Mary van Balen

The short reading for today's Sext or Midday prayer is simple and appropriate for All Saints Day: Be holy in all you do, since it is the Holy One who has called you, and scripture says: Be holy, for I am holy. Peter 1:15-16

The universal call to holiness, expressed eloquently in the Vatican II document, Lumen Gentium Chapter V, is for all, no matter their state. We are reminded of the two great commandments: Love God and love your neighbor. Holiness is not something we possess but a way we live. It is not something found only in hours on ones knees at prayer or in a church.

Holiness is the way, not the destination. It is sharing with others, with the world, the gift of Love and Divine Life placed in each of us. Read More 

News stations have a countdown clock ticking off minutes as the deadline to raise the United States debt ceiling approaches. Tuesday is the day, and many Americans are watching to see what will happen. Will the US default on its debts? Will our representatives and senators be able to transcend their philosophical differences and compromise?

Jim Wallis of Sojourners suggests that someone other than politicians, the American public, and financial experts around the world are watching the process: God is watching, too.

Read his blog God Is Watching; it expresses my feelings and those of many around the world. I cannot understand a political philosophy that is comfortable with keeping tax loopholes for huge corporations and tax cuts for the richest Americans while proposing huge cuts in Social Security and Medicare as well as funding cuts for numerous social services and education. Read More 

PHOTO: http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1276/868518932_b245596a7c.jpg?v=0

The story out of New York City this week about new clothing purposely ruined and dumped into the trash behind major retailers H&M and WalMart would be disturbing at any time, but coming so close to Christmas, the season of giving, and in the middle of a frigid winter makes it all the more upsetting. Graduate student,Cynthia Magnus, found bags of new clothes purposely slashed and made unwearable behind both H&M and WalMart earlier this week.

I am not the only blogger or journalist to express outrage, but the deeper reality is even more upsetting: These are not isolated events; they are not new; they are not limited to clothing stores.

Venting my distress to a friend elicited this story: "Oh, I used to work at a discount store in Kentucky, one of those that sold lots of things for just a dollar. I was told to destroy all kinds of things. If dishes didn't sell, I had to break them. I shredded curtains, and cut up clothes. We were watched, and if we didn't do it, we would have been fired. On days when we knew no one from the company would be watching, we just threw things out without destroying them. But we had to be careful. One day, a man came in. He was freezing. He had no coat or anything. I used my discount and bought him a coat and gloves and a hat. I wasn't supposed to do that, but I couldn't let him go out with nothing." Read More