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August 20, 2019 | The Valley Catholic
COMMENTARY
God is Calling us to Break Violence’s Stranglehold on our World
By Tony Magliano
Internationally syndicated social jus-
tice and peace columnist
[email protected]
The recent tragic mass shootings in Gilroy, Califor-
nia, Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas, killing at least 29
people, point to an ongoing epidemic of mass shootings
in the United States. As of August 5, the 217th day of
the year, there were 255 mass shootings – more mass
shootings than number of days so far this year.
When bot h mass shoot i ngs a nd si ngle
shootings are added together, everyday on av-
erage 10 0 A mer ica n s a re k i l led w it h g u n s
and hundreds more are shot and injured (see:
https://everytownresearch.org/gun-violence-america).
When compared to other wealthy nations and many
low-income countries, the U.S.’s rate of gun violence is
far greater (see: https://n.pr/2T9W6FP).
While common sense gun control laws like univer-
sal background checks and gun registration, as well
as banning the sale of semi-automatic weapons would
certainly help stem this epidemic, the problem runs
far deeper than reasonable legislation can adequately
address.
The U.S., as well as so much of the world, is addicted
to the evil of violence.
Just consider how widespread and far-reaching
are the global tentacles of violence: 55 million annual
abortions, infanticide, euthanasia, drug gangs, child
soldiers, religious/ethnic/racial persecution, dozens of
armed conflicts, armed militias, war preparation, arms
manufacturing, arms sales, the violent “entertainment”
industry, and the astronomical global military spend-
ing of $1.7 trillion annually.
As of August 5, the 217th day of the
year, there were 255 mass shootings
– more mass shootings than number
of days so far this year.
And then there are the many other cruel realities
that human beings suffer from, that at first glance may
not appear violent-related, but, in truth inflict grave
violence to the human dignity of countless brothers
and sisters. Among these cruel realities are closed
borders to desperate migrants and refugees, hunger,
poverty, homelessness, people lacking clean water/
sanitation/medical care, abandoned orphans, forgotten
elderly, human trafficking and child labor.
Dare we not forget there are two other evil catego-
ries of violence which are threatening the very exis-
tence of life on earth: the ominous reality of nuclear
weapons – with the very real possibility of nuclear
war anytime, and the unfolding catastrophic violence
to our common home – the earth – caused principally
by human-induced climate change.
Bot h of t hese loom i ng da ngers have
led the prestigious Bulletin of the Atomic Sci-
entists to report that their Doomsday Clock is
perilously still at 2 minutes to midnight (see:
https://thebulletin.org/doomsday-clock).
In the words of Pope Francis we need to create
a “culture of encounter” with all people – even our
enemies.
“But to you who hear I say, love your enemies, do
good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you. … Do to others as you
would have them do to you,” said Jesus.
Violence is not the way of Jesus. This is indisputable!
The late preeminent theologian and biblical scholar,
Fr. John McKenzie said, “If Jesus does not reject vio-
lence for any reason, we do not know anything about
Jesus. Jesus taught us not how to kill but how to die.”
So, following the example of the non-violent Jesus,
let us teach, preach, work, and pray to root out violence
in ourselves, governments, corporations, schools,
cultures, and even in our church – e.g. the “just-war”
theory (see: https://nonviolencejustpeace.net).
Saint Pope John Paul powerfully said, “Violence is
evil, that violence is unacceptable as a solution to prob-
lems, that violence is unworthy of man. Violence is a lie,
for it goes against the truth of our faith, the truth of our
humanity. Violence destroys what it claims to defend:
the dignity, the life, the freedom of human beings.”
Closeness Is God’s Answer to Suffering, Pope Says
By Junno Arocho Esteves
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY -- In hopeless situa-
tions of pain and suffering, God never
abandons his children but rather re-
mains close to them, Pope Francis said.
“God’s answer to our pain is a close-
ness, a presence that accompanies us,
that doesn’t leave us alone. Jesus made
himself the same as us and for this rea-
son we have him near us, to cry with
us in the most difficult moments of our
lives. Let us look at him, entrust him
with our questions, our sorrows, our an-
ger,” the pope said in a letter published
August 13 in the Italian newspaper “Il
Secolo XIX,” based in Genoa.
In his letter, the pope commemorated
the first anniversary of the fatal collapse
of Genoa’s Morandi bridge that killed
43 people and “inflicted a wound in the
heart of your city.”
“In the face of such events, the pain
of loss is excruciating and not easy to
relieve, as is the feeling of not resign-
ing oneself in the face of a disaster that
could have been avoided,” he wrote.
The pope said that while there is no
answer to the sorrow of losing a loved
one, those who suffer must remember
that they “are never alone” and that
God responds to their cries not with
words but through the presence of his
son, Jesus.
“Jesus passed before us through suf-
fering and death. He took upon himself
all our sufferings. He was despised,
The Blessing of Reality Checks
By Father Eugene Hemrick
Catholic News Service
“I have observed Satan falling like
lightning from the sky” (Lk 10:18).
Jesus instructed the Twelve: “Be-
hold, I am sending you like sheep in the
midst of wolves; so be shrewd as ser-
pents and simple as doves” (Mt 10:16).
Avoiding being like Satan, who
was dispelled from heaven because of
pride, and reminding the Twelve that
they will be vulnerable sheep are two
of Christ’s reality checks found in the
New Testament. Just when we think
discipleship is glorious, along comes
one of Christ’s zingers aimed at bring-
ing his apostles down to earth.
At first sight, Christ’s reality checks
seem frightful and cautionary: Do not
become proud or you will fall like
Satan; being a shepherd is fraught
with dangers. What deeper meaning
is found in these reality checks? St.
Thomas Aquinas gives us a profound
understanding of them in his treatises
on love and wisdom.
Among the qualities of love cited
by St. Aquinas is fraternal correction,
which at first look doesn’t seem to
fit with love’s more heart-uplifting
qualities such as mercy, peace, joy and
beneficence.
And yet the goal of fraternal correc-
tion is extremely heartening: to help us
live a more prudent, wise and orderly
life. St. Isidore states that folly is the op-
posite of wisdom. Interestingly, “folly”
is derived from the Old French word
“folie,” meaning madness or stupidity.
Folly stops us from understanding the
causes of the good life that advance our
life for the better.
Christ’s reality checks are not meant
to frighten his disciples; rather they are
meant to make them wise and prudent
and are inspired by his love for them.
humiliated, beaten, nailed to the cross,
and barbarically killed,” he said.
The pope also encouraged the people
of Genoa to not lose sight of Christ and
the church who “is with you and shares
your sufferings and difficulties.”
“I know that you people of Genoa are
capable of great gestures of solidarity, I
know that you roll up your sleeves, that
you do not give up, that you know how
to be next to those most in need,” Pope
Francis said. “Do not lose hope, don’t let
yourselves be robbed.”
Like a wise father who has a very good
grasp of reality’s pros and cons and
who out of love for his children desires
the best for their future, so too, is this
Christ’s love.
As I reflect on the fraternal correc-
tion I have received during my life
and the times they brought me down
to earth, I wonder about the degree of
fraternal correction being practiced
today in homes, schools, churches and
businesses.
Fraternal correction is difficult to
practice or to receive. And yet when it
is offered, it gives us a shot of wisdom
needed to enjoy a more orderly life.