text:
The topics of marriage and family have received much attention in recent months at the Extraordinary Synod in Rome, in a recent ruling here in Wyoming and the Federal Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and elsewhere. I wish to review our Catholic perspective on marriage. It seems quite clear that much confusion exists concerning this foundational institution of society. We Catholics simply seek to know the truth, rooted always in Jesus Christ. We need to raise up this truth as it is reflected in marriage and Holy Matrimony.
When we Catholics consider marriage, the two realities of nature and sacrament confront our quest for understanding; our belief in a Creator brings clarity to our reflection. We believe that God created everything from nothing. (Colossians 1:12-20) Everything in nature, then, has its origin and fullness in God; and each created thing has a natural tendency towards God, particularly fitted and proper to it.
Marriage includes reference to God, precisely because God created the institution and endowed it with its significance. In this act of creation and bestowal, He willed specifically to bring man and woman together, establishing the nature of marriage and fitting it to the nature of man and woman. Marriage is, for this reason, always more than the mere will of two people (as in a contractual relationship), even though the free will of two people to enter into marriage is also necessary. For this reason, when asked about divorce, Jesus drew attention to the origins of marriage:
"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate." (Matt. 19:4-6)
Pope Francis has also fittingly emphasized that "[t]wo Christians who marry…have recognized the call of the LORD in their own love story." (Pope Francis 10.4.13)
In Matthew 19:4-6, Jesus teaches, not only that God has ordered and established marriage as a union of man and woman, but also that the union is indissoluble. Even prior, then, to any consideration of the sacramental character of Holy Matrimony, the close association of nature and grace and the intimate presence of the divine to the human, in God's establishment of marriage, is manifest.
The one flesh union of the husband and wife aids the couple to express their love for each other. Their love is unique because it is the generative and natural force that brings new life into existence. Precisely in its unity and generativity, the conjugal love of man and woman mirrors the inner love of the Trinity, generative of all creation; so, it is a pathway for both persons to the apprehension of God's living presence. The love of man and woman, in a very special way, then, "ends towards God. It is, in its very character, a participation in the love of God that generates new life.
An understanding of the sacramental nature of marriage begins with a discussion of Baptism. Every member of the Church is a member of the Body of Christ. In Baptism, we are joined in a very real and permanent way to the person of Jesus. Our natural life, upon our receiving Baptism, is oriented to its fullness in the person of Jesus. To use other language, we have become one flesh with Christ; but the union is even more intimate than the conjugal relationship of man and wife.
Once our bodies are joined to Jesus, we become increasingly oriented to Christ, to His Gospel and His Truth. Our relationship with Christ frees us from sin and helps us to find our proper freedom in all that we do. Christ is intimately a part of us and we an intimate part of Him, through Baptism.
All that we do in the flesh, upon Baptism, involves our one flesh union with Christ; recollection of this reality consciously informs us in our behaviors, our thinking and our values. We no longer engage in actions which seem unworthy of Christ because they do not recall us to Him; we no longer indulge ourselves or define things and relations in our own way, apart from His teaching. What we see Jesus do and teach, we seek to imitate. (See 1 John 2: 3-6.)
Sacramental marriage is the union of two people whose one flesh union is open to life. Both spouses live their lives as a total gift to the other and to the children generated from their love. Their love is a bond knitting the family together. They learn ever more to imitate the self-sacrificial love of Christ as their proper model; so they help each other to grow in holiness and obtain, with Christ, their eternal life in heaven. The marital love of husband and wife, faithful and true for life, provides a stable foundation for their children and for all of society.
For a husband and wife, their one flesh union is a participation in the Body of Christ, recalling the unity of Christ with His people. On this very point, I quote Jose Granados, vice-president of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family at the Lateran University in Rome:
The one flesh of the spouses becomes sacramental because they belong to the Body of Christ, to his flesh (cf. Eph. 5:30). The marriage of baptized persons, their act of making themselves one flesh, is transformed by the fact that they are members of Christ. Configured to the Body of Christ in their flesh by baptism, they can be united in one flesh only if they unite according to Christ's standard. This is how they will be rendered capable of a new love, the love that unites Christ and the Church; this is how they will be able to obey Paul's exhortation to love one another according to the standard of Jesus and his Bride. (The Sacramental Character of Faith…)
He adds:
If the Church is structured as one flesh, if being one flesh (the Bride of Christ) contains her fundamental definition, then marriage possesses a singular gift with which to build up the Church. (The Sacramental Character of Faith…)
The above remarks capture the reason that we must all properly understand both the nature of marriage and the sacrament of Holy Matrimony. What God intends through this beautiful institution of human love is fundamental to the common good of society; and it is critical for the building up of the Body of Christ, the Church.
Properly understanding marriage and the sacrament of Holy Matrimony matters because we must respect that we are created in God's image and likeness and that the way we live in the body either honors this belief, ignores it, or disrespects it all together. It matters also because we believe in eternal life and salvation and the critical character of our free will response to God's will and the laws that He has written on every human heart in relation to them. Our response matters, not only because of eternity, but also because the degree of our adherence to God's truth directly impacts our ability to live meaningful lives now.
The truths discussed here are important because marriage is neither a matter of equality nor of human rights. It is a gift given and created by God, specifically designed to encompass the loving and life-giving relationship between a man and a woman. This self-giving human relationship of life-generating love is intended by God to mirror the inner life of the Trinity and the life humbly given by Christ for His Bride, the Church. Granted, marriage is not the only means of participating in the divine life of God; but we need to be clear about the nature of marriage and do more to support and strengthen the life of married couples and families.
To the many men and women who are faithfully living the demands and joys of married life and love, we owe our profound respect and support. We want to reaffirm the nobility, the truth and the beauty of marriage. Realizing that others suffer from the failures of marriage and broken families, we pledge our understanding and accompanying presence. Together, we are all called to seek the truth and to live the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). Together, let us seek Christ and the fullness of life and love that are to be found in Him and lived and loved as members of the Church.]]>
Today marks the completion of two weeks on the road. I'm at St. Meinrad Archabbey and Seminary in Southern Indiana this morning.
I'm looking forward to visiting with our three seminarians studying here as well as with the faculty, and celebrating the community Mass today. I remember as a seminarian looking forward to visits by my Archbishop, and now, I enjoy the opportunity to get to know my seminarians and hear how they are growing in discernment and formation.
The first week of November I was in St. Paul for meetings with Catholic Rural Life. We held a board meeting on Monday and Tuesday and then welcomed 70 agriculture and faith leaders from around the country for a three day symposium on faith, food, and agriculture. Catholic Rural Life is collaborating with the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace to draft a document on the Vocation of the Agriculture Leader. This will be a companion piece for the previously written document, The Vocation of the Business Leader.
A part of the work leading up to the writing of the document is to hold two symposiums, the one held last week in St. Paul, and an international one the end of June in Milan, Italy. We are posing questions on the topics of faith, food and the environment and listening to theologians, farmers and many others involved in various spectrums of the agriculture world and business.
There are many issues around hunger and food, farming, food production and distribution, labor, environment and care for the earth and all of our natural resources. Our efforts seek to better understand all of these complex issues, while at the same time introducing principles based upon gospel-based values and ethics to help leaders develop sound answers that will respect the dignity of the human person and the limited resources of creation. As Pope-emeritus Benedict XVI reminded us in his encyclical Charity in Truth, Blessed Pope Paul VI "proposed Christian charity as the principal force at the service of development." (Charity in Truth, #13)
From St. Paul I made my way to Baltimore for the November plenary meeting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. I was very encouraged during our meetings this week by the leadership of our President, Archbishop Kurtz of Louisville. I had a chance to speak with him at the airport in Baltimore yesterday evening, and thanked him for his generous and gracious leadership.
I am also pleased to see more time spent during our gatherings for bishops to gather in smaller groups for more in depth discussions on specific questions. I was particularly pleased that one of the questions invited the bishops to reflect upon the direction and teaching of Pope Francis in light of our own future priorities as a Conference. I'm hopeful that this will help us be more responsive to the needs, hopes and desires of the Catholic population, and enable our work to be more capable of making a difference in the day-to-day life of the faithful.
The past two weeks have been very full, and I pray God bless the work of the labor of many people who seek to serve Him for the good of the Church and the common good of society as a whole. More and more I am convinced that the Gospel is essential for building up the fraternal wellbeing of all of God's people in society. Please God, may we find our way to presenting the truths of the Gospel in a manner that can improve the lives of all of God's people.
We hear in the readings today that Christ is the foundation of this structure, and each of us are a temple of God. (1 Corinthians 3) The Spirit of God dwells within each of us and dwells within the Church. From the Church flows a life-giving water that sustains the life of every creature and plant, and refreshes the waters of the sea. (Ezekiel 47)
It is good for everyone of us to think through this imagery of being 'living stones' (1 Peter 2:4-6) in the edifice of the Church. Our membership in the Church is in and through Jesus Christ, in whom we are bound together in our many varied gifts into the one community of faith. Thus, for our unity, we are to regularly cultivate our friendship with Christ; our LIFE in Christ.
