The “Quota” Creates a “Culture of Counter”, instead of “Encounter”

“I do not ask that you take them out of the world…”

Jn 17:15

Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #216 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

A NEW CULTURE

Encounter that becomes culture

216. The word “culture” points to something deeply embedded within a people, its most cherished convictions and its way of life.

Justice remains elusive to survivors of Salvador’s Sumpul River massacre
“Let’s not build a big church. Let’s have a place where people can come together to celebrate, especially children, a place where they can laugh and cry in peace, because many (during the massacre) died crying (of terror).”

A people’s “culture” is more than an abstract idea.

World Youth Day guidelines emphasize importance of diocesan celebrations
“World Youth Day, by its very name and nature, is meant for every young person in the world. No one is excluded or can excuse themselves. This means that church leaders should do everything they can to accompany every single youth and young adult in their area.”

It has to do with their desires, their interests and ultimately the way they live their lives.

World Youth Day 2023 Meeting Dates Announced
“It is highly recommended that all members of our diocesan delegation attend these meetings. Formation meetings will be to prepare the mind, body and soul to get the most out of our pilgrimage to Portugal. In addition, we will be doing many activities as a group to prepare us for our journey.”

To speak of a “culture of encounter” means that we, as a people, should be passionate about meeting others, seeking points of contact, building bridges, planning a project that includes everyone.

Hong Kong bishop-designate: Dialogue good, religious freedom important
“But I do believe that there is a God who wants us to be united. Unity is not the same as uniformity. I always mentioned in my schools, we must respect unity in plurality. It is something that we must learn to respect — plurality,”

This becomes an aspiration and a style of life.

Brick in Walkway at St. Ann’s, Canyon

The subject of this culture is the people, not simply one part of society that would pacify the rest with the help of professional and media resources.

Grant connects CUA grad students with NASA in cutting-edge research
“It’s a great opportunity for me to be at Catholic University of America to have this connection and to be working with something I like. It’s not just astrophysics in general. I am super interested in exoplanets,”

Welcome back home!

From a Memo from Bishop Patrick J. Zurek Sent to All Diocese of Amarillo Priests in the Matters of Lifting the Covid-19 Dispensation

Today this “restless” and formally unrecognized catechist, is asking those “under the dome”: Why can’t the United Catholic Appeal be more about “encounter”; meaning that we, as a diocese should be passionate about meeting others, seeking points of contact, building bridges, planning an “Appeal” that includes everyone; instead of using a “Quota” that wants us to believe that, “‘I, as a lay person, do not always have all the knowledge’; while it is quite
probable that the deacon, priest or bishop has a much fuller picture of what is
actually happening”.

Today my prayer is that, “the dome” understands that, an “United Catholic Appeal” has to do with those who have been left in the world at Jesus’s request; their desires, their interests and ultimately the way they live their lives; and rather than counting them for a “Quota”, “the dome” would encounter them through their pledges, it may discover that they have a much fuller picture of what is actually happening than believed.

A View From the Glenn

Changing a Spherical Dome into a Many-Faceted Polyhedron

“but they are in the world…”

Jn 17:11

Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #215 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

A NEW CULTURE

215. “Life, for all its confrontations, is the art of encounter”.[204]

Pope names Jesuit educator bishop of Hong Kong
“Do you know how a bridge works? A bridge must be stepped over by people, so that it can bring people to the other side.”

I have frequently called for the growth of a culture of encounter capable of transcending our differences and divisions.

Pope appeals for peace in Holy Land, says death of children ‘unacceptable
’Their (children) death is a sign that one does not want to build the future, but wants to destroy it,” 

This means working to create a many-faceted polyhedron whose different sides form a variegated unity, in which “the whole is greater than the part”.[205] 

‘360-degree’ support from school keeps math teacher upright after tragedy
“It’s been a sequence of crying, hollering, yelling, in the room just getting it out. But these kids and the school have embraced me like I am an integral part of a family,” 

The image of a polyhedron can represent a society where differences coexist, complementing, enriching and reciprocally illuminating one another, even amid disagreements and reservations.

Washington cardinal leads worldwide rosary for end to COVID-19 pandemic
“In communion with the Holy Father following the example of the first Christian communities in this time of great trial, we lift up to the Lord through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, unceasing supplications for the end of the pandemic,”

Each of us can learn something from others. No one is useless and no one is expendable.

