Editor’ s Notes
Total Eclipse by Fr. Richard Bayuk, c. pp. s., Editor
As I write this, we are just several hours away from a total eclipse of the sun here in the Kansas City area. Preparation, anticipation, excitement, and craziness abounds. Much has been written about this phenomenon in the past weeks, and no doubt many will reflect on the experience afterward. This cosmic spectacle is occurring almost exclusively in the United States, a country and a society that has been struggling recently as we once again are faced with the ugliness of white supremacists, neo- Nazis, and members and admirers of the Ku Klux Klan in our midst. Today’ s shared experience as well as the overwhelming response of good in the face of evil are both signs of hope. The eclipse will last only minutes, although the memories much longer. Our need to address the racism which continues to be America’ s“ original sin” will take much longer and be much more difficult.
This past week a coalition of Catholic organizations( including the Conference of Major Superiors of Men, network Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, and Pax Christi usa— all of which our province has membership or affiliation with), published a statement in response to the violence in Charlottesville. Here are several quotes.
“ As representatives of national and international Catholic advocacy organizations working for peace and justice, we condemn unequivocally the display of hatred, overt racism, and violence manifest this past weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia by members of white supremacist, Ku Klux Klan, and neo-Nazi groups. These shameful acts expose in the most explicit way the racism and violence against African Americans and other racial groups in our country that has become deeply imbedded in our history and in our institutions, as well as those who embrace the hatred and genocide of Nazi Germany against Jews. These acts of domestic terrorism have no place in our society.”
“ There is no place in our society for hateful words or violent actions that put the lives of our sisters and brothers at risk, especially African Americans and other people of color, as well as Muslims, Jews and people of other faiths.”
White supremacists, neo-Nazis, and the kkk all swim in the same sewer, as what they hold in common is a belief in some kind of“ pure” race— a belief that when taken to its extreme leads to not just marginalization or expulsion, but physical extermination of the“ other.” And the“ other” or the“ undesirable” list is a long one. The Klan not only targeted African- Americans, but in its second iteration in the 1920s directed its hate and continued on page 5
2 • The New Wine Press • September 2017