The Church Issue Again

So Bob is talking about going down to St. Michael's for church, again. I don't know what I think. A couple weeks ago he talked to Fr. W about Fr.'s changing words in the opening greeting and final blessing of the mass, which besides being annoyingly nonsensical indicates an underlying theology in which the ordained priest is no different than the laity. Needless to say, the talk did not go well. Basically, Fr. doesn't want to be viewed as different than the laity, except when they question him. And then last week Fr. read that awful poem in his homily:

THE EUCHARIST

He was old, tired and sweaty pushing His homemade cart down the alley, Stopping now and then to poke around insomebody’s garbage. I wanted to tell him about Eucharist But the look in his eyes, the despair on his face, The hopelessness of somebody else’s life in his cart, told me to forget it. So I smiled, said “Hi” – and gave him Eucharist.


She was cute, nice build, a little too much paint,Wobbly on her feet as she slid from her barstool, and on the make.
“No thanks, not tonight”, - and I gave her Eucharist.

She lived alone, her husband dead, her familygone, and she talked at you, not to you, words, endless words, spewed out.So I listened – and gave her Eucharist.


Downtown is nice, lights change from red togreen and back again, flashing blues, pinks and oranges, I gulped them in, Said “Thank You Father”, and made them Eucharist.


I laughed at myself, and told myself “You with all your sin and all your selfishness, I forgive you, I accept you, I love you” It’s nice, and so necessary to give yourself Eucharist.


My Father, when will we learn – You cannot talk Eucharist – you cannot philosophize about it. You do it. You don’t dogmatize Eucharist. Sometimes you laugh it, sometimes you cry it, often you sing it. Sometimes it’s wild peace, then crying hurt, often humiliating, never deserved.


You see Eucharist in another’s eyes, give it inanother’s hand held tight, squeeze it in an embrace. You pause Eucharist in the middle of a busyday, speak it in another’s ear, listen to it from a person who wants to talk.


For Eucharist is as simple as being on time and as profound as sympathy, I give you my supper, I give you my sustenance,I give you my life, I give you me. I give you EUCHARIST.


BY: R. Voigt

R. Voigt is not a Catholic, by the way, according to this.

So now we have to decide whether to go down to St. Michael's. I still feel that the people of our parish are family, and I'm not really comfortable leaving. You don't abandon your family just because you don't agree with some of them. But I agree with Bob that Fr. is not going to change. I'm just not sure how this hurts us, since we know better. It may not be getting better, but I also don't think that it is getting any worse. It is so nice to go to St. Michael's, though. I'll bet we don't hear any wacky poems there.