Monday, July 16, 2012

NEW EVANGELIZATION - Part IX

Pope Benedict initiated the "New Evangelization" that leads to "Porta Fidei" because as Cardinal Ratzinger and part of the 'International Theological Commission' advising Vatican II  he discovered that there was something wrong with the Evangelization used for the last 200 years.  He suspects it is even as far as 600 years ago. The error seems to have appeared sometime after the Council of Trent. Like all errors and defects it became more pronounced around the 1800, and it has gone completely berserk this century 2011. As Pope he had made this issue the forefront of his Pontificate and the program for the Bishop's Synod on October 2012. But as the Schema for this Synod was published a month ago it looks like the Bishop's schema contain the  same error that Pope Benedict is trying to correct.

Maybe the authors of the schema for the Bishop's Synod do not mean what was published. Maybe they mean exactly what the Pope  is saying. Maybe the Bishop's Synod and the Pope's schema will coincide eventually. Maybe the Pope will completely control the Synod and eventually come out with what he wants to say. But at this moment the two schemas do not match. And priests like me who wants to prepare the faithful for the year of Faith are confused.

There are  a thousand problems destroying the world today; from economic crisis, to abortion, to civil wars, to hunger, to same sex marriages, to priests guilty of pedophilia, to danger of a nuclear war, to floodings and tsunamis, to super volcanoes to etc. etc... But the worst problem in the world today is the LACK OF FAITH because the consequence, eternal damnation, is beyond what man can understand. The Holy Father had given light attention to the other problems and had concentrated his efforts to the lack of faith and the necessity for a proper Evangelization that will lead to True Faith.

Pope Benedict's schema in his "New Evangelization" that leads to "Porta fidei" is  back to basics. He, himself, mentioned that this schema is the traditional, classical way of Evangelization. It is what was used by the Apostles, the Fathers of the Church and by the Catholic Church before something went wrong after the Council of Trent. The Pope's schema  even coincides with the spirituality of the Liturgical Calendar of the Church. Compared to the schema prepared for the Bishop's Synod, the Pope's schema is simpler, clearer and easier to explain just like the Liturgy of the Sunday Masses.

Let me repeat Pope Benedict's schema as he explained it in his document "New Evangelization" delivered in New York for catechists. But this time using the Gospel of the feasts of Sts. Peter and Paul. See how simple it is.

Christ was talking to His apostles and asked them who people say He was. Christ receives two answers. One answer came from the ordinary people, which was wrong but better than the answer of the Pharisees. The other answer came from St. Peter answering for all the apostles. Note the great difference between the two answers. 

The first answer coming from the common people states that Christ was a prophet, probably Jeremiah, probably Isaiah which would  be the same answer from any Old Testament Jew. Christ described this first answer as coming from flesh and blood, i.e. from human beings, like teachers, professors, doctors of the law, etc. It was NOT Christ nor His Father who taught the common people this answer. This first answer can be naturally and humanly learned as all things in the OLD Testament. It can be learned from human teachers that's why the ordinary people knew this. This is OLD Testament reply and this natural knowledge is not from Faith.

The second answer did not come from the common people because the common people cannot learn this from human teachers i.e. from teachers of flesh and blood. St. Peter, speaking on behalf of the apostles answered. "You are the Son of the living God." And Christ said:  "Blessed are you Bar Jona because neither flesh nor blood had revealed this to you but My Father in Heaven. So this knowledge came from the Father in Heaven and not from human teachers or professors on earth. The answer was not natural nor from flesh and blood. It is from God. This is supernatural knowledge that comes from Faith that goes hand in hand with contemplation. St. Peter have reached the contemplative life so it is the Father in Heaven who is now teaching him. Christ had lead St. Peter to contemplation. Now the Father is teaching him.

The first answer of the common people was learned in a school-room situation and not through contemplation. The second answer was learned not through a school-room situation but in an infused manner and this is through contemplation.

The first answer of the common people was taught by flesh and blood, by human teachers, professors and doctors of the law.  The second answer came from a contemplative, raised up by Jesus Christ to contemplation and now being taught by the Father.

