Christ: Two Views of Kingship and Love

The thing that struck me the most about two contrasting images of Christ in St. Cecilia Cathedral in Omaha was how the two images showed very different notions of "kingship" and love: the kingship of triumph and the kingship of vulnerability; love characterized  by longing and love characterized by fulfillment.

The first image is a crucifix from Mexico or Central America. It graphically shows the suffering and humiliation of Christ on the cross. The wounds on his body are open; the expression on his face is gaunt; his mouth hangs open and his eyes seem hollow, as if he is on the verge of death.

The second image in the Cathedral shows an older, stronger and more mature Christ. This is Christ triumphant -- Christ enthroned in his victory. His body seems stocky and sturdy with power.

Both images -- Christ humiliated, suffering and dying, and Christ resurrected, triumphant and reigning over the New Creation -- are expressions of Jesus' transcendent love and mercy. Love is shown in the image of Christ on the cross, bleeding the substance of his life as he gives without holding anything back. Love is also shown in the image of Christ enthroned, because his sacred heart figures prominently. His heart is surrounded by thorns and inflamed with the fire of passion for humanity.

There is something to be said for using thorns and fire to depict a loving heart. It feels good to be drawn out of oneself and into the life of another, yet this self-transcending love also entails pain and suffering. When one is drawn out of oneself and into the life of another, one suffers the longing of separation from the beloved. One also feels pain when one is helpless to protect the beloved from the physical and emotional pain of everyday life. To love is to experience the pain of limitation. This pain is inseparable from the joy of being in love. To love is to be wounded.

It might sound strange to associate love with a wound, but anyone who has ever been in love -- not only romantically, but also in the form of friendship or the protective love one might have toward a child, or a disabled or aged adult -- knows the pain that accompanies the pleasure of pouring out one's heart for the sake of another, and the realization that even to give one's life would not be enough to express the intensity of one's devotion to the well-being of the other.

Love is pain mixed with ecstasy as one wants to be with the beloved at all times, even though this would be neither practical nor desirable. Love is the ecstasy and suffering that one experiences when one wants to do everything possible to heal the pain and the suffering of the beloved. This is where we encounter Christ. We encounter Christ through the pain and ecstasy of self-transcending love.

A person who loves is simultaneously whole and wounded; a person who loves simultaneously experiences the joy of knowing that one's existence has meaning, and the pain of knowing that one is incapable of adequately expressing one's love.

When you are in love you forget yourself for a period of time and you are completely consumed by your desire for the well-being of another. There is a sense of fulfillment, which is the emotional reward of love, and a sense of emptiness, as you long to embrace, accompany, and console the beloved when the beloved is not present.

When the beloved is absent, you do not stop being in love, rather you live your love through longing and desire. Whether as lover or as beloved, when you are apart, you feel an absence that you could never feel without knowing the fullness that comes from having someone in your life who gives your life meaning and purpose.

Being loved and being in love gives you a reason to go on living. When you are loved you are strengthened to be a better person, in order to be more worthy of  the love that someone else has entrusted you with, even though love is something that can never be earned.

When you are loved you feel as though you are understood, and accepted for who you are, even as you strive, in response to love, to be something more.

You feel as though the lover, uniquely, sees into your soul and sees you as you really are, yet loves you in spite of this -- even because of it. There is nothing you need conceal from your lover because your lover loves you in your strengths and in your weaknesses -- especially in your weaknesses.

As you are convicted by this unrelenting love, often mixed with frustration and disappointment for both the lover and the beloved, you strive to reduce the pain and the suffering that you cause in this relationship.

You encounter the true nature of love -- you encounter Christ -- when you reject the temptation to reject one of the dimensions of his personhood. You cannot encounter Christ if you only focus on the pain of love -- and on his suffering and death. You also have to experience the joy of love -- and of Christ's resurrection and triumph. Likewise, you cannot encounter Christ if you only embrace the joy of his resurrection while excluding his humiliation, suffering and death.

The Christ who died as an outcast and a criminal, in utter poverty, is the same Christ who rose triumphantly, and has begun his reign over all creation.

Both images of Christ signify his kingship. There is the kingship of Christ crowned with thorns and enthroned on a cross, and the kingship of Christ crowned with victory and enthroned as the head of the New Creation. It is necessary to embrace the one form of kingship in order to embrace the other.

