Suchergebnisse

For the Arab Gulf kingdoms, the Horn of Africa is a strategic perimeter. They want to minimize political threats — some are hostile to Islamists, all want to suppress democracy movements. Anticipating a post-carbon and food insecure world, the Gulf States want to possess rich farmlands. Each has its own vision of African client states that will do their bidding. This is a recipe for proxy wars, state fragmentation and autocracy in northeast Africa.For the Horn of Africa, today's crises are existential. War, dictatorship and famine are causing state collapse. The African Union is compromised, its peace and security system unravelling. The United Nations is retreating from peacemaking, increasingly reduced to a bare-bones humanitarian provider.The dangers were illuminated by the surprise New Year's Day deal between Abiy Ahmed, prime minister of Ethiopia, and Muse Bihi, president of the self-declared Republic of Somaliland, a breakaway region of northwest Somalia. Ethiopia has been renowned for careful diplomacy, including championing the inviolability of existing boundaries. After fighting wars with Somalia in the 1960s and '70s, Ethiopia had learned to be circumspect and consultative in its dealings with Mogadishu.Last week, Ethiopia upended that tradition. It promised to recognize Somaliland as an independent sovereign state, in return for Somaliland leasing it a 12-mile stretch of land, including a seaport, that will allow Ethiopia to establish a naval base. This in turn unleashed strong words from Somalia — which had not been informed ahead of time. The AU called for Ethiopia to treat Somalia with respect. Fears of new conflicts were stirred. Unsaid in public is that the UAE is widely suspected to be the patron of the deal.For the United States, crises in the Horn of Africa are a sidebar to the ongoing Israel-Gaza war and the confrontation with Iran. Gunboat diplomacy in the Red Sea — the warships deployed under Operation Prosperity Guardian to protect shipping from attacks from the Houthis in Yemen — is the priority.The narrow strip of water carries 12 percent of world seaborne trade. For sailors, the Red Sea is "a sea on the way to somewhere else," its shores at best an inconvenience, at worst a security threat.There's a global consensus on keeping the shipping lanes open. If the Red Sea shuts down — as happened following the 1967 Arab-Israeli war— the knock-on effects on trade between Europe and Asia would be economically severe. The EU-run Operation Atalanta runs an anti-piracy flotilla involving warships from 13 European nations, (including the UK, which provided the flagship until Brexit), working with ships from Ukraine, India, Korea and Colombia.After a few years the flotilla commanders concluded that the solution to piracy lay onshore, in the form of diplomacy to resolve Somalia's conflicts and economic assistance to provide livelihoods to impoverished fishermen. That was a step in the right direction.Saudi Arabia chairs a Red Sea Forum that includes eight littoral states (all except Israel), to tackle piracy, smuggling and marine resources — not political issues.Six years ago, Thabo Mbeki, the former president of South Africa who chairs the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel for the Horn of Africa, introduced the term "Red Sea Arena." The idea was to create a diplomatic forum that would include not just the littoral states, but all the other countries with vital interests in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden or with political and commercial links across the narrow strip of water.The former AU Commissioner for Peace and Security, Ramtane Lamamra explained: "The Red Sea has historically been a bridge rather than a divide, with the peoples on the two shores sharing culture, trade, and social relations." Egypt has millennia-old interests in the Nile Valley and both shores of the Red Sea. Ethiopia has a vital interest in access to the sea. The UAE, Qatar, Oman, and Turkey all have historic or current interests.Regional and global power struggles are played out in the Red Sea Arena. Seven nations including the U.S., China, Turkey and the UAE have naval bases there. Others, including Iran and Russia, have warships in the vicinity and are actively seeking bases. The port of Eilat in the Gulf of Aqaba is Israel's strategic back door, as the Houthi attacks on shipping have dramatically shown.The plan for a standing conference of Red Sea Arena states built on proposals contained in the World Peace Foundation report to the AU, "African Politics, African Peace" — for which Mbeki and veteran UN diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi co-authored the preface. The idea was that Middle Eastern states should sign on to the principles of the AU's peace and security architecture and establish joint mechanisms for cooperation.The AU failed to act on these proposals. Nor were they raised at the UN Security Council.Instead, Arabian Gulf states are increasingly assertive in the Horn, and they're bringing an aggressive