Another way to look at our membership in the Church is through another beautiful title of the Church. We (every member of the Church) are the Body of Christ. In Baptism, we are joined in a very real and permanent way to the person of Jesus. This means that our natural life is now oriented to its fullness in the person of Jesus. To use other language, we have become 'one flesh' with Christ.
Once our bodies, our life, is joined to Jesus, we now are continually being more and more oriented to Christ; to His Gospel and Truth. Our relationship with Christ is what frees us from sin, and helps us find our proper 'freedom' in all that we do. Christ is now intimately a part of us, and through baptism, Christ has made us an intimate part of Himself.
All that we do 'in the flesh' now involves our 'one flesh' union with Christ, and this knowledge and reality is what consciously informs us in our behaviors, our thinking, our values. What we cannot imagine Christ partaking in, we no longer indulge in. What we see Jesus doing, we now participate in. This is the life-giving water that flows from the Church and renews all things; the life of Christ in us and the life of the Holy Spirit that animates our very existence.
All that God created finds its renewal and redemption in the person of Christ. Through the Church and her sacraments, Christ brings us into his Body. In Christ, we are made whole; we are made one. Let us live our life in Christ in unity, peace and joy.
Symposium on Faith, Food and Environment
St. Paul, Minnesota
5 November 2014
Faith and the Call for a Human Ecology: The Vocation of the Agricultural Leader
On behalf of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and of its President Cardinal Peter Turkson[1], I thank you for the very kind invitation to the Council to participate in the Symposium on Faith, Food, and the Environment here at the University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul.[2] Thank you for the warm welcome
I. Introductory Remarks
Cardinal Turkson is very grateful for your invitation. If he were not required by the Vatican to help devise a response to the Ebola crisis, he would be here today where he has found exceptional collaborators at the John A. Ryan Institute for Catholic Social Thought. He would make special mention of the leadership of Professor Michael Naughton who has led the development of our very successful booklet on the "Vocation of the Business Leader". This symposium is very much an outgrowth and applications of the insights in that work.
Two other touchstones are worth mentioning. In 2011, our Council issued a small booklet entitled Towards Reforming the International Financial and Monetary Systems in the Context of Global Public Authority. In the midst of the major economic and financial system problems that continue to reverberate, this was an attempt to bring human dignity and the common good to the attention of world leaders who were reacting to the crisis. The production and distribution of agricultural goods and the behaviour of financial markets in relation to foodstuffs are very much part of this crisis, and perhaps this symposium will have good thoughts to add in their regard.
Just last week, Cardinal Turkson hosted a major three-day meeting of some 150 of the world's marginalized people, representatives of grassroots movements concerned with housing, land and work. These include peasants who lose their land and livelihood to agribusiness, and agricultural workers trapped in poverty. On Tuesday morning (28 Oct), Pope Francis participated for several hours in joyful and lively encounter with them in the Old Synod Hall. First he met selected representatives, then he delivered an inspiring speech that has been described as a 'mini-social encyclical'.[3] Several chosen spokespeople shared, including a man who had dedicated years to building up a cooperative, but then one of his colleagues "sold out to the usual interests who're always in charge".
Your topic is very much on the mind of the Pope; as has been announced, he plans to issue an encyclical early next year on creation, ecology and the environment. In fact, he assured his listeners last week, "Your concerns will be present in it."
In my remarks, I wish to expound on the idea of vocation, then on agriculture as vocation. Following this, I will give you a glimpse of the origins and main ideas of the book on Vocation of the Business Leader and suggest some questions that link it to your subject. I will end with some reflections on the phrase "human ecology."
II. Why "Vocation"?
Vocation connotes more than work, more than interest and aspiration. It means "calling", and the Bible has God frequently calling individuals directly or through dreams, angelic messengers or other intermediaries. For instance, David had a job as a shepherd; God called him to do something else. Jonah ignored God's call because he had no interest in lecturing the people of Nineveh so God sent a whale to deliver him. And when Jesus called Simon/Peter and Andrew, telling them "I will make you fishers of men", they followed Jesus but they continued to be fishermen too; what distinguished their new calling or vocation was its larger perspective.
For our purposes in this symposium, "vocation" means a calling which comes from God our Creator. Creation and everything created is purposely willed by God. It follows that the meaning of everything that exists is determined with reference to God. Accordingly, the sense and value of human activity are not fully discovered without reference to the God of creation. All human activity that affects man, his existence and his world, must be related to God and be seen as a contribution to and a continuation of God's work of creation by man, who is created in the image and likeness of God.
Catholic Social Teaching (CST) explains vocation as the calling to be completely authentic as individual persons and as social beings, based on our status as made in God's image and relating to God (Gen 1:26-7). Vocation is the acknowledgement of and engagement in the essence of our nature as humans. Here are a few relevant passages:
Compendium § 19: the vocation of every person is to collaborate in "God's plan of love in history";
Compendium § 34: "The revelation in Christ of the mystery of God as Trinitarian love is at the same time the revelation of the vocation of the human person to love. This revelation sheds light on every aspect of the personal dignity and freedom of men and women, and on the depths of their social nature."
Compendium § 36: "only in relationship with God can men and women discover and fulfil the authentic and complete meaning of their personal and social lives."
Compendium § 101 (citing Laborem Exercens) says that "work has all the dignity of being a context in which the person's natural and supernatural vocation must find fulfilment"
Pope Francis focuses on vocation in his Apostolic Exhortation. Besides speaking of religious life, Evangelii Gaudium says that "…the essential vocation and mission of the lay faithful is to strive that earthly realities and all human activity may be transformed by the Gospel…" (201). Then he singles out the worlds of politics (205) and business (203). As he wrote subsequently to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland:
"Business is – in fact – a vocation, and a noble vocation, provided that those engaged in it see themselves challenged by a greater meaning in life" (Ev. Gaudium, 203). Such men and women are able to serve more effectively the common good and to make the goods of this world more accessible to all.[4]
Business belongs to such human activity; and entrepreneurs should see themselves as called by God to exercise their necessary and important skills and activities in order to assist in continuing God's work of creation. Properly understood, business leadership is indeed a calling, a vocation, a very noble role. The Church takes great joy in supporting and helping business people to respond appropriately to your vocation and to find the place of your activities in God's design for man and his world.
III. A Vocation to Agriculture?
Agriculture is a constant backdrop in the Bible. The language of Jesus is full of illustrations from agriculture: tending flocks, planting, harvesting, managing agriculture with granaries and with payments to workers. Jesus assumes that his listeners understand and respect healthy agriculture; this allows him to make comparisons to agriculture in his parables. For instance, in the parable of the good seed, how seed reacts to different types of ground helps him to teach what happens when people react in different ways to the word of God (Mk 4).
This enriches our thinking as we turn to agriculture as a vocation. From the very beginning, the Creator asks us to "till" the earth and to "keep it" (Gn 2:15). It is part of our assignment as human beings. It cannot be 'just a job' if we treat it as part of "God's plan of love in history" (CST 19).
Putting this sense of vocation positively (based on Compendium §§ 19 and 36), allow me to suggest that:
Agriculture is a vocation when we carry it out within God's plan of love in history, and when it is the occasion for us to discover and fulfil the authentic and complete meaning of our personal and social lives.
How can we elaborate on this grand vision of agriculture as vocation?
I will try to do so with Vocation of a Business Leader as a model.
III. Origins and Use of Vocation of a Business Leader
How did it happen, two and a half years ago, that the Church issued a handbook on the Vocation of a Business Leader? The stimulus was the encyclical Caritas in Veritate of Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI. The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace collaborated in two very interesting conferences exploring the implications of Caritas in Veritate in the realm of business. These took place in Los Angeles in late 2010 and in Rome in early 2011. The outcome was a decision to write a handbook or vademecum for business men and women that translates specific principles of Catholic Social Teaching into practical ethical guidelines for making business decisions. The work was begun by an international group of some fifteen business people, managers, researchers and educators. The coordinator was Prof. Michael Naughton (University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota), and the working-group included the then President of the International Christian Union of Business Executives (UNIAPAC), M. Pierre Lecocq. I wish to thank them heartily, and many others who have worked on the document and its different language versions, published in collaboration with various partner organizations. The handbook appeared in its first editions, French and English, in early 2012.
The handbook is being used in a growing list of languages (now 15 completed and at least 2 underway).[5] It is being used in university courses, in discussion groups of business people, to stimulate research, in an ongoing blog,[6] and more.
IV. Vocation of a Business Leader: Outline and Key Ideas
The "logic of gift" is the keystone of voation of the business leader (VBL). It is articulated in Caritas in Veritate, where Benedict XVI observed that:
Every Christian is called to practise charity in truth in a manner corresponding to his vocation and according to the degree of influence he wields in the public sphere.[7]
The principle of generosity / gratuitousness and the logic of gift must find their place within normal economic activity and commercial relationships.[8]
Our very lives and the entire world we inhabit are gifts freely given by God – and this gift should inform how we act in our business endeavours. It humanizes and civilizes business, where businesspeople see themselves as stewards rather than owners, their wealth as common rather than just private goods, and their employees as persons rather than only as instruments of production.
