Harmony with God: Called to Communion

Inculturation

Is the process through which people receives the Word, makes it the principle of their life, values, attitudes and aspirations.

Veritatis Splendor, 2

(VS 2)

“The light of God's face shines in all its beauty on the countenance of Jesus Christ.”

True spirituality is anchored on

the **truth** of who God is

5th Century, Protagoras

“Man is the measure of all things”

Relativism

All points of view are equally valid even if they are contradicting

having a clear faith based on the Creed of the Church is often labeled as?

fundamentalism

letting oneself be ‘tossed here and there, carried about by every wind of doctrine?

relativism

Missa Pro Eligendo Romano Pontifice, 19 April 2005

“We are building a dictatorship of relativism that does not recognize anything as definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of one's own ego and desires.”

to affirm Jesus as “the Truth, the Way and the Life” is

FUNDAMENTALISM

Cafeteria Catholicism

One is free to just choose which of the Church’s teachings they will accept as true and follow, abandoning beliefs and practices which do not suit their taste or preferences.

Evangelii Gaudium, 64

(EG 64)

“While the Church insists on the existence of objective moral norms which are VALID FOR EVERYONE…there are those in our culture who portray this teaching as UNJUST, that is, as opposed to basic human rights.”

Relativism in Faith

* The logical consequence of relativism in faith
* If all beliefs are true, then all actions are good

Relativism in Morals

* often taken out of context and used as a propaganda statement by Catholics who wish to defend moral slants that do not conform to the official teaching of the Church

Practical Relativism

* a form of moral relativism that is self-centered, self-indulgent and grounded on convenience and material security
* a lifestyle where one accumulates and hoards wealth and power at all costs

Summa Theologiae, I:21:2

Thomas Aquinas

“Truth is the equation of mind and thing.”

**Morally** Truthful

When a person’s thinking conforms to what he expresses with words or actions

**Logically** Truthful

When a person’s thinking conforms to what actually exists in reality and his judgments are based on the same reality

**Ontological** Truth

insofar as they correspond to how the Creator imagined them even before they were made.

Gaudium et spes, 22

(GS 22)

"In fact, it is only in the mystery of the Word incarnate that light is shed on the mystery of man.”

For the truth to be conveyed effectively:

1. genuine love
2. not to saturate with doctrines but to concentrate in the proclamation

Pope Francis

Hence, communicating the truth today should not be by way of imposition but by **attraction**.

Pope Benedict XVI

In the words, it is through the via ***pulchritudinis*** **– the way of beauty the others** are brought more effectively to the truth of Christ.

Essential truths are the___ truths

foundational

Evangelii Gaudium, 36

(EG 36)

Thus, those who proclaim the Christian faith to focus on the essential Gospel Message – on the love of God expressed in Christ Jesus who died and rose again

Bushman, 2000

build a solid foundation of faith that will later on address the “basic questions people have about life, death, suffering, justice, love and sin

Laudato Si 49

(LS 49)

To hear both the **cry of the earth and the cry of the poor**

Evangelium Gaudium

(EG no. 53)

fellow human beings

Laudato Si

(LS 123)

fellow human beings especially the poor

Laudato Si no. 21 and 22

(LS 21 22)

with nature/environment/our planet

Throw-Away Culture - Sawa

1. Objectification
2. Consumption
3. Maximization
4. Disposal

Culture of Mercy - Awa

1. Contemplation
2. Compassion
3. Care
4. Communion

_____ makes people incapable of looking beyond themselves, beyond their own desires and needs

Narcissism

Indicators of Throw-away Culture

* wasting of our resources fueled by consumerism and the market economy
* the practice of contraception and abortion
* abandonment of the elderly and the handicapped
* exclusion of the poor, exploitation of the weak, and
* discarding of genuine relationships, of married love and marriage vows.

Spirituality of Mercy

actions that bring God’s mercy to our neighbor especially the poor and the oppressed, all those who are suffering

The spirituality of mercy lives?

both the corporal and spiritual actions of mercy

Spirituality of Mercy

Spirit-filled movement of the heart

Pope John XXIII

that the church must use the **medicine of mercy**. The Church must therefore “**proclaim the mercy of God**, provide people with God’s mercy and must allow God’s mercy to appear and be realized in its entire life

St. Thomas Aquinas

But man is much more, having been blessed by God with an immortal soul. **There is a suffering that goes beyond his body to his spirit.** **There is a poverty that goes beyond a lack of food and clothing**, to a lack of understanding, to darkness in the mind, and confusion about how to live and find happiness

The merciful outreach of St. Thomas

teaching, writing, laboring in study

Mercy

indicates in the direction of gratitude for an unmerited gift and unmerited grace

Mercy in Hebrew

chesed

Mercy in Latin

misericordia

*to have a heart (cor) for the miseri*

Laudato Si’ mentioned the word “care” x times, while “stewardship” only x.

