Despite the inevitable self-aggrandizement that comes at the beginning of a new administration, and the self-congratulations that come at the end, the world has yet to see the kind of long-lasting, U.S.-brokered political change in the Holy Land that will realistically assure either the Palestinians or the Israelis the security to live their lives and to worship God without fear. And while the internal socio-political and religious realities in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Iran are hardly much better, it’s possible that the lives of the myriad Christians across the region are the worst of all. Roman, Maronite, Melkite, and Chaldean Catholics — along with the Antiochian, Syriac, Armenian, and Greek Orthodox Churches — across the Middle East have, for decades, pleaded for the socioeconomic, political, and spiritual support to survive in a hostile region. Meanwhile, the ignorance of Catholics and Orthodox elsewhere in the world to this situation is exacerbating the forced migration of tens of thousands of Christians from their homes. The Stone In May of 2008, the Maronite patriarch, Nasrallah Peter Cardinal Sfeir, conducted pastoral and official visits to Qatar, South Africa, and the United States, where he met with President George W. Bush, Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon, and the permanent members of the UN Security Council. At the time, his most pressing concern was the ongoing acts of violence and the illegitimate use of force aimed at extending the stalemate over the selection and confirmation of a Lebanese president. In his meetings with government officials, the patriarch voiced the following issues and concerns: That all of Lebanon’s constitutional institutions need to continue to be active and effective, and that the election of a president is a top priority. That Lebanon’s neighbors not attack, invade, undermine, or compromise the sovereignty of the nation. That the issue of the Shebaa Farms be resolved according to the Seven Point Plan of the Lebanese government, and that the demarcation of the Lebanon-Syria boundaries and the normalization of diplomatic relations between those two countries be established. That international aid is given to assist with Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. That the world assists in the implementation of all UN resolutions pertaining to Lebanon. That the world recognize Christians, in large numbers, are leaving the lands where Jesus and His disciples walked and lived. “We need the help of all nations to safeguard and support their presence and status,” the patriarch said during a press conference at Our Lady of Cedars Maronite Catholic Church in Houston in May. The good news is that, since that time, not only has the world seen Michel Suleiman take office as president of Lebanon (putting an end to the immediacy of that particular crisis), but we have also witnessed the first ever Catholic-Muslim forum in Rome (titled “Love and Mercy in the Bible and in the Koran”). Further, we’ve heard about renewed conversations within the Bilateral Permanent Working Commission, which is formed by representatives of the Holy See and Israel, who basically discuss and draft agreements regarding taxes and Church property in Israel. The willingness of both Muslims and Jews to enter into the present dialogues provides some sign of hope that progress can continue (even if slowly). Equally as important, though, the movement along these fault lines is a testament to the tenacity of a patriarch who is the world’s most visible Christian figure in the region — as he put it himself during that same press conference, “A messenger of peace working and praying for a lasting peace as Christ has said: ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons and daughters of God (Mt 5:9).’” This movement is also a testament to the leadership of Pope Benedict XVI, who is remarkably adept at speaking the truth of Scripture and Tradition while showing serious diplomatic prowess. Still, we cannot be lulled into assuming that these meetings will automatically lead to real reform in terms of a legitimate Palestinian state, a safe and secure Israel, a sovereign Lebanon, and a more reasonable Muslim influence in and from Syria, Iraq, and Iran. Case in point: With renewed conflict between Israelis and Palestinians (not to mention a certain SSPX bishop), the Holy Father’s trip to the Holy Land was called into question. So in considering this region, we must be reminded that it is not only our calling to help the stranger in need in these areas (i.e., the Jew and the Muslim), but also our supreme duty to assist our brother and sister Christians in their own fight for peace and security. The Shifting Sands The Catholic Church slogged its way through the turmoil of the Middle East for roughly 16 centuries until treaties between the European powers and the Ottoman Empire firmly established the rights of the Church in the area. Regarding the Holy Land in the 20th century specifically, these rights were codified first under British rule, then under the framework provided by UN Resolution 181, which established the state of Israel. Because the Holy See and Israel did not formally establish diplomatic relations until 1993, these provisions were not recognized until the Fundamental Agreement (of that same year) established that the resolution from 46 years earlier would rightly form the basis of the official relationship. The Legal Personality Agreement of 1997, which recognized the legal status of the Church and its related institutions (e.g., schools, personnel, etc.), was an important step, because Israel accepted that Catholic Churches in the area were not merely local churches, but a part of the body of the universal Church based in Rome. Presently, the Bilateral Permanent Working Commission is struggling through the very complicated issue of tax exemptions. This is important because the Church, in addition to needing land and buildings to complete its ministry, has a rather poor population to serve, and needs all the financial help it can get. “Diplomatic activity [in the Holy Land] has been focusing on keeping the conflict ‘contained’ as it currently is and on pointing to some unspecified future possibilities of resolution unaccompanied by any very precise plan to get from ‘here’ to ‘there’,” said Rev. David Maria Jaeger, O.F.M., an omnipresent figure in Israeli/Vatican discussions. “It is in the long-term interest of the West, as well as its moral obligation, to intervene decisively to bring the bloodletting in the Holy Land to an end and to induce the parties to sign the peace treaty that has been virtually ready for years,” he told me in a 2004 issue of the Texas Catholic Herald. A Call to Action Details of treaty negotiations aside, during the 15 years since the Fundamental Agreement, Americans have provided robust support to just about every cultural sub-group in the region but Christians. The reason for this, in part, is that in America it is not politically correct to say we want to rescue a group of Christians. There seems to be an explicit fear that saying so means we do not want to help the Jews or Muslims. (Of course, Scripture and Tradition demand we help all in need.) We also know that if Westerners were more aware of who is being harmed, they might actually get more engaged, which would benefit everyone in the region. With that in mind, parishes in the United States need a stronger catechesis on the historical foundations of the Church; a deeper commitment from U.S. bishops in the United States to encourage the faithful to support Middle Eastern Christians; more effective efforts from the Eastern Churches in explaining who they are and why they need American help; and a serious communications effort on the part of organizations like the Pontifical Mission, Catholic Near East Welfare Association, Catholic Relief Services, the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, and International Orthodox Christian Charities. The goal of all of these activities should be to help the faithful connect what they do at Mass every week with what is happening in our ancient religious homeland. Political groups in Israel, Lebanon, and the Palestinian territories — as well as the terrorizing factions in Syria, Iraq, and Iran — continue to suppress the minority Christian population. The Christian exodus that has resulted may well be one of the worst in history. The difficulties of establishing a long-term, stable solution to the centuries-old conflicts in the Middle East are great, and overcoming them will require awareness, participation and pressure from Western Christians. A Holy Land without a Christian presence is simply no Holy Land at all. _________________________________________________ This article originally appeared in Crisis Magazine. Jerusalem Cityscape · (pexels.com) taken by Jan Venter. If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

