The tragic death of George Floyd in Minneapolis has caused us to be more aware of the racism and injustice that have plagued our country for centuries.
Tag: compassion
Let’s recover a sense of compassion
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines compassion as a “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.”
Perhaps it’s the constant news of disasters deluging us these days, but it seems as if many people have lost a sense of compassion. We’ve almost become numb to the suffering of others, whether it be from mass shootings, natural disasters, immigrants’ distress, or wars.
We can’t be neutral on assisted suicide
Pope Francis has said that compassion means “suffer with.” It is a challenge to suffer with a beloved family member or friend who is dying.
The dying process has been called a “sacred time — a final season to seek closure in this life and prepare for the next in the hope of sharing in Christ’s Resurrection,” says a passage from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Respect Life Program publication on “Caring for Loved Ones at Life’s End.”
The Culture of Life begins in our hearts and our hands
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| Sr. Constance Veit |
Each October we observe Respect Life Month in dioceses throughout the United States. Although ending abortion remains a priority of the utmost importance, threats to the disabled and those at the end of life deserve our attention as well.
The legalization of medically assisted suicide in Canada in June should serve as a wake-up call compelling us to reach out in solidarity to our most vulnerable brothers and sisters.
How do you spell love? M-o-t-h-e-r
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In Isaiah 49:15 Isaiah asks “Can a mother forget her baby, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.”
This passage praises mothers as symbols of amazing compassion, never forgetting their beloved children. Pope Francis said that a mother is concerned “above all about the health of her children. She cares for them with great and tender love the way Mary, our spiritual, heavenly mother, cares for us.”
Be compassionate
We have a loving and compassionate God, and Jesus calls us to practice these virtues in our lives. This is our mission as Christians.
When I was growing up, we learned the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy. They are tools for living a good Christian life, showing us how to be compassionate.
Corporal Works of Mercy
Jesus tells us about the Corporal Works of Mercy in Chapter 25 of the Gospel of Matthew. He challenges us to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the imprisoned, shelter the homeless, visit the sick, and bury the dead. We will be judged by how we do these things.
At first glance, we might think that we are rarely presented with opportunities to exercise many of these good works. But, if we look a little closer, we might be surprised at how often we are presented with ways to do some of them.
Showing compassion: It pays off in Wisconsin as numbers of abortions continue to drop
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It’s happened again. The number of abortions in Wisconsin has dropped for the fifth straight year. Nine of the last 10 years have seen a decline in abortions in our state, making Wisconsin one of the most pro-life states in the nation, according to some commentators.
The state Department of Health Services reported that 6,462 abortions were performed last year, down from 6,927 the previous year and about 2,000 less than the 8,500 Wisconsin had in 2009.
Continued abortion decline
“Today is a fantastic news day for Wisconsin women and children,” said Heather Weininger, executive director of Wisconsin Right to Life, when the report was released.
“Our steep abortion decline continues with the release of 2013 abortion numbers which reveal there were 465 fewer abortions in 2013 than in 2012. This represents a 6.7 percent decrease in one year.”
Weininger added, “We are extremely grateful for each and every woman who gives life to her child and each unborn child saved from the violence of abortion. Wisconsin Right to Life will vigorously continue its multi-faceted programs which work to fuel the decline.”
WeHaKee Camp for Girls inspires faith in great outdoors
WINTER — The Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters of Wisconsin were seeking a place for girls to discover, explore, and experience God’s great outdoors.
So, in 1923, they created what would become the only full-season Catholic girls overnight camp in the nation — WeHaKee Camp for Girls located in northern Wisconsin.
Treat miscarried babies with the dignity they deserve
As soon as I heard my wife burst out the bathroom door that sunny spring day, I knew she was pregnant. I hadn’t yet opened my eyes but I didn’t need to. Her footsteps told me everything.
My wife didn’t have any particular reason to believe she was pregnant. But after a couple years of praying for a second child, I’d grown accustomed to Laura taking random pregnancy tests — hoping against hope that somehow that second pink line would appear. This time it did.
Joyful days
The days ahead were as joyful as any we’d experienced in our life together. We beamed when friends who knew of our struggle with secondary infertility congratulated us and we devoured all the fetal development materials we could find, eager to mark every last milestone in our baby’s nascent life.
Redemptive suffering is part of being a Christian
It is not easy to block out the multiple cries of pain and suffering that permeate the world. It is almost deafening.
All one has to do is turn on the radio, read the newspaper, watch television, or go online. We are bombarded with news of pain and suffering, almost to the saturation point. I think of the people in Libya, Haiti, Japan, and others affected by war and natural disasters. It gives me an overwhelming feeling.
Good people suffer
A couple of years ago I attended several lectures on the martyrs of El Salvador who were killed during a civil war that took place there in the 1970’s and ’80s. Archbishop Oscar Romero, four women missionaries, and several Jesuits — only to name a few of hundreds of people — were brutally murdered because they spoke out against the intense suffering of the Salvadoran people and a system of government that perpetuated it.