The first reaction I had when I saw this was omfg punctuation? The second reaction was to try and argue that my faith was not a death cult at all, but to attempt to explain how in fact it was anything but a death cult. My third reaction was: why, on the fourth day of my honeymoon in Japan, am I still thinking about this?
Rather than try and justify my faith, or explain my faith, what I’m called to do is ask for forgiveness.
My faith journey has taken me through different faith expressions, some of them are being awakened as I travel around the Japanese countryside. Everything has life–the stones, the ancient trees, the birds, the insects, every stream has a surprise, every grove of bamboo that moves in the breeze, the trees slowly turning colour before us. There are cultural expressions of co-existence with nature everywhere. Temples and shrines are linked to thousand-year old places of peace and serenity, and while there is urban sprawl through the entire nation, every house has a space for life outside of concrete. It may only be a few pots of flowers, or trees, or it may be wild flowers and grasses growing in meridians and along the sidewalks, or wonderful, magical channels of water that run alongside most roads, some covered, some not and full with mosses, grasses, flowers, trees, small fish and crabs, frogs, koi–there is room for life here. There is a need and a desire for most people to have that nearby.
Historically, Christendom and Christianity have been at odds, and most of the time Christendom has won over. Christendom is the political, the need to control, to use the Gospel to manipulate, to control, to contort; Christendom strives to make others conform to an ideal Christ-ness that fits one concept that has it’s feet on the ground. It can’t fly. It needs to move in two dimensions, pushing over, running over, crushing anything in its path that doesn’t conform. Because my faith tradition has moved through what Christendom is, it has to touch some responsibility for the trauma it has caused. Specifically, in my case, to 2SLGBTQIAP+ people.
In that light, the post that I’ve been thinking about for days now is, in part, an expression of the trauma Christendom has caused. It is an out-moving fact pushing against the crushing forces that are now dying from their own toxicity. People aren’t coming back to churches because entering through the doors of Christendom is to be subject to the limitations of a two dimensional spirituality.
When I touched the bark of a 750 year old cypress two days ago, felt it’s life force under my hands, I didn’t do so as a Zen Buddhist, or as someone who walks a Medicine path. I did so as a Franciscan. And yet, I believe I had the same experience that a Zen Buddhist or someone who walks a Medicine path (or an atheist or agnostic for that matter) likely would’ve had. My experience saw that tree as a brother, a sister, and as such somehow an expression of the Divine. When I saw the 1100 year old cypress, I saw an expression of time.
Christianity is a four dimensional faith. Where Christendom can only move forwards, backwards, left, right, Christianity has the ability to see above, to move bellow, and within. The mystical nature of our faith teaches us that death is merely another way of moving through time. To see death as the be-all and end-all of our faith is, unfortunately, an expression influenced by the trauma of Christendom.
As a Franciscan, I have to remind myself that if I react in defense of my faith, I’m forgetting the principle teaching of Saint Francis: namely, seek God in the other. While I understand my faith to be a walk of embracing love by expressing love, sometimes that love must be willing to accept the anger expressed to us and simply accept it without engaging with it. Difficult to do because our culture is one of being right over wrong, blame over reconciliation.
I accept that Christendom is responsible for infinite traumas; I accept that to minimize those traumas to just two words also reduces the suffering and pain of those traumas that are in most cases generational and cultural traumas. I accept that reconciliation begins with acknowledging the causes, recognizing the need not just for the asking of forgiveness, but also tangible acts and motions that give forgiveness meaning. Some will not be willing to seek reconciliation. For them, it ends with the confusion of two belief systems.
