On May 13, the Obama administration imposed its secular ideology by mandating access to restrooms, not on the basis of biological sex, but on the basis of gender identity. Men who define themselves as women may now use women’s restrooms and women who consider themselves men may make use of the men’s restrooms. This presidential intrusion into the common sense decency norms of American society was not enough. The government decided to change our society even more radically.
When news reporters cover a royal event in England, they are required to respect the proper dress code for formal occasions in the presence of the Queen. Those casually dressed are not admitted. Even in the relaxed atmosphere of the United States, there is still observed a proper dress code on certain occasions. For example, visitors observing the workings of the Supreme Court are told that they are not to wear inappropriate clothing.
Believers and non-believers address the Bishop of Rome as “the Pope.” But, this title has had a much wider use in history and even today. In the first centuries in the East, “papa” (“father”) was the title of respect and affection given to teachers. Later, within the Church, the title “papa” (“father”) came to be given to all bishops. In fact, in apostolic times, St. Paul did not hesitate to identify himself to the first Christians at Corinth as the father who brought them to life in Christ (cf. 1 Cor 4:14-17). In the sixth century, Pope Gregory the Great restricted the title Pope (“papa”) within the Catholic Church to the Bishop of Rome. The faithful of the Coptic Orthodox of Alexandria continue their ancient practice of calling the head of their Church “Pope.”
On May 28, 2016, a 4-year-old boy managed to get beyond a protective fence in the Cincinnati Zoo and then tumbled 15 feet into the shallow moat in the cage of Harambe, a 17-year-old gorilla. Onlookers shouted in horror as the 450-pound gorilla dragged the child with his head banging on the concrete. Whatever instinct prompted the animal to lay hold of the child, the child was clearly at risk. This was not a gentle, risk-free experience for the child.
When the early Dutch settlers arrived in the American colonies, they brought with them a unique piece of architecture that immediately became popular. They introduced the typical Dutch farmhouse door. It was a door split horizontally with the bottom half remaining closed and the top half easily opened. The closed bottom half kept the children in the house and the animals out. The top half allowed fresh air in. This clever way of fashioning a door gave birth to the common English expression “going Dutch.” When two people dine together and split the bill, each taking care of their own expenses, they are said to be “going Dutch.”
On April 19, 2016 the retail store Target announced that it would provide gender neutral bathrooms and also allow men and women to use the same fitting rooms. The following day, nearly one million people protested the decision, pledging to boycott the store. The store’s new policy is part of a trend spreading across the country to accommodate 1 percent of the population. Starbucks and Barnes and Noble have also announced that their customers may use the bathrooms according to the gender of their choice.
In 1244, devout citizens of Florence, Italy founded the Confraternity of Mercy in their beloved city. They dedicated themselves to bringing the sick to hospitals, collecting charity for orphaned children, burying the dead and providing assistance to those in need. The confraternity still exists today. Its members offer medical care and supply ambulances, continuing the very same mission of mercy as in the Middle Ages.
In the 19th century, before the age of television, oratory was an extremely popular form of entertainment. During those golden years of public speaking, one of the most noted speakers was American lawyer and political leader Robert Ingersoll. He captivated his audiences, sometimes with speeches lasting three hours as he lectured on almost any subject. But, his most frequent theme was agnosticism.
On April 12, 2016, the Pew Research Center published the results of its survey entitled “Religion in Everyday Life.” The survey reports that three-quarters of Catholics say that they decide what is right or wrong on the basis of their own conscience. Only 21 percent of Catholics say that they look to the teaching of the Church for guidance in making moral decisions. And, an even fewer 11 percent look to the Pope.
In his post-synodal exhortation, Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis has offered the Church a challenge to reflect more deeply on Christ’s teaching on marriage. The Holy Father reemphasizes the Church’s firm teaching on family and the Sacrament of Matrimony, while challenging us to be understanding and compassionate toward those who struggle in the concrete exigencies of their lives to form stable and healthy families.
