Aggie And Vinnie

The last few days has seen the Church celebrate the feasts of three of the martyrs of the Great Persecution - those who were killed under Diocletian. Sebastian, Agnes and Vincent of Saragossa - a Milanese, a Roman and a Spaniard, revealing how widespread that persecution was. Of course they also reveal the variety of people who chose to die rather than renounce Christ, people from various walks of life. Sebastian was a soldier,a man of the world; Agnes was a young girl from a noble and wealthy Roman family, from a generation usually cossetted and taken up with frivolities, Agnes was precocious in her faith and her commitment to Christ. Vincent, a deacon, spending his life, and himself, in the service of the Church. All three lived in the world, would have been happy to live their lives in the midst of the world; but those lives would have been immersed in Christ and the Gospel, and the world, and its secular powers, was threatened by that.  I have been thinking about Agnes and Vincent in the context of where we are now. 

Agnes chose the way of virginity: she is a virgin martyr dying as much for her virginity as her faith - indeed for her the two were so intimately connected they could not be separated. In other times she may have been a consecrated religious, but not necessarily - there are those who are called to live the virginal life in the midst of the world. Agnes refused to marry, her suitors, offended at being turned down, denounced her as a Christian to the authorities, she was arrested and interrogated. If she agreed to give up her virginity, give in to the sexual mores of Roman society, she would have been spared. She refused and she was killed.

Agnes's witness in terms of her virginity is twofold. While she did not demean marriage, she discerned it was not her calling. As a Christian she understood her relationship as being one of total gift to Christ, of virginal consecration. This witness is beautiful but also challenging, it reveals to all of us that our being disciples of Christ will require a commitment which will effect the way we live our lives - to be a real Christian we have to allow the Gospel soak into our flesh as well as our souls, minds and hearts, and that will have consequences for how we live our lives. Our lives, even the intimate aspects of our lives, may well have to change. 

Agnes's witness to virginity also reminds us of something else: sex is not everything. We live in a society that has idolized sex, so much so that there are many people, Christians among them, who cannot understand how anyone can live without having sex, usually on a regular basis. Attacks on priestly celibacy usually emerge from this opinion, not from any concern for individual priests and their lives. There is also a certain Gnosticism attached to sex: having sex regularly, seems in the views of some, to confer a singular wisdom, an insight into reality which is denied to the virginal, the celibate and the chaste. Hence as priests we often hear people tell us we know nothing about real life because we are not married or we are virgins. Even in the context of marriage sex is not everything - the commitment is deeper than that. If a marriage is based on sex alone, or it is the most important aspect of the marriage, that marriage might not last, one of the spouses may well begin to feel that they are nothing more than a slave for the desires of the other.

Agnes, however, teaches us otherwise. She was a confident, free and wise young woman. She was courageous and strong even though she was so young when she was killed. She teaches us that we need to rethink our attitude to sex - it is not the be all and the end all. Of course it is important, it is a gift of God, but must be approached in its proper context (marriage), aware of its proper ends and the powerful passions which attach to it. The desire for sex can become one which can overpower us, and I think we see that clearly in society as morals, laws and the very fabric society is now being dismantled to cater for sexual desire. Lust, if raised to the level of a master and a judge, quickly becomes a tyrant; when given free reign it will never be a servant and will eventually destroy. God gave us reason and virtue to help us control our passions, he gave us the Commandments and the Gospel to assist our reason and help us form our virtues, and we should take account of this. We must also remember that the greatest act of love the world has ever seen was not a physical act of intimacy between lovers but rather the sacrifice of the God-man on the cross. 

St Vincent's example is one of fortitude in the midst of tremendous suffering. Like Agnes he would not conform to the desires of his persecutors who wanted to wipe out his virtuous adherence to the Gospel by renouncing his faith. If only Vincent had conformed he would have had it all, they lamented. They tried persuasion, as they usually do: how happy and fulfilled he would be if he followed their way of life. Yet, they were not happy, they were ensnared in vice and greed. The faithful deacon said no, and so they inflicted pain: he will give in if we keep torturing him - we will wear him down, he will have no choice but to renounce his faith and then our consciences will be eased. But Vincent did not give in: it was not stubbornness, it was the grace and strength of God - Vincent's persecutors forgot that they were not just attacking a man, they were attacking God and he has ways and means to resist that attack. We are told in the account of his martyrdom that Vincent was serene in the midst of his sufferings - the Lord he loved was supporting him. And so he died, falling, not into the pit of his enemies, but into the arms of his Saviour.

In the coming months we in Ireland are going to face something of what Vincent faced. The ungodly fury of those who hate our Christian faith will be unleashed as they try to force us to endorse what we know to be wrong. First they will try to persuade, tell us that to be really Christian and kind we have to go along with them. If we resist that, they will turn on us, attack us, and who knows what after that. Vincent's example should inspire us to remain steadfast and serene. We cannot endorse what is wrong nor should we facilitate others in doing what is wrong. 

