Bear with me for a moment while I suggest replacing the word “FutureChurch” with “NAACP-Cleveland” and see if that helps shed any light.

Then, take an imaginative journey in which the “NAACP-Cleveland” first came into existence through an action taken by the Community of St. Malachi Community Council (on which Barb now sits). Then imagine that 27 other parish councils (Including the Parish of St. Malachi) and religious organizations in the diocese of Cleveland endorsed the “NAACP-Cleveland” and invited speakers to have programs at their parishes, which the “NAACP-Cleveland” did for many years.

Then imagine that the Pope said it was “definitive teaching” that black people could not be ordained as priests because Jesus only ordained white Jewish men, and only white Jewish men can image Jesus. And that he also said he didn’t want to talk about married priests right now, even though most of the white Jewish men that Jesus called were married.

And let us remember that the Pope’s teaching came at a time of severe worldwide priest shortage (since 1975, the number of Catholics increased by 52% to 1.1 billion while the number of priests remained at 405,000)

Then imagine that the Cleveland Bishop said because the Pope had spoken, “it is not appropriate for the ‘NAACP-Cleveland’ to have programs on Church property.” And he said this at a time that his own diocese was closing and clustering parishes…and diocesan priest pension actuaries were projecting that the Cleveland diocese would have only 76 priests by the year 2027 for the diocese’s 234 parishes.

Then imagine that the “NAACP-Cleveland” was denied permission to speak in space supported financially by the Community of St. Malachi … and that the Community was never consulted about this decision. (and this isn’t imaginary…it actually happened)

Should members of the “NAACP-Cleveland” (or the CSM?) “accept the decree with hope and praise” as Barb suggests?

I think not.

Bottom line my friends: blind obedience isn’t always the highest value.

If it were, we would still have slaves, we would still believe that taking interest on a loan damns one to hell, that the Jewish people were Christ killers, and that the sun revolves around the earth.

Sometimes the Holy Spirit works through faithful dissent to unjust laws and rules...by asking and discussing the hard questions, by doing “that which is within our power to do” as did the woman who anointed Jesus before his passion.

… and no amount of spirituality speak can get around it. (Let those who have ears to hear, hear)

FutureChurch isn’t afraid but the “Powers that Be” sure seem to be… or why the fear of open discussion about “matters concerning the good of the Church” IN the CHURCH?

And yes….we shall overcome… because God is faithful even when God’s friends sometimes miss the point.

“Crash” opened with the quote, “It’s the sense of touch. I think we miss that touch so much that we crash into each other just so we can feel something.” The movie then takes us through 24 hours in the lives of several different groups of people. The character’s lives are intertwined with coincidental complexity. Racism and violence are used within many of the movie’s subplots. Yet the racism and violence are, in my opinion, just the surface of the deeper study of humanity that goes on within the movie. This movie reveals the complicated mixture of good and bad in many of the characters. In the movie I saw people on the brink of violence and confrontation swallow their pride and make measured decisions to avoid violence. I saw a pathetic, scared, angry, selfish person come to a realization of these negative traits within herself. I saw a character abuse power in a sick and distasteful way in one scene and then saw that same character act bravely and compassionately in other scenes. I saw a “good” person do something “bad” because of fear and misunderstanding.

Most of all I saw all of us, all of humanity in this movie. The way we act in life is often a result of complexities we have little or no control of. Any of our acts of conversion and forgiveness, as wonderful as they are, are really never enough. This is why we can only collapse with deep humility in the hope of God’s grace.

I recommend the movie “Crash.” At the beginning of June it was showing at 15 theaters around the Cleveland area. I will warn that it is rated “R” for some sexual scenes, language and violence. In my opinion though these “R” rated scenes were portrayed reasonably within the context of the movie’s deeper messages.

The article “A Note to Eucharistic Ministers” by Ellen McIntyre in the May issue of Communio focused on sharing the sign of peace with the other Eucharistic ministers. Rather than focus on this specific issue, it seems to me that it might be more helpful – not only for Eucharistic ministers, but for us all – to reflect on our preparation for Communion.

The Communion Rite of the Mass is familiar; we pray it every Sunday. Perhaps because of its familiarity, it can become easy to move through it automatically and unreflectively. However, the “full, conscious and active participation” (cf. Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, #14) calls us to be attentive through the entire rite and each element of the Rite.

There are four parts or elements to the immediate preparation for Communion: the Lord’s Prayer, the Sign of Peace, the Fraction (Breaking of the Bread) and the Invitation to Communion. Each part leads into and connects with the following part; together, they reveal the meaning of the Eucharistic Communion that we are about to receive.

The Lord’s Prayer: Having proclaimed our great “Amen!” to our prayer of thanksgiving (eucharist) for all God is and has done for us, we recognize our identity as sons and daughters of God and pray to the Father as our brother Jesus taught us. The familiar words “give us this day our daily bread” take on a special meaning at the beginning of the Communion rite and we begin to prepare ourselves to receive the Bread of Life.

