This simple meditation on four psalms can put you on the path to better health—body and soul.

As a doctor, I consistently tell people that walking is one of the best exercises for health. Anyone can do it at any time of the day, and it requires nothing more than a comfortable pair of shoes. As a pastoral minister, I consistently tell people that praying is one of the best exercises for spiritual health. Anyone can do it at any time of day, and it requires nothing more than desire.

What could be better than walking and praying at the same time? Here you will find a sample walking meditation. It is divided into sections correlated with each of the senses and punctuated by prayer, using a psalm. In addition to focusing within, you will be guided to focus on the glory and presence of God all around. You don’t need to walk fast or far, although you can if you like.

Print out the reflection to carry with you. You may not need the whole thing, but you will at least need the psalm prayers between each section unless you know them by heart. It might be good to have the rest for reference in case you get stuck. You can even record them on your cell phone and take them with you.

If you are on a time limit, set the timer on your watch or cell phone to three minutes for each section. If you are not on a strict schedule, allow each part of the meditation to spontaneously conclude on its own.

Introduction

Start your walk simply by inviting God to show you his creation. Thank him for this time together. Stand still for a minute and take a few deep breaths to clear your head and engage your body. Then start walking at a comfortable pace.

Seeing God’s Gifts During the first three minutes, concentrate on everything you see. Let go of any other thoughts or sensations that pop into your head. Notice the sky and its shades of blue. Notice the trees. How many colors of green are there? Do you see any buds or flowers? How about insects—flies, beetles, mosquitoes?

Look in all directions. Look up close, out to the horizon, and between the trees. Search out small details—the veins in a leaf, the wings on a dragonfly. Survey the broad picture: the hills in the distance, the clouds at the skyline. Keep walking and looking until your timer goes off at three minutes or you feel the Holy Spirit nudging you into the next phase.

Remind yourself that God has given you all these treasures as signs of his love; imagine the joy he feels showing them to you. Finish the visual meditation by reciting Psalm 8:4–10:

When I see your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and stars that you set in place—
What are humans that you are mindful of them,
mere mortals that you care for them?
Yet you have made them little less than a god,
crowned them with glory and honor.
You have given them rule over the works
of your hands, put all things at their feet:
All sheep and oxen, even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fish of the sea,
and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
O Lord, our Lord,
how awesome is your name through all the earth!

Hearing God’s Gifts

During the next three minutes, concentrate on everything you hear. Stop looking intently and listen instead. Once again, let go of any other thoughts or sensations that pop into your head.

Listen for traffic. Can you hear cars on a city street or an interstate? A lawnmower? An ambulance? How about air traffic, such as a plane or helicopter? Are there birds? How many different bird calls do you hear? Are there people nearby? Children playing and laughing or people chatting with each other? Are there animals—a dog barking, a rooster crowing, a horse whinnying?

As before, walk and listen until your timer goes off or you feel the Holy Spirit nudging you into the next phase. Remind yourself that despite all this noise, God hears you whenever you call out to him.

Finish the listening meditation by reciting Psalm 86:1–7:

Hear me, Lord, and answer me,
for I am poor and oppressed.
Preserve my life, for I am loyal;
Save your servant who trusts in you.
You are my God; pity me, Lord;
to you I call all the day.
Gladden the soul of your servant; to you,
Lord, I lift up my soul.
Lord, you are kind and forgiving,
most loving to all who call on you.
Lord, hear my prayer; listen to my cry for help.
In this time of trouble I call, for you will answer me.

Touching God’s Gifts

During the next three minutes, concentrate on everything you feel, not on the inside, but on the outside. Remember to let go of any other thoughts that pop into your head, and walk until your timer goes off or the Holy Spirit nudges you into the next phase.

Can you feel a gentle breeze on your face or a stronger wind? Is sunshine warming your face or rain tickling your skin? Is the surface upon which you are walking hard like pavement or soft like grass? Look down and study whatever is at your feet. A pebble? A stick? A leaf? Gently pick it up and hold it in your hand. Roll it between your fingers, sensing its texture, shape, and detail.

Try to feel your feet connect with the ground beneath you. Notice as your heels touch first and concentrate as the rest of your foot connects with the sturdy ground.

Concentrate on each step and on the subtle differences in the terrain. Even when it’s irregular, notice how the ground is solid and reliable.

Remind yourself that God is sturdy and reliable and will not let you down. Finish the touch meditation by reciting Psalm 91:1–12:

You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
Say to the Lord, “My refuge and fortress, my God in whom I trust.”
God will rescue you from the fowler’s snare,
from the destroying plague,
Will shelter you with pinions, spread wings that you may take refuge;
God’s faithfulness is a protecting shield.
You shall not fear the terror of the night nor the arrow that flies by day,
Nor the pestilence that roams in darkness,
nor the plague that ravages at noon.
Though a thousand fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand, near you it shall not come.
You need simply watch; the punishment of the wicked you will see.
You have the Lord for your refuge;
you have made the Most High your stronghold.
No evil shall befall you, no affliction come near your tent.
For God commands the angels to guard you in all your ways.
With their hands they shall support you,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.

Tasting and Smelling God’s Gifts

These two senses are intricately connected, so we will focus on them together. Open your mouth slightly and touch your tongue to the back of your teeth. For the next three minutes, breathe through your mouth and nose, allowing each fragrance to evoke a taste.

Are there city smells, such as exhaust or tar? What does tar taste like? Is it pungent or bitter? Are there smells of other people around you? Is there body odor that smells like pizza, or perfume that smells like vanilla? Are there country smells like manure or hay? Does the hay smell sweet? What about fresh-cut grass or flowering buds? Do they smell like onions or mint?

Remind yourself that no earthly food or pleasure can fill your heart’s deep longing for God. Finish the taste and smell meditation by reciting Psalm 42:2–6:

As the deer longs for streams of water,
so my soul longs for you, O God.
My being thirsts for God, the living God.
When can I go and see the face of God?
My tears have been my food day and night,
as they ask daily, “Where is your God?”
Those times I recall as I pour out my soul,
When I went in procession with the crowd,
I went with them to the house of God,
Amid loud cries of thanksgiving,
with the multitude keeping festival.
Why are you downcast, my soul;
why do you groan within me?
Wait for God, whom I shall praise again, my savior and my God.

Closing

Stand in place for a few minutes, or even for only a few seconds. Thank God for this time you shared and the gifts he revealed. Resolve to carry this mindset of gratitude and awareness through the rest of your day.