form of transactional politics, including funding proxies to fight wars. The U.S. — whose security umbrella sheltered the Red Sea for decades — seems uninterested.Saudi Arabia has long seen the African shore of the Red Sea as part of its security perimeter. Qatar and Turkey sought influence in Sudan and Somalia, especially among the Islamists. Israel has discreetly sought a determining role in the region.But the key actor is the UAE. A small, rich state, it uses proxies to project power, and supports separatists in disregard of international norms. Abu Dhabi's clients include key players in Libya and Chad, and it is positioning itself as kingmaker in the Horn. The UAE supports and arms Ethiopia. It already controls many ports in the region — including, it is suspected, the proposed Ethiopian port and naval base in the land leased from Somaliland. But Abu Dhabi has yet to clarify its strategic goals for the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa.The UAE has long had a free pass in Washington. Only recently has the U.S. begun to criticize Abu Dhabi's adventurism in Sudan, calling out its arming of the murderous Rapid Support Forces there.The last decade has been a rollercoaster of hope and horror for the peoples of the Red Sea Arena. Popular uprisings in Yemen, Ethiopia and Sudan all descended into lethal brews of autocracy, war, atrocity, and famine, with local conflicts escalating into proxy wars. Guided by the short-term imperative of staying in power — and by the ambitions of cash-rich foreign sponsors — today's leaders are too often short-sighted and transactional.Under UN and AU guidance, a raft of peace agreements was crafted to serve as the threshold for democracy. Today a peace pact, such as the threadbare "Permanent Cessation of Hostilities" that ended Ethiopia's war in Tigray, may be no more than a truce. The principle of the primacy of politics — that served Africa's peace agenda well — has come to mean short-term transactionalism rather than a commitment to democracy, good governance, and inclusivity.A key African norm was "sovereignty as responsibility," developed by the Sudanese/South Sudanese lawyer and diplomat Francis Deng. Today we have its antithesis, decried as "neo-sovereigntism" by the Cameroonian philosopher Achille Mbembe.Today's regression means that Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki is being rehabilitated. For 30 years, Isaias has ruled an iron fist, with no constitution let alone political parties or an open media, hoping that the tide of global liberalism would recede. He looks to be proven correct.Sudanese General Mohamed Hamdan Dagolo, known as "Hemedti," commander of the Rapid Support Forces, the insurgent paramilitaries notorious for their human rights abuses, is touring Africa in a Royal Jet airplane (an Emirati airline). He arrived in Addis Ababa last week where he met Prime Minister Abiy. Extending protocol to Emirati-backed disrupters is the new normal in the region.To the extent that it functions at all, the AU is becoming the face of illiberal multilateralism, veering away from its founding principles. The UN's practice of deferring to its regional partners leaves it eviscerated. The InterGovernmental Authority on Development — the eight-member northeast African bloc — is now deeply divided and approaching paralysis.With the Horn of Africa and Yemen slipping far down the priority list in Western foreign ministries, America and Europe are sending mid-ranking diplomats into the snake pit, woefully under-armed for the perils they encounter. Too easily intimidated by swaggering local despots, perhaps swayed by zombie "Pan Africanist" slogans that challenge their right to talk about human rights, they have left their countries irrelevant in the face of ruthless Gulf power-broking.Recent developments could not have been anticipated in detail. But American diplomats saw the broader challenge some years ago. In 2020, a bipartisan "senior study group" on the Red Sea convened by the United States Institute of Peace, prioritized a broad diplomatic strategy for the Red Sea Arena. The USIP report warned that conflicts in the region could threaten U.S. national security and proposed a high-level envoy with a broad mandate.The Biden administration quickly appointed a special envoy for the Horn of Africa, but the Africa Bureau at the State Department soon downgraded the position. The cost of this strategic neglect is becoming clear today.There's still a chance for a diplomatic forum that promotes collective security. Washington has lost its best opportunities to take a lead — any U.S. initiative today will arouse deep suspicions among others. Middle Eastern powers don't, as a rule, propose collective action, and the Gulf states are divided. The Europeans will follow, not lead.The onus of leadership then falls on Africa and on the United Nations. Acting together, they can create a consensus that brings on board America, Europe, China, and Russia in a forum framed by the agenda of a stable and cooperative Red Sea Arena.

