Week 3: Christian Superpowers, Peace, and the Communion of Saints (Marie)

Christian Superpowers

I’ve talked a lot about the importance of virtue in the ecumenical movement. But my thought this week has been that virtue is also UNIQUE to Christianity. If you call to mind government debates, or other kinds of public discourse really, there is often so much cattiness, insulting, condescension, etc. At least in some of the best examples of public discourse, there is civility, respect, and genuine concern. While I certainly wouldn’t say virtue is exclusive to Christianity, we do have the confidence that the Holy Spirit causes virtues such as faith, hope, and mercy to ABOUND if we ask him. Virtues, and all gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, are Christian “superpowers.” Because of the Holy Spirit alive within us, and actively invoked by us, we have access to divine power that permeates and carries our dialogue and makes unity possible. This divine power cannot be underestimated! A goal as great as Christian unity is not achieved without God. As Christians, we have the opportunity to discern with true wisdom, “How is the Holy Spirit inviting us deeper into authentic friendship and love?” Ecumenical dialogue could never be about winning arguments or one-upping the rest. Instead, the graces of childlike humility, prudence, and right judgment will form us more and more into “little Christs” (as C.S. Lewis says). 

This leads me to think about the topic of personal conversion, which was highlighted by Msgr. Juan Usma Gómez from the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and Fr. Michael Santiago from the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue. Hardly anyone will disagree that personal conversion (or personal development) is an ideal fruit of ecumenical and interreligious dialogue. Msgr. Juan said, “We can only live fully when we are undergoing continual conversion,” and, “[The ecumenical movement] is ultimately about converting ourselves to Christ.” Similarly, Fr. Michael said, “[Interreligious dialogue] helps me to be a better Christian, helps Muslims to be better Muslims, and so on.” Instead of just focusing on “the other”, each of us must remember the responsibility we have for ourselves. When I worked as a summer camp missionary a few years ago, I received this piece of advice and I still carry it with me: “Lord, let at least one person be changed by the message that I share, and let that person be me.” If I am not personally changed by Christ, what good is my witness for others? It also has a hint of Matthew 16:26: “For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?” 

Peace

Peace has been a common thread throughout these past few weeks. Indeed, it has been a major theme since Pope Leo opened his first Urbi et Orbi calling for a “peace that is unarmed and disarming,” and people began calling him a “pope of peace.” This year is also the 800th anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi’s death, a saint who ceaselessly called for peace (for example, the famous Prayer of St. Francis, “Make me a channel of your peace”). Peace is central to ecumenical and interreligious dialogue. Learning about the violent, tragic histories between Christians, Jews, and Muslims makes peace between us all that much more desirable and commendable. It’s not perfect yet, but the future is looking hopeful. I really appreciated the anecdote that Fr. Michael Santiago shared about the friendship between Pope Francis and Rabbi Abraham Skorka. Their shared love of football in Argentina forged an unlikely friendship and even led them to co-write a book together, On Heaven and Earth (2010). Like I said, virtue and the graces of the Holy Spirit are not exclusive to Christians. It’s amazing to see God at work in these relationships, bringing about more peace, trust, understanding, and charity.

                    

Some of the flower carpets, or Infiorata, for the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul,

dedicated to “a peace that is unarmed and disarming.”

I’ve been in Assisi since Saturday. Yesterday, I peered into the gardens beside St. Francis’ Basilica and was met with two peace monuments. I didn’t get a picture of the first, but the second was a “Peace Bell,” and wouldn’t you know it, it had the symbols of Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Buddhism. Talk about inter-religious dialogue in the wild!

Communion of saints

My closing thought today is about all the saints I’ve encountered between Rome and Assisi. To some of them, such as St. Catherine of Siena, whom I visited in Rome, I said, “Hello, well, you’ve heard from me before, so this is nothing new,” or, “You have definitely heard about this prayer intention already from St. [insert saint name here].” To me, that gives a powerful image of unity! (Is that a stretch?) To think that the unity shared by the Church Triumphant (saints in heaven), such that they already know me, know each other, know the Lord—are so entangled (for lack of a better term) with every being—that they can team up at any moment’s notice, and make waves with their prayers? I think that is the kind of power in unity that we are trying to emulate as the Church on earth.

-Marie