Wanting to be original

Oh, the original sin. Wanting to be like God. A thing for old women, priests, children's catechism; surely not self-sufficient adults, perfectly understanding, able to do by themselves; people that doesn't need someone that preaches. People that doesn't need anybody. That doesn't need. Anything. And anyone. Like God.

An unexpected gift

The Word was made flesh. An unspeaking and unspoken Word. But a Word that you can touch, that you can meet. A word ends when his echo vanishes; the echo of this Word will sound for all centuries until the moment it will be spoken again. It made itself a baby, a boy, for us bad boys, for us the sad, the unforgiving, the ruleless boys. An unexpected gift, much more because we don't deserve it. We will never be able to deserve it.
We are just able to accept it.
So, what can we say?
Thanks, and merry Christmas.

Vos fugam capietis

Thinking that we cannot be saint we try to be good. Since we dont'succeed, we please ourselves of being moralist.

Angelus

The Lord asks. You can turn your head away. Or You can say yes.
If You accept, a wounded and awakened heart will be given to You, along with a plentiful life beyond every thought and every wish.
You. Me, also. Now.

Worshipping sun

I wasn't surprised by the news that Oxford will substitute Christmas with Winter Light Fest. It is a move that historically has been used by famous people: just to say one name, Aurelian, the Roman emperor. Yes: the pagan festival of the 'Birth of the Unconquered Sun' instituted by the Roman Emperor Aurelian on December 25 in the year 274 was almost certainly an attempt to create a pagan alternative to a date that was already of some significance to Roman Christians. Thus the 'pagan origins of Christmas' is a myth without historical substance.

It's the usual upside-down.  The Christians are accused to steal the holidays of other religions when often is the other way round. Christmas is celebrated on 25th December because that day is nine moths after the 25th March, traditional date of Cruxifiction for early christians. A Judaic tradition was that the prophets of Israel died on the same dates as their birth or conception. If Jesus died on 25th March then it was also the date of Annunciation. This the source of the calculation, sustained anyway also by some archeological evidence.
While is certain that Christmas was already celebrated at the beginning of III century, there aren't proofs that Sun's festival was ever held in Rome before that time. The two roman temples to the sun held feasts in different months. Early christendom didn't care about Isis, Mithra, Apollon, Jove or other sun deities. In the christian way the sun is just God's creation, made for man's sake, it isn't a revengeful god to be prayed. And if Christ can be seen as the Sun of Justice, redemption for all humanity, this is just a symbol, nothing more.

About the same thing can be told about Halloween, that is the Eve of All Saints. The feast in honor of all the saints in heaven was moved to November 1 by Pope Gregory III (d. 741), the dedication day of All Saints Chapel in St. Peter's at Rome. Later, in the 840s, Pope Gregory IV commanded that All Saints be observed everywhere. This wasn't evidently made to obscure a remote celtic feast.

What remains is the ignorance and the grudge against Christianity (that is their own civilization and tradition) shown by that english sun worshippers.

Let's hope that they will not resort to human sacrifices, at least for now.  

Original post here

The Rejected

"And all is at one,
in keeping us secret,
half out of shame perhaps,
half out of inexpressible hope"
Rilke, Duino Elegies

The things we say, the position we assume towards others, can cost. They can bring upon us catholics the hilariousness of colleagues, perhaps the hostility of the boss; sometimes even physical violence. We can say, however, that we're not badly off, it is easier here than in other parts of the world. We risk very little: only our face. In the middle east, in places where christians had already been living for generations when Mohammed was a child, today violence makes christians flee if only they can. Elsewhere things are even worse. In certain parts of India if people get to know that you are a christian, you are cast out. Thrown out of the caste system, you are no longer part of the community; you are rejected, no longer considered a man. There is no direct violence; but your water and gas supplies are shut off, they will not sell you food or even speak to you. And you had better pray not to fall ill.

Two thousand years of christianity have changed mankind a little. We can no longer ignore those who die of hunger next to us. Children's suffering tears us, tears move us. 

But it is not like this everywhere. Just move a little, leave christendom, and you will see supreme disinterest for others, for those we christians call "our neighbour", reappear. For all others, all over the world, the christian is the different one, the stranger, just as for the christian all others are his neighbour, his brother.

Taking care of the other is not obvious; nor is it obvious that a community look after those who cannot take care of themselves on their own, even when they are not part of the community itself. The orphanage, the hospital, the elder care centre are not obvious. Did you notice that in films about far countries and even in japanese cartoons this sort of building almost always has a cross, and is often run by religious? Without that cross those buildings would not exist. 
Little by little, the truth, the better humanity rising from christian history caused the spring of a new conscience never existed before. Also the believers in different faiths, also the non believer must agree tha this kind of life is better, fuller, worthier; and will follow the same way. But with what purpose, what ideal surge?

Without Christ one cannot understand why bother to take care of the weak, the insignificant, those who don't count. An orphan who dies of hunger, where there are no christians, quickly becomes a body to bury. Or worse.

Christians are a nuisance for this reason too, because they don't accept that humanity be destroyed, used by the one in power and discarded once useless. For this reason too they are driven away everywhere, as the Pope recently denounced. Strangers in their own countries, always exiled, silenced. Yet never subdued, always ready to witness a joy present even in the midst of suffering, a joy stronger than persecution. Always ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks them for a reason for their hope.