It has been known for several decades that a constantly growing asymmetry of the military power between the US and their NATO allies complicates transatlantic security relations. If allies cannot communicate in military terms, the risk of political split appears. Therefore one of the main priorities is the necessity to ensure that the allies are able to make their substantial military contribution. Lithuania also contributes to it by taking part in missions together with its allies. Missions are of military (using weapons, executing military operations and performing police functions) and civil character (providing help in case of natural disasters, sending humanitarian aid to voluntary soldiers). This paper focuses mainly on military missions. The subject of the paper: The participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions. The relevance of the topic: More and more often articles appear in Lithuania and abroad criticising the participation of the Western countries in peace missions, including Afghanistan; casualties, moral validity of these missions and heavy expenses are questioned; a more and more prevailing idea of Neorealism is mentioned. The goals of the paper: • To introduce the main trends of the theories of international relations; • To analyse the participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions with reference to the theories; • To introduce a geopolitical context of the participation of Lithuania in foreign missions; • To review Lithuanian foreign military missions; • To discuss the perspectives of the participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions. The method of work: The work is carried out using a descriptive analytical method, a comparative method and the analysis of scientific literature. The aim of the paper: This papers aims to review the participation of Lithuania in peace missions, to discuss its political and military aspects, paying the greatest attention to theoretical aspects. Among many existing theories of international relations, Neorealism and Constructivism are the most appropriate ones to explain the participation of Lithuania in international missions. Although the main conceptions of those theories are contradictory, in Lithuania's case they complement one another. Supporting the power of the US, Lithuania operates in the field of Neorealism theory as well as a common system of values in line with Western countries (especially the US) operates in the field of Constructivism and historic experience with Russia. Since the international system is anarchic, the dominant countries are those having the greatest power. Therefore Lithuania's support of the superpower is an entirely logical behaviour. Moreover, Lithuania is linked with the US by the common identity, which was formed by the US consistent denial of Lithuania's occupation in 1940 and 1944, supporting the restoration of independence and providing help for Lithuanian emigrants. Therefore in Lithuania's case both theories should be applied in analysing the support for the US and NATO and the participation in their foreign military missions. The examination of Lithuania's foreign military missions should not be restricted to the theories of international relations. The geopolitical context, which has a great influence on the country's behaviour, should be taken into consideration as well. The historical context of relations is connected with the current behaviour and the attitude towards such countries as Russia and it also has influence on choosing allies and the support to the policy they execute, including the military one. Attention should also be paid to the reliability of the potential allies and the reality of threats, for instance, whether a real conflict with Russia is possible. Russia should be the starting point since it is the main factor which influences the choice and behaviour of Lithuania. It is impossible to analyse Lithuania's international policy and its participation in missions without taking into consideration Russia, which is the greatest and most powerful neighbour. This country owns some of the biggest natural resources and one of the most powerful armies with the arsenal of almost 4000 nuclear heads. Therefore its influence on Lithuania cannot be neglected. Russian threat is not unreal. Its current behaviour might raise serious concerns. Russian military doctrine, issued in 2000, claims that the possibility of a military conflict with any country or a bloc of countries is very slight and no country is considered as its potential enemy. The main current threats to Russian security and its territorial integrity are international terrorism, the spread of weapons of mass destruction and drug smuggling. Other threats are "territorial claims on Russian Federation" and "the expansion of military blocs and alliances which can endanger the security of Russian Federation". According to the military doctrine, Russia does not intend to fight with any country or a bloc of countries. However, it prepares for defence. At the press conference held at the end of January, Russian president Vladimir Putin once again noted that Russia has tested a new complex of ballistic missiles which is not owned by any other country. The warheads of those missiles can outfight any missile defence systems. The ballistic missiles have maneuvering heads. This can already be treated as the nuclear-weapon threat. Unconditional support of the US can be observed not only during the military missions, but also during military programs, such as the missile defence system and its dislocation in Europe. Lithuanian foreign policy has been traditionally oriented towards transatlantic relations and the consolidation of strategic partnership with the US. There is no doubt that such an attitude has been influenced by the US itself because currently it is the only power in the geopolitical arena which can influence Russia in the Baltic Sea region. The amplification of the US influence in the region, the neutralisation of new threats and a greater influence of Lithuania in foreign policy are the main factors that induce Lithuania to support Euro-Atlantism. Also, Lithuanian choice is influenced by the unwillingness to become the object of "exchange". It would become possible if the spheres of influence between Russia and the US or between the EU and Russia changed. It would be much more possible if the Lithuanian priority were Euro-continental security system. Inability