Skip to main content



Fratelli Tutti calls world to live Gospel values


Crape Myrtle bloom in Motherhouse gardens in spring.


In his recent encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, "On the Fraternity and Social Friendship," Pope Francis calls the world to meet the challenges of Gospel charity. Using the parable of the Good Samaritan and many other sources, he urges us to a change of heart, attitudes and lifestyles. 

Reading this during the COVID-19 pandemic and a presidential election year in our country, it was easy to see how the world would be a much better place if we tried to live as the Holy Father suggests.
In Chapter Six of the encyclical, "Dialogue and Friendship in Society," the pope brings out the need for dialogue, which he defines as "approaching, speaking, listening, looking at, coming to know and understand one another, and to find common ground." This kind of dialogue is not accomplished through social media.

At the end of Chapter Six is a section entitled "Recovering Kindness." It starts with the following statement:

Consumerist individualism has led to great injustice. Other persons come to be viewed simply as obstacles to our own serene existence; we end up treating them as annoyances and we become increasingly aggressive. This is even more the case in times of crisis, catastrophe and hardship, when we are tempted to think in terms of the old saying, "every man for himself." Yet even then, we can choose to cultivate kindness. Those who do so become stars shining in the midst of darkness.



Lantana blooms in backyard of Motherhouse. 

The Holy Father cites St. Paul (Gal. 5:22) who describes kindness as a fruit of the Holy Spirit. The Greek word Paul uses is chrestotes,  an attitude that is gentle, pleasant and supportive, not rude and coarse. Pope Francis says kindness ought to be cultivated.

    Precisely because it entails esteem and respect for others, once kindness becomes a culture within society it transforms lifestyles, relationships and the ways ideas are discussed and compared. Kindness facilitates the quest for consensus; it opens new paths where hostility and conflict would burn all bridges.

With the pandemic still infecting thousands, with a deeply divided country as shown by the results of the presidential election, with many out of work and at risk of being evicted, with school systems and health care systems struggling to cope with the realities of the pandemic, we could use respect and kindness towards others being cultivated amid the seeds of uncertainty.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving this month, maybe in a different way than we usually do, let us give thanks for all the many blessings in our life and pray that we all become better at cultivating kindness towards each other.

Maxim 64 of Father Jean-Pierre Medaille, the Jesuit founder of the Sisters of St. Joseph in 17th century France, says "Strive to be kind always to everyone and unkind to no one."

Happy Thanksgiving!




Angel Trumpet plant bloom in Motherhouse gardens. 







 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

October 2018 Do you like to look at old photos? Most of us do, even though the quality of the photos may have faded over time. Here I am at about age 11 or 12 standing with my Mother and my sister Barbara's mother-in-law, Mrs. Leila Ponce, in Mrs. Ponce's front yard in north Jacksonville. My Mother, Grace Stovall, is holding my first nephew and her first grandson, Patrick Ponce, in her arms following his baptism, I believe. This was around 1960 or 1961. See the old cars behind us? My nephew had to find a copy of his baptismal certificate recently because he plans to get married in April in a Catholic church up in North Carolina. He was baptized in our home parish, Holy Rosary, in Jacksonville. At this time I was a student at Holy Rosary School. My parents allowed me to go there after it opened, which for me was when I was entering fourth grade. My first teacher in Catholic school was Sister Philip Neri, an Irish Sister of St. Joseph who died tragically in an automobile cr...
2 comments
Read more
Springbank Retreat, Kingstree, S.C . Spring Sabbatical in South Carolina during COVID-19  There are some events in one's life that you will never forget. For me, one was hearing of President John F. Kennedy's assassination in Dallas, Texas, when I was a student at Bishop Kenny High School in Jacksonville, Florida. Another was hearing of the bombing of the World Trade Centers when I was driving to Stuart, Florida from Palm Beach Gardens.  This spring I heard of the COVID-19 pandemic in our country while I was on a two-month sabbatical at Springbank Retreat in Kingstree, South Carolina, from late February to late April. The stay-at-home orders actually came while I was with my nephew Patrick and his wife Mina touring Charleston, South Carolina. We were able to do our tours of the historic district on a Saturday in March, but the Sunday tours were cancelled.  One of many lovely houses in Charleston, SC The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic has changed dai...
Post a Comment
Read more
 Pandemic and Presence  The Catholic Health Association graphic of a woman wearing a mask (above) to demonstrate her love of her neighbors during the Covid-19 pandemic is one of the best visuals I have to symbolize what self-sacrificing love looks like right now in our world. I do not know one person who enjoys wearing a mask, especially here in Florida with our heat and humidity.  Another way to demonstrate self-sacrificing love now is staying home and avoiding risky behaviors such as optional traveling and being in crowded groups of people where others may not be wearing masks and social distancing is difficult.  As Sisters of St. Joseph who have been seized by God's love, we work in collaboration with others to bring union and reconciliation to our world "that  all may be one." (John 17;21) Looking back at all the tragic events of 2020 and even recently in our own country, the need for this mission and charism of healing and reconciliation and unity is greate...
Post a Comment
Read more