If you have a few extra minutes when you get home, jot down the ideas that came to you during your walk. Keeping a prayer journal is a great way to remind yourself of God’s work in your life. And remember, this meditation is only a sample—adapt it to suit your needs in whatever way is most helpful. With God’s help and your imagination, walking and praying can be a regular part of your day!

A culture of hospitality helps parishes grow and thrive.

In 2008, I visited St. Gerard Majella Church in the Diocese of Brooklyn in New York. The greeter warmly welcomed me and I took a seat. The bulletin had an entire column devoted to welcoming the newcomer and contained a coupon to fill out if one wanted more information about church membership. I filled it out and dropped it in the collection basket.

The pastor, Father Ed Doran, began his homily by asking anyone attending the church for the first time to please stand up to be recognized (certainly not according to the rubrics, but a nice touch, nevertheless). When I stood up, parishioners clapped and an usher approached me, giving me an informational packet about the church and its ministries.

“For my entire priesthood, I have believed in the importance of hospitality,” said Father Doran.

Following the petitions, the parish prayed “A Prayer for Hospitality” from the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) 2000 document Welcoming the Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity. As I was new, this was a strange prayer for me. I noticed people reading from the missal, which I started leafing through to find the proper page. The lady next to me noticed my struggle and, with a very warm smile, pointed to the back of the missal where the prayer was taped. It is one thing to be greeted by the pastor, but to have the person in the pew next to you make you feel welcome—now that gets your attention.

During the exchange of peace, many people approached me to welcome me to the parish. It was almost overwhelming. After Mass, more people approached and welcomed me, including Father Doran, who made a point of warmly greeting me.

This was already a “wow” experience of hospitality, way beyond anything I had previously experienced in any Catholic church. But then at 2 p.m. that same day, my phone rang. It was Father Doran personally responding to the coupon I had put in the collection, requesting further information about church membership. Clearly, this was a parish and pastor who lived the vision of Welcoming the Stranger Among Us.

“Hospitality is but one of the imperatives flowing out of our baptismal call, clearly mandated by Scripture, and is a present-day goal of our bishops,” says Father Doran, now pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Brooklyn Heights, New York.

Unwelcome Circumstances

Is this experience common in our parishes? Sadly, it is rare, indeed. Too often, the typical experience of parish newcomers is to feel as if they are invisible, as if their presence makes absolutely no difference to anyone. Too many greeters welcome only those they know and avert their eyes from strangers. Sometimes, visitors feel downright unwelcome, as when they get a dirty look from someone because they are sitting in “their” pew. And then rarely—all too rarely—newcomers are made to feel welcome in our churches.

Sally Sackett, a lifelong member of St. Stephen Parish (both the parishioner’s name and the names of the parishes involved have been changed at the parishioner’s request), felt this tension firsthand when her parish closed in 2009.

“The day that parish closed a part of me died,” she recalls. Parishioners were told to go to the neighboring parish, St. Augustine. Being a faithful Catholic, she did as she was told. “I went to St. Augustine’s the following Sunday,” she says. “I was made to feel so unwelcome that I decided I was done with the Catholic Church entirely.”

Weeks later, a friend at work invited her to attend a Sunday service at Our Father’s House, a nondenominational Christian community. “I felt so overwhelmingly and genuinely welcomed into that community that I knew instinctively I had found my spiritual home,” she says.

Many of those who have had their church closed describe it as feeling like a death in the family. This is certainly understandable, considering the relationships and sacred memories that are attached to parish communities. To have one’s church closed is traumatic enough, without having that trauma compounded by being made to feel invisible or outright unwelcome in a new parish. A multitude of good works done by church leadership to heal the pain of a church closure can be undone quickly with one dirty look, for whatever reason, in the new parish.

“Growing up in the pre-Vatican II Church, welcoming and hospitality were not priorities for the Church at that time, ” says Father Danny Murphy, pastor of St. Saviour Parish in the Diocese of Brooklyn.

“People went to church to experience God through the sacrament, not each other.” In 2001, Father Murphy attended a conference on the best practices of successful, growing faith communities. “What came through loud and clear is that many former Catholics are today in nondenominational Christian churches solely because of the welcoming and hospitality they experienced. I was set on fire by that,” he says.

“Father Murphy gets it, the new evangelization,” says Geri Anne O’Beirne, a 10-year parishioner at St. Saviour. “We’ve got people coming from all over Brooklyn to attend our church because they feel welcome here. Father Murphy frequently gets letters from people thanking him for our monthly Hospitality Sunday.”

The parish has a designated “Hospitality Sunday” on the third Sunday of the month, excluding July and August, in which newcomers are invited to the church hall for refreshments and to meet other parishioners after each Mass. Following the 7 p.m. Mass, which is geared toward young adults, they play board games.

Pope Benedict XVI, in his papacy, emphasized the theme of new evangelization. In September 2010, he established the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization and commissioned it with the task of re-evangelizing traditionally Christian countries. He also announced that “new evangelization” would be the theme of the World Synod of Bishops, to be held at the Vatican this October. It seems that the most basic element of this new evangelization is creating more welcoming communities. Pope Francis is furthering that cause.

“What good would it do to go door-to-door inviting people to attend our churches if what they found when they arrived were less than welcoming and hospitable communities?” asks Dr. William Pickett, retired director of pastoral planning for the Diocese of Rochester and author of A Concise Guide to Pastoral Planning. “Clearly, the foundation to any evangelizing efforts needs to be creating more welcoming parish communities.”

Welcome Benefits

Beyond the very real current need to welcome Catholics displaced by church closings and parish mergers, why should we work toward creating more welcoming parish communities? Our more than 4,000-year tradition of welcoming the stranger provides some examples. From Abraham welcoming the three strangers (Genesis 18:1-8) to Jesus telling us that “I was… a stranger and you welcomed me” (Matthew 25:35) to the US bishops reminding us of the importance of welcoming the stranger in our midst, we have been consistently exhorted to practice hospitality in our lives and certainly in our churches.

Even though we should do this simply because it is the right thing to do, Scripture tells us of the benefits we receive when we welcome the stranger. The widow and her son were rewarded for sharing the last of their meager rations with Elijah (1 Kings 17:7-16), and Jesus even indicates that our final accounting before God will include, in part, the extent to which we welcomed the stranger (Matthew 25:35).

“Our churches need to become spiritual centers, which benefit both the community in which they are located and the parishioners they serve, ” says Father Doran. “And this begins with welcoming and hospitality.”

