What happens to people’s minds when their culture — what John Paul II called a culture of death — informs them that human life is not only disposable but apparently an existential evil to the planet? What happens to the psyche of our children and young adults who are repeatedly told that they are just a random by-product of evolution, that their existence is “overpopulating” the earth, that their “carbon footprint” is ruining the planet? What happens to seniors or the ill when they are told that their health issues are just costing the “system” too much? What happens to youth who are encouraged to reject their biological sex? What happens to one’s self-image when their worth is defined, not by their inherent dignity but by their productivity?
The answer is that we lose our dignity… and the consequences are all around us.
In this talk, Mark Mallett tells us how to recover our dignity… by returning to the Father.
Our team packed inside the tiny chapel just off the main auditorium. As our song rose before the Blessed Sacrament, tears streamed down many of our faces. Over a year of planning and prayer, and finally, here we were. But it wasn’t so much that as it was the waves of grace that washed over us. In fact, as I knelt there leading my team in praise with my guitar, I heard the words in my heart: “Mission accomplished.” If we did nothing else, the fact that a dozen of us had come together as a team to seek the face of the Lord and grow together in His presence, seemed like a milestone reached. In an individualistic world, fragmented by so much division and distrust, it was a miracle of grace to sit in the midst of a budding Christian community.
But our work was only beginning. In the other room, people were finding their seats for our first Novum Night. We closed our time of prayer, and headed down the hallway toward the main chapel. When we walked in, we were stunned to see every seat filled — this despite our first big snow storm of the year. In fact, had it not been for the storm, it would have been standing room only!
We picked up our instruments, and for the first time together as a team, we simply began to praise and worship Jesus — and invited the rest to join us. This was the launch of Novum… something new that God is doing in our midst. But what is that new thing?
During the evening, I gave a talk, my first since the world shut down four years earlier. I had so many thoughts rushing through my mind, so many things to say that the talk became more of a cursory list of items that need to be fleshed out in the months ahead.
After I was done, Deacon Mitch Goulet brought out Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament while Fr. Jerish and Bishop Gary began hearing confessions. I often like to say that my talk is like a flashlight… but when the Eucharist arrives, it’s like the Sun rising: the flashlight is no longer needed. From that moment on, it becomes a direct, personal encounter with Jesus… and a new work begins in the heart that is open.
