On the Brink of Alleluia - Last day of the 45 day fast.

My stomach is rumbling and I am on the brink of Alleluia.

Today is day 45 - the last day of the fast I began on Ash Wednesday, February 17th. (still time to donate!)

In a matter of hours, the Easter Vigil will begin at my parish, St. Cecilia's in Toronto. For the 45 days of Lent Catholics do not sing Alleluia, but tonight at the Easter Vigil we will sing. We will sing and we will celebrate the mystery of Jesus Christ, whom death could not defeat.

Ryan's scale this morning

And after we sing, I will eat. There will be a meal of delicious meats, cheese, salad, bread and wine. There will be a meal and there will be a phone call - to my friend and colleague, Ryan Worms. He will be breaking his own fast at the same time in Montreal today. Yes, the best thing about this fast has been doing it together. As he wrote today,  "Une soupe par jour, le résultat est sur la balance et dans nos coeurs." (One soup per day, the result is on the scale and in our hearts.)

When I look in my heart, what is it I find after 45 days as I stand here, hours away from Alleluia and hunger still in my stomach?

My scale this morning

I find the hunger has fed my heart - my spritual desire. In my heart is a deeper yearning for our mission at Development and Peace. I so want others to join us in our search for a better world.

There is also a deep understanding in my heart that it is a great privilege be able to choose to break my fast. It is a choice that so many of our brothers and sisters do not have. For them the fast continues. The burden of hunger will not be lifted from their shoulders as it will be from mine. For that reason,  Ryan and I have both told each other that we would like to try and continue to fast in a similar manner at least one day a week.

Sharing soup together...

My heart is lighter (and not just because my body is). Along with the spiritual desire is also a spiritual peace. In some strange way, the self-denial has brought with it a liberation and self-fulfillment. Somehow, knowing that I can go without food has deepened my knowledge that there are a great many things that I can go without in my life.

When I look into my heart I see desire, understanding, and a spiritual peace - here on the brink of Alleluia.

The First Homily of Pope Francis - Walking, Building, Professing.

On the 28th day of my fast for Development and Peace the Holy Spirit gave us the first pope from Latin America. And what was his first act? To ask us all to pray for God's blessing upon him - Pope Francis, the first of his name.

Little more than a day has now passed since I sat with my father and children watching the momentous events unfold in Rome via a choppy rural Internet connection on the farm where I grew up.  Since I am not digesting much food during the fast, instead, I have been digesting the first actions of our new pope, chosen from the ends of the earth.

In the words of my friend and colleague Jess Agustin:



Pope Francis pays his hotel bill

Instead of adorning himself with an ornate gold cross as popes traditionally do, he wears a simple cross around his neck. Rather than riding in the "popemobile," he joined cardinals on a bus back to their temporary Vatican residence after his election. On Thursday, he stopped by the priests' residence where they had stayed before the papal conclave to grab his bags and pay his bill.

This seems consistent with the stories of simplicity that abound in the media. He gave up his palace and chauffeur to live in an apartment and ride local transit. He cooked his own meals and washes the feet of those living with AIDS.  Did he aid the violence of the dictators in Argentina's dirty war? If Nobel Peace Prize laureate Adolfo Perez Esquivel and Sergio Rubin are to be believed, the answer is no. I wonder if Rubin's biography of our new pope, El Jesuita, is available in English. If it's not, it will be soon.



biography

Of all that I have read, Mary Jo Leddy's article in the Toronto Star has impressed me the most. In her reflection on the wounded angel she expresses her hope that, "like St. Francis of Assisi, he will follow the call to 'repair' the church by being with the poor."

What I was most keen to read though, was his first homily, delivered in the Sistine chapel.   In the readings for the mass, he identified the common theme of movement and broke it down into three points - Walking, Building, Professing. Turns out he delivered it in Italian without script.

It was the bit about 'professing' that I kept returning to: "We can walk as much as we want, we can build many things, but if we do not confess Jesus Christ, nothing will avail. We will become a compassionate NGO, but not the Church."

