tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75297858054044453572024-03-06T02:24:28.165+08:00Love Alone is BelievableTalk of truth is often met with a yawn, and an assertion about what is good is met with a stare of incomprehension.Darkened to what is true and good, the post-modern heart is still captivated by beauty revealing love, and this may be the road to Christ for many citizens of the post-modern world. - Fr. John CihakNick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-25251324423800297302012-03-29T22:18:00.000+08:002012-03-29T22:18:19.643+08:00The Crusader: My first attempt at poetry =The Crusader<br />
<br />
Fallacy.<br />
The present.<br />
Better than the past.<br />
<br />
Identity.<br />
The weight.<br />
On my shoulders at last.<br />
<br />
Frailty.<br />
New start.<br />
The germ that haunts me still.<br />
<br />
Hypocrisy.<br />
The present.<br />
No different.<br />
The past.<br />
<br />
Humility.<br />
The past.<br />
The present.<br />
The mass.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-67468797145639836102011-12-06T01:07:00.005+08:002011-12-06T01:11:37.447+08:00Can talkative people make it to Heaven?<div class="mbl notesBlogText clearfix" style="background-color: white; margin-bottom: 20px; text-align: left; word-wrap: break-word; zoom: 1;"><div><div><span class="photo_right" style="clear: right; float: right; max-width: 180px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 10px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px;"><br />
<img alt="" class="photo_img img" src="https://fbcdn-photos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/384983_10150432107694803_588344802_8287927_1922194287_a.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 493px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /><span class="caption">The good Christian's default mode?</span></span></div><div style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><div style="color: #333333; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">The title of my post might sound a bit weird but this thought comes to me whenever I finish an enriching conversation with somebody. My definition of enriching would mean that the conversation contained no gossip, was intellectually stimulating and humanly deep and done in an atmosphere of mutual listening and sympathy. It need not always be explicitly about God though God and religion are very often (at least for me!) one of the most interesting topics to talk about.</div><h2 class="uiHeaderTitle" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 11px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span></h2><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16px;">Will heaven be like that I sometimes wonder? Or is my talkativeness (and I can be very talkative, just ask Grace my fiancée!) simply a symptom of my deeper restlessness for deep and abiding communication with God? </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 11px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;"><br />
</span></span></div></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">To be sure, the Christian tradition places a lot of emphasis on silence and with good reason. We are reminded constantly to slow down amidst the busyness of our lives, to still our hearts and quiet the noisiness in our souls. After all, the prophet Elijah did not discover God’s voice in the earthquake or fire (noisy events to put it mildly) but only in a gentle breeze. (1 Kings 19:12-14). And when we reflect on the times we have mis-communicated with someone, we know that it is very often because our minds are so preoccupied and cluttered that we have heard but failed to listen to the other. And we proceed to give advice and to talk even before we have truly listened.</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">Does that mean the talkative people are to repent in sackcloth and ashes? Well I think that they should repent of being talkative without listening and try to cultivate a capacity for silence. Yet being talkative in itself, when properly understood is not a bad thing at all. In fact, the ability to communicate is really a participation in the eternal speech of God. Jesus, is the WORD of God as we are reminded in John’s Gospel. And when the word became flesh, hosts of Angels were singing hosannas to frightened Shepherds.</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">Pretty chatty if you ask me.</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">Indeed, redeemed in Christ, we are able to speak to each other as heirs to the Kingdom, adopted children of the Father. Our sharings are characterized not by boasting but by mutual concern for each other. Conversation becomes enriching as it is free of jealously, one-upmanship and pride. One would genuinely want to listen to the other as the other is a brother in Christ of infinite interest.</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">We know however that this is not possible on earth. To begin with, we are unable to have conversations with everybody we respect for extended lengths of time as time is finite (though with facebook, the possibilities are extended!). So we are usually limited to conversations with close friends. And an enriching conversation in which there is mutual vulnerability and friendship seems to me a participation in the eternal conversation of the Trinity in which we are also invited. (Indeed, that’s Fr Robert Barron’s definition of prayer.) <span class="photo_right" style="clear: right; float: right; max-width: 180px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 10px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 2px;"><img alt="" class="photo_img img" src="https://fbcdn-photos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/388710_10150432116494803_588344802_8287954_1886507869_a.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 493px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /><span class="caption">Prayer, an invitation to participate in the eternal conversation of the Trinity.</span></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">When I was studying theology, the joke which went around was that when talkative theology students (the kind who can spend literally hours talking about the processions of the Trinity for instance) pass on to the life to come, there would be two doors waiting them. One would be labeled “God”. The other would be labeled “seminar about God”. Guess which one would the theology student chose? </div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">I began to panic as I realized that I might choose the second door. I remembered St Augustine’s passage that the restless heart can only rest in God and know that I must be careful not to mistake theology for God himself. Nevertheless, will that mean that I won’t be able to talk about theology in heaven if and when (God willing) I get there?</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">Then I read St Gregory of Nyssa. His idea of the afterlife is a bit different from Augustine as he holds that there would be no rest in heaven as we would be constantly stretched onwards and upwards towards God. “No limit can be set to our progress towards God; first of all, because no limitation can be put on upon the Beautiful, and secondly because the increase in our desire for the Beautiful cannot be stopped by any sense of satisfaction” as Gregory puts it in one pungent sentence.</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">If I understood Gregory correctly, I would have an eternity to talk about theology and an eternity to communicate deeply with the Blessed Trinity and all the saints in heaven. That would include not only the hall of famers like Our Blessed Mother, St Peter and Paul but also our loved ones and others whom we hope have also placed God or following their conscience their top priority.</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">In the book of Revelation, heaven is portrayed, as a wedding feast where guests will be at table, and served by the Lamb himself. (Revelations 19:7-9)</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"> I presume there would be lots of talking at a wedding feast.</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;">And I do hope that you and I would accept the invitation =)</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1.5em;"><span class="photo_center" style="clear: both; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" class="photo_img img" src="https://fbcdn-photos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/383867_10150432108069803_588344802_8287928_2129283897_a.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; max-width: 493px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 180px;" /><span class="caption" style="font-size: 9px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; width: 180px;">The wedding feast in heaven</span></span></div></div></div>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-80402236014306962352011-12-06T01:03:00.000+08:002011-12-06T01:03:11.245+08:00Catholic planking and the feast of Corpus Christi<h1 class="entry-title" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; line-height: 1.3em; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 15px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br />
</h1><div class="entry-info" style="background-color: white; border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px; color: #848485; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding-bottom: 10px; text-transform: uppercase;"></div><div class="entry-content clearfix" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 10px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;"><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Bench-planking.jpg" style="color: #313428; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="" class="alignright size-full wp-image-195" src="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Bench-planking.jpg" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: #f3f3f3; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 5px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 5px; border-right-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 5px; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 5px; border-width: initial; float: right; height: 150px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px; margin-top: 5px; padding-bottom: 4px; padding-left: 4px; padding-right: 4px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center; width: 224px;" title="Bench planking" /></a>Some of you might be familiar with the latest fad to take the on (and off)line world by storm – <a href="http://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/what-is-buzzing/planking-craze-hits-singapore-091110668.html" style="color: #313428; text-decoration: none;">planking</a>. As you might guess from the choice of words, it has something to do with human beings pretending to behave like (you guessed it) a plank of wood.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Plankers (those who plank) do so by lying flat on the ground with their arms pointed inwards by the side. They invite friends to take photos or videos of them which are then uploading for the viewing of the online planking community.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">If you are a beginner, you can simply plank on your bathroom floor. For more advanced plankers, the clothesline, the supermarket refrigerator, or a seventh-storey balcony can be fair game. Sadly (or not depending on your perspective,) the seventh-storey balcony gave plankers its first martyr when he fell to his death.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">This is not a place to issue a wholesale condemnation of the planking craze. Suffice to say, I agree with <a href="http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/i_plank_therefore_i_am/" style="color: #313428; text-decoration: none;">Zac Alstin</a>when he notes that in many cases, “It’s the sheer lack of proportion between risk and reward (online and offline social affirmation for the most part) that makes these notable cases of planking seem insane, and make me wonder about the deeper motive.” </div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">What I would like to note rather is the sheer fact of the media circus surrounding this phenomenon and what it suggests about our nature as human beings.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">As someone once noted, “dog bites man” does not make the news headlines. “Man bites dog”, on the other hand, will surely make it to the front page of The New Paper. Have a community of human beings biting dogs and you will make the headlines of the Straits Times and ChannelNewsAsia for weeks.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">The point to note here is that news is made when something out of the ordinary happens. “Planks of wood found on the floor” is not news. They are simply in keeping with what planks are supposed to do. “Man falls asleep” is not news either. But “Man pretends to be a plank of wood” is.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Nave-planking.jpg" style="color: #313428; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="" class="alignright size-full wp-image-196" src="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Nave-planking.jpg" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: #f3f3f3; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 5px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 5px; border-right-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 5px; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 5px; border-width: initial; cursor: default; float: right; height: 150px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px; margin-top: 5px; padding-bottom: 4px; padding-left: 4px; padding-right: 4px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center; width: 115px;" title="Nave planking" /></a></div><div>Indeed, as G.K Chesterton suggests perceptively “Unless a thing is dignified, it cannot be undignified. Why is it funny that a man should sit down suddenly in the street? There is only one possible or intelligent reason: that man is the image of God.”</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">It is this often unconscious recognition that the human being is a being with a certain special dignity that we find someone suddenly deciding to lie on the floor amusing. When we see someone suddenly collapsing onto the ground, we would immediately rush to help. Lying flat on the ground is somehow recognised as not normal (and dignified) for the human being.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">And doing that deliberately in dangerous places for the proverbial 15 seconds of internet fame has had this observer wanting to paraphrase Chris Tucker in Rush Hour 2: “You are human, stop humiliating yourself!”</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Happily for us, the Catholic blogosphere has helpfully suggested how Catholics can incorporate planking into their daily routine. <a href="http://jobryantnz.wordpress.com/2011/06/02/did-you-know-that-planking-is-a-fine-catholic-tradition/" style="color: #313428; text-decoration: none;">Jo Bryant</a> for instance has announced that planking is really a fine Catholic tradition.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">To prove his point, Jo provides pictures of Catholic plankers, prostrate in front of the Eucharist, during good Friday Service, preparing for ordination or if you are so inclined, after being slain by the Holy Spirit during a charismatic prayer meeting. (Do check out the pictures!)</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Planker purists would object to Jo Bryant’s attempt to co-opt the art of planking for the Catholic Church. They would note for instance that real plankers put their hands beside them turned inwards. Catholic plankers, on the other hand (no pun intended), often have their hands stretched out in front of them. That’s not real planking, they would argue.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Yet having your hands stretched out is really what would save plankers from being turned in on themselves and treated by others as mere objects of amusement. “Oops, this plank(er) just fell into the sewer, must be painful, let’s have a look at the next one” can be a very real reaction for an internet user casually browsing through planking pictures while sipping his morning coffee.