"We don't trust in all these things, fine as they may be and as important as the role that they play," he said. Read more

This is the truism that is at the basis of every system of ethics - both those that have been written down and the countless others that have never achieved that level of formality.

Moreover, it is the presence or absence of particular virtues that often determine the differences between groups. Different styles of society call forth from their members' different values of behaviour.

In a clericalist Church, the most widespread virtue needed by the majority of the members is the virtue of obedience.

Obedience to the hierarchy was even included in the old list of the "Six Commandments of the Church". And any act of disobedience was punishable by canon law.

The highest compliment that could be paid to a Catholic layman was that he or she "was a loyal son or daughter of the church".

By this was meant that the person obeyed the rules and did not seek - for instance as a politician - to limit the scope of the Church leaders to use their position to influence legislation, control hospitals and schools, and perhaps act as the "guardians" of 'public morality.'

In such a simple two-tier society the relationship between clerics and laity was analogous to officers and those in lower ranks. Power descended, and obedience and loyalty joined the two levels together to form the society of the Church.

It is this virtue system that is often summarized in this phrase: the laity is there to pray, pay and obey.

New situation, new virtues

But if we are to move to a synodal Church we will have to discover and learn to live with a new set of virtues.

A basic idea of synodality is that bishops came from a variety of places and met together - the place of the synod was, in effect, a crossroads.

Once they met, they had to trust one another that each was working in his own place - near or far - for the good of the whole group.

This is the virtue of mutual trust.

But what does mutual trust look like in the new synodal Church we are seeking to bring into being?

Trust within a Eucharistic community

Clearly, the majority of each community - "the laity" - are expected to trust the presbyter who presides at their celebrations. They are expected to trust that he is working both for their good and the good of the whole People of God.

They trust that he is giving careful attention to the liturgy; for example, that he thinks and prepares carefully each time he seeks to break open the Word of God in a homily. And they truest his giving careful attention to the poor of the community and to the sick, as well.

They also have to trust that in the virtue of the presbyter being the public face of that Church. And they must trust that, in so far as he takes on that public role, he is a model of Christian service.

This is not just the trust that the community places in their presbyter - and for which they sustain him with their contributions -, but this is what the formal structures of the wider Church expect of him as expressed in canon law.

Truth or Distrust? A basic question in every community

It is this trust that has often been shattered in the last couple of decades by the scandals of abuse that keep coming out in country after country.

The problem will continue, partly because we are fearful of looking deeply at the problem and partly out of our embarrassment.

Every organization tends to diminish the extent of the problem in a vain hoping that it will preserve the organization's public face.

But that still leaves this fact: a community needs to place trust in the person who presides at the Eucharist.

They have to see him as leading them as a beloved brother in their sacrifice of praise to the Father in union with Christ.

They have to trust in him as their teacher, guide, confidante and healer - that he will be the Spirit's instrument in guiding them along the pilgrimage of faith.

Vice-versa

But if the community has to trust the presbyter, the presbyter has also to trust the community of the baptized because it is they together who constitute the priestly people of God.

For Roman Catholics, it goes — almost without saying — that those in the community have to trust in the sacrament of Holy Orders. But the harder task is the ordained have to trust in the sacrament of baptism.

Every presbyter has baptized many people; sadly, very few really believe what the Church - not just the western, Roman church - believes about baptism.

But if the Holy Spirit lives in the heart of every baptized person, then that person deserves trust and respect within the Church.

The Prayer of the Faithful

A few years ago a parish priest in Scotland wanted to create a Sunday synodal liturgy in his parish. The community would bring their gifts to the gathering each week and share them with the community of the baptized in their thanksgiving to the Father.

So this presbyter set up several little groups of three or four people who would take it in turn to prepare the Prayer of the Faithful. And to help them, he instructed them in the theology of this action and gave them training in doing it well.

This might seem surprising because, in many places, this part of the Sunday gathering is mistakenly called the "prayers of the faithful" as if it was just a list of "give me" prayers.

In other places, it is called "the bidding prayers". Again, this conveys the idea of listing what we want.

The Prayer of the Faithful is, in fact, the intercession of the new priestly people - who are made such by their baptism for the world, the whole Church of God, all who are in need and for their particular needs.

This is a priestly act of entering into the presence of God - and standing there as a people - and making intercession.

The roots of this are in Judaism and the daily work of the tribe of Levi, the cohenim. It is an expression of the new, unique priesthood of the Risen Christ in which we all, as the holy People of God, take part.

The ordained brother who presides takes part in this prayer by virtue of his baptism, not his ordination.

The Prayer of the Faithful can be seen as an expression of the synodal Church in action.

But what about trust?