Many Catholic activists who work for NGO's are fond of the saying attributed (some would say falsely) to St. Francis, "Preach the Gospel, and if necessary, use words." We use it to stress the importance of our actions as people of faith - the importance of walking and building.

And yet, I have often felt that our use of these words serves another purpose at times.  Sometimes, these words are an excuse. They are a convenient way to excuse ourselves from speaking in the language of faith as we go about our daily work of trying to change the world and make it a better place.  I myself have been guilty of this. And yet the truth is that my belief in Christ and love for God are the beating heart of my work with Development and Peace. This is something that must be professed in words.

Development and Peace is something more than a compassionate NGO. It is true that we provide assistance for others regardless of their creed. It is true that we work closely with those who do not share our faith. It is true that we do not concern ourselves with proselytising but focus on development. It is true. Yet I believe there is no contradiction between these facts and that fact that we are the Church - the official international development agency of the Catholic Church in Canada.

Development and Peace is the Church in the world - seeking in love and truth God's justice for the poor and oppressed.  This means being ready to accept crucifixion at the hands of those who would have it otherwise. To stand for God's truth and to truly stand with the poor requires a readiness to accept crucifixion.  Pope Francis recognizes this in his homily,

"The same Peter who confessed Jesus Christ, says 'you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. I will follow you, but let us not speak of the Cross. This has nothing to do with it.' He says, "I'll follow you in other ways, that do not include the Cross.' When we walk without the Cross, when we build without the Cross, and when we profess Christ without the Cross, we are not disciples of the Lord. We are worldly, we are bishops, priests, cardinals, popes, but not disciples of the Lord."

The hunger I am feeling right now, the hunger that has left me more than 20lbs lighter as I start the 30th day of my fast, reminds me of the cross that nearly 1 billion of my brothers and sisters must face each day. This fast is my small way of taking up a cross as I walk, build, and profess.

When he became Cardinal in 2001, Pope Francis asked the faithful in Argentina not to spend the money to come and celebrate with him in Rome. Instead, he asked them to celebrate by taking that money and giving it to the poor.

I hope that now he is Pope, people will again celebrate by giving to the poor, to the crucified ones. Why not do so by sponsoring my fast with a donation to Development and Peace?

To Renew the Spirit of Lent

40 Day THINKfast - The First Sunday

 Let us renew the Spirit of Lent once again.

As Ryan and I complete the first 5 days of our fast for Development and Peace, these are the words that come to me. We are grateful to those who have already donated to our own fast pages.  We are moved by those who have signed up for D&P's  Good Friday THINKfast and become D&P fundraisers in response to our call.

When Development and Peace was founded 46 years ago in the wake of Vatican II, it was mandated to "renew the Spirit of Lent". For 46 years Catholics in our parishes and schools across Canada have continued to faithfully give on the 5th Sunday of lent in support of our mission to end poverty and build a world of justice. But our annual ShareLent campaign must also now reach beyond these safe walls and out into the world if we are truly to be Christ's witnesses.

Over the last two days I have had the honour of walking with a true witness of Christ - Pedro Jimeno Barreto, archbishop of Huancayo, Peru. He has joined us in Canada to launch the national ShareLent campaign. Death threats against his life would not stop him from speaking out in defense of the poor in his archdiocese - who live in one of the most polluted places on the planet, la Oroya. His efforts, supported by your donations, have put a stop to the ecological destruction of their lives.  His witness embodies the Spirit of Lent, the move from death to life.


As D&P moves towards its 50th anniversary, it is time to renew the Spirit of Lent once again. This time: on-line, where the world now gathers. Through our on-line Fast pages, we are calling out to the world, "Repent and believe the good news."

These words, "repent and believe the good news," are spoken as we are marked with ashes for the world to see on Ash Wednesday. Repentance is not a popular word in today's culture, especially if you are trying to raise funds for your mission, as we are doing with this Fast.