to transform the EU and keep balance with Russia may lead Germany and France to the Russian zone of influence. It would be a threat to the independence of Lithuania. Because of these reasons Lithuania intends to limit its participation in ESDP. Officially it is stated as the intention to maintain transatlantic relations. However, it is not the only reason. ESDP is a step towards the federal model of the European Union which would limit the autonomy and decision-making of small countries. Lithuania is unwilling to become the province of the European Union, which, contrary to the NATO, is unable to provide security. Moreover, the participation in ESDP would require huge financial resources, which are allocated to NATO for the same purpose and therefore it is unreasonable to duplicate funds. There is also a problem of dual loyalty. Since the great EU countries and the US often come into conflict, it would become a problem to choose between NATO (the US) and ESDP (Germany, France). The participation of the US in the European defence system enables Lithuania to control political relations with other great countries – Germany and Russia. One more reason why Lithuania tends to support the US is that Germany and France neglect the concerns of small countries for the sake of their relations with Russia. Such behaviour is considered unreliable and therefore the priority is given to the US, since only trustworthy partners can remain in the security sphere. Before the Vilnius Ten supported the US in attacking Iraq, there was an opinion that after becoming a member of the European Union, Lithuania as well as other post-socialist countries would give Europe a sense of freedom. This idea became very relevant during the G. W. Bush visit to Vilnius when he supported and guaranteed security to post-soviet states intending to become the members of NATO, saying "You are needed in NATO". The Vilnius Ten soon proved this necessity but the opinion of the countries which assigned billions for their integration into the European Union and were against the war in Iraq was neglected. Soon after the war in Iraq, the US Congress approved the list of new candidates for NATO. G. W. Bush noted in his speech that those members proved their necessity not only by words but also by their actions. However, until the invasion of Iraq, the tension between the US, its ally Great Britain and France, Germany and Russia was so strong that, according to the US Secretary of Defence D. Rumsfeld, the Vilnius Ten position separated Europe into two parts - the Old and the New one. The reproach expressed by France that the Vilnius Ten lost a good opportunity to remain silent and German reaction towards the participation of Polish soldiers in a post-Hussein Iraq show that either France and Germany do not understand Central Europe or they simply seek for autocracy in the continental foreign policy and therefore a different position of "New Europe" countries is unhandy for them. Currently the dislocation of the US missile defence system is one of the leading issues in international meeting agenda. This issue is extremely important for Lithuania because its two strategic partners - the US and neighbouring Poland – are involved in it. Lithuania's position towards the missile defence system was, and still is, rather complicated. On the one hand, Lithuania must support its strategic allies and partners. On the other hand, it would worsen relations with Russia. A new defence project, National Missile Defence

It has been known for several decades that a constantly growing asymmetry of the military power between the US and their NATO allies complicates transatlantic security relations. If allies cannot communicate in military terms, the risk of political split appears. Therefore one of the main priorities is the necessity to ensure that the allies are able to make their substantial military contribution. Lithuania also contributes to it by taking part in missions together with its allies. Missions are of military (using weapons, executing military operations and performing police functions) and civil character (providing help in case of natural disasters, sending humanitarian aid to voluntary soldiers). This paper focuses mainly on military missions. The subject of the paper: The participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions. The relevance of the topic: More and more often articles appear in Lithuania and abroad criticising the participation of the Western countries in peace missions, including Afghanistan; casualties, moral validity of these missions and heavy expenses are questioned; a more and more prevailing idea of Neorealism is mentioned. The goals of the paper: • To introduce the main trends of the theories of international relations; • To analyse the participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions with reference to the theories; • To introduce a geopolitical context of the participation of Lithuania in foreign missions; • To review Lithuanian foreign military missions; • To discuss the perspectives of the participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions. The method of work: The work is carried out using a descriptive analytical method, a comparative method and the analysis of scientific literature. The aim of the paper: This papers aims to review the participation of Lithuania in peace missions, to discuss its political and military aspects, paying the greatest attention to theoretical aspects. Among many existing theories of international relations, Neorealism and Constructivism are the most appropriate ones to explain the participation of Lithuania in international missions. Although the main conceptions of those theories are contradictory, in Lithuania's case they complement one another. Supporting the power of the US, Lithuania operates in the field of Neorealism theory as well as a common system of values in line with Western countries (especially the US) operates in the field of Constructivism and historic experience with Russia. Since the international system is anarchic, the dominant countries are those having the greatest power. Therefore Lithuania's support of the superpower is an entirely logical behaviour. Moreover, Lithuania is linked with the US by the common identity, which was formed by the US consistent denial of Lithuania's occupation in 1940 and 1944, supporting the restoration of independence and providing help for Lithuanian emigrants. Therefore in