Second Letter to St. Peter

March 20, 2008

Holy Thursday

My Dearest St. Peter,

I know it’s Holy Thursday
and you’ve probably got a lot of major work to do today,
inspiring the faithful and all.
But I just couldn’t let this day pass
without asking some more questions.
You see, I’ve been really reflecting all week
on the words of Jesus,
especially on the words he spoke
during those last days of his earthly life.

Good St. Peter, you were there.
I mean, tomorrow afternoon at the liturgy of Good Friday
churches all over are going to sing, "Where you there."
But you, St. Peter, you were there.
So I really believe you are an expert
and will be able to answer my questions.

San Pedro, what did Jesus mean when he said,
"Take this, all of you, and eat it. . ?."
We seem to be getting that all confused.

Did he mean,
"Take this all of you and eat it. . .
. . . . unless you are divorced and remarried
and the tribunal hasn’t finished
processing your annulment yet."

What did he mean by,
". . all of you?"

Did he mean,
"Take this, all of you and eat. . .
unless you are a homosexual. . .
. . . .well, if you are a practicing homosexual
do not approach the altar.
Celibate gays may receive..."
Is this what Jesus meant by "all of you?"

St. Peter, I do not understand.
I mean, I have always found the Eucharist to be nutritive.
So, how can we deny Eucharistic
to people who are starving for it?
I have also found the Eucharist to be transformative.
We become what we receive.
How can someone become what they receive
if they are not allowed to receive?

San Pedro,
how can we sing "All are Welcome" and "Come to the Feast"
during the Sundays of the year,
but then exclude some people
from approaching the table?
I’m confused.
I’m really confused.
What we sing and what we pray
do not match what we do.

And today at Cathedrals around the world
clergy will recommit themselves to their ministry.
Ah. . .what a beautiful, beautiful thing that is.
But. . .it’s problematic.
Clergy numbers are dwindling.

St. Peter,
I was in church recently
and we were told that the priest
was going to be a little bit late.
He was a visiting priest who was filling in for the pastor
who was out of town.
But he had to preside at mass at his own parish first,
so he would be late.
So we waited.
And waited.
More than a half hour late,
he finally arrived and we celebrated the Eucharistic together.
I didn’t mind the wait
and I don’t think the people really did either.
But I began to realize
that this will be a reality more often than not.
Clustering, merging and closing parishes
is really only a stopgap.
By giving these gentlemen 2, 3 or more parishes
we are only aiding in adding stress to their lives.
St. Peter, by placing all of this added responsibility on them
aren’t we really only committing a genocide of sorts?
"Take this, all of you, and eat. . ."
I don’t think he meant to give our priests
stress related heart attacks in the process.

In giving him several parishes,
a priest will preside at several masses on the weekend,
but may never have
a pastoral relationship with the congregation.
He will only arrive on the scene to "do" Eucharist.
St. Peter,
is this turning the ministerial priesthood
into nothing more than a hocus pocus moment?
Are we turning these gentlemen
into sacramental gumball machines?
"Take this, all of you, and eat it."
How can we if we don’t even have someone who will preside?
And will it really be Eucharist
if the one presiding
is so totally detached from the community?
How can this detachment serve The Body of Christ?

San Pedro,
in no way do I wish to tell you
or any of the other santos what to do.
But it just seems like that if we don’t redefine
the ministerial priesthood,
redefine who can be a priest,
the church is slowly but surely
only going to end up holding the Eucharist hostage.
"Take this, all of you, and eat. . . ."
How will we ever be able to fulfill Christ’s command then?

We become what we receive.
But St. Peter,
it almost seems like the faithful
will become The Body of Christ,
will be The Body of Christ,
in spite of the Church
and not because of Her.