The Sign of Peace: During the Lord’s prayer, we pray “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.” The following prayer begins with the final line: “Deliver us, Lord, from every evil and grant us peace in our day…” linking the themes of forgiveness/reconciliation and peace. At this moment, the Church remembers and heeds Jesus’ words: “If you bring your gift to the altar and there recall that your brother (sister) has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother (sister), and then come offer your gift.” (Matthew 5: 23-24) And so the Particular Norms for the Celebration and Distribution of Holy Communion Under Both Kinds for the Diocese of Cleveland instructs “the sign of peace is an expression of reconciliation and unity as we approach the altar to share the eucharistic banquet. It is appropriate that each one give the sign of peace only to those who are nearest and in a sober manner.” (#31) The sign of peace is not a “meet and greet” moment (we do that before Mass begins). Nor is sharing a sign of peace is a matter of feeling peaceful or feeling connected to everyone; it is more profound than this. True peace is found in communio, literally being “in union with” one another in the Lord. We will be “in union with” one another if we have lived what we pray in the Lord’s prayer and forgiven those who have wronged us. We will be “in union with” one another as we are made one in Christ through our sharing in the one bread and the one cup.

The Breaking of the Eucharistic Bread: Having done what we can to remove any barriers to being in union with one another by sharing a sign of reconciliation and peace, the Church calls us to turn our attention to Christ, the source of our reconciliation and peace. The symbolism here is both rich and complex. The breaking of the Eucharistic bread calls us to reflect on the mystery of our unity in Christ. St. Paul expresses it beautifully: “the bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.” (1 Corinthians 10: 16-17) At the same time, the breaking of the bread – i.e. the Body of Christ – is a vivid, graphic reminder of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. “Lamb of God” recalls the paschal (Passover) lamb, slaughtered to save God’s people by its blood and Christ who established the new covenant in his blood. In Jesus’ dying and rising, we are forgiven, reconciled, saved. “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.” (1 Corinthians 11: 26)

[A note here in direct response to the concerns raised in Ellen McIntyre’s article: the Particular Norms for the Celebration and Distribution of Holy Communion Under Both Kinds for the Diocese of Cleveland notes “Extraordinary ministers enter the sanctuary at the Lamb of God.” (#32) This is exactly what our practice is at St. Malachi. The issue is not whether or not Eucharistic ministers should share the sign of peace – clearly, they should along with everyone else in the assembly. They should continue sharing the sign of peace until the “Lamb of God” begins. Thus, when the Eucharistic ministers enter the sanctuary, the sign of peace has been completed by the community has a whole. The Breaking of the Eucharistic bread (the Fraction rite) has begun. Eucharistic ministers – or anyone else, for that matter – who continue to exchange the sign of peace while the rest of the assembly is singing the “Lamb of God” is actually dividing the community between those sharing peace and those participating in the “Lamb of God.” This division is the opposite of what the sign of peace symbolizes.]

The Invitation to Communion: The Eucharistic bread has been broken, so that it can be shared. In response to our calling out to the Lamb of God, the Lamb of God himself comes to us. Recognizing the Lord Jesus, who is truly present, we echo the words of the Centurion: “I did not consider myself worthy to come to you; but say the word and let my servant be healed.” (Luke 7: 7) Although none of us are worthy, we trust in Jesus’ words: “Take and eat; this is my body. … Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant.” (Matthew 26: 26-28) “Happy are those who are called to his supper” indeed.

In his Apostolic Letter Mane Nobiscum Domine (“Remain With Us, Lord”) announcing the “Year of the Eucharist,” the late Pope John Paul wrote, “May the Year of the Eucharist be for everyone a precious opportunity to grow in awareness of the incomparable treasure which Christ has entrusted to his Church. May it encourage a more lively and fervent celebration of the Eucharist, leading to a Christian life transformed by love.” (#29)

At the May 22 Community meeting concerning the 2005-2006 budget, Jane Smith asked the pertinent question whether the new “fair share” arrangement that would be implemented by the proposed budget could result in moving the Community toward absorption by the Parish. Fr. Tony responded by saying that parishes may not be disbanded except pursuant to strict canon law procedures and that Bishop Pilla’s policy has been not to close any parish except at the request or with the consent of the parishioners.

That response, of course, did not really address Jane’s question, because the issue is one of the practical effect of the new arrangement and not the formal, structural effect. As I stated at the meeting, I believe that adoption of the proposed new budgeting approach would be another large step on a path that we have been following for quite some time-that leads to the surrender of the Community of St. Malachi’s unique identity as a lay-directed parish.

