Issue: #010714
July 1, 2014
ST. IGNATIUS WEBPAGE
 

 You can view or read last Sunday's Homily by clicking on links below: 






TRUTH SERUM
 
As this is the Fourth of July week, this issue of Truth Serum talks about "How Catholics Became Americans - And What it Cost".




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POOR BOX COLLECTION

Each weekend St. Ignatius specifies a Poor Box collection for a needful cause. This week we are supporting Jesuit Refugee Service
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Weekly updates on Christian persecution around the globe. Keep a prayerful watch on what is happening with your brothers and sisters!











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Alexandre de Rhodes, S.J. (1591-1660) was a French Jesuit missionary and lexicographer who had a lasting impact on Christianity in Vietnam.
 
 
 
THE CHURCH OF VIETNAM---A JESUIT CONNECTION

 

 

 

My Dear Sisters and Brothers:

 

In last Friday's mail came the summer issue of Studies in the Spirituality of Jesuits, a monograph published three times a year on some topic pertaining to the spiritual charism and practice of Jesuits, especially American Jesuits. It is published by a Seminar of nine Jesuits from across the USA who are engaged in university, parish and spirituality ministries.

 

The title of the present issue is Composing a Sacred Space: A Lesson from the Cathechismus of Alexandre de Rhodes written by Father Hung T. Pham, SJ, Associate Professor at the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University in California and a native of Vietnam who holds a doctorate from the Comillas Pontifical University in Madrid, Spain.

 

Having spent two summers (2006 and 2007) teaching English composition to groups of young Vietnamese Jesuits in Ho Chi Min City (Old Saigon), I immediately focused on the name Alexandre de Rhodes, a very important figure in the history of that country.  Born in Avignon, France, in 1591 into a family of Jewish descent, Father de Rhodes entered the Society of Jesus in 1612 in the city of Rome where he studied for the priesthood at the Jesuit Roman College, a school well known at the time as one of the most famous scientific institutions in Europe. The college was also a place where young Jesuits were inspired to volunteer for the great mission centers of Japan, China, India, and North and South America.

 

De Rhodes sought on several occasions to be sent to Japan where the Jesuits already had 116 men (one bishop, 63 priests and 52 brothers) who were running two colleges, two houses of special ministry and 24 residences. After the Edict of Christian Expulsion of 1614, only 27 Jesuits remained behind in hiding in Japan. After De Rhodes' repeated requests to be sent to Japan, the Jesuit General gave his approval. However, de Rhodes spent his first years of missionary work in India while waiting for the severe persecutions in Japan to subside. With no change in the oppression of Christians in that country, De Rhodes was sent in 1619 to the relatively new mission territory of Cochinchina (modern day Vietnam).

 

Gradually, he mastered the language to such a degree that eventually, as a lexicographer, he was able to write the first definitive dictionary for the Vietnamese language which was published in Rome in 1651 under the title, Vietnamese-Portugese-Latin Dictionary.  Equally important, he developed a catechetical approach to the introduction of Christianity to the Vietnamese people who generally adhered to one of the predominant religions in that country: Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism.

 

Aware that it was of paramount importance to form native catechists to carry on the teaching of the Christian faith in the absence of the Jesuit missionaries who faced the threat of persecution and expulsion, de Rhodes and his fellow Jesuits  devised a methodology for instruction in the faith based on the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius. De Rhodes composed a manual titled Catechismus for lay catechists to use both in teaching others but also for their own on-going training and formation in the Christian faith.

 

Briefly, the  Catechismus, as reported by Father Pham in STUDIES, was written to assist Vietnamese interested in the Catholic Faith to transition from their own familiar culture of reverencing and honoring their gods through gestures and rituals of kneeling, prostrating and pressing their faces to the ground to the new found faith in Christ and his Gospel by the use of similar rites and rituals dedicated to the Divine Lord of Creation. De Rhodes established a methodology and a setting, a sacred space, for reverence and familiarity with the Lord of Creation and his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. In that sacred space the Vietnamese were able to find comfort in and attraction to the new religion of Christianity. In such a sacred space a Vietnamese convert to Roman Catholicism could discover meaning and coherence with his own nation's native religions.  

 

What de Rhodes had done in his Catechismus was to inculturate and adapt the Gospel to the cultural reality and experience of the Vietnamese people. His work was in the same league as the famous Italian Jesuit, Matteo Ricci, who had developed a dramatic new approach to introducing Catholicism and the Gospel, "outfitted in Oriental garb," to potential converts who were steeped in their own culture of China. This remarkable approach of inculturation of the Catholic Faith by Ricci was called the famous "Chinese Rites." In terms of his catechetical work, De Rhodes did much of the same in Vietnam.

 

Because of his "sacred space" methodology in which a potential Vietnam convert was made to feel and recognize ritually the rich similarities between the Christian religion and his nation's native religions, de Rhodes had opened a pathway to welcome Vietnamese into the Catholic Church. Thus, he became very influential in the growth of Catholicism in Vietnam. Because of his preliminary work of evangelization some 400 years ago, Vietnam, a country of nearly 90,000,000 people, counts almost 10% of its population as Catholic in 2014.

