Defender of the Faith March 30

Prayer

God, we forget that you have saved us and asked nothing in return. Grant us the humility to be thankful for our salvation and praise you.

God, despite your goodness, we often worship false idols instead of seeking life in your Spirit. Grant us the good judgment to banish all false idols from our life – the television, the music, the movies, the books, the magazines, the Hollywood stars, the games, the sports, the fast food restaurants, the alcohol, the drugs, the material wealth, the 401-K, the stock options, the Silver/Gold/Platinum Credit Card, the vacation home, the Internet, and more.

Oh God, we are a still a “stiff-necked people.” Too often we forget what you ask of us because our attention is focused elsewhere. Give us the flexibility to turn away from these false idols and turn our face toward you. Amen.

Study

God offers to us sacred scriptures for today to read and heed.
You are invited to study and reflect on today’s readings:
http://www.usccb.org/nab/033006.shtml

If you were called to the defense of the people of God like Moses, could you present the case to God that they be saved?

If you were called to be the lamp announcing the coming of God like John the Baptist, would you shine brightly?

Imagine sitting alone in an office. The afternoon is quiet. Most of your co-workers have gone home. The long shadows of the surrounding buildings bend into your windows with the afternoon sun.

Just as the shadows interrupt the light, God taps you on the shoulder interrupting your quiet time. You invite God into your conference room, offer God a seat and bring Him a drink. Grateful for the hospitality, God relaxes ever so briefly and takes a sip of the cool water you have brought to him. With a slight smile, he looks up as if he has a request for you.

“How can I help you, my Lord and my God?”

“My Son is on trial. I need a good attorney to present his defense to the Romans and the Jews. Will you do this for me? I have no money to pay you but I can serve you for the rest of your days.

What would you do? Would the words of Pope John Paul II come to mind and spur you to action?

“The thought of Jesus being stripped, beaten and derided until his final agony on the cross should always prompt a Christian to protest against similar treatment of their fellow beings. Of their own accord, disciples of Christ will reject torture, which nothing can justify, which causes humiliation and suffering to the victim and degrades the tormentor.”

Pope John Paul II

Action

As followers of Jesus, the web site from Pax Christi (www.paxchristiusa.org) reminds us that we must state clearly and unequivocally that torture violates the basic human dignity afforded all of God's children, and is never morally acceptable. As the second anniversary of the revelations of the cruel, inhumane and humiliating treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison approaches, the group urges us to reiterate our Church's profound respect for the dignity of all persons and reject as antithetical to Christianity any and all justifications for the use of torture. There is no debate on where the social teachings of the Catholic Church lie on the issue of torture: “International judicial instruments concerning human rights correctly indicate a prohibition against torture as a principle which cannot be contravened under any circumstances,” states the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church.[1] (emphasis added)

As people of faith, we should urge our leaders not to circumvent national and international laws that prohibit the use of torture, under any auspices.

· Will you consider calling on our leaders to cease the justification of torture and to publicly reaffirm U.S. support for the U.N. Convention on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment?

· Will you consider calling on members of the U.S. Congress to pass legislation to uphold U.S. and international law against “extraordinary rendition,” requiring a ban on transferring a detainee to a country that has a history of torture?

· Will you consider joining with U.S. Catholic Bishops Conference, the National Council of Churches and the National Religious Campaign Against Torture in saying that torture “debases the torturer and tortured alike, and denies the preciousness of life and the dignity of every human being?”

[1] http://www.paxchristiusa.org/news_events_more.asp?id=1002