Lithuania's case both theories should be applied in analysing the support for the US and NATO and the participation in their foreign military missions. The examination of Lithuania's foreign military missions should not be restricted to the theories of international relations. The geopolitical context, which has a great influence on the country's behaviour, should be taken into consideration as well. The historical context of relations is connected with the current behaviour and the attitude towards such countries as Russia and it also has influence on choosing allies and the support to the policy they execute, including the military one. Attention should also be paid to the reliability of the potential allies and the reality of threats, for instance, whether a real conflict with Russia is possible. Russia should be the starting point since it is the main factor which influences the choice and behaviour of Lithuania. It is impossible to analyse Lithuania's international policy and its participation in missions without taking into consideration Russia, which is the greatest and most powerful neighbour. This country owns some of the biggest natural resources and one of the most powerful armies with the arsenal of almost 4000 nuclear heads. Therefore its influence on Lithuania cannot be neglected. Russian threat is not unreal. Its current behaviour might raise serious concerns. Russian military doctrine, issued in 2000, claims that the possibility of a military conflict with any country or a bloc of countries is very slight and no country is considered as its potential enemy. The main current threats to Russian security and its territorial integrity are international terrorism, the spread of weapons of mass destruction and drug smuggling. Other threats are "territorial claims on Russian Federation" and "the expansion of military blocs and alliances which can endanger the security of Russian Federation". According to the military doctrine, Russia does not intend to fight with any country or a bloc of countries. However, it prepares for defence. At the press conference held at the end of January, Russian president Vladimir Putin once again noted that Russia has tested a new complex of ballistic missiles which is not owned by any other country. The warheads of those missiles can outfight any missile defence systems. The ballistic missiles have maneuvering heads. This can already be treated as the nuclear-weapon threat. Unconditional support of the US can be observed not only during the military missions, but also during military programs, such as the missile defence system and its dislocation in Europe. Lithuanian foreign policy has been traditionally oriented towards transatlantic relations and the consolidation of strategic partnership with the US. There is no doubt that such an attitude has been influenced by the US itself because currently it is the only power in the geopolitical arena which can influence Russia in the Baltic Sea region. The amplification of the US influence in the region, the neutralisation of new threats and a greater influence of Lithuania in foreign policy are the main factors that induce Lithuania to support Euro-Atlantism. Also, Lithuanian choice is influenced by the unwillingness to become the object of "exchange". It would become possible if the spheres of influence between Russia and the US or between the EU and Russia changed. It would be much more possible if the Lithuanian priority were Euro-continental security system. Inability to transform the EU and keep balance with Russia may lead Germany and France to the Russian zone of influence. It would be a threat to the independence of Lithuania. Because of these reasons Lithuania intends to limit its participation in ESDP. Officially it is stated as the intention to maintain transatlantic relations. However, it is not the only reason. ESDP is a step towards the federal model of the European Union which would limit the autonomy and decision-making of small countries. Lithuania is unwilling to become the province of the European Union, which, contrary to the NATO, is unable to provide security. Moreover, the participation in ESDP would require huge financial resources, which are allocated to NATO for the same purpose and therefore it is unreasonable to duplicate funds. There is also a problem of dual loyalty. Since the great EU countries and the US often come into conflict, it would become a problem to choose between NATO (the US) and ESDP (Germany, France). The participation of the US in the European defence system enables Lithuania to control political relations with other great countries – Germany and Russia. One more reason why Lithuania tends to support the US is that Germany and France neglect the concerns of small countries for the sake of their relations with Russia. Such behaviour is considered unreliable and therefore the priority is given to the US, since only trustworthy partners can remain in the security sphere. Before the Vilnius Ten supported the US in attacking Iraq, there was an opinion that after becoming a member of the European Union, Lithuania as well as other post-socialist countries would give Europe a sense of freedom. This idea became very relevant during the G. W. Bush visit to Vilnius when he supported and guaranteed security to post-soviet states intending to become the members of NATO, saying "You are needed in NATO". The Vilnius Ten soon proved this necessity but the opinion of the countries which assigned billions for their integration into the European Union and were against the war in Iraq was neglected. Soon after the war in Iraq, the US Congress approved the list of new candidates for NATO. G. W. Bush noted in his speech that those members proved their necessity not only by words but also by their actions. However, until the invasion of Iraq, the tension between the US, its ally Great Britain and France, Germany and Russia was so strong that, according to the US Secretary of Defence D. Rumsfeld, the Vilnius Ten position separated Europe into two parts - the Old and the New one. The reproach expressed by France that the Vilnius Ten lost a good opportunity to remain silent and German reaction towards the participation of Polish soldiers in a post-Hussein Iraq show that either France and Germany do not understand Central Europe or they simply seek for autocracy in the continental foreign policy and therefore a different position of "New Europe" countries is unhandy for them. Currently the dislocation of the US missile defence system is one of the leading issues in international meeting agenda. This issue is extremely important for Lithuania because its two strategic partners - the US and neighbouring Poland – are involved in it. Lithuania's position towards the missile defence system was, and still is, rather complicated. On the one hand, Lithuania must support its strategic allies and partners. On the other hand, it would worsen relations with Russia. A new defence project, National Missile Defence