With eyes closed, Hands clasped, and On bended knee It rushes over me... The pain of others Reaching out For love and Forgiveness. How am I able To make them stable In faith and in hope? When it occurs to me... I have nothing to offer, Except, perhaps Love and love and love for you My prayer, too? They need more! Than my meager words And simple actions. For I am nothing. Without your mercy Without your love Without you as a gift Nothing will release them from the rift... That they created In their past, And is present in their present, Standing in the way of their future with You. You are the One Who knew them before time. You are the One Who walked the Earth Knowing what it is to live in these bones. Share with them Your Body. Give them, I beg, Your Blood. Enliven them With the Holy Spirit. Call them by name, To come to you without restrain. Next time I stare at the rain, I won't just feel their pain. I will find their beating hearts Transfigured. Photo downloaded from Wallpaper Cave. If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

I am human. I sin. I disappoint people. And I hate that reality. I am human. I live. I fail me. And I hate that reality. I am human. I seek. I get lost. And I hate that reality. I am human. I pray. I get tired. And I hate that reality. I am human. I believe. I deny the path of Your will. And I hate that reality. I need Your mercy. I need Your patience. I need You more than I need me. But I need me in order to be You for others. And I love that reality. I will die for that reality. I will die for You. And I will die trying to help them get to You. Photo by Anas Jawed. Bridge over River · (pexels.com) downloaded on 22 August 2023. If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