And today at churches all over the world
priests will wash the feet of the faithful.
This is another beautiful,
yet often misunderstood, ritual.
You were there, St. Peter.
You were there.
You didn’t want Jesus to wash your feet.
He had to explain it to you.
I think there are some who are still in need
of having this ritual explained to them.
It’s all about being a servant.
God bless you, Good St. Peter.
You dared to enter into the dialogue.
You understood what it all meant in the end,
even if you resisted at first.
Why is it, St. Peter,
that so many are afraid to enter into the dialogue?
Why is it
that so many refuse the role of servant?

San Pedro,
I know that it won’t happen today,
but I long to attend the sacred liturgy
where St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke
washes the feet of Fr. Marek Bozek.

San Pedro,
I know that it probably won’t happen today,
but I long to sing God’s praises during the liturgy
where Cardinal Bernard Law
washes the feet
of those who suffered sexual abuse
at the hands of priests of his diocese.

San Pedro,
I know that it probably won’t take place today,
or even in my lifetime,
but I long to witness the liturgy
where Pope Benedict XVI
washes the feet of
Leonardo Boff and Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo.

St. Peter,
I hope you don’t think I’m crossing any lines
by asking and suggesting some of these things.
The thing is,
I work hard at raising my son in the Catholic faith.
It hasn’t been easy,
but I think it’s very, very important.
Sadly, I don’t think there will be anyone left
to preside at Eucharist when he is my age.
And I don’t want my
yet-to-be-born grandchildren
to come into this world
without ever having had the opportunity
to know Jesus in the Eucharist.

Please know, Good St. Peter,
that I am not looking to cause trouble or problems.
I’m just stating to you in this letter
what’s crossed my mind this past week
as I reflect on the words of Jesus,
"Take this, all of you, and eat it. . ."
And so, I ask these questions.
I really would like to know
how you see it all,
from your heavenly perspective.
And then I’d like you to let me know
what I can do,
from my little place in history,
to help bring about God’s plan for us all.

Please say "hello"
To John Paul I for me.
Although his time as Pope was short,
he continues to inspire me.
Be sure to let him know
that his Letter to Pinochio is one of my favorites.
Especially, where he writes:
" My Pinocchio,
there are two famous sentences on the young people.
I recommend you the first one, by Lacodaire:
‘Have an opinion and assert it.’
The second one, by Clemenceau,
and I do not recommend it at all
‘He has no ideas,
but he defends them passionately."

I think John Paul I
is one of the reasons I write and think so much today.

Oh, and please say "hello"
to Oscar Romero for me.
I realize that the anniversary of his death
is coming up.
His words and actions
have served to inspire me more than any other.
Boy, could we use some bishops
like San Romero de América today.

And finally,
remember me to my abuelita.
My grandmother died on Good Friday, you know.
I hope you remembered the Mariachis
to welcome her home!

Thank you,
St. Peter,
for once again taking the time
to listen to all I have to ask,
for taking the time to really listen to me.
I promise that I will do the same for you.

Tu hermana en la lucha,
Rubi.

© 2008, Rubi Martinez-Bernat. All Rights Reserved.

First Letter to St. Peter

What's Up With the Sound Snipet?

You may be wondering what the little sound snipet
is that you hear sometimes on this blog.
Basically, it's a little advertisement.

Why would I add that to my liturgy blog?

I'm a mom who works for the Roman Catholic Church. Sadly, if one works for the church these days one really cannot afford to send their child to a good Catholic High School. Now, that's not a complaint. I love my ministry, the work that I do. It's just a very sad reality that what I earn won't pay my son's tuition to a good Catholic High School.

So to help pay for my son's tuition,
I permit various advertisers a 5-second spiel on my blog.
It's really that simple.

Besides, I figured that 5 seconds wasn't so long that it would become intrusive to those who visit this blog. And I do have the wherewithall to turn off the advertisements when I think it would be appropriate to do so (as I will probably do during Triduum).

Anyhow, that's it in a nutshell.

If you are interested
in adding a little bit of monetization
to your blog or website,
please feel free to visit this site:
GetPaid4Visits.com

It's free and easy to use.
It will only require you
to add a little bit of code to your site.

