Christ the King

November 21, 2010

2 Samuel 5:1-3;  Colossians 1:12-20;  Luke 23:35-43

Sr. Phyllis Jaszkowiak

There is a saying, “We die as we have lived.” Jesus died as he had lived, full of integrity, love, compassion and forgiveness, so that even while suffering on the cross, he could pay more attention to others than to himself.  Jesus was always looking for those who would respond positively to his message, and today the Good Thief is the one, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.”  Jesus offered freedom and life to the Good Thief, who recognized and accepted this gift.

Today a group of Catholic women will be meeting at 2 pm, in our gym, to continue to discuss, openly and freely, ways to help our church.  We want everyone in our church to be equal, able to participate fully in the life of the church.  We meet as women because women have not been given full dignity in the church, as St. Paul says in Galatians, “There is neither male nor female but all are one in Christ Jesus.”

Throughout the church’s 2000 years there have always been women who tried to reform the church beginning with Mary Magdalene, the Apostle to the Apostles.  St. Brigid, an abbess in Ireland, forgave the sins of those who came to her.

Hildegard of Bingen, Catherine of Sienna, Teresa of Avila, are women who worked for the growth and renewal of the church in their day as did most of the foundresses of religious orders of the 18th century.  Dorothy Day, Sr. Joan Chittister, and Edwina Gately, of our day, work for the spread of the gospel message and renewal of the church in our day.

The message has always been to bring the church back to its mission of following Christ in his treatment of all people as equal, to not holding onto power but letting it go, or using it, for the sake of the gospel, to ministering to the poor and outcast of our time.

Some people have asked me why I support this “One Spirit – One Call’.

gathering that meets this afternoon.  I support it because it seeks understanding and change through dialogue, not rules or coercion or violence, but dialogue. 

I remember a number years ago in my community there were undercurrents of unrest each time we celebrated the Eucharist at one of our gatherings.  Some sisters wanted Eucharist, others wanted to have none of it because it was so male dominated.  The Eucharist began to divide rather than unify.

So we intentionally decided we needed to dialogue about what the Eucharist meant for us, personally and communally. It was a hard discussion and took many years, but we kept at it, listening, speaking our truth, praying for guidance from the Holy Spirit.  We listened to the pain of those who felt left out because women could not be presiders.  We listened to the pain not having the Eucharist caused others.  And we listened to what God had to say to us in Scripture and in prayer.

Through this dialogue we came to a better understanding of each other and of the Eucharist.  We now celebrate the Eucharist at each of our gatherings, and we also have other forms of prayer, led by women, that give life and unity to us.  The dialogue continues.

Through this experience I have come to believe that if we are truthful, listen carefully, pray for guidance from the Holy Spirit, dialogue can lead us to a deeper understanding of each other and greater knowledge of God.

It does, however, take both sides willing to enter into the dialogue.  Jesus invited people into the dialogue.  Some, like the Good Thief, willingly came.  Others, like those who crucified Jesus, refused. 

This year our parish theme has been ‘Journey of Unity through the Holy Spirit’.  Jesus, accompanied by the Holy Spirit, took this same journey of trying to dialogue with the religious leaders of his day.  That is why he was able to offer forgiveness to those who crucified him and to the Good Thief.  This love, compassion and forgiveness is the stance Jesus took throughout his life.

It is the stance the women of the church take today to invite dialogue with the Institutional leaders of our church.  We may suffer the same consequences as Jesus did, but the Holy Spirit leads through suffering and pain to a unity of hearts and minds.  It is this Holy Spirit we must follow.

Let us then continue to pray for each other on our Journey of Unity through the Holy Spirit.