“When I think about hospitality, I think about the story of Martha and Mary,” says O’Beirne, who for the past two years has been the coordinator for youth and family ministry at St. Saviour. “Martha was running around preparing for their honored guest, while Mary was personally attending to Jesus, their honored guest.”

The Parish Process

In April 2008, almost 1,200 priests, deacons, vowed religious and lay ministers took part in a national summit to discuss the findings of the Emerging Models of Pastoral Leadership project. This report identified that one of the key marks of excellent parishes is that they are welcoming communities. At the same time, pastoral leaders surveyed by the project reported that having welcoming communities was one of the areas in which parishes were least successful. Our parishes will grow and thrive when we practice hospitality. With increased numbers of parishioners, our collections will increase and we will have more people available to contribute their time and talent toward parish ministries. More hands make light work.

“Hospitality and welcoming are keys to a door that opens many possibilities,” says Father Doran. “The possibilities and potentialities it opens are full, active participation of those attending our liturgies and an increase in the time, talent and treasure (stewardship) that parishioners are willing to contribute to a welcoming parish.”

If you asked committed members of a parish what was important to them, they would undoubtedly say, “We want to be a welcoming place.” But most parishes have never thought about, talked about or planned how this will happen.

Creating a culture of hospitality in today’s parishes will require extensive catechesis, deliberate planning and careful implementation. Becoming a welcoming parish is a process, not an event. Since the circumstances of each parish are unique, there is no “one size fits all” plan for growing into a welcoming parish.

“A pastor needs to begin with a small group,” explains Father Doran,”and build enthusiasm for hospitality and welcoming, both within this group and in the entire parish.”

In 2008, the Diocese of Brooklyn decided to embark on a pilot project to create more welcoming parishes. Six parishes agreed to be a part of the program. Father Murphy and Father Doran were among those pastors who jumped at the chance to deepen and increase their parishes’ commitment to hospitality and welcoming.

“We have to constantly look for ways to concretize hospitality for the parish,” says Father Doran. Hand-picked parish teams were trained in the process (see sidebar) and were sensitized to the importance of welcoming the stranger. Parishes were assessed through various means as to their welcoming practices both before and after implementing the process so that the effects, if any, of these efforts could be measured.

Three important conclusions were drawn from this yearlong pilot project: There was a significant increase in weekly revenue of parishes that participated in the program (one as high as 70 percent). This is even more astounding given that this study was done in the midst of the economic collapse of 2008, which hit Brooklyn and the New York City area particularly hard.

The exact process followed is not as important as the intention and commitment to create a more welcoming community. Each parish adapted the process differently and most improved the welcoming of their communities, as determined by independent assessment.

The support and action of the pastor is crucial to the success of any welcoming effort. Parishes have a hard time transcending the limitations of their pastors, so without the pastor’s active support, the potential success of this process is greatly restricted, perhaps impossible.

Clearly, it is God’s fervent wish for us to create welcoming parish communities. Wherever hospitality is practiced out of gratitude, the face of a loving, caring, accepting God is made manifest, appealing to those yearning for a faith community that they can call home.

Six Tips for Becoming a More Welcoming Parish

Although each parish has a unique set of circumstances it works in, here is a rough outline of one possible spiritual process a parish can employ to develop and implement a strategy to become a more welcoming community.

1. Assemble and train a parish team. This team, assembled by the pastor or his designee, should consist primarily of parishioners with appropriate staff support. Bulletin articles and announcements at the end of Mass can be used to recruit team members, but the pastor could also personally invite influential, active members of the parish who he believes would be well-suited for this team.

2. Develop a communication plan to keep the entire parish informed. The process needs to be transparent, engaging and consistent—one sermon or bulletin article is not enough.

3. Assess the current reality of welcoming in the parish. Have an observer attend all the weekend Masses and report on his/her experiences as a newcomer. Focus on three key areas of welcoming: the facility, the bulletin and website (if any) and specific workshop experiences. Survey current active parishioners on their opinions of the parish as a welcoming community.

4. Discern God’s vision for welcoming strangers in the parish. Pray for the gift of the Holy Spirit’s perspective. How might God expect you to act to people new to your parish?

5. Develop a plan for bringing God’s vision and reality into alignment. Create a plan specific to your own parish and then research successful welcoming programs employed by other parishes.

6. Implement the plan, measure the results and continually improve. Conduct a second full assessment of reality after a specific time period to see what impact the plan has had on the welcoming of the parish.

Each year during Holy Week we stand once again near the cross and hear Jesus’ cry anew. Unlike those described in the Gospel, though, we know exactly what he said and we recognize it as the opening verse of Psalm 22.

How was Jesus’ cry from the cross, quoted in Aramaic, received by those standing near? “When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, ‘Listen, he is calling for Elijah.’ And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, ‘Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down'” (Mark 15:35-36; Matthew 27:47,49). They misunderstood; they were not quite sure exactly what it was that Jesus had said.

Each year during Holy Week we Christians stand once again near the cross and hear Jesus’ cry anew. Unlike those described in the Gospel, though, we know exactly what he said and we recognize it as the opening verse of Psalm 22.

But do we really know what it means? Is Jesus despairing on the cross? Or is he, rather, pointing to the end of the psalm where hope and praise are expressed?

How can we enter into Jesus’ cry today? Was the psalmist looking forward to and predicting Jesus’ death?

To understand this better, we will progress through three steps. First, we will look at Psalm 22 by itself and seek to understand it on its own terms. Then, we will examine how the first Christians drew on Psalm 22 to understand Jesus’ death. Finally, we will see what meaning this might have for us today.

Painful Prayer

When we feel blessed in life and experience goodness and wholeness, we turn to God in praise and thanksgiving. But what happens when we experience just the opposite? What happens when we are overcome by brokenness, suffering and death, when the relationships of our lives come apart? Lament is a prayer for help coming out of pain.

Of the 150 psalms in the Book of Psalms, over 50 belong to the category of laments. While laments occur elsewhere in Scripture, both Old and New Testaments, they are a form of prayer that is less familiar to us today.”

Psalm 22 calls out to God, presents the suffering of the speaker, talks of enemies and ends in praise. It falls into two parts: verses 1-21 (lament) and verses 22-31 (praise).

Each of those sections can be subdivided into two parts: verses 1-11 (the psalmist and God), verses 12-21 (the psalmist and enemies); verses 22-26 (praise in the assembly of Israel), verses 27-31 (praise from all peoples).

Lament: Part One (verses 1-11)

Israel firmly believed that God was a God of life, a God who frees from oppression. Therefore, if I am experiencing death and oppression, then where is God?