It has been known for several decades that a constantly growing asymmetry of the military power between the US and their NATO allies complicates transatlantic security relations. If allies cannot communicate in military terms, the risk of political split appears. Therefore one of the main priorities is the necessity to ensure that the allies are able to make their substantial military contribution. Lithuania also contributes to it by taking part in missions together with its allies. Missions are of military (using weapons, executing military operations and performing police functions) and civil character (providing help in case of natural disasters, sending humanitarian aid to voluntary soldiers). This paper focuses mainly on military missions. The subject of the paper: The participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions. The relevance of the topic: More and more often articles appear in Lithuania and abroad criticising the participation of the Western countries in peace missions, including Afghanistan; casualties, moral validity of these missions and heavy expenses are questioned; a more and more prevailing idea of Neorealism is mentioned. The goals of the paper: • To introduce the main trends of the theories of international relations; • To analyse the participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions with reference to the theories; • To introduce a geopolitical context of the participation of Lithuania in foreign missions; • To review Lithuanian foreign military missions; • To discuss the perspectives of the participation of Lithuania in foreign military missions. The method of work: The work is carried out using a descriptive analytical method, a comparative method and the analysis of scientific literature. The aim of the paper: This papers aims to review the participation of Lithuania in peace missions, to discuss its political and military aspects, paying the greatest attention to theoretical aspects. Among many existing theories of international relations, Neorealism and Constructivism are the most appropriate ones to explain the participation of Lithuania in international missions. Although the main conceptions of those theories are contradictory, in Lithuania's case they complement one another. Supporting the power of the US, Lithuania operates in the field of Neorealism theory as well as a common system of values in line with Western countries (especially the US) operates in the field of Constructivism and historic experience with Russia. Since the international system is anarchic, the dominant countries are those having the greatest power. Therefore Lithuania's support of the superpower is an entirely logical behaviour. Moreover, Lithuania is linked with the US by the common identity, which was formed by the US consistent denial of Lithuania's occupation in 1940 and 1944, supporting the restoration of independence and providing help for Lithuanian emigrants. Therefore in Lithuania's case both theories should be applied in analysing the support for the US and NATO and the participation in their foreign military missions. The examination of Lithuania's foreign military missions should not be restricted to the theories of international relations. The geopolitical context, which has a great influence on the country's behaviour, should be taken into consideration as well. The historical context of relations is connected with the current behaviour and the attitude towards such countries as Russia and it also has influence on choosing allies and the support to the policy they execute, including the military one. Attention should also be paid to the reliability of the potential allies and the reality of threats, for instance, whether a real conflict with Russia is possible. Russia should be the starting point since it is the main factor which influences the choice and behaviour of Lithuania. It is impossible to analyse Lithuania's international policy and its participation in missions without taking into consideration Russia, which is the greatest and most powerful neighbour. This country owns some of the biggest natural resources and one of the most powerful armies with the arsenal of almost 4000 nuclear heads. Therefore its influence on Lithuania cannot be neglected. Russian threat is not unreal. Its current behaviour might raise serious concerns. Russian military doctrine, issued in 2000, claims that the possibility of a military conflict with any country or a bloc of countries is very slight and no country is considered as its potential enemy. The main current threats to Russian security and its territorial integrity are international terrorism, the spread of weapons of mass destruction and drug smuggling. Other threats are "territorial claims on Russian Federation" and "the expansion of military blocs and alliances which can endanger the security of Russian Federation". According to the military doctrine, Russia does not intend to fight with any country or a bloc of countries. However, it prepares for defence. At the press conference held at the end of January, Russian president Vladimir Putin once again noted that Russia has tested a new complex of ballistic missiles which is not owned by any other country. The warheads of those missiles can outfight any missile defence systems. The ballistic missiles have maneuvering heads. This can already be treated as the nuclear-weapon threat. Unconditional support of the US can be observed not only during the military missions, but also during military programs, such as the missile defence system and its dislocation in Europe. Lithuanian foreign policy has been traditionally oriented towards transatlantic relations and the consolidation of strategic partnership with the US. There is no doubt that such an attitude has been influenced by the US itself because currently it is the only power in the geopolitical arena which can influence Russia in the Baltic Sea region. The amplification