Author: The Anchorite

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COVID-19 and Sunday Mass

I find that I must write a follow-up to yesterday’s post.

Yesterday – Friday the 13th, no less – I learned that several dioceses, including the Archdiocese of Boston, have decided to cancel all Sunday Masses for the time being in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

I have been sitting with this news since yesterday and pondering it.  What does this mean? How am I reacting to it? As an autistic person, it can take some time to sort out my thoughts and feelings over anything.  The more I stay with it, however, the more I see that there is one word, and only one word, that is fitting to express my response to this.

I am scandalized. Continue reading “COVID-19 and Sunday Mass”

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Coronavirus and Faith

A Catholic Response to COVID-19

For the last several weeks, we have been watching the coronavirus epidemic unfold, from its beginnings in China barely two months ago to the first confirmed case in Maine this week.  The World Health Organization has formally pronounced the coronavirus outbreak as a pandemic – meaning that it has spread worldwide.  Several aspects of the coronavirus outbreak create or heighten anxieties and fears.  For one thing, this is a new strain, and medical professionals are still learning about it.  For another, we have seen media reports of its effects and the responses various countries have made to it.  We have seen people of all walks of life affected by it.  Many activities that we take for granted have been delayed or cancelled because of it.  Our economy is affected by it. Continue reading “Coronavirus and Faith”

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Misfits For Christ

Second Sunday of Lent (A)

 

Did you miss me?  : )

First, a brief personal comment.  Then, my reflection on this Sunday’s readings.

Whenever I do not send out a post, it is usually because I have been hit with a significant headache and find it painful to look at a glowing display. On one Saturday, the headache was so bad, and my efforts to control it so futile, that I had no choice but to cancel Confessions and Mass that afternoon. Mass in front of a larger crowd – as one would get on Sundays – is doubly difficult for me. I feel the energy flow from all these people hitting me, as though I were standing right in front of a bright spotlight.  I also am very sensitive to certain sounds. It’s called hyperacusis. The crinkling of a cough drop wrapper, or someone whispering in the back, can be annoying, even painful, for me.  I cannot go to the annual Chrism Mass because it is not sensory-friendly, nor is anyone there likely to turn down the music volume just for me.  The solution is to have Mass only for small groups at the most.  This also is in harmony with my contemplative calling.  My psychologist’s recommendation agrees with this.  It looks like I’ll need to hang in there for another year before I can have this happen for me.  I simply can’t afford to make ends meet otherwise – not until I am old enough to begin to collect Social Security (June 2021).   Please keep me in your prayers so that I can survive in the meantime. Continue reading “Misfits For Christ”

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What Does The Scripture Say?

Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (A): Matthew 5:38-48

 

Our Gospel reading for today offers us abundant riches and abundant challenges.  Three years ago, the last time we saw this Gospel, I addressed the question of what Jesus meant by “Be perfect”.  You can find that post here. This time, I will focus my attention on a different issue that our Gospel reading raises: the issue of how we understand the Bible.

The Bible plays an extremely important role in the lives of Catholics and, indeed, of all Christians.  This seems so obvious that it might not need to be said.  In the Mass, we not only have the Liturgy of the Word, comprised of readings from Scripture; many of the prayers and responses during Mass are based on Scripture.  We are all encouraged to read the Bible regularly and to use it as a source of divine wisdom to guide our lives.  We venerate the Bible as a unique record of God’s dealings with His people. Continue reading “What Does The Scripture Say?”

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Fulfilling the Law

Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (A): Matthew 5:17-37

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” – Matthew 5:17

Calling something – or, God forbid, someone – old is never a compliment. In our society, with constant technological improvements, we have come to assume that the new is better than the old. In our ads which glorify youth (because young people are more vulnerable to advertising as a rule), we have come to assume that being or looking young is better than being or looking old. Therefore, when we look at the Bible, we will instinctively prefer the “New” Testament over the “Old”, and view the “Old” as somehow obsolete. It’s as though, in computer lingo, the Old Testament was the beta version of the Bible, and the New Testament the official release.  Continue reading “Fulfilling the Law”