The psalmist feels alone, addresses God directly and asks the heartfelt question, “Why? ” (verse 1). “Why have you forsaken me?”

What the psalmist is experiencing makes no sense; things do not fit together. God seems very distant in both space ( “far,” verses 1, 11, 19) and time ( “by day, by night,” verse 2).

This cry to God should not be confused with despair. In despair, we give up on our relationship to God and let it go.

For the psalmist, that relationship has been foundational ( “from my birth,” 10). In fact, his enemies mock him precisely because he has been faithful to God (8). It is this bond of trust in God that the scoffers try to undermine.

We can read through these verses and count how often the words I and you occur. Even if the psalmist does not experience God’s closeness, he believes that God does care and is always within shouting distance. Lamenting is not a failure of faith but an act of faith.

Lament: Part Two (verses 12-21)

The first part of the psalm addressed more the psalmist’s relationship to God; the second part shifts to his relationship to others.

If God seems far off, the enemies are very near. They are described in animal imagery: strong bulls, ravening lions, dogs, wild oxen (verses 12-13, 16, 21)—all on the prowl and attacking.

The only activity we can clearly identify is one of mocking and gloating (7, 17). When we recall that the ancient biblical culture was very much an honor-shame culture, we can appreciate how much suffering this would bring to the psalmist.

The constant attack of the enemies takes its toll on the psalmist. He suffers physical and psychological breakdown and approaches death (14-15, 16c-18). “I am poured out like water” most likely refers to tears. Many different body parts are mentioned: bones, heart, breast, mouth, tongue, jaws, hands and feet. The ancients did not make the sharp distinction that we do between physical and emotional suffering.

The psalmist feels he has been laid “in the dust of death” (15); the enemies too think he is as good as dead and they begin to divvy up his clothing (18). The last three verses contain urgent pleas for God to come close (19), deliver (20) and save (21).

Praise: Part One (verses 22-26)

The change in tone from part one to part two is quite pronounced. From the language of suffering and pain, we move to that of praise and thanksgiving. This sudden shift is typical of the lament psalms (see Psalms 6:9-11; 10:16-18; 13:6b).

Scholars have offered various explanations. Perhaps the most common is that the psalmist has heard an oracle of salvation, perhaps from a priest at the Temple. This gives him assurance that God has heard the prayer and that deliverance is on the way.

Instead of being surrounded by enemies who scorn, the psalmist is now surrounded by family and friends in “the congregation” (verses 22, 25) of faith. He fulfills his vows with a thanksgiving sacrifice which involves the eating of a meal. All offer praise to God because God heard the cry of the afflicted and brought deliverance (24).

Praise: Part Two (verses 27-31)

The circle of praise now moves from the psalmist and Israel to all nations on the earth (verses 27-28), as well as people before us in time (29) and those who will come after us (31). At the beginning of the psalm, the psalmist felt isolated and alone in space and time. Here at the end, the praise of God goes out to fill all space and time.

Psalm 22 is, thus, the prayer of a just one who suffers innocently, of one who is surrounded by enemies and mocked precisely because of his fidelity to God. When God hears this cry and delivers, the just one offers praise and thanksgiving to God.

Proclaiming the Good News

We are so used to seeing Jesus on the cross that a lot of the shock of it has worn off. As one observer has noted, if Jesus were to come to earth today and be sentenced to death, he would most likely be electrocuted.

Then Christians all over the world would wear around their necks little silver and gold electric chairs! Jesus’ death on the cross was a scandal and an obstacle that had to be explained.

The Passion narratives, then, were perhaps the first Gospel materials to have taken shape. The strikingly similar account of the final hours of Jesus’ life in all four Gospels implies an ancient tradition. And like all the Gospel material, the Passion story is not a bare chronicle of past events but is filled with the faith of the earliest Christians who struggled to understand and explain the tragic death of Jesus.

One of their first affirmations was, as Paul expressed it, that “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3). When Jesus identifies his betrayer at the Last Supper, “the Son of Man goes as it is written of him” (Mark 14:21). When he is arrested in the garden, Jesus rejects violent resistance, for “how then would the scriptures be fulfilled, which say it must happen in this way?” (Matthew 26:54). He is arrested and carried off “that the scriptures be fulfilled” (Mark 14:49).

Nothing happened by chance or misfortune. All was according to God’s plan and God’s will, as revealed in the Jewish Scriptures.

In addition to this general principle (“according to the scriptures”), the early Christians began alluding to or citing specific passages to show that Jesus was also innocent. The Book of Wisdom (2:12-18) presents an innocent one attacked because of his faith in God, while Isaiah (52:13-53:12) presents God’s servant who suffers innocently for the sake of others.

Fulfilling the Scriptures

But when it came to describing Jesus’ death scene itself, another text was particularly important: Psalm 22. In addition to showing how Jesus dies “according to the scriptures, ” it also is an eloquent presentation of the suffering of an innocent one who suffers precisely because of his faithfulness to God’s will, and of someone who is ultimately vindicated by God.

• “And they crucified him, and divided his clothes among them, casting lots to decide what each should take” (Mark 15:24; Matthew 27:35) recalls Psalm 22:18, “They divide my clothes among themselves, and for my clothing they cast lots.”
• “Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads and saying” (Mark 15:29; Matthew 27:39) recalls Psalm 22:7, “All who see me mock me‚ they shake their heads.”
• “Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ which is translated, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'” (Mark 15:34; Matthew 27:46) is a direct quotation from Psalm 22:1.

A further comment is called for regarding an allusion which we might expect to find but, in fact, is not there. In The New Revised Standard Version, Psalm 22:16 reads, “My hands and feet have shriveled.”

But the new Jewish Publication Society translation reads, “Like a lion, (they maul) my hands and my feet.”

The ancient Greek translation, called the Septuagint, renders it, “They have pierced my hands and my feet,” and it is this translation that was cited by many early Christian writers. It is, however, not used in the New Testament.

The original Hebrew of this verse is quite obscure, and its absence in the New Testament suggests that at this point the earliest Christians were not using the Greek. That Jesus’ words are cited in Aramaic would also point in this direction.

Down through the centuries, a number of Christian writers have maintained that Psalm 22, in fact, predicts Jesus’ death in detail. Can we still affirm this today?

In 2001 the Pontifical Biblical Commission addressed this issue expressly in The Jewish People and Their Scriptures in the Christian Bible (#21). That document says the Christian community believes that Jesus fulfills the Jewish Scriptures, but “it does not understand this fulfillment as a literal one.” In addition, “fulfillment is brought about in a manner unforeseen. It would be wrong to consider the prophecies of the Old Testament as some kind of photographic anticipations of future events.”