of the US influence in the region, the neutralisation of new threats and a greater influence of Lithuania in foreign policy are the main factors that induce Lithuania to support Euro-Atlantism. Also, Lithuanian choice is influenced by the unwillingness to become the object of "exchange". It would become possible if the spheres of influence between Russia and the US or between the EU and Russia changed. It would be much more possible if the Lithuanian priority were Euro-continental security system. Inability to transform the EU and keep balance with Russia may lead Germany and France to the Russian zone of influence. It would be a threat to the independence of Lithuania. Because of these reasons Lithuania intends to limit its participation in ESDP. Officially it is stated as the intention to maintain transatlantic relations. However, it is not the only reason. ESDP is a step towards the federal model of the European Union which would limit the autonomy and decision-making of small countries. Lithuania is unwilling to become the province of the European Union, which, contrary to the NATO, is unable to provide security. Moreover, the participation in ESDP would require huge financial resources, which are allocated to NATO for the same purpose and therefore it is unreasonable to duplicate funds. There is also a problem of dual loyalty. Since the great EU countries and the US often come into conflict, it would become a problem to choose between NATO (the US) and ESDP (Germany, France). The participation of the US in the European defence system enables Lithuania to control political relations with other great countries – Germany and Russia. One more reason why Lithuania tends to support the US is that Germany and France neglect the concerns of small countries for the sake of their relations with Russia. Such behaviour is considered unreliable and therefore the priority is given to the US, since only trustworthy partners can remain in the security sphere. Before the Vilnius Ten supported the US in attacking Iraq, there was an opinion that after becoming a member of the European Union, Lithuania as well as other post-socialist countries would give Europe a sense of freedom. This idea became very relevant during the G. W. Bush visit to Vilnius when he supported and guaranteed security to post-soviet states intending to become the members of NATO, saying "You are needed in NATO". The Vilnius Ten soon proved this necessity but the opinion of the countries which assigned billions for their integration into the European Union and were against the war in Iraq was neglected. Soon after the war in Iraq, the US Congress approved the list of new candidates for NATO. G. W. Bush noted in his speech that those members proved their necessity not only by words but also by their actions. However, until the invasion of Iraq, the tension between the US, its ally Great Britain and France, Germany and Russia was so strong that, according to the US Secretary of Defence D. Rumsfeld, the Vilnius Ten position separated Europe into two parts - the Old and the New one. The reproach expressed by France that the Vilnius Ten lost a good opportunity to remain silent and German reaction towards the participation of Polish soldiers in a post-Hussein Iraq show that either France and Germany do not understand Central Europe or they simply seek for autocracy in the continental foreign policy and therefore a different position of "New Europe" countries is unhandy for them. Currently the dislocation of the US missile defence system is one of the leading issues in international meeting agenda. This issue is extremely important for Lithuania because its two strategic partners - the US and neighbouring Poland – are involved in it. Lithuania's position towards the missile defence system was, and still is, rather complicated. On the one hand, Lithuania must support its strategic allies and partners. On the other hand, it would worsen relations with Russia. A new defence project, National Missile Defence

The paper attempted to assess the domestic and export market performance and prospects of Philippines cocochemicals. The Philippines holds the distinction of having the first oleochemical business venture in the ASEAN region. As of CY 2000, there were 18 manufacturers of cocochemicals registeres with the BOI with an aggregate production capacity of 678,301 mt. However, only 15 plants with a combined production capacity of 504,501 mt. were operating as of this year. Apart from the manufacturers of cocochemicals, there were two palm-based oleochemical manufacturers registered with the BOI in the same year. These were the Zambosur Oil Refinery Corporation and the Vegeoil Philippines, Inc. was operating in the year 2000. The industry is composed of the oleochemical producers of fatty alcohol, fatty acids, methyl esters, and glycerine as the by-product; and the surfactant or oleochemicals derivatives-producers involved in the manufacture of alcohol sulfates, alkyl phosphates, amines, distearates, etc.The oleochemicls derivative-producers source their raw materials from the basic oleochemicals producers. Thirteen Luzon-based plants accounted for 68.39 percent of the total oleochemical production capacity (504,501 mt.) in the year 2000. Two Mindanao-based plants captured 31,49 percent of the aggregate olechemical production capacity. Meanwhile, there was only one operating plant in the Visayas region and this firm represented a miniscule share of only 0.12 percent of the total registered capacity nationwide. The major players in the oleochemical industry in the Philippines are the United Cocochemicals, Inc. which registeres a 23.14 percent share of the total registered capacity nationwide and Pilipinas Kao, Inc. with 21.74 percent share. The United coco chemicals Inc., and Pilipinas Kao, inc. dominated in Luzon and Mindanao, respectively. Primo oleochemicals, inc. ranked third among the operating plants nationwide with 10.26 percent share while Procter and Gamble Phils., ranked fourth with 8.62 percent share. Cocochemicals production in the Philippines exhibited an erratic trend from 1989 to 1995. Since crude coconut oil is the feedstock or raw material in cocochemical production in the Philippines, cocochemical production in the country was influenced to a large extent by the availability of the price o crude coconut oil. However, the supply and price of crude coconut oil in the Philippines are highly unstable due to year-to-year