Death Wounds, Angels Heal (2)

Death Wounds, Angels Heal

Pope Francis Speaks to Japanese Students

"Dialogue is what brings peace," the pope told the group, which included Christians and Buddhists. "Peace is impossible without dialogue."

In this beautiful encounter with Japanese students, Pope Francis gives a universal message reminding us that dialogue is the most important step toward understanding. In light of current events in Syria and throughout the Middle East, a call to dialogue must be reinforced. Peace cannot be attained through force as some may continually believe in the perpetual cycle of military take over. True peace comes from discovering the humanity that dwells inside all of us. Once we decide to do that for ourselves and others, reconciliation can flow in to heal our broken hearts. 

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Pope Francis speaks to Japanese Students

Blessings of those who saved the persecuted

Judaism is the root

Christianity the branch of the olive tree

The olive tree is a symbol of peace.

It is by no accident that the olive tree was planted in Israel in honor of the Righteous, the Gentiles who risked their lives to save Jews during the Hitler holocaust. 

The fact remains that much has been written about the incredible self-sacrificing acts of those who risked their lives for the Jews. It is a cross section of humans from all over the world of all different professions. The stories are unlimited about the reality of the best there is within human beings. 

MarisI heard about the story of a teenaged-Polish farm girl named Marisia Szul. She saved the lives of a young Jewish mother and her young baby. In addition, a terrified young girl pleaded in the middle of the night to stay with Marisia after her parents were just murdered.

Marisia then went to the barn, dug a large hole in the ground where her new friends were and kept them alive for two years during the horror of the Nazi occupancy of Poland.

At one point the police came and took her to jail. They kept mercilessly questioning her and she just kept saying "I don't know nothing."

Marisia was in the jail and for days they were interrogating her, but all she would say is, “I don't know nothing." One night a Polish guard who was working for the Nazis came and said to her at midnight, "I'm going to open the gate. Run." 

She ran for 70 miles to get to the site of the farm, but it was all burned down. She ran to hide in the forest where she met the mother and children she had saved.

That was near the end of the war – near end of occupancy. There she met her husband in one of the rescue camps and together they emigrated to Canada. The Jewish mother and child came to Skokie IL to be with their family. From there on, Marisia became a member of their family in which she celebrated  events such as weddings and Bar Mitzahs. 

It's amazing to think that because she saved a few people, she inadvertently saved a generation and those who will come in the future. She saved an unlimited number of people because she saved one life. 

Interwoven Faith Experiences

 

 

 Opening A Pandora's Box?

During my lifetime two subjects were strictly taboo at cocktail parties; religion and politics. But beyond the cocktail parties, as reformed Jews, we shied away from public forum discussions of religion in education. 

However, we were a question posing family and I became aware that Catholic parents were paying double taxes for the public schools as well as the Catholic schools their child attended. A trial case in Chicago was initiated by a Catholic high school, a few blocks away from a public high school, as to the possible attendance of parochial high school students to be bussed to certain classes in the public school. The "Shared Time Experience" was challenged in the courts (enclosed see some of the documentation).

I liked the idea of the Shared Time and was inspired, no doubt by the Holy Spirit (although I was a Jew at the time), to invite a Catholic priest, a Protestant minister and an Orthodox Rabbi to dialogue in a public forum regarding the pros and cons of such a program in our democracy.

I am embarrassed to say that I wasn't positive our senior Rabbi would approve of such a meeting.

We met in his office at 8AM. His face began to redden as I began my story with escalating enthusiasm. He was stonily silent. After a short while he squeezed his hands and declared, "Ruth, don't do it! You will be opening a Pandora's box of antisemitism. My voice was trembling as I countered this highly respected Rabbi but nevertheless responded, "Rabbi, I am sorry but I do not agree with you, I have spoken to Hans Adler of the anti-defamation league (an organization that promotes greater peace and understanding among faith, cultural, and racial groups) he agrees that this program will lead to greater understanding among faith and cultural groups in our North Shore communities. 

He responded with, "I won't be at that meeting." 
"I am very sorry Rabbi, but we are going to go ahead with the meeting." Two days later I called that Rabbi and said, "If you choose not to attend would you please recommend another Rabbi and we will accept whomever you choose. It will be set for November 18, 1964." 

Although the program was intended to explore the possibilities of the Shared Time Experiment, Msgr. William Mcmamas (head of theArchdiocese of the Catholic school system in Chicago) recommended that we change the title from "The Shared Time Experiment" to "Religion in Education," broadening the discussion. I shall never forget his statement that "Our goal is to educate the whole person."

Rabbi Irving Rossenbaum (from the Loop Synagogue in Chicago) was the third panelist. 

Dr. Edgar Chandler, director of the church federation, was very agreeable to the broadening of the discussion. 

It was an unforgettable, glorious, evening, held in a neutral setting- Newtrear High School. We had a delicious dinner for the panelists and a Kosher dinner for Rabbi Rossenbaum and his wife. We finalized the date with Norman Ross Jr., a respected TV moderator. The attendance on that stormy winter night was about 700 people, including 40 Catholic nuns who were cloistered. After a most successful, enlightening discussion, we distributed assessment queries to the audience. Their positive response gave rise to the formation of our North Shore Interfaith Lay Committee composed of representatives of a wide variety from churches and synagogues.

 We met, dialogued, socialized and dreamed together of bringing greater understanding among differing faith groups and reflected deeply on the teachings of Leviticus 19:18 "you shall love your neighbor as yourself" (NIV) and Jesus' teachings from Matthew 22: 37-39 "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself " (NIV).

P.S And thanks be to God our senior Rabbi did appear at the meeting. And to our knowledge the Pandora's box lid was not opened.
 

A Saintly French Priest Was Honored By The State of Israel

Father Raymond Vancourt was the leader of the French underground during the Nazi occupation. He and his niece Helle Raymonde Lombart;for two years they saved my friend Irene Poll, a German-Jew and members of her family. Father's saintly humility is very apparent when we read his humble acceptance of the state of Israel's righteous award.

Dialogic Fruit For Thought

Reflections at sunrise-

When the Light shines through the prism of our minds and hearts, a rainbow of wonder appears------
Possibilities, here to for, revealed by doubt; become mustard seeds of hope...
Radiating the miracle of faith. Amen. RWG

 

 "There's A Holy In There!"

Years before my conversion to Catholicism, I wondered how children of differing faiths viewed nuns. I was given permission to visit Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish children at church and temple in their religious classes.

Sarah, a Jewish girl said, "Nuns are sisters to everyone."
Joseph, a Catholic bog, referring to the convent, said, "There's a Holy in there!"
Beth, a Protestant girl, shook her head, yes; and agreed with the other two.

I had not thought of those children's assessments for years. Recently, I viewwed an exquisite TV Mass on the Feast of the  Immaculate Conception at the National Basilica in Washington, D.C. Suddenly, a mental replay of the children's responses came to my mind, as a gift from the Holy Spirit.

On this of all days, the celebration of our beloved Mary's Immaculate Conception (the Holy Spirit) prompted me to see Mary's procreative womb in a holy light. Her womb as a cradle of co-creation with God (the Holy Spirit) as the cradle of Jesus/God/Man. A mysterious miracle! Currenty I believe that all mother's pregnant wombs as cradles of co-creation.

So yes, Joseph, in the convent and in the womb, there is a holy in there! When you get older, you can learn more about what I call a sacred recycle. Science has explained miraculous parts of the pregnancy miracle...the umbilical cord blood...stem cells. These can be used to treat certain diseases at Children's memorial Hospital in Chicago and other research labs here and abroad.