuting good decent Catholic people.    Parishes were being converted from Catholic to Protestant by decree and those who didn’t comply were punished.

Great God in Heaven if the parable of the beam and the mote ever applied its to us as protestants bringing up “atrocities” allegedly done by the Church.

In any case I note these names here for later reference by me.   These are the ones deemed worthy enough of being called saints, the true number of martyrs and confessors is countless.

Beauty In All Things

Even in an oil slick there is beauty. This seen on my visit to a garden today.

Why List Peter First ?

There is an order in the lists of disciples in the gospels.   Judas is always listed last.   And all Christians can freely admit why.   He was intentionally listed last because he betrayed Christ.   The next 10 disciples are listed in varying order from one list to another.   Peter is always listed first, and is called the first.

1 And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every infirmity. 2 The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zeb’edee, and John his brother; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. — Matthew 10:1-4 RSV

Just as there is a reason for Judas to be always listed last there must be a reason for Peter to always be listed first.   What was that reason ?

The protestants I know don’t really have a clear answer for this.   They are unwilling to say that there is no significance to Judas being always listed last but likewise unwilling to admit a reason for Peter to be always listed first.

A while back I asked some why Christ would have changed Simons name to Peter.    Everyone responded with their reasoning to explain away the answer “Blessed are you Simon bar Jonas for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you………………………”.       But not one of them realized, until I pointed it out, that the changing of the name to Peter happened when Christ first met Peter.

I must conclude therefore that as protestants we have no answer to why Christ changed Peters name, and only Peters name.    Likewise we have no answer to why he is always listed first.   We cannot say what it means but we all know what it does not mean.

The answer is clear, we have an answer, its just an answer we cannot accept so we insist it isn’t true.

St. Patrick and King Aongus

I was reading of St. Patrick tonight.   I have been reading the stories of the saints quite a bit lately.   I find them inspirational.   In any case I was reading of Saint Patrick in a book titled Irish Saints by Robert Reilly.

St. Patrick : Photo by Talliskeeton on Flickr.

I particularly enjoyed the following.

South next, to Munster, where at royal Cashel, sometime in the 480’s, King Aongus was received into the faith.  At the baptism of Aongus, Patrick, striking the ground with his pointed staff, accidentally drove it through the foot of the King.  Uncomplaining, Aongus suffered through the rite.  When the apologetic saint asked why he had not called out, Aongus replied, “I thought it was part of the ceremony”. — Irish Saints, Robert Reilly, page 10.

My wife upon hearing this commented immediately that Aongus was a true barbarian.   By that she meant the sort of man who would assume that having ones foot impaled was part of a ceremony and also the sort of man who would endure such a ceremonial impalement without complaint instead of showing weakness etc.

In my reading of Saint Patrick all I can do is admire his greatness.   It goes without saying.   The man, with Gods power, did a great work in Ireland.

Divine Revelation

Only protestants insist that Divine Revelation ceased with the apostles.    And on that point protestants are not unified either as many allow for ongoing revelation.   But all protestants agree that if there happens to be revelation it is not subject to any authority beyond the personal views of how the person receiving it thinks scripture should be interpreted.

The Church both east and west continues to believe that God guides now and all throughout history.   But they also believe that inspiriation must be guided and guarded lest false visions and demonic inspiration corrupt and lead people astray.

Visions of Christ

Sitting in the Lutheran parish I attended today with my family, the epistle reading and subject of the homily was 2 Corinthians.   As Paul was discussed the preacher made the following observation, “Paul was one who experienced Jesus face to face”.

I pondered that for a moment and a light bulb went on in my mind.   Yet another thing that has been hidden in plain sight all these years.

Paul was the first example of Christ making a post ascension apparition to someone.   He did it to convert Paul, to encourage him, and ultimately for the benefit of the Church as a whole.   Paul was not chosen by Christ in his earthly ministry, but he was chosen by Christ later.

After his initial vision of Christ he continued to have visionary experiences.   The reading dealt with the time Paul was caught up into the 3rd heaven.

After his first vision Paul did not teach until he had first been visited by Ananias who healed his blindness and also gave Paul the Holy Spirit.   It was only after this Paul began to preach.   The act of Paul submitting to the Church does not negate the fact his gospel and revelation were from God.   Thus there is no contradiction when he says he received his gospel from no man.

Paul declares to the Corinthians that future revelations they get should not separate them from the body of the Church and must not cause divisions.   The teachings of men or angels must not contradict, they must be in conformity to that which the Church has been taught.   Visionaries themselves are in subjection to the Church.

The reason that this is significant to me is that I have been reading of the various saints lately.    The martyrs, confessors, ascetics and such I have no pause when reading.  But when I read of the visionaries, those seeing Christ, or having other visions do give me pause, particularly when it turns out the Church receives some instruction from these.