So, thank you for tolerating
the 5 second sound snipet advertisement.
By doing so,
you are helping to keep
my son in a good Catholic High School.

Thanks, again.
And God Bless!

A Letter to St. Peter

March 4, 2008

Dear St. Peter,

I just read an article that made me cry about a parish in Minnesota. . . . Rules and Regulations. . Rules and Regulations. . . I know we need them to keep order. But sometimes the rules just get in the way.

I have a lot of questions I’d like to ask you. I just don’t know. I just don’t understand all of these rules and regulations and what they have to do with Life Eternal. Again, I know we need the rules to keep things running smoothly. But, well, it’s just that lately the rules create more darkness than light.

I mean, we just heard the story of the Man Born Blind at mass this past weekend. Yet, so many fail to be able to see. Please, St. Peter, answer my questions. I’d really like a clearer vision of what Diosito wants this Church of ours to look like for our day.

If David danced before the Lord
why isn’t o.k. for the faithful to do so today?

If Judith played her tambourine,
wouldn’t tambourines at worship
make liturgy more scripturally sound?

If a woman proclaims the Gospel at mass on Sunday
does that mean The Word is uttered without effect?

If the Paschal Candle
is placed 12 inches too far to the left
does that, somehow,
make the Holy Fire
of the Easter Vigil less sacred?

If some can’t even see
the metaphor in the previous question
without my pointing it out for them,
How can they possibly hope
to proclaim The Word,
which is so full of metaphors and creative imagery,
to today’s world?

If someone says,
"The Lord be with you,"
and I respond, "and also with you,"
instead of, "and with your spirit,"
does that mean that the Lord,
will not be with that person
because of the phrase I respond with?

And why is the church
worried about translations right now anyway?
Don’t we really have
things of much greater importance to be focused on?

If the vestment for Advent
Is closer to the color blue than purple,
will the Liturgical Police arrest someone?
Who will they arrest?
The priest who wore it?
The Worship Commission who decided upon it?
The parish secretary who ordered it?
The owners of the liturgical supply house

whose catalogue advertised it?
The owners of the company in China who made it. . . .

. . .who probably aren’t even Catholic anyway?
What would the Liturgical Police
say about a blue zarape?

If a Catholic priest gets married
does this, somehow, erase the Sacrament of Ordination?
If so, then,
if a married Anglican priest becomes a Catholic priest,
shouldn’t this, then, erase his marriage??

St. Peter,
When will you tell you us more about your wife?
I’m certain she could give many
the inspiration needed to keep going right now.
Can you tell her that there are many of us
that would like for her to start her own blog?
Her site would get plenty of hits,
that’s for sure!

And Oh. . . St. Peter. . .
. . when what’s going on in the country
goes and gets all mixed up the teachings of Jesus. . .
St. Peter, tell me,
before I feed the hungry
do I really need to ask to see their Green Card first?
And please explain to me, Good St. Peter,
how we can break the bread at the Eucharistic Table,
And then tell some of God’s children
it’s o.k. for them to harvest the grapes,
but it’s not o.k. for them to drink the wine?

And when Leonardo Boff was silenced,
didn’t anyone realize
that this would only make us hungrier for his words?

And Good St. Peter,
Please tell me the truth.
Wasn’t it a woman who first said these words,
"This is my Body.
This is my blood,"
When she embraced her newborn son

in the cave of Bethlehem?

And all this talk
Of what is or is not appropriate music for the liturgy.
Please tell me, San Pedro,
Is there a Mariachi Band in Heaven?
You see,
I just can’t imagine walking in through those pearly gates
Without the trumpet making music, "El Son de la Negra."

Quite frankly, it’s not The Kingdom without Mariachi.
If a Mariachi Band isn’t allowed,
then please don’t have them come for me
until you can straighten out the books on that one.

Please be sure to straighten out the rule about dancing, too.
Nothing celebrates the joy of life
that our Good and Gracious God has given us
like a really good Cumbia.

I’ll await your response on the rest of my questions.
In the meantime,
I’ll try to work them out from this earthly plain.