Mass Schedules For Parishes In The Diocese Of Amarillo
As the dispensation to attend Mass in the Diocese of Amarillo is being lifted by Bishop Patrick J. Zurek (see the tab, Lifting of Dispensation by Bishop Zurek, on the homepage of the diocesan website, amarillodiocese.org), here is the list of Mass Schedules for parishes in the Diocese of Amarillo. 

This also means finding ways to include those on the peripheries of life.

Holy Cross Names Valedictorian, Salutatorian
Valedictorian is Andrew Robert Wilhelm and the Salutatorian is Luke Thomas Rickwartz.

For they have another way of looking at things; they see aspects of reality that are invisible to the centres of power where weighty decisions are made.

Welcome back home!

From a Memo from Bishop Patrick J. Zurek Sent to All Diocese of Amarillo Priests in the Matters of Lifting the Covid-19 Dispensation

Today this “restless” and formally unrecognized catechist, is asking those “under the dome”: Why can’t we have a Cathedral parish where, “differences coexist, complementing, enriching and reciprocally illuminating one another, even amid disagreements and reservations”, instead of denouncing it as, “a
lot of unrest… for the last few months; actually, in
reality, for some decades?”

Today my prayer is that, “the dome” understands that, “Each of us can learn something from others”, even “the world” or ” ‘a few’, emphasis on a few, souls that appear to be quite
restless” , and lives in “the world” in such a way that it creates “a many-faceted polyhedron whose different sides form a variegated unity, in which “the whole is greater than the part”.

A View From the Glenn

With the “Quota”, Dialogue Does Not Exist

“Now you are talking plainly…”

Jn 16:29

Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #214 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

Consensus and truth

214. To agnostics, this foundation could prove sufficient to confer a solid and stable universal validity on basic and non-negotiable ethical principles that could serve to prevent further catastrophes.

UPDATE: U.S. climate envoy meets pope, speaks at Vatican conference
Pope Francis gave Kerry a signed copy of his message for World Peace Day, a collection of his encyclicals, including “Laudato Si’” on ecology, and a sculpture of a grapevine.

As believers, we are convinced that human nature, as the source of ethical principles, was created by God, and that ultimately it is he who gives those principles their solid foundation.[203] 

Making sense of the Communion debate
“Well, if it’s a symbol, to hell with it….the center of existence for me; all the rest of life is expendable.”

This does not result in an ethical rigidity nor does it lead to the imposition of any one moral system, since fundamental and universally valid moral principles can be embodied in different practical rules.

“Pope: Be courageous, choose life!
“If families are not the focus of the future, there will be no future;”

Thus, room for dialogue will always exist.

Family Life Ministries
in conjunction with
Bishop DeFalco Retreat Center
2100 N Spring St, Amarillo, TX

June 5th-6th, 2021
Saturday 8:00 AM – Sunday 1:00 PM
 
$170 Individual / $290 Couple
For more info call 806-414-1059

Registration Deadline: May 28
Please register below.

Welcome back home!

From a Memo from Bishop Patrick J. Zurek Sent to All Diocese of Amarillo Priests in the Matters of Lifting the Covid-19 Dispensation

Today this “restless” and formally unrecognized catechist, is asking those “under the dome”:

then why must grieving parents pay $290, “for a weekend to find comfort and seek spiritual healing”.

Today my prayer is that those “under the dome” do away with the “Quota”, with it’s focus on “dome priorities”, and allow “the flock” to talk “plainly” with their giving on what priorities the UCA should fund.

A View From the Glenn

The “Quota” Strips the UCA of All Dignity

“Until now you have not asked anything in my name;”

Jn 16:24

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #213 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

Consensus and truth

213. The dignity of others is to be respected in all circumstances, not because that dignity is something we have invented or imagined, but because human beings possess an intrinsic worth superior to that of material objects and contingent situations.

Vatican’s vanishing artisans: Traditional workshops struggle amid COVID-19
“Work is a means of participating in the work of salvation, an opportunity to hasten the coming of the kingdom, to develop our talents and abilities, and to put them at the service of society and fraternal communion,” 

This requires that they be treated differently.

Verify before sharing ‘news,’ pope says in Communications Day message
Catholics using the media, professionally or personally, must do so in a way that spreads faith in a loving God and attracts people to Christ, he said, adding that he was convinced St. Paul, “that great communicator,” would “certainly have made use of email and social messaging” to share the Gospel.

