parable of profiling
“My brethren, show no partiality as you hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.”
A man with fair skin and in fine clothing walks into your neighborhood and you pay attention saying, “please come into my home, welcome to the neighborhood!”
Another man with dark skin and wearing a hoodie also walks in and you call the police reporting suspicious Skittles, ghastly grilling, pernicious presence and confront him: “I am standing my ground.”
“Have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brethren. Has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which he has promised to those who love him?”
(Source: biblegateway.com)
lament: for the children
Trigger Warning: Sexual Abuse
Two days ago, the Grand Jury report on sexual abuse across six Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania was released. The allegations are horrifying and disgusting. In my own Diocese (of Pittsburgh), there were 99 priests accused of child sex abuse over the past 70 years. Even though most of the clergy abuse occurred 30 or more years ago (and most of these clergy are now deceased), that such abuse was rampant is disheartening. Many policies have changed over the past 30 years, but we must continue to seek systematic changes, that such behavior is never permitted and justice swiftly executed, especially among those who are gifted Holy Orders.
As a Catholic, I must listen and lament, especially for those who were abused. For any clergy, now is not the time to be fearful, but to respond in humility and in love.
catholic ethic
One of the great wellsprings of the Church is it’s social teaching. The Holy Spirit continues to guide and challenge us. How can it be that something that was once permissible is no longer? But is this not a sign that we as humanity have grown? The Church never stops growing more fully into the Bride of Christ, and our doctrine reflects (and does not contradict) this reality.
In the Catechism, it is now explicit: the death penalty is no longer a permissible option.
Recourse to the death penalty on the part of legitimate authority, following a fair trial, was long considered an appropriate response to the gravity of certain crimes and an acceptable, albeit extreme, means of safeguarding the common good.
Today, however, there is an increasing awareness that the dignity of the person is not lost even after the commission of very serious crimes. In addition, a new understanding has emerged of the significance of penal sanctions imposed by the state. Lastly, more effective systems of detention have been developed, which ensure the due protection of citizens but, at the same time, do not definitively deprive the guilty of the possibility of redemption.
Consequently, the church teaches, in the light of the Gospel, that “the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person”, and she works with determination for its abolition worldwide.
So I rejoice, hope for, and will continue to support the abolition of the death penalty. I am so thankful for the consistent ethic of life which continues to unfold.
Yet, at the same time I mourn at the depth of sexual abuse that has permeated the Church. Justice must be pursued at all ends and broken systems must be shifted. How can we fight for life that is a shell of dignity? We must acknowledge how we have gone wrong, to seek forgiveness and make amends, and allow for transparency in the processes. There will be those who seek to harm others, but those who harm must be swiftly removed from positions of power and authority. Those who are harmed must be listened to, believed, supported. So we must continue to examine, listen to the Spirit, and change.
antwon rose
I AM NOT WHAT YOU THINK!
I am confused and afraid
I wonder what path I will take
I hear that there’s only two ways out
I see mothers bury their sons
I want my mom to never feel that pain
I am confused and afraidI pretend all is fine
I feel like I’m suffocating
I touch nothing so I believe all is fine
I worry that it isn’t though
I cry no more
I am confused and afraidI understand people believe I’m just a statistic
I say to them I’m different
I dream of life getting easier
I try my best to make my dream true
I hope that it does
I am confused and afraid
It was only a matter of time right? How could my city be left untouched by wanton violence against the black body?
Guilty until proven innocent.
Threat until declared dead.
rose garden: thorns and flowers
sweet aroma of life
sometimes bloody, always beautifulbullets and stats trample
wanton destruction
buried seeds of pain, tears, fearyet antwon rose
I pray for you brother.
eugenical conclusions
We can’t let you be in our country!
You are illegal. Even if it takes us taking away your babies, splitting up your family, what would happen if we showed mercy? There is hope, faith, and love, but the greatest of these is the law. You are taking all the jobs that we weren’t doing, paying the taxes that we benefit from, building up the communities that we’ve abandoned. There isn’t enough at this American table for you. All lives matter; but some lives matter more than others.
We can’t let you abuse SNAP and food stamps!
You can’t feed your family because you were irresponsible, you should have had less kids. Even though you already work hard or can’t find work where you live, we want you to remember that one strike and you’re out. Maybe if you stopped having so much sex outside of marriage, actually had multiple parents, or just had a couple of abortions you’d be better off.
We can’t pay you more than minimum wage!