A new, young priest came to the parish in Scotland and did not like what his predecessor had done. He was going to lead the liturgy and only he was going to lead the liturgy!

His first step was to require the group who prepared the Prayers of the Faithful to show him - for his approval - what they were going to say. Then he vetoed texts that did not fit with his own vision of the Church. He wanted them to use his texts or to read them from a book.

The prayer shifted from being an expression of this particular community of the baptized to being one more formula read out for them. This Church was no longer making its specific and unique intercession, but simply agreeing to something.

The people were naturally hurt that their efforts, and their ministry to their sisters and brothers, were being set aside.

One said: "He just wants us to pray, pay and obey in his words!"

"He thinks in terms of a clerical church!" said another.

And another said: 'He simply does not trust us!'

All agreed that that was the basic problem.

This presbyter simply did not trust his community.

He did not trust what we believe about baptism.

He did not trust that the Spirit speaks in the hearts of the faithful

And he simply did not trust that when the three or four people are gathered to compose a text for the Prayer of the Faithful on Sunday that the Lord Jesus was among them.

Plain and simple, this presbyter does not trust the faithful.

Trust is a two-way street

Every time I meet a bishop, a presbyter or a deacon, I hear concern over the sad fact that they have largely lost the trust of the people.

But when I talk to groups of lay Catholics, they are usually more concerned that they are not trusted by their clergy.

Trust goes both ways. It is a basic value for synodality.

Unless our presbyters learn to trust the People of God, the synodal Church will not come into being.

• Thomas O'Loughlin is a presbyter of the Catholic Diocese of Arundel and Brighton and professor-emeritus of historical theology at the University of Nottingham (UK). His latest book is Eating Together, Becoming One: Taking Up Pope Francis's Call to Theologians (Liturgical Press, 2019).
• First published in La Croix International. Republished with permission.

Without trust, people refuse to cooperate and instead engage in struggles over power because they fear what will happen if their opponents have it.

Today, we see this in the highly charged partisan character of American politics and in the Catholic Church, where the hierarchy has lost credibility.

A lack of trust provides fertile ground for conspiracy theories from both the left and right.

When I attended Catholic grammar school in the 1950s, our history books were filled with positive stories about America and the Catholic Church.

For the most part, the books fostered a love and respect for political and religious leaders and institutions.

The church was the source of all truth and goodness; America was the home of the brave and the free.

Where there were bad spots — and we all know there were more than a few — they were presented as all in the past and as the actions of individuals, not systemic problems. Little attention was given to the Inquisition and intolerance in the church or slavery and racism in American society. Homophobia and sexism were not words in our vocabulary although they existed all around us.

Rather, the focus was on the triumphant expansion of the Catholic Church. American Catholics were winning their place in American society. America had defeated fascism and was in a Cold War with demonic communism. The culture fostered self-sacrifice and commitment to religious ideals and patriotism.

For my generation, political cynicism began with the Vietnam conflict, during which thousands bravely gave their lives in a war that should have never been waged. We were constantly lied to about why we were there, what was happening and what would happen if we left. I believed those lies almost to the bitter end.

We also saw great leaders assassinated while others proved to be fatally flawed by ambition and lust.

For the church, the turning point was the 1968 papal encyclical "Humanae Vitae," which forbade the use of contraceptives. Suddenly, the all-wise church showed itself to be wrong in the minds of almost all Catholic couples. No one believed that God would punish couples who used contraceptives — or, for that matter, teenagers who masturbated — with the same punishment as Hitler: hellfire for all eternity.

These experiences made us suspicious of political and religious leaders, but perhaps not suspicious enough. When the George W. Bush administration said that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, we allowed ourselves to be fooled again.

Meanwhile, the Vatican was doubling down on its waning authority by persecuting theologians who challenged church teaching and by appointing unthinking loyalists as bishops. When the sex abuse disaster hit, it destroyed for most Catholics what was left of the hierarchy's credibility. Pope Francis has helped a bit, but even he at times has stumbled.

Politically, things have only gotten worse. President Trump has been so fast and loose with the facts that progressives will not believe anything he says, even if it is against a bad regime like Iran. Worse yet, our allies have lost trust in him. Many Democrats promise one-size-fits-all solutions to complex problems without honestly saying how they will be paid for.

Restoring trust is not easy.

The U.S. bishops thought that an apology and removing bad priests from ministry would solve the problem. Sorry. Not that easy. A husband who cheats on his wife will not fix things with a simple apology. He will have to apologize in word and deed for the rest of his life.

Recently bishops have been shown to have covered up or not fully explained their failures to deal with sex abuse in the past. Total transparency can also help because cover-ups always make matters worse. Even the suspicion of a cover-up makes trust impossible.

