Guerilla Warfare and Tightrope Walkers

This has been a bizarre few months - more full of spiritual attacks than previous years. I'm doing my level best to remember to offer it up for our Holy Father, John Paul II, and for the cardinals and his successor. That's the only cause I can see behind such constant barrage. But the pure and simple fact is that this is a world in crisis - it's been in a state of crisis since we fell - but just as there are easier and harder battles, some more gory than others, some peacefully resolved, we're currently in one of the more sticky ones. Always good at these times to remember Joshua 1:9, "Be strong and of good courage, be not afraid nor dismayed, for the Lord is with you wherever you go!"

I recently saw From Hell with Johnny Depp about Jack the Ripper, and The Hours with Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman about three women facing madness, lesbianism and death. Both quietly postulated that the world we live in IS Satre's No Exit Hell - that this is Hell, and there is no escape. (Come to think of it, the final episode of Seinfeld postulated the same thing, too.) OK, granted, neither came right out and said that, and From Hell's theatrical release had a quasi-happy ending for one of the main characters, and The Hours implies that if you live a life of lesbianism you at least won't be quite as miserable...but in essence, they were saying, "Do whatever you need to to make yourself pretend you aren't as miserable as you are."

Compare this to Victor Hugo's Les Miserables, where far from saying that this world is Hell, he says, "Yes, there's pain and suffering and misapplied justice in this world. And sometimes the bad guys get away with things, while those trying to live good lives are mowed down. And yes, you don't always get the romantic ending, and yes you have to let your children grow up...and YES, people can change, and YES sin is sin but there is forgiveness and mercy and confession and a quiet sort of glory that is the best glory in the end. And YES you may be betrayed by the crum in this world, but you don't have to be the crum of this world. Turn the other cheek, sacrifice your own happiness to secure it for those more in need, live not only for yourself and THEN you will find meaning."

Complete opposite from what our world is promoting now, eh?

Steve Greydanus on his Decentfilms.com review site rated The Hours the highest for quality, but "pure poison" in its moral content. I heartily agree. Because on the surface the movie is BRILLIANTLY made, and the images aren't really as disturbing as, say, From Hell, or even The Mummy (or pick your action flick). But therein lies the poison. It's so much easier to point to the obviously oozing green cake a la Captain Hook. It's nearly impossible to avoid the poison filtered through the vents...one just feels...so...sleepy...and comfortable...and.... This it the method of the Green Lady in Lewis's The Silver Chair - and in this soporific state, it's just so much easier to agree.... Agree that although suicide isn't the BEST thing to do, it's always understandable and anyway it's the person's choice and no one else's. Agree that a better choice would be to abandon one's family, because that's true freedom (even if it leads to the suicide of one's son - it's more important that a woman be free). Agree that the BEST choice is to "tend one's own garden" - a lesbian garden, preferably. That the lesbianism was surrounded by women dealing with madness, boorish or obtuse husbands, and constant thoughts of suicide only makes the lesbianism seem the most NORMAL part of the whole movie. And that's the poison again - to make one variation of black look white in comparison with other variations on black. I'd look thin next to someone really struggling with weight. The fornicator looks chaste next to the rapist. The gossiper is sweet-natured next to the torturer. And so it goes. No TRUTH is given, only false comparisons. It's like saying, "Would you rather die by taking these pills yourself or having us stab you?" Should the question rather be, "Would you rather LIVE?" So, in the former statement the self-slaughter seems to be the better choice...except that it's not a GOOD choice.

Thank God this is not Hell. Purgatory, perhaps. But in Hell there truly would be no change. There would be no choice. There would be no better, only nothingness. No, this is not Hell. There is hope here. There is matter, substance, goodness, nature, beauty, time, opportunity, joy, peace, truth, justice, greatness, sacrifice, rightness, mercy, nobleness, enthusiasm, repose, temperence, fortitude, courage, understanding, knowledge, caring, self-control, wisdom, LOVE. No, this is not Hell. Although we can by action and inaction lead people to Hell ("and all our yesterdays have lighted fools the way to dusty death"). But by the same token, we are meant to show each other that there is more to this place, that we ourselves are more than a "quintessence of dust," that there is HOPE and that hope does not disappoint. I know I've written this before, but it seems to me that it's something that cannot be shouted from the rooftops enough. Truth doesn't vary. There's a great comfort in that.