The Vocation handbook points to these eternal implications at the very beginning: "In the Gospel, Jesus tells us: 'From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked' (Lk 12:48). Businesspeople have been given great resources and the Lord asks them to do great things. This is their vocation."
This gifted character of business carries social implications. Business leaders have significant means to undertake something, and with this comes a corresponding responsibility. The Vocation text sees business not in terms of a legal minimalism – "don't cheat, lie or deceive" – but rather as a vocation that makes "an irreplaceable contribution to the material and even the spiritual well-being of humankind." It is about a meaningful life that opens the businessperson to God's will, and not simply their own will, in the day-to-day decisions of ordinary life, which gives us the capacity to share goods in common and build community.
This vision of business is grounded in CST. At its centre is the fundamental dignity of all human beings because we are made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:27). This expresses God's infinite love for us. Faith denies that a loving God would wish untruth, bondage, injustice and strife for us. Rather, based on divine love and human dignity, our faith compels us to embrace four fundamental values: truth, freedom, justice and peace. Because they are grounded in our divinely and lovingly created human nature, we have an absolutely firm response when such values are challenged or denied.
Catholic Social Doctrine enunciates many other principles, some of which are especially pertinent to the world of business. Service to the common good comes before serving narrower interests. The goods or resources of the world have a universal destiny; creation is a gift to the whole of humanity, not just a part. We are called to act in solidarity with those who lack access to these goods – with the large portion of humanity who suffer in the midst of plenty.
This vision of business is not without significant tensions and is not easy to execute in today's world. Business leaders experience great pressures; excessive competition, the demands for efficiency and profitability. Many external obstacles can also affect a business leader's decisions, such as the absence of the rule of law or regulations, corruption, tendencies towards greed, or poor stewardship of resources. Chief among the obstacles at a personal level is a divided life which is one of the more serious errors of our age. The split between religious faith and day-to-day business practice can lead to imbalances and misplaced devotion to economic success.
These challenges demand more just and human structures, regulations, policies and practices; and they demand virtues from business leaders – those habits of work that make business people and the world better. For the business leader, one of the most important virtues is practical wisdom – how to be wise in practical affairs. Our handbook is structured on a framework that shows how a prudential leader can encounter the world of business by seeing the situation clearly, judging with principles that foster the integral development of people, and acting in a way which implements these principles in light of one's unique circumstances. I will explain these three stages one by one, though it is clear that seeing, judging, and acting are deeply interconnected
When we attempt to see the world of business thoughtfully, thoroughly and fairly, we notice both good and evil factors at work. The handbook mentions four major "signs of the times" in particular, four significant factors facing leaders today.
Globalisation has brought efficiency, mobility and extraordinary new opportunities to businesses, but the drawbacks include greater inequality, economic dislocation, cultural steam-rolling, and the inability of governments to properly regulate capital flows.
Communications technology has enabled connectivity, new solutions and products, and lower costs, but its amazing velocity also brings information overload and rushed decision-making.
The rise of the financial sector has created ways to leverage capital to make it more productive, yet it has also intensified tendencies to commoditise all business relationships and reduce them to one value – price – whether that is the monetary value of the firm, the price of a product, or the cost of labour; all of which emphasise wealth maximisation and short-term gains at the expense of working for the common good.
Cultural changes in our era have led to increased individualism, more family breakdowns, and utilitarian preoccupations with oneself and "what is good for me". As a result we might have more private goods but are lacking significantly in common goods. Business leaders increasingly focus on maximising wealth, employees develop attitudes of entitlement, and consumers demand instant gratification at the lowest possible price. As values have become relative and rights more important than duties, the goal of serving the common good is often lost.
Next, the handbook organizes insights into the judging required in business in three perspectives: good goods, good work, and good wealth.
The first objective is to produce Good Goods. Businesses attend to the needs of the world by producing goods that are truly good and services that truly serve. They make solidarity with the poor a facet of their service to the common good by being alert for opportunities to serve otherwise deprived and underserved populations and people in significant need.
Second, businesses should provide Good Work. By organizing good and productive work, businesses make a contribution to the community by fostering the special dignity of human work. Businesses are communities, not mere commodities! Further, they contribute to the full human development of employees by applying the principle of subsidiarity; that is, by providing them with opportunities to exercise appropriate authority as they contribute to the mission of the organisation. They also allow workers to influence the overall direction of the business and accept their right to participate in intermediary bodies such as unions.
The third objective is Good Wealth. By being good stewards of the resources given to them, businesses create sustainable wealth through efficient and product processes producing healthy profits. But creating wealth in a business is insufficient without the wider context of stewardship for the natural and cultural environment, and just distribution to all stakeholders who have made the wealth possible: employees, customers, investors, suppliers, and the larger community.
Turning to the third step, acting, the handbook urges business leaders to put aspiration into practice, word into deed, by following their vocation and letting themselves be motivated by much more than financial success or formed only by the "logic of the market." What this kind of action calls for is that business leaders receive and accept what God has done for them and to have this gifted life inform and order the way they give and enter into communion with others in business. When businesspeople integrate prayer, the Sabbath, the scriptures, the gifts of the spiritual life, the virtues and ethical social principles into their life and work, they can overcome the "divided life" and receive the grace to foster the integral development of all business stakeholders. It is precisely this life of faith that can strengthen and embolden business leaders to respond to the world's challenges not with fear or cynicism, but with the virtues of faith, hope, and love.
As very practical, well-aimed aids to action, the handbook offers two checklists. The first is a set of "Six Practical Principles for Business" that summarise the discussion of good goods, good work and good wealth. The second is "A Discernment Checklist for the business Leader" – nearly three dozen questions to help business leaders to deeply examine their own lives and the behaviour of their organizations in light of the Catholic social principles here presented. These three questions summarize the latter checklist:
As a Christian business leader, am I promoting human dignity and the common good in my sphere of influence ?
Am I supporting the culture of life; justice; international regulations; transparency; civic, environmental, and labour standards; and the fight against corruption?
Am I promoting the integral development of the person in my workplace?
V. Application to Agriculture
Of course, your interests are not business in general but the business of agriculture. Seeing how the Vocation book explores business leadership in general, I believe you will be able to apply it to the particular world of food production and marketing.
What are the unique features of the vocation of a leader in agriculture? I cannot give you answers, but I suggest that you look to the Vocation book for help in asking the right questions.
Thinking about the logic of gift, it is abundantly clear that agricultural leaders exercise influence over immense resources – the very land that feeds us and houses us, the water, the nutritional value of the soil. Is it legitimate to worry that humanity may now have tilled too much and kept too little? Can GMOs and chemical fertilizers make their contribution without inhibiting the preservation and continued spontaneous growth of God's creation, the original gift to all?
How do agricultural leaders react to the central tenets of CST? For instance, is common good subordinated to 'ability to pay'? Does subsidiarity influence the willingness of powerful corporations to allow and even assist other farming structures – family farming in some regions, subsistence farming in others – to flourish alongside agribusiness?
When it comes to seeing, we can ask about the influence of globalization and financialization on agricultural planning – do those plans reflect the goal of adequate nutrition everywhere, or do financial considerations push thoughts of food aside? One of the difficult cases is the reduction of capacity for local food production so as to grow ethanol-producing crops for distant customers – a clear case of the impact of living in a global economy.
When agricultural leaders judge about "good goods", do they think about 'what sells' or do they focus on truly feeding a hungry world while stewarding the environment in a responsible and prudent manner? Do the production and distribution decisions address the rampant problems of malnutrition? And are long-term risks such as the growth of resistance to herbicides and pesticides included in how they assess technological innovations?
In the same way, thinking about "good work", are migrant workers treated with human dignity and with fairness? Do policies and subsidies favour some forms of agricultural business over others without a compelling rationale in terms of human and environmental benefit?
The heading of "good wealth" is especially pertinent. Do agricultural leaders see themselves as stewards of the earth? Do global markets accept the food sovereignty of every country and region? Is wealth generated by agricultural business distributed and used to preserve nature and provide food for future generations?
Finally, I have one suggestion with regard to the acting of agricultural leaders. Before you sign off on an order, ask "Is this what is best for humanity and for the environment?" And realize that "best" is not a synonym of "most". The most fertilizer may not be what is best. The most profit may not be what is best, any more than eating the most is best for one's health! We must always try to do what is optimal. This may be neither 'the minimum' nor 'the maximum'; for instance, 'maximum yield' in crops and in investments is a worthy objective only if it is an optimal strategy for human and environmental outcomes.
VI. Faith and the Call for a Human Ecology
So far I have not mentioned "human ecology". Let me close with some thoughts on this phrase.
Our human bond with the earth is absolutely foundational. The second Genesis account, "Adam" comes from adamah or ground, earth. So too, "human" is grounded in humus, soil. Humanity was not created ex nihilo but ex adamah and humus. Without earth, there is no human being.
Moreover, our human story begins in a garden, not the wilds. And it involves more than the inexorable laws of nature. Humanity is the factor that opens the earth up to new possibilities and realizations. Are they new harmonies or new imbalances? The outcome depends on our actions.
When we care for the earth or misuse it, we care for ourselves or abuse ourselves. Because we are earth, and we sent forth as gardeners: our nature is to consciously work the soil, work on and within the ground from which God made us.
