by Bishop John C. Nienstedt

The Passion and Resurrection of The Christ

Mel Gibson's The Passion of The Christ is causing great controversy these days because of its focus on the graphically brutal, violent and inhumane tortures that Jesus endured during his suffering and death. Our meditation on the sacrifice that he, as our Divine Savior, made for us sinners, provides a powerful reflection for us at any moment, but especially in this holy season of Lent.

Yet, as strongly as I would encourage each of us to reflect often and deeply on the Cross of Christ, that event, by itself, can never be the total picture. The story of Jesus' death is woefully incomplete without his Resurrection from the Dead.

In the Resurrection, Jesus was not just resuscitated (i.e. brought back to daily life as we know it), but he was raised to a new and unique level of existence: one not bound by the laws of nature (i.e. appearing and disappearing at will, being able to penetrate walls and closed doors, etc.) nor subject to the terminal reality of death nor even visibly recognized by his closest colleagues (see John 21:12). With a glorified body, Jesus had overcome the confines and limitations of physical human life as we know and experience it. This new resurrected life to which he bore witness transforms the reality of faith for the believer. Empowered by the dynamic presence of the Holy Spirit, this new life is made manifest in new forms, especially those of the seven Sacraments.

Nowhere is this fact more dramatically portrayed today than in the Holy Eucharist we celebrate each Sunday at Mass. There the bread and wine are totally transformed into Jesus' new life. These elements may still look like bread and wine, but they are not. They have been transformed, being changed by the Holy Spirit through the power of Jesus' Resurrection into his very Body and Blood. This is not just a nice symbol or a comforting spiritual metaphor. This is real and it can only be understood in reference to Jesus' Resurrection.

The Easter Vigil, which ushers in the joy of Easter Sunday, is, perhaps, the most dramatic liturgical expression of Christ's Resurrection. Even fallen-away Catholics sense this as they are drawn to church attendance that night or on the next day despite months of staying away.

But to believe in Easter is to believe in the significance of each Sunday (i.e. beginning on Saturday evening), as a "little" Easter, a day not only to commemorate, but to experience anew the living presence of the Risen Jesus in the here and now. For that reason, the Catholic disciples of Jesus, from earliest days, gathered on the "first day of the week" to be renewed in the grace of the Resurrection into which they have been baptized and by which the hope of eternal life is offered to them.

As I travel throughout our Diocese talking to parishioners and pastoral leaders alike, I have learned that many Catholics have stopped participating in the Sunday liturgy either on an intermittent or a regular basis. Recent Gallop polls confirm this impression with only 35 percent of all American Catholics attending weekly Mass in February 2003 - an all-time low.

What this tells me is that these (by all appearances) good people have lost their sense of being Catholic as well as their belief that Jesus has truly risen from the dead. They have somehow forgotten that Jesus is more than a great religious leader, more than an unprecedented miracle worker, more than the one who suffered so much out of love for them. Their forgetfulness has led them to deny by their actions that Jesus is still alive and present today, especially in his Eucharistic Presence.

The Church proclaims that it is a moral sin to miss Mass on Sunday without a sufficient, serious reason (i.e. illness, impeded by distance or a physical hindrance, etc.). This may well be understood in light of the second Commandment of the Decalogue ("Keep holy the Sabbath") but even more so in regard to the first Commandment ("You shall not have strange gods before me.") Every time that a Catholic chooses 1) to stay in bed; 2) to go shopping; 3) to attend hockey practice; 4) to schedule family outings, etc. instead of renewing his or her Catholic profession of faith in the Resurrection of Jesus at Sunday Mass, that person has opted for the worship of a "false" god instead of the one, true God. That false worship is a form of idolatry, because it creates a "god" in one's own image and likeness.

In the end, one cannot claim to be a Catholic, if one fails to attend Mass on Sunday. It really is as simple as that. Catholics are as Catholics do. The word "communion" is derived from the Latin, "union with." To be in union with the Risen Lord, one must be willing to share in his Resurrected Life offered in community on the "first day" of the week (or its vigil). When one consciously refuses that obligation, one implicitly distances himself from the relationship that is at the heart of the baptismal commitment. A bond is ruptured and solemn promises are broken. That is why Sunday Mass is such a serious matter, not simply because a "rule" has been broken, but rather the baptismal union with the Risen Jesus has been compromised and one's identity as his disciple has been lost.

Easter Sunday's triumph of the Resurrected Jesus came about through his Suffering and Death as dramatically portrayed in Mel Gibson's The Passion of The Christ. His sacrifice, if appreciated, calls forth a commitment on our part. As Jesus literally gave his all, down to the last drop of his blood, we ought to be motivated to do our part which begins with our participation in the Sunday Eucharist.