The crucifixion is inseparable from the resurrection; suffering and humiliation are inseparable from the victory and glory of God. The joy and the pain of our love for an absent lover is an icon for our love for a God whose presence we do not always feel. It is also an icon for God's unrelenting love for us, even as we turn away to avoid God's love.

St. Cecilia Cathedral and the 22nd Psalm

Images from St. Cecilia Cathedral in Omaha that inspire prayerful reflection on an adaptation of the 22nd Psalm:

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

Images of Christ's suffering, death and resurrection inspired me to pray along with the 22nd Psalm:

My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why so far from my call for help, from my cries of anguish?

My God, I call by day, but you do not answer; by night, but I have no relief.

I am a worm, not a man, scorned by men, despised by the people.

All who see me mock me; they curl their lips and jeer; they shake their heads at me:

"He relied on the LORD -- let him deliver him; if he loves him, let him rescue him."

Many bulls of Bashan encircle me. They open their mouths against me, lions that rend and roar.

Like water my life drains away; all my bones are disjointed.

My heart has become like wax, it melts away within me.

As dry as a potsherd is my throat; my tongue cleaves to my palate; you lay me in the dust of death.

Dogs surround me; a pack of evildoers closes in on me.

They have pierced my hands and my feet; I can count all my bones.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

They stare at me and gloat; they divide my garments among them; for my clothing they cast lots.

But you, LORD, do not stay far off; my strength, come quickly to help me.

Deliver my soul from the sword, my life from the grip of the dog.

Save me from the lion's mouth, my poor life from the horns of wild bulls.

For you drew me forth from the womb, made me safe at my mother's breasts.

Upon you I was thrust from the womb; since my mother bore me you are my God.

Do not stay far from me, for trouble is near, and there is no one to help.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

 In you our fathers trusted; they trusted and you rescued them. To you they cried out and they escaped; in you they trusted and were not disappointed.

I will proclaim your name to my brethren; in the assembly I will praise you:

"You who fear the LORD, give praise! All descendants of Jacob, give honor; show reverence, all descendants of Israel!

"For he has not spurned or disdained the misery of this poor wretch, Did not turn away from me, but heard me when I cried out.

"I will offer praise in the great assembly; my vows I will fulfill before those who fear him.

"The poor will eat their fill; those who seek the LORD will offer praise. May your hearts enjoy life forever!"

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

You are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the glory of Israel.

All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD; All the families of nations will bow low before him.

For kingship belongs to the LORD, the ruler over the nations.

All who sleep in the earth will bow low before God; All who have gone down into the dust will kneel in homage.

And I will live for the LORD; my descendants will serve you.

The generation to come will be told of the LORD, that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought.

This post was created while participating in the Institute for Priestly Formation (IPF) at Creighton University in the summer of 2016.

Petitions of Hope for a Troubled Land

The petitions from Sunday's Vespers were particularly striking at this time, as they spoke about hope, fear, oppression, reconciliation, justice, peace, victory through suffering and rebirth:

The World was created by the Word of God, re-created by his redemption, and it is continually renewed by his love, Rejoicing in him we call out:

Renew the wonders of your love, Lord.

We give thanks to God whose power is revealed in nature, and whose providence is revealed in history.

Renew the wonders of your love, Lord.

Through your Son, the herald of reconciliation, the victor of the cross, free us from empty fear and hopelessness.

Renew the wonders of your love, Lord.

May all those who love and pursue justice work together without deceit to build a world of true peace.

Renew the wonders of your love, Lord.

Be with the oppressed, free the captives, console the sorrowing, feed the hungry, strengthen the weak, in all people reveal the victory of your cross.

Renew the wonders of your love, Lord.

After your Son's death and burial you raised him up again in glory, grant that the faithful departed may live with him.

Renew the wonders of your love, Lord.

Entering Our Troubled Times Through Eyes of Faith

Image Credit: Dreamstime.com

All acts of senseless violence are tragic, whether the targets are officers or civilians. Selective empathy and general numbness and indifference to this violence, which continues to occur, is at the root of the problem.

Also, Fr. James Martin S.J. posted an Icon, "Our Lady Mother of Ferguson and All Those Killed by Gun Violence," on his Facebook page.

He writes that it is “a new icon written by Mark Dukes,” which was sent to Fr. Martin by his friend, Rev. Mark Bozzuti-Jones of Trinity Church Wall Street.

Rev. Bozzuti-Jones commissioned the icon and it is now on display in his church.