As for guerilla tactics: it's been, lessee...about ten years since I've gone up to a priest and directly confronted him with what he was preaching. (That is, I've been rather a cheerful, bubbly thorn in many priests' sides over the years, but I've attempted to use more oblique methods than frontal attack - you know, favoring encouragement of certain statements, using pageants to promote truth and non-squishy Jesus, bovinely smiling while wondering why we can't sing the "Tantum Ergo" at the end of the Passion and then doing so anyway...sometimes playing the dumb chick who obviously is playing a dumb chick card really works, anywho....) So today, since Fr. Larry's in Lourdes on pilgrimage, we had a visiting retired priest. He gave an OK sermon - you know, the liberal but not evil generic "God is love" speech, which to his credit did mention that Christ suffered and died for us and also used the "s" word (sin) although not in any SPECIFIC context. It's not horrible...BUT....

The readings today were pretty darn obvious in their theme. Genesis when God creates Eve, Paul saying that Christ deigned to be for a time a little lower than the angels so that He might show us how to live correctly, and then Jesus Himself saying in no uncertain terms that marriage is between a man and a woman who become one flesh, that God "created them, male and female" and that for this reason divorce was completely, unalterably unacceptable - for either men or women. Then he tops that off by calling forth a child and saying, "Let the little ones come to me," and so doing remarking on the second reason for marriage, and also infant baptism, and also our responsibility to teach children what He just taught us, and also.... You get the picture. Hmmm, what should the homily have been on?!?!!??!?

But we got the "be nice" sermon. Nothing offensive in it. But nothing about what Christ said specifically, either. It was a luke-warm sermon. And you know what God had to say about that!

So, after mass, at the encouragement of Mom and Jules (and tacitly Peter and Dad, the former of whom sighed mightily as soon as the first sentence escaped the visiting priest's lips - poor fellow! Lord strengthen that priest!), I decided to waylay the priest. The conversation went something like this.

ME: Father? Father!

FR: (Turning) Yes?

ME: Hi, Father. I just wanted to thank you so much for coming to our parish and filling in for Father Larry.

FR: (Nods, he wants to go home)

ME: I'm a religion teacher, myself.

FR: (No reaction beyond, "Good golly, this kid is bubbly.")

ME: And I just wanted to let you know...that is, I noticed you skipped over part of the Gospel. The part where Jesus rather forcefully talks about divorce. (I think I said that last sentence, I'm not sure.)

FR: (Quickly) Ah, well, that was a mistake....

ME: Yes, I'm sure. But you know, I just wanted to let you know that it would have been wonderful if you'd preached on it.

FR: Well, there ARE so many divorced people in the congregation, I didn't want to upset them.

ME: (Hmmm, MISTAKE, huh?) I know there are. I teach their kids. And I've got to tell you father, they're longing for the truth. All of them. So many people mistakenly think that if they're divorced their automatically excommunicated. It would have been so nice if you could have cleared that up - you know, let them know that the problem is only if you're remarried....

FR: (Quickly) Well, there were so many themes one could have chosen to preach on. (Meaning, of course, there were TOO many themes and therefore why choose one at all? Gah.) Why, in Genesis....

ME: Exactly. There was a very OBVIOUS theme between Genesis and the Gospel, wasn't there? Of maleness and femaleness.

FR: (Some sort of mumble, I think I cut him off, my time was growing short.)

ME: But the point is, Father, that I want YOU to know that no one's going to hate you if you preach the truth. They're longing for the truth. They want it. I know - I teach their kids. And you've got to preach the truth.

FR: I know, but...I'm not afraid that they won't... (or something deferring to that effect).

ME: Great! Then the next time this reading rolls around, in three years - you know (my attempt at "insider humor" completely dying) - anyway, maybe you could think about preaching what Jesus VERY CLEARLY states?

FR: Well, thank you, I've got to get this sack (indicating some sort of bag he was holding).

ME: Oh, absolutely. No problem. Thank you for coming, again, Father. We really appreciate it.

FR: (Retreating rapidly.)

ME: (Calling out behind him.) Preach the truth! Make my job easier!

FR: (Long gone by now.)

So, I guess it's technically NOT guerilla at all, well maybe guerilla ambushing.... Yeah. OY! Gets me so furious. Lord, send us non-wimpy priests! Amen! Send us priests who know and understand and are passionately in love with You! Lord, send Your Spirit among us! Set us afire again with Your truth! Aaaaaaaaaah!

Sincerely, your loyal (for stints at a time, mea culpe, next Sat. confession You and I?),
Corporal Snyder

Mood: Cold. Freezing fact. It's turned from summer to winter in sixty seconds.
Music: Evanescence. Something along the lines of "Don't turn away. Don't close your eyes."
Sadness: Must go clean the garage now. Sigh. But at least I'll be moving my body.