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Infallible-planking.jpg" style="color: #313428; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="" class="alignright size-full wp-image-197" src="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Infallible-planking.jpg" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: #f3f3f3; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 5px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 5px; border-right-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 5px; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 5px; border-width: initial; float: right; height: 150px; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px; margin-top: 5px; padding-bottom: 4px; padding-left: 4px; padding-right: 4px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center; width: 220px;" title="Infallible planking" /></a>Catholic planking, on the other hand, is neither weird nor contrary to human dignity. Indeed, it is precisely the fact that we plank that we come to realise the fullness of our dignity, the ability to recognise that all of reality is gift and that lying prostrate in adoration of the Supreme Gift giver is the only adequate response of the creature. </div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><strong>Last Sunday</strong>, we celebrated the feast of Corpus Christi. It is a feast to recognise that the King of Kings can deign to be so small and humble as to come to us hidden in the form of bread. The only correct response really is to plank.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Nor is this simply a private spirituality with no consequences for the wider world. As <a href="http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=10809" style="color: #313428; text-decoration: none;">Pope Benedict XVI</a>, planker extraordinaire would say, “In an increasingly individualistic culture such as that in which we live in… the Eucharist constitutes a kind of “antidote”, working on the hearts and minds of believers and continually infusing them with the logic of communion, service and sharing, the logic of the Gospel.</div><div style="line-height: 1.5; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">Here’s to planking without pretension and illusion!</div></div>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-16851582535363003252011-12-06T01:00:00.000+08:002011-12-06T01:00:48.819+08:00Cher You Christian Ah, No wonder your Engrish so good<content:encoded>The title of this piece is taken literally from a pupil from the Normal Technical stream whom I was helping with her English at school one day. Hoping to give her some further encouragement, I gently shared that I am a Christian and that I pray to God and He helps me. If she is a Christian she can pray too, if not, no harm trying as well.</content:encoded><br />
<br />
<content:encoded></content:encoded><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">Her response took me completely by surprise. Her actual words were “’Cher, you Christian ah, no wonder your Engrish so good, I Buddhist, that’s why my Engrish no good.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Being the typical Singaporean teacher, I fumbled around to explain to her that not all Christians are English-speaking and that there are English-speaking Buddhists as well. Furthermore, proficiency in language is a different thing from professing a particular religion.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Nevertheless, consciously or not, her remarks have crystalised for me in one pungent sentence, the question of what does it mean to be Christian and Singaporean, something which I have been pondering for some time.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the letter to Diognetus, an ancient Christian author explained to his fellow non-Christian citizens of the Roman empire that while “Christians are indistinguishable from other men either by nationality, language or customs… there is something extraordinary about their lives. Like others, they marry and have children, but they do not expose them. They share their meals, but not their wives….</div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Obedient to the laws, they yet live on a level that transcends the law. Christians love all men, but all men persecute them. They live in poverty, but enrich many; they are totally destitute, but possess an abundance of everything. They are defamed, but vindicated. A blessing is their answer to abuse, deference their response to insult.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">While one may dispute the accuracy of such a picture of the early Christians, the fact that the author boldly writes this to be is nevertheless a bracing challenge for the Singaporean Christian.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">What may well be a modern day letter to Diognetus in the Singaporean context? In many cases, it may go something like this “Christians are indistinguishable from other Singaporeans… like others they marry and have not too many children. Nevertheless there is something extraordinary about their lives. Most of them speak English and many of their children are in the university. They live in riches and possess an abundance of the 5 Cs.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">“They love all people and want them to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and saviour. They are condemned because people do not understand why this Jesus will send them to hell if they don’t accept Him. Sometimes, a curse is their answer to such abuse and brandishing their high educational qualifications is a response to insult.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">To be sure, I admit that I am probably too harsh. I personally know of many selfless co-religionists of mine whose faith and works of charity put me to shame. Nevertheless, I think my student’s pungent remark should still haunt us.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/BMW.jpg"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="130" src="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/BMW.jpg" style="margin: 5px;" title="I'll take Jesus with the BMW and the COE too, please!" width="195" /></a>Is this the view of a typical non-Christian Singaporean? Are non-Christian Singaporeans attracted, if at all, to Christianity because they see it as an entrance into an upwardly mobile, socially elite crowd? Did Jesus give this Christian a new BMW? Well, I’ll take Jesus (with the COE too if you please!)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The challenge placed before me today is essentially a Eucharistic one. In the words of St. John Chrysostom, “Do you want to honour Christ’s body? Then do not scorn Him in His nakedness, nor honour Him here in the church with silken garments while neglecting Him outside where He is cold and naked. The rich man is not the one who is in possession of much, but the one who gives much.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">If Singaporean Christians were to take up the challenge of St. John Chrysostom, perhaps the letter to Diognetus can be rewritten. Perhaps our non-Christian countrymen might say the following of us:</div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Christians are indistinguishable from other Singaporeans because they comprise members from all races, ethnic groups and social status. Yet, there is something extraordinary about their lives. Like others, they marry and have children, but they do not expose them to the pursuit of the 5Cs. They share their meals, with their domestic helpers.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Obedient to the law, they yet live on a level that transcends the law, ensuring justice for the most vulnerable. They are condemned because they are considered naïve. They live a spirit of poverty, using money for the common good. They suffer dishonour, because Christ and not GDP is their king.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">And maybe, future Christian teachers might hear their students saying the following to them “Cher, you Christian ah, no wonder you going the extra mile for me, can I be one too?”</div>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-21756442148672857072011-12-06T00:59:00.000+08:002011-12-06T00:59:05.373+08:00A Catholic Halloween More Scary (and glam) than you think<content:encoded><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/stbartholomew.jpg"><br />
</a><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/halloween-horror-nights.jpg"><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-422" src]]="" style="margin: 5px;" /><!--[CDATA[="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/halloween-horror-nights.jpg" alt="" width="173" height="289" /--></a>The other day, I was at Vivo city with my fiancé where I chanced upon a poster with a man with an axe buried in his head. “Halloween Horror nights, Singapore’s scariest party” proclaimed the poster, insinuating, of course, that if you are part of the glamorous crowd, you should be there (at Universal Studios, Resorts World Sentosa, where else), dressed in your Halloween best.</content:encoded><br />
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<div style="text-align: justify;">One’s Halloween best can include of course being dressed as one of those traditional Halloween creatures, such as werewolves, vampires, or Frankenstein’s monster. For those preferring modern versions, there is always Edward Cullen of Twilight fame or Lady Gaga.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Party goers know that they are only at their ghoulish best (worst) for one night. As they party the night away, they know that when morning comes, they go back to work or school and will return to being plain John Lee or Jane Chan. Nevertheless, taking a night off to connect with your inner monster sure was fun.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Catholics, (at least for those who consider days of obligation obligatory,) will instead be found huddled in churches for the celebration of the Vigil Mass of All Saints’ Day. I know I was. And a very insightful homily by Fr Derrick Yap, OFM at the Church of St. Mary of the Angels got me thinking.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In his homily, Fr Derrick mentioned the surprise he felt when he realized, upon asking a group of children, that they knew next to nothing about All Saints Day but knew everything about Halloween. He had to explain to them that Halloween is connected to All Saints’ Day. Indeed, the word is a Scottish rendition of All Hallows Eve, that is, the day before All Saints Day.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/last-judgement.jpg"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-424 alignnone" height="600" src="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/last-judgement.jpg" style="margin: 5px;" title="Michelangelo's The Last Judgement" width="499" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Fr Derrick urged the congregation to let their children know the saints better, for All Saints Day is potentially the feast day of every single Christian, since that is our destiny. In his typically folksy style, Fr Derrick insisted that surely the saints are “more glam” than any of the strange creatures that come for our Halloween parties.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Fr Derrick’s words got me thinking. Why are our saints seemingly not as “glam” (if one were to use this word) as the parade of spooky monsters? Before we decry the secular world for yet another attempt at commercializing a Christian festival (think Christmas for instance), perhaps we should look at the way we present our saints.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Do they look pallid and overly sentimental in our typical Catholic artwork? Are their stories told to our children as a means of social control, for example: the saints obeyed their parents/teachers therefore you should too, making them glorified teacher’s pets? Or do we teach our children that these saints are first (potential) spiritual dispensing machines, helpful if they grant “practical” favours like passing the exams and getting into a good school but whose lives ought not to be imitated too seriously?</div><div style="text-align: justify;">If that is the way our attitude to the saints are, then no wonder the spooky monsters seem more glamorous. I don’t want to be a glorified teacher’s pet on All Hallows Eve. I want to be someone larger than life.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Yet the best of Christian art and storytelling has never portrayed the saints in this way. The saints were usually troublemakers and provocateurs, who inspite of their human weakness, strive to love the person of Jesus Christ and shine his light onto every facet of life. They confronted human problems in the most creative and remarkable ways provoking either fierce loyalty or strident opposition. When they were peacemakers, they were able to reconcile seemingly irreconcilable foes. And yes, they were prepared to face martyrdom for their beliefs.</div><a href="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/stbartholomew.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="" class="alignright" height="360" src="http://www.singaporecatholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/stbartholomew.jpg" style="margin: 5px;" title="St Bartholomew" width="262" /></a>Indeed, if one were to look at the frescoes of The Last Judgment painted by Michelangelo, one would notice a parade of saints, many of them showing the tools of their martyrdom to Jesus Christ the Just Judge. If one were to look carefully, one would notice one man carrying his flayed skin and showing it to Jesus. That is St. Bartholomew, who was believed to have suffered martyrdom by being skinned alive.<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">And if one were to come to a Singapore’s scariest party dressed like St. Bartholomew, one would surely be one of the finalists in the best dressed competition.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The best of the Catholic tradition is not unfamiliar to pain, suffering and gore. But pain, suffering and gore are not ends in themselves. They are celebrated not for its own sake, but for the reason that they can be transfigured into scars of victory and love. St. Bartholomew showing his skin to Christ does not glorify pain in itself but offers it as a pledge of love.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">On the other hand, Halloween parties seem to glorify pain and gore in itself. It is, instead of a transfiguration, a disfiguration; it takes suffering either too seriously, by telling the world that suffering is the final destiny of man, or too trivially, reducing it to mere entertainment.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">As Catholics, we need to reclaim Halloween in the right way, first by recognizing that our saints, in loving Christ, become some of the most interesting people on the planet. Indeed, sainthood is our destiny.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">So dress your children in a saint costume the next Halloween. As they “party” the night away and when morning comes, they return to being plain Johns and Janes. But they remember these real people (the saints) were also plain Johns and Janes. But by loving Christ and being loved by him, they fulfill their full potential and destiny.</div>]]><wfw:commentrss>http://www.singaporecatholic.com/a-catholic-halloween-scarier-and-more-glam-than-youd-think/feed/</wfw:commentrss> <slash:comments>0</slash:comments>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-58294554235070269602011-04-14T00:17:00.001+08:002011-04-14T00:22:01.961+08:00Can going for Mass be an occasion of sin? An observation over the Dresscode debate in Singapore Catholic ChurchesThere is an old Catholic saying "lex orandi lex credendi" - i.e the Law of prayer is the law of belief. i.e how you pray will affect your beliefs about God.<br />
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I think we should also propose another Catholic saying "lex clothing orandi lex credendi" (Apologies, i don't know enough latin). i.e The law of wearing clothes for prayer affects your beliefs about God<br />
Some of us would probably have read about the dresscode debate within the Catholic Church. If you have not, you can read an exercpt here.<br />
<a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_631895.html">http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_631895.html</a><br />
<a href="http://www.catholicnews.sg/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5570%3Areaders-weigh-in-on-mass-dress-code-issue&catid=263%3Afebruary-13-2011-vol-61-no-3&Itemid=79#comment-472">http://www.catholicnews.sg/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5570%3Areaders-weigh-in-on-mass-dress-code-issue&catid=263%3Afebruary-13-2011-vol-61-no-3&Itemid=79#comment-472</a><br />
