Christmas Message from Frank Testin, President of Dignity Canada Dignité
When
I was a small boy, I went with my mom to a Catholic bookstore in Calgary one
year in the late 1950's, probably in November or the first part of December,
where we purchased a nativity scene having about a dozen figures. For each of
the next 50 or so years, the nativity scene would be taken out of its storage
box and placed under a natural Christmas tree or, in later years, on a table or
shelf. Between 2002 and 2010, it ended up in Mom's room in a continuing care
centre. Interestingly, the number of figures gradually declined in my mom's last
residence, as the camel, cow and donkey went missing. Not bad, though, as all
the human figures withstood the test of time. I believe that what remains of the
set is now in my niece's basement in Calgary, following Mom's death in 2010.
If she said it once she must have said it many times, Mom declared that the
nativity scene meant more to her than any Christmas tree. Her faith in God was
evident in this way and many other ways too. The daily prayers, devotion to Our
Lady of Perpetual Help, regular attendance at Mass, grace at mealtime and fish
on Fridays were indications of her deep religious faith. I think half her coats
had a rosary tucked in one of their pockets. I recently thought of her when I
toured the Louvre in Paris and viewed the many huge paintings portraying angelic
choirs, figures from the Bible and undoubtedly other figures imagined by the
painter or the commissioning church officials - powerful visual images.
In
his book "A New Christianity for a New World", retired Episcopalian bishop John
Shelby Spong defined the theistic God as "a being, supernatural in power,
dwelling outside this world and invading the world periodically to accomplish
the divine will." (HarperCollins, pbk, 2001, p. 21). As with Spong and others, I
no longer accept the notion of a theistic God. Blue skies, earthquakes, clear
water, famine, fresh air, disease and other phenomena are not directly created
or caused by God, but follow laws of physics, chemistry, geology, etc. which
describe how the natural world operates. The scientific approach has made God,
seen as the puppeteer or controller looking down on humans from above,
unemployed. For me, I also reject a theistic picture of God, because such a God
would be immoral in not intervening to prevent genocides, tsunamis, famines and
the deaths of six-year olds who forget to stop before crossing a street.
I was brought up to see Jesus as the literal Son of God who was born on earth to
die for all of our sins as a manifestation of God's love for us, because God
required this type of sacrifice in order for humans to be reconciled with God in
heaven after their earthly lives. This is the substitutionary atonement view of
the purpose of Jesus' life, as portrayed in somewhat exaggerated fashion in Mel
Gibson's film "The Passion of the Christ." However, there is an alternate
interpretation to the life and death of Jesus whose birth we are about to
celebrate.
Through
Jesus' life we see the love of God. Jesus loved others in a completely unselfish
fashion. He stood up for the rights of the marginalized and the outcasts of his
society. This included women and children who were considered disposable in his
time. He challenged the status quo. He challenged the Roman Empire whose leader
Caesar was widely considered, and known, as the Son of God, Saviour and Lord. In
this respect, using these terms to refer to Jesus was profoundly political. In a
culture of very few 'haves" and many "have nots" he challenged whom should be
invited to the dinner table. Jesus did not discriminate; all were treated
equally. The ritually clean and unclean were both respected. Probably his most
radical teaching was to replace Pax Romana (peace through conquest) and "an eye
for an eye" with "Love your enemy." Jesus also made few friends among the
self-serving religious hierarchy of his time, suggesting that prostitutes and
other outcasts were closer to God.
While my mother had religious devotions which I do no share, she also was
hospitable in welcoming both friends and strangers to her dinner table, both
literally and metaphorically. She was respectful of all. I hope I can say the
same for myself. If so, then both of us have contributed to the Kingdom of God
which Jesus proclaimed has arrived.
In
the same book, Spong expressed the following:
"God is the Source of Life who is worshipped when we live fully. God is the
Source of Love who is worshipped when we love wastefully. God is the Ground of
Being who is worshipped when we have the courage to be. Jesus is a God-presence,
a doorway, an open channel. The fullness of his life reveals the Source of Life,
the wastefulness of his love reveals the Source of Love, and the being of his
life reveals the Ground of All Being. That is why Jesus continues to stand at
the heart of my religious life. That is why I continue to call him "my Lord" and
to call myself a Christian. But I am a Christian who can no longer live inside
the exclusive claims of my traditional theistic past." (p. 145)
Christmas
is a time when we recall the birth, life and execution of Jesus. It is my prayer
that all Dignity Canada Dignité members recognize the unconditional love of God
in their own lives, and that we work with others to bring about the Reign - the
Kingdom - of God in this life, now.
Frank Testin
December 2011
Dignity Canada Dignité is
Canada's organization of Roman Catholics who are concerned about our
church's sexual theology, particularly as it pertains to gay, lesbian,
bisexual, and transgendered persons. We work in collaboration with other
Catholic organizations seeking reform in our church's leadership and
teachings.
Dignity Canada Dignité