Monthly Archives: April 2017

Easter reminds us that the Church begins with witness: lives changed by an encounter with the Risen Lord; men and women who then transform others by the power of their testimony and the authority of their example.

The Gospels are remarkably candid about the difficulty the first Christian witnesses had in grasping just what they had experienced. In Johns gospel, Mary confuses the Risen One with a gardener. In Lukes resurrection account, two disciples walk a considerable distance on the Emmaus Road without recognizing their risen and glorified companion. In the Johannine epilogue, seven apostles on the Sea of Tiberias take a while to grasp that its the Risen Lord whos cooking breakfast on the seashore.

This candor about initial incomprehension bears its own witness to the historicity of the Resurrection. For what happened on the first Easter Sunday was so completely unprecedented, and yet so completely real, that it exploded the expectations of pious Jews about history, the Messiah, and the fulfillment of Gods promises, even as it transformed hitherto timid followers of the Rabbi Jesus of Nazareth into zealous evangelists who set off from the edges of the Roman Empire to convert, over the next 250 years, perhaps half the Mediterranean world.

The witness of radically converted lives has been the lifeblood of Christianity ever since, for at the bottom of the bottom line of Christian faith is the encounter with a person, the Risen Lord, Jesus Christ. Christianity is also about creed, doctrine, morals, worship, and all the rest but it is fundamentally about friendship with Jesus Christ and the transformation that engenders, and when it ceases to be that, it becomes the lifeless husk we see in too much of Western Europe. Where Christianity lives today, against all cultural odds, its because of witnesses like those initially confused souls in Judea and Galilee whose conversion began with life-shattering and life-changing encounters with the Risen One.

Which brings me, as Easter dawns, to my favoriteFinno-American priest, Father Arne Panula.

A 1967 graduate of Harvard College, young Arne Panula took a doctorate in theology at the University of Navarre in Pamplona, Spain, and was ordained a priest of the Prelature of Opus Dei. After a distinguished career as an elementary-school, high-school, and college chaplain, and service to his religious community, Father Arne Panula was named the Director of the Catholic Information Center (CIC) in Washington, D.C., in 2007 an oasis of the spirit located right in the belly of the beast (or, if you prefer, smack-dab in the depths of the swamp): on K Street between 15th and 16th Streets, surrounded by lobbyists, lawyers, and campaign consultants. And over the next ten years, Father Arne, as he is known to one and all, became a singularly winsome and effective witness to Christ and an exceptionally dynamic builder of Christian community.

I tell no secrets when I say that his many friends and admirers, a great cloud of witnesses among whom I am honored to be numbered, expected Father Arne to be celebrating this Easter from a different station in the communion of saints. A long, heroic, and uncomplaining battle with cancer seemed to be heading in the wrong direction just a few months ago, and we all imagined that, as we watched the Easter fire being lit and were blessed with Easter water, Father Arne would be keeping an eye on us from the Throne of Grace.

But good medical care and his own resolve to keep bearing witness as long as possible beat the lugubrious oddsmakers of February, such that Father Arne, who officially became director emeritus of the CIC on March 31, is still among us. For how much longer, neither we nor he can know. But he long ago put himself into the hands of the Risen Lord, and those who love him and share his Easter faith are confident that, when his time comes, it will be less a matter of losing a friend than of gaining an intercessor.

There has been a lot of talk about a Benedict Option recently, and while no one seems to know precisely what that might mean, the Ben-Op, at least as advertised, does suggest a certain withdrawal from public life for the sake of forming intentional communities of character. Yet as I proposed in my 2017 William E. Simon Lecture, any notion that Saint Benedict opted out of the life and culture of his times is mistaken. Benedictine monasteries were crucial in preserving the cultural memory of the West during the so-called Dark Ages, and over time they became centers of learning and scholarship, prayer, and work that were instrumental in building the civilization of the High Middle Ages. Thus it seems to me that the better historical image for what we need today is a Gregorian Option: building or strengthening intentional communities of character as launchpads for witness, mission, and evangelization just as Pope SaintGregory the Great sent the man we now know as SaintAugustine of Canterbury to evangelize heathen England, and did so from the Benedictine monastery Gregory had founded in Rome.

