Sister

Nuns at the beach, Cherai: Michael Foley

Sister

This is a word often associated with a Catholic nun, although Protestant women responding to a call to an institutionalized life of prayer are also called sisters.

The term was commonly found in Hebrew (ahoth) and Greek (adelphe), where its meaning ranges from a family member, an extended relative or a wife, to a friendship or tribal tie.

Catholic nuns have existed from about 300 CE. The Catholic Church doesn’t allow women to become priests on the basis of the maleness of the twelve apostles.

This theological reasoning has been charged as evidence of sexism within the ranks of the all-male Catholic hierarchy, a sexism said to be reinforced and legitimized by cherry picking from the Bible those verses that support a chauvinist stance while ignoring those which would refute it.

The Christian designation brother is a rough parallel to sister for men. Two examples of “Mothers” (as linguistic but not organizational counterparts to priestly “Fathers”) are the late Mother Teresa and The Virgin Mary.

Christian sisters are often lampooned and unjustly stereotyped in the movies. One only has to wonder what the result would be if similar treatment of Hindu or Moslem religious women was found in the media.

On the Web:

• “Religion: The Protestant Sisters” » http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,827957,00.html

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Scholastics

St. Thomas Aquinas from the Demidoff Altarpiece by Carlo Crivelli.

Churchmen-scholars in the Middle Ages who engaged in elaborate theological issues and debates.

Although the scholastics never asked “how many angels can stand on the head of a pin,” this question is often used to lampoon the usefulness of their thought.

The influential scholastic St. Thomas Aquinas adapted into a Christian framework arguments from the Greek, pre-Christian Aristotle, whose works were translated from Greek to Latin by Arab scholars.

After a some kind of direct encounter with God near the close of his life, Aquinas apparently said that his voluminous writings were like a “house of straw.” Nevertheless, his arguments, many of which seem to be constructed in ancient and medieval modes of understanding, are often cited to illustrate Catholic teachings.

Arguably the abstract intellectualism and intense quibbling of the scholastics lost sight of Christian teaching, which in essence is quite simple–i.e. love God and one another. And for one person to believe he can definitely speak about God, no matter how cleverly, may also be viewed as a bit arrogant.

» Anselm (St.), William of Ockham, Henry of Ghent

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Transubstantiation

O Sacrament Most Holy by Br Lawrence Lew, O.P.

Transubstantiation

The Roman Catholic dogma that the substance of bread and wine transforms into the actual body and blood of Jesus Christ during the celebration of Holy Mass.

To make sense of the obvious fact that the communion wafer doesn’t change in outward appearance, Catholic theologians rely on the Aristotelian distinction between a thing’s form and its substance.

According to this belief, the form (what we can see) does not change but the substance (sometimes called the “essence”) does.

This is in opposition to the popular view, which from a Catholic perspective is inadequate, that the Eucharist is a mere symbol of remembrance or, as some New Age believers say, sign of human or cosmic unity.

While the sacrament of the Eucharist includes symbolic and unifying aspects, its essentially heavenly mystical quality supersedes these reductive interpretations concerning its meaning and character.

Symbolic and social realities aside, there is a current trend to equate the cosmic and/or astral realms with the heavenly. For Catholics, however, there is a qualitative difference among the cosmic (e.g. galaxies, stars, planets), the astral (spirits, gods, goddesses, energy fields), and the heavenly (experienced as the indwelling of grace).

» Agape, Aristotle, Consubstantiation, Grace, Quiddity

On the Web:

• While Catholics believe that the Eucharist need not change in physical appearance to be an effective sacrament, claims are sometimes made as to its miraculous transformation

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Teresa of Ávila, St.

Ecstasy of St. Teresa of Avila, by Bernini

St. Teresa of Ávila (1515-1582)

Spanish Carmelite Catholic mystic whose frank autobiography was criticized by the American psychologist and philosopher William James. However, this work along with The Interior Castle and The Way of Perfection are widely regarded as spiritual classics.

St. Teresa was a profound mystic and convent organizer who spoke of degrees of purity, detachment from the world (to include one’s relatives) and supernatural graces encountered by the seeker on the journey to God-awareness and spiritual perfection.

For St. Teresa God’s love was experienced as a kind of spiritual water for which she was ever thirsty.

In keeping with the general motif of the Dark Night of the Soul, she spoke of terrible “dry” periods where grace was lacking. During these moments she neither enjoyed this world nor a heavenly one, “as if crucified between heaven and earth, suffering and receiving no help from either.”

St. Teresa apparently levitated. This made her uncomfortable because she didn’t want to draw any special attention to herself.