The document stresses that the Christian reads these Old Testament texts “retrospectively.” Like the first followers of Jesus, we look back through our faith in the risen Christ and try to find in the Hebrew Scriptures ways to understand who Jesus is and what he has done.

Relating to Our Lives

To begin with, we should understand Jesus’ cry from the cross exactly as it stands. He makes his own the prayer of the psalmist, an innocent man who is suffering because of his fidelity to God’s will in his life. As I have already explained, these are not words of despair but an expression of faith.

Matthew’s and Mark’s Gospels do not hesitate to show Jesus in the utter agony of feeling forsaken as he faces a terrible death. In these Gospels also, Jesus began the journey of the passion with an anguished prayer, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want but what you want ” (Mark 14:35-36; Matthew 26:39).

While Psalm 22 ends with hope and praise, those are not the words on Jesus’ lips. The Gospel of John shows us a more exalted Jesus who is more or less in control during his Passion; the darker elements are removed. But Matthew and Mark show us more the human Jesus who entered fully into our human condition. This is not a sentimental kind of piety.

In addition to understanding Jesus’ cry, we might ask, can we make it our own? But this question has it backwards. The point is not that we can enter into Jesus’ cry but that Jesus has entered into ours.

For us, as human beings, death is dark and scary and real. Even though we believe and trust in God, death can cause anxiety and anguish. Jesus does not bring us deliverance from death but deliverance through death. We live in a culture which, in many ways, is death-denying; it is afraid to take a clear look at the fact and the meaning of mortality.

The cry of the psalmist is a profoundly human cry. Perhaps it is a witness our society could benefit from hearing.

We also need to realize that Jesus suffered and died because of his fidelity to God’s will in his life. Jesus’ preaching was good news for the poor; he ate with publicans and sinners. Many, including both political and religious leaders, found this offensive and threatening.

If we show fidelity to the teaching and example of Jesus, we can face similar reactions. We may not face actual death. But we can face opposition and mockery in lesser, more subtle ways that are still painful. “All who see me mock at me; they shake their heads” (Psalm 22:7). Do we continue to trust in the Lord?

In addition, while there are no certain references in the New Testament to the second part of Psalm 22 (the hymn of praise), we do see in the Gospels that Jesus was vindicated. His resurrection from the dead is God’s stamp of approval on his life.

Through the death of Jesus, the meaning of death has been, as it were, changed from the inside. Instead of representing the ultimate separation, it is now the path to greater union.

The risen Christ is present now in our midst and gathers a congregation of faith around him to recount the praises of what God has done and to share in a thanksgiving (eucharistic) meal.

At the end of Psalm 22, as in the Gospels, the circle of praise should go out to embrace the whole world. It is a vision of inclusiveness that breaks down all the barriers that we, as humans, are too eager to set up. The death of Christ points us forward to the day when God’s kingdom will be all in all.

This year, once again, we will stand near the cross and hear Jesus’ cry anew. We know what he is saying. Do we understand its meaning and the challenge that it represents?

Psalm 22

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?

2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer; and by night, but find no rest.

3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.

4 In you our ancestors trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them.

5 To you they cried, and were saved; in you they trusted, and were not put to shame.

6 But I am a worm, and not human; scorned by others, and despised by the people.

7 All who see me mock at me; they make mouths at me, they shake their heads;

8 “Commit your cause to the Lord; let him deliver—let him rescue the one in whom he delights! “

9 Yet it was you who took me from the womb; you kept me safe from my mother’s breast.

10 On you I was cast from my birth, and since my mother bore me you have been my God.

11 Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.

12 Many bulls encircle me, strong bulls of B√£’shan surround me;

13 they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion.

14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast;

15 my mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death.

16 For dogs are all around me; a company of evildoers encircles me. My hands and feet have shriveled;

17 I can count all my bones. They stare and gloat over me;

18 they divide my clothes among themselves, and for my clothing they cast lots.

19 But you, O Lord, do not be far away! O my help, come quickly to my aid!

20 Deliver my soul from the sword, my life from the power of the dog!

21 Save me from the mouth of the lion! From the horns of the wild oxen, you have rescued me.

22 I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.

23 You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him; stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!

24 For he did not despise or abhor the affliction of the afflicted; he did not hide his face from me, but heard when I cried to him.

25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will pay before those who fear him.

26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord. May your hearts live forever!

27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord; and all the families of the nations shall worship before him.

28 For dominion belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations.

29 To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, and I shall live for him.

30 Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord,

31 and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn, saying that he has done it.

_{All Scripture citations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible.}

Every feast day has a story, and the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart is no exception.

Often that story recounts not only what we celebrate, but why and how the celebration came about. The narrative of the feast of the Sacred Heart is fascinating in that it includes not only our faith, but some political/social situations as well.

Just as we might view the birth of Jesus as the arrival of God’s love and light into a world grown cold and dark through sin, so we might view the growth of the devotion to the Sacred Heart as a response to the world grown cold though the religious confusion and a popular heresy of the time.

The Reformation had split the Church in the 16 th century, leaving many in confusion. Jansenism was growing rapidly, especially in France, during the 17th century. Jansenism, a theological approach based on the teachings of the Dutch theologian Cornelius Jansen, emphasized the sinfulness of the human condition resulting in a serious sense of guilt which, in turn, led to a diminishment in the frequency of the reception of Holy Communion among Catholics.

Confused and demoralized, Europe needed a renewal of the message of Christmas; a reminder of God’s love and mercy and a positive view of the sacredness of the human person.

Devotion to the love of God had been a part of popular devotion since the early days of the Church, and, with a few exceptions, the symbol of that love was the blood and water flowing from the wounded side of Christ as he hung on the cross. It was not until the 17th century, and the rise of a more affectionate approach to the humanity of Jesus, that devotion specifically to the heart of Jesus gained popularity.

Due to the work of Saint John Eudes, a feast in honor of Jesus’ heart was first celebrated on August 31, 1670. The devotion gained rapidly in popularity due to the visions of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque. In an apparition on June 16, 1675, Jesus specifically asked for a feast of the Sacred Heart on the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi—the celebration of the Body and Blood of Jesus. This requested feast was to be in reparation for the lack of gratitude people showed for the loving sacrifice that Jesus had made for them; the sacrifice made present in the Sacrament of the body and blood of Jesus, the Eucharist.