I aspire to think four dimensionally as a Catholic, and as a Franciscan. I aspire to move beyond my own religious trauma because to dwell within it keeps me two dimensional, poisons my very being.
when there is hatred–hatred within and outside of myself–let me sow love, especially when it is challenging to love myself;
where there is injury–injury I have caused through my willfulness or ignorance, injury that has happened to me because of the willfulness or ignorance of others–let me sow pardon; allow me the grace to pardon;
where there is doubt–doubt in myself, doubt in the intentions of others, doubt caused by trauma, or fear, or greed–let me sow faith, knowing that faith may be all that I have to hold onto;
where there is despair–in myself, caused by my own thoughts, outside of myself, caused by the world around me–hope; hope in the promises of the Risen Lord, in the knowledge that people can be good, and loving, and wonderful when they choose to be so;
where there is darkness–darkness in the world, in my heart–let me be the light: the light reflected from the Light of Lights;
where there is sadness–grief–let me sow joy, acknowledging that from the grief comes strength, wisdom.
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled–but to console, knowing in my own sufferings that I am able to relate to the sufferings of others;
to be understood, as to understand–to listen, to listen to what is being said sometimes without words, or in words that may not perfectly name the situation, knowing that to be understood ourselves, we must make first the effort to understand.
to be loved as to love–loved as Christ, loving as if everyone we embrace, we meet, we see, is somehow a reflection of Christ, knowing in the face of rage and hate and discrimination, we witness the Passion.
For it is in giving that we receive–in letting go of what we see as controlling our direction, we receive the grace of God’s direction;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned–for in no situation of our lives have we not been either a bully or a victim, and in being one of each, know perfectly the states and conditions of each;
Today is the feast of the Impression of the Stigmata upon St. Francis of Assisi.
Memories flood back to me today of being in a small oratory in Toronto receiving the remainder of my minor orders, the deaconate. It was a warm day; the light glistened off Lake Ontario. I sweat so much.
The next day, meeting at the church we’d rented–the same church used in Kim’s Convenience, the Vietnamese Victory Church. I was ordained a priest in Appa’s Church. The Sunday following where I celebrated my first Mass, sweat a lot more, made mistakes, but it was ok!
When I was preaching today, I talked about what it must have been like for Francis, to want to hide the stigmata from his brothers, from those in his community; how they must have hurt. I can only imagine the pain of that blessing.
I talked today about how we, as Christians, are called to see when we receive the mark of Christ. Doing the right thing, carrying our cross, is never easy. Each time we are challenged to call out injustice, we are called to advocate for justice, when we are called into the silence of prayer, or the praise of celebration we are finding the marks of Christ.
We should not be ashamed, or afraid. Be proud, have courage. Know that we are loved by God, that we share siblingship with Our Lord, Jesus Christ.
I know, I know. It’s a line that I never saw myself as writing either.
When I was a young child, my parent’s would take me to the Royal Saskatchewan Museum in the evenings. There was (and is!) a large triceratops skull there–at the time, it was in the basement of the museum such that as a young child I could crawl on it. It was tangible, it was real, it was cool! It was old. Older than anything I knew about.
History leaves imprints like fossils. At first, we may not know how to handle or explain the evidence in front of us. Dragon bones! Then bones assembled in all kinds of ways, creating all kinds of strange looking animal remains. When we applied common sense, patience, and knowledge of the evidence around us, the skeletons started to look different. We started to have a more detailed understanding of what these creatures were, how they lived, and now with the additional information of the fossil record, we know what some of their skins looked like, and that some may have had feathers, and that their ancestors fly around us to this day as birds.
It is often easier to believe in dinosaurs than it is that a man, a teacher, was crucified around 2000 years ago, was buried in a tomb, then three days later returned to the living because he was both God and man.
It’s ludicrous!
For starters, people don’t come back from the dead. It is a simpler concept that his body was taken from the tomb by his followers or by others to create the image that he was raised from the dead. It was more profitable somehow to do this.
There are, however, some fossils in the record that may help us.
People, including Jesus’ close followers, were consistently persecuted, killed for what they believed. This past Sunday, we said Mass on an altar stone that contained the relics of three saints and martyrs (even though we can’t be 100% sure who they are because there are a few saints and martyrs with the same names as the ones listed in the documentation that comes with this stone) that were killed between the mid 200’s and 1000 AD. That’s an 800 year stretch that people were killed for believing that a man was crucified, died, and was buried before returning from the dead three days later. Yes, people today die for their convictions and beliefs. These people also died for believing fundamental principles and values about the dignity of human life, the necessity of acts of charity and love. They believed the teachings of this particular man, a man who was God incarnate.
