Fr Peter's newsletter notes - August 2004

Twenty-Second Week of Ordinary Time - Sunday 29th August 2004

I am not sure whether it is a sign of being over institutionalised, but I cannot help taking September to be the beginning of the year. This is perhaps the product of long years in a seminary and further years as a university Chaplain. The summer has its own dynamic of sun-induced laziness, of holidays and rest. The abandonment of routine, of commuting and of work, makes for a perfect time for reflecting on our lives and the nature of work, and the place it has or rather should not have in our lives. The quietness of the city on my return last week felt like the prelude to some major burst of activity. and in many ways very similar to the weeks prior to the arrival of the news students at University. I have always valued this precious time as the moment to reaffirm why I do what I do, and that the mission of the Church wherever it may be, addresses the spiritual and pastoral needs of the Parish, Chaplaincy, or School community.

This task of reflection becomes ever more urgent. The monetary explosion after the 'Big Bang' in the early 1980s has certainly generated wealth, which would have been unthinkable for so many only twenty-five years ago. Now at least 5% of Londoners are paper millionaires, owing to the value of the houses. No wonder the government is looking greedily at seeing how much it can prise away without overt electoral effect, to help pay for that ever expanding army of bureaucrats and supplicants. The creation of wealth is no bad thing in itself but should serve the needs of humanity and not the other way around. The moral question does arise as to what manner such wealth is generated and how to distribute this wealth more justly, but also to determine what are the appropriate limits to personal wealth. The third question is not the province of government legislation. It is rather a personal, almost a religious question. The pursuit of wealth brings with it a host of ties that can smother any authentic human flourishing, whether it is in relation to our families, our personal interests, or our health. The religious person wants to travel in the other direction, and shed all those ties that prevent human flourishing. This is only possible through being able to let go, of putting a break on our spending. The lure of unfettered capitalism is that it promises ever more, but that more is never enough. It can be, but that requires a willpower formed by the Gospel.

The emphasis given by Jesus on stewardship emphasises that ultimately everything comes from the bounty of the Father's creation. It should be received in humility and a largeness of spirit, that makes us appreciate its source and its nature as a gift. This is the first step in letting go, and the next follows, a natural generosity that shares what has been given to us so graciously. The limit to what we need now emerges, and so helps frees us from being a slave to money.

These are some of the lessons that we might bring back from our holidays After all it seems quite possible to live with one suitcase for two weeks, even though we still take too much! The happiness of any holiday is not dictated by our luggage so why do I forget this useful lesson for the other fifty weeks of the year?

The Readings from the First Letter of St Paul to the Corinthians, Twenty-Second Week of Ordinary Time, Year C, Cycle II

The Church at Corinth was established by St Paul on his second missionary journey, and now he writes ten years later, having heard that they are ridden with dissension, and under the spell of so-called 'spiritual' leaders, who are all too human. This divisiveness has led to a collapse in morality. Both concerns are addressed in this letter. St Paul came to Corinth as part of his apostolic mandate, and not out of professional motives. His speech is plain, and his wisdom is God given. The content is the crucified Jesus. The crucifixion has initiated a new age, and with it an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. (Monday)

Throughout his letters St Paul develops a series of contrasts between the spiritual and the bodily. These are not different parts of a person, but the one person seen and understood in different ways. A spiritual self-understanding is a gift from God, and the acceptance of the Holy Spirit throws light both on ourselves and on God. (Tuesday)

The Corinthians, some of who claim to be 'spiritual' people are not, owing to their divisiveness revealed in their 'party' slogans. The apostle does not give up, but nurtures them in the knowledge that his work is made possible only because God grants the growth. (Wednesday)

The challenge to believers is not to turn the faith into a form of human boasting or private knowledge. A constant acceptance of being foolish in front of the revelation of God's saving plan in Jesus, allows the fullness of that message to enter into our hearts. St Paul draws out the ecclesiological and moral implications, as living in Christ. (Thursday)

The consequence of Christians leading their daily lives in the expectation of the end, is to render relative all worldly concerns, so that becoming a steward is the appropriate response to the call of faith. Every steward should be faithful and carry out their allotted tasks, and become a responsible member of the Church. (Friday)