That every human being possesses an inalienable dignity is a truth that corresponds to human nature apart from all cultural change.

The church and the world need Catholic Scouts, pope says
“The Lord wants you to be his disciples and to spread light and hope, because he counts on your boldness, your courage and your enthusiasm.”
A Memorial To The Unborn In Canyon
The Memorial to the Unborn was the Eagle Scout project of parishioner Derrick Martin, an eighth grade student at Canyon Junior High School.

For this reason, human beings have the same inviolable dignity in every age of history and no one can consider himself or herself authorized by particular situations to deny this conviction or to act against it.

Atrocities still occurring in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, says priest
“They are using rape and food as weapons of war.”

The intellect can investigate the reality of things through reflection, experience and dialogue, and come to recognize in that reality, which transcends it, the basis of certain universal moral demands.

Federal broadband subsidy to narrow digital divide, homework gap
“In fact, we have already reached out to thousands of customers that we believe qualify for this discount to bring awareness of the program so as many customers as possible can take advantage of the subsidy.”
Schlabs Named Principal At Hereford School
“I am excited to continue my commitment to our parish and school in this new capacity,”

Please know that each of you will be welcomed with open arms as you return to your other home, your parish Church…your spiritual home!

From a Memo from Bishop Patrick J. Zurek Sent to All Diocese of Amarillo Priests in the Matters of Lifting the Covid-19 Dispensation
Farmers Mass In Hereford May 13
The Mass will also celebrate the Feast Day of Sts. Isidore and Maria, which is traditionally celebrated on May 15.
Saint Isidore the Farmer

Today this “restless” and formally unrecognized catechist, asks Saint Isidore to pray that we in the Diocese of Amarillo investigate the reality of the United Catholic Appeal (UCA) through reflection, experience and dialogue, and come to recognize in that reality, which transcends it, the basis of certain universal moral demands which is not present in it. Instead of appealing in Jesus’s name to those returning home, and receiving what is pledged so that our joy may be complete; the “life under the dome” places a “Quota” on their “parish Church” and tells them that they will be evicted from their spiritual home if it is not met.

In the Diocese of Amarillo, with Bishop Zurek’s emphasis on priestly vocations, it seems that Marriage has become the forgotten vocation.
Survivors Memorial in Grotto of St. Mary’s Cathedral
Let’s not forget that in 2002 the New York Times reported,
“If Boston is the fault line of the child sexual-abuse scandal that has convulsed the Roman Catholic Church, then few places have felt the aftershocks more deeply than the Diocese of Amarillo.”
We are still feeling those “aftershocks”.
In the Diocese of Amarillo the emphasis seems to be more on the protection of and efficacious help for priests.
A View From the Glenn

How Good Can a “Quota” Calculation be?

“This I command you:  love one another.”

Jn 15:17

Feast of Saint Matthias, Apostle

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #212 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

Consensus and truth

212. If something always serves the good functioning of society, is it not because, lying beyond it, there is an enduring truth accessible to the intellect?

Polish pilgrims mark anniversary of attempt to assassinate St. John Paul“
I still can feel his body slip as if paralyzed and fall into my arms. I see his blood dripping onto his white pontifical cassock, staining my hands and clothes. I also hear a continual, fainter and fainter, repetition of the invocation, ‘O Mary, O my Mother!’”

Inherent in the nature of human beings and society there exist certain basic structures to support our development and survival.

As COVID-19 spikes, Indian church officials look for ways to help
“Our work is not restricted to Catholics. It extends to everyone irrespective of caste, creed or religion,”

Certain requirements thus ensue, and these can be discovered through dialogue, even though, strictly speaking, they are not created by consensus.

Catholic Charities Receives Grant From Bar Foundation
“Since its inception in 1965, the Texas Bar Foundation has awarded more than $22 million in grants to law-related programs,”

The fact that certain rules are indispensable for the very life of society is a sign that they are good in and of themselves.

Holy Cross Students Wins TAPPS Speech Team Title
The Holy Cross Speech team won the 1-A Speech Team Championship with 91 points.

There is no need, then, to oppose the interests of society, consensus and the reality of objective truth.

Locations Announced For Totus Tuus
“The aim of Totus Tuus is to foster an encounter with Jesus Christ in children and youth and said their hearts on fire with love for him,” 

These three realities can be harmonized whenever, through dialogue, people are unafraid to get to the heart of an issue.

We priests have longed for the day when the Churches will again be filled with the faithful.