Fr. Martin writes:

Our Lady prays for all who are targeted by gun violence: African-Americans, the poor and marginalized, and police officers.

Image Credit: Mark Dukes

All are her children.

All are our brothers and sisters.

Let us ask Our Lady to pray for us.

Christian Architecture Points the Mind to the Ineffable

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

One of the most inspiring aspects of life in a seminary is the appreciation one develops for the way that architecture is used in order to give a person the sense of eternity. There are hymns and homilies in architecture that are beyond anything that can be put into words. On the left are the hallways of St. Mary's Seminary and University in Roland Park. The multiple arches suggest the rippling effects in which the transitory gives a foretaste of eternity. At the end of the hall is a statue of Mary "Seat of Wisdom", holding the infant Jesus and bathed in the light from the sunroof above it.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

Christianity should be understood as a faith in which followers are on a journey. Much of the architecture of Christian suggests a pilgrimage to the fullness of Christ. The open doors, followed by the archways and "Seat of Wisdom" statute bathed in sunlight captures the sense that one approaches Truth, Beauty and Eternity by degrees.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

Bishop Brute Seminary in Indianapolis, which I visited on the way to the Institute for Priestly Formation (IPF) at Creighton University in Omaha, used to house a cloistered community of Carmelite nuns. The architectural style of the seminary resembles an old-world castle. The building conjures a visual representation of Saint Theresa of Avila's metaphor for a spiritual journey: The Interior Castle.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

When one learns to "read" the architecture of buildings a new dimension may be added to one's prayer-life. God speaks to us using many different media, including words, music, incense, the visual arts, nature and anything else that moves the soul to transcend its physical and earthly dimensions.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

The interior of Bishop Brute Seminary is plain and suggestive of turning away from distractions. One finds architecture, in seminaries and churches, that one will not find anywhere else. In these buildings one enters into tradition and, in so doing, encounters today's world with a deeper sense of its underlying reality.

Image Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

The visual arts also aid Christians in grasping the ineffable. This statue of St. Ignatius of Loyola, on the campus of Creighton University in Omaha, captures the movement and vibrancy of Ignatian spirituality, as it applies thought to emotion in order to examine one's deepest longing and desire.

C. Matthew Hawkins Profile

Ordained a Transitional Deacon: 2019

Anticipated Priestly Ordination: 2020

Home Parish: Saint Paul Cathedral, Pittsburgh, PA

Other Parishes I Call "Home": The Catholic Community of Lawrence County, PA, St. Joseph in Verona, PA, St. Charles Lawanga in Pittsburgh's East End, St. Benedict the Moor in the Hill District and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Carnegie, PA.

Seminary: St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, MD.

Pastoral Year: Parishes in New Castle and Lawrence County, PA

Career Background: Taught Social Work Macro-Practice at the University of Pittsburgh, specializing in Community Economic Development. Taught American History at Carlow University. Also taught students at Imani Christian Academy, K-12 in Middle School and High School English, Creative Writing and High School Sociological Research Skills.

Previous Work for Diocese Before Entering Seminary: work with parishes on leadership and discipleship among the laity, understanding that the parish is missionary in nature, and developing lay leadership through parish pastoral councils.

Elements Leading to Conversion to Catholicism: I grew up with fragments of the apostolic faith in the liturgical worship of the Methodist church but I wanted a fuller picture, which meant that I would have to go to the source from which we drew our fragments.

Values: To live a life of authenticity. This requires having meaningful and authentic relationships with God and with each other. It means being a member of authentic communities that do not disfigure the dignity of the human person. One of the secrets to living an authentic life is to encounter Christ in ordinary and everyday experiences. The other secret is self-emptying; it is to pour yourself out, unreservedly, in Christ.

The Process of Discernment Before Entering Seminary: 7 years of weekly nocturnal Eucharistic Adoration at the Ryan Catholic Newman Center, Pittsburgh Catholic Oratory.

Advice to Someone Considering a Vocation: Quoting Pope Saint John Paul II: “Do not be afraid. Do not be satisfied with mediocrity. 'Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch' (Luke 5:4).”

Advice from a Priest: Know your own story. Know the stories of your parishioners. Guide and accompany them on their journey to Christ.