In the first case, the teachers were human and the pupils had remained in the human level. In the second case the teacher, Jesus Christ, was a contemplative and the pupils were raised up to the contemplative level.

So essentially, the "New Evangelization" consists not in teaching that Jesus is the Son of the Living God and other truths....but in teaching the soul to rise up to the level of contemplation like St. Peter so that God the Father can teach them that Jesus is the Son of the living God and mean it.

Pope Benedict in his schema gave the four steps that lead to contemplation. The commission preparing for the Bishop's Synod skipped the first two steps,  repentance or conversion AND entry into the Catholic Church,  thus making it impossible for anyone to reach faith. This error is in addition to the fact that most priests had just studied theology from flesh and blood in the seminaries and as such are not really taught by the Father in Heaven.  On these two counts  it would be impossible for anyone to reach the "Door of Faith." 

Again, the defect  that the Pope is correcting is the fact that souls are being taught by teachers with flesh and blood that Jesus is the Son of the Living God. This is both in the seminaries and in the pulpit. No! Evangelization is teaching seminarians and the faithful to become contemplatives..... so that the Father in Heaven can teach them that Jesus is the Son of the Living God and other Catholic truths.  All supernatural, Catholic Truths can only be taught by the Father in Heaven to contemplatives.

Note, therefore, how the Holy Father reminded families to hear a good Mass together. Why? Because in the first part of the Mass they learn truths  from flesh and  blood. In the second part of the Mass they remain silent to learn truths from the Father in Heaven. It is for this same reason that Pope Benedict said that theology should be learned in prayer kneeling down before the Blessed Sacrament.

Summarizing, Jesus Christ is a contemplative who lead the apostles through the four steps of  a.)conversion,  b.)entrance into the kingdom of God,  c.)union with Jesus Christ,  d.) union with the Holy Spirit  thus leading them to contemplation and eternal life. Having become contemplatives the Father in Heaven can now teach the apostles directly the truths of the Catholic Church.  In the "new Evangelization" we must do exactly what Christ did......be contemplatives that we may learn from the Father in Heaven .........and then teach others how to be contemplatives so that they in turn may learn from the Father in Heaven.




Sunday, July 01, 2012

NEW EVANGELIZATION Part VIII

Pope Benedict in his "New Evangelization" that leads to the 'door of Faith' had given us the steps leading to that goal in summary form and in the right order as: 1.) conversion,  2.) the kingdom of God,  3.) Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit  and 4.) Eternal Life. In other words, we must live a life completely converted away from sin.  This would dispose us to receive the grace of God that will bring us within the kingdom of God which is the Catholic Church here on earth. With that grace we would first be united to the created soul of the Church which consists in Faith in Jesus Christ and as we progress in the spiritual life we would eventually be united to the uncreated soul of the Church which is the Holy Spirit. The consequence of all these is that we would merit eternal life.

There is nothing new in these steps. This is the Catholic teaching on how to attain eternal life. It is complete and in the right order though in summary form. These are also the lessons we learn from the Apostolic Commission Christ gave the Apostles before His Ascension. These are also the lessons we learn from the Liturgical season of the Church though the Liturgy used slightly different terms:  Life of Repentance is used instead of conversion taught during Advent and Lent,  Faith is used instead of entrance to the Kingdom of God and union with Jesus Christ. Hope is used for Easter. And during the season of Pentecost we learn union with the Holy Spirit the uncreated soul of the Church.  The feast of Christ the King summarizes the  attainment of eternal life.

This is also the description used by the Fathers and Doctors of the Church like St. Augustine and St. Thomas of Aquinas. And this is what the Magisterium had been teaching all these centuries. This basic lesson is what Pope Benedict wants all Bishops and priest to review with all the faithful this "Year of Faith" using the 'New Evangelization"..... what Scriptures, the Fathers and the Magisterium had been teaching.

A schema had  been prepared on this for the Bishop's Synod in Rome on the anniversary of Vatican II and this had been published a few weeks ago. Let us compare this schema prepared for the Bishop's Synod with the schema presented by Pope Benedict.