From a Memo from Bishop Patrick J. Zurek Sent to All Diocese of Amarillo Priests in the Matters of Lifting the Covid-19 Dispensation

Today this “restless” and formally unrecognized catechist, asks Saint Matthias to pray that through dialogue in the Diocese of Amarillo we become unafraid to get to the heart of the issue of the UCA; that a “Quota” is a human calculation and a “Pledge” recognizes God’s ability to choose rightly. Only then will the UCA be inherently good and our priests can long for our Churches to be filled for reasons other than paying what’s been calculated by “life under the dome”; remembering that Jesus, “commanded”, not “demanded” us to Love.

A View From the Glenn

Rising Above Consensus

“Are you discussing with one another what I said…?”

Jn 16:19

Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #211 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

Consensus and truth

211. In a pluralistic society, dialogue is the best way to realize what ought always to be affirmed and respected apart from any ephemeral consensus.

Cardinal sets week of prayer for all people in China
“Let me be clear — it is the Chinese Communist Party that has been responsible, not the people of China, and no one should respond to this crisis with racial hatred toward the Chinese,”

Such dialogue needs to be enriched and illumined by clear thinking, rational arguments, a variety of perspectives and the contribution of different fields of knowledge and points of view.

Pope, at audience with public present, talks about the power of prayer
While it may be easy to “parrot” prayer, “blah, blah, blah,” he said, real prayer requires effort.

Nor can it exclude the conviction that it is possible to arrive at certain fundamental truths always to be upheld.

In Gaza, tiny Catholic community tries to stay in touch during airstrikes
…the priests and religious have been staying in close contact with their parishioners through phone calls, the internet and WhatsApp. Unfortunately, he said, they “are very used to war.”

Acknowledging the existence of certain enduring values, however demanding it may be to discern them, makes for a robust and solid social ethics.

A Memorial To The Unborn In Canyon
“Knowing that it would be hard only increased my urge to complete this lengthy project.”

Once those fundamental values are acknowledged and adopted through dialogue and consensus, we realize that they rise above consensus; they transcend our concrete situations and remain non-negotiable.

A Night At The Museum Thursday, June 24
Bishop Patrick J. Zurek invites the public to attend and learn more about the Clarendon parish. The church was built in 1892 and torn down on Sept. 9, 2019.

Our understanding of their meaning and scope can increase – and in that respect, consensus is a dynamic reality – but in themselves, they are held to be enduring by virtue of their inherent meaning.

Catholics and all people of good will are urged to contact their state senators and the Governor to support policy and legislative measures that uphold the safety and wellbeing of all persons in our communities and to oppose HB 1927. (“permitless carry”)

Oppose HB 1927 and a culture of violence, Letter signed by Bishop Patrick J. Zurek and all Bishops of Texas
The canonically crowned image enshrined within the Chapel of the Apparitions at Fatima.

According to Bishop Zurek’s memos , “Surely many have longed, with a deep desire, to attend Mass and receive Holy Communion.“ Today this “restless” and formally unrecognized catechist, asks Our Lady of Fatima to pray that in the Diocese of Amarillo we can begin “discussing with one another” our consensus that the UCA “Quota” is vital to having Mass; and that through this dialogue we realize that our deepest desires such as attending Mass and receiving Holy Communion are “enduring by virtue of their inherent meaning”, and “rise above consensus”, which would have us believe they are like other “ephemeral” things such as, “life under the dome”, which needs the “Quota” to survive.

A View From the Glenn

“Leveled Down”

“…and will declare to you the things that are coming.”

Jn 16:13

Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #210 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

210. What is now happening, and drawing us into a perverse and barren way of thinking, is the reduction of ethics and politics to physics.

Being a catechist is a vocation, pope says in establishing formal ministry
“Those who will be catechists must know that they speak in the name of the church and transmit the faith of the church,” 

Good and evil no longer exist in themselves; there is only a calculus of benefits and burdens.

Bishops urge Catholics to sign petition against Hyde Amendment’s repeal
“Do not force Americans to subsidize the taking of innocent life,”
As the amendment faces an uncertain future, the USCCB’s Pro-Life Secretariat is encouraging Catholics to sign the petition asking members of Congress to oppose the Hyde Amendment’s repeal at https://www.notaxpayerabortion.com/.

As a result of the displacement of moral reasoning, the law is no longer seen as reflecting a fundamental notion of justice but as mirroring notions currently in vogue.

