The Culture of Faith

“Evangelization loses much of its force and effectiveness if it does not take into consideration the actual people to whom it is addressed, if it does not use their language, their signs and symbols, if it does not answer the questions they ask, and if it does not have an impact on their concrete life.”

-Pope St. Paul VI, 1975

Throughout this Advent, my family and I have spent time learning more about the saints whose feasts we celebrate therein. From St. Nicholas, to St. Ambrose, to the Immaculate Conception, to San Juan Diego, to Our Lady of Guadalupe, to St. Lucy, to St. John of the Cross, we have had amble time to (even during this abbreviated liturgical season) to dig into and pray with these holy women and men. 

While I have greatly appreciated the opportunity to know more about each of these various saints, my takeaways from feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe continue to stir my soul. 

I knew the story about Our Lady appearing to Juan Diego. I had heard, many times, about the roses and the image that appeared on his tilma and the bishop's disbelief and the subsequent conversion of more than 9 million people within ten years of this apparition. I had even heard that Mother Mary appeared to Juan Diego as a woman indigenous to the area. 

All of this is amazing and repeating the sounding joy of these facts reinforced my love for and devotion to Jesus's Mother and my Catholic faith. 

This year, however, the Lord blessed me with new knowledge. 

Well, more specifically, this year's feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe filled me with a greater sense of mystery. It provided me with an even deeper understanding of just how creative and wild and awe-inspiring and wonderfully wonder-filling our God is. 

I won't list out all of the ways in which God masterfully blended Mater Dei (the Mother of God) and the Aztec and Spanish cultures in order to declare that He is the one, true God, and that He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to fully communicate His plan of salvation for all of humanity. 

If you don't know about the stars, and the black band, and Our Lady's foot, and the Aztec symbols on her mantle, and the astounding qualities of the coloring and the temperature of the tilma and its longevity, see the image below and/or watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEhjwCsDDsc.    

The mysterious miracles surrounding Our Lady's appearance and St. Juan Diego's tilma confound me. 

Much like the 16-year-old version of myself who doubted my English teacher's insights about the meaning of poems, it takes immense faith to believe these findings. 

Another key takeaway: God, through Jesus's Mother Mary, used the local culture to impart faith. From the symbols on Mary's covering to the stars on her mantle to her foot slightly forward (a posture of dancing!) to the two codexes in the image, so much of what attracted people at the time and continues to pull people into this beautiful mystery is that it taps into and uses the local Aztec and Spanish Christians cultures in a way that harmonizes the two and points them to Jesus (for some specifics, watch the clip below): 

May we, like Our Lady of Guadalupe, embrace our culture and point it toward Christ. At a time when the world is clouded by a post-Christian mentality, instead of pulling further away from the current culture and cancelling it, may we pull it closer to our loving hearts and introduce it - again - to the love and mercy and hope and joy of Jesus Christ.

A culture of faith entails using the "language...signs and symbols" of particular people. A culture of faith answers the "questions they ask" and shows how it has "an impact on their concrete life” (St. Pope Paul VI, 1975). 

A culture of faith is in the world and of the world. 

A culture of faith is of heaven and earth. United. Harmonious. Together. 

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!

Offering

One of my favorite Christmas songs is For King and Country's rendition of "Little Drummer Boy."

As my kids will attest to, I love when songs have strong percussion elements. This version has it in spades. 

While we can see the "Little Drummer Boy" as being defined solely by his drumming ability - hence the name of the song - the arc of the song's lyrics demonstrate that the boy has set off with others to see the new born King and to offer their gifts to Him. 

This journey - to see and offer gifts worthy of a King - inspires the boy to offer his gift of drumming at the service of the King. The song's message centers not on what the boy can offer, but rather Who he offers it to. 

The final scene of the video linked above shows the boy leaving behind that which we might think defines him, his drum, at the feet of Baby Jesus. 

I hope and pray that I might be able to do the same. 

Pa rum pum pum pum.

Over the course of my life, I have too often identified who I am in light of what I do - my gifts and abilities, my activities, and my profession - instead of Whose I am - God's beloved child. Similarly, as a Catholic educator, I have definitely been guilty of the sin of idolizing my ministry. 

Foolishly, I have fallen into the trap of basing my worth on my work, my value on my victories, my dignity on my deeds. 

Providence, though, has broken through the fragile shell of my ego at multiple points throughout my life to shatter these misconceptions. While I can still get caught up in equating my importance with my impact, I anchor my life in the idea that I am called to lay down my "drum" at the feet of my King.  

The motto of St. Benedict, Ora et Labora provides a helpful mode of operating to stave off the worship of work. Meaning Prayer and Work in English, St. Benedict intended for these dual actions, prayer and work, to combine in such a way that our entire lives become an offering. 

Instead of viewing the prayer of my heart and the work of my mind and hands as separate and compartmentalized, St. Benedict encourages a synthesis of these two behaviors so that the entirety of one’s life becomes an offering up to God. As such, every part of my life - my work, my recreation, my leisure, my scholarship, my ministry, my prayer - becomes an act of worship. Intentionally inviting God into each moment of my life and making it into an offering to Him to do with it what He wills, humbly transforms the fullness of who I am into a gift, opportunities to serve Him and others, and pathways to grow closer to Him.

As we continue to march through this Advent season toward the birth of our King on Christmas, may we offer to Him all that we are and all that we can do.

May we, through the work of our hands and the prayers of our hearts, make of ourselves an offering that's fit to give our King.