If they’d been killed for “Love your neighbor as you love yourself”, that would’ve been one thing. But it wasn’t just that. They believed this man was the son of God.
They believed that the sacrifice of the Mass was a direct connection to that death, the resurrection, a direct and tangible thing that recalled us to knowing this man personally. Do this in memory of me. Touch, taste, eat, drink, know. Do this in a certain way, gathered together as a family.
Is it just to accept assistance from an individual who was a party to an action that was unjust?
We need to define justice first: behavior or treatment that is fair or morally correct.
Who’s moral standards do we go by? I’m going t o suggest a simple one. Treat everyone the way you want to be treated. The Golden Rule is universal.
Was the eviction of the houseless at city hall just, based on these two measuring sticks? IT can be argued that it was morally correct because the city saw danger of fire, and wanted to protect its citizens in the camp. It could be argued that they were treated fairly because they were given notice. It could be argued that there are housing opportunities for them that they did not take advantage of.
It could also be argued that the presence of the camp was brought about because there was a lack of justice in the existing programming for houseless people. It could be argued that while there were safety issues due to addiction, due to crime, there is in fact a need for more significant harm reduction to help combat those issues. These were promised that were made by city hall, and then broken by city hall.
So while the eviction action might have seemed just in the minds of those conducting it, an action is not just if it is not conducted with overall fairness Given how these people have been treated in the past, and are continuing to be treated, I believe the eviction of the camp was not, in fact, a just action.
Were they treated the way we want to be treated? Have they been treated the way they should be treated? Will they be treated the way we would hope to be treated were we found to be houseless?
What about the other side of this coin?
Is it just to potentially jeopardize the only significant source of income for a home that houses at risk youth in the 2SLGBTQIAP+ by pointing out that one of the people participating behaved unjustly towards another at risk group in our city?
Certainly, these concerns being brought up, these questions being asked, could be seen as an attack by the organizers of a cause that serves a greater good. That’s compounded by the possibility that needed funds to keep a home open could be at risk. Our youth could be at risk if this home were to close.
When a politician takes part in an action that appears to be unjust, and draws a line by doing so between those who can be heard and those who cannot, the question that must be asked is this:
Is this individual trustworthy given that their actions are not consistently just?
Are those who align themselves trustworthy?
Is it morally acceptable to accept the fruits of the actions of an individual who is applying a justice that favors some over others?
Does the action of one individual negate the actions of others?
In a Facebook post recently, I categorized this fund raising event as “caucasian” That was an incorrect term, and I ask the community to forgive me for the potential implications of the use of that term. The correct term I should’ve used was privileged. The term privileged in this context means that the event is focused on a certain group of people who have the means to provide assistance to those who do not have the means. That in itself, it could be argued, isn’t an issue.
However, it becomes an issue when the privilege stops us from seeing the reality of the situation.
The study of philosophy literally saved my life. One of my heroes of philosophy urged us to trust the test of experience.
Keeping that in mind.
Let us define privilege as a right or immunity granted as a peculiar benefit, advantage, or favor. Justice cannot exist in a state of privilege. Justice is meant to destroy privilege.
Did justice exist in the action of evicting the camp in front of city hall?
Does justice need to be consistent, or can it change overnight?
Are we wrong for wanting to question an individual who is a leader and claims allyship in our community? Its difficult to ask that question, and asking that question may cause potential harm to the vulnerable the fundraiser is designed to protect.
But how safe are those vulnerable who are being protected by the monies being raised if the policies of one of the individuals in the fundraiser is to treat vulnerable people by applying justice differently depending on the type of vulnerability?
These are big questions that need to be asked by everyone involved. Not asking these questions because it may rock the boat, while claiming a need to be protective, is privileged.