So there is a duality in the idea of "human ecology". On the one hand, we know ourselves as God's stewards of the earth. When we exercise stewardship or caring in the style of God, when we act in the name of God the Creator and in his image, we must adopt his style of love and communion. Let us seek beauty and harmony in carrying out this role. We cannot divorce ourselves from our instruments, so wonderfully fashioned by science and commerce. If machines and chemicals and investment strategies are hurting nature, we cannot wash our hands – it is we who introduced them into the garden.
Simultaneously, protecting creation means protecting something of which every human is a part. We are all creatures, we are nature, and we share the destiny of created nature. When we care for the environment, we care for life in general and thus for human life. And when our interventions in nature lead to changes in nature, these changes do not occur in some inert matter distant from us. We are changing ourselves too. The authentic wholeness, the integral self of every woman and man, is bound up in whatever we do in our natural environment.
So here's the connection with human ecology. The way men and women treat the environment reflects how we think about and treat ourselves – and vice versa. Respect for human ecology lays down the limits and perspectives of development. The environment cannot be considered more important than humanity nor as just a warehouse of raw materials. Not to recognize and not to respect our full, integral reality is to poison the human environment at the same time as we poison the air and the water too.
Our faith calls us to this understanding of ourselves and our place in nature. For too long, we have allowed the colossal power of science, engineering and commerce to separate us from nature and treat it instrumentally. Thank you for listening to the call of faith. With prayer, with loving concern for all humanity and with the best that science and commerce have to offer, let us roll up our sleeves and return to the garden.
[1] Due to the Ebola crisis, Cardinal Turkson felt obliged to cancel his trip to the U.S.A. in favor of meetings at the Vatican to assess the situation and develop a strategic action plan to guide the Holy See's response. Speaking in his place was Dr. Michael Czerny S.J.
[2] Hosted by the Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity, Catholic Rural Life, Farmers Union, John A. Ryan Institute for Catholic Social Thought, the University of St. Thomas, Minnesota Catholic Conference, and the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
[3] http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/es/speeches/2014/october/document…
[4] Pope Francis, Message to the World Economic Forum, Davos-Klosters, 17 January 2014.
[5] As of November 2014: Arabic, English, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Korean, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Russian, Slovakian, Slovenian, Spanish, Ukrainian (and next year Chinese and Thai)
[6] William Bowman, Catholic CEO: How Church teachings can help us build better organizations, http://www.catholicceo.net/catholic-ceo-blog
[7] Cf. Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate, § 7.
[8] Cf. Caritas in Veritate, § 36.]]>
We learned yesterday that Peter Cardinal Turkson, President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace will be unable to attend as previously planned, but are relieved that Fr. Michael Czerny, SJ, will be present in his name to deliver the Cardinal's speeches and represent the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace during our days together.
Faith, Food and the Environment Symposium
November 5-7, 2014
University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minn.
Press Release 10/9/2014
One of world's leading Catholic officials will bring Pope Francis' message of faith-based ecology to the United States this fall. Cardinal Peter Turkson will deliver the keynote address and participate in working sessions at the Faith, Food and the Environment Symposium, a groundbreaking event that will confront the challenges of 21st century agriculture from a faith-based perspective.
The symposium, which will include a diverse array of Christian voices, will be held Nov. 5-7 on the St. Paul campus of the University of St. Thomas.
Cardinal Turkson serves as the president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace in the Vatican and is considered a leading authority on the ethics of agriculture. The Ghanaian native is drafting Pope Francis' forthcoming encyclical on the environment.
His presentation, expected to hint at what the world can expect from the pope, will be at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 5, in the O'Shaughnessy Education Center Auditorium on St. Thomas' campus. The lecture is free and open to the public, and seats can be reserved here.
The cardinal will be joined at the symposium by notable food and ag leaders, such as Roger Johnson, the president of National Farmers Union, and Steve Peterson, the director of sustainable sourcing for General Mills. A number of leading academics, including Dr. Fred Kirschenmann, director emeritus of The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, and Dr. Cal Dewitt, an ecologist from the University of Wisconsin, also will take part. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar will welcome the diverse group of leaders with opening remarks at 1 p.m. Wednesday.
About the Symposium
The Faith, Food and the Environment Symposium will bring together more than 70 leaders in the fields of agriculture and food production, environmental studies and theology to examine how faith traditions can inform solutions to modern agricultural challenges, such as food shortages, environmental degradation and the ethical use of biotechnology.
This year's symposium is part of a broader initiative called The Vocation of the Agricultural Leader, which aims to provide leaders in the farming and food industries with practical, faith-based principles that can be applied to their daily work.
The November event will be followed by an international symposium in Milan, Italy, in 2015. The results of both symposiums will be used to develop a set of resources for leaders in the food and agriculture sectors.
The symposium is co-hosted by several organizations from the faith, academic and agricultural sectors. Co-hosts include Farmers Union Enterprises (Minnesota Farmers Union, Wisconsin Farmers Union, South Dakota Farmers Union, North Dakota Farmers Union, Montana Farmers Union), the Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity, Catholic Rural Life, the University of St. Thomas, the Center for Catholic Studies at St. Thomas, the Minnesota Catholic Conference, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and the International Catholic Rural Association.
Life is short. Death is certain. Eternity is long.
It is good to turn our thoughts to eternity; to heaven. St. Paul said as much when he taught: Since you have been raised up to new life in Christ, you must look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ is seated at God's right hand. (Colossians 3:1)
This is how the saints lived, following Christ, with their feet on the ground and their eyes towards heaven. Thoughts of Christ and his eternal Kingdom stirred their hearts and motivated their every action to live life fully for God; concretely in loving service of their neighbors. They knew that Christ had conquered death and rose from the dead, and they were capable of joining all of their hardships to his with the hope that in so doing they would discover greater life here and grow in the only life that truly matters for any disciple, which is our life in Christ. This notion was captured well in a prayer of St. Ignatius of Loyola:
Lord, let me not run from the love which you offer, but hold me safe from the forces of evil. And on each of my dyings shed your light and your love.
It is good to think of heaven while facing squarely the challenges we face today. As a tidal wave of secular force continues to crash upon our times and culture we can and still do live with faith and hope, because we know this life is fleeting, and the life of Christ is sustaining us now and drawing us onward to the fullness of life. We need this hope, because we cannot neglect our duties and obligations to the family of God who accompany us during these times in this earthly pilgrimage.
In this past month, I have followed closely the proceedings of the Extraordinary Synod on the family. We have heard many thoughts regarding the family and marriage. Some of these thoughts were captured in the relatio given during the midway point of the Synod, Pope Francis' address during the final session, and finally, the concluding document.
Beyond the Synod, closer to home, federal judges across this nation continue to declare that state laws defining marriage as between a man and a woman are unconstitutional.
In light of all this recent focus (and fuss) on family and marriage, I gathered a group of young adults for dinner and discussion this past Wednesday evening. It is clear that the 'tolerance mentality' of the times is having its effect on what our people believe. Even though there is appreciation for 'traditional marriage,' there is also a willingness to allow people to live and express love as they choose, and find no problem calling it 'marriage.'
At one point, I asked the group: "Where does morality and salvation fit into this discussion?" to which they responded: "That is a good question." I also ask: "When everyone is allowed to define what is 'true' for ones' self, do we not see what happens?" Absolute Truth disappears when everyone lives according to their own truth. And when these 'various forms of truth' conflict with one another, how does anyone any longer know what is 'True?'
Before leaving this brief discussion of marriage and family, it is very clear to me that we as Church need clear and strong teaching of the fundamental nature of marriage. We need to teach not only the sacramental aspect of Holy Matrimony, but the fundamental nature of the social institution of marriage, which can only be the indissoluble union of love between a man and a woman, which is open to the generation of new life. Marriage is always a life of the spouses lived as a complete 'gift' to the other.
To all of those who are living and striving to live this life of husband and wife, I say "Thank you." We need to continue to find ways as Church to encourage and support our married couples and families.
Back to thoughts about 'truth.' The present culture of 'tolerance' and 'live and let live' can only lead to division, which is more and more the fruit being harvested. The goal of governance is the common good of all peoples, and the common good leads to harmony. For people of faith, we find this common good and sole expression of Truth in the person of Jesus Christ.
Where I see Pope Francis leading the Church is this: First, we are to recognize the beauty of Christ through an intimate encounter with Christ. We are to first personally fall in love with Christ, who alone reveals the love and mercy of the Father. Christ and his Holy Spirit will reveal to us 'all truth' so that we may live fully the Divine Life the Father longs to share with us. The Holy Spirit will then help us to know and love the Truth of Jesus Christ.
Second, we are to recognize that many people for various reasons are not living the fullness of the truth in their lives. We are to embrace them and accompany them, not judge and condemn them. Jesus came into the world to save the world, not condemn the world, and this is our attitude once we come to know and love Christ. As we accompany God's people, together we seek the Truth, all the while seeking to 'build a bridge' by which we walk together to greater and greater wholeness and holiness.