Perhaps her most enduring saying is “God alone suffices.” »  John of the Cross (St.), Numinous, Pollution

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Intercession

Intercession by Caleb Kay

Intercession

In several religious traditions saints and holy persons are said to mediate God’s graces to other souls.

This is called intercession and those mediating, the intercessors, may do so in this life or in the afterlife.

In Catholicism intercession takes the form of vocal or contemplative prayer, although the latter is often deemed more effective.

Contemplative prayer is often classified as a type of mental prayer. Mental doesn’t mean “crazy” as in popular discourse. Rather, it means the prayer is inward, quiet and benefits both self and others. It benefits self because the person praying continues to relate with God in a very personal, intimate and heartfelt manner. And it benefits others because purifying graces mystically transfer from God through the mediator to others in need of divine assistance.

According to this belief the unifying factor among intercessor and intercessee (the recipient of graces) is that which Catholics call the mystical body of Christ.

Contemplative intercessors are usually said to be more spiritually pure and aware than intercessees. To borrow from Plato, one who has dug their way out of a deep, dark cave shines a light down from above to try to help others still lost and struggling in the depths.

A recipient of graces from the prayer of intercession may be unaware that another person intercedes for them. Moreover, if the intercessor is still living in the world and the person being assisted has a darkened or unsettled soul, the latter may despise and even become aggressive or abusive toward the former.

It seems likely that intercession is not just a one way street. Rather, most of us probably intercede for one another at different times. This dynamic connection arguably results in a complex interplay of higher (spiritual) and lower (personality) influences that manifest in daily life and throughout human history.

Aggressive, conflicting aspects of this process are outlined in the Bhagavad-Gita, a sacred text outlining allegedly ‘holy warfare’ that is sometimes interpreted psycho-spiritually instead of literally.

» Aurobindo (Sri), Cave Analogy, Celibacy, Contemplation, Faith and Action, Individuation Process  Karma Transfer, Kowalska (St. Faustina, Maria Helena), Mental Illness, Ramakrishna (Sri), Saint, Social Darwinism, Theresa of Avila (St.)

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Uriel

"St Uriel" by Jenny Mansfield - Tim Mansfield

Uriel

One of the four Catholic Archangels, along with Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.

He is not mentioned in the Bible but appears in various apocryphal works–that is, in books that are similar to the Bible but which have not been accepted by a major Christian religion.

Occult writers have picked up on the apocryphal writings and added their own fanciful interpretations as to who and what Uriel is.

Of course, a similar criticism has been leveled at the Catholic interpretation of Uriel.

Non-Catholics say that Catholic teachings such as this are unbiblical and hence man-made fictions.

This leads to the ongoing debate between Catholics and non-Catholics about the supposed authority of the Catholic Tradition.

Contemporary Catholics believe that the Catholic faith articulates the authentic teachings of Christ as given to the apostles and recorded in scripture, these teachings being preserved, present and developed through a legitimate and holy apostolic tradition. Whereas non-Catholics tend to see this claim as so much pompous hokum.

Uriel is also mentioned in works of fiction, such as John Milton’s Paradise Lost, where the sharp-sighted angel acts as God’s eyes and helps Raphael to defeat the pagan god, Adramelech.

» Angels, Catholicism

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Unction

Bishop anoints w/ the oil of the sick by Basta Cosi

Unction

Oil ritually applied to sacred statues and the dead for magical and religious purposes.

The practice was common in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and among the Hittites. The Jews of the Old Testament and the first Christians used oil for anointing.

Today the Catholic Church uses oil for Baptism, Confirmation, Coronation ceremonies and for conferring spiritual strength.

The Catholic sacrament of Holy Unction or anointing of the sick replaced Extreme Unction in 1972.

The old name: “Extreme Unction” means last anointing. “Etreme” was used to mean “last.” “Unction” means anointing. The sacrament has not changed, but the name “Sacrament of the Sick” or “Anointing of the Sick” better conveys that fact that it is a healing sacrament that is meant for the living as well as for those near death. It has always been meant for both. This is not new. The sacreament has not changed–just the name.

Fr. Vincent Serpa, O.P.¹

This sacrament also appears wthin the Eastern Orthodox Church, the main differences being that in Catholicism one must (a) be of the age or reason and (b) have recently received the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation, formerly called Confession.

In actual practice, however, there is no real way for a priest to definitively determine if a parishioner has recently received the sacrament of Reconciliation or not. And as suggested elsewhere, Catholic teaching compared to what parishioners actually believe and practice might not always be in perfect confluence.²

—

¹ “What ever happened to Extreme Unction?” » http://forums.catholic.com/showthread.php?t=28380

² http://epages.wordpress.com/2008/10/24/the-dislike-of-catholicism-understanding-the-holy-in-the-catholic-tradition-introduction/

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Vocal Prayer

Prayer A Powerful Weapon

Originally uploaded by abcdz2000

Vocal Prayer

In Catholic terminology a form of prayer that is vocalized, often but not exclusively in public groups such as the Eucharistic celebration (i.e. Holy Mass).

