The Church's Liturgy & Social Justice, part 3

How we pray and who we pray for in our liturgical assemblies must praise God by demonstrating our concern for God's least ones. The General Intercessions, in particular, have ample opportunity for this. Besides praying for our sick and deceased loved ones (which most parishes do), we should also be sure to pray for suffering people throughout the world, regardless of whether they're related to us by faith or blood. While we're at it, we should also pray for our enemies.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
 

The Church's Liturgy & Social Justice, part 2

[This sound-bite is prepared for running in bulletins on 7/25/2010]

One important aspect of achieving social justice is also a part of our liturgy: reconciliation. Justice is a matter of right relationship. If something is keeping us from right relationship, such as a past wrong or unfair discrimination, we must be reconciled in order to return to a right and just relationship. Reconciliation involves (1) acknowledging our faults to the offended party, (2) asking for and receiving forgiveness, and (3) making reparations and/or doing penance.
       To model that for us in our interpersonal relationships, we have the Sacrament of Penance and the Penitential Rite of the Mass by which we are reconciled with God. The Sacrament of Penance provides the fullest expression of reconciliation (as outlined above) and is our only way of reconciling serious sins against God's law. The Penitential Rite of the Mass heals the lesser offenses so that we can be properly disposed for our reception of Holy Communion.
       The challenge for us is to take these opportunities for reconciliation seriously. This Sunday, when the liturgy comes to the Penitential Rite, make a serious examination of your conscience, fervently ask God for forgiveness, and then feel the forgiveness God offers through the words of the priest.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
 

The Church's Liturgy & Social Justice, part 1

At the end of every Mass, we are urged to "Go in peace to love and serve the Lord." The new language of the Order of Mass which will be implemented in the US next year has a new option, which is, "Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life." The two are seen as equivalent by the Church: loving and serving the Lord means living the faith. 
       It means being the "good Samaritan" as we heard about last Sunday. 
       It means striving for justice in our world, as we are told time and again by Jesus and the prophets who came before him. 
       It means being a force for reconciliation, not only between ourselves and one another, but also between polarizing forces in our world.
       And it is (or should be) the Church's liturgy that causes us to see what must be done and to provide an example of how we are to live between Sundays. More on this in the coming weeks.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
 

Random Acts of Kindness & Social Justice

The Sunday gospel for this week is the familiar story of the lawyer who tests Jesus about salvation and ends up getting the parable of the "good Samaritan." It's a good reminder that there are a lot of people who need immediate help in the world today, especially with the economy continuing to struggle. Providing immediate help and mercy as the good Samaritan did is a sign of our Christianity — being a neighbor and offering basic care or random acts of kindness to someone in need is a mark of our faith, just as it is for Jews and those who profess some other religions.
       The work of social justice goes beyond that and asks works on the more difficult problem of how a person or persons find themselves in such need. It seeks to prevent others from having such a need by eliminating structures or systems that have negative impacts, and by creating new structures and systems that support and raise up those in need. For example, caring for injured pedestrians at a busy street corner is an example of providing basic care to those in need, whereas social justice would involve upgrading the intersection with pedestrian crossings, traffic signals, and warning signs.
       Thus, social justice can be thought of as investing in a future where there are fewer people in need and all are raised up.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)