So, let us look to heaven, where the great company of holy men and women await us and intercede for us. Let us know and love Christ and his Truth. Let us get to know and love our neighbor, and together, build a bridge (which is Jesus Christ) that will bind the wounds of a hurting humanity while binding us together as one, in our faith in Jesus Christ.
We look at what God's grace has accomplished since the time of the first Apostles. Just about every corner of the world has received the Good News, and has heard the name of Jesus Christ. But, with every generation comes the renewed need for believers to witness their faith in Jesus Christ to others.
In some ways, out times require of us the same apostolic zeal and courage of the first apostles. Many people today do not know Jesus Christ, and those who do have lost their love for the truth of the Gospel.
As the first apostles discovered their mission in their relationship with Jesus, so we must be continually renewed in our friendship with Christ. As the first apostles received strength and wisdom through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, so we must learn to live in the Spirit in whom we were consecrated. Then, and only then, can we live in the world in joy and peace, proclaiming Christ by our lives. The message of the apostles was the message of Jesus, who taught us the Truth;
Saints Simon and Jude, pray for us, that we may be worthy witnesses in the world today to Christ and His Truth.
And he gave some as Apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the Body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God…
The ten day trip in September highlighted many areas of ministry in the Catholic Church, such as meetings with educators, catholic charities, youth, permanent deacons, priests, religious, catholic health care workers, and of course many prayer services and daily celebrations of the Eucharist.
I had the good fortune as serving as an assistant coordinator of this trip, and seldom a year goes by that I do not recall something of this visit around this time of year. Today, I was reviewing some of this saintly man's talks, and rediscovered this Entrustment to the Virgin Mary :
Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles)
Wednesday, 16 September 1987
1. I wish at this time to turn my thoughts once more to the Woman of faith and of all salvation history: Mary, the Mother of Jesus and Mother of his Church; Mary, the Patroness of the United States under the title of her Immaculate Conception.
I entrust to you, Virgin Mother of God, all the faithful of this land. I entrust them to you, not only as individual men and women in the nobility of their personhood, but as the Christian community, living corporately the life of your divine Son.
I entrust to you my brother bishops in their great mission as servant pastors of God's people, in communion with the Successor of Peter. I entrust to you all the priests, who minister generously in the name of the Good Shepherd; all the deacons bearing witness to Christ's servanthood; all women and men religious proclaiming by their lives the holiness of God; all the laity working in virtue of their Baptism and Confirmation to order all temporal affairs according to the plan of God.
I entrust to you all the holy People of God - the pilgrim People of God – called to be mindful of their Christian dignity, called to conversion, called to eternal life.
In particular I entrust to you the families of America, in their quest for holiness, in their struggle against sin, in their vocation to be vital cells in the Body of Christ. I ask you to bless all husbands and wives, all fathers and mothers, and to confirm them in their high vocation of human love and openness to life. I entrust to you the children of this generation, asking you to preserve them in innocence, to protect them from all harm and abuse, and to let them grow up in a world of peace and justice and fraternal love.
I entrust to you all the women of the Church and the cause of their true human advancement in the world and their ever fuller participation in the life of the Church, according to the authentic plan of God. May they discover in you, O Mary, and in the freedom that was yours – from that moment of supreme liberation in your Immaculate Conception – the secret of living totally their femininity in fulfilment, progress and love.
I commend to your protection the young people that make up the future of the United States. I pray that in your Son Jesus Christ they may grasp the meaning of life, and come to understand deeply their call to serve their fellow human beings; that they may discover the profound fulfilment of chaste love, and the joy and strength that come from Christian hope.
I offer to your loving care the elderly people with all their sufferings and joys, and with their yet unfinished mission of service in your Church. I ask you to console and assist the dying, and to renew within the whole community a sense of the importance of human life at every stage, even when it is weak and defenceless.
I ask you to assist the single people with their special needs and special mission. Give them strength to live according to the beatitudes and to serve with generosity and gladness.
2. I entrust to you all those engaged in the great Christian struggle of life: all those who, despite human weaknesses and repeated falls, are striving to live according to the word of God; all those who are confused about the truth and are tempted to call evil good and darkness light; all those who are yearning for truth and grasping for hope.
I ask you to show yourself once again as a Mother with that deep human concern which was yours at Cana of Galilee. Help all those weighed down by the problems of life. Console the suffering. Comfort the sad and dejected, those tormented in spirit, those without families, loved ones or friends.
Assist the poor and those who need, and those subjected to discrimination or other forms of injustice. Come to the help of the unemployed. Heal the sick. Aid the handicapped and disabled, so that they may live in a manner befitting their dignity as children of God. Stir up the consciences of us all, to respond to the needs of others, with justice, mercy and love.
3. Through your intercession I ask that sinners may be reconciled, and that the whole Church in America become ever more attentive to Christ's call to conversion and to holiness of life.
I pray that all those baptized in Christ your Son will be strengthened in the great cause of Christian unity, according to his will.
I ask your prayers so that citizens may work together to conquer evil with good, oppose violence, reject war and its weapons, satisfy hunger, overcome hatred, and remedy all forms of personal, social, national and international injustice.
I ask you to strengthen the Catholic people in truth and love, in their obedience to the commandments of God, and in their fidelity of the sacraments.
Virgin Mother of God, Our Lady of the Angels: I entrust to you the whole Church in America. Help her to excel in sacrifice and service. Purify her love, renew her life, and convert her constantly to the Gospel of your Son. Lead her children with all their Christian and non-Christian brethren to eternal life, for the glory of your Son Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.
In reality, Jesus does not come to bring division, but His presence and message result in division until people humbly submit to His Gospel of Truth. The Fire that Jesus casts upon the earth is the Fire of Divine Love. This Divine Love; the Love that exists within (and is) the communion of Divine Persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, is the source of all creation. As such, this Divine Love is the unifying power of everything within creation. This Divine Love is the final destination to which all creation will return, when all creation will bend the knee at the name of Jesus (Philippians 2:10), 'and God will be all in all.' (1 Corinthians 15:28)
Where there is resistance to this Love, there can only be division and discord. Where there is harmony with this Love, there is communion – unity – peace – love.
This Fire of Divine Love is the culmination of God's plan for all of creation – for every human person. St. Paul gives a marvelous 'blueprint' for the Divine Plan in his letter to the Ephesians. Today's first reading (Ephesians 3: 14-21) speaks of the culmination of God's plan:
Brothers and Sisters: I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
God's plan, through Christ, is to share His love with all of us; to fill us with the very Love of God! This is the Fire of Love that burns away selfish love, leaving only Authentic Love, which is the harmony of the soul with God and the peaceful abiding of one person with another.
My dear friends, let us live the Faith that is ours in Christ, that we may abide in the Love of God. May this Raging Fire of Divine Love sweep over us and all creation, that we may be cleansed of all selfishness and division, thus discovering communion with God and unity with our brothers and sisters.
Mass of Thanksgiving & Farewell: Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration at San Benito Monastery
We welcome all of you to this celebration this morning, especially, we welcome Sr. Gladys, Sr. Regina, Sr. Josetta and Sr. Hope. We are also pleased to have so many other members of the Benedictine community join us for today's celebration.
In our opening prayer for Mass, we pray for these "servants who have left all things … who devote themselves entirely to you [God.] … following Christ and renouncing the things of this world." (Prayers For Religious, Roman Missal, 3rd edition)
As we give thanks for the 31 years of your presence in the Diocese of Cheyenne, we must think about not just the individual members of the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, but the root of your vocations. Beyond your monastic life as Benedictines are the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty and obedience, which are at the heart of every religious vocation.
This 'pursuit of perfect charity by means of the evangelical counsels traces its origins to the teaching and the example of the Divine Master, and that it is a very clear symbol of the heavenly kingdom." (Perfectae Caritatis, #1) This teaching of the Second Vatican Council describes how our own Benedictine Sisters have sought Christ in their own personal lives, and in their common monastic profession. Their fidelity in seeking Christ through their Benedictine way of life is at the heart of their ability to serve Christ in the members of this local Church since 1983.
I wish to offer a few passages from the Rule of St. Benedict that seem to capture what we appreciate most and will miss greatly as you take your leave from Wyoming:
RB # 72:11 "Prefer nothing to Christ." And: RB #5:2 "cherish Christ above all"
Sisters, your prayers; your cherishing Christ above all, are the means by which you acquire graces for us, which enable us and equip us for the mission and good work of the Church, which is the building up of God's Kingdom.
I wish to reflect just a bit on the challenges associated with placing Christ above all else. It is indeed the priority of life required for every Christian, but it is a challenge, one involving mystery. I wish to share with you a quote from Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI:
God is indeed the Great Mystery. Of all the mysteries of life and the mysteries that accompany our life- journey of faith, God is the Great Mystery. Initially, perhaps out of the zeal of youth and the eagerness of a Christian vocation, we can be uneasy with this Mystery. We want answers. Particularly when life throws up barriers and difficulties, we wonder about the value of the path we have chosen. We wonder why God is not more forthcoming with help or answers or direction. But eventually, by God's grace, we grow in our comfort to simply be grateful to be enveloped by the Mystery that is God. We by faith begin to recognize that the Light in the midst of the Mystery is none other than the Light of the Risen Christ. Not all that unlike Moses who saw the burning bush, aflame yet not consumed, this same Light speaks to us, leads us, this is the Light of Christ and His Gospel. (Pope Benedict XVI)
Our Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration are not unlike the women at the empty tomb who were astonished, even frightened at what they discovered. Our sisters come face to face first with the Lord, in their devotion to the Eucharist, so they can then bear this light of the Risen Christ to us, while at the same time recognize Christ in each of our faces and persons.