History has the uncanny habit of repeating itself. American writer, historian, and philosopher Will Durant once said, “So the story of man runs in a dreary circle, because he is not yet master of the earth that holds him.” The biblical writer Qoheleth made the same observation about 2,000 years earlier. He said, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun” (Eccl 1:9). This seems certainly true when it comes to the persecution of Christians.
The March 22, 2016 brutal bombings in Brussels’ international airport and metro system killed more than 35 innocent people and injured more than 270 others. These cowardly terror attacks brought Europe to a standstill. They made Europe more keenly aware that, even as she strives for economic and political unity, Europe has within her borders and in her homes the enemy poised and ready to bring her down.
After Jesus died on the cross, his followers placed his lifeless body in the grave. Jesus truly experienced death, as everyone does, as the separation of body and soul. Divine, he was truly human, like us in all things but sin. At the moment of death, his soul joined others in the realm of the dead. As we say in the Apostles’ Creed, “he descended into Hell.” This is not the hell of the damned, but the limbo where all the just before Christ’s coming awaited the redemption. Jesus descends there as Savior.
Between 132 and 135 A.D., Shimon Bar-Kokhba led a revolt against the Roman Empire. He established an independent Jewish state and ruled it for three years. Rabbi Akiva, one of the most renowned figures in Jewish history, went as far as proclaiming Bar-Kokhba to be “King Messiah.” Unfortunately, in 135 A.D., the Romans stormed his stronghold at Betar in the Judean highlands and killed Bar-Kokhba, along with thousands of Jews. Thus ended his brief messianic reign.
Make America Great Again. Fighting for us. Re-igniting the Promise of America. A New American Century. Unleash The American Dream. Real Leadership. Slogans play a major role in every presidential campaign. Their few words succinctly summarize the candidate’s position. They capture the voters’ attention and inspire confidence. Each new election offers the nation the hope to begin anew, to address its problems with fresh insights and to usher in a better day. Slogans for change instinctively resonate well with American voters.
From its birthplace in the Middle East, Christianity spread with amazing speed over the well-trodden roads of the Roman Empire. First seen as a breakaway sect of the Jewish faith, Christianity suffered great persecution for three centuries. However, through the blood of martyrs and the steadfast witness of Christians who lived their faith, the Church grew in strength and numbers. In 313 AD, the Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, ending the brutal persecutions of Christians. Ten years later, Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire. Thus, from her humble beginnings, the Church conquered the Roman Empire itself. And, not by chance, but by divine design, Rome herself became the center of the Church’s unity.
With the keen eye of a pastor and the skillful pen of a journalist, G. Jeffrey MacDonald has offered an unusual critique of religion in America. In his book, Thieves in the Temple, he surveys many of the Protestant mega-churches dotting our religious landscape today. He notes that their worship services, while including traditional forms of Christian worship, place a high priority on entertainment. Even their church structures resemble a multiplex theater or mall.
For some time, I have wanted to write to you. I congratulate you on taking the path through higher studies to knowledge and wisdom. Whether you are moving toward a career in medicine, law or any other profession or whether you are seeking to learn a trade that serves the common good, all education is a gift.
With the zeal of those on a mission, atheists today are actively speaking out against religion and belief in God. Spurred on by the tragedy of September 11, 2001, American author and neuroscientist Sam Harris took not only Islam, but also Christianity and Judaism to task. In his 2004 best seller The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason, he advocates ending respect and tolerance for religion.
Christianity is rapidly disappearing in the Middle East where it was born. Terrorists, without scruple, are destroying the oldest living Christian communities in Iraq and Syria. Towns wiped out. Christians and other minorities, the victims of ISIS’ unrelenting brutality. The bloody and deadly crusade to destroy any remnant of Christian practice horrifies the many decent people living in America. Yet, what is gradually happening to Christianity in our own country may escape their notice.