Say a hello to my dad for me.
You know, he was named after you.
I hope this isn’t asking too much,
But when it is time for me to Come Home,
I would prefer it if he was the San Pedro to open up the gates.
Actually, he’ll be able to do a lot of the grunt work for you.
I’m sure he’s already got a Mariachi band all picked out.

Oh, and say hello to Lupita for me, too.
I’m sure She couldn’t imagine Dec. 12th
without a really good Mariachi band
and really good Matachin dancers either.

I’m sure you have a lot of important work to do,
Being one of the major santos and all.
So I’ll close here.
Thank you for all that you do for us.
Estamos muy agradecidos.

Tu hermana en la lucha,
Rubi.

© 2008, Rubi Martinez-Bernat.
All Rights Reserved.

Second Letter to St. Peter

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Video:
Detroit Area Mariachi

Performing The Well Loved Celestial Song:
El Son De La Negra

The Latino Vote and Practical Pastoral Lessons

I am so tired of all the email I’d been receiving.
You know, the ones telling me how to vote.
I should vote for this one because as a Catholic
I should vote pro-life.
I should vote for this other because
as a Christian there really is no other choice.
As a woman, I should vote for this one.
As a minority, I should vote for the other one.

I wonder if it ever occurred to any of those folks
that I might just happen to be an informed voter?

And then I see this Youtube video.
I smiled
I laughed.
I cried.
And then I watched it again.
And again. . .
. . .and then I began to analyze this video. . .
. . .this wonderful, artistic grassroots publication.

Now, don’t read this all wrong.
What I am about to write
here in this blog
IS NOT a personal endorsement
for any one candidate or political party.

Rather, it’s an analysis of how something so simple,
something so cost efficient,
can rise from the grassroots community to make a difference.
And I’ll venture to say,
It will make or break this campaign.

I never thought I would write about politics
in my liturgy blog.
But as seems to be the case when I write,
I’ll connect the dots for you.
Just please bear with me.
There are a few practical pastoral lessons to be learned here.

Again,
This is NOT a political endorsement
of any candidate or party,
But an analysis of a grassroots cultural contribution.

I heard on Good Morning America this morning
That Hillary raised 35 million dollars
for her campaign this month.
Obama did 50 million dollars

Yet, what one media company did for the latter,
I am sure,
Will probably be worth more,
Will do more than what those millions of dollars will do.

You see,
these grassroots media folk cut to the chase.

Not one candidate in either political party
was really making a big dent in the Latino vote.
We are not invisible.
And we are not optional.
Although many haven’t realized it yet,
a lot of us are legal registered voters.

What these political campaigns have failed to realize
(or at least, failed to act upon)
is how to capture that Latino vote.

The Latino vote will not be harnessed in debates,
nor by filling auditoriums.
Oh, these are important.
But only if theses moments are evocative, emotive.

And the Latinos will not jump on board
because of celebrity endorsements or TV commercials.

But add a Mariachi,
And you’ve got our attention.

There’s just something about a mariachi band. .
. . . I’ve said it before. . .
I think it’s something in my DNA. . .
That trumpet just starts and I am in the moment. . .

Yes, this media company
did the Obama campaign a huge favor.

But, it’s not as simple as all that. . .
. . . there is creative genius in this video
and detail that you’ll miss
if you don’t pay attention.
Just blink and you’ll miss it.

The video starts off with a woman
Not just any woman.
She’s a Mexican Violin Playin’ Mariachi Latina.
The Mexican woman is one of the lowest paid workers
in the United States,
if not the lowest paid.
How’s that for starting off a video???

When the singer begins,
He tells you it’s a “corrido.”
A corrido is a song that tells story.
If you didn’t know the song was going to be a “corrido”
You do now because the singer just sang it and told you so.
So, you pay attention from the start
Because it is a corrido
And you want to hear the story.

