THE WAY FORWARD IN CHRIST
(Part 13)
THE
SPIRITUALITY OF DIVISION
July 31, 2008
My dear
brothers and sisters in Christ,
Grace and
peace from our Lord Jesus Christ!
The split in
CFC has been very painful for all of us, and we simply presume that it is
something negative, especially as it had to do with our work for God. We
were all serving God, so why did this happen? God’s ways are of course
not our ways, and we can never presume to fully understand God’s mind.
In fact, Jesus said that he came to bring not peace but the sword, to
cause division, even among relatives and household members (Mt 10:34-36).
This is because there are those who will accept him and those who will
reject him or his message.
But even for
those who accept Jesus and work for Him, there can be division. And so it
was that we had that famous division as recorded in the book of Acts (Acts
15:36-41). It was between Paul and Barnabas, two missionary stalwarts.
What did they disagree or fight about? Was it some deep theological
argument? Was it about the strategy for world evangelization? No, not at
all. It was just whether they would bring John Mark with them on mission
or not. And “so sharp was their disagreement that they separated”
(Acts 15:39). It must have been painful. But it resulted in good. It
resulted in two missions instead of one. And God blessed both missions.
And so through
the years of Christian life and work, there have been very many
separations among Christian groups, congregations and movements. Mother
Teresa left her congregation and founded the Missionaries of Charity.
Various religious congregations like the Franciscans, the Carmelites and
many others have many groups bearing the same name with something appended
to it, are independent of each other, are approved and recognized by the
Church, and are doing well in their respective callings. They have all
helped in expanding the work of the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus did
break the loaves and ended up multiplying the bread. This is the
spirituality of division. In God’s hands, division can lead to
multiplication!
For CFC, the
crisis was about the veering away from our authentic charism of
evangelization and family life renewal, in favor of the social dimension
of the gospel. But we do not question the heart of those among our
brethren who desire to help the poor. Remember that this was our common
work and calling at the turn of the third millennium. Now with the split,
we in CFC-FFL are focused on evangelization and family life, while those
of our brethren in CFC-GK are focused more on building communities among
the poor. Now both can pursue what they believe to be their particular
calling wholeheartedly, without tension caused by the different emphasis
of the other.
Now just like
the religious congregations (Franciscans, Carmelites), we look to creative
unity despite the split. Thus we have proposed one big CFC family but with
two distinct and separate branches. This way we pursue our respective
charisms, while still being connected in some way. We can celebrate
anniversaries together, we can serve the diocese in pro-life together, we
can exchange resources, and so on.
Whether this
proposal is accepted or rejected, our posture in CFC-FFL is not to burn
our bridges, not to malign or attack our separated brethren, not to
retaliate for wrongs done against us, and to pray for our detractors. We
will seek not to deepen the rift, even as we speak the truth and long for
peace with justice.
Let us show
all what it means to love, even one’s “enemies.” Do not speak ill of
anyone, do not malign, do not judge, do not focus on personal rights, do
not criticize anonymously, avoid scandal, do not promote hatred. Rejoice
even in oppression and persecution if done for the sake of righteousness
or because of our standing up for what is right in Christ. God allows
crosses into our lives for our purification, and this is part of our way
to holiness.
And let us
focus on our mission. Let us simply move on. The harvest is great, and God
calls us to proclaim Him to the world.
God bless you
all.
In the service
of Christ,
Frank Padilla