I am not suggesting that we return to the naivete of the 1950s. But neither can we remain in opposing camps that simply lob insults at the other side. Dialogue is essential. Listening is essential to dialogue. Unless we understand the perspective of others, we cannot find common ground for action.

The Catholic Church has a special responsibility and opportunity for bridging the partisan divide in America because as a church we are almost evenly divided between Republican and Democrats.

The church must not be seen as endorsing parties or candidates. Denying Communion, for instance, to politicians who take positions opposed by the bishops does not help. Rather, parishes must bring together Catholic Republicans and Democrats to have dialogue and work for the common good.

I would love to see bishops invite Catholic politicians of both parties to a series of off-the-record dinners where they could share their hopes and dreams as well as search for common ground.

St. Ignatius Loyola, the Jesuit who lived in the time of the Inquisition, taught in his "Spiritual Exercises" that good Christians should be "more ready to put a good interpretation on another's statement than to condemn it as false."

Too often, we put the most negative interpretation on a person's statements and presume bad will if we see them as an opponent. Like any family, we have to learn how to search for consensus but, if necessary, disagree amicably.

Unless we build bridges and trust, neither the church nor America has much of a future.

• Thomas Reece SJ is is a senior analyst at Religion News Service, and a former columnist at National Catholic Reporter, and a former editor-in-chief of the weekly Catholic magazine America.

The same survey shows that the perceived change in personal trust in churches in the same period to be greater than the participants' answers actually indicate.

The results indicate a score of 7 for reduced net trust. The perceived net reduced trust was scored 23.

The Colmar Brunton survey asked people how much they trust key groups such as government ministers, police, medical practitioners, churches, charities, small businesses, the media and bloggers.

The 2018 survey also scored charities as significantly less trustworthy than they were in 2016.

But when compared with 2016, New Zealanders are significantly more trusting of police, judges and courts, local government, government ministers and members of parliament.

Medical practitioners and police are perceived to be the most trustworthy.

The media, bloggers and online commentators are least trustworthy.

These results were obtained by a random survey of 1,000 New Zealanders aged 18 years and over.

They were interviewed online from 26 February to 4 March 2018.

In total, 472 respondents completed both the 2016 and 2018 surveys. The remaining respondents were new to the survey in 2018 and were randomly sourced from Colmar Brunton's online panel and invited to take part.

The data also points to differences in overall trust levels across age groups, with older people being more trusting.

Of those aged 60 or older, 62 percent reported a high level of trust generally in people, compared with 38 percent high trust in the 18-29 year old group and 44 percent for those aged 30 to 59.

"It is unclear if we observe this pattern because people trust more as they age," says researcher Dr Chapple, "or whether younger people today are generally less trusting than young people a generation ago. But overseas evidence suggests that trust levels may be falling in younger generations."

The survey was commissioned by the Institute for Governance and Policy Studies, and School of Government of Victoria University of Wellington.

Source

• victoria.ac.nz
• victoria.ac.nz
• Image: psychologytoday.com

The money became available when, in 2016, the Sisters of the Good Shepherd returned the proceeds from the sale of property in Halswell in the south-west of Christchurch.

The diocese had given the land to the sisters in the 19th century to establish an outreach known as Mount Magdala.

A committee has been formed to make recommendations to the bishop on how the funds should be allocated.

From the beginning of next year, trusts, parishes and schools in the Canterbury region will be able to apply to the fund for grants to support their work with people in need.

The funds will be available to help women, children and families in the Canterbury region so as to honour the original intention of Mount Magdala.

Mount Magdala was the brainchild of Fr Laurence Ginaty who, in the 1870-80s, had been working as a prison chaplain.

As a result of this work, Ginaty became aware of the plight of many women and children living in poverty.

He wanted to establish a place for them to live in and, while there, develop skills that would allow them to improve their lot.

It took years of hard work before this vision began to take shape but, with the help of two sisters of the Good Shepherd, Mount Magdala was established in 1888 on the small farm at Halswell.

At its height, Mount Magdala was home to 25 sisters, 159 young women, 62 orphans and eight workmen.

But, as the nature of social outreach changed, numbers dwindled and Mount Magdala closed in 1966.

The land was sold to become part of the Aidanfield subdivision.

In the Te Reo translation of the Bible, the word ‘hoatu' appears a number of times. In particular, Matthew 7:9-11 refers to God knowing the needs of his children and giving them what they need.

Source

• Inform
• The Marist Messenger
• Image: 3.bp.blogspot

But Olivier and Xristilla Roussy said their experience with contraception was not a good one.

