News

A Journey to Hope

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:18:37 -0600

I’m not sure if it is just one of those “ask the guy because he’s a priest” questions or if perhaps you have been asking the same question in your own circles as well. But in the wake of the first official pilgrimage to the United States, I have heard from many people who have asked with great sincerity: so what did you think of the Pope’s visit?

Admittedly I am no pro on evaluating papal visitations and I was not invited, nor was I even able to attend any of the events in Washington, D.C., or New York City. And to be honest, through the newspapers and television, I only caught just a few of Benedict’s stops along the six-day journey. Even though my vantage point was somewhat distanced and my exposure to the pope’s speeches and sermons were limited, it sure seems to me this trip has received generous applause. What I have heard from various people is that Benedict surprised everyone. While his personality may have been unknown to the greater Catholic population, there seemed to be a level of uncertainty as to what we should expect from this successor of Peter. Thankfully, so it seems, we welcomed a gracious, joyful man who, by most accounts, appreciated and celebrated well his first visit to the United States. From his visit to the White House to his gathering with inter-religious leaders to his meetings with young people, bishops, the United Nations, Jews preparing for Passover, seminarians, and most importantly his unannounced gathering with victims of sexual abuse, I believe this pope made a positive impact on this local church and I would even say the country. So what did I think of the pope’s visit? Quite simply, I think it was a desperately needed shot in the arm for the Catholic Church in the U.S.

What I find most interesting, however, is how this papal visit has once again stirred the many relevant questions that face this church of which we are a part. In addition to covering the pope’s itinerary, I found it fascinating that many of the news stations used Benedict’s trip as a natural springboard for conversation about Catholic identity in the United States, church attendance, vocations, the ever-increasing Latino population, and the ongoing struggle of Church confidence in the wake of the abuse crisis. So while the pope’s visit to the U.S. was positive in many respects, many of the same challenging questions remain before us. In light of this apparent papal shot in the arm, or this blip on the radar, I can’t help but ask: so now what? Where do we go from here?

I recently had the great privilege of dining with five of the most wonderful young adults who are very special to me. They were kids in the 7th and 8th grades when the younger Father Tom Hurley arrived on the scene of their parish as the newly ordained priest back in 1993. Getting to know them and their families has been one of the many blessings I have encountered during my ministry as a priest. Watching them grow into their young adult years, taking on their budding careers, and now witnessing their weddings has been very sacred for me. Usually twice a year, this little group gets together for dinner to catch up and have a few laughs. At one point during the dinner conversation when I was more a bystander than participant, I could not help but sit back and wonder if this rather historic papal visit made any difference for them or not. They didn’t ask me “so what did you think of the pope’s visit,” nor did I ask them. (And now I wish I did; just to see what they had to say.) Instead, I pondered the future. Seated around me at this table, I thought, are those who are part of the church today, and eventually those who will bring forth the next generation. I am grateful and proud of each of them. They inspire me by their kindness and I am grateful for their ongoing friendship. I am thankful that as young adults they feel comfortable around me and want me to be a part of their lives. I am also most appreciative of their honesty and transparency in conversation with me. They do not guard their language or their humor and they share with me the joys and struggles of their lives. And they also are honest with me about their feelings related to their faith and the church. They are Catholic and I don’t suspect they would think of changing that identity. I know, because they share it with me, that not all of them attend Mass with any regularity. In fact, one of them who lives very close to Old St. Pat’s, hardly ever comes over on Sunday unless I gently prod him along.

At times I wonder: what happened? How did these kids whose families were instrumental players in the parish back then, suddenly disappear? I suppose there is a side of me that could communicate my disappointment in their lack of enthusiasm when it comes to a regular routine of Sunday worship. But it’s not about my disappointment or anyone else’s. And as much as I enjoyed the Catholic fanfair and the positive impact of Benedict’s journey, I know it is going to take a whole lot more to enliven and rejuvenate the spirit of my now young adult friends. And quite frankly I do not think their experience is any different than what is happening in the larger culture today. Thankfully, from what I caught, Benedict did not come with a wagging finger or a word of discouragement. In fact the title of his trip was Christ our Hope and I believe it was hopeful. But where do we go from here?

When it comes to being builders of God’s kingdom and the church, I just hope we keep trying. It will never be perfect or without flaws and mistakes. I hope we stay true to our mission as disciples of Jesus. I hope we do not fall into judgment but stay true to the cause of INVITATION.

I hope we recognize our first responsibility as disciples is to be missionaries to each other. I hope we never stop dreaming of a church that can be and always invoke the Holy Spirit to help us keep trying new ways of being alive and being a welcoming church that stirs the soul and nourishes the spirit!

In that same spirit, I hope you will accept our invitation to join us at 10 a.m. on May 18, 2008 when we will celebrate One Mass, One Church, One Hope at the UIC Forum. It will be our first time when the entire mission of Old St. Pat’s gathers together on a Sunday morning to celebrate this Pentecost experience of renewing our Hope as a church in the world. I think I’ll invite my young adult friends to join us.