Challenging privilege is frustrating to those in the state of privilege because it seems fruitless. It gets in the way of what’s necessary to get things done, to protect the status quo. However, for those who are not in a condition of privilege, like my friend who is confined to a wheelchair and faces the challenges of accessibility daily, or another friend who wants to contribute to a worthy cause and enjoy a show but needs to spend money required to pay rent and buy food to do so–these challenges aren’t irrelevant. Aspects of this fundraising experience limit their ability to participate fully.
More often than not, it stops with argument and a need to be the “winner” or the one who is “right” rather than seeing the other side of the coin. It ends because the need for self preservation supersedes understanding that the very act of self preservation they engage in works opposite to inclusivity; an inclusivity that the 2SLGBTQIAP+ community has been actively fighting for to the tune of almost 75 years, and continues to fight for today.
So I would conclude this.
It is just that an event is held to raise money for a vulnerable group within our community. However, it is morally questionable to include an individual in that fundraising event who has, by virtue of recent events, presented a concept of justice that is not equal for all. This then unfortunately forces those involved into a position where they must in some way define their concept of justice to be one that is consistent with behavior and treatment that is fair and morally correct, doing unto others what they would have done to themselves. I think that can be done. But it will require effort outside of the event as well as during the event.
As it was pointed out to me by someone on the other side of the coin, this even has been a point of education and change for at least one person. Everyone in this event has the opportunity to change what their concepts of justice are. They have the opportunity to demonstrate this change with meaningful action. But that action must have willingness, and it must be sincere, and it must be immediate.
Meanwhile, the vulnerable on the other line that has been drawn require our help. So let’s let the privileged argue about how we are wrong, and focus our energies on the vulnerable that need our help instead.
The actual caption to the photo above is “Elderly Falls”. Sounds like a nice vacation spot, doesn’t it?
I recently celebrated my 52nd birthday! Here are some of the things that I look back on as nuggets. Some may be nuggets of wisdom.
1. There is, in fact, such a thing as too much coffee.
2. While there is a certainty that you can not get enough sleep, for some reason your body begins to push the limits. Having too much coffee makes it worse. I’m lucky if I get six hours now.
3. Plants are living creatures. They respond to your touch, your voice, your moods. They heal. In larger numbers, they can heal sometimes in larger proportions.
4. Not everyone will agree with you. When you feel the colour red bubbling up inside you, take a breath. Red feelings aren’t always the best feelings to lead with.
5. Change, although uncomfortable and inevitable, is sometimes not so bad. It can be horrible. I mean, it may seem horrible. Ok, sometimes it just sucks. Especially if it’s a shaking out of a comfortable routine. Nobody likes to leave a warm bed. But if we always stayed in bed, we’d shit the bed. And bed soars.
6. It’s ok to be different in a way that people look at you in a puzzled way.
7. It’s ok to not make sense to other people.
8. It’s ok to talk to yourself, or be confused at things other people find simple. We all see the world through different windows. Some people are lucky enough to have stained glass.
9. Dogs are angels. Cats are also angels, but I’m a dog person. Even if they pee on the rug, it’s an angel.
10. The hardest thing to learn in the world is that you’re almost always going to have an internal reaction to what someone says, what someone does. Sometimes those reactions are going to be good, sometimes they’re going to feel really gross. Being nervous and reacting in nervous ways are normal for a lot of us, especially those of us who’ve experienced trauma in our lives. The trick is to know that being nervous doesn’t always look like you’re nervous. The bigger trick is learning to not let the nervousness control your reactions. People agree to do things they don’t want to do because this all the time. People become things they don’t always want to be because of the trauma in their past.
Take a breath. Pause if you can. Try to be logical about it if you can. Make as good a choice as you can about the situation. You can always cry with someone or rage with someone after. And you’ll always grow, even if you can’t see the growth.
Plants are doing that kind of growth all around you all the time. So are your fingernails and your hair. So there.
11. “Not my monkeys, not my circus–but I know who the clowns are.” -author unknown
12. Faith, prayer, and dialogue with God are ways to keep a solid foundation in your life. It doesn’t mean that things aren’t going to get rocky or boring. It means that you’ll ride it out easier.