 

A very happy footnote to the Catholic Church in Vietnam is the return of the Jesuits in the 1950s after being absent for several centuries. Still small in number, they are growing rapidly. During my two tours of teaching there, I found that the Jesuits numbered more than 100. In the seminary where I taught there were almost 50 young Jesuits and another 28 Jesuit novices nearby in their house of studies. What really amazed me was the 150 young men in the universities of Ho Chi Min City who were applying for entrance to the Society of Jesus. God is blessing this young group of Jesuits in an abundant way. Father Alexandre de Rhodes would be deeply pleased to see the contemporary results of his ministry.

 
Gratefully,

 

           
From Smithsonian Magazine

Philadelphia's Bible Riots of 1844 reflected a strain of anti-Catholic bias and hostility that coursed through 19th-century America. (Granger Collection, New York)

 

America's True History of Religious Tolerance

The idea that the United States has always been a bastion of religious freedom is reassuring-and utterly at odds with the historical record

By Kenneth C. Davis


Wading into the controversy surrounding an Islamic center planned for a site near New York City's Ground Zero memorial this past August, President Obama declared: "This is America. And our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakeable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country and that they will not be treated differently by their government is essential to who we are." In doing so, he paid homage to a vision that politicians and preachers have extolled for more than two centuries-that America historically has been a place of religious tolerance. It was a sentiment George Washington voiced shortly after taking the oath of office just a few blocks from Ground Zero.

 

But is it so?

 

In the storybook version most of us learned in school, the Pilgrims came to America aboard the Mayflower in search of religious freedom in 1620. The Puritans soon followed, for the same reason. Ever since these religious dissidents arrived at their shining "city upon a hill," as their governor John Winthrop called it, millions from around the world have done the same, coming to an America where they found a welcome melting pot in which everyone was free to practice his or her own faith.

The problem is that this tidy narrative is an American myth. The real story of religion in America's past is an often awkward, frequently embarrassing and occasionally bloody tale that most civics books and high-school texts either paper over or shunt to the side. And much of the recent conversation about America's ideal of religious freedom has paid lip service to this comforting tableau. - MORE 

The Story Behind the Hymn

He Leadeth Me
 
At the 10:30 Mass on Sunday we were treated to a wonderful rendition of the Hymn "He Leadeth Me" - by Joseph Gilmore. 
 

On April 29th, 1834, Joseph Gilmore was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was the governor of New Hampshire. Joseph received his education at the Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. His higher learning was received at Brown University and Newton Theological Seminary. He had the knowledge and speaking ability to become a politician, but God called him into the ministry. After his ordination, he worked as his father's secretary for a while.

 

In 1862 he was a guest speaker at the First Baptist Church of Philadelphia. That Wednesday night he spoke on Psalm 23, majoring on the phrase, "He leadeth me beside the still waters." Because the Civil War was going on, this subject was dear to the hearts of many people, including his own.

 

After the service, he and his wife went to the home of Deacon Watson, who lived next to the church. They talked for many hours about the message that night and the subject of the leadership of God. As they talked he took out a pen and paper and began to write. Before the night was over, he had written all the verses of this song. He handed them to his wife and promptly forgot about them.

 

Three years passed. One night he had a speaking engagement at the Second Baptist Church of Rochester, New York, to candidate for a possible pastorate there. Their hymnal was one that was foreign to him, so upon entering the auditorium, he picked it up to see what kind of songs were in it. To his astonishment, the first song his eyes fell on was his own, written in the home of Deacon Watson. Unbeknownst to him, his wife had sent it to "The Watchman and Reflector," a paper published in Boston. William Bradbury had set the words to music and put them in a hymnal.

 

In 1926, the church and Deacon Watson's home were torn down, and an office building for the United Gas Improvement Company was put in its place. On the front of the building is a bronze tablet paying tribute to Joseph Gilmore. The inscription begins with the first stanza of Joseph Gilmore's song:

 

He leadeth me! O blessed thought!

O words with heavenly comfort fraught!

What e're I do, where e're I be,

Still 'tis God's hand that leadeth me.

 

As an encore to the truths of the hymn we enjoyed by our choir on Sunday, we present an acapella version of "He Leadeth Me".

 

He Leadeth Me
He Leadeth Me

Events in the Upcoming Week

31 Days with St. Ignatius 
- July 1 through July 31
 

On Tuesday, July 1, the fifth annual 31 Days with St. Ignatius will begin. This month-long celebration of Ignatian spirituality leads up to the feast day of its namesake on July 31. There will be Ignatian articles, videos, and prayers for you to be inspired daily. There will also be some guest bloggers during July, addressing where they experienced God in unexpected places or situations. All are welcome to join in the celebration by adding your own thoughts in the comments to the posts. 

 

Go to http://www.ignatianspirituality.com to subscribe to dotMagis and receive the daily links.