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One may ask why are people spilling so much ink over this. Actually, from a theological/sociological perspective, that makes a lot of sense. Clothing is always culturally symbolic and never neutral. Gandhi wore homespun clothing. Do you think he did it without any intention?<br />
Likewise how we dress for mass will necessarily have symoblic and even theological meaning whether we are conscious of it or not. If a middle class family decides to "just happen" to put on whatever is available at the moment i.e shorts, t-shirt and slippers, they may not consciously intend to make a statement but they do bring a certain attitude to worship. (what that really is, only they know themselves)<br />
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I also notice a bit of an irony when i read these debates. We are told very often in homilies, especially in the Post-Conciliar Church after the Second Vatican Council that the Mass should not be a privatised devotion but should spur us on to care for and notice our neighbor.<br />
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And sometimes, clergy do that by getting (during mass!) people to shake hands with the person next to you.<br />
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Those who wear the spaghetti straps and flip flops et al will like it but those who wear mantillas etc will cringe. (i am generalisng and being ironic here)<br />
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But suddenly when it comes to dress code, i have noticed that those who defend the spaghetti strapprs etc or the spaghetti strappers themselves will say when they are challenged that they come to Church "only for God" and hence my dressing is God's business and none of my neighbour's business. If a guy stumbles because of my spaghetti strap, than it is his problem not mine. Also if by your flipflops and bermudas and singlets cause the little ones i.e children to have less reverence for a place of worship, and form the impression that attending Mass is no big deal, its the children's problem not mine.<br />
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You can't have it both ways. Either the Mass is a purely private deovtion, then everybody can wear what they want i.e including mantillas or spaghetti straps etc and receive Holy communion kneeling on the tongue without being refused and also with the words on your clothing "F*ck You God" without being refused since every one relates to God in their own way.<br />
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Or the Mass is necessarily a communal sacrifice, a communal and public act of worship.<br />
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Which means all the ten commandments apply when one is in Church.<br />
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Which also means, that all the relevant litrugical norms ought to be followed.<br />
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We go for mass among other things, to ask God for the grace for the week and to help us love our neighbour better.It will be a tragedy and the greatest irony when going for mass becomes an occasion for sin and where the battle against sin has to begin right within the Sanctuary. <br />
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<span id="myphotolink"><img height="120" id="myphoto" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/180511_10150094205564803_588344802_6000221_4002836_n.jpg" width="200" /></span>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-6429365009165322812010-11-04T22:14:00.000+08:002010-11-04T22:14:47.891+08:00The Hungry Ghost Festival: Some Catholic ThoughtsI have actually been thinking about this for some time and the hungry ghost festival presents certain interesting theological questions.<br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzvMX_5nFa5F8LQMOJu1iakEvlkX2EEjsVoqD5L5GeAsu92M93_T4pjG3VtBhR9HVKyuuuD9Lf8pft_hwUO5bMDGlY2I4K79yyZScWHGSFCx-O-PNA0KPbVeDVGL3sMDs9-V_02069J2A/s1600/hungryghost.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzvMX_5nFa5F8LQMOJu1iakEvlkX2EEjsVoqD5L5GeAsu92M93_T4pjG3VtBhR9HVKyuuuD9Lf8pft_hwUO5bMDGlY2I4K79yyZScWHGSFCx-O-PNA0KPbVeDVGL3sMDs9-V_02069J2A/s200/hungryghost.bmp" width="200" /></a></div>The ghosts/spirits are believed to be released on the 7th month to roam the earth, something like a "free pass." These ghosts are "hungry" in the sense that they do appreciate human beings entertaining them and giving them food etc.<br />
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From a Catholic theological perspective, there do exist "hungry ghosts". They are the Holy Souls in purgatory. They are ultimately hungry for God's love, longing and fainting for the courts of the Lord as the psalmist would say. We help them of course through offering prayers and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for them to satiate their hunger. And within Catholic tradition, these souls in purgatory do get to appear to human beings in the forms of apparitions to certain select individuals. A book entitled "hungry souls" by Dr Gerard Van den Aardweg provides fascinating material of this phenomenon. There is even a Church in Italy with a "purgatory museum" storing artifacts which have been touched by these souls a visible reminders of their visit. A bit spooky but within the boundaries of Catholic teaching.<br />
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As such, in inter-religious dialogue, this can be a good starting point to share with those who practice traditional chinese religion.<br />
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However, from a Catholic theological perspective, all we can say is that God has not revealed to us that there is a special month where souls are released from purgatory to roam the earth to beg for prayers. That would be in the category of natural human religiosity.<br />
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In anycase, we have all souls day, a day dedicated to pray for these hungry souls. There seems to me no harm per se for Catholics coming out of a Chinese religion background to intensify prayers and offer masses during the month of August should they so chose. Of course the elements not in keeping with Catholic teaching have to be slowly weaned away.<br />
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Catholics sometimes report that they feel "oppressed" during this season. Some of a more traditional/charismatic bent advocate spiritual combat. What then should one do?<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">For one thing Catholic teaching is clear that there is only one "King of hell", i.e. Satan. He tempts human beings all the time and will use whatever historical circumstances to bring that about. Since the hungry ghost festival is in the category of natural human religiosity, truth is often mixed with error. Hence it is very possible that satan and his minions makes use of this period of time the "hungry ghost festival" to burrow into human religious practices and cause spiritual disturbances.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Then again, God could also permit the holy souls in purgatory to be "more active" in seeking the prayers of the living during this month. If that's the case, he seems to be drawing good out of natural human religiosity.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">In any case, while we can't be absolutely certain, we can draw some guidelines.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The bottom line for Catholics is Mass, the rosary and other approved devotions directed to the Holy Souls in purgatory or minor exocrisms designed to drive away infestations. According to Dr Gerard van den Aardweg, souls in purgatory when they do appear to human beings, will sadly beg for prayers, help and compassion. Damned souls/demons do not.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabAHrBV1-iR5wMo4wKSqCEx81yluGoPzGhzyOLiS7zX4YFpB7WiXyY5cbc_z5ruznvFAIR0HNP-gyUqpFv0tPua111Jmgzozm3uTEELJjm268fc1iGL2NRwssvMGFOC0k7iL2j6NWJ-I/s1600/hungrysouls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabAHrBV1-iR5wMo4wKSqCEx81yluGoPzGhzyOLiS7zX4YFpB7WiXyY5cbc_z5ruznvFAIR0HNP-gyUqpFv0tPua111Jmgzozm3uTEELJjm268fc1iGL2NRwssvMGFOC0k7iL2j6NWJ-I/s200/hungrysouls.jpg" width="128" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">A Catholic knows that any attempt at placating a soul with food, entertainment, joss paper etc is while done with good intentions, is ultimately not helpful.</div><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Worst still if Catholics attempt at placating demons via the usual hungry ghost practices.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">That's one category of intelligent beings we absolutely don't negotiate with.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-90811297020262681722010-04-22T22:18:00.000+08:002010-04-22T22:18:57.663+08:00Body Shop and Natural Family Planning<object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iXm_QeJvr1Q&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/iXm_QeJvr1Q&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br />
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You’re beautiful whatever your quirks… It’s about making the best of yourself without having to try to hard but sometimes you may need a helping hand… we unearth nature’s ingredients the secrets of timeless regimes and we bring your products bursting with effectiveness… we do this while respecting the planet, the communities who depend on it and standing up for causes that are important to the world we live in because we believe that is only one way to be beautiful, nature’s way.”<br />
Nope this is not the latest commercial by the<a href="http://www.ccli.org/"> Couple to Couple League</a> or the <a href="http://www.acnfp.com.au/">Australian Council of Natural Family Planning</a> but by BodyShop the second largest cosmetic franchise in the world. Yet this text could have easily been transposed into an advertisement promoting Natural Family Planning. Indeed, if Dame Anita Roddick’s successors were to declare to the world that they have designed a product that is suitable for sophisticated first world women and poor third world women in whatever stage of their lives, and in whatever physical condition to understand and responsibly manage and monitor their reproductive health which is simultaneously natural, drug free, low cost, environmentally friendly, effective in both postponing and achieving pregnancy, helps in marital communication and a more enjoyable sex life , and actually acts as a protective factor against divorce, they might actually win a Nobel Peace Prize. <br />
Considering the contemporary wave of enthusiasm for natural, organic and sustainable products, it would seem that the Church will do well to promote Natural Family Planning as an environmentally friendly lifestyle choice. After all, most people would react to a reminder to lead a healthy lifestyle with a grudging nod of the head. And on the other hand, most who promote healthy lifestyles do make allowance for an occasional indulgence in food dripping with trans-fat. Yet Church’s teaching has always been that the use of Natural Family Planning is not merely a healthier lifestyle choice, i.e. the difference between eating processed or natural foods, but the only morally legitimate choice for couples intending to space their families and that only for serious reasons. It considers the use of the contraceptive pill and any and all forms of contraceptives not simply as a physical evil akin to ingesting a high dosage of cholesterol into your body but a moral evil, which done with full knowledge and consent of the will constitutes mortal sin which can cut one of eternally from union with their Creator.<br />
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Can this teaching be rationally defended? I think so and in my next post, I will share how…Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-60166275881921947992010-03-08T19:51:00.000+08:002010-03-08T19:51:23.049+08:00Studies at John Paul II InstituteWhew! Its been a month already since i arrived in Melbourne and I am really enjoying my studies at John Paul II institute. <br />
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Classes are usually about no more than 10 people thus giving a sense of community and opportunity for free flowing discussion. We are a mixture of clergy and laity from different walks of life united however with a basic conviction and love for the Catholic church and a desire to engage the culture at large in a rigorous and thorough manner. You might be surprised but there are quite a number of Asians studying at JP2! <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia9BsGJifHzVKZvnWXWTt8tur_S60J4sKzj37KaR1rrS_4JHaEFk6mzSCVp4VsoMr3iROpQNBNZmhSU272sdEl192VmN7HUWpKcCxmNxYEvYI__joI5fTNPmOVaMaiGVXAAQ4SyI2g-co/s1600-h/Picture+017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia9BsGJifHzVKZvnWXWTt8tur_S60J4sKzj37KaR1rrS_4JHaEFk6mzSCVp4VsoMr3iROpQNBNZmhSU272sdEl192VmN7HUWpKcCxmNxYEvYI__joI5fTNPmOVaMaiGVXAAQ4SyI2g-co/s200/Picture+017.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>There are two singaporeans (myself and Gregory who's dad Thomas is active in Marriage encounter and who was a former exco member of Family Life Society). Gregory brought his wife Elizabeth and his five month old son Nathan along to melbourne. he is studying for a graduate diploma and shared that studying theology was what he always wanted to do. <br />
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Another two fulltime students are Simone and Jasmine. Simone is from Australia and she is often seen in the chapel praying before the lessons. She studied theology at graduate level and is now pursuing a masters.<br />
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Jasmine is from HongKong and she is here because she was inspired by another Hongkonger Peter Ho who is doing his PhD examining the understanding of the virtue of chastity in scripture.<br />
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Among the clergy there are Korean, Thai, Mauritian and Vietnamese priests. The Vietnamese priest Fr John Baptiste Nguyen is having a bit of a struggle with English and i try to help him by sharing my notes. He is determined though to succesfully complete his studies in bioethcis as he has been given a scholarship and will not want to disappoint his Bishop and his benefactor back home. I really admire and respect his determination. One thing i notice is a total lack of clericalism on the part of the clergyman. After all we are fellow students who are engaging the same material and i think that's healthy. <br />
We also have a sprinkling of other students who are doing courses part time and for audit. They are mostly australian. There is a Canadian student Peter Baklinski who is doing his PhD examining the vexed question of portraying the human body in art. He graciously invited me to his place for dinner. His wife and three kids came with him all the way from Canada and we had interesting conversations about beauty art and philosophy. He is also an accomplished pianist and has actually produced a CD of piano pieces inspired by the Theology of the Body. You can actually visit his website and have a look. They are quite good, i bought an MP3 version of it myself =)<br />
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http://www.resonanceofthegift.com/resonance_of_the_gift/Welcome.html <br />