35, twice

Cardinal Turkson

“Good stewards take responsibility and fulfill their obligations to manage and to render an account. But one can be a good steward without feeling connected. If one cares, however, one is connected. **To care is to allow oneself to be affected by another, so much so that one’s path and priorities change”**

Individualism

* economic
* political
* socio-cultural
* ecological

Laudato Si 162

(LS 162)

“Men and women of our postmodern world run the risk of rampant individualism, and many problems of society are connected with today’s self-centered culture of instant gratification.”

Effects and Consequences of Individualism

1. It isolates the human person from one’s true fulfillment
2. The World is Torn Apart

Relatio Synodi, 2014 in AL 33

extreme individualism often leads to the idea that one’s personality is shaped by his or her desires, which are considered absolute

MetM 18

It (individualism) has led to a loss of a sense of solidarity with and responsibility for others

personalism opts for __ as opposed to mere conformity

authenticity

Freedom of choice that lacks noble goals or personal discipline, it degenerates into an?

inability to give oneself generously to others.

Spirituality of Communion

indicates above all the heart's contemplation of the mystery of the Trinity dwelling in us

EG 67

Evangelium Gaudium

Spirituality of communion that **communion which heals, promotes and reinforces interpersonal bonds**

Spirituality of Communion

an ability to think of our brothers and sisters in faith within the profound unity of the Mystical Body

Spirituality of Communion

also the ability to see what is positive in others

To make the __ the home and the school of communion

Church

Globalization

compresses time, space and consciousness of peoples from different parts of the world

ES no. 72

“The dialogue of salvation was opened spontaneously on the initiative of God: "He (God) loved us first;" it will be up to us to take the initiative in extending to men this same dialogue, without waiting to be summoned to it.”

dialogue

reciprocal communication

attitude of respect and friendship

In the praxis of mission in the contemporary times, __and _ are the desired dispositions.

openness , respect

Dialogue

recognized as part of the comprehensive evangelizing mission of the Church

Ad gentes 2

(AG 2)

“The pilgrim Church is missionary by her very nature, since it is from the mission of the Son and the mission of the Holy Spirit that she draws her origin, in accordance with the decree of God the Father.”

FAPA, P198

God the Father of all, has called all men to share in his life and love through his son Jesus Christ. The risen Christ and his Spirit are active in the world making this love a present and growing reality, making all things new. This same love urges us on to dialogue with people of other religions, because we have, especially since Second Vatican Council, an increasing awareness of the positive role of other religions in God’s plan of salvation.

In Asia mission and evangelization has to be through the **“triple dialogue”,** what are these dialogue?

1. culture
2. religion
3. poor

Push or pull factor:

work opportunity

pull factor

Push or pull factor:

poverty and of violence such as wars

push factor

The reality of mega-migration results to?

multiculturality

Culture in Latin

**colere**

inhabit, cultivate, protect, honor with worship

### Culture

Luzbetak 1970: 111

“Culture is **conceived as the way of life of a social group**, not of an individual as such. It is the way a society **copes** with its physical, social, and ideational environment. In other words, culture is a society’s **regularized or standardized design** for living.”

### Culture

Standaert p11

The **process by which culture is passed on** and and is learned is called **enculturation** which is “a very long process of growing into the culture to which he or she belongs”

Beliefs, experiences, principles, values and memories are shared as a result of?

common enculturation

### Culture

Standaert

Culture, therefore is a **particular group of people’s way of life.** “The ways or patterns of life, acquired by learning which characterize a human community.”

### Culture

Harris

**Culture is “a partially conscious and partially unconscious learning experience** whereby the older generation invited, induces, and compels the younger generation to adopt traditional ways of thinking and behaving. **Enculturation i**s primarily based on the control that the older generation exercises over the means of rewarding and punishing children.”

Culture can be discerned in various levels (Standaert)

1. **action**: clothing, or means of transport
2. **symbol:** myth, rites of passage at birth, puberty, marriage, birth, greeting each other
3. it is **always changing**
4. within a culture there can be several **subcultures**

Stanley Skreslet P97

“Ritual behaviors, religious institutions, and sacred texts all find their wherewithal in the bailiwick of culture.”