But repent we must if we are ever going to live in a world that respects the human dignity of each and every person and sees the truth of God's Love. We are calling out to all those who know that the world cannot continue to ignore the cry of the poor and of the earth much longer.  We are calling out to those who know we are not sharing the riches of the earth as God would have us do. We must repent from our ways of selfishness, violence, war and destruction that are the source of so much poverty and despair.  When we desecrate the poor, we desecrate God.

I believe there are millions of us that want to repent. Because repentance is not about guilt. It is really about wanting to live a better life and to be a better person. God's love can show us how to do that. There is nothing more generous than God's love.

Generousity is the antidote. Generousity of Spirit is where goodness is to be found. Generousity is able to recognize the image of God in every human person, no matter where they come from or what they look like. That generousity is there in every one of us, beating in our heart. Through our fast we want to find that generousity - to honour it and celebrate it.

We choose to fast to renew the Spirit of Lent. We choose to fast as Christ's witnesses to the world - "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring the good news to the afflicted." Liberty to the captives, sight to the blind, freedom to the oppressed. This is the Good News. Development and Peace is making it happen in our work around the world every day. Read the stories about what we are doing. Come and join us. We are fasting for 40 days. We invite you to sign up and join for one of them - Good Friday. Sign-up for the Good Friday THINKfast and raise funds for a better world!

Graduation!

Several weeks ago I was invited, for the first time, to give a graduation address.

I have always had a special place in my heart for the Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts community. Over the past 6 years they have been an amazing partner with Development and Peace - fundraising, carrying out our annual education campaign, and much more.

Good times with the Cardinal Carter Community

It was an honour to receive the invitation to keynote their 2012 graduation ceremony. A brief excerpt: 

Do you know what my favourite quotation is? My wife spent 50 hours cross-stitching it into a gift for me, "The World Will Be Saved By Beauty." This was the assertion of the great Russian novelist Dostoyevsky.  I believe him.  Share the beauty you have to offer with, literally, everyone. 

 
Never before in history has it been so easy to share. (at this point I produced my blackberry, snapped this photo and posted it to facebook) And yet, at the same time, it has never been so difficult to share - to reveal to others our search for who we are, why we are here, and what we owe as brothers and sisters to one another. To truly share in this way, in a world that increasingly is closing itself off in fear requires strength of heart, as the Psalms say.

One person who does exemplify this call to share in a meaningful way is Marilyn Grace. She is the teacher/chaplain at Cardinal Carter who invited me to speak. This was her last graduation ceremony as she retired at the end of the year - Thank-you Marilyn for all the young people whose lives you have touched.

Speaking of graduation...

...as of July 1st, I began a one year leave of absence from my position as the Central Ontario Animator. For the next 12 months I will be serving Development and Peace as the Deputy Director of In-Canada programs on a maternity leave contract.  My new position is responsible for the entire network of animators across Canada - a team of 14. Therefore, you will notice that the tag-line on the Mustard Seed Muse has accordingly changed - so too will the content of my posts. Reflections and Reports will take on a National rather than regional flavor.

This message will be sent out across list-serves operated by members in my three dioceses: Toronto, Kingston, and Peterborough.  To all of you reading this who have been part of my journey as animator these past six years, thank-you. Working with you in the cause of the Gospel call to Solidarity has given me a solid foundation for the year ahead. My very first trip into the field as the animator remains vivid for me. It was the October 2006 education campaign workshop at St. Joan of Arc Parish in Toronto. I had yet to officially begin my responsibilities as animator. We began the training in prayer. I knew I was home. The chance to freely express my Faith and its meaning in my search for a better way of living with one another and with all creation is a blessing. Not everyone gets to both find and live their vocation in life.

Some shots from the field - 2006-2012

Please pray for me as I make this short sojourn to a place where my view will widen from Central Ontario to all of Canada. I look forward to continuing to share with you all on the road ahead as it stretches out for me in both directions - west to the Pacific and east to the Atlantic - from sea to shining sea.

Meeting Xavier...

Brother Xavier Plassat

Brother Xavier Plassat almost didn't make it to Canada from his remote village in Northern Brazil. With animated gestures he mimics the explosion of glass from the blown out windows of his bus. It was hit by a large truck during his 7 hour ride to the airport and consequent three-flight trip to Canada.  He explains his voyage to me at the home of the Dominican Friars in Toronto where I meet him for the first time.  He is here for a two-week speaking tour.

He hasn't slept for two nights. And yet his front-line activism freeing slaves from charcoal and sugarcane operations has obviously given him a fortitude for God's work. His eyes are clear and blue, his manner playful and spirit light. Yet the burdens of the poor with whom he works in the remote regions of Brazil are clearly also his own.  God has moved him to give his life to this important work - to free the slaves, to release the captives.

Brother Xavier has arrived in  Canada. Over the next two weeks he will be sharing stories of his work as the coordinator of the Anti-slavery and human trafficking program of D&P partner, the Pastoral Land Commission. 
 

"This is our secret weapon" he says, giving me a little fold-out accordion card with a cartoon on it. His program produces tens of thousands of these cards and give them to poor workers everywhere to help them avoid falling into the trap of slavery.  There is a place to put their names - for many, it functions as their only source of ID. There is a place to write down basic information: "my work contract starts:______ ends:______ it pays:____" Often this information is not written down or agreed upon with the employer and worker and thus they end up trapped.  The back contains numbers of people they can call if they are forced into slavery or slave-like conditions.

His first presentation is this Saturday at 2pm in Bracebridge and I am really looking forward to it!

Finding out when he's coming to a place near you and come and meet him too! More info HERE

2753 Drops in the River

How long does it take to count 2753 drops that make up a river? Four hours and Thirteen minutes (minus 25 minutes for lunch).

Water Drop 2753.

For some time now I've wanted to know exactly how many drops are found in the river that is at the focus of our local D&P River of Justice Project. Today I found out.

I've always been a fan of creative prayer and meditation and spending the time today to enumerate each drop of the river was certainly that.

Each drop contains the reflection of a person who has taken the time to record a thought, prayer, picture, pledge, or story regarding the importance of water in the life of our human family.

2011 Bottled Water Free Day rally at the Catholic Education Center, Toronto

Drop by drop we are creating a culture that sees water as the God-Given gift that it is and thus protects it for the common good. This culture is one which celebrates and protects our tap water while avoiding bottled water (which is sold for private profit). I felt such a sense of gratitude for each person who is a part of this river, people ranging from age 4 to 84.
 
I have publicly committed to growing the River of Justice until all the Catholic school boards in the Central Ontario region are have a bottled water free culture that is enshrined in board policy. So far ALCDSB has acheived this goal and TCDSB is well on its way!

Bottled Water Free Day is March 15th 2012. Consider having your school join the River of Justice project if you haven't already.  Check out the new project page on the Mustard Seed Muse

Considering the Conference - the UN Conference on Climate Change That Is!

D&P Statement on Durban

"Canada does not even meet its reduction targets of the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, having INCREASED greenhouse gas emissions rather than reduced them".

As a Canadian this statement glares at me from the recent Development and Peace statement on the UN Conference on climate change. In the face of the monumental task of resolutely pursuing justice for those countries of the Global South disproportionately impacted by global warming it is too easy to leave the nitty gritty work up to UN conferences and regulatory bodies other than ourselves.  It is too easy to choose not to be informed at the moment and leave conversations about "carbon offsets" and REDD and Redd+ to scientists. We are urged in this paper to sit up, pay attention and "consider how our movement should respond to a crisis foretold". In fact, we should not only sit up but speak up about living sustainably. 

Take time to read this D&P statement. Let it link you to the COP17 conference in Durban, South Africa - now in its second day . As part of the D&P movement be part of this important conversation. Sit up, speak up- speak out!

 This blog entry brought to you by D&P member and sometime guest blogger on the Muse, Elizabeth Stocking. Enjoy!