Parking Change

   
We have received notification that the parking lot behind the SHA 707 building, which has been available to us for parking during Mass, will be closed for the next year while construction is being done.
 
You should be able to find a parking place on the streets around St. Ignatius Church, or there is parking for a fee in the garage located at the corner of Calvert and Monument Street.s

Upcoming Events to Mark on Your Calendar 

All Church "Get Away Weekend" and Parish Picnic 

- Friday, July 11 through Sunday, July 13

 

The parish's Sixth Annual Picnic will be held on Saturday, July 12 at the Bellarmine Retreat Center by the Appalachian Trail in the beautiful mountains of Blue Ridge Summit, PA.

 

In addition to a scrumptious lunch, a swimming pool and other outdoor activities are available as well as raffle baskets for adults (wine) and children (games, etc.) Tickets for the picnic are on sale in the Narthex or Reeves Gallery after every weekend Mass. Ticket prices: Individual $15; Couple - $20; Family (2 adults and children, ages 5 -18) - $25. Be sure to buy your tickets before the day of the picnic. There will be an additional $5 charge for tickets that are  purchased at the picnic. Once again, parishioners are asked to bring a dessert to share.

 

Camping and in - house accommodations on Friday and Saturday night are also available. The prices per night are as follows: For the houses: $20 for adults and $10 for children (over 12 years of age); in tents: $10 per tent, regardless of the number of people staying.

 

The picnic committee is looking for volunteers to help on the day of the picnic. If you are interested, please email Kathleen TaltyTo view last year's event, click here.

 

 

Young Adult Parish Picnic/Retreat

- Friday, July 11 and Saturday, July 12

 

 

On July 11th-12th we will have a retreat for our Young Adults in conjunction with our annual Parish Picnic. Bring your swimming gear, a bible and a tent to make for a fun and prayerful weekend. Carpool will be available from St. Ignatius to Blue Ridge Summit, PA.

Please email John Odean or call 410.727.3848 to sign up or for additional details.

 

Orioles vs. Mariners Fundraiser Game for Baltimore Catholic Schools

- Friday, August 1

 

The Young Partners in Excellence (YPIE) is hosting a game night at Camden Yards for the Orioles vs. Mariners game on Friday August 1st at 7:05 PM. Tickets are $10 with a portion of the proceeds going towards one of the four Catholic schools in Baltimore City that YPIE supports. For more information on how to purchase tickets, please visit them on Facebook or email Bridget KurowskiBy way of background, YPIE is a start-up social and service group for young professionals who live and work in the Baltimore area. They are the young professional arm of Partners in Excellence (PIE), which provides tuition assistance to disadvantaged youth wishing to attend a Baltimore City Catholic school. 

Here's Something Worth Paying Attention To...

In several cities around the country a groundswell movement is afoot. It's called "Mass Mob" - and it's filling some Catholic Churches. We thought it might be worth following! We include links from various Mass Mob experiences.




In the Media

 

  

  

 

Secularism and Social Media

Advancing religious freedom and democratic governance in troubled times

 

by   Douglas W. Kmiec

  

 

We live in dangerous times. The assault of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria on Baghdad, as well as other sectarian violence, challenge the very essence of the human person. No longer is this merely a clash of civilizations, but a struggle for the preservation of human life. Since religion or religious belief is often viewed as the origin of the hatred and bloodletting, it is not surprising that religion is treated as a toxic substance incompatible with peace or the human good, and thus off-limits.

 

Yet it was just a few years ago, in 2009, that President Barack Obama went to Egypt and pleaded for a greater mutual understanding among the Abrahamic faiths that could lead to greater mutual respect. In that same arc of time, the president proposed to launch an interfaith initiative on various fronts, including the efforts of his faith-based office in the White House, a specialized international investor devoted solely to interfaith understanding, and various members of the diplomatic community. This last front included me. I was dispatched to the Republic of Malta with a portfolio shaped by what Joshua DuBois, the key presidential adviser in these matters, called the "special presidential logic" sensitive to interfaith understanding in each country it was thought warranted. One such place was Malta, long understood as a place of uncommon kindness and welcome the Catholic faith because of the serendipity or providence of St. Paul's shipwreck upon the island, related in the Acts of the Apostles (27:6-44). Malta represented the pivot point for the Abrahamic religions: Christianity to the north; Islam to the south and the Judaic tradition in the Middle East. What happened to the president's initiative is a sorry tale of bureaucratic drag and insubordination.  

 

The brilliant idea to equip a few carefully placed embassy officers with specialized religious knowledge in those places where religious interaction had occasioned violence or deep discord disappeared like party platforms after a national convention.  - READ MORE

 


Jesuit Post

The Smallest Voices First

 

Loving the Broken, or How the Church Becomes Real



CNN

Obama to Take Executive Action on Immigration

 



Sojourners Magazine
 
America 

Human Trafficking World Update


Los Angeles Times
NPR

Obama To Request $2 Billion To Deal With Border Issue

 

   

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