Wounded love is desperate for a path. A barren one beset with noise and fear or A fertile one overflowing with lucidity and quietude One reeks of the polluted incense of false gods. The other smells of the verdant lands of eternity. One makes you drink from the cup of the damned. The other pours into you the fresh waters of the Holy Spirit. One blinds you with foul and distorted images. The other shows you the illuminated darkness. One deafens you with diabolical incantations. The other sings silently of eternal love. One grabs you with its claws. The other holds you closely. What will you do with your wounded love? Woman Standing on Cliff If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

With the rising of the sun, You stretch my soul and breathe into my lungs. In the still heat of the noonday, You close my eyes and illumine my soul. In the silence of the late afternoon, You steady my feet and shake the sand from my shoes. With the lengthening shadows of the setting sun, You hold me in your arms and remind me of my last breath. My God and My God and My God, Why do you remain with me As sinful as I am? My God and My God and My God, Why do you save me from myself As wondering as I am? Teach me to lay it all down And to pick it up again. This life of mine, Which I give entirely to you. I love you and I love you and I love you. Bright sun. A photo posted by Anuragrana18 to Wikimedia Commons. If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

Empty and loveless is the world founded by man, Built for his own edification. Angry and hopeless is the world fueled by man, Possessed by his own pride. Bleak and faithless is the world formed by man, Twisted by his own conceit. These dead waters never quench The thirst born deep inside. Only Christ, The Son of the Living God. The water He is, By whom you will never be thirsty. The water He gives, Gushes up toward eternal life. Give me this living water, So that I may never again Draw from a dying well (cf. John 4:13-14). If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

Today is the Feast of Theophany (January 6) when, at the baptism of Christ in the Jordan, the Holy Trinity appeared clearly to humanity. Think about it like this: the Father's voice is heard from Heaven, the Son of God is incarnate, and the Holy Spirit descends on Him in the form of a dove (cf. Matthew 3:16-17). As you ponder this glorious event that takes place simultaneously in history and eternity, take the time to learn this simple, new prayer that the Holy Spirit reveals in the uncreated silence of Pentecost: "Most Holy Spirit, save me from myself and sanctify me." An icon of the Feast of Theophany. If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

My mountain My mountain My poor, dear mountain, How I weep for you! You who bowed under The feet of Our Lord. You who lifted up Moses and Elijah. You who witnessed the Transfigured Christ and Sheltered the Apostles, Who could not bear His light. I wail for our people. These children of Abraham Who suffer and hate.... As much as they love and celebrate. How do I know? I see it. I hear it. I live it. I will not forget that birthday When I set my eyes on you. After 3 days A tomb was opened... When my feet found Your hallowed ground. I was Awakened, enlivened, and transformed. Transfigured? Not so fast. 2 days later Evil tried (again) To drag me into his hell. 79 days hence, October 7 Bloodied your land. 3 months anon, With bodies stacked high Hearts brought low And prayer belied... Why would I be surprised? Your land. My land. This very Holy land. With tired hands And blistered knees My heart grows... weary? Not so fast I will not give up! And neither will you. Because God's love never abates Through the blood and the hate. Open your eyes at Theophany! Throw your arms around the Resurrection! Listen to the holy silence of Pentecost! Seek the holy light of the Transfiguration! My mountain My mountain My dear and glorious mountain, How I cherish you! Photo of Mt. Tabor taken by Fr. Thomas on 15 July 2023.