In personal, private practice, vocal prayer may be standardized or impromptu.

Vocal and mental prayer may alternate and overlap. And both forms of prayer are generally directed towards personal petitions, seeking forgiveness or for purposes of intercession.

Many Catholic and non-Catholic advocates of vocal prayer seem to misunderstand the efficacy of mental prayer, especially in its contemplative-intercessory form.

Great saints like St. Faustina Kowalska say that even a brief but sincere inner, contemplative prayer from the heart is far more effective and pleasing to God than the endless and superficial repetitions characteristic of much vocal prayer.

» Catholicism, Contemplation, Meditation

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Venial Sin

where to sin in sf

Originally uploaded by chotda

Venial Sin According to Catholic teaching, this is an offence against the Laws of God not grave enough to cause a complete loss of sanctifying grace.

It is seen as an illness of the soul rather than its death.

Because the soul committing a venial sin falls short of perfection but is still united with God and capable of charity, it does not receive eternal damnation, as we find with the unforgiven mortal sin.

Instead, venial sins merit temporary punishments which purify the soul so as to prepare it for everlasting life in heaven.

The excellent – if old – Catholic Encyclopedia (1912) outlines some scriptural references held by some to support the classification of venial vs. mortal sin.

The distinction between mortal and venial sin is set forth in Scripture. From St. John (1 John 5:16-17) it is clear there are some sins “unto death” and some sins not “unto death”, i.e. mortal and venial. The classic text for the distinction of mortal and venial sin is that of St. Paul (1 Corinthians 3:8-15), where he explains in detail the distinction between mortal and venial sin.

Source: O’Neil, A.C. (1912). Sin. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved October 11, 2008 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14004b.htm

» Mortal sin, Original sin, Sin

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Wisdom

Woman of Wisdom

Originally uploaded by Fort Photo

Wisdom

When a person seems to know through insight, intuition and experience the best course of action or the possible outcomes of situations, we might say they are wiser than those who make superficial, snap or conventional judgments.

Wisdom may or may not involve scholarly, specialized or factual knowledge. The intuitive aspects of wisdom may involve revealed, infused, illuminated or ‘transcendental’ knowledge–that is, knowledge that seers and mystics from most world religions say extends beyond the conventional understanding of space and time.

The notion of wisdom is sometimes hotly debated among various religious traditions. Some Hindus, for example, might see Christians as slaves to externally imposed dogmas and rituals that lock them up in ignorance, while some Christians may see the works of the devil binding Hindus to false or incomplete beliefs which deny or ‘water down’ the belief that Christ is the unique and only human incarnation truly equal to God.

But even within a given world religion, opposing viewpoints can be found as to the nature of wisdom. Fundamentalist Christians, for instance, often have knee-jerk, hypocritical and perhaps sometimes violent reactions to the deeper aspects of Christian mysticism that they themselves haven’t experienced. In fact some Christians go as far to say that all mysticism is of the devil.

The Protestant Josh McDowell seems to lean in this direction. In The New Evidence That Demands a Verdict McDowell begins by noting in a sentence or two that there are many types of mysticism but proceeds to only discuss his perception of the errors of the “pantheistic mysticism of the East” (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1999: 643-658 ). And his discussion equates the general term ‘mysticism’ as if it only applied to Eastern mysticism, most notably that of Zen Buddhism.

McDowell’s argument overlooks the plain and obvious fact that the term ‘mysticism’ applies to a wide variety of religious experiences along with the key question as to their place of origin and related ethical orientation–e.g. (a) God as ‘wholly other’ (b) God as conceptualized in pantheism or (c) an evil being hostile to God.

In fact, Catholics and other Protestants take great pains to differentiate those interior experiences which are from God and those which are not.

» Alchemy, Ancestor Cults, Anselm (St.), Ashram, Bible, Book of Job, Bowie (David), Brahman, Clairaudience, Cupid, Dhammapada, DSM-IV-TR, Ego, Hero, I Ching, Jnana yoga, Levels of Knowledge, Kabbala, Koan, Kowalska (Saint Maria Faustina Helena), Manichaeism, Mystic, Neurosis, Odin, Paranormal, Pericles, Ramakrishna (Sri), Reincarnation, Seer, Serenity Prayer, Theosophy, Theravada Buddhism, Tiresias

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