Favorite Scripture Passages:

"Truly, truly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." John 12:24

“For what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his life?” Mark 8:36

"Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh." Ezekiel 36:26

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." Philippians 4:8

Favorite Authors of Religious Texts: (besides the obvious: Pope Saint John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis, Bishop Robert Barron, Cardinal Donald Wuerl, and Mike Aquilina) Richard Rohr, Richard B. Hays, Dennis Billy, Raymond Brown, Michael J. Gorman, Gerald O' Collins, James K.A. Smith, N.T. Wright, Gregory A. Boyd, G.K. Chesterton, Luigi Giussani, James A. Cone, Richard R. Gaillardetz, Ronald D. Witherup, and Richard Rolheiser.

Favorite Saints: Saint Martin de Porres, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, St. Theresa of Avila, and St. John of the Cross.

Favorite Theologians: Hans Urs von Balthasar, Karl Rahner, and James Cone

Spirituality: Somewhat Ignatian

Mottoes: "Grace builds on nature," "Trust the providence that brought you here," "Go forth and set the world on fire."

Loyola on the Potomac Photo Featured on Ignatian Spirituality Website

As part of their "Picturing God" series Ignatian Spirituality.com is featuring a picture I took this past January while on seminarian retreat at Loyola on the Potomac.

"Risen": The Movie, and the Genre of Christian Films About Jesus

A group of us seminarians saw the movie "Risen" on Saturday night. As is true of the Gospel of Mark, Risen presents its audience with a question, which they must wrestle with throughout the story. The difference, of course, is that Risen begins where the Gospel of Mark ends. The story question that drives the Gospel of Mark is: "Who is this man?" The story question that drives Risen is: "Where is the body?" But even to answer this question implies that one must first answer Mark's question, "Who is this man?"


Before going to the movie I promised a friend that I would try not to analyze the film theologically, instead I would watch it strictly for the story-line. I guess I shouldn't have made that promise because the theological weaknesses, I thought, contributed to the weaknesses in plotting the story.


In many ways this film did not depart from the genre of "Christian films," which often come off as a kind of Hallmark greeting card version of Christianity. They tend to be shallow, on the theological side, and reduce Jesus to a mysterious miracle man. The effect is to produce a story that is somewhat syrupy and superficial, ducking some of the more difficult questions concerning discipleship.


One of the downsides, for me, was how the disciples sometimes came off as '70s-era Jesus freaks. When Bartholomew testifies to the resurrected Christ he comes off as spacey and air-headed, rather than as a sober-minded man who has suddenly had his entire sense of reality turned upside down and is still trying to make sense of what he has experienced. Mary Magdalene, however, was much better portrayed in the film.


It didn't help things that the writers for the screenplay chose to make the miracles the center of the epiphanies in the film. This is a mistake that is common to Christian genre films. It would have been sounder biblically and theologically to focus on the paradox of the "suffering servant" as being the point of epiphany, and it also would have made for a much more interesting story.


Also, there should have been more emphasis on the mystery-element of Christianity. It would have been sounder, theologically and biblically, and it would have added to the sense of mystery, if the epiphanies had occurred after the breaking of the bread, instead of showing the disciples break bread together with no particular meaning other than that it was apparently something they ritualistically decided to do.


Also, the miracles should have occurred within the context of a new teaching, and to punctuate that teaching, instead of being focal points in-and-of themselves. The latter approach suggested that the most persuasive thing about Jesus was that he was an amazing miracle worker, while the metaphors behind the miracles were lost.


There was also very little about the "new creation," or the essential Jewishness of the disciples, or about the confusion and uncertainty among the disciples during the period between the point of crucifixion and the day of Pentecost. These elements would not only have made the story more authentic, they would have added to its depth and made it more interesting. They also would have made it sounder biblically and theologically.


Maybe the screenwriters should have kept the essential story question from Mark, "Who is this man?", at the forefront of their thinking, along with two other Markian story questions, "What does one mean by 'The Kingdom of Heaven'?" and "What is the nature of discipleship?" These questions might have helped them in their portrayal of the miracles and of the resurrected Christ, himself.


I thought the movie began to strike the right chord when the protagonist realized that Jesus knew him better than he knew himself -- and that he encountered, in Jesus, his deepest desires and what he was searching for in life. I thought, however, that this point should have been more fully developed, since it is at the core of what Christians experience in the process of the conversion of their hearts.


I know all of this might sound overly critical, and I don't mean for it to sound that way. Overall I thought the movie was worth seeing, but it followed, too easily, the familiar Christian genre format, which makes all such films thinner and weaker.


