But sanctify the Lord Christ in your hearts, being ready always to
satisfy every one that asketh you a reason of that hope which is in you.
But with modesty and fear, having a good conscience: that whereas they
speak evil of you, they may be ashamed who falsely accuse your good
conversation in Christ. 1Peter 3:15-16
Well, I'm asking. In the face of almost daily reports of one outrage after another both in the local church and in the Vatican itself it is fairly easy for forget why we even bother. Nor do I even have to look outside myself for the signs of sin at work in my life. I go to confession and repeat the same sins I confessed the last time and sometimes it seems as though I am getting nowhere. I do not have to look very far at all... I do not measure up. Is it any wonder that a Church made up of sinners like myself finds itself plagued by the same old scandals and conflicts?
We have heard about the desecration of our sanctuaries but nowhere do we hear about why these places are sacred. Stand at the back of any church in this city and watch people as they go to their pews. People make the oddest assortments of bows, curtsies and half genuflections or nothing at all. Better yet, watch at the back of the church on Good Friday while people do precisely the same thing. Some say it is an act of respect for the church. Many of these people do not know the reason for this simple act of reverence. Nor are we taking any great pains to tell them. Why do I bend my knee in this place and at this time, an act which is painful at my age, when I would do so nowhere else and for no one else?
This is personal. By that I mean that the reason for the hope that is in me is a person, Jesus Christ. He accepted me when no one else would. He loved me when I thought there was not much in me to love. He gave me a home when I had lost mine and was living as an exile in a foreign land. He is the one to whom I bend my knee before the tabernacle as an act of reverence and fealty. I do not do this out of any special feeling for that place or out of respect for any sacred space. I do it because He is there and I belong to Him. This is the reason for the hope that is in me.
I'm still asking....
What is the reason for the hope that is in you?
What is the reason for the hope that is in you?
These places are desecrated because - as I mentioned in earlier posts - the understanding of what a church is has been lost. The ancient Jews understood the sacredness of the Temple. A lack of catechesis has turned an entire generation of nominal Christians into believing that churches are nice architectural structure, museum pieces, places for gigs.
ReplyDeleteI will never forget the time when I attended a Mass for the newly appointed Cardinal Ambrozic. The Mass ended and all hell broke loose! People yelling, shouting - the church was turned into a noisy theatre. The Blessed Sacrament was ignored with copious numbers of congregants casually strolling past the Creator of the Universe.
Churches are desecrated because they have been desacralized in the minds of the beholders. When this happens - I repeat - we enter upon the abomination of desolation.
What is the reason for the hope that is in you?
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