Peace.

Rev. Thomas J. Hurley is pastor of Old St. Patrick’s Church.

Hope Springs Eternal

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 09:03:35 -0600

Beginning last autumn, and each week since, our faith community has focused on Rising to Hope as a guiding light and as a powerful reminder of a basic tenet of our faith.

We began during the Season for Social Justice, focusing on Care of God’s Creation and throughout the programs, forums, and films of the Justice Initiative. The energetic youth in Foundations and Blueprints raised funds for their service trips. Community Outreach groups held a Keep the Faith Info Fest that was visited by more than 600 Old St. Pat’s members.

From Family Ministry to Beloved, from Young Adult Ministry to Connections, Encore, and the Crossroads Center, the spirit of Hope brought us a little further along in fulfilling our role in building the Kingdom of God, set fire to our imaginations and gave us food for thought: what is left undone, what is still possible?

In Advent we waited in joyful hope, celebrating birth and new beginnings. During Lent — the time from Ashes to Easter, we died to those things in our life that were holding us back, knowing change — and resurrection — are possible when we put our faith in the hope promised to us by Jesus Christ.

Hope is more than optimism. It is more than a lucky hunch. It is faith personified. Hope asks us to take heart in and act upon that which was so beautifully expressed by theologian Reinhold Niebuhr.

Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime;

Therefore, we are saved by hope.

Nothing true or beautiful or good makes complete sense

in any immediate context of history;

Therefore, we are saved by faith.

Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone.

Therefore, we are saved by love.

The journey of faith, hope, and love continues. Our pastor, Rev. Tom Hurley, invites the entire Old St. Patrick’s community to gather — like the apostles did before us during that first Pentecost — at 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 18, 2008. This is a

wonderful opportunity for all of us to be present together as a community and to rise to the hope of a church and faith community that says, Yes.

This spirit-filled and bold celebration of the Eucharist will take place at the UIC Forum, 725 W. Roosevelt Road, Chicago. Join us for this Pentecost moment. It truly would not be the same without you.

New and Renewed Identities

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:40 -0600

I think one of the greatest traps we fall into today is the mistaken belief that spiritual life is the part of our existence which is mostly about achieving stillness; we have this sense that spirituality should be the balance to the activity that characterizes our roles as parent, student, laborer, teacher, accountant, volunteer, caretaker, . . .

But, to do faith and to go the way of Christ is not a spectator sport — it is a full-contact, hard-hitting, messy, arduous, intense, beautiful, compelling, mysterious, and grace-filled venture that — if engaged sincerely and with a full heart — is nothing less than transformational. Be forewarned, say the saints: taking up the Cross of Christ in our day is costly. It will require of us a tenacious spirit, a humble heart, and a commitment to strengthen and be strengthened by one another in community. And in the midst of a culture constantly promoting the ideal of self-preservation by any means necessary, a life united to Christ and the members of his Body promises to leave us with scars.

Lest these warnings dissuade us, though, God has provided us shining examples of grace, courage, and joy to draw us back to our vocations. Last weekend at Old St. Patrick’s, 16 adults proclaimed their “Yes” to this life of faith as they were baptized and welcomed into the Catholic Christian family; 22 adults followed their hearts as they entered into Full Communion with the Catholic Church and thus fully celebrating and participating in the Eucharist for the first time; and 18 adults completed their Christian Initiation as they were anointed and sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of Confirmation. Just hours later, the same waters of baptism were poured over the heads of 13 infant children whose parents and Godparents said “Yes” to the honor and responsibility of helping form, guide, and nurture their children into their own identity as God’s beloved ones.

Each of us there for these moments prayed, cheered, and urged them on as these new members of our community – these new members of our family – entered into Christ’s life. But, we did not do so as spectators. In the midst of those Liturgies as each of those dozens of people proclaimed his or her “yes” to a life of faith, devotion to others, and participation in the paschal mystery

… the rest of us joined them with our own YES. With Easter joy, we renewed and reclaimed our baptismal promises: reaffirming those vows that were proclaimed as that water was poured over us for the very first time.

We do refuse to follow the ways of sin, hopelessness, and despair.
We do refuse to be mastered by the part of our world, which advances the values of self-indulgence and hunger for power only to result in human isolation.
We promise to be people who imitate the attributes of our God: compassion, solidarity, justice, mercy, and hope.
We vow to live our lives in accordance with the example and the companionship of Jesus, our brother, who went the way of love (even through suffering and death) and asks us to join him.
We vow to open ourselves to be vessels of the Holy Spirit – that we might act as the instruments and become mediators of God’s grace in the world.

This is our Easter Proclamation. For the promise of a living faith is new life. And new life IS here . . . dwelling among us. And the celebration will continue for weeks to come:
Alleluia, Alleluia!

Keara Coughlin is director of Young Adult Ministry at Old St. Patrick’s Church.