It was as though Jesus was repeating the words of John’s Gospel, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him” (Jn 3:17). A message that was very much needed in the world, especially in France, and that time.

Why the Heart?

The human heart has long been a symbol of love. At one time, it was viewed as the source of all human activity—intellectual and emotional. It has also metaphorically symbolized the center of things, such as the heart of a relationship or the heart of a city. It could also represent the character of a person, such as describing someone as having a good heart.

The examples could go on. Speaking then of Jesus’ heart carries many varied meanings—all pointing to his very human condition through which his divine love flows.

Pope Pius XII, in his 1956 encyclical on devotion to the Sacred Heart, Haurietis Aquas, spoke of the love of God being expressed by Jesus through a frail and fragile body since “in Him dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily.”

The pope also spoke of the body of Jesus possessing the complete range of human feelings and powers, and a heart that beat until his death on the cross; a heart that was then at one with his glorified body risen from the tomb which is still full of love for us.

Devotion to the Sacred Heart is devotion to Jesus and his love. It is a sign or a symbol of both the divine and human love that Jesus has for his Father and for us. It also symbolizes the interior life of Jesus which led to his willingness to lay down his life for us. It is a symbol based on our belief in the Incarnation—a firm belief that the second person of the Blessed Trinity became human with all the feelings, emotions, and desires we usually associate with the human heart. It is that human heart—directly united to the divine person—which expresses God’s love in a human way perfectly and purely since Jesus is free from sin.

The heart is an apt symbol, but there is something more than a symbol at work here. There is the very real love of Jesus for the world, a love that wells up from both the divine as well as the human natures of Jesus. Devotion to the Sacred Heart in grounded not just in symbol, but in real love.

The Inexhaustible Love of Jesus

We celebrate the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart right after the Easter Season and Pentecost and after Trinity Sunday and the feast of Corpus Christi. Many of us have tired of the celebrations—enough already! But if we can focus on just one more big day, we can see how the Sacred Heart of Jesus truly summarizes all the great feasts we have celebrated beginning with Christmas and followed by Easter. It is the feast of the love of the God-man who was born, rose, and lives forever.

Sometimes words are cheap; especially words expressing love. Just watch a few hours of television or listen to a few CDs and count the number of times love is mentioned. How often did it refer to more than an emotional feeling? How often did it include a sense of commitment and self-sacrifice? Or count the number of times we say that we love some inanimate object such as chocolate.

When Jesus says “I love you,” he backs it up with the sacrifice of his life. No cheap expression here; only sincere words backed up with a life of living proof. That is real love. And this is what we celebrate in the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart.

The reality boggles the mind. We cannot fathom what that kind of love means. True, some like the martyrs, for instance, have come close to imitating that love as they laid down their life for Jesus and the faith. But for the most part, we can’t come close to understanding it.

Then we turn to the symbol and the feast and stare into the sign of what it is we are celebrating. It truly is an apt symbol pointing to the reality of divine/human love.

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I believe in your love for me.

A strong faith is guiding this multitalented, young artist.

Paulina Cerrilla captured the nation’s attention four years ago with her appearance on The Voice, a television show that features top-notch talent competing for a recording contract. Chosen by musical artist Christina Aguilera to join her team, the Mexican American Cerrilla did well, though she did not make it through the battle rounds of the show’s third season.

Since then, Cerrilla has racked up more than 124,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel, with more than 28 million views of her music videos. She starred in a short film, String Theory, and is a CoverGirl spokesmodel. Her bilingual abilities and ethnic background make her appealing to a variety of demographics. Additionally, a Christmas song she composed was picked up by Girls’ Generation, the biggest K-pop (Korean pop music) group in Korea, and at least one of her songs will be featured on the next album from Reik, a Latin Grammy Award-winning group from Mexico.

Through it all, the 21-year-old Cerrilla has maintained her faith, starring in several faith-based productions made by Family Theater Productions.

“I do a lot of my praying in Spanish. I carry my Bible everywhere. I journal, too. I write down my thoughts and what I’m reflecting on for the day. The way that I pray, it’s just kind of interesting,” Cerrilla says in an interview with St. Anthony Messenger.

A Star Is Born

Her mother and father, Mexican immigrants, raised Paulina in Texas. She began singing opera and Andrea Bocelli songs when she was 3. She would sing at family and friend gatherings. “I just loved performing,” she says. She began receiving vocal lessons when she was 7.

“I feel like it was something that just came so naturally to me,” Cerrilla says of her musical gifts. “There was never a moment or something that happened in the middle of the night. I know that happens for some people. But for me, I feel like I was born knowing what I needed to do.”

When Cerrilla was 9, she discovered that she also wanted to act. She auditioned for an off-Broadway play in Houston. It is customary for touring shows to audition local children to be part of the production in the city where they’re performing rather than travel with the children.

“I came in with no acting experience whatsoever. I got the role. ‘What acting school do you go to?’ they asked me. I said, ‘I don’t.’ And they said,’You should. Because you’re kinda good.’ ‘Thanks.'” When she tells stories, Cerrilla does different voices for the different characters.

When she was 12, she moved to Los Angeles with her mother to start her career. She signed with music manager Joe Simpson, Jessica Simpson’s father, and began working with music and film producers. Her father stayed in Texas to support them.

“My parents—I have never met two people with so much selfless love, grace, and just . . . they’re just the most wonderful people,” she says, searching for words to describe her parents’ generosity, but feeling as if she’s fallen short.

Struggling with Rejection

It was a trying time for her and her family. She says the most challenging part of her work was rejection at auditions. “I took these meetings [when I was] 13–14 years old; it makes you grow up really fast.”

The rejections were difficult because she still believed she was called to share her talent. “But then you look back at your track record. ‘OK, eight years.'” The ratio of meetings and auditions to actual jobs is dismal. Cerrilla, who is lively and smiles a lot when she talks, is more still when she talks about the rejections.

“Here it’s very tough. There are no numbers. There’s no spreadsheet for success,” she says. “When it comes to acting, auditioning on a daily basis: No. No. No. No. And it’s all right. Honestly, I’m used to it. I go to an audition and know not to expect a call back, whereas in a job interview they at least have the decency to call you and tell you that you didn’t get the job. It’s brutal.”

It wore on her in her early teen years. She channeled some of that into her music. Yet Cerrilla wasn’t new to adversity. She had to face it from an early age. Spanish was her first language, and teachers at her elementary school threatened to hold her back because they mistook the light-skinned Latina’s accent for a speech impediment.