My last name was fashioned in Calabria... A crossroads of Greeks and Italians, Arabs and Ottomans, Egyptians and Normans, Jews, Muslims, and a few others. But what's most important, To me at least, are the Romans and Byzantines. My middle name was formed in a family... Over many centuries and Passed from generation to generation In Italy and now America. Worn by tribulation, Buffeted by triumph, and And most importantly, Inspired by saints... Specifically, the one who founded monasticism. My first name was spoken by Christ... Te'oma, in fact, An Aramaic nickname Given to a man Who looked like someone else. This twin of whom I speak Only said four sentences In the New Testament, but Each is dear to my heart. "Let us also go, that we may die with him" (John 11:16). From the time I was child I knew I was called by God. At the same time, I have been Selfish, petulant, and prideful. As we profess, 'I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me" (Psalm 51). But ... and I can say this honestly ... at every stage of life I have chosen to die with Him. "Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?” (John 14:5). I've spent a life discerning God's will ... And... to be honest, I've pretty much known what it was From the beginning. But the thing is ... the path to living out that will Wasn't always clear ... mostly because of my decisions ... But also, because of those who didn't have my best interests at heart. Not to mention the work of the evil one. "Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails and place my finger in the mark of the nails, and place my hand in his side, I will not believe" (John 20:25). God gave me a deep faith and a serious mind And I've tried my best to use them both, together, To know, to love, and to serve Him. Along the way, though, I came to understand that There are people who simply cannot be trusted and There are those who would stop at nothing to destroy my resolve. Alas! I still cry out: I love you! Help me feed your sheep! (cf. John 21:15-17). "My Lord and my God!" John 20:28. There has never been a moment in my life When I doubted God or disbelieved. There has never been a moment in my life When I thought God left or let me down. There has never been a moment in my life When I thought about turning my back on God There has never been a moment in my life When I wanted to follow a different path. O Holy and Glorious Apostle Thomas! You who lived in His truth You who were filled with divine grace You who traveled to the ends of the earth You who were faithful to the end ... I thank God for you I ask for your intercession before Him who is eternal I ask for your help in following His will Share with me your faith, hope, and love! Written on the commemoration of St. Thomas the Apostle. An icon of St. Thomas the Apostle touching the side of Jesus. If you have a question or prayer request, please reach out here. If you can donate, please click here.

