Communio . . . November 23, 2003
To strengthen our shared life in Christ through mutual participation
and the free exchange of ideas.

Like it or not, abortion will, over the next few years, fade from public controversy. New procedures will arise out of new scientific discoveries that will make abortion largely a private matter. It will still be a deplorable business, but it will no longer be as available to public protest as it has been in the past. The next great controversy to polarize our country and the world will be about issues at the end of life.

Euthanasia by its word origin means dying well, but it has come to mean death at the hands of another for the purpose of relieving pain or suffering. Assisted suicide is death by one’s own hand with the cooperation of another person, usually in circumstances where the person committing suicide is unable to carry out the act alone. Withholding or withdrawing treatment to let a person die is fundamentally different from euthanasia or assisted suicide.

At present, strong forces are moving toward the legalization of assisted suicide. Federal courts have already decided two cases, one in Oregon and one in New York, in favor of permitting it. Inevitably, the Supreme Court will have to deal with the issue in the not too distant future. Whatever the Supreme Court decides, the Church and, with the usual exceptions, everyone in it will identify assisted suicide as an immoral act in violation of the Fifth Commandment and in violation of the traditions of Christianity.

Many people in our society will not be swayed by the morality of the Catholic position. Catholics need to know a few other facts in order to join the controversy:

Dr. Kevorkian is not a proper physician and his career as a pathologist has given him no credibility in the care of live patients. He is an embarrassment even to the Hemlock Society.

Assisted suicide and euthanasia cannot be separated. Legalization of the one will lead logically and inexorably to legalization of the other.

For the relief of suffering they are unnecessary. It is a sad reflection on the American medical profession that not enough doctors know how to take care of dying patients or to give proper palliative care. Broad educational efforts are in progress now to correct this deficiency.

The situation in the Netherlands, where euthanasia is illegal but not prosecuted, is both illogical and bizarre. The guidelines put together to control euthanasia are being violated on all sides. People there have been given a right to euthanasia; it was predictable that, given the right, many are being pressured into regarding the right as a duty.

In one part of Australia, euthanasia has been legalized. This is the first time in the history of civilization that private citizens have been legally empowered by the state to kill other private citizens.

The dimensions of these end-to-life issues are wide and deep. They will be as troublesome as the abortion issue. Polls have shown that a majority of Americans and Canadians approved of assisted suicide and euthanasia. Catholics have a duty to keep informed so they can turn back these grave threats to the sacredness of life.

by Kathleen Rossman

The open forum on Oct. 19th, facilitated by Sr. Pat Kozak, csj, provided a positive framework to discuss the present issues of the Community of St. Malachi. At the onset it was helpful for me when the facilitator stated that the challenges facing the community are normal in the cycle of an organization. Many of those in attendance appeared to be long standing members of the community eager to share what attracted them to CSM and committed to its vision as a lay directed personal parish. They brought wisdom, experience, affirmation of mutual visions, and vitality.

I suggest another forum with the same focus to be planned soon, especially to include newer community members, others unable to attend the first forum, and those who have recently left the community. This group of members will bring their enthusiasm, visions, plans, and vitality to participate in exciting new ways. The Catholic Church was a very different place almost thirty years ago, and the vision of early founders may not be the same as that of newer members. Both groups are essential and have many gifts to offer the community. The results of continuing to participate in the forum process with St. Pat’s skillful leadership will be a vibrant CSM. Springtime seems too long to wait for the next forum; this process needs to continue now.

My wife and I received a letter from another couple from St. Malachi’s. They were inviting us to a night at their house on Nov 2nd All Souls Day. The only thing we had to do was think of someone who had passed away that had a positive effect on our faith life and spirituality. We had to bring a picture, quote, or something that reminds you of that person. We also were prepared to share a short story about that person. We tried to keep it to 5 minutes each. Eight couples were invited and only six could make it. I must say I was nervous about attending the gathering that night. This was something new and different for me to do on All Souls Day.

We all gathered around 6:30 pm and after some small talk we began an evening I will treasure the rest of my life. We gathered in the living room and started with the Apostles Creed, then the reading of the definition of Communion of Saints, then three scripture readings, then a 5 minute video of a retreat put on by Henry Nouwen. As he explained the Communion of Saints. I must say that video was very powerful.

Then we began to share our stories and that is when the magic started. The stories were deep and full of life. I realized at the end of the evening there were twelve of us and it felt like we were the Apostles. There were twelve of us and you felt like you were with the Communion of Saints. It is hard to convey what all happened that night but I have noticed every time any of us meet we are still talking about that night. You can feel the energy again from that night. There was just so much spiritual energy there. It really was the Communion of Saints.

