Wisdom Wednesday | February 18th

Welcome to an Ash Wednesday search for wisdom. We will see what a few writers outside of our Catholic thinking have to say, including a retired Lutheran pastor, that “Ash Wednesday is spiritually the most uncomfortable day of the church year.” Ramadan begins today (or tomorrow). Our probing of faith in society takes us to a Hindu observance and two videos on YouTube. Articles include “Politics as pigsty,” a cross-country walk for peace and the odd news that Jeffrey Epstein and Steve Bannon wanted to “take down” Pope Francis. All sources are cited, views belong to writers and publishers.

Ash Wednesday

“Imposition of ashes should challenge us to act rather than be a badge of our devotion,” says Ben Huelskamp, a pastor ordained in The Fellowship of Affirming Ministries, he serves as executive director of LOVEboldly and as pastor of Blue Ocean Faith Columbus.

“Ash Wednesday offers a counterpoint to every tendency that aims to hide facets of our life from God,” says Peter W. Marty is editor/publisher of the Christian Century who last served as senior pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Davenport, Iowa.

In the desert’s wide-open spaces, Jesus figures out who he is and what that might mean. “Could that be good news for trans people?” asks Rachel Mann, a priest in the Church of England. “I am struck by how Christ’s desert experience relies on inner convictions resisting an external voice.” From the Christian Century.

“With dust-like ashes crossed upon our foreheads, each one of us is firmly presented with Ash Wednesday’s wake-up call that our mortal body, this earthly life, is passing away – sooner than we realize – and that you and I would be wise to diligently prepare for eternity by getting our lives in God-like order.” Columnist Tony Magliano writes in the Clarion Herald, New Orleans.

Barbara Molinari Quinby leads her Lenten thinking with Catholic Relief Services, and a link to a site this week for stories, videos, recipes, family activities and reflections. Here is the Justice Bulletin Board.

Ramadan

The Muslim holy month of Ramadan is set to begin on February 18 or 19, depending on the sighting of the crescent moon. During the month, which lasts 29 or 30 days, Muslims observing the fast will refrain from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk, typically for a period of 12 to 15 hours, depending on their location. Details from Aljazeera.

Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, is recognized as one of the five pillars of Islam—standing alongside Shahada (faith), Salat (prayer), Zakat (charity), and Hajj (pilgrimage). Our report is from the Grand Pinnacle Tribune, an AI-powered digital news platform promising “Intelligent Journalism,” which blends AI algorithms with human oversight to provide accurate, concise, and verifiable reporting.

In the Obama era, anti-Islam conservatives sought to block mosques and claimed Islamic law was about to take over America. Now, members of Congress and legislators in Texas and Oklahoma are trying to bring the anti-Islam movement back. From Religion News Service.

A new congressional group is targeting what it claims is a growing threat of Shariah, or Islamic religious law, a move that harks back to anti-Islam movements that flourished during the post-9/11 era. Religion News Service reports that leaders of the Sharia Free America Caucus say the growing number of mosques in the country is a cause for alarm, while critics say the group is an attempt to shore up votes for Republicans.

Convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein purchased sacred cloth that once covered the Kaaba, according to newly released files that include emails detailing a shipment of three items. The Kaaba Kiswah — or the black, gold-embroidered cloth that shrouds Islam’s holiest site in Saudi Arabia — is a revered artifact that carries spiritual meaning for Muslims worldwide. From Religion News Service.

Black History Month

Black History Month often is framed as a time of celebration — a time to honor leaders, milestones and achievements that reshaped the American story. But at its deepest level, Black History Month is about moral memory. It is about remembering not only what happened, but how change happened and who made it possible. From Baptist News Global.

A group of congressional Catholic Democrats—including two Black representatives—have condemned the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement, including widespread violence and legal maneuvers they say fall short of a Catholic “moral standard.” From Black Catholic Messenger.

Anti-Blackness in healthcare isn’t going anywhere, according to an article in Black Catholic Messenger, and fixing it requires more than lip service. Briana Jansky writes on the enduring scourge of Black maternal health disparities, and the larger challenge of combating racism in American medicine.

The Lunar New Year

The Union of Catholic Asian News headlines an article, “Where culture meets the Gospel at Lunar New Year.” Lanterns, reunion dinners and blessed oranges show how Asian Christianity makes faith intelligible in local cultures. When Chinese Catholics and other Christians gather for a special New Year Mass, the occasion acquires theological depth.

Mahashivratri, the Hindu holiday

Manirag Reddy Gaddam, a 30-year-old data analyst from Hoboken, New Jersey, said he had never anticipated his sudden turn to the Hindu faith in his 20s. Equally unexpected, he said, was pulling an all-nighter last year as he celebrated Mahashivratri, the daylong Hindu holiday dedicated to principle deity Lord Shiva. This year’s celebration fell on Sunday (Feb. 15) and ended early Monday. From Religion News Service.

Death Penalty

National and local Catholic organizations and activists are coming together to hold an event in Anaheim to urge Governor Gavin Newsom to commute the sentences of all individuals on California’s death row before he leaves office. The Prayer Walk and Vigil to End the Death Penalty will take place on Saturday, February 21 at 11.30am – 12pm local time at the Anaheim Convention Center. From Independent Catholic News. (A live stream will be available at this link: www.facebook.com/CMNEndtheDeathPenalty/)

Citizenship proof

Cardinal Cupich says feds stopped priests, demanded citizenship proof, according to Religion News Service. “I’ve had some priests who are of a different color being targeted and arrested — stopped — because of their color and asking them to prove that they’re citizens. That’s not America,” the Chicago cardinal said.

