Film review - Two Popes

The Two Popes is a wonderful film about the transition of the Papacy from Pope Benedict XVI to Pope Francis. Anthony Hopkins plays Ratzinger and Jonathan Pryce plays Bergoglio.

The film describes the spiritual journeys of both men and their very different personalities. Both very strong people discover their humility as they struggle with the spiritual and religious role required of them in assuming the leadership of the Roman Catholic Church.

I found the film quite moving several times as these two men struggle to create a friendship and mutual understanding based on a spiritual sensibility which is absent in life today.

I highly recommend this film for a thoughtful, mature audience.

Two Popes is streaming on Netflix.

Religion In The Public Square - Americans less likely to say they are atheist than Western Europeans but percentage of American atheists is growing.

Pew Research reported on 12/06/19 that Americans are less likely to be atheists than Western Europeans but the percentage is slowly growing. For more click here.

Ask Alexa - Should I be afraid of death?

Alexa: Should I be afraid of death?

Depends on whether you ever actually lived your life or not; people who never really lived their own lives but lived them for others will always think that life is too short, but people who lived their own lives will always think that their life was just as it should have been.

Alexa: Did you hear about the explorer who wanted to explore the North Pole and then changed his mind and decided to explore Antartica?

Yes, some people thought he suffered from Bi-polar.

Daily reflections, Day Twenty five, Love your supposed enemies

Day Twenty five

Love your supposed enemies

“Miracles are associated with fear only because of the belief that darkness can hide. You believe that what your physical eyes cannot see does not exist. This leads to a denial of spiritual sight.” ACIM.T-1.1.22:1-3

What is it that we try to hide? We try to hide our fear of inner defectiveness, inadequacy, and guilt. Some psychologists call this “shame.”

So we put our best foot forward. We pretend we are one way when deep down we live in terror that we are another. And then we start to play the game of “What about them?” the game the Course calls “one or the other.” We blame other people for what we think they are doing to us and attribute the guilt of making us unhappy to another. We play the role of the victim and it is this darkness which hides our deep seated shame.

We lose sight of the fact that at our core we are the beloved creation of God which is the manifestation of Love in the universe. At our core we are a precious diamond encrusted in the dirt and slag of our social conditioning. Understanding this and accepting it are two different things. Dropping our defenses and accepting our preciousness makes us fearful because life as we know it in the world of the ego is over. Giving up the social conditioning of the ego leaves us confused, anxious, perplexed, maybe a little sad. We’d rather dance with the devil we know than the devil we don’t know.

Today, I will try to accept that at my core I am an extension of God’s love in the world and as such I no longer need to defend myself to anyone. I will pass this love on to everyone I meet even my supposed enemies.

Religion in the public square - NCR's 2019 newsmaker of the year: Nancy Pelosi .

The National Catholic Reporter has named Nancy Pelosi as their 2019 newsmaker of the year. For more click here.

Sunday Sermons - Fourth Sunday Of Advent, Tune in to the right frequency

12/22/19 Fourth Sunday of Advent

Tune in to the right frequency.

12/22/19 Fourth Sunday of Advent

Tune in to the right frequency.

Matthew 1:18-24 New International Version (NIV)

Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son

18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about[a]: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet[b] did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[c] because he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”[d] (which means “God with us”).

24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

I have always liked this story even before I became a Psychiatric Social Worker and a family therapist. But once I became a professional therapist and began working with families, I have come to love this story all the more.

            Jesus, from the view of society, was a bastard child of an unwed mother until Joseph made a socially accepted wife and son out of them, something his society had stigmatized and would have punished, had the members of Joseph’s community had known.

            Joseph was going against the grain, he was taking a mature and differentiated stand against the norms and attitudes of his society in making Mary his wife and Jesus his son. Joseph’s decision and action is auspicious for Jesus’ life. I wonder if Mary and/or Joseph ever told Jesus the truth about his paternity? I wonder if Mary and Joseph had ever told anyone?

            Joseph was a courageous man, whom I admire greatly, who willingly took on the role as Jesus’, step-father. I have never heard Joseph referred to as the patron saint of step-fathers and yet as I write this, today, I will always think of him this way from this point forward.

            This story in today’s gospel is about Jesus, his lineage, and his birth, but at a deeper level it is a story about Joseph and Mary’s marriage and Joseph’s commitment to form a family in an unconventional way based on a dream.

            The moral of this story, looked at from Joseph’s point of view, is that going against the norms and attitudes of society to do good often takes great courage and is done with trepidation unless one has a rich inner spiritual life which is based on listening carefully and quietly to the will of God.

            One of my favorite sayings about the Christmas season I found on the sidewalk sign of the United Methodist Church in Brockport, NY several decades ago which said, “You, too, can hear the angel’s song if you tune in on the right frequency.” Joseph was tuned in to the right frequency and provided Mary and Jesus with a home that nurtured their growth and well being. Joseph was a heck of a man who we would all do well to emulate. As a family therapist I take comfort and validation from Joseph’s example with many of the families I work with.

            Jesus is coming and will be born in a barn in three short days. Jesus and his family are poor, and they are migrants, and they are oppressed by the taxes of the Romans. And yet, they have love and virtue, and are the spiriturally richest family in the world. They have enacted a story which has survived over 2,000 years and is celebrated worldwide year after year being told with great joy bringing peace and good will to all the world.

Happy Advent 2019!   

Ask Alexa - What is the benefit of maturity?

Alexa: What is the benefit of maturity?

Mature people do not make the same mistakes over and over again because they are aware and have developed a level of spiritual consciousness where they take responsibility for their choices.

Alexa: Did you hear about the woman who was curious about why she felt better after her acupuncture treatment?

Yes, she thought and thought, but couldn't pinpoint why.