Observe that the schema for the Bishop's Synod skipped the first two steps of Pope Benedict's outline.The Pope's first step, Conversion and second step, entrance into the Catholic Church were omitted. The Bishop Synod's schema begins with Pope Benedict's  3rd step which is Faith, i.e. personal encounter with the humanity of Christ, the created soul of the Catholic Church. The Synod's first chapter is entitled "Jesus Christ, the Good News of God to humanity." The title and contents of this Chapter 1 describes the theological virtue of Faith. The description is similar to the Holy Father's description of stage No. 3 in his 'New Evangelization.'

But without conversion and entrance into the Catholic Church it is impossible to attain the supernatural virtue of Faith, and it is even more impossible to attain Charity. The schema for the Bishop's Synod assumes that the Bishops and priests have been converted from their sinful life, had entered the Catholic Church, and have received graces that will make them merit the supernatural  virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity.   The Holy Father is not working on this assumption shown  by his continuous repetition that all priests should be contemplatives.



We have just celebrated the feast of St. Peter and St. Paul. The Gospel clearly states that Peter's knowledge about Christ did not come from man but from the Father in Heaven. For Evangelization the preacher should be a contemplative, in this case Jesus Christ. And the people must be Evangelized to become contemplatives so that they, too, may recognize Christ not from men but from the Father. This is why the Pope had been repeating the need for contemplation. The preacher must be a contemplative and the listeners must be taught to be contemplative...... that in short is the "New Evangelization."

If we note the schema of the Bishop's Synod, the Bishops around the world are being asked for their ideas on how to Evangelize in this our times. They are not being asked how Christ would want them to Evangelize. They are being asked  'what men says,' not what God is saying. And so Chapter 1 of the schema for the Bishop's Synod is defective because it is asking what men-bishops are thinking on how to encounter Christ. "Not flesh and blood had taught you this. But My Father in heaven." The "New Evangelization" consists in Contemplative Bishops and priest teaching the lay to become contemplatives so that they in turn may be taught by the Father in Heaven.

Without Pope Benedict's step 1, conversion, no one can be Evangelized. Much more without Pope Benedict's step 1 and step 2.  Chapter 1, 2, 3 and 4 in the Bishop Synod's schema deals with acts of evangelization which the Evangelizer cannot do without themselves undergoing conversion and entrance into the Catholic Church. . Even if the evangelist is a contemplative and even a mystic if they follow the Synod's schema they will not be able to evangelize either because their listeners would not be able to build their Faith on nothing or if they are not contemplatives they would not be able to explain the truths properly. Faith can only be given to those who have been completely converted from their sinful life and have the grace that will make them merit the theological virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity.

Let us summarize this observation using the Gospel of St. Peter and Paul. Christ was a contemplative and He taught the apostles, like Peter, to be contemplatives. Peter was not a contemplative at the beginning. He became a contemplative in that Gospel when Christ said: "Flesh and Blood had not explained this to you but my heavenly Father.  That is the "New Evangelization"....the process by which a contemplative (Christ) leads another soul (St. Peter) to contemplation. When one becomes a contemplative then it is God who teaches that soul the truths of the Catholic Church. The "New Evangelization", therefore, is a process wherein a contemplative leads another soul to  contemplation. The contemplative does not teach the truths to the other person. The contemplative teaches the other person to be contemplative. And it is God, not flesh and blood, who teaches the contemplative the truths of the Catholic Faith.

The problems is that most priests are taught by 'flesh and blood' and sometimes just by papers and books in the seminaries or theological lecture halls. . This is not the way to evangelize evangelizers.  So they in turn  cannot teach others to be contemplatives to be taught by God. They end up knowing nothing of the teachings of Christ. Pope Benedict's 'New Evangelization' consists in contemplatives (i.e. those who have undergone the four steps he had enumerated in his treatise on the "New Evangelization") teaching and leding  others to be contemplatives wherewith they learn the teachings of Christ directly from God.......and not from flesh and blood.

The schema prepared for the Bishop's Synod heavily depends on Evangelizing the unenvagelized Catholics towards the 'door of faith' by a schema made by flesh and blood........and not by the Father in Heaven.