Dignity of migrants

EWTN reports “43 Catholic Democrats pledge migrant solidarity, invoke Leo XIV, Francis.” The Catholic U.S. House Democrats cited Church teaching in defense of the dignity of migrants as Trump administration officials defend immigration enforcement.

Opposing ICE in schools, churches

A federal court in Massachusetts has blocked a Trump administration policy that allowed immigration enforcement raids in sensitive locations such as churches, schools and hospitals. The ruling came Feb. 13 in New England Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, et al. v. Department of Homeland Security. Religion News Service says 11 faith groups backed the litigation.

Epstein’s anti-Francis campaign

Religion News Service reports the newly released Epstein files show that Jeffrey Epstein and Steve Bannon discussed opposition to Pope Francis, including a move that Bannon claimed would “take down Francis.”

Christian Nationalism

Rep. James Talarico, a Texas Democrat, is featured in a YouTube video. His topic: “On Confronting Christian Nationalism, And Strange Days In The Texas Legislature.” Talarico was scheduled as a guest on Stephen Colbert’s program, but is on YouTube after CBS banned his broadcast interview.

50 Cent’s ‘Moses the Black’ Film: The power of Christianity to transform lives and society for the good has been undermined by the resurgence of Christian nationalism and ideologies that marginalize people of color, according to a writer for National Catholic Reporter. But a new film seeks to remind us that faith can, as the Black church often proclaims, “make a way out of no way.”

OPINION Speaker Johnson’s response to Pope Leo reveals Christian nationalism. National Catholic Reporter offers the viewpoint of Mathew N. Schmalz, a professor of religious studies at the College of the Holy Cross.

Workplace Wellness Takes Off in Catholic Dioceses

Tracy Gabrielson, a self-described “lunch lady” at St. John Catholic School in Fenton, Michigan, is focused on personal growth. She has benefited from the HOPE wellness program that is bringing faith-based health, spiritual direction and counseling to thousands of Michigan diocesan employees. From the National Catholic Register.

Pontifical Care of Children

Pope Leo XIV has eliminated the committee created by Pope Francis for World Children’s Day, transferring the committee’s functions to the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family, and Life. From National Catholic Register.

Controversy at Notre Dame

Pro-Life Medal recipients are calling on UND to rescind the appointment of “Abortion Advocate.” National Catholic Register reports that Susan Ostermann’s appointment is scheduled to take effect July 1.

A Vatican official says the Notre Dame controversy shows the need for dialogue on abortion. The Church should engage with universities about how to take “an ethical approach” to the dignity of unborn life, the president of the Pontifical Academy for Life said, reported by EWTN News.

‘Miracle child’

With the news of the Vatican’s green light for the beatification of Archbishop Fulton Sheen, the Travis and Bonnie Engstrom family — who live in the Peoria, Illinois, diocesan area from which Sheen hailed — is leading the cheering section. National Catholic Register reports their son James Fulton was the miracle recipient for Sheen’s beatification to be given the go-ahead.

Walk for Peace

A group of Buddhist monks, accompanied by a rescue dog named Aloka, has completed a 109 day, 2,300 mile Walk For Peace from Fort Worth Texas, to Washington D.C. The aim of the walk was to raise “awareness of peace, loving kindness, and compassion across America and the world.” From Independent Catholic News.

‘Path of dialogue’

The Vatican has proposed a renewed “path of dialogue” with a traditionalist Catholic society that has threatened to consecrate new bishops without papal approval, offering an off-ramp from the dissident group’s path toward automatic excommunication from the Catholic Church. From National Catholic Reporter.

‘Politics as pigsty’

Citing the “demise in civility” at a recent hearing in the U.S. House of Representatives, Michael Sean Winters at NCR writes, “The professional wrestling match, I mean the House Judiciary Committee hearing with Attorney General Pam Bondi, was a series of nasty verbal insults and partisan attacks that did nothing to advance the cause of justice.”

Finding meaning for climate action

The AUSCP Care for Creation committee suggest an article from the organization, CarbonBrief, following President Trump’s February 12 revocation of the “endangerment finding.” That finding was the bedrock of federal climate policy. It concluded that six key greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide (CO2), were a threat to human health – triggering a legal requirement to regulate them.

Why the Catholic Church Is Having a Moment

A podcast from the New York Times included an interview with Jesuit Father James Martin, “whose job is to help explain the Catholic Church to Americans, which he does on social media, in his writing and even on late-night talk shows. Interviewer Lourdes Garcia-Navarro, in her concluding question (at 38:45), mentions the AUSCP.

OPINION A troubling alignment

Christopher Hale, in his publication, “Letters from Leo,” writes that Bishop Robert Barron, once viewed as a thoughtful evangelist bridging faith and culture, has in recent weeks accelerated a troubling alignment with the Trump-Vance administration and MAGA priorities. Hale says Barron’s latest partisan provocations are now raising alarm within the Vatican. Subscription may be required to read the full report.

Obit for Jesse Jackson

He was “The civil rights activist who sowed the seeds of possibility.” Sky News reports Jesse Jackson was a protege of Martin Luther King Jr and went on to campaign twice for the Democratic presidential nomination.