Seeing Paul in the light I saw him today, though it wasn’t the focus or purpose of the homily, changes that.    People other than the 12 do in fact have Christ revealed to them, sometimes visibly and for the benefit of the Church.   Yet these visions are themselves subject to the Church to ascertain if they are of God or of the devil, just as the Church oversees all revelation, written, spoken or otherwise.  Over time there have been many men and women who have seen Christ first hand.   Or who have received various visions for various reasons.

St. Hildegard of Bingen

Thus when we see a story such as St. Hildegard of Bingen, and wonder if her visions were of God or not, we can rest assured because the Church approved them.  In fact Hildegard didn’t speak of her visions for many years, other than to a monk and her superior.   The monk, Volmar, first sought permission to transcribe her visions, which he obtained.   Then the transcription was reviewed by the archbishop and theologians and determined to be visions of God.  She was eventually reviewed all the way to the top of the ecclesiastical structure.    Her gift was given to do many things, even to send reproofs to the sitting pope and also to Kings.

It is beautiful and wonderful to realize that the Holy Spirit has never ever ever left the Church.   It has been active from the days of Pentecost to the present day continaully, in various places and times.

A Giant Organism

19	So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
20	built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,
21	in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord;
22	in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit — Ephesians 2:19-22 RSV

This was the epistle reading a few days ago, but I haven’t gotten to blog since then.   The passage is so profound.

As Christians we have become part of an organism, an entity called the Church, the Bride of Christ.  This passage speaks of how the foundation of the Church is the apostles and prophets which have Christ himself as the cornerstone.   As individuals we belong to this organization and collectively the Church is the Temple of God.    Our joining with the collective organization we become part of the place where Gods Spirit dwells.

This then becomes a deeper mystery.    I cannot put it into words but it is profound.

They shall be one as we are one.   I in them and thee in me.   The organism of the Church itself led by the Spirit.

I’m not putting into words correctly what I am trying to say.

Saint Teresa Benedicta Of The Cross

“Without knowing it I had grown up within the barriers of rationalistic prejudices, which now broke down so that the world of faith suddenly rose before my eyes.”  — Saint Teresa Benedicta Of The Cross

“Women Saints”, by Kathleen Jones, p. 32

This quote summarizes very succinctly my life experiences to the present.   Benedicta was a Jewish/Agnostic convert.

I also find the following quote of hers quite profound.

God communicates himself to the spirit rather than to the senses;  the soul is more secure, and makes greater progress in the former, whereas experiences communicated to the senses are normaly very dangerous.  For in that case, the senses would presume to judge spiritual things, whereas they are as ignorant of these as a donkey is of reason. — Saint Teresa Benedicta Of The Cross

“Women Saints”, by Kathleen Jones, p. 32

St. Alban and Henry VIII

St. Alban was one of the earliest known Christian Martyrs in England.   The precise date of his life and martyrdom cannot be firmly established, history having been lost.

St. Alban sheltered a priest in his home who was fleeing the pagan rulers.   He converted after listening to the priest for a while.   When the searchers arrived at his door he greeted them dressed in the clothing of the priest and posing as the priest.   They led him away and he after being pressed to recant refused.   He then made a public profession of his faith.   Eventually his true identity became known and he was executed.   The priest also was trying to prevent his martyrdom but didn’t get there in time but was himself also martyred.

St. Alban was buried on Verulamium Hill England.   Eventually a small church was built there and later a larger one, St. Alban’s Abbey, was built by Offa King of Mercia in 793.   Later in the 1500’s the remains of St. Alban were destroyed by the order of Henry VIII’s.   The property, like most Catholic property, was given to his various Lords and Princes to buy their loyalty.   Many of the buildings were destroyed.   Eventually the Catholic parishoners were able to raise enough money to buy the property back but they were too poor to maintain it.

Just today I was having to listen to how dreadful those rascally Catholics were from a local merchant for having destroyed the remains of someone.   Tonight I read about how the leader of the English split, King Henry VIII himself, was digging up and destroying the remains of men as honorable as St. Alban.    There is so much history of violence by protestants against the Church that it is staggering yet for some reason its all unknown to protestants and they only know of violence in the other direction.   That can only be because of selective presentation of history done so intentionally by some and then repeated ignorantly by others.

Also of interest tonight was the surprise visit by the local Catholic parish priest to my home.   The reasons behind the visit do not matter, it was positive.   Still I was quite surprised to see him.    We invited him to sit with us and chatted a bit.   He prayed with us, placed his hands on the heads of my children in blessing, and left.    I suppose I should follow up with him later.   Maybe one day I will become Catholic.