May these holy martyrs watch over us in these times, assist us their prayers, and come down from heaven to stand by our sides in the midst of tribulation.

For Your Reading

A group of theologians has produced a scholarly, theological and pastoral response to Cardinal Kasper's proposals with regard to admitting divorced and remarried Catholics to Communion. Published in the Nova et Vetera journal, the paper is well worth reading and well worth making people aware of it. In thirty pages it not only demolishes the Cardinal's proposals, but serves as an excellent catechesis on marriage. I am including a link to the article and urge you to read it.

What is clear from this piece is that the upcoming Synod cannot diverge from current practice, for to do so would ultimately be a rejection of Jesus' clear command.

Three things which resonated with me in the article.  First, that there is a crisis of chastity in the contemporary world. That is true. The theologians correctly point out that this crisis "plays no small part in the crisis of marriage and family life".  The thesis proposed by Cardinal Kasper seems to be one which appears to me, emerges out of a spirit of despair in response to this crisis of chastity. As the Cardinal himself said, we ordinary people are not called to be heroic, it may well be impossible for us in the opinions of some; could we also say that we ordinary people are not called to be chaste - it is impossible for us? That would be a problematic opinion one which denies many teachings of Christ, but most importantly seems to deny the efficacy of God's grace. The Church will need to address the crisis of chastity in the modern world.

Secondly, the theologians note: 

"The sexual revolution has caused millions of casualties. They have deep wounds, hard to heal. Challenging as this situation is, it also represents an important apostolic opportunity for the Church. Human beings frequently have an awareness of their failings and even their guilt, but not of the remedy offered by the grace and mercy of Christ. Only the Gospel can truly fulfill the desires of the human heart and heal the deepest wounds present in our culture today."

They are correct here. We will never heal the wounds inflicted by the sexual revolution by jettisoning Christ's and the Church's teaching on human sexuality to adopt a more permissive, relativistic approach. That would simply be pouring petrol on a fire. The Church is meant to be prophetic in the world and here is her ideal opportunity. The fact that being prophetic in regard to human sexuality at this time will be extremely difficult, should not put pastors and people off. No one ever said it was easy to be a Christian, no one ever said it would not be difficult to do the right thing. But we have to, no only for Christ's sake and the sake of the Church, but the sake of those who are victims of the sexual revolution.

Finally, a point I have been making for some time, the theologians advise that "ministers of the [marriage] tribunal need sufficient time to dedicate themselves to the cases assigned to them and should not be overburdened with other time-consuming tasks". And: "Tribunals need to be adequately staffed and supported so that cases can be treated with dispatch while following sound canonical norms and procedures. Those assigned to tribunals need sufficient time to carry out their duties and should not be saddled with other time-consuming charges." 

Too often in dioceses and episcopal conferences marriage tribunals do not get the staff or resources they need to do their work efficiently and quickly. I know priests who do Trojan work in tribunals, but they are juggling that work with parish assignments and other jobs passed down from chanceries. In my view that is unacceptable, and the theologians seem to agree with me there. The work of the tribunal is an important pastoral work and deserves to be treated as such. Too many people are waiting too long for decisions from tribunals which can often be held up because those working in them can only deal with their cases for a day or two a week. No doubt someone will quote me priest shortage and finance: well I can see other projects which do not suffer from such a lack. The tribunal must be near the top of a diocese or province's priorities.

La Beata!

 

Ah, Blessed Cecilia!  I love this feast day.  My mind and heart go to the Church in Trastevere, just south of the Vatican, where the sacred remains of the Virgin Martyr lie in peace beneath Moderno's magnificent statue.  There her sarcophagus lies with that of her husband and his brother, all witnesses to Christ through the shedding of their blood.

 

In the Fraternity of St Genesius, St Cecilia is invoked as one of the Holy Intercessors - Saints and Blesseds who are patrons of the various arts. Cecilia is patron of music, not because she was musician but because of a line in the story of her life and martyrdom that during her marriage ceremony she sang a song of love to God.  An interesting way of becoming patron, but one which reminds us that artistic activity is, and should be, ultimately, an act of praising God.  Cecilia will certainly assist us in that regard.

 

But Cecilia is also one of the great women of the early Church who preferred to die rather than renounce her faith in Christ.  As a strong woman of faith who embraced a life of virginity and consecration even though she was forced into marriage.  Instead of abandoning that promise to Christ she won her new husband over to her way of thinking and then over to her faith.  She remained a virgin even though married: in this she is certainly a challenging figure for us in a time which cannot understand chastity, much less perpetual virginity.

 

So today we might say a prayer to St Cecilia for all our musicians, but perhaps more for those struggling with chastity: in this present age they need strong examples to encourage them.

 

The tomb of St Cecilia: in the Basilica, the famous statue by Moderno lies over it.  Below, in the crypt, her sarcophagus is to be seen just above the altar, behind the grille: