{"id":14859,"date":"2012-05-22T09:31:15","date_gmt":"2012-05-22T15:31:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/?p=14859"},"modified":"2012-05-22T15:51:28","modified_gmt":"2012-05-22T21:51:28","slug":"the-time-of-inner-renewal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/index.php\/2012\/05\/22\/the-time-of-inner-renewal\/","title":{"rendered":"The Time of Inner Renewal"},"content":{"rendered":"

My morning prayer includes spending time with some brief pieces of wisdom available through the internet. First on my list: Jean Vanier, the founder of L’Arche Community<\/a>, and certainly one of the holiest and most wisdom-filled disciples of our day. Here is his \u201cDaily Thought\u201d for today, Tuesday, May 22, 2012:<\/p>\n

A Time for Inner Renewal<\/p>\n

The time when a community feels it may die is not the time to change externals, like the rules or identifiers. If it does this, there is nothing left to hold people together. This is the time for inner renewal, for a renewed trust in personal relationships; it is a time to stay close to the poor and those in distress. When the inner life is strong and when love is truly the guiding spirit, then we can reduce the externals but not before.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I usually find in Vanier’s wisdom something that speaks to my own spirituality or that of my faith community, the Parish of the Resurrection. What struck me today is the insight it offers for my larger community of faith: the Roman Catholic Church.<\/p>\n

I am pondering how the church is doing as we adapt to the third edition of the Roman Missal. The recent article in America magazine, \u201cGrading the Missal,\u201d presents observations from four contributors who are knowledgeable about liturgy. They describe experiences which include:<\/p>\n