12.5. I remember strange things from my past, mostly embarrassing things, or things or moments when I felt awkward or was rolling downhill towards despair. If this happens to you, do not worry. I think that it’s one of two things:
It’s your brain, recognizing it’s full, needing to dump data to make space. By reliving the memories that aren’t the greatest it’s dumping to create space for more.
or
You’ve reached a point where you’re able to cope with the emotions around the event better, so your brain brings it up so you can resolve it emotionally, and walk away from it.
I resolutely accept and embrace the apostolic and ecclesiastical traditions, liturgies and other practices of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. I accept Sacred Scripture as the inspired word of God given to numerous authors in differing circumstances. I acknowledge that, while its many writings are of different characters and therefore of unequal pertinence, Sacred Scripture in the light of the message of Christ is normative for the conduct of our lives in accord with God’s will.
I also acknowledge that there are truly and properly seven Sacraments, instituted by Jesus Christ our Lord, and that they are necessary for the salvation of the human race, although it is not necessary for each individual to receive them all. I acknowledge that the seven Sacraments are: Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, and Matrimony; and that they confer grace. I also accept and acknowledge the customary and approved rites of the Catholic Church in the solemn administration of these sacraments. I accept each and every article on original sin and justification declared and defined by the Catholic Church.
I likewise profess that in the Mass a true, proper and propitiatory sacrifice is offered to God on behalf of the living and the dead, and that the body and blood together with the soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ is truly, really, and substantially present in the most holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, and that there is a change of the whole substance of the bread into the body, and of the whole substance of the wine into blood; and this change the Catholic Church calls transubstantiation. I also profess that the whole and entire Christ and a true Sacrament is received under each separate species.
I firmly hold that there is a purgatory, and that the souls detained there are helped by the prayers of the faithful. I likewise hold that the saints reigning together with Christ should be honored and invoked, that they offer prayers to God on our behalf, and that their relics should be venerated. I firmly assert that images of Christ, of the Mother of God ever Virgin, and of the other saints should be owned and kept, and that due honor and veneration should be given to them.
–-ECE-ECC Profession of Faith Document
There’s a lot going on today. In reality, each of these paragraphs could’ve been broken down and given their own homily.
There are many ways to God in prayer. These ways can include writing, scriptures, and the sacraments: more specifically the Mass. I spoke today about the difficulties we have in a society that relies on the contributions of science, contributions that improve our lives and that when it comes to facing the altar on sometimes, it can be hard to accept that the bread and wine transform to become the Precious Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. And yet, time after time, I have stood at the altar and felt shaken, felt tears welling up. When I first started practicing the Mass towards my ordination, even though I acknowledged that this was not a consecration, I found myself sobbing, grateful and inexplicably moved by what I was doing. It transformed me.
I spoke today about how transubstantiation takes place at the time of consecration, but transformation also takes place when the Body and Blood touches our hands, our lips. We are transubstantiated, in a way. We become living tabernacles taking the Eucharist into the world. The more we do this, the more we are strengthened and transformed, and that is what will cause people around us to question. Our job is to allow them to question, to pull back the veil in their own time, and to gently acknowledge the transformations that we may see. They will happen when we least expect it, sometimes at the most inconvenient times, and yet it is crucial that we step up.
I also spoke today about the concept of original sin. I stand by the teaching I’ve taught in the past that sin is that which gets in the way of experiencing perfect love from the Divine, and being able to express that love, to pass that love on, in a Divine way to others. I spoke about how our choices often get in the way because they require us to sacrifice, to give up pleasure or what we perceive to be pleasure, for a greater good. These days, the best example I can come up with is drumsticks. It’s a delicious ice cream treat and I have a hard time stopping at one. But if I love myself, if I allow the Divine Expression of Love to be present, I will be aware of the discipline of saying “Maybe no drumstick today Pete…what about an apple?”
When it comes to Purgatory….