The current situation brings to mind the parable about the method for boiling a frog. If a frog is plunged into boiling water, it will sense the danger and jump out of the pot. On the other hand, if the frog is placed in a pot of cool water and the water is gradually heated to boiling, the frog will be complacent and succumb. An attempt to terminate the Community’s parish status or to merge it with another parish would certainly provoke a strong reaction from many Community members. The gradual erosion of our stated mission of encouraging and practicing meaningful lay involvement in the governance and activities of the Church that I believe we have been experiencing does not, however, seem to have caught the attention of many of our members.

The founders of this Community worked hard, long before we were recognized as a parish, to establish the principle of lay leadership and to organize our structure and activities to put that principle into practice. Having control of our finances and adopting and implementing budgets that are based primarily on meeting the needs and desires of the Community and its members is essential to maintaining our character and our mission.

Despite the denials, there has been for many years a feeling among committee leaders and members that money is not available for new or expanded activities and that they need to raise money for any such purposes that they want to undertake. This should not and need not be the case, but I find it disappointing and an indication of the extent to which apathy has set in and initiative is lacking, that less than ten percent of the Community’s annual expenses are devoted directly to Community activities.

We cannot know what the future will hold for us, but it is clear that the priest shortage in the Cleveland Diocese will lead to some drastic changes in the organization and staffing of parishes. The time until a new bishop, who will take a very different approach to these questions from that of the current bishop, will be appointed is not very long. Kay Vine was right in her suggestion that we need to give serious consideration to what the future may hold and how we should be using our financial resources now and in the future to carry out the mission of the Community of St. Malachi. I fear that the current proposed budget and expanded ‘fair share’ arrangement would continue us on the path of becoming in effect and adjunct of St. Malachi Parish.

There should be no reason why we cannot meet our important obligations to the Parish while still maintaining our identity and independence. Continuing to have almost all of our expenditures determined by the needs of the Parish and the Diocese rather than on an assessment of our needs is, in my judgment, an abandonment of the reason why we came to be in the first place.

When I walked into Malachi House, I could feel God’s loving presence. It might be because of the quiet, it might be because of the spiritual wall décor, it might because of the open and airy rooms (each resident room has a window), it might be because of the chapel on the first floor, or it might be because there are always at least two or three gathered together to give unconditional love to the residents. (Actually, there are two caregivers and two caregiver assistants on duty, 24-hours a day, and 365 days a year.)

Residents at Malachi House are people who have little time left on this earth, according to medical standards. The criteria to live in the House are a person must have a prognosis of six months or less to live, must not have enough money to go somewhere else, must not have an available or willing caregiver, must be affiliated with a hospice, and must WANT to live the time remaining at Malachi House.

The only illness Malachi House cannot accommodate is tuberculosis. It is too contagious and, even with universal precautions, is a threat to staff and volunteers. All other diseases including aids, cancer, heart, and lung diseases are treated with universal precautions.

Malachi House is the resident’s home – volunteers and staff are the guests. Each resident has right to say “no” to medication; they are asked if they want their “meds.” In respect for the residents’ privacy, few staff know what illness brings them to the House, and the staff who do know the prognosis need to know to help the resident cope. It is up to a resident to tell their prognosis to volunteers and some staff, if the resident wants to.

Alice Sawyers, the Volunteer Coordinator, witnesses the love that staff and volunteers have for the residents. She sees unconditional love change people. One resident described the House to Alice: “[it is] one step below heaven.”

Residents live at the Malachi House from two hours to two years. Alice says, “Miracles happen every day here.” Occasionally miracles happen because the residents are loved into healing beyond cures. More than 15 have recovered enough to move out. Other miracles include a resident spending quality time with family enough to mend fences. Sometimes the miracle is just a brighter day for a resident who then brightens the day of a staff or volunteer.

The staff and volunteer’s respect for the resident does not end with their passing. When a resident goes “home,” his or her normally colorful bedspread is replaced with a white bedspread, a white heart-shaped pillow, and a single rose for one to two days. This is how all honor him or her.

Volunteers are important help to the residents and minimal staff. There are 75–100 volunteers each week. Their services include answering phones, working in the flower garden, resident care, cooking, and cleaning. Anything that needs to be done in a private home, a hospital room, or an office needs to be done at the House.

If you call Malachi House to volunteer, please ask for Alice. She will invite you to experience the House and fill out an application. She is interested in finding something you can do and in which you are interested. She helps to ensure that people volunteer at Malachi House because they want to and will keep coming back.

As all our ministries, Malachi House does need and take donations. It has need for food, paper goods, some videos, office supplies, postage stamps, copy paper, some working office equipment, and CD players (boom boxes). The House does not take used clothing or used furniture. If you want to donate something, it would be best to call Malachi House at 216-621-8831. Please make time to take a tour when you drop off the donation – see if you feel the presence of God’s love there too.

The word heal or some form of it appears in the New Testament 48 times. The word love or some form of it appears in the New Testament 289 times. This implies that healing and love were important to the Early Christians; this reflects the way Jesus taught relationship. Malachi House is a ministry of spiritual healing and unconditional love.