RB 4:20 "Your way of acting should be different from the world's way."
RB 4:8 "We cannot exclude anyone. Every person we meet must be honored and loved as our brother or sister." This sums up how the Lord's command to love God with our whole heart, our whole mind, with all our strength is best served by our love of neighbor.
RB72:4 "We can never wait for the other person to love us first." If we are the first to show love and respect, the others will follow.
RB4 We must prove our love with good works. Feelings and words are not enough. There are many concrete ways we can find to do this.
RB: Prologue 1: "We must listen with the ear of our heart to the burdens and joys of others. We need to feel in ourselves what the others are feeling."
Today, we wish to express our gratitude to each of you, sisters, and to all the other Benedictine sisters who have served in the Diocese of Cheyenne through your monastic community. We are grateful for the many lives you have touched and drawn closer to Christ, through your monastic profession, your example of life, your teaching, spiritual direction; in short, through your modest and humble presence in our midst.
At the same time, we acknowledge that we will no longer be a whole family without you. A Church to be whole needs the presence, example and service of monastic women. San Benito Monastery has been an oasis of prayer, and your apostolic service a witness of faith that will be deeply missed.
Just as "deep waters cannot quench love, nor floods sweep it away," (Song of Songs) we know that we will always remain in your hearts and prayers, and you will most assuredly remain in our love.
My dear Sisters, May God bless you!]]>


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M.D. Ph D Artur Śliwiński, plastic, reconstructive and aesthetic as well as general surgery specialist with in excess of over 20 years experience, member of numerous Polish and international medical associations, such as: ISAPS, EACS, IPRAS, European Aesthetic Academy, Polish Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery and AMC owner kindly invites you to AMC Art Medical Center.
AMC Art Medical Center is the first private plastic surgery medical facility in Poland, which was designed and constructed entirely in accordance with the most up to date hospital standards.
State-of-the-art medical equipment (Dräger, Covidien, Alvo, Maquet, Medicon), anti-bacterial systems - all with patient care and safety in mind.
Cooperation with top class surgeons in the fields of plastic surgery general surgery orthopaedics gynaecology arm surgery means we are able to provide services of the highest quality.
We will look after you!
On 17th and 18th of October 2014, Barcelona's Instituto Javier de Benito was home to a meeting of doctors who use Silhouette Soft, re-absorbable sutures in their practice. Experts from around the world participated in the gathering chaired by Dr. Roberto Pizzamiglio and Dr. Javier de Benito.
Dr. Artur Śliwiński, one of the few doctors in Poland authorised to train other doctors on the use of Silhouette sutures, was also present at the meeting. The event organisers made sure the participants had an opportunity to improve their skills and at the same time share their suture use experiences, techniques, ideas and results.
Bio-absorbable sutures are successfully used by doctors in 73 countries around the world. The application of bidirectional cones allows for practicality non-invasive modelling of: cheeks, jawline or brows. The treatment is done under a local anaesthetic and takes approx. 30 minutes with effects which last even up to 18 months.
Face modelling treatments using the Silhouette Soft method are also available at AMC Art Medical Center.
Unique Wish Pro technology cosmetic face treatments are now available at AMC Art Medical Center. This modern technology utilises capsules with active substances. It is used in the 4 most commonly performed cosmetic facial treatments:
These non invasive treatments are safe, leave the skin more supple and stronger and provide instantaneous results
In September (08.09.2014) during arthroscopic surgery a cutting edge meniscus suturing method yielding good clinical and cosmetic results known as All inside was used for patients with knee injuries (the meniscus is sutured from the inside of the joint using special clips).
Modern equipment and minimally invasive techniques were used during knee surgeries resulting in post procedure scars being less prominent than following a traditional surgery and reduced risk of infection. Also, this method is easier on the joints and requires less recovery.
The operation was carried out by a team of AMC Art Medical Center orthopaedists: Mariusz Dydyk MD and Piotr Wieczorek MD.
This is the fifteenth - jubilee edition of the largest and oldest golf tournament in Poland attracting nearly 1000 competitors year in year out. 15 qualifying tournaments gave rise to the best golfers who will cross clubs in a final tournament at the Binowo Park Golf Club. The final will be played out from 27 to 30 August 2014.
The best will represent Poland in world finals in South Africa (WGC) and Abu Dhabi (Diners Club).
For more information see: http://www.golfpgc.pl/
On 23 - 27 June 2014 a microsurgery course was held at the Prof. Tadeusz Sokołowski Clinical Hospital in Police organised by Pomeranian Medical University aimed at doctors specialising in plastic surgery. Piotr Prowans M.D. PhD became the scientific head of the lectures presented by Artur Śliwiński M.D. PhD, Andrzej Krajewski M.D. PhD and Piotr Prowans M.D. PhD. The meeting attracted participants from Gryfice, Wrocław, Warsaw and Gdańsk. The course a included theoretical (lectures) and practical parts during the course of which every participant carried out microsurgical blood vessel anastomosis.


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Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic
Closed for the season Oct 11, 2014
The western end of the Museum is temporarily closed for a re-stabilization/renovation project.
However, we still have LOTS to see and do at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic. Our Aquarium, two floors of Exhibit Galleries, Ice House Theatre, two Museum vessels and Tidal Touch Tank.
Please note
The Salt Store Gift Shop and indoor Museum exhibits are open M - F, 10:30 am - 3:30 pm We have special holiday hours Fri. Nov. 28, 10:30 am - 9 pm and Sat. Nov. 29, 10:30 am - 4 pm.
We will be closing for the season Sat. Nov. 29 at 4 pm.
Learn about Rum Running, and August Gales. Meet lobsters, flounder, cod and more in our aquarium. Enjoy our large collection of Bluenose memorabilia. During our summer season walk the docks, have a yarn with old salts, visit our wharf-side vessels and refresh in the salt air as you take in one of the best maritime moments in the world.
Who are we
The Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic provides the ultimate waterfront experience, in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While at the Museum, you experience life in a fishing community and discover, up close, life at sea.
Explore our magnificent aquarium and wharf-side vessels. Make your way to the Ice House Theatre, where films are shown throughout the day. Browse at your leisure or take a guided tour. Come rain or shine, relax and enjoy! The entire family will enjoy their entertaining visit with us!
Become a Dory Mate
Help support our Museum, receive regular up-to-date information about what is happening at the Museum and enjoy all of the benefits of being a Dory Mate: details.
Dory Mates Newsletter - Spring 2013
Book a Birthday Party
Come along, have some fun! Book a birthday party at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic! Available July and August 2014.
Group Tour Programs
Daily programs available May through October, including lobster lore, a model boat launch and more.
Salt Store Gift Shop
While at the Museum or just shopping around town, be sure to check out the Gift Shop where you will find an array of current fashion and giftware for the entire family. Salt Store Gift Shop.
Hours & Contact
We are extending our open hours to Nov. 14th for the Salt Store Gift Shop and Aquarium, 2nd & 3rd floor exhibits, M - F, 10:30 am - 3:30 pm, except closed on Nov. 11th.
68 Bluenose Drive,
P.O. Box 1363
Lunenburg, Nova Scotia,
Telephone: 902-634-4794
Toll Free 1-866-579-4909
Fax: 902-634-8990
E-mail: email@example.com


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I am looking for my greatgrandfather, Robert "Bob" Gourley. He was born about 1863 I believe in Blount County, Tennessee and died 20 January 1909 in Rafter, Monroe County, Tennessee. I do not know his parents or siblings. He married Ellen Caroline Butler who was born 24 July 1873. They had eight children according to my mother. They were:
1)William who married Lou
2)Bill(died in 1958) who married Edith
3)Feebie who married a man with the last name of Henry
4)Gracie who married a Pilkington
5)Delcina who married a Burk?
6)Lydia or Lida who married a man with the last name of Freeman
7)Lady who married Johnny Presley
8)Eula was born on 31 August 1907 in Tellico Plains, Monroe County, Tennessee. She married Mose Bivens on 20 April 1921 in Madisonville, Tennessee.
Notify Administrator about this message?
|Home | Help | About Us | Site Index | Jobs | PRIVACY | Affiliate
|© 2007 The Generations Network


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This is a pool I went 3-0-1 with at a sealed event. The draw was intentional.
I think this is was the strongest pool I've literally ever seen and will ever see. If you have improvements to this or a variation on it, then I'd like to see it, but I really liked it and the deck worked flawlessly. I can't deny there was an element of luck but this was hitting on all cylinders. Turn 1 Hopeful Eidolon to Turn 2 ordeal was devastating, as was the devotion to red for Purphoros and Fnatic. Without early removal, the deck did very well.