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<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkPDzp1RvDxkMpnZ2L-nza8Yw2gETK8U_foiXmI2jMlABOuzhLQ2gxdcit7X2WhfsjlN9H4VbrZtdX2w49RvBb-zZrXqjdMWe72e14bj5HWit9QPaRD5GCbN3k79SZKTpD49uWDDoXj0U/s1600-h/Image0017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkPDzp1RvDxkMpnZ2L-nza8Yw2gETK8U_foiXmI2jMlABOuzhLQ2gxdcit7X2WhfsjlN9H4VbrZtdX2w49RvBb-zZrXqjdMWe72e14bj5HWit9QPaRD5GCbN3k79SZKTpD49uWDDoXj0U/s200/Image0017.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The lecturers are really top notch in their field. In terms of teaching method, Dr Adam Cooper is the best and is a really good teacher, able to breakdown complicated concepts into understandable portions. Aristotle and Plato are easier to understand with him around. Dr Tracey Rowland the Dean has very important things to say as well and is very generous and helpful in freely lending her collection of books an articles to students who may want to use them for reference. Dr Nicholas Tonti-Filipini teaches the NFP module and is the associate dean and head of the Bioethics Department. He is a quiet superhero really. He has been going for dialysis for many years and thus, his reflection and teaching on bioethics has a very personal bite to it. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Bishop Peter Elliot who teaches the Marriage in the Catholic Tradition module and who is the Institute's director is humorous and wise and happily weaves in apologetics when he talks about the history of the Christian understanding of marriage. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6qXWEaBaycGpYe-QAwjDEMkimMTjxZHCLtgqRY9nIxrT4_Hqgwdzwjn-kEVhalhAEcsER7WjfNeO7CDHt3KH3MHG5PXXBIElRbpRULL2zHSaF9ilj4u7VzMCnd4yeijsSKLPqA4DCgBo/s1600-h/Image0014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6qXWEaBaycGpYe-QAwjDEMkimMTjxZHCLtgqRY9nIxrT4_Hqgwdzwjn-kEVhalhAEcsER7WjfNeO7CDHt3KH3MHG5PXXBIElRbpRULL2zHSaF9ilj4u7VzMCnd4yeijsSKLPqA4DCgBo/s200/Image0014.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">So yes am enjoying the company very much. It does get a bit lonely at night though when i am back home but i guess that's part of the experience of living overseas. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I've got a couple of blog posts i intend to write, a series of reflections on what i have learnt so far and its relevance for contemporary culture. I've got the titles for them, "Aristotle's classification of knowledge and the modern confusion of the practical and theoretical", "Plato's cave - thoughts for a modern day apostle", "Duns scotus: On the right way to worship and not getting yourself into metaphysical trouble" "Contraception: it's been around...we've just got better at it. "Marriage abortion and infaticide: The revenge of the Romans", "Speciesm, if man is a naked ape, then plants are capable of screaming" </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> </div>Just need to get down to writing them. Stay tuned!Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-78562346018687170772009-05-06T11:00:00.010+08:002010-03-06T16:02:37.251+08:00AWARE Saga and the question of the separation of the secular and religious realmsFor those of you who do not know already, the AWARE saga is over. The New exco has been ousted and the old exco is back in power. <br />
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During the saga, something which has been bandied about a lot was the need to "separate the religious realm from the secular realm". Christians and other persons of faith, we are told, can have their opinions and say what they want only within their churches, temples and mosques. They should not propagate their views in the "secular" realm. The "secular" realm should, we are told, stay secular. <br />
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That's the popular view. Many people believe in it. Many Christians, even some religious leaders think that such a view is wisdom. <br />
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They are wrong on many accounts. <br />
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Imagine if the abolitionists in the 19th century, many of whom believed fervently that God created everybody in his image and likeness and thus, black people ought not to be slaves were to say that well, that's my personal religious belief. I won't own slaves myself but I shouldn't be stepping into the secular realm to persuade others that slavery is wrong. If they want to own slaves, that's their right.<br />
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We would still be owning slaves today.<br />
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Or imagine if Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, or Archbishop Desmond Tutu, fervent Christians all and other Christians of different racial groups, were to say that well, its my personal religious belief that segregation, apartheid and racism are wrong, but I will not impose my beliefs on other people. <br />
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We would still have segregation and and official policy of racial discrimination today. <br />
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Indeed,when it was revealed that a <a href="http://938live.sg/portal/site/938Live/menuitem.43735da1634c4377d21b2910618000a0/?vgnextoid=ec9dba8991af0210VgnVCM1000001f0aa8c0RCRD&mcParam=18d2638896593110VgnVCM100000e101000aRCRD">Methodist Organization</a>, the Chen Su Lan Trust, under the leadership of retired Methodist Bishop Yap Kim Hao, donated $113, 000 dollars, out of wish nearly a third was used for AWARE's controversial sexuality education program which we all know by now, endorsed anal sex as potentially normal and healthy and labeled pre-marital sex as a neutral thing, nobody was screaming that a religious organization is interfering in the affairs of a secular organization. Neither was anybody objecting that through donating money, it is attempting to "influence" and "impose" its agenda on a secular organization. <br />
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Yet when 6 people who happened to attend the same Church were constitutionally elected at AWARE's AGM, and came out to say that they were concerned that the leadership of AWARE has been promoting lesbianism and homosexuality as acceptable alternative lifestyles, they were accused of hate mongering, possessing a religious agenda and worst of all, received <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_367873.html">death threats</a>. <br />
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What's going on here?<br />
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The issue is not separation of the secular and religious realms. The issue really is that when people of faith agrees with the values of militant secularists, they are welcomed with open arms and seen as enlightened and progressive. <br />
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But when a person of faith dares to disagree with the values endorsed by these same militant secularists, then they had better confine their views to the walls of their churches and temples or risk facing the wrath and anathemas of these new high priests/(or priestesses). <br />
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Take the question of homosexuality for instance. If you disagree in public, even in Singapore, where homosexual sex acts are <a href="http://law.nus.edu.sg/sjls/articles/SJLS-Dec-2008-347.pdf">technically illegal</a>, that the homosexual lifestyle should be promoted as a normal or a neutral thing, you had better be prepared to face being called "fundamentalist", "<a href="http://www.yawningbread.org/">Christian Taliban</a>" "hate monger" and other types of inflammatory language which, if used in other contexts, will risk bringing down the power of the sedition act on you for inciting racial and religious tension. <br />
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This is not civil society. This is unchecked criminal intimidation. <br />
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It is civil society when we can discuss in a rational manner, whether sexual complementarity is merely a social construct to be deconstructed at will or whether sexual complementarity and everything that flows from it, i.e marriage between a man and a woman, family, children etc is vital for human flourishing and that the state and society at large should have a special interest in promoting it.<br />
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It is civil society when someone should be able to point out, without being called a bigot, the tragic fact that persons who are involved in a gay lifestyle are catching HIV at <a href="http://www.asiaone.com/News/the%2BStraits%2BTimes/Story/A1Story20081207-106095.html">disproportionately higher rates</a> than heterosexuals and wondering if a homosexual person should at least be open to the option of abstaining from risky sexual practices. <br />
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And it is civil society when concerned parents, should be able to get together to sign a calm and respectful <a href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/parents_sex_ed_appeal/">petition</a> urging the Ministry of Education to better inform them of what is being taught as sexuality education in schools without being called intolerant or interfering in the internal affairs of AWARE. <br />
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Let's get this straight. The issue is not about the separation of the religious or secular realms or that Christians and other people of faith should confine their views to the private sphere. <br />
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The issue is really how far militant secularists are willing to tolerate inconvenient truths being brought to their attention by persons of faith.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-789475115775425752010-02-12T17:59:00.001+08:002010-02-12T18:00:37.486+08:00My First Days In MelbourneAs some of you know, I will be commencing studies at the John Paul II Institute beginning 15th Feb 2010. I will be there until Nov 2010. Am really looking forward to this. <br />
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Just like to introduce you to two people whom i am sharing the same accomodation with.<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVqsntU-vusqn5X9TH1LsQmBxHn0aVFiVFqTE9o7hhN7PgVl8nNtVwBIwx1kQWbfxObZSKHkwz9QvS4ISZZgLB0A01bQCvefKGHvKJyRLq05quxykBjaS5GSaG17e9Rop7vw3jG3xWJfQ/s1600-h/Image0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVqsntU-vusqn5X9TH1LsQmBxHn0aVFiVFqTE9o7hhN7PgVl8nNtVwBIwx1kQWbfxObZSKHkwz9QvS4ISZZgLB0A01bQCvefKGHvKJyRLq05quxykBjaS5GSaG17e9Rop7vw3jG3xWJfQ/s320/Image0001.jpg" width="320" /></a>The first is my landlady Shirley Low. She's a Singaporean who has been staying in Melbourne for close to six years already. A mandarian and teochew speaking evangelical christian who accepted Christ a number of years ago she loves gospel music (in chinese of course) and plays it when she is at home and in the car. When i asked her about her conversion story, she simply said that there was a time when she really needed help and she prayed to Jesus and soon realised that He truly was the true and Living God. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> Shirley reading the Bible</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyf_hjyOMBoIX-4jF1rEC9oEBQOBPm-9s-A5KG6-40k4cDNQWLeIex0nBy00AahiS7PBjzxk6x7A2jJbNYNo3o34nfNx1GsgJcmm7pActPgZVImgf77dIP03jPqkgTyXVi8N5B5_GVlVo/s1600-h/Image0000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyf_hjyOMBoIX-4jF1rEC9oEBQOBPm-9s-A5KG6-40k4cDNQWLeIex0nBy00AahiS7PBjzxk6x7A2jJbNYNo3o34nfNx1GsgJcmm7pActPgZVImgf77dIP03jPqkgTyXVi8N5B5_GVlVo/s320/Image0000.jpg" /></a>The second is "auntie susan" as we call her who is renting a place (like me) from Shirley while looking to buy a new house. She was originally from Cambodia and arrived in Australia in 1983. An australian citizen, i found out today that she was one of the vietnamese boat people who packed into boats by the 100s, drifting into open sea and hoping to be rescued, in the hope of escaping communist oppression and for a better life. In her case, she fled cambodia for vietnam in 1975 when the Khemer Rouge took over her country and had to flee again in the early 1980s when life under communist rule prove unbearable. In a matter of fact way, she told me that escaping from Vietnam was a gamble. If you win, you get rescued by boats and may be able to fin asylum in a friendly country. If not, you get drowned when you boat capsizes. What was not an option (at least for her) was continued stay in Vietnam. She is grateful to Australia for accepting her and proudly recounts how her two children are now successful in life. Her son is a professor at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) while her daughter has her own business. She too became an evangelical Christian but only a couple of months ago. </div><br />
So i have a landlady and a fellow tenent who prefers to speak Mandarin and Teochew. Devout Christians both, i am very happy to be here and will surely be developing my faith, and chinese langaguage skills while i am here!Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-5487371541078200122009-10-04T22:21:00.003+08:002009-10-12T09:40:45.486+08:00A first in my 28 years as a Catholic: A homily explaining the church’s teaching on contraception.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-vc-cZRvnqSUctgPPG5kqzpEz82X-sT16_uxZRp1xodaH3zzC5Wa8T9fdeG_42AwpOF9R9nyDzHS60ha5x1T3yXU8kSZo3981B-76UV982tF4IQHa3ajfVU4FfZudn3sLPe2D_abAW98/s1600-h/St_Josephs_Church.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 208px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-vc-cZRvnqSUctgPPG5kqzpEz82X-sT16_uxZRp1xodaH3zzC5Wa8T9fdeG_42AwpOF9R9nyDzHS60ha5x1T3yXU8kSZo3981B-76UV982tF4IQHa3ajfVU4FfZudn3sLPe2D_abAW98/s320/St_Josephs_Church.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388750603862996098" /></a><br />Today is the 4th October 2009. It is also the 27th Sunday in Ordinary time if you are liturgically minded. <br /><br />So what’s so special about today?<br /><br />Well, of course Sunday is always special. After all, it’s the Lord’s day and we should take the time to worship, rest and relax (in that order).<br /><br />What makes it a bonus of course, is when you hear a homily which inspires and uplifts. <br /><br />Well that was what I heard today. The parish was St Joseph’s Church (Bukit Timah). The mass was 11am. And the homilist was Fr. Alex Chua, Vocations Director and Chaplain for the Universities, Archdiocese of Singapore.<br /><br />And he chose to preach about contraception, and why Catholics who use contraception should go to confession for they would be guilty of serious sin.<br /><br />To be honest, it was simply a typical Sunday Mass for me. I arrived just in time, settle down to the pew, tried to follow the Gloria and the Kyrie as best as I could and sat down to listen to the readings. <br /><br />The first reading was from Genesis 2, 18-24 where we heard that God created man and woman and that a man shall leave his father and mother and unite with his wife and the two shall be one flesh. <br /><br />The Gospel was from Mk 10,2-16 where Jesus spoke against divorce and quoted Genesis 2, 18-24 to demonstrate God’s original plan for man and woman.<br /><br />Fr. Alex Chua read the Gospel and proceeded to give the homily.<br /><br />Fr Alex then recounted an incident where a woman who had three children complained bitterly to him that because of her “stupid husband”, she is now pregnant with her fourth child. She resents that and asked Fr Alex, “where in the bible does it say that couples cannot use contraception”. <br /><br />And for good measure, she informed Fr Alex that she did ask a priest about this and he gave such a convoluted answer that it was of no help at all. <br /><br />I cringed at the beginning of the homily, wondering where all this would lead. Would Fr. Alex proceed to attack the Church’s teaching on contraception? Would he disparage the clear teaching of Humane Vitae?<br /><br />I saw my parish priest, Fr Edmund, a man known for his orthodoxy and fidelity to church teaching (he is never seen without his roman collar), squinting his eyes and listening attentively to what would be preached. <br /><br />My fears were unfounded. What followed was a wonderful homily on the truth of marital love and conjugal union that I nearly wept for joy. <br /><br />Fr Alex proceeded to give a learned scriptural exegesis on the Bible’s description of the conjugal union as a one flesh union.<br /><br />“In the conjugal act”, preached Fr Alex, “it is an act of total and unreserved self giving.” “You are attempting to be one flesh with your spouse. How can you be one flesh when you refuse to give your spouse your sperms or eggs?”<br /><br />Fr proceeded to share that the conjugal act possess two meanings, union and procreation. By separating the procreative dimension from the unitive, couples would fail to unite themselves completely too and that is a recipe for selfishness. <br /><br />“Contraception is death dealing”, insisted Fr Alex, “we are people of life and true union is the goal of every marriage, especially in the conjugal act.” “What happens in the bedroom will affect what happens in the day to day of married life. If there is no union there, there would not be true union in a marriage.” <br /><br />Fr proceeded to assure couples that the church does not insist that you must have as many children as possible but insists on responsible parenthood. “Every couple who marries ought to know about natural family planning. Please check with the parish secretary for NFP information.”<br /><br />He subsequently shared that the woman who challenged him admitted that he did know the scripture after all. <br /> <br />And to end it all, he urged couples who are contracepting to throw away their contraceptives into the rubbish bin, begin dialogue with each other and come for confession and be reconciled with the Church.