Saturday, July 5, 2014

Entry 23: Opening our hearts to the world

                                                            An Open heart, by Fania Simon 
                           (source: http://fineartamerica.com/featured/an-open-heart-fania-simon.html) 



To finish off Chapter 1 of EG, Francis continues his reflection on the missionary heart  (which he began in the previous section)  with a short new section that will reflect on what is an open heart. He is convinced that to have a missionary heart, one must also have an open heart (EG 46). In order to speak of this open heart, he uses the imagery of open doors a lot. With this image,it’s easy to understand that he means that the Church doors can’t be closed to anyone, and that all are welcome. But he eventually explains that there’s much more at stake here: It’s not just about having open doors to invite others into our Church.It’s about developing a true missionary heart that will remain open to others. A heart that will listen and be present to  those all people, especially those who have faltered along the way. (EG 46) He compares the missionary heart to to the prodigal son’s father who always kept the door open for his son to return and pass through his open door.(EG 46)

  While it's true we can’t forget the importance of having Church doors open to people either, (Eg 47) the reason why Francis focuses more on the openness of the doors of the  heart is because this is something we struggle with as Christians.  Yes, we’re a caring people that are open and loving towards everyone we meet …in theory!! We can’t overlook the fact that all too often, when Christians encounter someone whose lifestyle is built around principles and actions that are contrary to scriptures, we have a tendency of closing our hearts to them.This is a nicer way of saying that we don’t shy away from judging others and reacting in fear, or even hate towards them. 

Some Catholics  may argue “ …but we have to be the voice of morality in this immoral world, and as such, must not  hold back from openly challenging people who act against the precepts of God.’ Although an unpopular way of practicing one’s Christianity today, it is a valid option for many out there and a genuine reflection of a desire for a better world. However, Francis might challenge folks who believe this a little more. In a homily he gave last Monday   he reminded the faithful that we should pray for people who are do evil. We should not judge them.  Our job is not to pass judgment, but to love.

This is especially true in the Sacramental  life of our Church.  Our Sacraments are meant to be open for everyone to share and participate in.  As he says ‘ the doors of the sacraments shouldn’t be closed for… any reasons’. ( EG 47) Later in the same paragraph, he cites a quote attributed to St Ambrose, reminding us that the Eucharist and other sacraments are not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak  (EG 47) The common assumption among many Catholics these days is that such statements reflect our Pontiff’s desires to change how our Church currently deals with divorced people with respect to the Eucharist, in order to open the door for their involvement at the Eucharist. I myself am trying not to expect anything from our beloved Pope. He will lead the Church in the direction he feels the spirit is calling us, which means none of us can really ‘predict’ what will come next from Francis, but the mere fact that he is speaking of a Church which is  “the house of the Father, where there is a place for everyone, with all their problems” (EG 47) should  be a sign that there are indeed exciting times ahead for this Church, if we are courageous enough to follow the lead of our pontiff!!


46. A Church which “goes forth” is a Church whose doors are open. Going out to others in order to reach the fringes of humanity does not mean rushing out aimlessly into the world. Often it is better simply to slow down, to put aside our eagerness in order to see and listen to others, to stop rushing from one thing to another and to remain with someone who has faltered along the way. At times we have to be like the father of the prodigal son, who always keeps his door open so that when the son returns, he can readily pass through it.
47. The Church is called to be the house of the Father, with doors always wide open. One concrete sign of such openness is that our church doors should always be open, so that if someone, moved by the Spirit, comes there looking for God, he or she will not find a closed door. There are other doors that should not be closed either. Everyone can share in some way in the life of the Church; everyone can be part of the community, nor should the doors of the sacraments be closed for simply any reason. This is especially true of the sacrament which is itself “the door”: baptism. The Eucharist, although it is the fullness of sacramental life, is not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.[51] These convictions have pastoral consequences that we are called to consider with prudence and boldness. Frequently, we act as arbiters of grace rather than its facilitators. But the Church is not a tollhouse; it is the house of the Father, where there is a place for everyone, with all their problems

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