Ad gentes 11

(AG 11)

“In order that they may be able to bear more fruitful witness to Christ, let them be joined to those men by esteem and love; let them acknowledge themselves to be members of the group of men among whom they live; let them share in cultural and social life by the various undertakings and enterprises of human living; let them be familiar with their national and religious traditions; **let them gladly and reverently lay bare the seeds of the Word** which lie hidden among their fellows.”

world culture

refers to all those things which go to the refining and developing of man’s diverse mental and physical endowments

Culture is like a body, with religion as its __

soul

___ is the animating principle of culture

Religion

Redemptoris Missio 28

“The spirit sows the **“seeds of the word” p**resent in various customs and cultures, preparing them for full maturity in Christ.”

The theological foundation of inculturation is the

incarnation

T/F

Inculturation is not mere adaptation of a readymade Christianity into a given situation, but rather a creative embodiment of the Word in the local church

True

T/F

Inculturation is the discovery of the seeds of the Word which lie hidden in the given cultures and living traditions.

True

Shorter P 13

“Christianity is itself enriched upon entering new cultural phases and regions, acquiring surplus meaning in loyalty and conformity to its tradition”

Bishop Joseph Blomjous

It has been characterized as the period of ‘inculturation’, though the better term would be ‘interculturation’, in order to express that the process of inculturation must be lived in partnership and mutuality.

Agcaracar

“While multiculturality and cross culturality content themselves with the uniqueness of each culture, interculturality goes beyond by putting premium on what is common among people; thus it enhances mutual enrichment, appreciation, and collaboration that would create new synthesis.”

EN 63 Paul VI

“Evangelization loses much of its force and effectiveness if it does not take into consideration the actual people to whom it is addresses, if it does not use their language, their signs and symbols, if it does not answer the questions they ask, and if it does not have an impact on their concrete life.”

The Christian doctrine of creation maintains two truths…

1. that creation originates from God
2. that creation is nevertheless other than God

Religion

is the heart of a culture.

One of religion’s functions is to

address issues of meaning

T/F

Religion do not exist in the contemporary times

False

___ is important in crossing the bridge of differences between and among religions

Dialogue in Asia

Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Dialogue and Proclamation, no. 77.

“**Interreligious dialogue and proclamation, though not on the same level, are both authentic elements of the Church's evangelizing mission**. Both are legitimate and necessary. They are intimately related, but not interchangeable: true interreligious dialogue on the part of the Christian supposes the desire to make Jesus Christ better known, recognized and loved; proclaiming Jesus Christ is to be carried out in the Gospel spirit of dialogue. The two activities remain distinct but, as experience shows, one and the same local Church, one and the same person, can be diversely engaged in both.”

Religious pluralism

a philosophical perspective on the world that emphasizes diversity rather than homogeneity, multiplicity rather than unity, difference rather than sameness.

Vatican II, Nostra Aetate, no. 2.

The Catholic Church rejects nothing which is true and holy in these religions. She looks with sincere respect upon those ways of conduct and of life, those rules and teaching which, though differing in many particulars from what she holds and sets forth, nevertheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men. Indeed, she proclaims and must ever proclaim Christ, "the way, the truth, and the life" (Jn 14:6), in whom men find the fullness of religious life, and in whom God has reconciled all things to Himself.

Dialogue and Proclamation, 9.

* In the context of religious plurality, **dialogue means "all positive and constructive interreligious relations with individuals and communities** of other faiths which are directed at mutual understanding and enrichment", in obedience to truth and respect for freedom.


* It includes **both witness and the exploration of respective religious convictions.** It is in this third sense that the present document uses the term dialogue for one of the integral elements of the Church's evangelizing mission.

Lumen Gentium 16

Some there are who, living and dying in this world without God, are exposed to final despair. To promote the glory of God and procure the salvation of all of these, the Church, mindful of the command of the Lord: “Preach the Gospel to every creature,” fosters the missions with care and attention.

The dialogue of life

People strive to live their **life in harmony and peace** with their neighbors of other faith sharing with each other as friends their joys and sorrows, hopes and dreams.

The dialogue of action

When people of different faiths work together **to act and collaborate** for integral development and liberation of people.

The dialogue of theological exchange

Those who are specialists **deepen each other’s religious heritages**, and appreciate each other’s religious values