<br /><br />Wow!<br /><br />Now I am paraphrasing what I remembered from Fr Alex’s homily and his homily is much better than what I have recalled. Will try to get the full text and post it in this blog. <br /><br />And when i congratulated Fr Alex on a beautiful homily, he humbly said "well, with today's reading, what else should we priests preach on."<br /><br />If you would like to thank Fr Alex, you can write to him here. SingaporeDiocesanVocation@gmail.com <br /><br />Thank God for a courageous and compassionate priest! Deo Gratias!Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-74912203325402723732009-08-18T00:27:00.002+08:002009-08-18T00:35:57.611+08:00Beware also of Intolerant Secularism: On PM Lee's National Day Rally<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-6reFE87pV5T5SaHytp9zLQAkXrfNCNURB4FttQRZDy8yOqsR055lAdcYw_yKK2TK1nI2HESQn3NrtHu14riq1pt_y-bAbnjzTqH81qRELQBCNBQtiukyhOxXRqkECirFAVDwExY8FMs/s1600-h/pmlee.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-6reFE87pV5T5SaHytp9zLQAkXrfNCNURB4FttQRZDy8yOqsR055lAdcYw_yKK2TK1nI2HESQn3NrtHu14riq1pt_y-bAbnjzTqH81qRELQBCNBQtiukyhOxXRqkECirFAVDwExY8FMs/s320/pmlee.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370972342189329810" /></a><br /><br /><br />I would give the Prime Minister 85 out of 100 for his national day rally speech on race and religion. <br /><br />First the good points. <br /><br />It was good that the Prime Minister praised religion, as <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/sp/nationaldayrally2009/090817_rising_global_tide_of_religion.html">“a positive force in human societies… provid[ing] spiritual strength, guidance, solace and a sense of purpose to many, especially in our fast-changing and uncertain world”.</a><br /><br />Also, it is always a good thing to remind religious Singaporeans and their <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/sp/nationaldayrally2009/090817_religious_leaders_show_support.html">religious leaders</a> (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Singapore#Religion">85%</a> of the population by the way) of the need to be tolerant, rational and grow the common space so that all can live harmoniously. <br /><br />When then, you may ask, does he score only 85 marks at least in the mind of this Singaporean (whatever that grade is worth to the PM of course)?<br /><br />That’s because, in the PM’s attempt to “assess progress” and “recognize trends”, he has somehow neglected to include a sector of Singaporeans (about 15% of them) in his analysis; namely Singaporeans who identify themselves as professing no religion, and who describe themselves variously as freethinkers, secularists, atheists or agnostics. <br /><br />Now don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against such Singaporeans. I count a few of them as my friends. While not being religiously inclined themselves, and sometimes looking at their religiously inclined Singaporeans (I am one of them) with a certain amount of bemusement, they are, mostly tolerant, rational and also value the harmonious multi racial and multi religious society that is Singapore.<br /><br />My “gripe” with the PM (if I can use that word), is very simple actually. Why is this group of Singaporeans somehow exempt from scrutiny, and from the need to be reminded by our national leaders that they too must play their role in striving towards a harmonious Singapore?<br /><br />It is true. Some religiously inclined persons are susceptible to <a href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/403755/1/.html">intolerant</a> and <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_383186.html">irrational</a> ideas and need to be put in their place.<br /><br />But are so called “non-religious” persons, by virtue of their non-religiosity, naturally immune to the plague of intolerance and irrational behaviour? <br /><br />I would think not. <br /><br />In a speech about a year ago, Anthony Fisher, auxillary Bishop of Sydney coined the term <a href="http://www.sydney.catholic.org.au/people/bishop_anthony_fisher/addresses/2009/2009128_368.shtml">“dogmatic secularism”</a> to describe secularists who are “uncomfortable with pleas of immunity on religious or other conscientious grounds.”<br /><br />Bishop Fisher should know. The State of Victoria, Australia, recently passed a law not only legalizing abortion up to 24 weeks but also <a href="http://www.consciencelaws.org/Examining-Conscience-Legal/Legal37.html#Doctors_in_Conscience_Against_Abortion_Bill">mandating</a> that doctors and other healthcare professionals who object to abortion on religious or conscientious grounds “refer women who approach them to other healthcare professionals”. Not only that, they are required to perform the abortion in case of an emergency. Failure to do so would result in a lost of their medical license. <br /><br />This is a clear case of dogmatic secularists griped by intolerant behavior. <br /><br />But surely secularists in Singapore are different. We will never go the way of the West.<br /><br />I hope so but I am not so sure. <br /><br />Indeed, if one is to browse through any major bookstore in Singapore (Borders and Kinokuniya comes to mind), one would quickly discover books with titles that are, to put it mildly, provocative. <br /><br />We will quickly discover, titles like “God is not great: Why religion poisons everything” by Christopher Hitchens. Or if you prefer, there is also “the God Delusion” by Richard Dawkins (who by the way called the teaching of religion to children by parents a form of child abuse and has gone on record to call for government intervention). And if you are still in the mood “the atheist manifesto” by Michael Onfray, who for good measure, subtitles his book “the Case against Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.”<br /><br />Books do not appear on the shelves of major bookstores unless there is a market for them. And judging by their prominent locations (very often in the religion section of all places), there is a sizeable demand. <br /><br />Nor is this appetite for books advocating dogmatic secularism simply read as a pastime. <br /><br />We see intolerant secularism actually rearing its ugly head in concrete actions. <br /><br />Take the question of homosexuality for instance. If you disagree in public, even in Singapore, where homosexual sex acts are <a href="http://law.nus.edu.sg/sjls/articles/SJLS-Dec-2008-347.pdf">technically illegal</a>, that the homosexual lifestyle should be promoted as a normal or a neutral thing, you had better be prepared to face being called "fundamentalist", <a href="yawningbread">"Christian Taliban"</a> "hate monger" and other types of inflammatory language which, if used in other contexts, will risk bringing down the power of the sedition act on you for inciting racial and religious tension. <br /><br />Or if you are a religiously inspired organization, who intend to raise money for a children’s learning centre by tying up with a local bank, but happen to also hold views on sexuality deemed by secularists to be politically incorrect, you risk facing a <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking+News/Singapore/Story/STIStory_310705.html">campaign waged against you </a>demanding that Singapore’s largest bank stop its tie up with you.<br /><br />Or if you are a parent concerned about what’s being taught for sexuality education in schools, you might be <a href="http://bludeh.blogspot.com/2009/05/john-lui-writer-of-get-your-values-out.html">accused</a> of “have[ing] an inflated sense of your own worth in society” “a selfish, ignorant fool” and “a menace to society”. (Oh yes this was published in a mainstream newspaper’s blog before it was thankfully taken down. If you want the full text of this so called journalist’s vile writings, please email me separately). <br /><br />But nevertheless kudos to you, Prime Minister. It was good of you to remind our religious leaders and religiously inclined Singaporeans to be vigilant and not allow racial and religious intolerance to boil over. <br /><br />It would have been even better if you have reminded the 15 percent of non-religious/secular Singaporeans that the same rules which apply to religious groups also apply to them.<br /><br />Now I know that dogmatic secularists might accuse me of making a mountain out of a molehill and that they are fundamentally nice people and that I am engaged in scaremongering. (after all, that’s what religious people are often good at). <br /><br />For the sake of this country, I hope for once that they are right.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-42599500429966867732009-05-22T09:47:00.004+08:002009-05-22T09:51:10.319+08:00Saruman at Notre Dame<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWrXB6hKguo3Iyd6uu_xfedlsuX4GnvtTygef7XD3DURca5-9iekhp6csycXfHvd3PVu15KJU_k1tuRRnN3m6LlPNmEfv9SnHLE3qSGZKo8o_k-u-swDcAA9O9oYl3-O4ZHGXYksBtDqk/s1600-h/saruman%5B1%5D.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 220px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWrXB6hKguo3Iyd6uu_xfedlsuX4GnvtTygef7XD3DURca5-9iekhp6csycXfHvd3PVu15KJU_k1tuRRnN3m6LlPNmEfv9SnHLE3qSGZKo8o_k-u-swDcAA9O9oYl3-O4ZHGXYksBtDqk/s320/saruman%5B1%5D.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338459895163653666" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpsRUqsaGiiarsNK3f33lfi6thTf3HmTou5Gmx8UAVAi-JxqBuJDpO7o78yPqgj2R_gEZBRXM0oAa6Dq8RL0c5Im_DzZ8jg-n8TD0mtEUvje7uSp0IKTETsM6SenZkL4uSERNeIiP5PdM/s1600-h/large_Obama_INCA113.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpsRUqsaGiiarsNK3f33lfi6thTf3HmTou5Gmx8UAVAi-JxqBuJDpO7o78yPqgj2R_gEZBRXM0oAa6Dq8RL0c5Im_DzZ8jg-n8TD0mtEUvje7uSp0IKTETsM6SenZkL4uSERNeIiP5PdM/s320/large_Obama_INCA113.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338459891779075618" /></a><br /><br />Commentary: Saruman at Notre Dame<br />By Thaddeus J. Kozinski<br /><br />President Obama's masterful speech was widely applauded -- but what did he actually say?<br /><br />"Those who listened unwarily to that voice could seldom report the words that they heard; and if they did, they wondered, for little power remained in them. Mostly they remembered only that it was a delight to hear the voice speaking, all that it said seemed wise and reasonable, and desire awoke in them by swift agreement to seem wise themselves. When others spoke they seemed harsh and uncouth by contrast; and if they gainsaid the voice, anger was kindled in the hearts of those under the spell. For some the spell lasted only while the voice spoke to them, and when it spake to another they smiled, as men do who see through a juggler’s trick while others gape at it. For many the sound of the voice alone was enough to hold them enthralled; but for those whom it conquered the spell endured when they were far away, and ever they heard that soft voice whispering and urging them. But none were unmoved; none rejected its pleas and its commands without an effort of mind and will, so long as its master had control of it." ~ “The Speech of Saruman,” J.R.R.Tolkien, The Two Towers <br /><br />Towards the middle of his May 17th commencement address at Notre Dame, President Barack Obama asked the following questions:<br /><br />Is it possible for us to join hands in common effort? As citizens of a vibrant and varied democracy, how do we engage in vigorous debate? How does each of us remain firm in our principles, and fight for what we consider right, without demonizing those with just as strongly held convictions on the other side?<br /><br />Essential and vital questions, these, and the concise and straightforward manner with which he proposed them reveals Obama’s rhetorical brilliance. But Obama did more than propose thought-provoking questions to his Catholic audience; he provided definite answers to these, at least for those in the audience not entirely spellbound. Obama’s answers, along with the philosophical and theological principles they presuppose, were deftly hidden behind his rhetorically honed, magical words; and when they are exposed to the light, they reveal a different incantation than the one that appeared upon the exquisitely polished linguistic surface.<br /><br />In the middle of the address, Obama recounts the story of a Christian doctor who informed him that he would not be voting for him for President in the upcoming election, due not to Obama’s pro-choice position, but to the uncivil, ideological language in which this position was expressed on his website. Obama then told the audience how he immediately changed the wording, expressing his hope that “we can live with one another in a way that reconciles the beliefs of each with the good of all.” This anecdote, I think, provides an interpretive key to understanding not only the essential point of Obama’s Notre Dame address, but also his entire political project as expressed in his many addresses, writings, and acts since President.<br /><br />Reconciling the Irreconcilable<br /><br />The anecdote is a microcosm of Obama’s macro-political vision: a multitude of people with irreconcilable religious and moral convictions living together in peace and reconciliation. “Irreconcilable” is not my word, mind you, it’s Obama’s. From the Notre Dame address:<br /><br />Understand — I do not suggest that the debate surrounding abortion can or should go away. No matter how much we may want to fudge it — indeed, while we know that the views of most Americans on the subject are complex and even contradictory — the fact is that at some level, the views of the two camps are irreconcilable. Each side will continue to make its case to the public with passion and conviction. But surely we can do so without reducing those with differing views to caricature.<br /><br />Of course, by definition there can be no “reconciliation” between irreconcilable views, but Obama means something entirely different here. In light of the doctor story, what it means to “reconcile the beliefs of each with the good of all,” is not to change or encourage others to change views on an issue, but simply to change the way the view is articulated, so as not to “caricature” any opposing view.<br /><br />The doctor’s “humble” request for rhetorical civility, and Obama’s ready acquiescence to it, is the model for such reconciliation. “I do not ask at this point that you oppose abortion,” Obama quotes the doctor as saying, “only that you speak about this issue in fair-minded words.”<br /><br />A question arises, here, though: Why would someone who believes abortion to be the deliberate murder of a fully human and innocent person, as the pro-life doctor does, not ask everyone they meet, let alone a President with the most power to see it criminalized, to oppose abortion! That is, why would someone with such a “passionate conviction” judge the “fair-mindedness” of pro-murder language more important than truth, than speaking in such a way as most effectively to stop the killing? We are talking, after all, about a life and death issue here, not one’s view on the estate tax.<br /><br />Can Values be Aligned Without Changing Them?<br /><br />In the speech, Obama urged all Americans to “align our deepest values and commitments to the demands of a new age,” that is, not to change our values and commitments, whether secularist or religious, but merely align them. What this alignment entails must have something to do with the exchange between the doctor and Obama, our models of American virtue.<br /><br />Allow me to change the anecdote a bit to help discover the connection. The year is 1834, and the issue is slavery, not abortion. There is a law that allows a slave to be killed by its master for any reason whatsoever, and thus thousands of innocent slaves are killed every year. The “pro-life” doctor opposes this law, but his senator advocates it. The doctor, after mystically hearing Obama’s future Notre Dame speech in a prophetic dream, is mesmerized by Obama’s “fair-mindedness,” and recognizes that the “demands of the new age” require that he and every other opponent of the murder of slaves refrain from asking pro-slave-murder persons to change their views, but ask only that they improve their rhetoric. The senator has the same dream, which causes him to recognize that his highest obligation is being fair-minded when he supports the murder of slaves so as not to “caricature” any opposing views.<br /><br />I think the point is made: if being rhetorically civil were the extent of the required “alignment” for the 19th century America citizen, we would still have legalized slavery, not to mention the genocide of tens of thousands of African-Americans. Needless to say, there would be no President Obama. Suppose the situation were a President proposing a mass genocide of “less-than-human” Jews. “Okay,” assures the President to the doctor, “I’ll be fair-minded and say that they are quite human while we kill them.” One gets the point.