A small but brave group of Byzantine Catholics has stood on Western soil tediously, yet joyfully, toiling away at the task given by Pope John Paul II in his May 2, 1995, Apostolic Letter Orientale Lumen (Light of the East). That is to aid in the restoration of unity between Catholics and all the Christians of the East. For the better part of 14 years, The Orientale Lumen Conferences have provided ordained and lay Roman Catholics, Eastern Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox a forum for understanding the similarities and differences among the Eastern and Western Christian Churches. With endorsements ranging from the Vatican to the Phanar, these conferences include a variety of prayer services, learning experiences and intellectual discussion. “It is with great pleasure and paternal joy that we humbly greet the blessed… Orientale Lumen Conferences,” said Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople in 2006. “Your pioneering ecumenical gatherings have indeed provided an exceptional forum… [and] your sacred intent is blessed from within and from above by the very nature of your initiative. For, while your effort may be — as you describe it — ‘grass roots’, we are convinced that it is at the same time rooted in heaven.” Meeting annually since 1997 in Washington, DC and other locations around the world — including San Diego, Detroit, Birmingham, UK and Istanbul (Constantinople), Turkey — these conferences host some of the world’s best-known and well-loved experts in a variety of fields that range from theology and history to liturgy and spirituality. Each speaker gives a plenary session followed by a panel discussion and a question-and-answer session; all of the papers presented at the conference are published. More importantly, a variety of liturgical services are conducted during the conference to provide an opportunity for attendees to pray together for Church unity. “Wherever Christian faithful meet for growth in communion, it is the Holy Spirit who inspires and prompts them,” said Cardinal Walter Kasper, president, Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, during a June 2006 video commemorating the 10th anniversary of the conference. “What you are doing at the level of local Churches is appreciated as a true contribution of promoting Christian unity.” This year’s conference is being held in Washington, DC, June 15-18, 2009, at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center and will focus on the theme of “Monastic Spirituality for Everyday Life”. The focus of this session will be on returning to God and seeking to find a meaning in the mystery of life by making use of certain specific practices like prayer, fasting, silence, vigils, reading and good works. “One aspect of the conference that is worth noting is that there is no [political] agenda involved,” said Jack Figel, president, Eastern Christian Publications, which runs the conference. “What that means to the number of clergy — including cardinals and patriarchs — who have mentioned it is that these conferences offer face-to-face interaction without the need for official reports and studies. That is a benefit to all the Church and ultimately benefits the formal dialogue between Churches.” Greek Orthodox Metropolitan and Professor at Oxford University, Kallistos of Diokleia, who will once again be featured at the conference, once remarked: “Let me begin by saying something about what I see as the specific gift of Orientale Lumen and its spirit. I can best express this by recalling some words of Cardinal Suenens of Belgium… ‘If we are to unite together, we must first love one another. And if we are to love one another, we must first get to know one another’. I see a group such as Orientale Lumen as fulfilling an important task in this mutual knowledge and mutual love. Part of the function of Orientale Lumen is to build up ecumenical friendships. And if we are to make progress in the ecumenical movement we do need personal friendships, not simply reports by experts, but human contact.” For Roman Catholics this conference may be an opportunity to live out not only the spirit of John Paul II’s apostolic letter that must be observed but its letter too. Since, in fact, we believe that the venerable and ancient tradition of the Eastern Churches is an integral part of the heritage of Christ’s Church, the first need for Catholics is to be familiar with that tradition, so as to be nourished by it and to encourage the process of unity in the best way possible for each. Our Eastern Catholic brothers and sisters are very conscious of being the living bearers of this tradition, together with our Orthodox brothers and sisters. The members of the Catholic Church of the Latin tradition must also be fully acquainted with this treasure and thus feel, with the Pope, a passionate longing that the full manifestation of the Church’s catholicity be restored to the Church and to the world, expressed not by a single tradition, and still less by one community in opposition to the other; and that we too may be granted a full taste of the divinely revealed and undivided heritage of the universal Church which is preserved and grows in the life of the Churches of the East as in those of the West (§1). Registration details for this year’s conference (as well as the 2010 conference in Istanbul) can be found on-line at www.olconference.com. Photos and quotations from past speakers can be found on the conference website, and videos of past plenary sessions and liturgical services can be viewed at www.oltvweb.com. 2009 speakers will include: Archimandrite Robert Taft, SJ, Pontifical Oriental Institute, Rome, Italy, (by prerecorded video); Bishop Hlib Lonchyna, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Kyiv, Ukraine; Mother Lois Farag, Coptic Orthodox Church, Assistant Professor of Church History, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN; Sister Barbara Jean Mihalchick, OSBM, Byzantine Catholic Church of America, Retreat House Director, Uniontown, PA; Prof. Richard Schneider, Orthodox Church in America, Professor and Director of the Orthodox Eastern Christian Studies Program at Trinity College, University of Toronto, Canada; Mr. Elias Damianakis, Greek Orthodox Church, Iconographer and Lecturer, Tampa, FL; Metropolitan Jonah, Primate of the Orthodox Church in America, New York, NY and Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia, Greek Orthodox Church, Oxford, England. ______________________________________ This article originally appeared here: Orientale Lumen: A Conference Rooted in Heaven (catholicexchange.com). An icon of Ss. Peter and Paul embracing,

We built it and We've been so proud of it. The machine, I mean. The efficient, soul-crushing Machine that has become our life. And no, I'm not talking about the Incessant whine about the marginalized or the Aggressive inanities of any number of Theories espoused, processes employed, and Practices pursued. I'm talking about a culture of noise, of Constant activity, and the Superficial distractions that led to a Deep spiritual disconnection and the Deliberate denial of the Divine. I'm talking about the grotesque and Increasingly awful Mechanisms that are employed to encourage The endless pursuit of a so-called progress, which Created a perpetual motion toward Elaborate systems and artificial substitutes, which spark and sustain An increasing distance from God through A dissolution of silence, and An ignorance of contemplation. Find prayer Look for holy love Live as a person created in the Image and Likeness of God.

"Today the Virgin gives birth to the Transcendent One, And the earth offers a cave to the Unapproachable One! Angels with shepherds glorify Him! The wise men journey with a star! Since for our sake the Eternal God was born as a Little Child!" - A kontakion from the Feast of the Nativity. #JesusChrist #Mary #MotherofGod #Theotokos #Magi