Jesus of Nazareth: Part 2

(cross-posted from Chez VH)

I am so thrilled to be in the process of reading the Holy Father's new book, Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week from the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection. The book is published by Ignatius Press and will be released on Thursday, March 10th.

I loved the first book, Jesus of Nazareth: From the Baptism in the Jordan to the Transfiguration, which I reviewed on Love2learn.net. I led a discussion group on the book with some homeschooled teens that proceeded slowly through the book over the course of many months. I wrote a number of blog posts about the book and the discussion on my old blog. We also own the first book on audio, purchased especially for my teenage son, who plugs through complex material rather well when it's in audio format. I like to keep this audio on my iPod and re-listen to chapters here and there. It's that good. (Note: The second volume is also being released in an audio edition.)

I want to make very clear that the teens in my group and I as their leader all got a lot out of the book, but didn't pretend, or even really attempt, to understand everything in the book. We studied one chapter per week and tended to focus on the additional significance and meaning that Pope Benedict brought out of each of the Gospel stories. There were some tough vocabulary words here and there, but the process of understanding became easier as we encountered the words multiple times (words like eschatology) and were also aided by a very handy glossary in back (this second book also includes a glossary).

I just received my soft-review-copy of this new book yesterday, so I've just made it to the first segment that I'm permitted to talk about before the release of the book: Chapter 3, Section 4 on "the Mystery of the Betrayer" (in the midst of a chapter on the Last Supper). There are two things that caught my eye in this segment that I thought I'd share here. The first is that the pope interprets Jesus' words regarding his betrayer as something that also applies to some in the Church in the future.

So the psalm verse casts a prophetic shadow over the Church of the evangelist's own day, in which the Eucharist was celebrated, and indeed over the Church of  all times: Judas' betrayal was not the last breach of fidelity that Jesus would suffer. "Even my bosom friend, in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me' (Ps 41:9). The breach of friendship extends into the sacramental community of the Church, where people continue to take 'his bread' and to betray him.

Jesus' agony, his struggle against death, continues until the end of the world, as Blaise Paschal said on the basis of similar considerations. We could also put it the other way around: at this hour, Jesus took upon himself the betrayal of all ages, the pain caused by betrayal in every era, and he endured the anguish of history to the bitter end.

I'm always amazed at how reading Pope Benedict's writings (both before and after he became pope) challenge me - not only in forcing me to put in the effort to understanding, but also, in a more philosophical way, to expand the way I look at my faith and at the world through the lens of my faith.
The second piece that struck me is the concept of Judas' second tragedy and the idea of a wrong kind of remorse:

His second tragedy - after the betrayal - is that he can no longer believe in forgiveness. His remorse turns into despair. Now he sees only himself and his darkness; he no longer sees the light of Jesus, which can illumine and overcome the darkness. He shows us the wrong type of remorse: the type that is unable to hope, that sees only its own darkness, the type that is destructive and in no way authentic. Genuine remorse is marked by the certainty of hope born of faith in the superior power of the light that was made flesh in Jesus.

Powerful stuff! I think both of these passages help illustrate how much we should look on the Gospels, and an illuminative study of the Gospels, as something comprehensively relevant to our lives today.

Advent Quote of the Day 15

What is Advent? Many answers can be given. We can grumble and say that it is nothing but a pretext for hectic activity and commercialism, prettified with sentimental cliches in which people stopped believing ages ago. In many cases this may be true, but it is not the whole picture.

We can say the reverse, that Advent is a time when, in the midst of an unbelieving world, something of the luminous quality of this lost faith is still perceptible, like a visual echo. Just as stars are visible long after they have become extinct, since their erstwhile light is still on its way to us, so this mystery frequently offers some warmth and hope even to those who are no longer able to believe in it.

We can also say that Advent is a time when a kindness that is otherwise almost entirely forgotten is mobilized; namely, the willingness to think of others and give them a token of kindness. Finally we can say that Advent is a time when old customs live again, for instance, in the singing of carols which takes place all over the country. In the melodies and the words of these carols, something of the simplicity, imagination and glad strength of the faith of our forefathers makes itself heard in our age, bringing consolation and encouraging us perhaps to have another go at that faith which could make people so glad in such hard times.

This latter kind of experience of Advent brings us quite close to what the Christian tradition has in mind with this season. It has expressed its view of Advent in the bible texts which it took as the season's signposts. I will mention just one of them, a few verses from Paul's letter to the Christians in Rome. There he says, '...it is full time now for you to wake from sleep... the night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light, let us conduct ourselves becomingly as in the day, not in revelling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarrelling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ...' So Advent means getting up, being awake, emerging out of sleep and darkness.