<br /><br />Irony, Faith and Doubt<br /><br />I said at the outset that the questions in Obama’s speech at Notre Dame could be mined not only for Obama’s answers, but also for the theological and philosophical principles his answers presuppose. More space would permit me to treat these in some depth; for now, allow me to shed light on what I consider to be the central philosophical/theological reason that Obama would advocate a social and political ideal favoring conversational fairness over truth, and use as his main example what the majority of Americans consider to be a life and death issue. Here is the master key, as it were, that unlocks Obama’s speech:<br /><br />But remember too, that the ultimate irony of faith is that it necessarily admits doubt... This doubt should not push us away from our faith. But it should humble us. It should temper our passions, and cause us to be wary of self-righteousness. It should compel us to remain open, and curious, and eager to continue the moral and spiritual debate that began for so many of you within the walls of Notre Dame.<br /><br />I propose this more philosophically and theologically transparent translation:<br /><br />Whatever “values” and “commitments” we may hold to be true, those that stem from or involve in any way our “faith” must be held with a certain amount of irresolvable doubt—for the “truth” in these sorts of matters can never be known. And this is why we should seek above all to continue, not ever resolve, the “moral and spiritual debate,” whose quite attainable goal is not the truth of any political matter, no matter how life-threatening, but “fair-mindedness.”<br /><br />I think this interpretation, or something like it, is best able to make sense of why a pro-life Christian doctor revealing his tolerance of the mass-murder of baby-humans in the womb is held up by the President of the United States as a model of civic virtue to a group of graduating Catholic college students. Needless to say, such a relativistic notion of faith and truth is completely irreconcilable with any genuinely religious worldview, and according to Obama, that means over 90 percent of the American people.<br /><br />What “fair-minded” voices, then, would be permitted to speak in this sort of “vigorous debate”? Would those who refuse to accept its relativistic presuppositions, and who say so plainly, be “caricaturing” their opponents? The kind of debate Obama’s “faith” would “compel” us to undertake is a mockery of debate, for it denigrates the point of any debate, the discovery of truth, and therefore it denigrates the human beings who participate in it, for our greatest desire is to know, love, and act upon the truth.<br /><br />But with truth eclipsed by “fair-minded” rhetoric as the political summum bonum, what is to prevent the strongest and must ruthless – but, of course, rhetorically “fair-minded”—from exerting power over the weaker? Sure, the pro-life doctors would be speaking quite nicely with all the pro-abortion abortion doctors, while the baby humans are slaughtered in their wombs.<br /><br />Pace the president of Notre Dame, I, fair-mindedly, or perhaps not, decline to participate in Obama’s “renewal” of political life, in solidarity with all the baby humans killed in the past and who will be killed in the future due to the amoral cultural, spiritual, and political climate only exacerbated by Obama’s cleverly cloaked relativism, wherein the weakest and most defenseless are given a, not-so-fair-minded, silent treatment. Obama asks us not to caricature other American citizens—fine—but let us ask, nay, demand that he not allow them to be murdered.<br /><br />This article by Dr. Thaddeus J. Kozinski, Assistant Professor of Humanities and Trivium at Wyoming Catholic College, in Lander, Wyoming, was originally published on MercatorNet.com under a Creative Commons Licence. If you enjoyed this article, visit MercatorNet.com for more. http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/saruman_at_notre_dame/Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-19850822926155481952009-03-24T14:19:00.003+08:002009-03-24T14:33:31.264+08:00The Pope and CondomsThis morning, i received an email from <a href="http://www.avaaz.org/en/pope_benedict_petition/">Avaaz</a> a human rights group. They have decided to launch a petition protesting what the Pope said about Condoms and AIDS. They are wrong on many counts. Below is what i wrote to them to tell them why<br /><br />______________________________<br />Dear Sir<br /> <br />I applaud Avaaz passion for the poor and the oppressed but this time I am very disappointed that you have chosen to launch a campaign against the Pope.<br /> <br />Your petition takes the Pope's words on Condom use out of context. His full words, in a response to the question from a reporter on the plane can be read <a href="http://www.zenit.org/article-25405?l=english ">here</a>. <br /><br /> <br />In this, the Pope sketches a vision of hope and happiness and he goes to the root of the problem, so vital for the building of a civilisation of love. <br /> <br />Moreover, the Pope's position is supported both by research (see for example Harvard Epidemologist <a href="http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MTNlNDc1MmMwNDM0OTEzMjQ4NDc0ZGUyOWYxNmEzN2E">Edward Green</a> who is not a catholic but an agnostic)<br /> <br /> and also from what he is hearing from the African bishops themselves. (see <a href="http://ncronline.org/blogs/all-things-catholic/benedict-cameroon-tale-two-trips">John Allen</a> from the Left leaning National Catholic Reporter)<br /> <br />Lastly, Avaaz should also consider whether the massive flood of condoms and Aids experts from Western countries is not a form of contraceptive imperialism and an imposing of first world ideas on the cultures of third world countries. Don't take it from me, take it from <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/29/AR2008062901477.html">Sam L. Ruteikara </a>co-chair of Uganda's National AIDS-Prevention Committee from Uganda who said as much in the Washington Post some time ago. <br /><br />I hope that Avaaz will retract this petition and give readers the correct pircure. <br /> <br />With much regret and sadness<br />Nick Chui<br />SingaporeNick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-46374445832057943642009-03-08T13:45:00.000+08:002009-03-08T13:46:45.573+08:00Not Truth but Truthiness!<style type='text/css'>.cc_box a:hover .cc_home{background:url('http://www.comedycentral.com/comedycentral/video/assets/syndicated-logo-over.png') !important;}.cc_links a{color:#b9b9b9;text-decoration:none;}.cc_show a{color:#707070;text-decoration:none;}.cc_title a{color:#868686;text-decoration:none;}.cc_links a:hover{color:#67bee2;text-decoration:underline;}</style><div class='cc_box' style='position:relative'><a href='http://www.comedycentral.com' target='_blank' style='display:inline; float:left; width:60px; height:31px;'><div class='cc_home' style='float:left; border:solid 1px #cfcfcf; border-width:1px 0px 0px 1px; width:60px; height:31px; background:url("http://www.comedycentral.com/comedycentral/video/assets/syndicated-logo-out.png");'></div></a><div style='font:bold 10px Arial,Helvetica,Verdana,sans-serif; float:left; width:299px; height:31px; border:solid 1px #cfcfcf; border-width:1px 1px 0px 0px; overflow:hidden; color:#707070; position:relative;'><div class='cc_show' style='position:relative; background-color:#e5e5e5;padding-left:3px; height:14px; padding-top:2px; overflow:hidden;'><a href='http://www.colbertnation.com/' target='_blank'>The Colbert Report</a><span style='position:absolute; top:2px; right:3px;'>Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c</span></div><div class='cc_title' style='font-size:11px; color:#868686; background-color:#f5f5f5; padding:3px; padding-top:1px; line-height:14px; height:21px; overflow:hidden;'><a href='http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/24039/october-17-2005/the-word---truthiness' target='_blank'>The Word - Truthiness</a></div></div><embed style='float:left; clear:left;' src='http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:cms:item:comedycentral.com:24039' width='360' height='301' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' wmode='window' allowFullscreen='true' flashvars='autoPlay=false' allowscriptaccess='always' allownetworking='all' bgcolor='#000000'></embed><div class='cc_links' style='float:left; clear:left; width:358px; border:solid 1px #cfcfcf; border-top:0px; font:10px Arial,Helvetica,Verdana,sans-serif; color:#b9b9b9; background-color:#f5f5f5;'><div style='width:177px; float:left; padding-left:3px;'><a target='_blank' href='http://www.comedycentral.com/colbertreport/full-episodes'>Colbert Report Full Episodes</a><br /><a target='_blank' href='http://www.indecisionforever.com'>Political Humor</a></div><div style='width:177px; float:left;'><a target='_blank' href='http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/220268/march-02-2009/michael-steele-gets-served<br />'>Rap Battle</a><br /><a target='_blank' href='http://www.jokes.com'>Joke of the Day</a></div><div style='clear:both'></div></div><div style='clear:both'></div></div>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-7234448636801506032008-11-27T17:11:00.002+08:002008-11-27T17:19:17.978+08:00Open Letter to Alex Au, Political commentator and Gay ActivistAlex Au is a political commentator and gay activist based in Singapore. He writes thougtful essays at his webpage <a href="http://www.yawningbread.org/">www.yawningbread.org</a> . While thoughtful, it is by no means airtight. I came across his article "<a href="http://www.yawningbread.org/arch_2008/yax-907.htm">Singapore religious rightwing trains its sights on abortion"</a> and i must say that i found his use of reason problematic on several fronts. I decide to write him the following letter appended below<br /><br />_________________________<br /><br /><br />Dear Alex<br /><br />I chanced upon your article entitled <a rel="nofollow">“ Singapore ’s religious rightwing trains its sights on abortion” </a>and I must say that I do think your reasoning is problematic at several instances. May I respectfully highlight the following for your consideration.<br /><br />(btw, Prof Tan is quoting my article in the Straits Times which started the debate, you can read if from my <a href="http://lovealoneisbelievable.blogspot.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">blog</a>)<br /><br />1. Characterizing those who disagree with you as attempting to impose their will on everybody else.<br /><br />Your opening paragraphs characterized the so-called Christian rightwing as “american inspired" and "campaigning to impose their will on everybody else.” That seems to me pretty disingenuous. If I say that Alex Au belongs to the American inspired gay rights movement who is attempting to impose their agenda on everybody else in Singapore , you would surely take offense and rightly so.<br /><br />Prof Tan (whom you consider as a rightwing representative) is simply in the business of influencing public opinion by writing an article. Come to think of it, so are you, hence your enormous output in an attempt to convince people of the rightness of your cause. You too are attempting to influence Singaporeans with your version of what’s best for Singapore so I would appreciate if you refrain from using this trope about imposing beliefs against so called right wing Christians. <br /><br />2. Mischaracterization of Prof Tan’s position on abortion previously considered as a criminal activity<br /><br />I think you may have misunderstood Prof Tan’s characterization of abortion as a criminal activity. She is not “unwilling to make a distinction between morality and law”. It seems to me that she is simply referring to the fact that prior to 1969, abortion is considered illegal and hence it was a criminal offense to perform one. As such, it would be a responsible thing to ensure that good moral reasons be provided to justify the overturning of such a law. Expedience should not be a consideration, especially when an issue involves what I would term fundamental human liberties.<br /><br />For example, take a country known for its widespread practice of slavery although slavery remains illegal in its criminal code. What should the correct response be? To decriminalize slavery in the name of helping slaves get a better deal or to step up vigorous efforts to enforce the law? The answer seems obvious here.<br /><br />Likewise, it would be necessary to first clarify whether the evil of abortion is on the same level as slavery, involving a fundamental human liberty or is it simply akin to cigarette smoking or gambling. The law can and should tolerate so called evils of the second order (i.e. cigarette smoking or gambling) but it should not tolerate evils of the first order (i.e. slavery, genocide, murder etc).<br /><br />3. Clarification needed on your stated “moral queasiness” and “distasteful” attitude towards aborting a foetus but insisting that ultimately, it is the woman’s choice.<br /><br />You mentioned that you find abortion distasteful and being morally queasy about this. Yet you did not state anywhere in your article what exactly are your qualms.<br /><br />If abortion is akin to nothing more than an operation removing a cancerous tumor or a growth, then there is nothing distasteful about it.<br /><br />If instead, a foetus is an individual, unique human being, then abortion entails killing an innocent human being. Arguing that it is acceptable in certain circumstances to kill an innocent human being is of course distasteful and morally queasy. Are you arguing for such a position without actually stating it explicitly?<br /><br />4. Abortion and the nation’s birthrate<br /><br />While it is true that it would seem simplistic to assume that simply banning abortions would solve the birth problem. Yet the point I think Prof Tan and myself are trying to make if you read my article is that it is ironic that while this country worries so much about our birthrates, we are taking away innocent human life (which we believe abortion to be) so easily and one might even say flippantly. Surely it is not unwise to encourage women faced with an unplanned pregnancy to see this as a potential unexpected blessing.<br /><br />I am happy to continue this dialogue if you so choose.<br /><br />Best regards<br />Nick ChuiNick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-49304682411374349162008-11-27T16:08:00.001+08:002008-11-27T16:09:02.061+08:00Make Abortions Less Easily AvailableMy article in the Straits Times....<br /><br />_______________<br />Review - Others<br />Make abortions less easily available<br />Nick Chui, For The Straits Times<br />675 words<br />19 July 2008<br /><a onclick="NewWindow( 'FIISrcDetails','?from=article&ids=stimes');return false;" href="javascript:void(0)">Straits Times</a><br />English<br />(c) 2008 Singapore Press Holdings Limited<br />IN CONSIDERING the declining birth rate, one statistic seems to have slipped under the radar screen: In 2006, one in four pregnancies here was terminated. That simply means too many babies lost.<br />And these terminations were not mostly limited to teenagers or unmarried women either. In fact, a 2002 National University of Singapore study reported that up to 75 per cent of such women were married. Thus, what used to be considered a desperate measure has transmuted into just another mainstream method of birth control. Surely, given our baby dearth, we need to grapple with this abortion conundrum urgently.<br />The fact that abortions are being used in this manner masks a problem that we may have with the notion of contraception per se. In fact, in May, the medical profession urged that there be more education about contraception here. This came after surveys revealed that Singaporeans are not warming up to the various contraceptive methods available, opting for abortions instead if and when the need arises.<br />This means that, for many, procreation has become a regrettable accident most of the time, which is why abortion is seen as the logical solution. What can be done to change this mentality?<br />First, we could start restricting the availability of abortions. Currently, they are available on demand for up to 24 weeks of pregnancy for any reason ranging from the tragic to the frivolous.<br />Note that when compulsory counselling and the lifting of subsidies for abortion were introduced in 1986, the number of pregnancies terminated fell from a high of 35.5 per cent to 25 per cent, which is still true today.<br />How and when to restrict abortion as a reproductive choice will have to be debated fully before legislating it. But it must be done soon.