Tom McMahon wrote today's commentary 58 years after he was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest. He takes a look at how much has changed in those 58 years — 21,186 days — and how much Christianity has evolved over centuries. We still have much to learn.

"I AM" ... Christianity is evolutionary...

As I begin this commentary I am aware that 58 years ago I was ordained a Roman Catholic priest. As we ate a sandwich together one of our home-based community members reminded me of June 11, 1954 (cf. below photo Old St. Mary's Cathedral, San Francisco) I smiled and said "It was another era" to which Dorothy, a Vatican Two enthusiast, quickly replied "no Tom, it is all tied together, we have flowed from that point to where we are today."

The Menlo Men of '54, June 11, 1954 Old St. Mary's Cathedral, S.F.

Tom, #4 on right line, backs to camera. AB anointing hands so as to touch the sacred host. We knew nothing about the 14th century debates over "True Presence". We entered what looked like a united church when in reality there were two different worlds, side-by-side.

"I AM" is the story of a successful Hollywood director, Tom Shadyac (LIAR LIAR, NUTTY PROFESSOR, BRUCE ALMIGHTY), who experienced a life threatening head injury, and his ensuing journey to try and answer two very basic questions: What s wrong with our world? and What can we do about it? With a film crew of four, Tom visits some of today s great minds, including authors, poets, teachers, religious leaders, and scientists (Howard Zinn, Lynn McTaggart, Desmond Tutu, Thom Harmann, Coleman Barks) searching for the fundamental endemic problem that causes all of the other problems, while simultaneously reflecting on this own life choices of excess, greed and eventual healing. Region 1 (US & Canada) available from Amazon.

If I ever needed poof that evolution is an on-going process it is my day-to-day memory of 21,186 days of constant change since 1954, both in myself and the world in which I am living. I am not the same Tom McMahon you see in the ordination picture. In my second assignment in 1960, stationed with a godless multi-millionaire monsignor I quickly realized who I was (an awareness of an evolutionary "I AM") and the process continues to roll on at this present moment. Yes, Dorothy, we are all tied together, one of the features of a dvd (I AM by Tom Shadyac) that I hope to explore in the near future. It follows on the evolutionary trail that Teilhard was on. [Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, French palaeontologist and philosopher, Jesuit (1881-1955)] Pierre Teilhard lived in two different worlds.

Today there are many road blocks to the natural process of human evolution, set in place by a Middle Ages Vatican system that fears change. Present papal road blocks concentrate on the priesthood and Eucharist, maintaining there has been no change since the historical Jesus. Let's briefly look at massive changes over 2000 years. The history of priest/bishop spans about four different worlds.

A brief summary of which there needs to be intense and deep study:

• Early Christian gospels offer no evidence of priests, in fact they deliberately avoided the office.
• After Constantine an evolution of the roman civic office of bishop turns into the spiritual leader of established Christian communities (e.g. Ambrose)
• Developing further in the Carolingian–Charlemagne era into powerful religious-civic/military leaders.
• Council of Trent, 1542, restructures the sacramental system around a tightly controlled, and people-controlling, system with the Pope, once centuries ago a mere political office in Rome, now sovereign Pontiff of the Universe.

Clearly I see a a silent war underway. People armed with documents approved of by a general Council of 1800 Bishops [Vatican Two 1962-1965] are daily coming to sword's point with more than 1200 bishops appointed by John Paul the 2nd, their present leader having cunningly stolen the papacy and presently preoccupied with destroying the reforms of John the 23rd. The stage is being set for decision making time, a terrible painful moment for Catholics who for years have tried to approach their church system in the spirit of Jesus our Christ. Let us write next week on this dilemma.

Let's close today with a cartoon shown in last week's San Jose Mercury News. Tom offers a few comments below...

www.mercurynews.com/ci_20816174/mercury-news-cartoons-week-june-10

Has anyone noticed a bishop sitting in a parish confessional box lately? And is the subject of the confessional box, which has literally been abandoned by Catholics, contraception? How out of touch with the people and modern spirituality are the newspapers, as well as the supposed successors of the Apostles. We are living in two different worlds!

There is much education needed all around. Was Vatican Two educational?

Tom McMahon, in San Jose, 21,186 days after being ordained. Still learning and well aware of the world in which I live.. 12Jun2012

IMAGE SOURCE:
The headline image is of Michelangelo's Delphic Sibyl and has been sourced from hellaheaven-ana.blogspot.com.au.

[Index of Commentaries by Tom McMahon]