Those who celebrate Easter in the nations capital this year may wish, however, to dub this alternative the Panula Option. For in addition to directing an exceptional Catholic bookstore and chapel where Mass, confession, and spiritual direction are available (and popular), Father Arne Panula launched a Leonine Forum program four years ago at CIC. It gives several dozen up-and-coming young Washingtonians an intense introduction to Catholic social doctrine and an experience of Christian fellowship and service before sending them out to be Easter witnesses in the White House, on the Hill, in top-drawer law firms, and in the rest of often smugly secular Washington. This years class includes 38 Leonine Fellows selected from more than 140 applicants a sure sign the word is spreading that this program, named in honor of Pope Leo XIII, founding father of modern Catholic social doctrine, is Something Special.

And its all because of Father Arne Panula and the fine staff he built at CIC over the past decade. During that time, Father Arne became, for many, the embodiment of what Saint John Paul II called the New Evangelization in the nations capital. He could do that because, like the witnesses the Church will read about during Easter Week, he had met the Risen Lord. And that made all the difference.

George Weigel is the Distinguished Senior Fellow of Washingtons Ethics and Public Policy Center, where he holds the William E. Simon Chair in Catholic Studies.

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Easter and the 'Panula Option' - National Review

By John Horvat

As the situation of the nation worsens, many are weighing their options. One much-discussed alternative is what is called the Benedict Option.

The Benedict Option is the name of a just-published book by journalist Rod Dreher. The author holds that conservatives have lost the Culture War and it is time to find a way to survive in a "post-Christian" America. Rather than oppose the wave of secularism that lashes society, it is much better to build arks to ride above the fray. These arks involve intentional communities, still inside society, that will allow members to develop themselves spiritually in the hope of better times a wait that the author admits might even take centuries.

Mr. Dreher uses the example of Saint Benedict of Nursia who supposedly left decadent Rome to live an isolated intentional life away from society. Americans wishing to survive in these uncertain times are encouraged to "secede culturally from the mainstream." He insists that those involved must still have some presence in society, which might serve as an unintentional witness to those outside the option.

A great controversy has arisen around the Benedict Option. No one disputes the reasons behind the proposal. The nation faces grave dangers that merit action. However, many do question the wisdom of pursuing this option of ark-like withdrawal. The debate is complicated by the fact that there is no single option being proposed but rather many different options tailored to every religious group, dedication level or inclination.

The broad ecumenical character of the Benedict Option message may allow more to be included under its umbrella, but it also tends to reduce it to what is naturally possible to participants coming from differing religions. If all cannot agree about the role of grace in changing history, for example, then the matter must be addressed in generalities. The Benedict Option also tends to restrict it to an historical narrative that can be commonly held by all faiths.

Thus, concretely for the Catholic who is engaged in the Culture War and following the debate, there is one major omission that clouds the idea of a possibly Catholic Benedict Option.

That omission is Fatima. Nowhere in Mr. Dreher's book is there mention of Our Lady of Fatima or any role of the Blessed Mother in addressing the crisis. The problem is that the Mother of God is very central to the Catholic perspective. It is not optional.

This is especially true about the apparition of the Blessed Mother to three shepherd children in Portugal in 1917. The event has always been considered a solution directed to the present times not that of possible centuries hence. It is perplexing that a proposal to deal with the current crisis would completely ignore the most spectacular religious and historic event of the 20th century that specifically addresses these very issues.

Anyone familiar with the message cannot help but be impressed by looking at the past and seeing that things Our Lady said would happen have, indeed, happened. Her warnings about world wars, conflicts, persecutions and the spreading of the errors of Russia throughout the world have all come to pass just as she predicted.

Likewise, a look at the present leads one easilyto see how the Fatima message is more relevant than ever, especially in describing the immoral fashions, the blasphemies and the lack of Faith evident everywhere.

