The Church always watches and tries to work within the “Signs of the Times”.
In these uneasy and anxious times it’s all a bit much. On the one hand you have a world that has reached 7 billion beings. You have global economic frailness and brokenness, if not downright collapse. On this All Souls Day, Mexico grieves over the 45,000 lives lost to the drug wars and the worldwide “war” on terror continues unabated.
But, we also have the Arab Spring that is still growing and maturing, We have the Occupy Movement(s) that stretches across the nation as a sign that the human person is not made for industry and commerce, but that the right relationship is that industry and capital are made for and only has value in the service and the good it does for the individual and the community. Yesterday, London’s St Paul's Cathedral confirmed it is suspending a legal bid to remove Occupying Movement activists from its grounds.Today Starbucks is launching micro loans (customer donations and matching funds) to help small business and individuals who want to launch small business. I heard about “Seeding Labs” who help scientists in developing countries conduct life changing research by providing them with the resources they need but don’t have access to, including lab equipment, which large U.S. intuitions have thrown away. So there is much to be hopeful for and to pray for. We really seem to be living in the think globally act locally environment.
There is so much wrong with the world, that it is hard to see the "real sign of the times", the multiple grass roots efforts across the globe to make a difference and build up the individual and the community in spite of overwhelming obstacles. This could be the mustard seed (perhaps a garden of mustard seeds) that will grow and finally change the world.
The Church must support all such goodness by voicing Her concern and Her hopes and by giving all action that promotes the common good grounding in the Gospel, as well as, grounding in Her rich social Tradition.
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