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Introduction A
lienation is a word that describes many aspects of our times. It happens
when there is an overemphasis on the external; on possessions, prestige
and power. There is then a neglect of the internal: detachment, humility
and surrender. We can see this in the physical world around us even
here in Cebu. Impressive but impersonal shopping malls are replacing
the simple but personal streetside store. The wealthy are getting more
wealthy while the poor are getting poorer. As the professional world
gets more competitive, husbands and wives give more energy and time
to their work than to their families and to one another. When this happens
children become alienated from their parents, and parents from one another
and from their children. The
world around us, a world of conquest, also affects our religious attitudes.
For many people religion is a way of getting God to be on their side,
rather than a way of opening and searching so as to be on God’s
side. The words “Holy be your name, your kingdom come, your will
be done on earth” have often become “Holy be my name, my kingdom
come, my will be done on earth.” Often their perception of God
is of someone “out there” who has to be courted and placated
so as to ward off punishment. Prayer has become a way of grasping at
security rather than a freeing of self for surrender to God. Side
by side with the movement towards alienation, another sign of our times
is a movement towards integration. Many people throughout the world
are trying hard to find ways of integrating the wisdom of God’s
word with the realities of their daily lives. We see this in our Basic
Christian Communities (BEC). The BEC was endorsed by the Second Plenary
Council of the Philippines in 1991 as the preferred way of being Church.
This same Council asked us all to find integration by going back to
the memory of Jesus. It asked us to retell the story of Jesus to ourselves
so that we can tell it convincingly to others. It asked us to go back
to the dangerous memory of Jesus. The memory is dangerous because it
challenges us to live for truth as he did and maybe even to die for
it. Living
with the Scriptures is to ponder them in our hearts, as Mary did. This
pondering should bring us into silence. Our Holy Father Pope John Paul
II in his Pastores Dabo Vobis (#47) says that our first response to
the Scriptures should be prayer. He then adds, “A necessary training
in prayer in a context of noise and agitation like that of our society
is an education in the deep human meaning and religious value of silence,
as the spiritual atmosphere vital for perceiving God’s presence
and for allowing ourselves to be won over by it.” It is not enough
to hear the word of God. We must be won over by it. The word must change
the attitude of our hearts and silence is essential if this is to happen
in our lives. The
best word I can find to describe the book is integration. In this book
of reflection on the gospel readings for Years A, B and C of the liturgical
cycle he integrates the richness of the word of God with experiences
and stories from life in the community. He shows how, through silence,
the word can bear fruit in service and Sacrament. While sharing the
way of meditation taught by Fr. John Main OSB, he shows his appreciation
for liturgical prayer, popular devotions, scripture reflection, as well
as appealing for periods of silence. All other forms of prayer will
find depth and enrichment as a result of silence. His
book will be valuable for clergy, religious and laity alike. It will
be a rich source of ideas and illustrative stories for those who have
to prepare Sunday homilies. It will be used by those who share the word
together in our BECs. It will be a constant source of inspiration to
those who also try to meditate, or practice Centering Prayer, and to
just BE at their centers where, according to St. Paul, the Spirit dwells. May this book help the seed of the word of God to germinate in silence and bear fruit in sacrament, signs of God’s presence in today’s world.
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Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal |
