The Future of the Church

There is a lot of talk on what kindof Pope the Catholic Church needs. The discourse usually emphasizes somethingthe Church is lacking or doing wrong. When being critical in what the Churchneeds, the difference of opinions is vast. Some say the Church needs a call tomodernization in that a lot of the issues the Church holds as theologicalshould pertain to pastoral discourse, some advocate for transparency andaccountability criticizing the Church’s attitude to recent scandals, some claimthe Church needs to be a living sign of hope as the biggest growing religion isno-religious affiliation in the world, others claim the Church needsunification advocating strongly to build bridges among the very own CatholicFamily, and yet others claim the Church no longer has identity and say in theworld and needs to strongly proclaim its identity in a world that refuses toaccept the gospel message. In fact, the Church is always in need, in need forall of these things and more. We can say the Church is always seeking to berevitalized and modernized by the applicability of the Gospel in the modernworld. The Church has always faced challenges that do not portray the gospelmessage, the Church has always been divided since the time of Peter and Paul asthey discussed whether the gospel should remain in Israel or be proclaim to thegentiles as well, and since the beginning of the Church, the gospel has alwaysbeen countercultural and faced opposition wherever it is proclaimed. Yes, theChurch needs many things, but the Church has always been in need. What makes usthink that the Pope or leader of the pilgrimage Church here on earth will solvethese problems?

Church is you and me. Church is thePope and the College of Cardinals, all the bishops, priests, religious and laypeople who together have choose to live their life a certain way. If the Churchis in need is because it has always been in need and always will be in need.But this is not the job of the Vicar of Christ here on earth only—but ofeveryone who composes and feels part of the family. While it is true thatleadership is where we look to find common ground to encompass the mission thatwas entrusted to us here on earth, we also recognize that it plays a role, asignificant role, but it is not solemnly depended on it. As a Church, let usfind what we lack from each other. Let us become what we lack in our search andprayer.

I do not find myself scandalizedbut what the Church needs to do or should be doing. I also do not over concernmyself with who would be the man elected to take on the Chair of Peter. Leastof all, I do not think that next Pope would change all these. The future of theChurch is always directed by the Holy Spirit and through its guidance we findourselves as cooperators of the mission of Jesus Christ. The future of theChurch then, is up to you and me and our responsiveness to this call andmission.

On Lent

Reflection On Lent:

​If you ask yourself whether you are having a ‘successful’ lent you might be closer than you think in understanding what lent is all about. This is not meant to be confusing, but often time lent is constructed around the idea of giving up something. Yes, this is a big part of what lent is all about, mainly to be reminded of the suffering of Christ. But in the effort to enter in a sacrifice we loose focus on what it means to suffer, hence the original question of whether one is being successful or not in lent. What makes suffering so difficult is uncertainty. When we give up something for lent we know that we might come back to whatever we give up at the end of lent. The experience of suffering then is one that is almost an illusion to the one who fasts this way. For we still have a sense of certainty that the period of our ‘offering’ will come to an end. But, suffering in fact is so hard to deal with because it reminds us of our uncertainty as human beings. When one suffers, one really suffers because one does not know. And so, one does not enter into suffering, but rather suffering finds us.
​Are you asking yourself whether all your efforts to enter into suffering are worthless? Of course they are not; God is pleased and content to see the very intention of trying to please him in any way. You may also ask how does one enter into Lent with uncertainty? But uncertainty is part of who we are—one only needs to be reminded of it. Lent is this period to be reminded of the things that truly make us suffer. To call upon the times when we found it hard to have hope in a better future, not knowing when would that period of our life would come to an end. To help others who find themselves in this period of uncertainty, suffering by not knowing how or when it will end.
​I, too have chosen to give up certain things for lent. They give meaning to the Lenten Season by having my will self-disciplined, but I think that they have little to do with suffering, because at the end, I know I can have them in the future. Instead, Lent is a time to call upon the things we do not have control over. In our life one does not need to look hard to see that there are plenty of these. Lent is the period to call upon these things and surrender them to God. Lent is meant to remind us that suffering finds everyone around us the same, and that we are called to respond to this periods of dryness and uncertainty with love and compassion. And so, being successful at Lent has little to do with what you give up and whether you are faithful to that offering, and everything with acknowledging our dependence in God in everything that we do.