In our restless world, we get stuck in a rut

    

There is a way out

    TS Eliot poetically wrote thus.

        "All our knowledge brings us nearer to our ignorance.  

        All our ignorance brings us nearer to death,

        But nearness to death no nearer to God. 

        Where is the Life we have lost in living?"

We keep blowing up our world, in more ways than one.  As we approach another anniversary of the dropping of the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, we may ask - Do we ever learn?  Is aggression the only way we know, when facing problems?  We seem ever stuck in a rut.  

Worse yet, our world's state of affairs may simply reflect a world that no longer cares or has just given up, for what can we do?  Such indifference is deadening of the human spirit.  How did we get here?  How did I get to this life theme?  Am I simply being dark?   

I ma here based on reflecting how we do not ask the big questions, how we just become too comfortable, too accepting, too boring.  Life challenges us to rise up, to search, to seek.  When did we last ask ourselves - What does it mean to be truly human?  Pope Leo recently asked us this same question, when he was in Spain.  What was his answer?  

Be virtuous.  Be justice seekers.  Be at the service of others.  .  

So we move out of humanity's shared rut, discovering that our world's restless heart can lead us somewhere positive.  

Our hearts are restless

A friend recently visited Melk monastery in Austria.  I saw his photo and thought - "That is some monastery!"  In a world that is seemingly going bonkers, as it goes out of control, such a scene of stability is most inviting but seems purely other worldly.   It is like our world has lost its direction, acting as a restless soul.  

Bonkers?   Yes, as I see endless hatred, suffering and war in the Middle East, now all happening on multiple fronts.  But there is much more, as I see Myanmar, Ukraine, Sudan, and where else?  The worse part is that the world does not seem to care.  Or is it that the voice of those who do care is being drowned out by much more powerful forces, who benefit from world chaos?  

One leading voice for peace and order is Pope Leo, who, for his trouble, is accused of helping 'the baddies'.  Such is the 'new abnormal' in our world.  His great point is that we risk becoming indifferent to brutal wars and the suffering they cause.  Despite all, people of power continue to wage war, while attacking the Pope for unsettling their agenda.  

This is shown by the US Amabassador to the Holy See who tried to misconstrue the Pope's message, by saying that Leo was speaking on war as a Head of State, not as Pope.  His aim was to water down the message for peace.  The Ambassador made his stance to suit his own purposes, and those of his bosses, in exercising power, thus not respecting the voice of the Pope.   

The bottom line was proclaimed by Rome, in a simple statement.  

The Successor of Peter, when he speaks of war and peace, of migration, of the poor, of creation, "is not speaking as a head of state. He is simply proclaiming the Gospel." 

The Gospel offers stability in a world going bonkers.  Yet we seem to prefer a restless world, a chaotic world.   The stability, as signalled by the monastery in Melk, shows us a vision of a way forward, but it is not the way universally assumed.  Restlessness remains the norm, and the struggle for peace and order wages.  

The Ground is Fertile

This photo so speaks to me, as it exudes life, energy, enthusiasm.  For me, it is a living sign of hope in the midst of what could be otherwise a tough existence for young, vulnerable children.  They are not forgotten.  All this arises from a living image of  a happy day at a Migrant Learning Centre, for Burmese children, here in My Bangkok.  

In the midst of their rather rough and tough, daily life as children of poor, migrant families, this picture shows an image of how human goodwill and generosity came their way, offering support and friendship.  Isn't this what we do as decent human beings and good Christians?  

In the world as it is, one can too easily be fatalistic, only seeing DND (Disaster n Despair).  Yes, there is that nasty side of life, seen all too often, dragging people down into a pit of suffering and desperation.  Yet there ever remians the other side of life, that we can all too easily forget.  The person is innately good and kind, seeking to live in harmony.  

Despite all we see in our world, the ground is fertile for people to be able to live together in peace and unity.  Let us not make excuses. Let us just accept this as fact, as our basis for life.  Too easily, we just accept the via negativa, denying people the chance they deserve.    

Now is the time not to think of all that is lacking and bad in our world,. but to face the challenge of what we can do with what there is.  To ponder endlessly on what is not is a waste of our time and energy.  Let us never forget that the ground for life is rich and fertile.. This photo is a timely reminder of this often neglected reality.  

  

The Leo Effect

I am just back from Provincial Chapter in Sydney, where I spent the week sitting beside the Prior General of my Order, a top guy.  For those who don't know, Provincial Chapter is the churchy name for the regular, governance and evaluation meetings of religious groups, at their local level.  This enables them to exercise their shared responsibility for governance and planning, as they pursue their corporate mission and life, within the Church. 

This gathering in the life of the Province.is so pivotal in the Order, that the Prior General comes from Rome for it.  In his leadership role, during the week, he more than once mentioned or spoke of the Leo Effect upon both the Church and the world.  This is obviously more than an Order thing.  What is he implying in sharing this?  

As a member of the Order of St Augustine, Pope Leo is known to us as a brother and leader.  We have a shared and positive experience of him as a man of keen intellect, who is hard working, acting in measured and thought out ways.  What he says and does, he means.  He is committed to the Church and its mission, arising from the Gospel, reaching out to the poor and marginalized, across boundaries.  

I knew him in earlier times as an approachable brother in community, who had a hearty laugh and a keen sense of humour.  He was kind, ready to talk with anyone, and simply loved people.  In the life of the Order, he took the initiative, in furthering missionary endeavours, and kept an open door to all in his sphere of care.  

It is this man who became Pope Leo, whose pontificate has remained focused on peace, unity and dialogue, raising up the dignity of all.  He continually works for bringing people together through showing care for the downtrodden, sharing his humanity with all who come his way and seeking the ways of synodality and encounter.  

Within a fractured and chaotic world, his leadership speaks not just to the Church, but to the world.  People recognise in his message hope and common sense.  He is a religious leader on the world stage, preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  In doing so, he is attracting attention as a true world leader for today, when good leadership is sought by a humanity that is lost and confused.    

This is not the full picture, but it does give us a sense of the Leo Effect in today's world.  It arises from a church leader who preaches a God of love for all and works for the Kingdom of God, as a forthright, but humble pastor, a decent and gifted human being who loves being with people.