Young adults get faith primer
At a parish near you: Theology on Tap opens 23rd season
By Kerry Lester
Contributor
There are the stories of James and the Giant Peach. And Jack and the Beanstalk. But there’s also the tale of John and the Garbage Can.
That John would be Father John Cusick, archdiocesan director of Young Adult Ministry and a resident at Old St. Patrick’s Church, who jump-started Theology on Tap’s 2004 season with his talk “Blessed are you, do you believe that?” July 11 at St. Emily Parish, Mount Prospect.
At the beginning, Cusick asked the audience: if you had three minutes to tell someone what life is all about, what would you say?
As he recalled his days as a 4-foot-7-inch, 78-pound high-school runt, Cusick offered the group of about 80 young adults a new perspective on Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 5:1-16).
When in high school, Cusick said, his small size gave him a tremendous sense of insecurity. Either ignored or teased by the popular jocks, he said he frequently ended up getting shoved into lockers or into the hallway trash bins. “I was like a Beanie Baby they could throw around,” he said. “And all I wanted to do was be one of the boys.” Hence, he said, his reference to John and the Garbage Can.
Cusick explained that when Jesus looked at the crowd gathered on the mountain, he “looked deeply into them and really saw them. He saw everone—not just the apostles and leaders of the people, but women and men, the haves and the have-nots, the rich and the poor, young and old.”
Cusick told the gathering that “It’s not (considered) a blessing to be meek or poor in spirit. All of us have had our hearts broken in one way or another—by bullies, relationships or deaths. When the Lord Jesus looked at the crowd, he saw their broken hearts and beyond. He looked deeply into them and said “Blessed are you, you are poor in spirit.”
Cusick went further, discussing what he called the strategic significance of the Sermon on the Mount, and the genius of Jesus.
“The similes of being the salt of the earth and the light of the world didn’t just come out of thin air,” he said. “We have to look at the strategy of how they work.”
Light, he said, comes from within, and affects anything that is in its way. “Too many things from the outside world affect the blessedness we should feel,” said Cusick.
Italicizing some parts of the scripture and underlining some others, he connected faith with both positive and negative human experiences for the group.
Cusick left his audience with a simple strategy for young adult Catholics: hang in there, understand that much of life is going to be tough. “Keep fighting the good fight,” he said.
Theology on Tap is an annual program of conversations with Catholic young adults held at parishes all over the Archdiocese of Chicago. Sessions are open to all young adults between the ages of 20-40, those with early faith connections or those just beginning to explore the role of God in their lives. Other groups are meeting parishes in the Rockford and Joliet diocese. Tap sessions run through Aug. 8 and will close with a picnic at Cardinal George’s residence.
For a schedule of speakers and Theology-on-Tap sites, visit www.yamchicago.org or call (312) 466-9473.
Also for young adult Catholics, St. Alphonsus Parish, 1429 W. Wellington Ave., Chicago is hosting “Views from the Veranda,” a four-week summer speaker series. Remaining talks will be: July 21 with Bishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller and Aug. 15 with Cardinal George. Each evening begins at 7 p.m. with a meal of sandwiches and drinks, with the discussions beginning at 7:30 p.m. For information, call (773) 525-0709, or e-mail www.st.alphonsuschgo.org.
