Those Who Walk in Darkness...
by Gabino Zavala, Director of Justice & Peace Ministry
“Those who walk in darkness have seen a great
light.” These are the words of the prophet Isaiah
proclaimed in our liturgy at the mass on Christmas
night. It foretells the mysterious gift of the
Incarnation, Emmanuel — God with us, who brings
light to the world and to our lives.
During this past season of Advent, and as our
year drew to an end, we took the time to review the
year to see where God’s light needs to shine in our
world. Pope Francis told us that Advent is a time to
prioritize God in our lives and overcome indiffer-
ence “through prayer and concern for others.” We
need to become aware of “the tears and necessity of
our neighbor.”
We now have entered a new year of hope and pos-
sibilities. How can we continue to live as people of
the light in 2018? How can we be more aware of the
needs of our sisters and brothers? We, as a Precious
Blood community, live out our Precious Blood spiri-
tuality in our daily lives. We are invited to embrace
our corporate stances and promote lives lived as
disciples responding to the needs of our neighbors
through our faith which includes the Gospel and
the treasure of our Catholic social teaching. We are
disciples of Jesus in the spirit of Saint Gaspar. We are
called to be a spiritual community of action.
On the recent feast of the Epiphany, Isaiah again
tells us, “Your light has come.” Isaiah calls us to
know the presence of God’s light on and around us.
He encourages us to spread that light. Epiphany cel-
ebrates God’s light being revealed to all the nations.
Sharing this light can set the world on fire!
Let me list some issues that we encounter in our
world today that challenge us to share the light of
Christ by integrating our spirituality as Precious Blood
Missionaries in our daily living. These issues not only
involve our corporate stances but also other areas that
are of concern to us, a People of God. We may struggle
with certain aspects of these issues, and so let us look
at them in prayer, through reflection and dialogue.
Death Penalty
When Pope Francis came to the United States in
2015 he spoke out against the death penalty in talks he
gave to Congress and the United Nations. Pope Francis
continues to challenge our thinking on this issue by
calling for a revision of official church teaching that
would make capital punishment “inadmissible.” In
October of 2017 Pope Francis stated that the death
penalty is “contrary to the Gospel because it entails the
willful suppression of a human life that never ceases to
be sacred in the eyes of the Creator.” This challenges us
to rethink what it means to be “pro-life.” To be “pro-
life” is not just opposing abortion, but also protecting
life at every stage from the womb to natural death.
This includes the death penalty.
We continue to promote our own corporate
stance to work to abolish the death penalty in our
nation. And we do it with renewed energy knowing
that we are promoting the church’s teachings on the
sacredness of all human life.
Gun Violence
As Precious Blood missionaries we publicly
stand against gun violence. We are horrified by the
news that there is yet another mass shooting, from
Sandy Hook Elementary School to the Pulse Night
Club, Las Vegas and The First Baptist Church in
Sutherland Springs, Texas. The United States has
seen more than 218 people killed in 33 mass shoot-
ings, the most mass shootings of any nation on
earth, since Sandy Hook. More than 33,000 die from
gun violence every year in this country.
People in the United States own by far more guns
per person than residents of any other country. Our
residents own nearly half of the civilian-owned guns
in the world. And our gun homicide rates show this.
Gun homicides are 25 times higher than in any other
wealthy nation. We must also be aware that gun-
related suicides are eight times higher in the United
States than in any other wealthy country.
It is far too easy to purchase guns in the United
States. We stand on our second amendment right
“to bear arms.” Yet it is apparent that common sense
federal gun control legislation is needed. But our
Congress refuses to act.
continued on page 6
February 2018 • The New Wine Press • 5