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Despite many prayers, there seems to be little improvement in the
reporting by the media. In the last election, for example, one
candidate was grilled ad infinitum and at every opportunity
about foreign affairs, lack of experience, etc., while the
opposition was asked such trivial questions like, “You had to have
been thinking of your mother and father [on your flight to St.
Paul,]” during his interviews. One philosophy is relentlessly
attacked while the other is molly-coddled.
Newspaper column
headings continue to report things like “Teen Pregnancies Increase Sharply.”
Careful reading of the article itself, however, shows that teen pregnancies are
down in number all over, but in the last paragraph, in one tiny segment
of the population they’re up. (It turns out pregnancies are up for new college
freshman, who are exposed to the world of college hook-ups, binge drinking, and
co-ed dorms for the first time.)
Once again it seems
the media has shirked its only constitutional responsibility, which is to inform
the American public. The reason we have a free press is so that American voters
can know what’s going on in the country and make informed decisions about whom
they elect. When the press abdicates this responsibility, it not only acts as a
non-free press, but also is derelict in its duty to the constitution and the
country. American voters are adults, and can and should be allowed to make
their own choices, if only they have the knowledge to do so. It's the only
reason the press is mentioned in the constitution at all.
The fact of the
matter is that people, or at least some people, are seeking out more information
than can be gathered by just throwing oneself in front of the TV after dinner,
or reading the local newspaper, or listening to the briefest headlines on the
car radio between music selections. Many commentators are signaling that the
media has once and for all totally discredited itself in its coverage of the
last election. For this fact, and the reality that more and more Americans are
taking advantage of other more balanced media coverage, we must give thanks and
praise to God.
We mourn the
passing of Fr. Richard John Nuehaus, who courageously criticized the New York
Times for its anti-Catholic stance. May he rest in peace.
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(Frank
Potter is a member of the People of Joy Prayer Group at Holy
Spirit Parish, in Highland, a representative on the AMCCC
Michigan Service Committee, and a member of the DCCR Assembly.)
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“Come
to Me, abide in Me…be still, listen, trust. Be not afraid; do
not let the world drag you down. Stand firm, have confidence in
Me. Persevere, focus on Me...”
These NOW words are Christ’s
call and directives to each of us in the Renewal! How timely is
our Triune God! Obviously He knows we need a “Divine
Homeland Security System” to survive the present global
confusion!
This current time of
challenge for Americans is affecting every sector: the military,
the economy, workforce, marriages, education, parenting,
families, housing, government, Christian broadcasting, industry,
travel, leisure, communication, the viability of church-based
organizations and churches, just to name a few. Every daily
newscast threatens to bring a wave of fear into our hearts and
minds. Historical ways of surviving challenges may seem
ineffective in light of the pressures so many people feel right
now. So how do we respond as Catholic Charismatic Christians?
What is our “spiritual posture” while the weight of “the
fear of the unknown” attempts to bow us down?
What is our security plan?
In these NOW words we
are invited into the safety net of deeper intimacy with Jesus.
His directives must become our “security plan,” and others will
be drawn to the Holy Spirit by the fruit we bear!
At the December 2008
Assembly retreat, Dr. Peter Williamson from Sacred Heart
Major Seminary urged us to do the following, both to encourage
ourselves and give witness to others of Christ’s love and
provision in these tough times:
- Listen, trust, and
rejoice in the Lord daily. Let all people know your
forbearance. Tell them the peace of God will help us
persevere in Christ.
- Realize our part is NOT
to try to fix the world, but to give God our personal “yes,”
and witness where (in Whom!) our hope is anchored: in
God.
- Get spiritual and stay
there! Guard your mind to keep up hope and decrease fear.
Pray without ceasing! Give thanks for what you do have.
- Give God your
self-righteousness and judgments about world problems. Take
them to the Cross. Jesus can transform them into something
good!
- Exhort others without
bringing condemnation. Speak God’s truth in the public
sector from a pure heart steeped in love! Reflect the
Father’s glory.
- We have anchored Hope!
His Name is Jesus! He lives in your heart! Reflect Him.
- We are a priestly
people, called to be intercessors, witnesses, and bearers of
the Holy Spirit without murmuring and grumbling. Be
encouragers!
“He provides them with security and they
are supported; and His eyes are on their ways.” Job 24:23.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Ann Arcieri
is a member of the Shepherd's Gate Prayer Group at St. Mary
Church in St. Clair. She is also a member of the DCCR Assembly
and Pastoral Healing Team, a delegate to the NSC, and the
Coordinator of the TPM Program and the Divine Mercy Center
Healing Prayer Teams. She and her husband, Carm, are members of
St. Mary Parish in St. Clair.)
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