- Cardinal Ratzinger, Seek That Which is Above

Advent Quote of the Day 14

To have Christian hope means to know about evil and yet to go to meet the future with confidence. The core of faith rests upon accepting being loved by God, and therefore to believe is to say Yes, not only to him, but to creation, to creatures, above all, to men, to try to see the image of God in each person and thereby to become a lover. That’s not easy, but the basic Yes, the conviction that God has created men, that he stands behind them, that they aren’t simply negative, gives love a reference point that enables it to ground hope on the basis of faith. - Cardinal Ratzinger, Salt of the Earth

Advent Quote of the Day 8

We can try to limit suffering, to fight against it, but we cannot eliminate it. It is when we attempt to avoid suffering by withdrawing from anything that might involve hurt, when we try to spare ourselves the effort and pain of pursuing truth, love, and goodness, that we drift into a life of emptiness, in which there may be almost no pain, but the dark sensation of meaninglessness and abandonment is all the greater. It is not by sidestepping or fleeing from suffering that we are healed, but rather by our capacity for accepting it, maturing through it and finding meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love.

- Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi

Advent Quote of the Day 5

The Christian faith brings us exactly that consolation, that God is so great that he can become small. And that is actually for me the unexpected and previously inconceivable greatness of God, that he is able to bow down so low. That he himself really enters into a man, no longer merely disguises himself in him so that he can later put him aside and put on another garment, but that he becomes this man. It is just in this that we actually see the truly infinite nature of God, for this is more powerful, more inconceivable than anything else, and at the same time more saving.

- Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, God and the World: A Conversation with Peter Seewald

Advent Quote of the Day 2

Man's creaturely condition sets the standard for his activity in the world. However, creation sets in motion a story of love and freedom. This entails a risk: "As the arena of love [the world] is also the playground of freedom and also incurs the risk of evil." Man is created with freedom, which implies that he is capable of sinning. At the very heart of sin is the refusal to accept one's creatureliness, and the standards and limitations implicit in it...

[Those] who consider dependence on the highest love as slavery and who try to deny the truth about themselves, which is their creatureliness, do not free themselves; they destroy truth and love. They do not make themselves gods, which in fact they cannot do, but rather caricatures, pseudo-gods, slaves of their own abilities, which then drag them down...

Jesus' obedience, which is the standard for creatureliness, is the context for our freedom. Dependence on God, which creatureliness implies, is not an imposition, but the condition for true freedom and true joy.


- Msgr. Joseph Murphy, Christ Our Joy: The Theological Vision of Pope Benedict XVI

Advent Quote of the Day

When we reflect on such things, we shall simply no longer be able to divide history into ages of salvation and of iniquity. If we then extend our vision and look at what Christians (that is, those people we call 'redeemed') achieved in the world by way of iniquity and devastation, in our own century and the previous centuries, then we will be equally incapable of dividing the peoples of the world into those who are saved and those who are not. If we are honest, we will no longer be able to paint things black and white, dividing up both history and maps into zones of salvation and iniquity. History as a whole, and mankind as a whole, will appear to us rather as a mass of gray, in which time and again there appear flickers of that goodness which can never quite be extinguished, in which, time and again, men set out toward something better, but in which also, time and again, collapses occur into all the horrors of evil.

Yet when we reflect like this, it becomes plain that Advent is not (as might perhaps have been said in earlier ages) a sacred game of the liturgy, in which, so to speak, it leads us once more along the paths of the past, gives us once more a vivid picture of the way things once were, so that we may all the more joyfully and happily enjoy today's salvation. We should have to admit, rather, that Advent is not just a matter of remembrance and playing at what is past - Advent is our present, our reality: the Church is not just playing at something here; rather, she is referring us to something that also represents the reality of our Christian life. It is through the meaning of the season of Advent in the Church's year that she revives our awareness of this. She should make us face these facts, and make us admit the extend of being unredeemed, which is not something that lay over the world at one time, and perhaps somewhere still does, but is a fact in our own lives and in the midst of the Church.

Cardinal Ratzinger, What it Means to be a Christian (a book of Advent sermons)

Do you know Pope Benedict?

More about this video...

Ana's Picture Book of the Week

Max and Benedict, a Bird's Eye View of the Pope's Daily Life, by Jeanne Perego, illustrated by Donata Dal Molin Casagrande, 2009 Ignatius Press, 52 pages.