You can’t afford an apartment because you are too lazy, you should have worked harder and gotten a better job. Even though there isn’t enough affordable housing, or you would have to spend more than 30% of your income, or work 3 jobs, it’s obviously your fault. Just think about all the corporations that won’t be able to make a killing if we pay you more. Corporations are people too. Maybe you should consider assisted suicide as you are a drain on society’s resources.
We can’t let you have access to adequate healthcare!
You can’t cover your pre-existing condition? Well who’s fault is that you were born with a disability, got cancer, or have been pregnant? It’s not ours. Are we our brother’s keeper? This is just natural selection and your life is obviously not worth living.
out of words
We separate children from their parents.
We keep children and families from food access.
We are pro-family! We are pro-life!
Lord, I lack words to describe my anger, frustration, tiredness of the hypocrisy of American Christianity. How empty it is the preach about the hope of new life from which we exclude ourselves.
Where are you Jesus?
Surely not in the sojourner, the refugee.
redlined grace: new racism
Challenged, Frustrated, Misguided Men:
- Mark Anthony Conditt
- Nikloas Cruz
- Stephen Paddock
- Dylann Roof
- Larry McQuilliams
- James Holmes
Dangerous, Criminal, Thug, Threat:
- Trayvon Martin
- Tamir Rice
- John Crawford
- Michael Brown
- Philando Castille
- Alton Sterling
- Stephon Clark
- Brennan Walker
(Source: theroot.com)
the price of justice
America is trillions of dollars in debt. And I’m not simply talking about financially, but spiritually.
For how long have American companies built empires of exploitation? From humans to the environment, all corners of creation have been destroyed out of a drive for consumption. Labor is simply a cost to bring down to increase growth.
America has not yet paid the price for justice. Every day, it is taking a payday loan on the lives of men and women of color. And it has exacted a toll on those painted white – no one has been exempt from the colonization of the soul.
That house? Built by undocumented and immigrant hands.
The railroads? Laid with the blood of the Chinese laborers.
The culture? Ex-nihilo as black bodies claimed their birthright.
This land? Crafted with the mangled massacres of indigenous.
Every step forward was one borne on the backs of those oppressed; concession by those in power was never reconciliatory – it was always reluctance.
What then is freedom? There is no option for declaration of moral bankruptcy simply to reset the debt clock. It is grace to build the Kingdom; to turn away from the former ways and start walking towards shalom. It is grace to begin paving and paying the way forward.
mlk 50
You dishonor the movement and a prophet if you just remember the prophet without having a revival of the movement he stood for.
- Reverend Dr. William J. Barber II
Dr. King was a martyr for his faith and vision. So often he has been infantilized among white Christians with nostalgic vigor. “Why don’t more black people act like him?” “Where is the peaceful non-violent resistance?” Even I once echoed these same sentiments. But he forcefully disrupted the negative peace in society which sought to turn a blind eye to inequality. He shut down businesses, roads, jails. He dared to believe in this radical dogma of humanity: that all are created in the image of God. He understood that injustice damaged not only the victims, but the perpetuators, and sought to restore that common humanity to all.
Fifty years ago, Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated on the eve of a truly historic and prophetic moment: arguing for economic justice in the face of a technological revolution. This Poor People’s Campaign was for guaranteed work, guaranteed income, and guaranteed housing for all poor people of all ethnic backgrounds. This prophetic vision stands ever more true today – as humanity we are intimately bound together on a shared home with finite resources with every growing inequality of opportunity.
As the US Bishops have stated: “The needs of the poor take priority over the desires of the rich; the rights of workers over the maximization of profits; the preservation of the environment over uncontrolled industrial expansion; the production to meet social needs over production for military purposes.”
So the fight continues. If you believed that Dr. King preached the gospel, the time is now to act – join the revival of the Poor People’s Campaign. If you disagree with his vision now, you know where you would have stood fifty years ago: a road block against the moral arc towards justice.
liturgy of the gun
hymn:
bullet into flesh, we beseech thee
rain down lead upon our enemy
your most holy originator
who can deny your power?
we are helpless in your hold
our children to you we’ve sold
blood and tears do flow
we pray for victims though
may you accept their sacrifice
for the glory of your holy frame
prayer:
our guns, who art in our arms
blessed be thy aim
thy destruction reign, thy will be done
everywhere as in Columbine, Sandy Hook, Miami, Las Vegas, Parkland
give us this day our ammunition
empower us, as we sacrifice our children to you
and lead us not into defeat,
but deliver us from everlasting peace.