Obviously, it had a few problems when it got later in the game, but the idea was to win early by being aggressive and deal with threats by tapping blockers to get the game over with asap.
|Date added
|11 months
|Last updated
|11 months
|Avg. CMC
|Sealed Pools


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High end Hamburgers???
- j
- J_Winston_Foodie May 18, 2008 04:06 AM
After having exceptional steak the other night, I had a curious thought. Are there any places around LA that serve really high-end hamburgers? It may seem strange, but if there are, I'd be curious to see how a $40 burger tastes...
I doubt there's anything like that, but if someone knows of something it would be greatly appreciated.
I noticed you just posted about Cut. Funny thing is I was just at the Beverly Wilshire checking out the menu at The Blvd. restaurant. I haven't tried it but they have a hamburger that sounds very high-end. Here is the description: the Blvd Burger, made with prime sirloin, foie gras mousse and sautéed wild mushrooms.
At Mother's Day Brunch at the W Hotel in Westwood last weekend, burger was on the menu as part of the 45 buck brunch... and they charged extra for the grilled onions!
Ruth's Chris has one on the lunch menu.
Spago has one for twenty something dollars.
Pacific Dining Car's is no doubt pricey.
If you want to go somewhere with a mistress, The Brentwood has one.
re: mollyomormon
Two really great burgers! The latter a very traditional steakhouse burger (thick and juicy) for about $13, the former a terrific indulgence for twice the price--so good that, when Josie took it off the menu a couple of years ago, overwhelming customer pleas persuaded her to bring it back. For a non-meat variation, I understand that Citrus at Social in Hollywood has a $38 lobster burger but I have not tried it.
re: New Trial
Alas, Morton's has raised its prices. The burger is now $14 (and still a steal, imho.)
re: mollyomormon
The Josie burger is pretty good, but people should know that it's on the dryer side because it's buffalo. If you like juicy burgers with lots of juices, then this might not be your thing.
IMO, there are better options on the Josie menu. The venison, for example, is a really wonderful dish and not terribly common in LA.
re: glutton
Perhaps because of the gruyere stuffing or the foie gras topping, but I have never found the buffalo burger to be too dry. Love the venison there, too, and (when they have it) the boar.
Riordan's Tavern (next to The Pantry downtown)
875 S Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90017
Check this out: http://www.avalonbeverlyhills.com/din...
I've never been, but it looks great.
I loooo~~~ve the truffle burgers at Grace, which is *only* 23$ I think :P
And their milkshakes ... yummmm...
here's a link to my review (or if u just wanna see pictures ;> ) : http://gourmetpigs.blogspot.com/2008/...
I think the burger nights are Sundays
re: burumun
And a lot of folks have the gall to squirm about burger prices at FO... ;)
re: feedthebelly
I have Lucky Devils on my to-do milkshake list. How much are those burgers?
re: JeetJet
About 3 1/2 times the price of the Kobe Burger that I have had at Tops 4 times since you posted about it. I've had 2 different burgers at Lucky Devils, both really tasty but a bit expensive for my regular burger rotation! Had the Pecan Milkshake once, good but I prefer a good beer with the burgers.
re: sel
Thanks sel. I have had more than 20 of those Tops Kobe Bistro Burgers. IMO it is a high class burger for a real price. The only thing that could improve it is a big ice cold glass of beer which Tops does not have.
My fav burger and beer place was the Boat. I noticed that the ground work appears to have begun on the new / remodel of the Boat over on Rosemead Blvd. You can still get that chili burger for lunch M-F at the Northwoods but the ambiance of the Boat was better for a burger & beer combo. From the art work at the Northwoods the new Boat will be ever better.
Tops (½ lb. American Kobe Beef Burger, Smoked Mozzarella Cheese, Caramelized onions, Tomato and Greens, and Herb Mayonnaise on a Ciabatta roll for $6.45. Add deep fried zucchini).
3838 E Colorado Blvd (This location only – Between Rosemead Blvd. And Michillinda)
Pasadena, CA 91107-3940
(626) 449-4412
My Burger post
The Galley (The Boat) (Chili-Cheese Burger for $4.50, large schooners of beer and the game will be on the giant TV)
8976 Huntington Dr. (Served for lunch M-F at the North Woods Inn during construction)
San Gabriel, CA
(626) 286-1484
re: JeetJet
lucky devlils kobe burger is about 16 bucks or so. heard they are smaller in burger size of recent.
re: feedthebelly
Top's Kobe is a complete RIP even compared to the pricey whatnot offered by Lucky's. Overcooked patty with zilch flavor, lousy tasteless bun, gross greens. I'd rather be force fed Carl's Jrs. Top's makes 25 Degrees taste affordable.
In case Grace's burger isn't pricey enough for you, NYC / Wall Street has a joint with a $175 burger:
re: TonyC
So Wrong! You need to ASK for what you want. Tops will make it the way you want and if it is still wrong they will fall over themselves to make even you happy. You complained also about the pie crust at Bake N Broil (IMO, best in L.A ) after ordering a slice of pie which nobody recommended, apple, and THEN you cited two pages of positive reviews to prove your point? Go back to B&B also, have a burger, and a slice of Lemon Lush or Banana Cream.
I could go on....
For the Valley readers, the wagyu/kobe version at the Boneyard Bistro on Ventura just east of Woodman(2 blks) is really good, and even better with the $12 foie gras addition.
They serve several versions, described here: http://www.boneyardbistro.com/
Could easily imagine a heart attack after one of those!
but oh so good.


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|Live Scores
|Video & Audio
March 5, 2013
Doug Bracewell has been ruled out of the first Test against England due to the foot injury he sustained while cleaning up glass after a party at his home in Napier.
Bracewell did not attend New Zealand's final training session at University Oval on Tuesday although it is hoped he will recover in time for the second Test in Wellington. It means that Ian Butler, the Otago seamer, could be in line for his first Test appearance in more than eight years. The final place is between him and the uncapped left-arm spinner Bruce Martin.
The situation, which occurred away from the New Zealand squad, has not resulted in any disciplinary action for Bracewell although he has been reminded of his responsibilities and Brendon McCullum, the captain, believes it has been over stressed.
"I think the Doug situation has been blown out of proportion to be honest," he said. "It was an accident with was unfortunate because it has ruled him out of a match he was hoping to be at his best for. He has been able to build up for it. I think he will be back for the second Test."
Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, said that there were expectations on players to ensure they were ready for international duty but did not think there were any significant problems around the culture of the team that needed to be addressed.
"We've got really good standards in terms of the expectations we have on our players," he said. "They are also human and spend a lot of time away from the group. There is the expectation that what they do does not affect their preparation and we are pretty strong with that.
"There's been a bit of comment about the situation but his foot just hasn't recovered. He can't put any weight on it. There's not a lot we can do when he's away from the side. What I understand he was cleaning up after having a group of people over to watch the rugby. It's really disappointing for Doug and the team as he's a crucial part of our seam attack."
Earlier, Bracewell apologised for the situation and its impact on his team-mates. A media release from New Zealand Cricket referred to the incident as "unfortunate" and stated that Bracewell had been "reminded of his obligations and responsibilities as a NZC contracted player".
"We've told Doug that he needs to take responsibility for what happens around him and that he needs to do all he can to ensure his preparation for international cricket is not compromised," Mike Sandle, the New Zealand team manager, said. "Doug is very sorry for any inconvenience he has caused his team-mates and members of the public and he has apologised to his neighbour in Napier."
New Zealand Cricket Players' Association chief executive Heath Mills was involved in Sandle's discussions with Bracewell, who was dropped from the one-day squad in 2012 for breaking team protocol.
"We want to ensure that incidents like this are not repeated and that we provide ongoing support for young players to ensure they are meeting all their obligations and responsibilities," Mills said.
Andrew McGlashan is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfoFeeds: Andrew McGlashan
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
|Comments have now been closed for this article
The cricket world reacts to the passing away of Phillip Hughes
Phillip Hughes: Country kid who moved a nation
Likeable, hard-working and skilful, it was a matter of time before Phillip Hughes cemented his spot in the Australian Test team. Then, improbably and inconsolably, his time ran out
Hope for Hughes, feel for Abbott
It is impossible to imagine how Sean Abbott must feel after sending down that bouncer to Phillip Hughes. While the cricket world hopes for Hughes' recovery, it should also ensure Abbott is supported
November games need November prices
An early start to the international season, coupled with costly tickets, have kept the Australian public away from the cricket
Phillip Hughes: Country kid who moved a nation (132)
Likeable, hard-working and skilful, it was a matter of time before Phillip Hughes cemented his spot in the Australian Test team. Then, improbably and inconsolably, his time ran out
November games need November prices (85)
An early start to the international season, coupled with costly tickets, have kept the Australian public away from the cricket
The inherent dangers of batting (43)
The sickening blow that struck Phillip Hughes is a reminder of the ever-present dangers associated with facing fast bowlers, even while wearing a helmet
Misbah's Pakistan or Imran's Pakistan? (39)
Pakistan have notched up some fine wins under Misbah-ul-Haq's leadership, but they haven't yet achieved consistent results outside the UAE
Going out to play cricket today would have been near enough to impossible. Even doing so next week in the nets and at the Gabba for the first Test will be difficult


text:
Welcome to our Telecommunications section. Are you looking for mobile phones, telephones or accessories? In this category you will find everything that you need: phones and accessories among many others. Read our reviews, compare prices and find the most suitable product. Afterwards stop by the electronics section and
... more
have a look at the great TVs on offer. ... less
Telecommunications »
Most Recent Reviews of Telecommunications »
Specifications Nokia Lumia 830, Latest Smartphone from Nokia
Review of Nokia Lumia 830
Read full review by biastico
Nokia Lumia 830 is a very good phone overall.