Maybe in the future this could become a regular gathering for St. Malachi members having groups of twelve to gather at others houses and become the Communion of Saints if only for a night. Thanks again John and Mary Carol.

A Response to Mr. Huck

It is clear from Mr. Huck’s view of Catholic liturgy, he is firmly committed to doing whatever is necessary for lay people, like himself, to establish a power base in the Catholic Church. He, like so many others of this ilk, use Vatican II and liberal bishops in the United States as the spring board to make forays into and around Papal authority. Vatican II is NOT what these people think it is. Liberal interpretation and implementation of it is another thing entirely and this is the pasture they roam.

Liberals attack ecclesiastical tradition, as this is a necessary and low resistance effort to advance their cause. This is why you see an increase in female altar boys and the use of Eucharistic ministers even when the celebrant could easily give out communion by himself. This is why many churches no longer have kneelers since, apparently in Mr. Huck’s opinion, it is degrading for a lay person to kneel and give pious adoration to God during the Consecration. It is befitting of him, though, as he states in his rant, reluctantly, that “the business on Sunday morning is about getting frail white hosts turned into the Blessed Sacrament”. This is also why, when you go into a church before mass to say some quiet prayers, you are confronted with the antics of others that more appropriately belong in a barnyard. The list of ecclesiastical tradition breaking activities is nearly endless.

These people are also gaining courage in attempts to reinterpret divine tradition and Holy Scripture. They tend to tread more gingerly and less openly in this arena since they risk going against the infallible teachings of the Pope and the deposit of the faith. Doing the research, one will find organizations that border on the clandestine that attempt to advance these causes.

An example of this is their quest to have women ordained priests. For that to happen they must go against Pope John Paul II’s Apostolic Letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis (May 22, 1994), which states “I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful”. Cardinal Ratzinger one year later (October 28, 1995) affirms the infallible nature of the teaching “since, founded on the written Word of God, and from the beginning constantly preserved and applied in the Tradition of the Church, it has been set forth infallibly by the ordinary and universal Magisterium”. Following this path leads to a sign post called Heresy. Good luck.

I would also point out to the not-too-astute that this attack on tradition and Papal authority over the last 35 years is precisely the timeframe for some of the lewdest behavior by some priest and seminarians who have involved themselves in homosexual and pedophile activities. Could there be a correlation?  This question begs to be answered.

The mean tone of his letter is also revealing. I am always taken aback when I see people like Mr. Huck who appear to be for love and communion simply rant and rave when they cannot get what they want. It makes me take pause and question whether they are really sincere. If this “regression” back to the ecclesiastical tradition is too much for Mr. Huck, he should move on. There are other religions that can surely fit his needs. He could even start his own religion, which, evidently, is what much of this liberalism is all about.

Now from a purely common sense point of view, why should anyone have to be subjected to people like Mr. Huck and their current vision of Catholic liturgy? What do I care what he thinks. There are thousands of people like him who have their own view of what the purpose of the Catholic Mass is. Accordingly, I find it offensive that this rubbish is circulated in the vestibule at St. Malachi's, somehow giving it a level of dignity and credence. I do not feel that St. Malachi's is the appropriate place to vent feelings or to try to persuade people to a particular point of view, especially if that point of view and agreement with the Holy See is dubious at best. If this represents Communio’s opinion, so be it. Just keep it out of the church and hand it out in the parking lot.

In closing, I would like to thank Mr. Huck for strengthening my faith in the Catholic Church. The Church has gone through many trying times during the last 2000 years and has survived and will continue to survive. How do I know this? Matthew 16:18. Thanks to the Holy Spirit the Church will be here until the end of time, no matter what.

I am sure over the years you have had someone say to you: “There are too many people here at St. Malachi’s that there is just no way to get to know everyone. I feel lost in the crowd.” Well I know I have heard it and I have even said it myself.

I would like to share what I heard a good old pastor say years ago that I find I need to remember when ever I feel lost in the crowd. He said, “Choose the twelve or look for the twelve people God has put in your life at St. Malachi’s and love them and die for them. Doing that you will find life and happiness at St. Malachi’s.” Simple to say but powerful if you believe it and live it.

Send articles or comments to joe_pulizzi@yahoo.com  or bmjohansen@yahoo.com. 
Deadline for the December 28th issue is December 14th.

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