“There are tons of us of every color. Mexicans—we can be black, we can be white, but people tend to think of us as brown,” Cerrilla says. She dyed her hair black for some of her roles, but it’s naturally red.

“At all these auditions [the roles] are for non-Spanish-speaking Latinas. So you would have brown girl, brown girl, brown girl, white girl with a spray tan, brown girl, brown girl . . . and it doesn’t make me any less Latina,” she says of her light skin and red hair. “I speak more Spanish than half of these girls do. I’m not ‘half.’ I’m Mexican.”

Heritage-Inspired Faith

She credits her heritage for her devotion to San Judas Tadeo—St. Jude Thaddeus—and to Our Lady of Guadalupe. She’s visited the tilma (cloak) at the Basilica of St. Mary of Guadalupe in Mexico City many times. It inspires her to see the faith of the pilgrims who walk on their knees for hundreds, if not thousands, of feet to see the image of the Blessed Mother.

“You can’t not feel close to her when you see something that amazing,” she says of the faith of the pilgrims. She also notes the devotion of the Mexican people to St. John Paul II, recalling how they greeted the late pope when he arrived in Mexico: “Juan Pablo Segundo . . . te quiere todo el mundo.” (“John Paul II, the whole world loves you.”)

Yet while the family passed on the faith to her at an early age, she continues to grow into it.

“Yes, I grew up in the Catholic faith. But I feel like, you’re Mexican, you’re Catholic. So I feel like I’ve kind of had to find it by myself. That’s not to say that my family isn’t Catholic. My grandmas are so intensely Catholic, like let’s-have-10-children Catholic. Catholic-Catholic.”

Working with Family Theater Productions on faith-based projects strengthened her faith, she says. Cerrilla noticed a difference from the moment she stepped on the set. Holy Cross Father David Guffey stopped all the work and prayed over the production.

“It was something that completely changed the tone. We were working for something that was much bigger than ourselves,” she says. “We wanted the film to be a way for people to find their path, so, you know, we had to put our personal interests aside to create a truly wonderful, impactful project. That’s what made working on this series of films so special, because it wasn’t necessarily for us.”

While she’s always been Catholic, working with Family Theater was a turning point. “I always knew how to light the candle, and pray the rosary, and who to pray towhen I needed it,” she says. “But I didn’t understand what it was like to have a day-in, day-out relationship. That’s what I’m working on now. That’s why I have my Bible.”

She has a large wooden crucifix that hangs in her bedroom, a present purchased by Family Theater’s Susan Wallace during last year’s Religious Education Congress. Being strong in her faith is as important to her as her aspirations to share her musical and acting gifts through various platforms.

Plans for the Future

While she plans on continuing to do faith-based projects, she believes she can reach a far broader audience through other avenues. She sees herself as a mainstream artist, hopefully opening for a major artist on tour in the next year or two.

“I think we can create a career that isn’t a singer trying to be an actress or an actress trying to be a singer,” Cerrilla explains. “We can truly create two credible, stable careers in both facets.”

“I kind of want to be like Justin Timberlake. He does his music; he’s awesome. He does his films; he’s awesome. He’s a very credible actor. But I want to extend beyond that. I also want to do fashion. I want to touch as many people as possible and just share my passions. Yeah, I have big ambitions.”

Her drive for success is apparent in her many projects. In 2015, Cerrilla starred in Family Theater’s 40 Hours, which depicts the lessons a high school girl learns during her 40 hours of community service at a soup kitchen, based on Andr√© House in Phoenix. In another role, Cerrilla was a natural fit to play a musician on a youth retreat in Down from the Mountaintop, a TV film for which she composed an original song. These two roles followed Family Dinner, in which Cerrilla played the lead in a film about the true meaning of love.

Films and music that deal with darker subject matter can serve a purpose, too, Cerrilla says. “People need to see where life can take [them] so that they don’t necessarily feel curious to take that path themselves. So if we keep on creating all this bright and sunny content, they’ll think, That’s cool, but that’s normal. Let’s try this. They don’t necessarily realize where that can take you. There’s definitely a place for darker content, and that can be used for the light.

“Thankfully, I haven’t been exposed to really terrible things. I’m actually kind of sheltered, and I think that’s a good thing. Because I’ve seen the way certain things have affected people in the industry, I don’t need to experiment,” she says, adding that she never “felt inclined to break the rules.”

Having worked with her on different projects at Family Theater, writer-director Tony Sands believes Cerrilla could be on the cusp of a breakthrough.

“No one ever knows, but some people just kind of have ‘it.’ And I would say she does,” says the Hollywood veteran, who worked on special effects for Space Jam and Titanic. “Here you have a person who has the discipline and the drive and the gifts to make it,” Sands explains. “Obviously, God alone knows. But you have someone here who has every possibility of being a major star in the near future.”

If that happens, Cerrilla wants to follow in the footsteps of Taylor Swift. “She’s very accessible, girl next door. She’s kind of dorky. She’s not afraid to be herself. But she’s also a very confident, empowering figure for girls. And I really admire her for that.”

Cerrilla is confident, too, and comfortable with herself. She gives her full attention when catching up with her friends at Family Theater. Whatever roles she takes on, she’s committed to staying true to herself.

“As long as I’ve been in the business, I’ve never been as excited to work with an artist, ” says Richard Ellis, Cerrilla’s manager. “When she walks into a room, it’s not put on; it’s not rehearsed. She has an attractive, engaging quality that everyone responds to.”

Ellis, who’s been in the business for decades, describes Cerrilla as “a really good kid who happens to have a lot of talent.” With the strength of her convictions, she can be a role model to young Latinas.

“In this industry you can get lost in the glamour and the music. And the films can portray things that you don’t necessarily believe in,” Cerrilla says. “I take pride in the fact that I’m not going around with guys. I would like people to know me, and despite whatever I end up doing or being portrayed as in the media, I’m going to fight very hard to maintain my integrity. I would want people to know that there can be a person just like them fighting the fight and trying to be a good person.”

Most of us have friends or family members who have left the Church. How do we respond in faith?

If you want to increase your stress and anxiety, or fear and sadness, peruse some of the research on the status of religious beliefs and behaviors in our country. According to a recent Pew Research Survey, there has been a drop in the number of people who pray daily, regularly attend services, and consider religion “very important in their lives,” with the belief in the existence of God also dropping from 71 percent in 2007 to 63 percent in 2014.