So, with the Woman Violinist
and the word “corrido”
This video did in 12 seconds
what one year of campaigning and millions of dollars spent
have been unable to do. .
. . . capture the Latino audience attention. . .
. . .at least, hold their interest
to listen to what is about to be said.

This video isn’t buying anything with money.
It isn’t renting an auditorium.
It isn’t buying TV ad time.
It isn’t hosting a debate
(except for the electronic social network debates).
Youtube is letting it be played all over the world. . .
. . For FREE.

What it is doing is harnessing the grassroots Latino vote.
And the video is going to those places
where the grassroots folk are employed. .
. . .those places we go to every day. . .

The video shows images of workers. . .
. . .Construction workers, Restaurant workers,
Hair Stylists, Landscaping, the Auto Mechanic. . .

. . .The Mariachi band is strolling down the street.. .
. . .in front of a cell phone store,
a hair salon. . . .we see the lady at the laundromat.

We’ve probably even forwarded this video
to some of those very places.

This definitely hit home
to the grassroots working class Latino folks.

And it’s using language that makes a difference.
Now, I’m not talking Spanish / English here.

Words like “lucha.”
That’s a Spanish Power Word.
Literally, it means “struggle.”
Yet, it evokes all sorts of emotions and memories.
It is the “lucha” that forces us to make priorities.
It is the “lucha” that builds character.
It is the “lucha” the forces us, teaches us how to survive.
The video shows a man of color
and speaks of the fact this his struggle is our struggle.
No amount of money in any campaign
Can buy what those cleverly sung words evoke.

And some cleverly used
political buzzwords are used in this video:
Familia – Family
Unidos - United
Humilde – Humble
Plan de Salud – Health care plan.

And when the word “vision” is used,
We see images of people together,
Various races, united and smiling with their candidate.

And the greatest Power Word of all: VIVA
You can’t give the shout out “viva" unless it’s real,
Unless you mean it.
And yet, VIVA demands a response. . . .

. . If you can’t or won’t give your assent
with a shout back of “viva”
it forces you to think. . .
. . .forces you to articulate for yourself
where and to what you can say “Viva” to.

This grassroots effort is phenomenal.
If the Democratic party were smart,
They would hire this media company
To create an add for their party’s candidate,
Who ever that may be in the end.
If they Republicans were smart,
They would beat the Dems to it.

So. . .what are the pastoral lessons
to be learned from all of this?

1.
Remember the value women add to your congregation.
Parish secretaries, catechists. . . the committee work. . .
. . .the grunt work. . .the kitchens. . . the fundraisers.
Women give birth in more ways than one.
Remember the women.
Honor them.
Treasure them.

2.
Remember that the Power isn’t always in the pocketbook.
The parishioner with the biggest checkbook
may not be your congregation’s greatest treasure.
Find the pearl.
Find the diamond.
These will lead you to other such treasures.
Appreciate them all.
Celebrate them all.

3.
Think creatively,
Especially now that times are hard in this country.
Nothing sparks creativity like the “lucha.”
Use this to your advantage.

4.
Know your congregation.
Speak their language.
Even if this means you must learn a few new words every now and again.
Be aware that language doesn’t necessarily equal linguistics.

5.
Use the power of Social Networking sites such as Youtube.
Video tape homilies.
Video tape missions,
Bible study, reflections.
And please video tape your youth group.
That’s a treasure beyond measure.
Post it all to Youtube.
And then post it to your parish website and/or blog.
You never know how much you’ll benefit.
For the truth is,
for better or for worse,
We are living in an age
that requires us to use Electronic Evangelization,
as well as traditional methods.
It’s free and it’s easy.

6.
Use the shout out “Viva” where applicable.
It demands a response.
It will bring about that
“. . full, conscious, active participation”
called for in the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy.

7.
And finally,
And perhaps, most importantly,
don’t forget to hire a Mariachi Band.
It’s well worth the expense.
And it will be pay untold dividends.

¡Viva Cristo Rey!
¡Viva La Virgen de Guadalupe!

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Video with Spanish Text



Video with English Text