In the history of the tradition of the church, we have sometimes picked up ideas that fit the narrative of the Christian Faith, the Christian experience. Angels, for example, were not something active in our belief until later in the early church. While belief in angels may not be consistent with the timeline of Christianity, I know that exorcists who call on St. Michael know the results that occur. The narrative of angels, of guardian angels, proves by the test of experience. Likewise, purgatory could be argued to be a place that was described by Plato and picked up by earlier church fathers. And so on, and so on.
We can live our lives either wondering constantly what’s on the other side of the door, and be so focused on that we loose sight of those in purgatory before our eyes, in hell before our eyes in this life, right now. As Catholics, and as those of us who follow St. Francis, we often loose sight of those right before our eyes and the pain, the suffering they are experiencing right now. Many will use the opportunity to give aid as a door to proselytizing. Again, as Eucharistic Catholics our job isn’t to proselytize. It’s to give aid, to give comfort, to provide compassion, to allow the opportunity for inner questioning to take place, and to be there where the individual pulls back the veil and wants to step forward.
God will transform the soul. Christ will transform the soul. We simply love, listen, and watch.
Our Statement of Faith holds to orthodoxy as it is to be found in the Tradition of the Church, and specifically in the Roman Tradition. This Tradition is constituted of the statements of Faith found in the Nicene-Constantinople Creed as expressed and validated by the Council of Trent. As such, we profess the following:
With firm faith I believe and profess all and everything which is contained in the creed of faith, which the holy Catholic Church uses; namely:
I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages; God from God, light from light, true God from true God; begotten not made, of one substance with the Father; through whom all things were made; who for us and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was made incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made human. He was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, died, and was buried; and He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven; He sits at the right hand of the Father, and He shall come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and of His kingdom there will be no end. And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who equally with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified; who spoke through the prophets. And I believe that there is one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins; and I hope for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
–-ECE-ECC Profession of Faith Document
When I spoke yesterday about this part of our profession of faith, I remarked that there was a lot contained in the creed: the sentences are very, very long! The early fathers wanted to make sure that there was clarity in what was being transmitted because at this time in history, there was a lot going on in terms of ‘what we believe’.
I also spoke about how, in his homily that morning, Archbishop LaRade spoke about how the Gospel reading of the day referenced false prophets, and how sometimes we may question who we are.
How do we know we’re in this for the right reasons?
The last 24 hours before I began my journey into my vocation, I had a seizure of doubt. What if I was making a colossal mistake? What if what I was doing was actually counter to what I should be? What if the Roman Church was right, and I was in fact suffering from same sex attraction, that I needed to live my life as a eunuch, unmarried, unable to experience sexual intimacy?
What if, in doing what I was about to do, what I felt called to do, I would be condemned to eternal damnation? For me, this was (and IS!) a serious consideration! Literally 3 hours before I was to make my baptismal vows, I was 90% convinced that what I needed to do was pack my things, take the train to Pearson airport, and try to get a flight back to Regina. But I didn’t. I stayed.
The next three days were a whirlwind. And graces began to flow steadily into my life.
I met the love of my life. I began to get a sense of purpose beyond what I’d been doing, a sense of needing to push beyond the limitations I’d grown comfortable in. I broke out of those limitations and discovered a joy in serving those at the margins. I finished my seminary studies, and started the relationship of Christ and priest, knowing Him through the Blessed Sacrament.
I’d lie if I didn’t say there was still some doubt in my mind, that I still have moments when I ask myself if I’m doing the right thing. The difference is when I have those moments, when those moments grow in my mind and I consider if I’m doing the right thing, I ask myself: the lives that I’ve touched, the way my life has been touches and changed and blossomed, would this be the work of old scratch?
Except if this life is, in fact, not close to God’s plan, if I am headed in fact towards damnation, I would hope God would forgive me for trying to be closer to God.
As individuals, members of the ECE-ECC have made a decision to live out their Catholic Christian vocations and lives in a Church which allows them the possibility of living authentic lives according to their consciences.
