John Churchman John Chuchman, a graduate of John Carroll University has been a Hospice volunteer since 1990. He has received Pastoral Bereavement Counselor certification and a Certificate in Spirituality. In 2000, he was awarded a Master of Arts degree in Pastoral Ministries from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. In July, 2010, John was ordained by the Catholic Diocese of One Spirit. John shares his story, his experiences, his wisdom-discoveries in a series of workshops, seminars, and weekend retreats, more and more centered on Spiritual Growth. John has spoken at a number of state, national, and international conferences and has written a number of books (21) on his life experiences, grief, caregiving, and spirituality. (http://www.sacredtorch.com/index.php/johns-books/) He has been published in Spirituality magazine and his article Forgiveness: A Key to Grief Healing has been published in Healing Ministry magazine. His books can be ordered directly from John or Amazon.com. His website, Sacred Quest, is http://www.sacredtorch.com. Some of John’s writings can be viewed on https://sacredtorch.blogspot.com. His books are available on KINDLE. View my complete profile
I had participated
in efforts to help reform
Institutional Church,
specifically, the Roman Catholic Church,
when it dawned on me
that the people participating in such efforts
had widely different views of
Reform.
Many well-intentioned people
simply wanted to revise the rules and regulations,
rites and rituals,
to make the institution
more inclusive,
less discriminatory,
more accepting,
less condemning,
more feminine,
less patriarchal,
more loving
less legalistic,
and more forward thinking,
less mired in the past.
Along the way,
I realized that
even if the Roman Church
miraculously altered
its rules of governance,
I could not in Truth
make my way back into it.
I realized that to be a follower of Jesus
is not to be a member
of some man-made religion,
which He never espoused,
nor to spend energies
worshipping Him
in prescribed ways,
which He never suggested.
Reform
for many reformers
simply meant changing the rules, regulations,
rites, and rituals,
to order to increase membership,
or at least to stem the tide of those leaving.
Jesus
was killed because
He was a threat
to the hierarchies of his day;
If His followers
behaved as He did,
the religious hierarchy
would not be able to control people.
Jesus
never intended to establish
some new religion,
least of all,
a Roman one;
Jesus was a JEW,
not some kind of Roman Catholic,
or even a Christian. [ read more]
There were two contributors last time and I rather think we would all benefit from hearing what we have to say to each other on the subject of miracles. – Br Andrew Efo