Given the Fatima record, there is no reason to doubt that those things that lie still in the future will also be fulfilled. To a world that has not heeded her warnings, the Blessed Mother foretold a great chastisement that will fall upon the world in which "nations will be annihilated" and the "good will be martyred." She also foretold the conversion of Russia and the world, and the triumph of Her Immaculate Heart.

The means by which these results might be obtained were clearly given by the Blessed Mother. She requested some general measures accessible to everyone inside and outside of society. These center on prayer, penance and amendment of life. She asked for specific actions in the observance of certain prayers on five consecutive first Saturdays and the consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart. By its omission of the Fatima message, the Benedict Option makes all these essential requests optional.

And while it might be argued that Mr. Dreher would have no problem admitting a Fatima version of the Benedict Option, such a concession would only trivialize the message. Fatima becomes an equal option among so many others and not the only real and Heaven-sent solution for a modern world in crisis and apostasy as affirmed by popes and Catholics for the last hundred years.

Perhaps that is the main problem with the Benedict Option it is only an option without a final goal. Options are by definition means or choices made toward an end. The Benedict Option is merely a means to survive the crisis for centuries, if necessary. However, it has no specific or unified end. Participants need not even be Christian. There is no desire for a final unity but rather the option facilitates the continued fragmentation of the nation into subcultures inside the larger post-Christian society.

Nothing could be farther from the Fatima message, which foresees the whole world's conversion to the Faith and the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and in the near future. The means and final goal are clear. It enlists the help of the Mother of God, since it clearly is beyond the capacity of people today to overcome the adversaries of the Faith.

On this centennial of the Fatima apparitions, many rightly lookpon the year with great expectation since the Mother of God brought hope and promises for this world in crisis. It is to her that those searching for solutions should turn. She is the great and only answer. Without her, there is no option.

The author's opinions are his own and don't necessarily reflect the views of Church Militant.

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The Benedict Option Omits the Fatima Answer - Church Militant

By Anna Yelizarova and Siqi Lin, Peninsula Press

The Embassy: a four-year-old intentional community in the Lower Haight. Its goal is the creation, maintaining and diversifying of the commons. (Anna Yelizarova/Peninsula Press)

As San Franciscos housing crunch continues, some residents are choosing to forgo traditional apartments and live in intentional, communal living under one roof echoing the type of housing that emerged during the hippie movement.

This year, on the fiftieth anniversary of The Summer of Love, many think that tech has changed the city for the worse, but the movement isnt dead.

The narrative is very much around how San Francisco is over and tech has ruined the city, but actually there is this strong counterculture all over the place, where people are providing mutual aid and shared learnings and doing all sorts of interesting things, and this isnt really seen, said Zarinah Agnew, a proponent of communal living and a resident and founder at The Embassy.

In this 360-degree, immersive video piece, take a tour of the Red Victorian, learn about the communities that have sprung up in the Haight-Ashburyand experience what its like to live communally in the 21st century.

A commune is an intentional community of people that live together, share common interests, collaborate on ideas, and often have common values and beliefs, as well as shared resources and responsibilities. A big part of it is the interpersonal dimension communes offer an escape from the cult of individualism, by connecting you with people to hang out with and grow close and intimate with, in a society where a lot of people lack social connection. Furthermore, there are also a lot of economic benefits.

I cook once a month and am cooked for the other 29 days of the month, explained Eric Rogers, a resident at The Red Victorian. I have this huge building at my disposal. I basically have the biggest house out of anyone I know. And thats a really nice thing to have in a city that has extremely expensive real estate

Built in 1904, the Red Victorian has been a cornerstone of the Upper Haight and a gathering place for revolutionaries, artists and travelers. Before it became a commune, the building was a historic peace and love hotel from the 1970s, and a meeting place through housing political protests, radical new ideas, artwork, creativity and conversations around creating world peace.

