A time of resistance?

 

This seems pretty straightforward. I wonder why we are having such a hard time following it . . .

Fourteenth Amendment, Section 1 (of the United States Constitution):

"All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

I know the recent Supreme Court ruling was directly aimed at the scope of lower court decisions, but still, we need to be sure we protect the birthright of those born in the United States by following the Constitution.

And not only that, but according to the Fourteenth Amendment, we shouldn't deprive any PERSON due process and equal protection. 

While I do not promote violence even in resistance, this quote often attributed to Thomas Jefferson seems applicable:

"When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty."

We need to speak up at every turn of injustice. A chipping away at the Constitution needs to be gracefully, non-violently resisted.

It is important to address topics that concern human rights. 

In fact, one of the themes of Catholic Social Teaching says: 

"The intentional targeting of civilians in war or terrorist attacks is always wrong. Catholic teaching also calls on us to work to avoid war. Nations must protect the right to life by finding increasingly effective ways to prevent conflicts and resolve them by peaceful means. We believe that every person is precious, that people are more important than things, and that the measure of every institution is whether it threatens or enhances the life and dignity of the human person."

And so I ask, "Are we threatening, or enhancing, the life and dignity of the human person today?" 

That is the question we need to face; the answer we are giving seems pretty obvious. 

We need to be very careful how we continue in our current state of affairs, for if we disregard the life and dignity of every human person, we will surely one day pay for the injustices we inflict upon others.

Janet Cassidy
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Bombs will never bring peace

 

                                                                                                           

      The New York Times                                   

Bombs will never bring peace. They can't. They are designed to destroy their target, so it is not within their design to bring peace.

We can always hope for peace, and that is a good thing. The problem is, we equate quiet and idleness with peace, which they are not. We can have quiet between countries for awhile, but that in no way represents that we have long-term peace.

The illusion of peace is deceptive.

To achieve true, lasting peace, there must not only be a genuine desire for it, but a willingness to sacrifice power and ego. There must be an ideological mindset, which necessarily includes emotional restraint, fueled by wisdom and humility.

We must continue to work hard on diplomacy if we are going to make any progress. Diplomacy may not work perfectly, as history has shown us, but it certainly has the potential to save lives.

Our hearts should cry out for the innocents of Israel, Palestine and Iran, as well as migrants and others throughout the world who are suffering so much. Families, including children, whose lives are completely upended, who lack food, shelter and protection, do not deserve to be caught in the crossfire. 

Today, we simply must do everything we can to avoid violence. As I said, bombs do not--cannot--bring lasting peace. Let's put our hope for peace in a proper perspective.

The striving for peace can look a lot different than what we might think. 

I am reading Pope Francis' autobiography (HOPE) and in it there is a picture of him bending down and "kneeling before the leaders of South Sudan to beg for peace."

A genuine display of humility probably looks awkward and useless to a world that looks for hope in strength and destruction.  

What did G.K.Chesterton say?

"Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried."

We need to be patient and do the hard work of diplomacy, trying our best to turn things around, for the sake of all humanity, as lives are being lost.

Again, bombs will never bring, true long-lasting peace. They can't. They are always followed by more destruction, something we seriously cannot afford.

Pray for peace. 

Janet Cassidy
Email me at:  jmctm2@gmail.com

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Get in the game!

 

Every summer as a celebration of our son's birthday, we find a Detroit Tigers game to go to. To say he is a big sports fan (any sport) is a tremendous understatement.

We have a system that works for us. We always go on a Saturday night to avoid the Friday night work traffic. We always pick a night game so we do not swelter in the afternoon sun. We even pick our favorite seats up above home plate.

Yes, we have it figured out as we have been doing this for decades, and it works for us. 

I was thinking about this as I listened to a baseball team analogy by Fr. Al Lauer (decd.) on "Daily Bread" by Presentation Ministries (May 29, 2025.)  

Fr. Lauer imagined a baseball team that only had four players--a pitcher, an infielder, an outfielder and a catcher.

He talked about how ridiculous it would be if the other 20 something players were either sitting in the dugout or observing from the stands.

Then he went on to describe how ridiculous it would be if we, as members of the Body of Christ, were also inactive in the Church, and just "sat it out" in the pews or just observed from the stands.

Are you inactive, even though you are part of the Church's "team"?

The Church is on mission and we can all participate in that mission, in some way.

If we are not physically active anymore, we can certainly be listening disciples, responding to the needs of others. Retired teachers or experienced parents can share their experiences and encourage others to lean into their faith as well. 

To a generation that often places money and position high on the ladder of success--even above family and service sometimes--team members who have learned how futile and dangerous that is need to come off the bench.

Now is the time. 

Just imagine, a baseball team with only four active players, or a Church with a minimal number of active parishioners!

Neither will score very big, that's for sure!

Janet Cassidy
Email me at:  jmctm2@gmail.com

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