But, by all means, go and see the movie. You may want to follow it up by reading the Gospel of Mark in order to get a better sense of the overall story and the message it is intended to convey.

Humanity: To Laugh and to Weep

Pope Francis, on two of the 24 virtues

Spirituality and Humanity:

Humanity “is what embodies the truthfulness of our faith”, what “makes us different from machines and robots, which feel nothing and are never moved. Once we find it hard to weep seriously or to laugh heartily, we have begun our decline and the process of turning from “humans” into something else.”

12/21/2015

Pope Francis and the "Apostolate of the Ear"

"Mostly, people are looking for someone to listen to them. Someone willing to grant them time, to listen to their dramas and difficulties. This is what I call the 'apostolate of the ear,'" 

“It is very important…”


“Very important.”

-- Pope Francis, "The Name of God is Mercy"

Collection of Inspirational Quotes and Images

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How Does a Person "Awaken" to Reality? Ignatian Spirituality and Loyola on the Potomac

Photo Credit: C. Matthew Hawkins

I spent five days last week on retreat, with 11 other Seminarians from St. Mary's, at Loyola on the Potomac near the Chesapeake Bay, a Jesuit retreat center.

The idea of a religious retreat is to prayerfully withdraw from all of the noise, busyness and obsessions of everyday life and to be silent and attentive to the voice of God.

The part of the Potomac that we were located on was a huge expanse of water. I could faintly make out the Virginian landscape on the other side, in a distance. We were on the Maryland side of the river.

Among the experiences that made this retreat one of renewal was the opportunity for Lectio Divina far from shore, alone in a canoe on the Potomac, and praying the Holy Rosary on the 235 acres of woods surrounding the retreat center.

Of course there were recurring questions during the retreat such as these: Where does God want me to be right now? What does God want me to do? What signs do I see of how God is moving in my life?

I have developed a fondness for Ignatian spirituality, for the examen prayer and for St. Ignatius of Loyola (a.k.a. “St. Iggy”) during this trip.

As the retreat began we thought that we were withdrawing from “the real world” into a world of reflection. By the end of the retreat it was clear that we had withdrawn from a world that is all-too-often characterized by madness and delusion and entered into a moment of reality, stillness and clarity, which will fortify us for the journey ahead.

Celebrating Thanksgiving Without Family or Familiar Surroundings

"RoastTurkey" by Photo by M. Rehemtulla

Last November was my first Thanksgiving away from Pittsburgh in a long while. I grew up with large Thanksgiving dinners, with extended family of aunts, uncles, cousins, friends of the family and, in the later years, my parents' international students and my own friends from other countries. As people started either moving to other parts of the country or passing away I was afraid that this feeling of "home" would disappear.

I was wrong.

I wasn't sure what to expect, being in Baltimore and far away from longtime friends. I was prepared to hunker down and try to get a lot of work done and pretty much ignore the holiday. What happened instead were two Thanksgiving celebrations I'll never forget.

The first was at the Seminary on Thanksgiving day, where two priests from the Philippines, with amazing culinary skills, prepared a multi-course meal that included goat, cantaloupe wrapped in thinly sliced lean meat, cheese from around the world and Filipino dishes. One gourmet dish followed another so that by the time the whole thing was over my stomach was painfully, but deliciously full. In addition to the food, the thing that made this meal memorable was the company and conversation with three priests from Zambia, a Jesuit from the United States, another seminarian from Pittsburgh in addition to the two priests from the Philippines.

The second meal was a traditional African American Thanksgiving dinner and party on Saturday night with a family in the city of Baltimore, which began in the early evening and ended in the wee hours of the morning. The food was a combination of mainstream American dishes, such as turkey, African American Soul Food, such as greens and black-eyed peas, and Maryland dishes, such as raw oysters, clams and crab dip.

There were extended family members of all ages, which reminded me of holiday dinners I grew up with. As usual, the kids, initially very shy, came alive when it was time to show off their dance moves.

As many of you know I haven't watched television in decades unless it happens to be on when I am visiting someone, so I am nearly clueless when it comes to the shows people are watching. Saturday evening "Empire" was on, just as the dinner party was getting started. I said that I had never seen the show and, not missing an opening, the host said, "See, that's because you from Pittsburgh."

Without missing a beat I said, "I know, right? Because in Pittsburgh we don't have to watch Empire 'cause we are Empire." After that I couldn't get anymore crab dip -- J/K.

The bottom line is this: hospitality is everywhere, even when you are far away from home.