Newspaper Page Text
The Southern Cross, Page 9
Thursday, October 12, 2000
Faith
What would Jesus do?
By Daniel S. Mulhall
Catholic News Service
FAITH IN THE MARKETPLACE
Tell of a situation in which
you “lived by the Gospel” —
applied it, that is, to your
circumstances.
“I check on an elderly neighbor
every day.... She doesn’t get out of
the house much, and keeping in
touch with her like this lets me
know that she’s all right or that
she needs some assistance.” —
Mary Seiderer, Bethlehem, Conn.
“Yesterday, I took Communion
to a homebound individual. This is
something I do once a week.” —
Jeannie Pearl, Graham, N.C.
“I try to live by the Gospel in
how I deal with people every day. I
visit the sick. I preside at Com
munion services. I give homilies.
The Gospel is my foundation in all
of these works.” — Sister Margie
Schmidt, OSB, Lewiston, Idaho
“I live the Gospel by reaching
out to others; by my work —
teaching the Gospel message; and
by realizing that life itself is
ministry.” — Lena Spada, Fern
Park, Fla.
An upcoming edition asks: What
image of heaven or question about it
would you like to share? If you would
like to respond for possible
publication, please write:
Faith Alive! 3211 Fourth
St. N.E., Washington,
D.C. 20017-1100.
If you’ve spent much time around
teens, you’ve probably seen these let
ters on a bracelet, a necklace or piece
of clothing: W.W.J.D. The initials —
asking “What Would Jesus Do?” —
seem to be everywhere.
This catchy four-letter acronym,
which spread rapidly through the ef
forts of evangelical and fundamental
ist church communities, has become a
slogan for Catholic youths and young
adults. W.W.J.D. is a shorthand way
of asking, “How am I to live the Gospel
in my daily life?”
Given the fervor with which they
have adopted this message (it has be
come almost as prevalent as the Nike
swoosh or the Golden Arches), many
young adults and teens must have a
great interest in knowing how they
are to live as Christians. The
question’s simplicity provides them
with an easy reference point to work
from when facing a difficult decision.
There is nothing wrong with the
question. Everyone seeking to follow
Jesus could benefit from reflecting on
the four letters before making a deci
sion. Christians are to act as Jesus
acted and to live the way he lived.
(The first Christians were called “fol
lowers of the way” because they lived
as Jesus showed them how to live.)
The problem arises not with the
question, but with how the question is
answered. Before a person can act as
Jesus would, he or she must first
know what Jesus said and did. Living
the Gospel requires familiarity with
it.
Individuals can learn much about
how to follow Jesus from studying the
Bible. Jesus’ messages on how to live
are found throughout the Gospels.
Some of his messages, such as the
Beatitudes in Luke 6:20-25, require
some interpretation.
But Jesus also offered the kind of
concrete guidance found in Matthew
25:34-36, calling “blessed” those who
feed the hungry, give drink to the
thirsty, clothe the naked, tend the
sick and visit those in prison.
Jesus also taught by example. He
healed the blind man, raised Lazarus
from the dead and cured lepers. Such
examples, though, while teaching
Christians to live with compassion,
are difficult to follow. Most people
don’t work miracles.
There are also specific situations of
our times that the Gospels don’t ad
dress as such: watching R-rated mov
ies, for example, or downloading mu
sic from the Internet. Nonetheless, it
is possible to get a feel for how Jesus
would act in all cases. That’s what the
church provides when it offers moral
guidance or doctrinal teaching: help
ing to clarify how Jesus would act in
today’s situations based upon what he
said and did.
One way Christians learn how to
follow Jesus is by watching how
Christians live and then acting the
same.
Regrettably, this way doesn’t al
ways work, for many Christians
claim to love God, yet hate their
neighbor, something Jesus warned
against.
Another way for Christians to learn
to follow Jesus is literally to do what
he did and said his followers should
do. That’s why so many young people
participate in service projects to feed
the hungry, to provide safe shelter for
the homeless or to visit the old and
infirm. By “walking the Christian
talk,” they are learning to act as Jesus
acted.
There is much that Christians
must learn in order truly to live the
Gospel and follow the way of Jesus.
Asking “W.W.J.D.” is a start, as is
studying Scripture and church teach
ing. But then Christians must do as
Jesus did: It’s not enough just to ask
the question.
(Mulhall is assistant secretary for
catechesis and inculturation in the
U.S. Catholic Conference Depart
ment of Education.)
Archbishop Romero: The Gospel alive
By Father Herb Weber
Catholic News Service
T;
he crypt of the San
Salvador cathedral was
dark except for one light
workers had turned on
over Archbishop Oscar
Romero’s tomb. I felt dis
tinctly privileged to be
there since the tomb was
closed to the public while
repairs were being made
after an earthquake.
The fact that I was ac
companied by two dozen
Salvadoran peasants, the
very ones Archbishop
Romero died for, helped
me understand this man
as a contemporary saint.
Archbishop Romero, as leader of
the San Salvador archdiocese, had
challenged the powers of El Salva
dor and spoken out in favor of the
poor and oppressed. He was gunned
down while saying Mass in a hospi-
CNS photo of visitors at tomb by Edgar Romero
tal chapel in 1980. When I first vis
ited the Central American country
in 1993, everyone revered him.
I had just spent 10 days with
Miguel and his family in a remote
hill settlement called Santa Rita.
1
ln 0 Nutshell
Learning to live by the Gospel calls for familiarity with
Jesus’ words as well as his example.
Jesus preached God*s reign. The lowly were to be raised up.
The last were to be first.
Living the Gospel means working for a justice that respects
the rights of all. And each Christian is called to acts of
self-sacrifice for the good of others.
Miguel, who fled El Salva
dor during its civil war,
had lived with me in Ohio
for about six months the
previous year. With the
Romero’s credit, he listened to the people.
Then, taking the Gospel to heart,
he spoke out in defuse of the poor
against the government and the
wealthy, even asking the United
he faet that I was accompanied by two dozen
Salvadoran peasants, the very ones Archbishop Romero
died for, helped me understand this man as a
contemporary saint.”
declaration of a truce be
tween the government
and the rebels, Miguel re
turned to reunite with his
family. Since he feared go
ing alone, I joined him.
Once I arrived in El Salvador I
discovered that the rich owned most
of the land and held all positions of
power. Santa Rita’s poor could not
feed their families or provide more
than minimal education for their
children. Their farmland was a rocky
hillside. If someone managed to get
work elsewhere, the wages were still
subsistence level.
I recall being at the open-air mar
ket where Miguel intended to buy
some local cheese. But one pound of
cheese cost a day’s pay! Only when I
saw examples like this and realized
the poverty and injustice experi
enced by so many did Archbishop
Romero’s words and actions make
sense to me.
When he first became San
Salvador’s archbishop, priests and
people alike expected he would sup
port the status quo. To Archbishop
States to cut aid to the Salvadoran
military, believed to sponsor death
squads that were killing his people.
Living the Gospel means making
Jesus’ words, actions and message
one’s own. It means working for a
justice that respects the rights of all.
It also involves taking risks and be
ing willing to pay the cost.
As I looked at Archbishop
Romero’s tomb, I saw the words
from John 15:13 in Spanish pro
claiming, “There is no greater love
than to lay down one’s life for one’s
friends.”
(Father Herb Weber is pastor of
St. Peter’s Parish in Mansfield,
Ohio.)
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