Who says picture books are for kids? Everyone in our house enjoys what I bring from the weekly trips to the library. Our 17 yr old son is enjoying this volume as I write this, and his comments include

...the illustrations have such a nice feeling to them

...the author seems to really know what she is talking about

... very insightful!

... the pope plays piano? I didn't know that!

... I like the listing of other birds' behavior around the Vatican

...a cheerful read!

Need say anymore?

This post doubles as a Pope St Nicholas V post as I have requested this book to be purchased by our library system. It was a wonderful feeling each time the library purchases our own suggestions. Give it a try!

Quote of the Day: Pope Benedict XVI on Saint Paul

Our catechism discussion group is reading and discussing Pope Benedict's book on St. Paul right now. Here's an interesting quote on St. Paul's conversion:

This turning point in his life, this transformation of his whole being was not the fruit of a psychological process, of a maturation or intellectual and moral development. Rather it came from the outside: it was the fruit, not of his thought, but of his encounter with Jesus Christ. In this sense it was not simply a conversion, a development of his "ego", but rather a death and a resurrection for Paul himself. One existence died, and another, new one was born with the Risen Christ. There is no other way in which to explain this renewal of Paul. None of the psychological analyses can clarify or solve the problem. This event alone, this powerful encounter with Christ, is the key to understanding what had happened: death and resurrection, renewal by the One who had shown himself and had spoken to him. In this deeper sense we can and we must speak of conversion. This encounter is a real renewal that changed all his parameters. Now he could say that what had been essential and fundamental for him earlier had become "refuse" for him; it was no longer "gain" but loss, because henceforth the only thing that counted for him was life in Christ.

Nevertheless we must not think that Paul was thus closed in a blind event. The contrary is true, because the Risen Christ is the light of truth, the light of God himself. This expanded his heart and made it open to all. At this moment he did not lose all that was good and true in his life, in his heritage, but he understood wisdom, truth, the depth of the Law and of the prophets in a new way and in a new way made them his own. At the same time, his reasoning was open to pagan wisdom. Being open to Christ with all his heart, he had become capable of making himself everything to everyone. Thus he could truly be the Apostle to the Gentiles.

Quote of the Day: Making Adjustments

It may surprise today's reader to learn that the Roman Catechism in the sixteenth century was fully aware of the problem of catechetical methodology. It remarks that a lot depends on whether the instructor teaches something in one way or another. Therefore one must carefully study the age, intellectual ability, way of life, and social situation of the listeners, so as really to become all things to all men. The catechist must know who needs milk and who eats solid food, and he should adapt his teaching to the ability of the listeners to absorb it. The biggest surprise for us, however, may be the fact that this catechism allows the catechist much more freedom than contemporary catechetics, generally speaking, is inclined to do. Indeed, it leaves to the instructor to determine the sequence of topics in his catechesis, depending on the persons being instructed and time constraints - assuming, of course, that the catechist himself is personally dedicated and lives a life based on an ongoing meditation upon his material and that he keeps in view the four principal divisions of catechesis and coordinates his own plan with them...In other words, this means that it makes available to the catechist the indispensable basic divisions of catechesis and their particular contents, but it does not relieve him of the responsibility to seek the appropriate way of communicating them in a given situation. (Cardinal Ratzinger - Handing on the Faith in an Age of Disbelief)

God and the World by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

I'm really enjoying this second book in a serious of interviews that Pope Benedict XVI had with Peter Seewald while he was still Cardinal Ratzinger. This one was written in 2002 and has a rather personal tone in answering questions about what sort of relationship we should have with God and how He moves in our lives and in our world.

Here's a sample:

Is there some particular language that God uses sometimes to say to us, in quite a concrete way, "Yes, do that." Or, again: "Hold on, there - last warning! Just leave it alone!"

God speaks quietly. But he gives us all kinds of signs. In retrospect, especially, we can see that he has given us a little nudge through a friend, through a book, or through what we see as a failure - even through "accidents". Life is actually full of these silent indications. If I remain alert, then slowly they piece together a consistent whole, and I begin to feel how God is guiding me.

When you yourself talk with God, is that something that has become as easy and obvious as making a phone call?

In some respects one can make the comparison. I know that he is always there. And he knows in any case who I am and what I am. Which is all the more reason for me to feel the need to call on him, to share my feelings with him, to talk with him. With him I can exchange views on the simplest and most intimate things, as well as on those that are weightiest and of great moment. It seems, somehow, normal for me to have occasion to talk to him all the time in everyday life.