<br />Second, let us begin vigorous campaigns to help parents accept their 'accidental' children rather than choose to abort such pregnancies. We can change minds so they see that having children actually enhances marital bliss.<br />To do this, we must put front and centre the 9 per cent of Singaporeans who have five or more children. The media should lionise these folk. Media coverage could explain in fine-grain detail how they, in their fecund circumstances with their big families, cope ably with the same worries the average Singaporean has about work-life balance, finances, education for children, and so on.<br />Third, we should create wider awareness about natural methods of fertility management. For example, the Billings Ovulation Method has been certified by the World Health Organisation as being 99 per cent effective in avoiding pregnancies.<br />In our context, what is even more important is that the use of this method cultivates an awareness of the woman's fertility cycle and planning for a child is made much easier. Considering the significant number of couples who are having difficulty conceiving, being aware of the periods when the woman is most fertile can only help matters.<br />Furthermore, couples who use natural methods of fertility management attest to the fact that they find their sex lives very satisfying. A mother of six has even blogged about her experience at <a onclick="NewWindow('http://fohl.blogspot.com');return false" href="javascript:void(0)">http://fohl.blogspot.com</a>, though her ardent comments cannot be repeated in a family newspaper like The Straits Times.<br />Suffice to say that the periods of abstinence these methods require of the couple can help them demonstrate to each other that they are master and mistress of their passions. Such 'organic sex' immediately takes on a deeper meaning rather than a perfunctory satisfaction of salacious urges.<br />These measures may seem like bitter medicine but our national fertility rate has seen an unchecked downtrend for 32 years now. It is high time we did something new to arrest and reverse this pernicious trend. Let us limit abortions now.<br />The writer is a family life educator. These are his personal opinions only.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-30480423516526589622008-11-26T22:02:00.001+08:002008-11-26T22:03:03.818+08:00on EuthanasiaCatholic News published an edited version on my take on Euthanasia... You can read the longer version below<br /><br />_________________<br />For the longest time, people of goodwill have seen and accompanied their loved ones in the final stages of their very often painful process of dying. Why then, in our age of pain control and quality hospice care is there a sudden clamor for euthanasia?<br /><br />At the heart of the movement to legalise euthanasia lies a notion that a human being has absolute dominion over his own life and he can do of it as he pleases, including opting for his own death in order to increase his sum total of happiness. The cry “who are you to prevent me from killing myself if I so chose” is never far away.<br /><br />Yet do we as human beings have absolute dominion over our own lives? No we do not. We came into the world not on our own accord. If we believe in God, we recognize that our lives are His gift to us. If we do not believe in God, the fact still remains that we did not create ourselves, that we are linked with the rest of humanity in a state of solidarity and interdependence and our lives remain a mystery.<br /><br />The campaign for euthanasia is in the final analysis a campaign for the choice to make one final defiant act of self-assertion flung into the face of the abyss.<br /><br />Not to opt for euthanasia on the other hand is to experience a painful but potentially graced filled encounter with death. Life was and remains a gift. My exit from this world is but my acceptance of my mortality and my frail nature. And I am grateful to everybody who continued to show me care and love even when I am gravely ill. <br /><br />And if I am a believer; I am placing myself into the hands of my Creator who in his providence will lead me home at the right time to a better place.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-78230536583942622392008-11-26T21:51:00.002+08:002008-11-26T21:55:45.209+08:00Open Letter to President of AWARE Constance SingamMrs. Constance Singam, new president of Aware was quoted as having said this in the Straits Times on the 19th November 2008<br /><br /><strong>On reconciling her Catholic faith with her pro-choice views on abortion(headline)<br /></strong>"One of the first things I did was train myself to get rid of the guilt complex. I stopped going to church for a while and went only when i felt comfortable that i was going because i wanted to celebrate my human-ness and my connection with divinity"<br /><br />I decided to write to Mrs Singam the following letter below<br />_______________________________<br />Dear Mrs Singam<br /><br />I write to express my concern regarding the remarks you made in an interview with the Straits Times on the 19th Nov 2008. I do not judge your heart and your motives, i am simply responding based on what you were reported to have said.<br /><br />You were quoted saying that it is possible to reconcile the Catholic faith with your pro-choice views on abortion.<br /><br />If an AWARE member were to say that he is able to reconcile his misogynistic views towards women and his continued membership in AWARE, he would be rightly considered out of line and probably asked to withdraw his membership.<br /><br />The Catholic Church has always considered from the very first century that direct abortion is a grave offense. The late Pope John Paul II in his encyclical Evangelium Vitae describes abortion as an “unspeakable crime”, “intrinsically unjust” and insisted that Christians have a grave obligation not to cooperate formally or to take part in a propaganda campaign in favour of such a law.<br /><br /><br />Like AWARE, the Catholic Church is a voluntary organization. No one is forced to become Catholic, and anyone is free to allow their membership to lapse if they vehemently disagree with its values and core beliefs.<br /><br /> What is unacceptable however is to claim that it is possible to publicly disagree with a core belief of an organization and continue to remain in good standing.<br /><br />I respectfully suggest the following for your consideration<br /><br />a. That you take the effort to understand the Catholic Church’s teachings on abortion, why it considers it violence towards both the child and mother, come to embrace the teaching of her Church and publicly recant your reported views.<br /><br />b.. If after due consideration, you are unable in conscience to accept the Church’s teaching in this area, you are still welcome in Church. But you should refrain from claiming, especially in a public forum, that your views are compatible with the Catholic faith your profess and should also refrain from presenting yourself for Holy Communion, which according to Catholic belief, is not only the body and blood of Jesus Christ, but also a symbolic act whereby a Catholic affirms in a public manner that he is in communion and agreement with the teachings of his Church. <br /><br />I work as a Marketing Executive with the Family Life Society and would be happy to meet up sometime for an exchange of views. My email is chesterton81@yahoo.com.sg or nickchui@familylife.sg<br /><br />Best wishes<br /><br />Nick Chui<br />www.familylife.sgNick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-18548403326981129672008-11-19T15:16:00.001+08:002008-11-19T15:18:12.744+08:00I can do without Mary?Appended below is a talk i gave to some of the <a href="http://dominic-cooray.blogspot.com/">legionaries </a>and their friends in NUS....<br />_________________________________<br /><br />I can do without Mary?<br /><br />We know that Marian devotion is central to the official teaching of the Church. Every encyclical issued by Popes would contain a hymn to our Lady or a prayer. John Paul II himself was a great promoter of devotion to the Blessed Virgin, writing an entire encyclical entitled Mother of the Redeemer or Redemptoris Mater devoted to her, putting M on his coat of arms, the first of a kind for any pope and even attributing his very survival in the 1981 assassination attempt to the intercession of the Virgin of Fatima.<br /><br />In Singapore, devotion to our Blessed Mother is strong. Novena Church as the recent Catholic News reports, attracts, thousands of people every week, all believing that the Blessed Virgin will be their mother and assist them in their needs.<br /><br />Yet we hear the objection very often that Catholics place to much emphasis on the Blessed Virgin. And these days, it is not only Protestants who are objecting. I would like to sketch in this short paper, 3 objections and also attempt to at least respond in some part to these objections. Hopefully, what follows would provide material for a fruitful discussion.<br /><br />The first objection comes of course from our separated brethren. Many Protestants see devotion to the Blessed Virgin as unbiblical and detracting from the unique mediation of Jesus Christ.<br /><br />Many actually believe that we worship her, are uncomfortable with the statues and processions, seeing this as a lapsing into a certain form of idolatry, forbidden in scripture.<br /><br />At best, Protestants who consider Catholics Christian see Marian devotion as an unnecessary distraction from the real business of worshipping God. You probably would have heard this said many times “If you can go directly to Jesus, why do we need to go to Mary?<br /><br />The second objection actually comes from Catholics. These Catholics like to see themselves as influenced by the so called “spirit of Vatican II”. For those present unfamiliar with Vatican II, it was a Church council held from 1958-1963 which sought to renew the Church to better meet the challenges of proclaiming the Gospel in the modern world. The so called “spirit of Vatican II” Catholics tend to see Vatican II as a radical break from the unhappy Catholic past and a new beginning from which to construct an “authentic” Christianity. They believed that the council called for a de- emphasis on Mary so as not to offend Protestant and ecumenical sensibilities and to find common ground with Protestants on common Christological beliefs.<br /><br />There are also another group of Catholics who were very much influenced by liberation theology. In a nutshell, liberation theology attempted to use the ideas of Marx and synthesized that with the Gospel. They saw Jesus Christ not so much as a saviour from personal sin but rather a revolutionary who had inspired the poor of his time to resist their oppressors. They reinterpreted much of so called traditional Christianity. For example, many saw the traditional corporal works of mercy performed by conscientious Catholics as “non transformative”, justifying an inherently oppressive Capitalist system and not going to the roots of the problem which was that of the evils of Capitalism itself.<br /><br />This group of Catholics tended to see Marian devotions as non-transformative. “Too devotional” is their constant refrain, with an excessive concern with one’s private salvation and with no real impact on the world and its unjust sinful structures. The only thing of some value to the liberationists is the single verse of the Magnificat “He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and raises the lowly”. The rest of Marian devotion seems to many liberationists as what Marx himself would describe as the “opiate of the people”.<br /><br />The third objection comes from people whom we can loosely define as feminists of various degrees of extremity and various degrees of religious persuasion. They usually take as their bone of contention the all male celibate hierarchy of the Catholic Church, seeing it as an unjust structure of male domination. To the reply from the Church that the Church honours no human creature more than the Blessed Mother, they rejoin that the values promoted by traditional or official portrayals of the Blessed Virgin are in the final analysis demeaning and dehumanizing to women.<br /><br />French feminist Simone de Beauvoir fumes “I am the handmaid of the Lord. For the first time in the history of mankind, a mother kneels before her son and acknowledges, of her own free will, her inferiority. The supreme victory of masculinity is consummated in Mariolatry: it signifies the rehabilitation of woman through the completeness of her defeat.” <br /><br />Other feminists see Our Lady’s perpetual virginity as an affront to woman, a denial of the sensual and sexual part of being female.<br /><br />Against this 3 pronged objection, what then is the response of the Church?<br /><br />In a nutshell, Mary matters and a Catholic cannot do without her.<br /><br />Against the Protestant rejoinder that Mary does not matter. The Church essentially teaches “if Mary does not matter, than neither do you.”<br /><br />At the crux of the Protestant objection is what I think are confused and erroneous understandings of human freedom and Divine Predestination. Protestant reformer John Calvin held that mankind, after the fall is totally depraved and incapable of goodness. It is only through the irresistible grace of God that someone is saved. In other words, a person is saved by virtue of divine election with his human freedom playing a minimum or almost non existent part in his salvation. Martin Luther furthered argued that in his doctrine of justification that the justified human person is like “snow covering dung”. The person is still rotten but is covered by the blood of Jesus Christ. When God the Father judges, he sees the blood of Christ and the person gains salvation, even though internally, he continues to remain rotten.<br /><br />From this, it would logically follow that since we don’t really matter in our being saved, Mary does not matter very much either.<br /><br />The Catholic understanding of both freedom and predestination is quite different. We are not totally depraved, we remain capable of freedom, wounded as we are, we can cooperate with divine grace. Divine election is a free Yes to God, God does not coerce us. If that is the case, then Our Lady’s “Yes” is a free Yes to God empowered of course by his Grace. It was not forced or coerced. St. Louis Marie de Montfort puts it very well in his “True Devotion to Mary when he says”<br /><br />With the whole Church, I acknowledge that Mary being a mere creature fashioned by the hands of God is, compared to his infinite majesty, less than an atom, or rather is simply nothing since he alone can say, I am he who is. Consequently, this great Lord, who is ever independent and self-sufficient, never had and does not now have any absolute need of the Blessed Virgin for the accomplishment of his will and the manifestation of his glory. To do all things he has only to will them. However I declare that, considering things as they are, because God has decided to begin and accomplish his greatest works through the Blessed Virgin ever since he created her, we can safely believe that he will not change his plan in the time to come, for he is God and therefore does not change in his thoughts or his way of acting.<br /><br />In other words, since Mary matters in God’s plan, we also matter. God could have saved the word without Mary’s help but he chose to do it through Mary. And he choses to do it through us today when we share the good news with our friends. In other words, as a title of a book puts it, Mary is: “God’s Yes to Man”, God believes in man that even if man was responsible for his fall, man through the person of the Blessed Virgin cooperating with His divine grace can also be saved. <br /><br />To the charge that images of Mary are a slip into idolatry, the Church insists that since God has made his countenance known in the person of his Son Jesus Christ, it is only right and proper that art be allowed to depict Him and the saints. “But bowing down to images and touching the feet of saints” can cause a slip into idolatry”, I have heard one person said. Now it is true that the use of images can be abused. Then again, Bible study can also be abused, with everybody coming up with their own interpretations. But should we forbid people from reading the Bible? Of course not. What is needed is a correct understanding. The same principle should be applied to the use of images.<br />.