Catholics and all people of good will are urged to contact their state senators and the Governor to support policy and legislative measures that uphold the safety and wellbeing of all persons in our communities and to oppose HB 1927. (“permitless carry”)

Oppose HB 1927 and a culture of violence, Letter signed by Bishop Patrick J. Zurek and all Bishops of Texas

Breakdown ensues: everything is “leveled down” by a superficial bartered consensus. In the end, the law of the strongest prevails.

Advocate: S. Carolina approval of firing squad, electric chair ‘chilling’
“The decade without executions in South Carolina should be seen as a mark of progress toward a culture of life, not a reason to backslide into immoral and gruesome means of killing,” 
Statue of Pancras in a church at Vranov, Moravia
Domitilla, with Saints Nereus and Achilleus, by Niccolò Circignani

According to Bishop Zurek’s memos , “Many parishioners may not have been able to personally attend and participate in the celebration of Holy Mass because of the pandemic. “ Today this formally unrecognized catechist, and one who aspires to be among “the few” asks Saints Pancras, Nereus and Achilleus to pray that in the Diocese of Amarillo, the Holy Mass is not “leveled down” to a means of meeting “the Quota”, and a declaration of “the things that are coming” from under the dome.

A View From the Glenn

Denied!

“and you will no longer see me;”

Jn 16:10

Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #209 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

209. Otherwise, is it not conceivable that those fundamental human rights which we now consider unassailable will be denied by those in power, once they have gained the “consensus” of an apathetic or intimidated population?

Pope urges prayers for Colombia, Jerusalem, Afghanistan
“To love like Christ means saying ‘no’ to other loves that the world offers us: love of money -– those who love money do not love as Jesus loves — love of success, vanity, power,”

Nor would a mere consensus between different nations, itself equally open to manipulation, suffice to protect them.

Put health before profits by making vaccine more available, pope says
“everyone — government leaders, businesses, international organizations — to foster cooperation and not competition, and to seek a solution for everyone: vaccines for all, especially for the most vulnerable and needy of all regions of the planet.”

We have ample evidence of the great good of which we are capable, yet we also have to acknowledge our inherent destructiveness.

Women religious speak out against voter suppression
They said Pope Francis’ encyclical “Evangelii Gaudium” reminds them “that our vocation as Catholic sisters is inherently political” 

Is not the indifference and the heartless individualism into which we have fallen also a result of our sloth in pursuing higher values, values that transcend our immediate needs?

National Shrine to host May 17 worldwide praying of the rosary
“With the world living for more than a year in pandemic mode, I trust that everyone would agree that we need some ‘rearranging’, And so, my hope is that through this monthlong worldwide praying of the rosary, Our Lady will look favorably upon our pleas and present our great need before her Son.”

Relativism always brings the risk that some or other alleged truth will be imposed by the powerful or the clever.

Christian leaders in Jerusalem express concern over growing violence
“The growing tension, backed mainly by right-wing radical groups, endangers the already fragile reality in and around Jerusalem,”

Yet, “when it is a matter of the moral norms prohibiting intrinsic evil, there are no privileges or exceptions for anyone.

Cardinal Ladaria cautions U.S. bishops on politicians and Communion
…it would be “misleading” to present abortion and euthanasia as “the only grave matters of Catholic moral and social teaching that demand the fullest level of accountability on the part of Catholics.”

It makes no difference whether one is the master of the world or the ‘poorest of the poor’ on the face of the earth.

Catholics and all people of good will are urged to contact their state senators and the Governor to support policy and legislative measures that uphold the safety and wellbeing of all persons in our communities and to oppose HB 1927. (“permitless carry”)

Oppose HB 1927 and a culture of violence, Letter signed by Bishop Patrick J. Zurek and all Bishops of Texas

Before the demands of morality we are all absolutely equal”.[202]

Because Bishop Zurek’s memos have stated, “It has been a long time since we have experienced a normal existence here on our beloved planet”, my prayer for today is that in our desire for “normal” in the Diocese of Amarillo, we don’t allow those with the power of “the Quota”, to deny us the existence that Jesus has planned for us through His Advocate, the Holy Spirit, on God’s beloved planet!

A View From the Glenn

It’s Time to “Unmask”

“They will expel you from the synagogues;”

Jn 16:2

Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #208 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

208. We need to learn how to unmask the various ways that the truth is manipulated, distorted and concealed in public and private discourse.

