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Exploring the word

08 May 2011 - Third Sunday of Easter, Cycle A

IF YOU SURVIVED school you probably studied the basic aspects of literature somewhere along the line. Beginning, middle, and end are the nonnegotiable parts of storytelling. Along with those come setting, plot, character, and narrative voice. These days, just to make things fancy, stories aren’t always told in order, teasing time through flashback and misplaced sequence. And the writer might leave out an essential bit of information (Where are we? Who’s talking?) just to keep us guessing. Each writer finds a way to tweak the basics to keep things interesting. Saint Luke invented a special form scholars call the missionary discourse—reflecting the Greek fondness for grand soliloquies in the midst of narrative action. The missionary discourse appears eight times in Acts and in a more abbreviated form in the gospel, as in the Emmaus story. The format has three parts: the recap of recent events, followed by an accusation of the listener/reader, and finally a call to repentance. The lectionary labors against our appreciation of literary forms, especially here. Our section from Acts is one of these discourses, but it leaves off half of the recap and all of the call, immersing us awkwardly in the accusation. Standing alone, it sounds entirely unwarranted. For as we know, this particular crowd will answer the call to repentance with the largest mass baptism on record. Remaining within the accusation portion would be like telling the story of Emmaus and ending on the lines, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe!” We hear the recap twice this week in Acts and Luke: how Jesus did wonderful things, according to God’s prearrangement foretold in scripture, and how he was by that same plan put to death and raised again. What we don’t hear in Luke's writings is atonement theology; the emphasis is on God’s subordination of human events to divine purposes. Like the crowds before Saint Peter on the streets of Jerusalem, the Emmaus pair are accused of seeing but not discerning, hearing without understanding. And like the mass conversion that ensues after Peter speaks, the two at table with their incognito Lord are enkindled to the heart by their encounter. These stories are Lucan bookends, demonstrating the revelatory power of both word and sacrament. Each time the community gathers across the centuries, we continue to unpack the basics of the missionary discourse: Recap the story, experience the keen recrimination it provides, and sound the call to repentance in our Eucharist. The only unknown element is our response. Will we remain “foolish and slow of heart”? Or will we acknowledge the gap between where we are and where we ought to be, and rush, like the Emmaus pair, to close it? Related scripture links Reading divine clues: Exod. 28:30 (Urim and Thummim); Judg. 6:36-40 (fleece); 1 Sam. 28:5-19 (witch); Isa. 7:10-16 (Emmanuel); Matt. 2:1-12 (star); Matt. 24:3-33 (tribulation); Luke 11:29-32 (sign of Jonah); 12:54-56 (signs of the times) Other journeys of faith: Gen. 12:1-3 (Abraham); Exod. 3:4-10 (Moses); Ruth 1:8-18 (Ruth); Matt. 2:13-15, 19-23 (Joseph); Mark 1:16-20 (disciples) Catechism links Emmaus journey: CCC 112; 572; 601; 640- 655; 659; 710; 1166; 1329; 1347

Authors Alice Camille

missionary discourse saint luke Emmaus writer

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Another year, another conflict over religion

26 Dec 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

Religious tensions existed when Jesus first came into the world, and they continue to this day. As another calendar year draws to a close, the Religion Newswriters Association has released its list of top religion stories and newsmakers for 2010. Heading the list this year is the public debate and controversy over a planned Islamic community center and mosque to be built near New York’s Ground Zero. The plan ignited a national debate about religious freedom that kept the story in the forefront of U.S. news for months. Public opinion and outcry over the mosque reached a peak when a pastor of a small Florida church threatened to burn a Qur’an in protest, a planned act of bravado that until the pastor backed down fueled fears of international backlash against the United States. The Islamic center’s leading proponent, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, was voted the 2010 Religion Newsmaker of the Year, topping Pope Benedict XVI, the many faith-based workers helping victims of the Haitian earthquake, and Sarah Palin, who devoted significant portions of her second best-selling book to arguing that candidates for office take a public Christian stand. Source: A press release by Debra L. Mason for Religion Newswriters Association, www.rna.org/news

religion new york city sarah palin benedict xvi ground zero mosque feisal abdul rauf news religion newswriters association

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Faith responses to bin Laden’s death gain attention

25 Dec 2011 - Preaching the News for Sunday

The shepherds who witnessed the infant lying in the manager “made known the message,” the gospel reading for Sunday, January 1 tells us. The message that Osama bin Laden had been killed was made known far and wide via news outlets as soon as it happened last May. While some celebrated in the streets, it was the more nuanced and reflective response by many faith groups that was voted the top religion story of the year by the Religion Newswriters Association (RNA). Bin Laden’s death spurred discussions among people of faith on issues of forgiveness, peace, justice, and retribution, RNA members said, making it the most important religion story of the year. Faith-based groups reacted to the terrorist leader’s death in a range of ways--with sympathy for victims’ families everywhere, scriptural citations justifying the demise of evil, and hopeful prayers for peace among the nations. Earlier in the year, U.S. Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y) chaired a series of controversial hearings in the House alleging radicalization among U.S. Muslims. Meanwhile, U.S. Senate hearings centered on crimes against Muslims. The hearings were voted the No. 2 religion story of 2011. “Christmas is a time for forgiveness. Jesus comes to save us from our sins,” says Alice Camille in “A time to love,” her Exploring the Word commentary for Christmas Sunday. In the wake of bin Laden’s death, the Vatican released a statement that said in part, "In the face of a man's death, a Christian never rejoices, but reflects on the serious responsibilities of each person before God and before men, and hopes and works so that every event may be the occasion for the further growth of peace and not of hatred.” Sources: Articles by Debra Mason for Religion Newswriters Association and John Thavis for Catholic News Service

religion newswriters association osama bin laden religion news stories

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