More of an Idiot: On Wealth and Poverty, St. John Chrysostom

More of an Idiot: On Wealth and Poverty, St. John Chrysostom: "Yes, I have been reading lately, I promise. I just haven't been blogging... about anything.

This short little book, which I finished weeks ago, contains a collection of sermons given by St. John Chrysostom when he was Archbishop of Constantinople. They focus on the parable of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16: 19-31). Despite the fact that he was preaching to people who enjoyed their wealth (or perhaps because he was), he emphasized, in various ways, the virtues of giving up material wealth and the blessedness of the poor in heaven. He points out eloquently that our material goods came from God and belong to Him, to be used among His children, and therefore one who possesses a superabundance is stealing from the poor. He also explores idea of how God punishes and rewards people in the afterlife according to their actions (not wealth) here."

New Forest Earth

I recently had the pleasure of meeting the young man who started this non-profit : http://newforestearth.org/. He works with communities in rain-forests to develop sustainable businesses. Which is to say, businesses that sustain the community and the rain-forest at the same time. I made that last bit italics, because I get so excited every time I say it and I wanted that to come out in the font. Too often in our society we place two good objectives in opposition to each other, and New Forest Earth refuses to do that. I know it is a small scale, but it brings me so much joy to find people who promote the environment and people's livelihoods and don't see the two in mutual opposition, even in an immediate sense. Maybe I just spend too much time with political extremists.

Also contributing to my enjoyment of New Forest Earth : the products. Jewelry, chocolate, and journals. What else do I need in life? (At least in a material sense.)

And Again

It's official -- I am a student once more! I have received my first course-in-the-mail, Principles of Biblical Study, I. The "I" means a focus on "Part I" of the Bible, the Old Testament. I haven't gotten to the part where we actually delve into specific books yet : we're talking about how we as Catholics view and read Scripture. For the most part, the material is stuff I've picked up on the way, just never really learned before. It's cool to see it all officially put together.

On the other hand, I am learning some new things. Example : I have a hard time listening to lectures when I have no visual cues. And that swirly flower on Windows Media Player just doesn't cut it. I'm taking many more notes than I usually would because I am afraid I won't remember otherwise. And also, I would end up on Facebook or watching dog-walkers outside or something similarly useful.

My textbooks include the Bible and the Catechism and only one other book. Which makes me very excited for the learning about to take place.

The World Will Come to Walshingham

Friday and Saturday, my world became... GALA. My readers who know CCM recognize the occasion; for others, it is the annual event when people pay CCM money to come to an event and spend money. Which is to say, it is a black-tie affair with a catered dinner and a live and silent auction, as well as a raffle and some fun entertainment. Students put on the Gala, with the help of an adult committee, and serve at the occasion, but, like a true fundraiser, it targets outside of our community. At least, outside of our community in the normal sense. In a way, it expands our community and shows both students and supporters just how large our ministry is.

This particular year marks our 5th Annual Gala. That means that I remember our first Gala; I was one of the bright-eyed and confused student volunteers who smiled at the rich people who came to support us. By now, we have many more guests, including a solid group of alumni. So I still spent a good bit of the evening smiling confusedly at people as I tried to make small talk. I found I am much better at making sure people and things are where and when they need to be than I am at making small talk. Just in case I didn't already know that.

Miriam and Brigit have been working literally since September (and really before that) to prepare for this. All week they had been champs, working crazy hours to put the final touches on so many parts and pieces. Friday, Brigit was running all over town doing final pick-up and arrangements, and Miriam had charge of an army of students, transforming a gymnasium/auditorium into a classy setting for our guests. I love seeing the room transform from a basketball court into a fancy dining room lined by tables of pretty things. It felt so magical by the end. Best of all, we finished considerably earlier that evening than we'd done in past years!

Saturday morning, Miriam and I picked up a few odds and ends and hung out with an alumnus working the light and sound for us. Saturday evening was showtime!

It's just amazing to walk into a room and see thirty people whom you normally see in jeans and sweats, now dressed to the nines. CCMers clean up nicely indeed. And then Wendy was there, along with the two girls we roomed with senior year, Connor, and a few other wonderful alumni. I alternated between official duties and hanging out with dearly beloved and much missed friends. Marie (yes, the same one who was in Hurley with me) was acting field-marshal of student volunteers, so I knew they were in good hands.