On these occasions, does God always behave respectfully, or does he let you see he has a sense of humor?

I believe he has a great sense of humor. Sometimes he gives you something like a nudge and says, Don't take yourself so seriously! Humor is in fact an essential element in the mirth of creation. We can see how, in many matters in our lives, God wants to prod us into taking things a bit more lightly; to see the funny side of it; to get down off our pedestal and not to forget our sense of fun.

It's a hefty book, but very approachable, particularly since the interview style divides the text into nice manageable chunks (generally one or two paragraphs each).

Anyway, Ignatius Press is having a huge clearance sale through the end of the month (while supplies last) that include a number of the Holy Father's books for 50-75% off. God and the World, normally a $20 book, is just $5! Check out their website here: http://www.ignatius.com/ and click on "Sale Items" near the top of the page.

Love2learn Moments #48: One Who Has Hope Lives Differently

As Catholics, our lives and priorities will be ordered in a different way than if we had no faith. This is a defining difference when it comes to education because, not only does it give a good example to our children, but it also prepares us to make everyday decisions about our children's education.

Here's what our Holy Father had to say in his encyclical on hope:

Only when the future is certain as a positive reality does it become possible to live the present as well. So now we can say: Christianity was not only "good news" - the communication of a hitherto unknown content. In our language we would say: the Christian message was not only "informative" but "performative." That means: the Gospel is not merely a communication of things that can be known - it is one that makes things happen and is life-changing. The dark door of time, of the future, has been thrown open. The one who has hope lives differently; the one who hopes has been granted the gift of a new life.

Love2learn Moments #47: Suffering and Hope

It's natural to want to avoid pain, but there's a good reason why we say, "No pain, no gain." In the same way that we don't ban bicycles because children might get hurt, we don't shelter ourselves from love and friendship just because they involve the risk of hurt and disappointment. Pope Benedict XVI said:

We can try to limit suffering, to fight against it, but we cannot eliminate it. It is when we attempt to avoid suffering by withdrawing from anything that might involve hurt, when we try to spare ourselves the effort and pain of pursuing truth, love and goodness, that we drift into a life of emptiness, in which there may be almost no pain, but the dark sensation of meaninglessness and abandonment is all the greater. It is not by sidestepping or fleeing from suffering that we are healed, but rather by our capacity for accepting it, maturing through it, and finding meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love. (Spe Salvi)

Love2learn Moments #46: The Strength of Beauty

I love finding wisdom that helps illuminate the positive ways in which we can counter-act the problems in our culture today. Here's what Cardinal Ratzinger had to say about the power that beauty has in drawing us away from what is opposed to God:

Thomas says that through the praise of God man ascends to God. Praise itself is a movement, a path; it is more than understanding, knowing and doing - it is an "ascent", a way of reaching him who dwells amid the praises of the angels. Thomas mentioned another factor: this ascent draws man away from what is opposed to God. Anyone who has ever experienced the transforming power of great liturgy, great art, great music, will know this. Thomas adds that the sound of musical praise leads us and others to a sense of reverence. It awakens the inner man... (Feast of Faith: Approaches to a Theology of the Liturgy)

Love2learn Moments #45: Certitude and the Saints

In his recent encyclical on hope, Pope Benedict XVI explained that:

...in truly great trials, where I must make a definitive decision to place the truth before my own welfare, career, and possessions, I need the certitude of that true, great hope of which we have spoken here. For this too we need witnesses - martyrs - who have given themselves totally, so as to show us the way - day after day. We need them if we are to prefer goodness to comfort, even in the little choices we face each day - know that this is how we live life to the full;... the capacity to suffer for the sake of truth is the measure of humanity. Yet this capacity to suffer depends on the type and extent of the hope that we bear within us and build upon. The saints were able to make the great journey of human existence in the way that Christ had done before them, because they were brimming with great hope.

Love2learn Moments #44: God's Saving Pedagogy

Pope John Paul II explained in his Letter to Families that:

...experience shows what an important role is played by a family living in accordance with the moral norm, so that the individual born and raised in it will be able to set out without hesitation on the road of the good, which is always written in his heart.

This is another great reminder of what a powerful impact that "Who we are" has upon the education of our children - especially in the long term. The Holy Father further elaborated:

Through Christ all education, within the family and outside of it, becomes part of God's own saving pedagogy, which is addressed to individuals and families and culminates in the paschal mystery of the Lord's death and resurrection. The "heart" of our redemption is the starting point of every process of Christian education, which is likewise always an education to a full humanity.

The End

Well, things have been busy as usual, and I have sadly neglected the task of finishing up our blog post series. I missed most of the Yankee Stadium Mass, but I saw the entrance song which was incredible. I also missed all of the Pope's departure, but luckily, there are videos, of all the events that were covered, here. Read his final public words in the USA below:

My visit this morning to Ground Zero will remain firmly etched in my memory, as I continue to pray for those who died and for all who suffer in consequence of the tragedy that occurred there in 2001. For all the people of America, and indeed throughout the world, I pray that the future will bring increased fraternity and solidarity, a growth in mutual respect, and a renewed trust and confidence in God, our heavenly Father. With these words, I take my leave, I ask you to remember me in your prayers, and at the same time I assure you of my friendship and affection in the Lord. God bless America.

This visit was amazing. My brother and I loved being able to watch so much, and to be able to catch up on the internet here, with transcripts of his speeches, photos and complete videos of the events. We loved watching numerous singings of happy birthday, cheering along with the thunderous applause everwhere, hearing the stories of non Catholics who were deeply moved by the coverage of his visit and hearing the words of our beloved Pope Benedict XVI. Viva il Papa!

Ria

Ground Zero

This morning, the Pope met briefly with some survivors and families of suvivors of the 911 tragedy. He gave this prayer and then spoke with each of the victims there. The Holy Father left the US about half an hour ago. We'll try to fnish up our posts as soon as we can.

God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world:
peace in the hearts of all men and women
and peace among the nations of the earth.

Turn to your way of love
those whose hearts and minds
are consumed with hatred.

God of understanding,
overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy,
we seek your light and guidance
as we confront such terrible events.
Grant that those whose lives were spared
may live so that the lives lost here
may not have been lost in vain.

Comfort and console us,
strengthen us in hope,
and give us the wisdom and courage
to work tirelessly for a world
where true peace and love reign
among nations and
in the hearts of all.

Meeting with Youth

Yesterday afternoon, the event that I have to say has been my favorite so far, took place. First the pope met briefly with fifty disabled youth and gave the first address on this page. He then proceeded, to the tune of Bach, in his pope mobile to a large field where were gathered about 25,000 youth. The crowd went crazy. Many ran along behind to keep up with the pope-mobile, I even saw someone perched high above the crowd (on a PortaJohn), taking pictures.... I wish I could have been there. Once the Pope reached the stage, he was presented with gifts by various youth. (Beaming almost the entire time) He was introduced and gave a marvelous speech, which is the second on this page. A few of my favorite quotes are below:

At times, however, we are tempted to close in on ourselves, to doubt the strength of Christ's radiance, to limit the horizon of hope. Take courage! Fix your gaze on our saints. The diversity of their experience of God's presence prompts us to discover anew the breadth and depth of Christianity. Let your imaginations soar freely along the limitless expanse of the horizons of Christian discipleship. Sometimes we are looked upon as people who speak only of prohibitions. Nothing could be further from the truth! Authentic Christian discipleship is marked by a sense of wonder. We stand before the God we know and love as a friend, the vastness of his creation, and the beauty of our Christian faith.



Friends, again I ask you, what about today? What are you seeking? What is God whispering to you? The hope which never disappoints is Jesus Christ. The saints show us the selfless love of his way. As disciples of Christ, their extraordinary journeys unfolded within the community of hope, which is the Church. It is from within the Church that you too will find the courage and support to walk the way of the Lord. Nourished by personal prayer, prompted in silence, shaped by the Church's liturgy you will discover the particular vocation God has for you. Embrace it with joy. You are Christ's disciples today. Shine his light upon this great city and beyond. Show the world the reason for the hope that resonates within you. Tell others about the truth that sets you free. With these sentiments of great hope in you I bid you farewell, until we meet again in Sydney this July for World Youth Day! And as a pledge of my love for you and your families, I gladly impart my Apostolic Blessing.

I wish with all my heart I could have been there, but thank goodness for EWTN. There are a few pics here if you scroll all the way down. And we're still awaiting video.

Fun Fact: Pope Benedict gave the crowd +A for their German pronunciation when they sang him Happy Birthday.

The Pope visited Ground Zero today... we'll be posting soon.

The next event is his concluding Mass at Yankee Stadium at 2 PM ET today. He leaves at 7:30 PM ET today.

More to come,

Ria