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This coming August 3 will mark the golden anniversary of Flannery O’Connor’s “Passover,” to adopt the biblical image John Paul II used to describe the Christian journey through death to eternal life.
In the 50 years since lupus erythematosus claimed her at age 39, O’Connor’s literary genius has been widely celebrated.
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It’s Easter time, and that means that the mainstream media and publishing houses can be counted upon to issue debunking attacks on orthodox Christianity.
The best-publicized of these is Bart Ehrman’s book, How Jesus Became God. Once a devout Bible-believing evangelical Christian, trained at Wheaton College, the alma mater of Billy Graham, Ehrman “saw the light” and became an agnostic scholar and is on a mission to undermine the fundamental assumptions of Christianity.
In this most recent tome, Ehrman lays out what is actually a very old thesis, going back at least to the 18th century and repeated ad nauseam in skeptical circles ever since, namely, that Jesus was a simple itinerant preacher who never claimed to be divine and whose “resurrection” was in fact an invention of his disciples who experienced hallucinations of their master after his death.
Ehrman, like so many of his skeptical colleagues across the centuries, presents this thesis as though he has made a brilliant discovery. But basically, it’s the same old story.
Throughout my life I have many times been reminded of Sister Gregory, my favorite teacher’s comment that God has a sense of humor.
Sunday, April 6, was a day of celebration. The Latin American Mission Program (LAMP) celebrated 50 years of work and bringing people closer to God with a Mass and dinner at the Bishop O’Connor Center in Madison.
BARABOO — Join Catholic women from the diocese to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Madison Diocesan Council of Catholic Women (MDCCW) and “Find Grace through Faith, Trust, & Patience” at the annual MDCCW convention.
The Sauk Vicariate will host this event, beginning the afternoon of Tuesday, May 20, and continuing the next day at the Clarion Hotel & Convention Center, 626 Hwy. 12, Baraboo.
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| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear Friends,
It is always strange to prepare a column for this issue of the Catholic Herald.
As I write, it is Monday and we’ve just entered into Holy Week. When this issue arrives at your homes, it will most likely be Holy Thursday, and yet this will also serve as the “Easter issue.”
We’ve just experienced Palm Sunday, when we rejoiced and sang “Hosanna!” as Jesus rode triumphantly into Jerusalem.
So should I reflect upon those moments of worldly glory? Should I rejoice with all the gusto of Easter, knowing that you may read this in the glow of those days? Or, should I consider the darkness of Christ’s passion and death, bearing in mind that you may read this column on Holy Thursday or Good Friday?
Of course it wouldn’t be the end of the world to do any of this, and the point is not really the tension of writing this column.
I reflect upon it though, because it’s actually the tension in which we live day-in and day-out.
For us, Christ’s life, His passion, His death, and His raising to new life all are present at once.
BARABOO — The staff and volunteers of Durward’s Glen invite the public to join them at the “Gala for The Glen” event from 6 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, May 3, at the Baraboo Arts Banquet Hall.
This year’s event will be bigger and better than ever, with fine food and wine, dancing to the Big Band sounds of the Hal Edwards Orchestra, door prizes, and a silent auction.
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Seeing Easter through children’s eyes can open windows of wonder and love that we busy adults sometimes keep closed.
A mother experienced this when she overheard Danny, her five-year-old son, talk with his friend Jeremy whose father recently died.
“Where did your dad go when he died?” asked Danny.
“My mom said that he went to Heaven,” replied Jeremy.
“What’s Heaven?” asked Danny.
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By prayerfully meditating before a crucifix, one can see and begin to understand, the ultimate result of sin.
The Romans’ sins, the Jews’ sins, our sins nailed our Lord Jesus to the cross. The cost of sin is death. Our sins killed the Son of God. Our sins crucified our loving Lord. And our sins continue his suffering passion.
MONONA — “It’s basically goodness starting within myself and flowing out to others,” Dr. Robert D. Enright said as he explained forgiveness.
“When we have been treated unfairly by others and choose to forgive, we do two things: we get rid of something negative and then we try to offer the one who hurt us some kind of moral goodness, whether it’s respect, generosity, kindness, or even some kind of moral love.”
