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Intervals can vary in their size, their span. Time and space intervals seem especially varied in their values, and those values often seem more arbitrary than objective. A rather wise old gentleman once observed that the calendar time intervals of a year (or multiples thereof) tend to pass ever more rapidly as we grow older. In my youth at the time, I paid little attention to his observation. However age has allowed me to recognize the accuracy of that observation. It is not that years grow any shorted as we age. Their temporal constitution of days, weeks and months remains quite exact. Our personal rate of motion merely slows with age. We move more slowly, thus time seems to move more rapidly.

Projects, planned or unplanned, tend to present definite time spans from initiation to completion. Life spans, human or otherwise, tend to be quite specific to individual species, although significant variation for and by individuals within a species can be most fluid. Humans tend to live about 70 years, or about 3 generations as measured in hereditary spans. Some may enter their 80’s, 90’s or even 100’s, but seven decades seems to be the maximum quota of years that most of us can endure.

Temporal counts for vocations can be quite mysterious and perhaps misplaced. Since vocation (e.g. Marriage, Holy Orders, Personal Oblation) originates from God and is a continuing function of His presence, mere human counts seem artificial. Yet we have a certain attraction for temporal counts, if for no other reason but to mark perseverance (or perhaps outright stubbornness) on our part.

The more mysterious an interval, the less essential it seems to be to the entity it purports of measure. If the universe is a billion light years in spatial size (and a light year is 300,000 km/second multiplied by the number of seconds in a year, then multiplied by a billion) the resulting kilometric interval is so large that one’s mind tends to dismiss it. If the age of this same universe is 4.5 billion years, that number also is of precious little meaning especially since time measurements seem to be affected my material densities (e.g. “black holes”) and velocities of entities in motion.

As I mark 25 years as presbyter in Holy Orders my thoughts are of perseverance (or stubbornness) in this Gift which Almighty God has bestowed. A mere quarter of a century, it has been the most RAPID quarter century of my life. Gratitude to God and to all of you who have accompanied me during all or part of this quarter century is the personal stance most apparent at this time. Many of you were physically present on 8 September, 1984 for that ordination. Many, including my beloved Dad and Mom, have gone to eternity. The rest of us will arrive soon enough. I pray that we persevere in navigating this life with, through and in Jesus Christ.

With grateful blessings in Almighty God

Pe. Ed Benya, S.J.

PAROQUIA – SANTO ROSÁRIO

Residência Nssa. Sra. de Fátima 27 February, 2009 XXXIX:1
Trav. Carlos Portes, 171
62.900-000 Russas, Ceará e-mail: [email protected]
BRASIL

Dear Benefactors, Friends and Family:

Multiples tend to draw our attention. They attract or repel our instincts but seldom leave us indifferent. Always based on numbers, multiples are not as cold as hard numbers which tend to be invariables that are associated more with endless statistics. Multiples, in fact, are associated with and represent everything that straight numbers represent (even more), BUT their form and presence is usually rather smooth and even artistic at times. If I discover that I am in debt for 1 million dollars (US$1,000,000) that number is staggering even frightening. However if I express the same dept as a multiple of ten; 1×102, that figure appears less threatening. It gives a qualitative tone to an otherwise quantitative question ($1,000,000”) whose value is too obvious and may even be an outright shocking.

Multiples lend a sense of security to certain questions in an insecure world. If millions of people are starving somewhere, the challenge of facing that problem seems impossible. However if I speak of the “many” starving in the world, the sheer scope of the problem seems more manageable. Where hard numbers are invariable facts, multiples have a approachable, perhaps controllable, aura surrounding them. If one declares that he is 64 years of age, that age seems inescapable. Yet if I say that I have 26 or 43 or 82 years of age, this value seems negotiable.

We tend to procure and prefer things in multiples; wealth, talent success, autonomy, respect. When I was a child the term “millionaire” denoted monetary wealth at one or more multiples of a million dollars. It connoted autonomy and even success to some degree. It belied the responsibility that came with such wealth. Having (and trying to live) a vow of Poverty has paradoxically clarified (somewhat) such responsibility.

Multiples lend themselves well to metaphysical, that is, to transcendental spiritual topics. If one is highly blessed by Almighty God, the blessings received can be expressed as a plethora or abundance. One can try counting those blessings but exact numbers tend to fail us, thus we have to be content with the “multiplicity” of blessings received. We feel a certain justified security in this.

One area of spirituality however that lends itself to temptation (in multiples) is the presence of God. Ancient peoples usually worshipped a multiplicity of gods. These gods were associated with various needs, tasks, pleasures or sufferings. Slowly humanity came to recognize One True Divinity, but the temptation to follow multiple gods remains and modern society is not immune. We seem in fact, more prone to polytheism (multiple gods) than our ancestors were. ALMIGHTY GOD REJECTS THIS! He is revealed and manifest in multiple ways, BUT still one TRUE GOD. We celebrate the gem of that manifestation (done once for all humanity for all ages) in SALVATION; the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ (God With Us) in a special way during the Lenten-Easter Season. Thus I pray God grant you and personally wish you

A Happy and Blessed Pascal Season of 2009!

Yours faithfully in the Risen Jesus Christ

Pe. Ed Benya, S.J.