Commentary: Catholic responsiveness to voter suppression
A voter in Atlanta casts a vote Jan. 5, 2021, in Georgia’s Senate runoff elections. (CNS photo/Elijah Nouvelage, Reuters)

“Racism is a virus that quickly mutates and, instead of disappearing, goes into hiding, and lurks in waiting”

Pope Francis

What we call “truth” is not only the reporting of facts and events, such as we find in the daily papers.

Texas Republicans say their proposed voting restrictions are color blind. But many see “Jim Crow in a tuxedo.”

It is primarily the search for the solid foundations sustaining our decisions and our laws.

Catholics and all people of good will are urged to contact their state senators and the Governor to support policy and legislative measures that uphold the safety and wellbeing of all persons in our communities and to oppose HB 1927. (“permitless carry”)

Oppose HB 1927 and a culture of violence, Letter signed by Bishop Patrick J. Zurek and all Bishops of Texas

This calls for acknowledging that the human mind is capable of transcending immediate concerns and grasping certain truths that are unchanging, as true now as in the past.

“For far too long, in pursuit of “single-issue” strategies to end abortion, many Christians have scandalously turned a blind eye to real breakdowns in solidarity and dehumanizing policies, including crackdowns on worker rights and voting rights, the slashing of social support for the poor and sick, racism and the exploitation of immigrants and the environment.”

Bishop Mark Seitz

As it peers into human nature, reason discovers universal values derived from that same nature.

After ‘taking a knee,’ border bishop gets a call from the pope
A portrait of St. John Avila by El Greco (1580)

Saints John of Avila and Damien pray that since, “slowly, but surely we are returning to a more normal way of life”, in the Diocese of Amarillo; we don’t overlook “unmasking” those parts of our lives that allow us to “expel” others from our Church based on “manipulated, distorted and concealed” truth!

A photograph of Father Damien taken shortly before his death
A View From the Glenn

When “the world” Uses the Law to Hate

“If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.”

Jn 15:18

Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter

In recent homilies Bishop Patrick J. Zurek has put forth the Encyclical of Pope Francis, Fratelli Tutti, as the standard for love and unity in our diocese. Today, let’s reflect upon paragraph #207 in that regard:

CHAPTER SIX

DIALOGUE AND FRIENDSHIP IN SOCIETY

SOCIAL DIALOGUE FOR A NEW CULTURE

The BASIS of Consensus

207. Is it possible to be concerned for truth, to seek the truth that responds to life’s deepest meaning?

Mother and daughters work together in Catholic hospital
Nurse practitioner Novlet Davis-Bucknor poses with daughters Shekeya Washington, left, a registered nurse, and LaToya Bucknor, a nurse practitioner, at St. Francis Hospital & Heart Center in Roslyn, N.Y. (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz)

What is law without the conviction, born of age-old reflection and great wisdom, that each human being is sacred and inviolable?

Chicago interfaith leaders decry violence against Asian Americans
Parishioners of St. Mary of the Lake in Chicago listen to speakers at the Buddhist Temple of Chicago May 2, 2021, during an interfaith rally against racism toward Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. (CNS photo/Karen Callaway, Chicago Catholic)

If society is to have a future, it must respect the truth of our human dignity and submit to that truth.

Catholics and all people of good will are urged to contact their state senators and the Governor to support policy and legislative measures that uphold the safety and wellbeing of all persons in our communities and to oppose HB 1927.

Oppose HB 1927 and a culture of violence, Letter signed by Bishop Patrick J. Zurek and all Bishops of Texas

Murder is not wrong simply because it is socially unacceptable and punished by law, but because of a deeper conviction.

Fetal “heartbeat” bill, which could ban abortions at six weeks, nears passage in the Legislature
A member of the House gallery listens to legislators speak during a debate on an abortion bill being considered on the House floor on May 5, 2021. Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune

This is a non-negotiable truth attained by the use of reason and accepted in conscience.

Permitless carry of a handgun in Texas nearly law, after Senate OKs bill
Gun rights activists gathered at the Capitol on April 29, 2021. Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune

A society is noble and decent not least for its support of the pursuit of truth and its adherence to the most basic of truths.

Today my prayer is that in the Diocese of Amarillo we “respect the truth of our human dignity and submit to that truth”, not only with a “heartbeat” bill, for which our political world praises us, but especially by opposing “constitutional carry”, for which that same “world hates you”!

A View From the Glenn