Category Archives: Articles

Presence and Power

Two stories echo in me this week as I ponder their spiritual meaning. They both hint of a divine presence in the events of ordinary life. And thus these stories suggest a powerful love in the world that enhances the value of our lives.

The first was told in a Sunday homily Father George Salzmann, a chaplain at Harvard University.  It concerns Cardinal Basil Hume, Archbishop of Westminster and the spiritual leader of Great Britain’s Catholics, who died last week at the age of 76. Known for his openness to all people, he was especially beloved among members of his faith community.

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Immortality Now?

“Living to 200 is like trying to fly to Pluto without having landed on the Moon.” That’s what fellow writer, John Lauerman, says of claims for dramatically increased life spans made by the recent public television program “Stealing Time: The New Science of Aging.”

This three-hour special, to my mind, shows science at its dazzling best and also, in its presumption, at its disconcerting worst.

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Heaven, Hell and Enlightenment

A huge, rough samurai once went to see a little monk, hoping to acquire the secrets of the universe. “Monk,” he said, in a voice accustomed to instant obedience, “teach me about heaven and hell.”

The little monk looked up at the mighty warrior in silence. Then, after a moment, he said to the samurai with utter disdain, “Teach YOU about heaven and hell? I couldn’t teach you about anything. You’re dirty. You smell. Your blade is rusty. You’re a disgrace, an embarrassment to the samurai class. Get out of my sight at once. I can’t stand you!”

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Unsuspected Powers

Religion, it turns out, is good for what ails you. In fact, it may prevent things from ailing you altogether. That, at least, is what Harold Koenig, M.D., has found after much research into the connections between religion and health of mind and body.

Dr. Koenig, director of Duke University’s Center for the Study of Religion/Spirituality and Health, has a far-flung reputation for his findings in this field of study. His latest book, The Healing Power of Faith: Science Explores Medicine’s Last Great Frontier, carries his message beyond fellow scientists to a wide readership.

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Faith’s Surprising Power

If you want to live longer and better, try religion. At least that’s the advice given by a leading researcher at Duke University who has written widely about the connections between religious practice and good emotional and physical health.

Harold Koenig, M.D., is both a psychiatrist and a research scientist whose studies of faith/health connections have brought him a wide reputation. Director of  Duke University’s Center for the Study of Religion/Spirituality and Health, Dr. Koenig has carried out many projects that compare people for whom religion is important with others who do not find it so meaningful.

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Saint Enough For Me

It is told that, a few weeks ago, William Alfred received a visit from an old friend who had come from London. The friend approached Bill’s house, rang the doorbell, and waited in vain. Concerned,  he peered in the front window and saw Bill struggling to get out of his chair.  Another part of his struggle, the friend noticed, was with his pants pocket: Bill evidently was fumbling in the pocket to make sure that he had some dollars to give to the panhandler who, he presumed, was at the door.

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Seeing Old Age Anew

Wanted: a new mentality, a new attitude, a new way of being, a new culture. Nothing less than this kind of revolution is what the Church of Rome thinks Catholics need in our stance toward older people.

Also needed is a new spirituality, one that is based on continual rebirth. For this spirituality the key text is the dialogue between Jesus and Nichodemus. “How can a person enter back into his mother’s womb?,”  the would-be convert asks. Jesus answers that only through water and the spirit can that happen.

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