We have taken a position of active witness in relation to these deeply held beliefs. Rather than advocate from within the Roman Church, we have chosen to “actualize” those beliefs outside of the institution. While this conscious choice separates us from our parent institution, our exile brings freedom to live authentically as a child of God and pursue a deepening commitment to spirituality and mission.
Our active witness is not carried out in a reactive manner, where every action and decision of the parent institution propels the exiled into renewed action fed by anger. Rather, our active witness is characterized by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, discerned through a practice of daily meditation and liturgical prayer centered on the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus offered to us in the Eucharist. This latter characteristic implies and necessitates an individual attention to the development of an adequate level of psycho-spiritual maturity.
–-ECE-ECC Profession of Faith Document
In front of city hall right now, there are roughly 70+ people living in tents to try and get the city government to honor their promise to end homelessness. This was a promise that was, in effect, reneged on because there were more votes to be had in supporting other less costly initiatives.
I am really, really proud of what our small community has accomplished in a short period of time. When the call went out, we were able to deliver over 200 bottles of water, multiple packages of nutritious food; individually there’s been contributions as well.
When I took out the water donation two weeks ago, I had some really fun interactions. When I brought the first case of water, an organizer got someone to help me take a case from my car. On the way back to get more water, I ran into Cam Fraser, an ally of the queer community, the former minister at Knox Met, and a strong supporter of anti-poverty initiatives. He’s also a good friend. He helped me take some water to be distributed.
I ran into an old friend from twenty plus years ago who got a chuckle out of the fact that he could now call me “Father Pete”–something I’m still getting used to!
We didn’t need the brick and mortar of the Vatican to organize, let alone the brick and mortar of a parish. We knew there was a need, and we acted to help fill that need as we continue to help fill that need.
Why do we choose to live in exile?
For me it comes down to something I call the poverty of love.
I could’ve entered the Roman Church and lied about who and what I was, and tried to pursue my vocation through a veil of lies, but how much of a hypocrite would I have been for doing that? Following my heart, it was a simple choice to enter into my vocation the way I did, and to work outside of the context and confines of Roman Catholicism. We live in exile because, while the trappings and the traditions of the Roman Church are appealing, they also draw us to recognize a reality that generates trauma rather than heal it. We practice our faith, holding to the long standing traditions, entering into the poverty of love–namely, giving all that we have, as best as we can, to fully embrace the love of Christ through the Eucharist, through the sacraments, and through works of charity and love.
The poverty of love recognizes that in countries where we have missions such as Cameroon and Sierra Leone, 2SLGBTQIAP+ people are still persecuted, arrested, tortured, and murdered. The poverty of love calls us to recognize that our siblings, specifically our trans siblings, need to know they have a safe place in our missions. They need to know that there is sanctuary available. The poverty of love calls us to have courage to openly welcome those most marginalized. This is not just a poverty of Christian vocation, but of Franciscan vocation as well. It is the keystone to the foundations of the Eucharistic Catholic tradition.
A trans person cannot know there is sanctuary if it is not somehow offered to them. Silence, in this situation, is violence.
The poverty of love recognized that in Canada and the United States, we are more and more witnessing a removal of safety for the most vulnerable, the most poor, the most marginalized.
All of this feels incredibly overwhelming! We can’t affect change everywhere.
But we can affect change where we sit, where we stand, where we pray and meet in community.
In Regina, this comes in the form of creating safe worship space for 2SLGBTQIAP+ people, closed to heterosexual people. There are little, if no, queer worshiping spaces for queer people by queer people. As a priest, I’m called to serve the queer community; as a Eucharistic Catholic, I’m called to serve all who are disenfranchised. My oratory is open to anyone who wants to attend Mass, and this is something I make known.
It also comes from worshiping as a community, and serving as a community and as individuals. As winter comes, we will need to be mindful about obtaining winter clothing, sleeping bags, and high-energy consumables to help keep people warm. I know this is something we will be able to accomplish.
Sometimes it would be great to have the kind of resources that the Roman Catholic church has. Most of the time? It’s nice to be poor, to be in the company of fellow travelers.
the hermit gardener 