God bless you! Have a blessed Easter!

April 2004

Falta Mucho por Recorrer

Por el obispo John C. Nienstedt

La Pasión y la Resurrección del Cristo

Estos días la pelicula "La Pasión del Cristo" dirigida por Mel Gibson está causando gran controversia debido a que muestra las torturas brutales, violentas e inhumanas que Jesús aguantó durante su sufrimiento y muerte. Nuestra meditación en el sacrificio que él, como nuestro Salvador Divino, hizo por nosotros, los pecadores, proporcionen una reflexion poderosa de gran alcance a nosotros en todo momento, pero especialmente en esta temporada Santa que es la Cuaresma.

Aún, con plena convicción los animaría a cada uno de nosotros para reflexionar más seguido y profundamente en la Cruz de Cristo, ese evento por sí solo no viene hacer el pásaje completo. Lamentablemente la historia sería incompleta sin la resurrección de la muerte de Jesús.

La Vigilia Pascual, en que entramos con alegria el domingo de Pascua es sin lugar a duda, la expresión litúrgica más dramática de la Resurrección de Cristo. Se nota el lleno total en las parroquias, aún los cátolicos que no van a misa muy seguido se hacen presentes.

Creer en la Pascua es creer en la importancia de cada domingo (es decir comenzando el sábado por la noche), como una "pequeña" Pascua, un día para no solo conmemorar, pero para experimentar de nuevo la presencia viva del Jesús resucitado aquí y ahora. Por esa razon, desde sus inicios, los discipulos católicos de Jesús se reunian "el primer día de la semana" para que ser renovados en la gracia de la Resurrección, lo cual fueron bautizados y por lo cuál la esperanza de la vida eterna se ofreció para ellos.

Al recorrer las parroquias de nuestra diócesis conversando con feligreses y líderes pastorales, me he dado cuenta que muchos católicos han dejado de participar en la liturgia dominical o por corto tiempo o de manera indefinida. Recientemente la encuesta Gallop confirma que un 35 por ciento de todos los católicos americanos asistieron a misa en febrero del 2003 - un porcentaje bajo de todo los tiempos.

Eso me dice que esos (por todos los aspectos) la gente buena ha perdido su sentido de ser católico así como su credibilidad que Jesús resucitó de entre los muertos. De alguna manera se han olvidado que Jesús es más que un gran líder religioso, más que un trabajador milagroso sin precedentes, más él que sufrió demasiado por amor a ellos. Su olvido los ha conducido a negar por sus acciones que Jesús sigue vivo y hoy esta presente, especialmente en su Presencia Eucaristica.

La Iglesia proclama que un pecado moral es cuando uno falta a la misa dominical sin tener una razón especifica (por ejemplo: por enfermedad, por razones de distancia, por algun impedimento físico, etc.). Eso se puede entender segun el segundo mandamiento del decálogo ("mantener el sábado Santo"), pero aún más según el primer mandamiento ("Amarás a Dios sobre todas las cosas"). Cada vez que cada católico escoja 1) permanecer en la cama; 2) ir de compras; 3) ir a la práctica de hockey; 4) hacer planes para ir a una excursión con su familia, etc. en vez de renovar su profesión católica de fe en la resurrección de Jesús mediante la misa dominical, sin lugar a duda la persona opta por venerar a un Dios "falso" en vez de venerar al Dios verdadero. Esa veneración falsa es una forma de idolatria ya que crea un "Dios" a su propia imagen y semejanza.

En resumidas cuentas, uno no puede exigir ser católico, si uno no cumple con ir a la misa dominical. Si somos católicos debemos actuar como tal. La palabra "Comunión" se deriva del latín, "estar en union con." El estar en unión con el Señor resucitado, uno debe estar dispuesto a compartir en su vida resucitado ofrecido en comunidad "el primer día" de la semana (o su vigilia). Cuando uno rechaza esa obligación intencionalmente, uno se distancia implícitamente de la relación que es el eje de la entrega bautismal. Un vínculo afectivo se ha deshecho y los compromisos solemnes se han quebrantado. Es por eso que la Misa Dominical es un tema muy serio, no porque una simple "norma" se desobedece pero en vez la entrega bautismal con el Jesús resucitado se ha arreglado y la identidad de uno como su discipulo se ha perdido.

¡Que Dios los bendiga! ¡Felices Pascuas lleno de bendiciones!