<br />Against the downplaying of some Catholics towards Marian devotion, the church reaffirms that to transform the world, Marian devotion is absolutely vital. Some Catholics misunderstand ecumenism. They see ecumenism as simply Christianity at the lowest common denominator. If Protestants cannot agree about Mary, then it is better not to mention her and focus on the essentials. That would be incorrect. A correct understanding of ecumenism would be for Christians to come together, talk and share about what unites them but also to share in a respectful manner what divides them. In a spirit of friendship, walls of mistrust can be broken down. Christians should be united by a common search for truth and share the desire of Our Lord that “all may be one”.<br /><br />Against the charge that Marian devotions are “non transformative” and “too devotional”, the Church insists that sin is first and foremost personal and not simply “out there.” Sinful social structures, of which a preeminent example is that of “the culture of death” alluded to by John Paul II in his encyclical Evangelium Vitae lies first and foremost in the hearts of individuals. If sin lies in the hearts of individuals, then rooting it out first in our own hearts is a necessary precondition for social transformation. I was reminded of Black US Supreme Court Judge Clarence Thomas’ biography “My Grandfather’s Son”. His grandfather, recounted Judge Thomas, went to Church and prayed the rosary in a still very racist southern state of Georgia not because he was a weak man. He went, in Judge Thomas’ words “to cage the beast” of anger and hatred towards such oppression, to be transformed so that he will have the strength to endure racism and to ensure a better future for his grandchildren by working hard and providing for them. Judge Thomas on the other hand, during the 1960s wanted to “release the beast” of anger and hatred and was involved in social radicalism typical of that generation. Did it actually help his people? His answer was no.<br /><br />And indeed we see the same also in Latin America. While large segments of the Catholic Church turned towards a Marxist tinged liberation theology, Catholics were leaving in great numbers and flooding to the evangelical and Pentecostal sects which promised the comforts of a faith in touch with the supernatural and also a standard of ethics and community for the poor.<br /><br />Indeed, Marian devotion can also be seen as a form of cultural resistance. Witness the rise of Poland’s first independent trade union “Solidarity” where the Black Madonna, Our Lady of Czechtohowa played a prominent role in reminding Poles of their true identity, in Christ and not godless Communism. If you watched the movie “John Paul II” by John Voigt, you would probably remember a scene where Bishop Karol Wojtyla’s secretary Dsiwiz informed him that the communist authorities do not allow religious images to be publicly carried in procession, thus putting in jeopardy the annual procession of the Black Madonna. Bishop Wojtyla thought to himself and said, “well they said that images are not allowed so…” He proceeded to have the procession, complete with the traditional songs to the Black Madonna but this time with carrying an empty frame without the image. Everybody knew what it meant. The communists have been outwitted by this clever bishop. <br /><br />Finally, the Church insists that Mary is vital for the development of a new an authentic feminism.<br /><br />In his encyclical “Redemptoris Mater”, the Pope insists that the profile of the Church is Marian before it is Peterine. What does the Pope mean by that? Essentially, it means that the Church puts “being” before “doing.” All members of Christ faithful are called to be Marian first and foremost. How so? By allowing the word of God to penetrate so deeply into their hearts that it bears fruit and divine life. That essentially was what Our Blessed Mother experienced and lived at the annunciation and all throughout her life and that is what all Christians are called to live prior to anything else he may intend to do for God’s glory. It is only with a Marian spirituality, that of being totally receptive to the will of God that the Peterine, or the function of ruling, governing and activity will make sense. Yes indeed, Peter was called to be the head of the Church. But the head of the Church, when he neglected prayer decided to swing his sword wildly at the garden of Gethsemane and eventually deny his master three times. It was activity no doubt. But activity rooted not in “being” but in “doing”.<br /><br />Which bring us also to the consideration of Our Blessed Mother being both “Virgin” and “Mother”. She is both virgin and mother because both these vocations are an equally legitimate way of living out the Christian’s call to holiness, in married life and in celibacy for the kingdom of God.<br /><br />In the Blessed Virgin, women are not simply reduced to their biological values, valuable only when she is able to have children. A woman is still in her spiritual depths a mother and a daughter even if she is not biologically a mother. Likewise, in the Blessed Virgin, women are also not estranged from their biology. They are not hostile towards their procreative and live giving power but seek to understand it and in hope, praise the creator for their gift of femininity. Indeed, it is through the birth of a child that the world is saved.<br /><br />So in the final analysis, who holds the treasure of being which without it would make all activity useless? Women and preeminently Mary the Mother of God. The Mother of God attests to the fact that the ultimate paradigm of human existence is that of love and not power, of receptivity to the will of God and not grasping and snatching at happiness from a Creator who cannot be trusted. <br /><br />I have sketched both the objections towards the person of Mary and the responses to these from the teaching of the Church. I hope that as we grapple with these ideas at this patrician meeting, it can bear fruit in our lives.<br /><br />Mary our hope, seat of wisdom, intercede for us.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-26056171412800847892008-11-19T15:12:00.002+08:002008-11-19T15:15:08.752+08:00Talk on PornographyI gave a talk on pornography at our recent conference to commeotrate the 40th anniversary of Humanae Vitae Conference.<br /><br />You can find the text here. <a href="http://prolife.sg/lovesexbabies/index.htm">http://prolife.sg/lovesexbabies/index.htm</a>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-62990516774640346732008-09-18T10:08:00.005+08:002008-09-18T10:15:15.708+08:00Exclusivism an inter-religious dialogue: The views of a Young ChristianRecently, it was reported that nearly half of Christian leaders feared inter-faith dialogue and that young people were generally religious but knew little about the religious beliefs of their peers. This report was followed by a letter by Mr. Lim Siew Wee highlighting his enthusiasm as a young Buddhist to promote inter-faith dialogue.<br /><br />I am a young Catholic Christian who takes his faith seriously. I also had the privilege to participate along with Mr Lim Siew Wee in a Regional Youth interfaith forum co-organised by the Australian Government and the European Union from the 4th to 6th December 2007.<br /><br />On the one hand, I agree with Mr. Lim that more inter-faith engagements among young people are a good thing. On the other, I am also sympathetic to the Christian clergy men who are wary of such gatherings. I would like to share as one who is an insider how a Christian who wants to be committed both to his faith and to living peaceably in an inter-religious society can resolve this apparent contradiction.<br /><br />I do consider the fears of so called “conservative” and “evangelical” clergymen about inter-faith gatherings legitimate to some extent. Indeed, it would seem to flow from the inner logic of Christianity. After all, if Jesus Christ is the unique mediator of God and the Savior of all mankind, it would seem to follow that dialogue, which seems to imply a process of learning from the other, uncertainty and perhaps even a rethink of currently held beliefs is anathema to the deposit of faith entrust by Christ to his Church. What Christians should do, is to proclaim Jesus as the Savior and to save souls.<br /><br />The wariness of such clergymen is accentuated when they notice that some of their co religionists, who consider themselves “liberal and enlightened” Christians, embrace inter-religious dialogue as the new way of being Church. When asked by the so called conservatives what they think of evangelization, they would reply “O we don’t do this anymore in the 21st century, we must respect all religions, work towards common goals and not think that our religion is superior to theirs.”<br /><br />Indeed, there is a certain attractiveness in the so called liberal position. At the forum I attended, the participants were enthusiastic about meeting other participants from different religions and different countries. Everybody was eager to portray themselves as open-minded, respectful and sincere. We came out with common statements and objectives. My discussion group declared “we as young people of diverse religious faiths, beliefs and cultures are committed to the values of peace, compassion and love and respect for human rights.”<br /> Who can possibly object to creating such an environment? Yet the step from such a common statement to celebrating our different beliefs as merely culturally interesting rather than making actual truth claims does not seem too far away. After all, who would want to be labeled as someone who rocks the boat of harmonious inter-faith dialogue, asking tough questions and challenging the followers of other religions to respond in an equally intellectually vigorous way?<br /><br />As such, must so called conservatives necessarily exclude themselves from inter-faith events? I don’t think so.<br /><br />For one thing, in a world where religious violence is often linked to an intolerant and irrational fundamentalism, conservatives would do well to demonstrate that they not only eschew violence, but are also able to show that the paralyzing force of a cultural relativism will not in the final analysis be adequate in resisting the tide of religious violence. What is needed is reason informed by faith, as Pope Benedict XVI’s Regensburg Address makes it clear, to heal the pathologies of religion.<br /><br />Moreover, friendship cultivated in an inter-faith setting is ideal for a deep sharing of one’s faith. There are no secrets between friends and friends can share with each other, their most intimate concerns without fear. To paraphrase Rabbi Yehuda Levin of the Union of Orthodox Rabbis, “sincere believers in several religions feel they have the fullness of truth, and thus in charity hope for a day when all people will embrace the fullness of truth to complete them and bring them to perfection.” As such, a desire for a friend’s conversion done in total freedom can be offered without fear if it is seen as a gesture of wanting what is best for a good friend.<br /><br />It was in a spirit of friendship that I was able to have fascinating discussions with Siew Wee. We spoke among about the existence of the self, the purpose of the body, the significance of the Resurrection of Jesus and the teaching of Buddha.<br /><br />Indeed, Catholic theologian Hans von Balthasar once said that “love alone is believable”. If, as Christians believe, Jesus Christ is truth and love personified and if all human hearts long for total truth and joy, then a presentation of the truths of the Christian religion in all its profundity, in its inner coherence and logic, through its great themes of salvation and redemption, and its answers to the perennial questions of humanity will constitute in an organic manner, the evidential power of beauty. <br /> I do hope that our conversations did stir a thirst for beauty in Siew Wee’s heart as it did mine.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-85714626337703645872008-09-18T10:08:00.003+08:002008-09-18T10:12:37.350+08:00Singapore's Fertility WoesMercatornet picked up my article...<br /><a href="http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/singapores_fertility_woes_call_for_a_rethink_of_sexual_attitudes/">http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/view/singapores_fertility_woes_call_for_a_rethink_of_sexual_attitudes/</a>Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529785805404445357.post-68725143614471684862008-09-18T10:08:00.001+08:002008-09-18T10:11:00.399+08:00Make Abortions Less Easily AvailableThis appeared in the Straits Times<br /><br />___________________________<br /><br /><a href="javascript:void(0)"></a><br />Review - Others<br />Make abortions less easily available<br />Nick Chui, For The Straits Times<br />675 words<br />19 July 2008<br /><a href="javascript:void(0)">Straits Times</a><br />English<br />(c) 2008 Singapore Press Holdings Limited<br />IN CONSIDERING the declining birth rate, one statistic seems to have slipped under the radar screen: In 2006, one in four pregnancies here was terminated. That simply means too many babies lost.<br />And these terminations were not mostly limited to teenagers or unmarried women either. In fact, a 2002 National University of Singapore study reported that up to 75 per cent of such women were married. Thus, what used to be considered a desperate measure has transmuted into just another mainstream method of birth control. Surely, given our baby dearth, we need to grapple with this abortion conundrum urgently.<br />The fact that abortions are being used in this manner masks a problem that we may have with the notion of contraception per se. In fact, in May, the medical profession urged that there be more education about contraception here. This came after surveys revealed that Singaporeans are not warming up to the various contraceptive methods available, opting for abortions instead if and when the need arises.<br />This means that, for many, procreation has become a regrettable accident most of the time, which is why abortion is seen as the logical solution. What can be done to change this mentality?<br />First, we could start restricting the availability of abortions. Currently, they are available on demand for up to 24 weeks of pregnancy for any reason ranging from the tragic to the frivolous.<br />Note that when compulsory counselling and the lifting of subsidies for abortion were introduced in 1986, the number of pregnancies terminated fell from a high of 35.5 per cent to 25 per cent, which is still true today.<br />How and when to restrict abortion as a reproductive choice will have to be debated fully before legislating it. But it must be done soon.<br />Second, let us begin vigorous campaigns to help parents accept their 'accidental' children rather than choose to abort such pregnancies. We can change minds so they see that having children actually enhances marital bliss.<br />To do this, we must put front and centre the 9 per cent of Singaporeans who have five or more children. The media should lionise these folk. Media coverage could explain in fine-grain detail how they, in their fecund circumstances with their big families, cope ably with the same worries the average Singaporean has about work-life balance, finances, education for children, and so on.<br />Third, we should create wider awareness about natural methods of fertility management. For example, the Billings Ovulation Method has been certified by the World Health Organisation as being 99 per cent effective in avoiding pregnancies.<br />In our context, what is even more important is that the use of this method cultivates an awareness of the woman's fertility cycle and planning for a child is made much easier. Considering the significant number of couples who are having difficulty conceiving, being aware of the periods when the woman is most fertile can only help matters.<br />Furthermore, couples who use natural methods of fertility management attest to the fact that they find their sex lives very satisfying. A mother of six has even blogged about her experience at <a href="javascript:void(0)">http://fohl.blogspot.com</a>, though her ardent comments cannot be repeated in a family newspaper like The Straits Times.<br />Suffice to say that the periods of abstinence these methods require of the couple can help them demonstrate to each other that they are master and mistress of their passions. Such 'organic sex' immediately takes on a deeper meaning rather than a perfunctory satisfaction of salacious urges.<br />These measures may seem like bitter medicine but our national fertility rate has seen an unchecked downtrend for 32 years now. It is high time we did something new to arrest and reverse this pernicious trend. Let us limit abortions now.<br />The writer is a family life educator. These are his personal opinions only.Nick Chuihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12698168949324987912noreply@blogger.com0