One of my favorite moments of the night came at the very end. Brigit and I had worked hard at creating table placements to keep all our guests happy. I saw one women leaving with her table's placard -- and each guest had signed by his or her name! It was a beautiful, tangible result of our efforts.

And now, I am left with the residue of the evening. We packed up and moved out that evening, but my office is still littered with the odds and ends of the evening, including left over red velvet cake. (Yes, that is a hint to come visit.)

I Go Back

On Sunday, CCM's Contemporary Christian group gave their annual performance. Ever since I discovered that this group existed, I've been eagerly awaiting this day. So despite the fact that it occurred at the end of my two weeks of crazy after a Mass for which I could barely stay awake, I hopped over after Mass.

A little known fact about me : I am a sucker for anyone who can make music, probably because I am so unmusical myself. It's like parallel parking -- I'm amazed every time it happens. And when people who are good at being musical are making music that is praising God, I basically get a little piece of heaven if I can sit in a corner and listen. Actually, I sat in the front, not a corner and sang (very softly so as not to bother the CCMers next to me) love songs to my God.

I also realized that night just how much Christian music has become a part of my life. Not just that I know the songs and can sing along to at least half of them, but the strong connection they have with other parts of my life. I went on a musical tour of the past five years of my life. Some of the more powerful examples:

One of the first songs they performed was "Indescribable." This song first entered my life during a retreat my sophomore year of college and reappeared annually as I served the retreat in various forms.

"Free to Be Me." When they started this song, I was transported to the Shnuck's parking lot in University City, St. Louis, sitting in our blue Toyota on a sunny evening making a grocery run after school. It was the first time I heard the words to this song, and they resonated : I too could not see God's plans for my life and was (and am) clumsy and incomplete when I act on my own and try to be perfect.

More recently, I have heard the song "Alive Again." I associate it with both the Encounters I teamed this year. Also, it has the wonderful line from Augustine, "Late have I loved you," which brought me back to buying and reading Confessions last year.

Finally, most powerfully, "Mighty to Save." My YouthWorks summer, we sang this song to death, and at the end I thought I would never be able to hear it again without cringing. Which was a shame, because I liked the song a lot at the beginning of the summer. I discovered that now at last I like it again. As soon as the chords started, I was sitting next to an overhead on the floor, our club "mood lighting" switched on, surrounded by a group of middle and high school kids. And somehow, those kids and the people we served in Carthage became connected to my kids and coworkers and Six Pack from last year, who are connected to my ministry this year.

I discovered on Sunday how to bilocate. Because even as I traveled back in time to different places of my life, the beauty of the right-now remained. Our incoming VP, smiling like an angel as she sings; our future music minister, praising God in song; our current music minister, holding the show together; the rest of the group, making music. And the crucifix and tabernacle, just to the side, reminding us all of the ultimate Beauty.

The Two Weeks of Crazy End!

I can't believe that it has been a full two weeks since I posted last. I have, on occasion during these weeks, thought about what I would/should write... but the sweep of life overwhelmed me continuously. The last Monday that I posted, I had a brief meeting with Marianne to discuss our discernment process, which I would be leading, since she would be on the Encounter retreat that Sunday, when we would be discerning. Instead, I found out that her knee, which has been giving her trouble all year, was bad again. So I was going on Encounter on Thursday!

In addition, that week started crunch time for our annual benefit Gala, which came to fruition this past Saturday. I had three days to prep for the retreat in the midst of the Gala chaos, four days of Encounter, and then constant Gala prep for five days. Thus, no blogging. I dropped out of pretty much every part of life except for CCM. These past 24ish hours, I've enjoyed finding life again!

I'll tack a bit about Encounter onto this post. Like the February Encounter, it was mostly other people's stories, so I won't dwell on it. We had three CCMers from the College and drove up with three students from a school down the road, so we had a full car. Over 40 people registered -- the largest Encounter we've had for years. The team was sharp and on top of things, the participants were a joy, and the campus ministers, as always, full of fun and wisdom. We had snow Saturday night, a surprise and beautiful, if slightly worrisome. I brought home a car-full of tired, excited students, on fire from the weekend, who made the four hour car trip a blast. Plus, as with the Hurley trip, I had an excellent DJ and a car that liked to sing.