July 27, 2015
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time                                                  

A Spiritual Tipping Point        

 

Prior to my work with the Franciscan Action Network, I worked as a therapist at a residential psychiatric treatment hospital. When I would listen to each patient's particular story, they carried a similar simple subtext: they had all become addicted to an unsustainable lifestyle. Whether it was a story of a life of unmoderated substance abuse, an unshakeable pattern of binge-eating, or the anxious prison of obsessively compulsive behaviors, long term hospitalization was reserved for those who bought the lie that the false sense of security of an unsustainable lifestyle tells and were stuck as a result. In Sunday's readings, the Israelites, despite being free from an Egyptian society built upon slavery, express a desire to return to captivity. "Would that we had died at the Lord's hand in the land of Egypt, as we sat by our fleshpots and ate our fill of bread." This is the spiritual cry of addiction. After engaging in a conscience override, an addict forgoes spiritual autonomy for the external control of someone or something that, however constraining, nonetheless gives us a fixed, predictable response. The addiction takes hold when the override becomes such a fixture (or fix) as to make the lifestyle of the addict dependent upon the fix.

 

If we take the broader view, it is easy to forget that economics are driven by the collective desires of individual people. Our unmoderated use of fossil fuels and our binge consumption of livestock has already created life-threatening levels of carbon emissions in the atmosphere to the degree that it becomes clear that our fix is not only individual but cultural as well. How else could individuals living in coastal areas continue to drive cars and use fossil fuel energy when coastal oil spills, rising sea levels, fatal humidity and erratic tropical storms have all been linked to that usage? It is well documented that the "Carbon Pharaohs" who head the fossil fuel industries hold consumers captive by employing merchants of doubt to tell rational lies intended to undermine scientific consensus and make corporate ethical discussions so confusing as to be impossible. Even the "Pharaohs" are themselves beholden to a capitalistic system that is legally mandated to put the financial self-interest of the fossil fuel industry shareholders above all competing concerns, including the lives of individuals in coastal areas. If the American system has truly held us all captive, is it really so hard to understand why American Christians would rather remain captive Israelites than confront these problems? Americans have indeed become "corrupted by deceitful desires" and trapped in the "futility of their minds." Is there really a way out?

 

In my experience, if we are truly to recover from addiction, it will only come after we have reached a spiritual tipping point. Two things in my experience provide a lasting antidote to addiction: truth and connection and both are rooted in a loving spirituality. This is perfectly personified when, after eating their fill, the crowds dropped their life concerns, jumped in boats, and doggedly pursued Jesus' for more of his teaching. Rather than craving the perishable food of an unsustainable lifestyle, they craved the enduring food of eternal life. The tipping point for them was not a matter of interpreting signs on the mental journey of certainty, it was a spontaneous expression of faith and spiritual longing. That is why, if America is ever to recover from the addiction associated with our fossil fuel based lifestyle, it will require faith. According to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and nearly every national Academy of Sciences in every industrial country, the science on Climate Change is as near to consensus as can be expected, but no one ever got to God through futility of our minds. What we need for full recovery is the light of Faith. We need a spiritually inspired manifesto to connect all of the people of our world to each other in a celebration of our common home. Thankfully, with Laudato Si, Pope Francis has provided us just that.

 

Rhett Engelking

Director of Franciscan Earth Corps   

 

Suggested Petitions

 

That we may come to know our own "tipping point" and have the courage and conviction to accept it so we can move toward healing our personal addictions, Let us pray...

 

In thanksgiving of God's patience with us in our weak humanity, that he may continue to lovingly guide us toward a fresh, spiritual way of living, Let us pray... 

 

Collect Prayer

Draw near to your servants O Lord,
and answer their prayers with unceasing kindness,
that, for those who glory in you as their Creator and guide,
you may restore what you have created
and keep safe what you have restored.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever. 

 

Amen.

FAN Urges Signatures to the GCCM Climate Petition  

 

 

FAN's and the Global Catholic Climate Movement's recent participation in a rally in Rome thanking Pope Francis for the release of his encyclical is a first step toward action called for by His Holiness. As a second step, FAN urges all members to sign the GCCM Climate Petition.
 

At current levels of deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions, average global temperatures are likely to rise 4 degrees Celsius or more by 2100, unleashing catastrophic climate change. Nations have begun submitting plans to the United Nations for how they intend to cut oil and coal use, increase renewable energy, and conserve forests. But so far it's not clear that their commitments will pull that number down significantly; nor are these targets legally binding. The GCCM believe this petition may help spur political leaders to act more effectively.

 

In the Philippines, Catholics have mobilized behind their leader, Cardinal Tagle who announced the official launch of the GCCM petition to an audience of over 1,000 priests, religious and lay leaders during a General Assembly of the Manila Archdiocese. He then encouraged Catholic Filipinos to take action and signed the petition himself. This direct response to the call to action in "Laudato Si" is a beautiful example of what Catholics all over the world should be doing.

Please take one minute to sign the petition and then share it with your family, friends and community. Together we can create a joyful noise to show world leaders we mean business when it comes to reversing the effects of climate change.

Order Your Copy of 'The Francis Effect' Today.

FAN friend, John Gehring is Catholic program director at Faith in Public Life. He has spent the last year working on a book that is now finished and available for pre-order.  

 

The Francis Effect: A Radical Pope's Challenge to the American Catholic Church explores how a church once known as a towering force for social justice became known for a narrow agenda most closely aligned with one political party, and then looks at the opportunities for change in the "age of Francis." It is affirmed with comments by Fr. Jim Martin, SJ, EJ Dionne, Sister Simone Campbell, Rev. Jim Wallis among others.  

 

FAN Members are able to get a 30% discount on the hardcover price by ordering through this link and entering the code: 4M15GEHRING

 

Mission Congress 2015 to be held in Houston   


Catholic Mission Forum Members hold a Mission Congress every five years. The theme of the 2015 Congress, October 1-4 in Houston, is "Witnessing Mission: Called to be Missionary Disciples." The Mission Congress is intended for mission sending communities, diocesan mission offices, youth minsters, students in -short term mission, parish solidarity groups, and lay missionaries. Information and registration can be found on the website www.missioncongress.org. Note that mini-participation ($125.00) is offered for personnel in poorer parishes, dioceses and congregations, which includes two full days of keynote presentations, discussion groups and workshops but not meals. Keynote speakers include Franciscan sister Margaret Guider, OSF. Breakouts offer a number of sessions including Short Term Mission, Immigration, How Racism Hinders Mission, Engaging Parish Families, Global Solidarity and other relevant topics. You are invited to visit the website.

 

Faiths United Against Gun Violence Promotes Handgun Purchaser Licensing Law  

 

Click here to read a statement from Professor Daniel Webster of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research which states that a handgun purchaser licensing law like the one Faiths United Against Gun Violence are promoting through Tale of Two States

This law would likely have prevented the horrible tragedy in Charleston last month.  Please spread this word through your networks and continue to urge organizations to go to the Tale of Two States website and endorse the Handgun Purchaser Licensing Saves Lives Resolution.

 

USCCB/JFI National Convening in Chicago, Illinois   


The registration for the USCCB/JFI National Convening in Chicago, Illinois on Nov. 11-13, 2015 is now open. Topics to be addressed include: Prospects for federal immigration reform/Executive Action, Immigrant detention and alternatives to detention, Strategic planning for 2016 and beyond, Parish organizing and advocacy for immigrants and pro-reform policies, Communication and messaging, Immigrant integration, and Pastoral approaches to immigrant communities. 

   

Plan on attending this convening to re-energize your advocacy effort for our immigrant brothers and sisters. The cost is very reasonable as meals are included and those local to the Chicago area can choose not to take the meals or hotel room for further savings. We encourage all members working in the Immigration arena to register to attend.

  
Sign up for Deily to Help Support FAN

Last month at the Franciscan Federation conference, many folks mentioned to Jason Miller, our Director of Campaigns and Development, that they often receive his emails. Some even mentioned that while they're happy to join FAN in advocating for the least of these, they are unable to contribute financially-certainly understandable as many of our Franciscan family members have taken vows of poverty!

But now there's a way that you can donate to FAN-just by signing up online for a new religious platform.

Deily is "an online community who believes that by sharing our faith and understanding, we can learn more about ourselves and one other, to make the world a better place." To learn more about Deily click here. We believe Deily is a platform that supports the Franciscan spirituality of peacemaking by teaching respect for all religious beliefs.

For each individual sign-up through Deily, FAN receives $10. This is not a matching grant program. You do not need to enter any payment information. Just a few clicks of signing up for this new website, Deily will donate $10/person to FAN. So far, FAN has had over 30 signups totaling over $300, which is great, but we know we can do better.

You can sign up here.
 
When you sign up, be sure to list FAN as your favorite religious organization so that we receive credit.

FAN is grateful for all of the support that the Franciscan family provides us. We wouldn't be able to be a voice for justice on Capitol Hill, in Rome, and beyond without you.

Thank you so much for your support and prayers.


If one of these articles has touched your heart, please consider donating to the Franciscan Action Network.  
 
Mission Statement

Inspired by the Gospel of Jesus, and the example of saints Francis and Clare, the Franciscan Action Network (FAN) is a collective Franciscan voice seeking to transform U.S. public policy related to peacemaking, care for creation, poverty, and human rights.

 

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