While approximately 75 percent of US adults are religiously affiliated, a growing minority do not belong to any organized faith, identifying as atheists or agnostics, or describing their religion as “nothing in particular.” And as the latter group, known as nones, increases in size, their level of religious observance is declining, which, according to the study, “is tugging down the nation’s overall rates of religious belief and practice.”

She continues: “Since college, four of my five kids went from being religious to nonreligious, and their children have no formal religion or practice. It seems that the more educated they get, the less religious they are. Only one and her spouse and children regularly go to church. The four others only go to church for weddings and funerals, and haven’t even had their children baptized. Their mantra is that they can be spiritual without religion. I just think my kids are taking the wrong path and cheating their kids. I wonder what’s going to happen to our Church and religion when our grandchildren are adults. What will they give to their children in regards to religion and God? I don’t know what to do.”

What can we do to get our religion and the Catholic Church to resonate in our families and friends?

Although Christ always made an impact, he never changed anyone without their cooperation or dialogue. While we can’t change anyone, like Christ, we can be merciful and patiently available.

We read the negative statistics of decreasing Mass attendance, reception of sacraments, and the number of priests. We know that special programs and communal events often draw relatively few people. Furthermore, we get discouraged when we see that the majority of supporters are senior citizens, with the young and educated in the minority. Asking elderly people for their time, talent, and treasure evokes dispiriting weariness. Church and school closings fuel the dismal atmosphere, while political setbacks, periodic scandals, and too many leaders who fail to walk their talk add to our pervasive and unspoken fear.

Some people think that part of our crisis is due to our theologies, pastoral letters, and homilies being too abstract and not very relevant or helpful to most people. They want their leaders to show how religion helps them to manage more effectively and to live more meaningfully. Others argue that we subscribe too much to business and social media models rather than to spiritual ones, or point to Church scandals, inept leadership, and cultural or political secularization. They feel that the Church leaders still whitewash their dark side, choosing expediency over mercy.

Connecting with the ‘Lost Sheep’

With utmost respect for the people who are doing so much in and for the Church, I would like to offer some ideas that challenge and hopefully help some of our existing approaches. My perspective comes from my experience as a clinical psychologist and belief that spiritual or God stuff is the paramount dynamic of a healthy, happy, and holy life. So, let’s start.

I think that we may make a mistake when our focus is on bringing them into the fold. With good intentions, we can risk setting up an us-them dichotomy that turns people off or pushes them away, the opposite of what we want. With benevolent arrogance and stubbornness, we may believe that we have the truth, and they don’t. It may behoove us not to be so sure.

Before getting them to come to our welcome centers, programs, or liturgies, it may often be better first to go to their fold. Instead of luring the lost sheep, we can search for them. Maybe we can discover why they avoid us or refuse our spiritual nourishment.

I suggest we first join and simply be with them, manifesting God without saying anything about religion or God. We can, however, strive to see, hear, and respond to God’s truth and love that abides within our nonchurched, nonreligious, and religiously inactive.

In short, we initially visit them, keeping our mouths shut and our ears and hearts open. In love, we may come closer to becoming one and more likely to dialogue.

Preparing for Hard Questions

As that dialogue begins, we need to be ready for the questions that may arise—asked not to challenge us but for their own enlightenment. The following are questions we might find necessary to answer: Why can’t I live a good life without religion and a church? How is religion worth my time, energy, money, and commitment? Can you show me how Catholicism or any religion and its God can help me and others live better lives?

How do we respond to our inactive and unchurched brothers and sisters (the lost sheep) who criticize our messy, sinful, and arrogant Church? How do we respond to their questions about birth control, homosexuality, male dominance, double standards of justice, celibacy, sex scandals, etc.?

How do we dialogue with people who think that religion is an illusion, the opium of the masses, or an unnecessary or irrational belief to ameliorate our existential anxiety of death? Finally, what can we learn from the nontheistic philosophers, psychologists, scientists, popular speakers, and best-selling authors of books on atheism and agnosticism?

Before speaking, we must be aware of and avoid acting on ambivalent thoughts and feelings that accuse nones of being arrogant in their self-sufficiency, foolish in not needing religion and its communal worship, and naïve in acting as if they are the center of the universe. By suppressing our own demons, we are freer from pulling rank, criticizing, correcting, blaming, or shaming. Instead of fighting or fleeing, we are freer to listen and learn.

Standing together on common ground, we are freer to explore our differences.

Remember, although Christ always made an impact, he never changed anyone without their cooperation or dialogue. While we can’t change anyone, like Christ, we can be merciful and patiently available. While we can and should offer our points of view firmly and kindly, like Christ, it’s not about being right. It’s about manifesting God.

When someone asks me why and how I, as a health scientist and provider, can believe in God and support a Church and its religion, I might say, “It’s not always easy.” But I add that, after considerable searching and study, as well as uncertain journeys, I have found and am finding that God, religion, and its activities are the best imperfect systems that help me to be and do better. For me, faith (God) takes the lead in its dance with reason (science).

So, are we losing our religion? Looks like it. Will matters get worse before they get better? Probably. Will we suffer in order to progress? Yes. Will we revive and improve our religion? Eventually. Will nones become more formally religious? Some. Will the inactive religious become active? Potentially. Will we be better off? Hopefully.

Regardless of what happens, let us dance with our nones, inactive Church members, and actively religious people. Let us listen and move to our individual and common music. However we believe, our most important way is to keep on dancing to God’s silent music. Then maybe someday, someone (your spouse, child, grandchild, sibling, friend, or a stranger) might pause and look at you dancing. They may wonder how you came to this divine dance. Though reluctant, they may want to learn how to dance as you do. God only knows who may give it a try.

Sidebar: Bringing God to the Nones

Here are seven suggestions to bring nones, inactive Church members, or anyone to God, religion, and Church.

1. Strive to connect in love with one another. Go to their places to walk and talk, laugh and cry, party and mourn, live and die.
2. Accept (neither condone nor condemn) and understand their vision. Affirm what makes sense to you, and honestly question and learn from someone with whom you disagree.
3. Encounter and dialogue with nones and inactive Church members with a sincere attitude of learning what they can teach you.
4. Manifest and offer examples of how God, religion, and Church make a significant difference in your everyday living.
5. If some think that God is unnecessary, ask them what they mean by God. You may find that you, too, do not subscribe to the version of God they describe. If they want to know, share your notions and experiences of God.
6. After educating without preaching, explain how God, prayer, reading, communal worship, and religious practices help you to be a better spouse, parent, adult child, sibling, friend, worker, or simply a better human being.
7. No matter what, be mindful of and present to God in yourself and in others. Be a member of Christ’s body, the living Church.