After their third child was born, Mr Roussy said, Xristilla was exhausted; they thought that using the pill for a few months would help their marriage, "but it had the opposite effect".

He said his wife was always "in a bad mood, desire was absent and her joy disappeared".

In addition, he said, they both "understood we closed the door to the Lord in our conjugal life".

So they resorted back to Natural Family Planning, but this too, was not always easy, Mr Roussy explained.

Sexual desire increases during a woman's fertile period, but talking to one another and exercising discipline teaches trust and tenderness, he said.

"We have found these methods are reliable," he said, "even though we must admit that when we did not contain our desire, an infant came nine months later."

At the synod, Brazilians Arturo and Hermelinda As Zamberline asked that the Church stop giving "contradictory advice" on contraception, which only aggravates confusion.

The Zamberlines, married for 41 years and with three children, admitted that many Catholic couples in Brazil don't feel troubled by using artificial contraception.

The couple said natural methods of family planning had an "unjust reputation of being unreliable".

But they said such methods were often badly explained and thus badly practised.

Introducing the couple to the assembly, Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois of Paris warned of the demographic consequences of a widespread "contraceptive mentality".

In the first week of the synod, a married couple would give an address to start each new session of the gathering.

Sources

• National Catholic Reporter
• National Catholic Reporter
• Image: Eglise Catholique en France

The results of a poll by the Warsaw-based CBOS polling agency reveal a significant decline of public trust regarding religion in Poland.

The poll showed a significant increase in Poles who think there is no direct link between religion and morality - a jump from 33 per cent in 2009 to 41 cent now - and a decrease in the number of people who believe that religion is the only source of morality - from 24 per cent in 2009 to 16 per cent now.

The reason that people were trusting their own consciences above what the Church taught was because "the moral teaching of the Catholic Church seems to be paralysing the individual's choices", said Tadeusz Bartos, professor of philosophy at the Humanistic Academy in Pultusk.

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Father Brian Lucas, the general secretary of the Australian Catholic Bishops conference, said he would never betray the trust of a victim if they didn't want to go to police about abuse allegations.

The inquiry is investigating claims the Catholic Church covered up abuse by two Maitland-Newcastle priests, Father James Fletcher and Father Denis McAlinden.

Father Lucas, a former lawyer, told the inquiry he had a special role in the 1990s around New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory to persuade paedophile priests to resign.

Father Lucas said he dealt with about 35 priests, "seducing" more than 10 of them with "strong armed" tactics into agreeing to resign the priesthood.

He said the best way of keeping children safe from priestly abuse was to take the offending priest out of the ministry, and that was his priority.

He said "it staggers me and shocks me" that McAlinden practised as a priest and worked at a school of 7000 children in the Philippines after his priestly faculties were removed in Australia in 1993.

Father Lucas said he took no notes during his interviews with the priests. Questioned by counsel, he agreed that this was because he did not want notes disclosed in any subsequent legal process, but also said if he took notes the priests would not have said anything.

He said it was a "serious and well understood dilemma" within church legal circles that clergy risked being charged with the crime of misprision of a felony, or concealing a serious offence, if they did not go to police with victims' complaints when victims did not want them to.

He said the Church's reputation or the risk of scandal was "irrelevant" to him in a situation where he had to choose between risking criminal liability for misprision of a felony and betraying a victim's wishes. He would choose to respect the victim's wishes, he said.

Sources:

7 News

ABC

South Coast Register

Image: Sydney Morning Herald

The way Jesus prayed to his Father "teaches us that in our own prayers, we must always trust in the Father's will and strive to see all things in light of his mysterious plan of love," he said during his weekly general audience Dec. 14.

In his catechesis to nearly 6,000 people in the Vatican audience hall, Pope Benedict continued a series of talks on Christian prayer.

Everyone should seek to understand that when asking something of God in prayer, "we mustn't expect the immediate fulfillment of what we are asking for, of our will, but rather trust in the will of the Father," the pope said.

Requests, praise and thanks must be included in every prayer. "even when it seems to us that God is not living up to our real expectations," he said.

Prayer is a dialogue with God and entails "abandoning oneself to God's love," he said.

The most important thing to discover, the pope said, is that the one who answers humanity's prayers is more important than the actual prayers answered.

Jesus showed that before grace is received, one must "adhere to the giver" of that grace, that is, align oneself and comply with God, the pope said.

Having God in one's life, his friendship, his presence, his love are all more important than any concrete thing that he could give in return, he said.

Jesus "is the most precious treasure to ask for and always safeguard," he said.

Because prayer guides people to see beyond their own needs and wants, it also helps open their heart to others and offer them compassion, hope and the light that comes from Christ, the pope said.

Source

• NCR
• Image: Of course I could be wrong