About 20 residents live and work together to build a rich community in The Red Victorian. It welcomes its residents to host and attend events from talks, classes and skill shares to music nights, book discussions and family dinners. It is also run as a small hotel, by renting out unoccupied rooms and making selected visitors staying in The Red Victorian feel like coming home to friends and family.

It is part of a greater international commune network, along with the flagship house The Embassy. Both communities work closely together and have great vision in bringing forth change they want to see in the world.

I would describe our community as a very creative and diverse group of people that are very interested in improving the world and also changing some of the systemic ways in which the world operates and perpetuates culture, Rogers said.

The Red Victorian: a Haight-Ashbury commune that supports creatives to connect and be in action around impactful projects. (Anna Yelizarova/Peninsula Press)

They are also part of the 11 houses that comprise the Haight Street Commons network, a group of communities united by geography. Every community operates differently. They make their own house rules and standards for housemate selection. Some are larger and house up to 30 residents; others are smaller and bring together a dozen people. When a new community starts, there is a lot of intention setting and meetings around what values the house should uphold and live by. As a result, you end up with a broad range of lifestyles and vibes in these houses whether it is creating a space to focus on art, or a place to experiment with consensus-based decision-making, or more inwards-focusing goals and creating meaningful bonds with housemates.

Our communitiesare about creating tiny pockets of experiments, Agnew said. I think its a great thing that we operate differently, it would be sad if we all do the exact same thing.

The members of these variouscommunities connect and attend each others events. As a result you see a lot of crossover and friendships, creating a greatercommunity of like-minded people, all diverse in origin, age and walks of life, but united by their choice to live their life with intention. And you really see them come together to support each other and learn from one another.

The Center SF: a commune that features tea movement community. (Anna Yelizarova/Peninsula Press)

Until now, weve largely had a society that has evolved and weve never really had one that was designed. And weve certainly not had a chance to vote or experiment on the kind of society that we might like to have that actually represents all of us, and Id like to see the communes being these places where we get to experiment with how we might like to operate and sharing these learnings between us, Agnew explained.

People have been living communally for thousands of years, whether it is with tribes of hunter-gatherers or extended families. It is only recently that atomized livingbecame such a prevalent notion in Western society. Surges in popularity of communal living, such as the ones weve seen in the 1870s and the 1960s have been associatedto slums in our economy, so there are a lot of dimensionsat play political, cultural and economic among others.

For communal living to thrive in the future, there are a lot of systemic and legislative challenges that will need to be addressed. Financially, it is very difficult to start a commune or to find suitable buildings. Communal dwellings are frequently inspected, according to their organizers. City officials may notunderstand what communal living is, since itdoesnt always fit intopredefined boxes and categories. As a result, this movement has challenged the meaning of the word family.

Chateau Ubuntu: a commune on Haight Street a French-Victorian mansion in the heart of San Francisco. (Anna Yelizarova/Peninsula Press)

There are two major ways that communes can compete with our notion of family. First, there is the dimension of company and emotional support, and second, from an economic perspective, shared domestic labor.Some states in the U.S. to this day, dictate that you cannot have more than four unrelated adults living in one household.

Generally speaking, American society has been told that you do that within a family. But weve realized that it can be a lot more effective if you do it on a larger scale, Rogers explained. In fact, The Embassy commune has seenfamilies with kids among its residents in the past.

Im in this in the long run, Rogers said. Im not doing this as a youthful thing that I look back gleefully on when Im an old person or a person with a family. For me Im really interested in redefining what family means.

Rogers will be pursuing his Ph.D. at Cambridge this fall, writing his thesis on Communes in the 21st Century.

PENINSULA PRESS EDITORS NOTE: Peninsula Press ReporterAnna Yelizarova is a serial communal-living dweller and a current resident at Chateau Ubuntu, an intentional community in San Francisco.

This story originally appeared on Peninsula Press, a project of the Stanford Journalism Program. Also from Peninsula Press: More 360-degree video stories

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Communes in San Francisco: Returning to the roots of communal ... - SFGate (blog)