Review of Nokia Lumia 830
Read full review by BradJosh
An Apple iSheep... That would be me!
Review of Apple iPhone 6 Plus 16GB
Read full review by jjcross
Moto G, Cheap but reliable
Review of Motorola Moto G 8 GB
Read full review by Andri007
More up-to-date reviews of Telecommunications
Most popular Telecommunications offers for GPS Receivers »
Most popular Telecommunications offers for Smartphones & Mobile Phones »
Most popular Telecommunications offers for Telephones »
© 2014 Shopping Guide GmbH


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Dr. Gary Prodanovich, MD
Ophthalmology, Gary Prodanovich MD
- 4060 4th Ave Ste 620
San Diego, CA 92103
- 1 Office Location
- (619) 298-8500
Dr. Gary Prodanovich has been practicing medicine for 38 years. Dr. Prodanovich graduated from the Medical College of Wisconsin School of Medicine in 1976. He practices medicine in San Diego, CA and specializes in Ophthalmology. Dr. Prodanovich is affiliated with Scripps Mercy Hospital.
Gender: Male
Years in Practice: 38 Years
Languages Spoken: English
Medical School: Medical College of Wisconsin School of Medicine
Graduation Date: 1976
Hospital Affiliations: Scripps Mercy Hospital
Specialties: Ophthalmology


text:
Also known as Dallas Texas cuz we got a buildin dat look like a microphone.
We keep it hood in Microphone City.
by octbodyrocka August 25, 2007
10 Words Trending Now
Alphabetical List
Type your email address below to get our free Urban Word of the Day every morning!
Emails are sent from firstname.lastname@example.com. We'll never spam you.×


text:
Rsync Interface for MaemoFeb 05, 2010
Grsync, a graphical user interface for the rsync synchronization tool, is now available in version 1.0.0 for Maemo.more »
Symbian Sourcecode AvailableFeb 05, 2010
The Symbian Foundation has released its mobile platform of the same name as free software.more »
Google Tablet with Chromium OS?Feb 03, 2010
Apple's iPad has evidently inspired the free Chromium OS and Google into developing a hardware implementation in tablet form.more »
Resurrected: KBluetoothFeb 03, 2010
KDE developer Alex Fiestas has taken on the orphaned KDE Bluetooth. The first release under his supervision, Kbluetooth 0.4, has now been released.more »
Netbook Distro Leeenux Linux 2.0 with lots of ApplicationsFeb 02, 2010
Leeenux Linux is a netbook distribution for the EeePC 701G, and is now available as version 2.0, complete with many new applications.more »
Mobile Firefox "Fennec" Becomes 1.0Feb 01, 2010
After one and half years in development, the Mozilla project is now releasing its first stable version of its mobile Firefox, code-named Fennec. The target platform is initially Maemo.more »
FSF Petitions Against iPad Use of DRMJan 29, 2010
The iPad presented in San Francisco by Apple chief Steve Jobs has enraged the Free Software Foundation (FSF). It seems Apple is increasingly compromising user freedom by imposing Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) on the tablet.more »
Ubuntu 10.04 Alpha 2 Removes HALJan 15, 2010
The development of Ubuntu 10.04 is taking another turn. Lucid Lynx now has a second alpha version that gets rid of HAL.more »
Issue 170/2015
Buy this issue as a PDF
TOR Network Isn't So Anonymous
A new study says it is possible to unmask 81% of TOR users.
.NET Goes Open Source
Redmond joins the revolution by turning the .NET Core Runtime into a GitHub project.
Drupal Advisory Unleashes a Torrent of Attacks
Users only had 7 hours to update before the intrusions started.
HTML5 Gets Promoted to a Standard
It's official: The new web arrives
Linus Addresses Criticism for Harsh Language
Kernel king admits his tone has alienated volunteers, but says the demands of the process require directness.
New SSL Attack Lets a Malicious Listener Steal Session Cookies
New flaw in an old encryption scheme leaves the experts scrambling to disable SSL 3
Leading Open Source Coder Rants about Rants
Lennart Poettering wants to change the way Linux developers talk to each other.
HP Splits into Two Companies
Enterprise giant frees itself from ink and home PCs (and visa versa).
Mozilla Labs Shuts Down
Mozilla's product think tank sinks silently into history.
Internet Giants Launch Collaboration to Improve Open Source
TODO group will focus on open source tools in large-scale environments.


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GeForce GTX 480 4-way SLI review -
Power consumption and Noise levels
Power consumption and Noise levels
It's time to slowly wrap up things. But not before we had a little chat about power consumption. Now we are not spending much scientific attention to this page. We all know that the GeForce GTX 480 is not exactly the most efficient GPU on the block with its 250W TDP. Four of these when peaking can already consume a full KW of energy. Add another 130 W for the processor another 40 for the chipset and then some more for peripherals and 1200W really is something you need at minimum.
This was the reason why we split up the system over two power supplies. During the test runs we had a Watt meter (measures at socket side) measure how much power the system has drawn.
Example: 1188W with the system non-overclocked -- that's already a lot.
|3DMark Vantage
|Watt IDLE
|Watt LOAD
|Dba MAX
|CPU 3300 MHz / 4 GPU @ def
|CPU 4628 MHz / 4 GPU @ def
|CPU 4628 MHz / 4 GPU @ OC
As you can observe in the chart above, at maximum we did draw 1529 Watt from the power socket with everything overclocked and CPU and four GPUs voltage tweaked. Granted we did use two very high energy efficient power supplies rated 88~90%, this actually helps saving us a little on power consumption. Ridiculous numbers really. But meeeh, for a temporary experiment like shown today, who cares right ?
The heat disposed by the GTX 480 cards once overclocked is amazing, within a couple of minutes the room temperature started to get higher. With fan RPm maxed out and a little additional cooling you will remain at roughly 80 Degrees C and just above 90 Degrees C once voltage tweaked. It's a heck of a lot of noise though.
Just for the sake of it, I also added some DBa reading. measured at 75 CM away from the setup. At 62 DBa it's suffice to say that this setup is a lot. A normal PC emits roughly 40~42 DBa measured at 75cm distance. A very loud PC is 46~48 DBa, and yes .. with the fan RPM maxed out we reached 62 DBa.
GALAX is on it again, this time we review their GeForce GTX 970 EXOC edition as in Extreme Overclocked. The product comes factory overclocked with a boost clock of 1317 MHz (!). The product has a cust...
GALAX GeForce GTX 980 SOC review
We review the GALAX GeForce GTX SOC edition. SOC is short for Super overclocked, and that certainly is the case. Armed with sturdy looks, based on a custom PCB and a third party cooler the guys behind...
Palit GeForce GTX 980 Super Jetstream review
We review one of the fastest GeForce GTX 980 cards from Palit, the Super Jetstream edition. It comes all customized, has an improved Jetstream series cooler and runs factory tweaked at clock frequenci...
ASUS GeForce GTX 980 Strix review
Hot on the heels of the ASUS GTX 970 Strix review, we test the STRIX-GTX980-DC2OC-4GD5 - ASUS GeForce GTX 980 Strix. Armed with that h00t of a cooler, a custom PCB, quality components and a factory overclock this product is...


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Dining will observe special hours Nov. 24-30. Have a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving!
2014-15 Academic Year Hours
Meal plan reminders
You may use one meal from your plan per meal time period:
Breakfast, 6:45 a.m. to 10:29 a.m.
Lunch, 10:30 a.m. to 4:29 p.m.
Dinner, 4:30 p.m. to midnight
If your meal total exceeds the equivalency for that meal time period, you are welcome to pay the balance with Dining Plus, cash, or credit card.
Breakfast, $4.65
Lunch, $8.20
Dinner, $8.20
Copyright © 2014 Ball State University 2000 W. University Ave. Muncie, IN 47306800-382-8540 and 765-289-1241


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HP Slate To Be Reborn As WebOS Tablet HP Hurricane?
The HP Slate is apparently dead in the water, thanks to difficulties with Windows 7 as a tablet OS. Sources said that Microsoft's OS was simply too power hungry for a device that's supposed to compete with the iPad, whose custom A4 processor gives the ultraportable lots of battery life.
But new rumors are circulating that HP's not done with the tablet market just yet. There's rumblings that the tablet project is being reconfigured, and that the new device is called the HP Hurricane and that it runs on Palm's WebOS. This would make a lot of sense, considering that HP just bought Palm and their mobile operating system is certainly less processor intensive than Windows 7. The upcoming tablet is expected within Q3 of this year, but we'll just to wait for more details.
[via Slashdot]
Chris Gullo
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