July 30, 2011
Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
When the years are many, the price shall be so much the more; when the years are few, the price shall be so much the less. For it is really the number of crops that he sells you. Do not deal unfairly, then; but stand in fear of your God. I, the LORD, am your God. Leviticus 25:16-17
Now Herod had arrested John, bound (him), and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, for John had said to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." Although he wanted to kill him, he feared the people, for they regarded him as a prophet. Matthew 14:3-5
Piety
Father, may we stand in awesome fear of the gifts you have given us -- the marvels of creation and the commandments to honor you and deal fairly with our neighbors. Give us the courage to follow in the footsteps of John the Baptist and Jesus as well as modern leaders like the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Oscar Romero and Dom Helder Camara. Holy Spirit, guide us with your special gifts to cope in fear and fairness. Amen.
Study
How do we relate to our neighbors? How do we relate to our leaders? While one of the seminal document from Vatican II may have been titled the Constitution of the Church in the Modern World, I always have a hard time thinking in terms of the big, worldwide Catholic church. It is always easier for me to figure out the micro-church that exists in my own heart and mind.
Today's readings prompt me to ask of myself, "How can I be holy, catholic and apostolic in my relationships in the world today?"
The passage from Leviticus prompts me to ask how I can relate more fairly with my neighbors. The people who live on my street and work in my office seem to enjoy a standard of living that is commensurate. It is when something out of the ordinary strikes us that we should react -- when someone heads to the hospital, when death strikes a loved one, when a fire or storm damages their home. But what about those people coping with insurmountable odds on a daily basis? We must consider how we share the stores of our time, talents and treasure with them. The Hebrew Bible used examples of the harvest and property sales that were current in its day. What transactions are most relevant to you?
Matthew gives us a story that challenges the intersection of our faith and the government. John the Baptist and Jesus were not afraid to speak truth to power about what is the right behavior for the leaders in their day. A primary concern was how the leaders cared for the "anawim" -- the orphaned children, the frail elderly and the poor. Are we prepared to speak truth to power about the issues of the day in which we live?
Action
Although the news media may not pay much attention to the statements from the USCCB, our bishops have been very vocal this week in speaking "truth to power" just as Jesus and John the Baptist modeled.
On Tuesday, they issued a statement saying that Federal budget cuts should NOT rely upon disproportionate reductions in services to poor persons. Rather, we should have "shared sacrifices for all." Deal fairly with our neighbors.
In the July 26 letter to the U.S. House of Representatives, Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, California, and Bishop Howard J. Hubbard of Albany, New York, called on Congress to remember the human and moral dimensions of the ongoing budget and debt ceiling debate.
The bishops wrote, “A just framework for future budgets cannot rely on disproportionate cuts in essential services to poor persons. It requires shared sacrifice by all, including raising adequate revenues, eliminating unnecessary military and other spending, and addressing the long-term costs of health insurance and retirement programs fairly.”
Bishop Blaire and Bishop Hubbard respectively chair the Committees on Domestic Justice and Human Development and International Justice and Peace of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
The bishops wrote that every budget decision should be assessed by whether it protects human life and dignity, how it affects “the least of these,” including the hungry and homeless, and how well it reflects the shared responsibility of the government and other institutions to promote the common good of all, especially workers and families struggling in the current economy.
That statement was followed up on Friday with another letter -- this one from the USCCB and Catholic Relief Services regarding the faith-based financial concerns that we have as the wealthiest nation to the poor of the world. It said that cuts under consideration for the foreign humanitarian assistance budget could undermine integral human development, poverty reduction initiatives, and stability in the world’s poorest countries and communities. Such cuts also could weaken our long-term security, since poverty and hopelessness can provide a fertile ground for the growth of instability, conflict and terrorism.
While acknowledging the difficult challenges Congress faces in addressing the national debt and controlling future deficits, Bishop Hubbard and CRS President Ken Hackett added that “our nation must be fiscally responsible in morally responsible ways.”
Bishop Hubbard and Hackett urged Congress instead to put everything on the table, including defense, revenue, agricultural subsidies, and fair and just entitlement reform. If the foreign assistance budget must be cut, they urged that critical poverty-focused development and humanitarian accounts and other programs that assist the poor around the world be spared.
Please write to your representatives in the U.S. Congress and consider the positions taken by our shepherds at the USCCB in the action you urge them to take as the budget negotiations wind down to the August 2 deadline. Let you faith leaders guide you in speaking truth to power with fear and fairness.
