To hear the cry of the Blood

Core Nine Presentation

November 28, 2007
T. McFarland, C.PP.S
 Why this Topic?
● The experience of Joseph
Bernardin’s false accusation
● Part of Precious Blood heritage
and spirituality
● Something we all can relate to
– broken personal relationships
– the brokenness of our world
 The Cry of the
Blood
● Hurts and life cry out
● Broken relationships part of
our history
● Symbolized in Genesis
– Adam & Eve -- God
– Cain and Abel
• Cain attacks and murders Abel
Cain &
Abel
“Listen,
your
brother’s
blood cries
out from the
ground.”
(Gn 4:10b)
Tower of Babel
 A fundamental
response ...
…To broken relationships
…To hurts caused by choices
we make
…To divisions among people,
families, races, religions, etc.
…To international conflicts
 Reconciliation
is...
…bringing people
and things into their
proper relationship
Fr. Barry Fischer, C.PP.S.
Former Moderator General of C.PP.S.
Bridging the gap
 Dignity and
Identity
● Return to wholeness
– “hurt” doesn’t have same power
● Recovery of identity and worth
– as created in image of God
● In communities…
– restoration of relationships

Robert Schreiter, The Ministry of Reconciliation

 Memory and
Truth
● Distorted
memories often
masquerade as truth
– past cannot be ignored
● Truth lies at heart of
reconciliation
● Lies must be confronted
 Resurrection
● ForChristian Humanism this
seems to be key
● The hope that “something
good can come from this”
– A transformation, which still
bears “wounds”
● Original
harmony between
God and humanity restored
 Different Levels

● Personal - right relationship

with God and/or individuals
● Communal – re-establish
proper relationships between
people in our communities
● Societal - relationship among
peoples, races, communities
● Environmental - respectful
relationship with earth
 How?
Some Questions
● What needs reconciling?
● Victims and wrongdoers have
different perspectives
– Wrongdoers
• there’s nothing wrong
– Victims
• specific acts need to be addressed
– “Bystanders”
• let’s get this over with as soon as
possible
● Root causes?
 How?
Some Questions
What is best way
to bring this
about?
– Passage of time
– Cultural issues
• E.g., Rwandan
children to draw
feelings of
trauma
 How?
Some Questions
● What will be the final outcome
or “state”?
– Survivors should have a say in
trying to bring the truth to light
– Discover ways to prevent these
events from happening again
– Then attempt to reincorporate
victims and survivors
 How to
Reincorporate?
Personal level
● Relationship is different
– E.g., Peter’s denial of Jesus
– E.g., when you were late for
your curfew – took a while to
restore trust
● Establish conditions so that
this will not happen again
Peter denies
Jesus
16th – 17th Century
paintings
Peter receives keys to Kingdom of Heaven
 How to
Reincorporate?
Social level
● Punishment of wrongdoers
attempts to bring forth a
sense of justice
– State seeks to balance harm
with appropriate punishment
● Change in legal/social order
to try to prevent this from
happening again
 Forgiveness
● Cannot forgive and forget
● Reconciliation is both a
process and decision
– Process of becoming free from
the past
• acknowledging wounds & memory
– Decision for a different future
• change of the victim’s
relationship to the deed’s ongoing
effects to the survivor’s rejection
of the fate of the traumatic event
● Difficult
when
wrongdoer does not
acknowledge guilt
– But, can’t let the
hurt consume us
– No longer a victim,
but a survivor
• The hurt doesn’t
have the same power
• Can happen even if
there is no admission
of guilt
 Restorative
Justice
● Arises in 1990s
● Seeks to reconcile victims and
perpetrators by:
– identifying and taking steps to
repair harm,  
– involving all stakeholders, and
– transforming the traditional
relationship between communities
and their governments in
responding to crime.
 Restorative
Justice
● Requires the assumption that crimes
or violations are committed against
real individuals, rather than against
the state.
● Restorative justice, therefore,
advocates restitution to the victim
by the offender rather than
retribution by the state against the
offender.
 Process of
Reconciliation
● Repentance from wrong
doing
– Often think of apology
– Truth of what happened
● Victim forgives
– What about when no admission
of guilt? ... amnesty
 Societal
● Goalis reconstruction of a
more just or safe society
● Examples
– South Africa
– Australia
● Repentance  forgiveness 
reconciliation
South Africa
Australia’s
work at
reconciliation
with aboriginal
people
 Pardon &
Amnesty
● Pardon
– legally - no
punishment
– does not forget --
but wrongdoer will
not be punished
● Amnesty
– amnestia
– legally forgetting
● Lays groundwork for
cooperation
 Personal
● Restoration of a damaged
humanity
● Begins with Victim
● Reconciliation  forgiveness
 repentance
● Cardinal Bernardin
 Joseph Bernardin
● Falseaccusation -- something
good will come out of this
● Began with the accused –
Bernardin seeks reconciliation
Even in Civil Society
● Matthew Shepard
killed on October
12, 1998

Aaron McKinney -- convicted

of killing Matthew.
 Time for healing
“I, too, believe in the
death penalty. I
would like nothing
better than to see
you die, Mr.
McKinney.
However, this is
the time to begin
The Statement of the healing
Matthew Shepard’s process.”
parents
at sentencing phase
(11/4/99)
 “After a murder, victims' families face
two things: a death and a crime. At
these times, families need help to cope
with their grief and loss, and support to
heal their hearts and rebuild their lives.
From experience, we know that revenge
is not the answer. The answer lies in
reducing violence, not causing more
death. The answer lies in supporting
those who grieve for their lost loved
ones, not creating more grieving
families. It is time we break the cycle of
violence.”

Marie Deans, founder -Murder Victims' Families for Reconciliation

 And yet another
way
● The murders of Amish
children – October 2006
● Words of forgiveness were
sent to the killer's family
before the blood had dried
on the schoolhouse floor
 Amish
● When asked if Roberts'
[accused killer] wife would
still be welcome in the
community, [one Amish
person] said he believed she
would, adding she would be
welcome even at the
funerals for the dead girls.
 Christian
Humanism
● Reconciliation is work of God
– Begins when God heals victim
– Victim then becomes agent of
God’s reconciliation
– God restored innocent victim
Jesus to life
• path for all humanity
Precious Blood
“The transforming power of
forgiveness may be one
redeeming thing that flows
from the blood that was shed
in Nickel Mines this week”
From a Newspaper report
October 2006
 Covenant
● Restoringoriginal
relationship
– “my people”
● Interdependent nature of
humanity
– with environment
– with other people
Cross - a hallmark
of Christian
Humanism
 Cross as
Reconciliation
● Vertical -- humankind’s
relationship to God is
restored
● Horizontal -- healing of
relationships with others
– Think how Jesus reached out to
the outcasts and marginalized
 Cup
● Willingness to “drink of the cup”
– As Hellwig says about Eucharist…
– enter into reconciling experience of Jesus
● Whenever you do this re-member me