weather variability. cocochemical production was found to be inversely related to the price of crude-coconut oil. Despite the fluctuating trend in cocochemical production, cocochemical production rose markedly from 71,799 mt in 1989 to 116,326 mt in 1995, or by 62 percent. Despite the lack of updated data on cocochemical production from 1996 to 2000, it is expected that the trend in cocochemical production in recent years will follow the trend in the domestic price of crude coconut oil and the quantity of availability crude coconut oil in the same period From 16,955 mt in 1989, domestic consumption of cocochemicals in copra terms increased markedly to 28,817 mt in 1995, or by 67 percent. on the average, domestic consumption of cocochemicals grew an an average of 52.3 percent per year during the period 1989-1995 could be attributed to the implementation of Executive Order (E.O.) 259 in 1989. The said executive order required the substitution of petroleum-based hard alkyl benzene, a non-biodegradable chemical used in the manufacture of soap detergents, with coco-fatty alcohol sulfate, which is biodegradable. An examination of the average annual cocochemical production vis-a-vis consumption during the period 1989-1995 showed that 34.2 percent was consumed by the domestic market. Several industries in the country utilize cocochemicals to manufacture soaps, shampoo, hair rinse, cosmetics, household detergents, textile/industrial detergents, agrichemicals toiletries (e.g. deodorants, bath oils, toothpastes and synthetic perfumes), polyyurethane, tobacco, base material in paints, explosive, propellants and pharmaceuticals. Currently, about 90 percent of domestic cocochemical consumption went to detergents compared to 59 percent in 1989. The increase in the percentage share of the househol detergent industries could be attributed to the passage of E.O. 259. It is expected that the domestic market potential of cocochemicals in great due to its wide application in local manufacturing industries and the growing end-use markets as a result of the country's increasing population and the real income per capital. The country's population increased as an average of 2.4 percent annually from 1990-1999 while the average annual growth rate in real income per capita was 1.01 percent. Real income per capita is a measure of the purchasing power of each individual consumer. Hence, a projected rise in consumers' purchasing power will allow increased purchase beyond the essentials of food, clothing, and shelter into personal care products, soap, detergents, and other products which rely on cocochemicals, Among the end-use markets, major growth areas will be in the soap and detergent market and the personal care product market. The demand for drugs, lubricants, and motor oil which use oleochemicals as inputs is also projected to continue growing. The Philippine oleochemical industry is largely export-oriented. An average of 65.2 percent of the total cocochemical production in the country during the period 1989-1995 was exported. The major cocochemicals exported by the Philippines as fatty alcohol, fatty acid, and methyl ester. other cocochemical exports include refined glycerine, crude glycerine, alkanolamide, and coco acid oil. During the nine-year period under review, the Philippines generally did not perform well in exporting cocochemicals as evidenced by the negative growth rate in the aggregate volume of exports of all types of cocochemicals (-1.2%/year). This could be largely attributed to the significant decline in the volume of methyl ester exports and to a lesser degree to the drop in the volume of exports of alkanolamide, coco acid oil, and crude glycerine. However, despite the negative trend in the aggregate export volume of all types of cocochemicals, overall export receipts generated grew by an average of 10.2 percent per year due to the rising export prices of cocochemicals (9%/year). Among the cocochemical exports of the Philippines, fatty alcohol, fatty acid, and refined glycerine appear to have bright export market prospects as evident from the increase in the number of foreign buyers and the positive trend in export volume, value and price of these cocochemicals. Oleochemical firms forecast that the world demand for natural oleochemicals will grow at 3-4 percent per year due to the world population growth and increased standards of living. The main markets of natural oleochemicals in the world will cntinue to be the United states, Europe and Japan, partly due to the high level of environmental awareness or conciuousness in these countries. For Philippine oleochemicals, the emerging major market is the people's Republic of china. Moreover, the demand for fatty alcohols to be used in the production of surfactants for the laundry and detergent industries in the United States, the People's Republic of China and Taiwan is projected to continue increasing. Considering that the demand for personal care products in Japan, the United States, and Europe is also growing, this, in turn, will increase the demand for fatty amines and derivatives has strong growth, partly due to the growing use in "ultra" liquid detergents and in hair-conditioning products and shampoos. The demand for fatty alcohol is also projected to increase because of the development of new uses of natural fatty alcohols such as the production of alkyl polyglucoside. On the other hand, there are indications that China will show strong growth in fatty acid demand and capacity in the coming applications. Drugs and personal care are by far the most important end-use markets especially in the United States , Western Europe, and Japan, followed by tobacco/triacetin in the United states and Western Europe, Glycerine is also used in manufacturing polyether polyols, alkyd resins, cellophane, explosives and food, among others. Despite the favorable market prospects of oleochemicals in the Philippines is confronted with the following problems which might constrain in the country from capturing a bigger share in the world market for oleochemicals; (1) stagnant coconut production and low coconut productivity; (2) high price of coconut oil and stiff competition with palm kernel oil-based oleochemicals from Malaysia and Indonesia; (3) price competitiveness of ethylene-based synthetic alcohols; (4) new competition coming from rapessed oil and cuphea as a feedstock in olechemicals production due to biotechnological development; (5) negative effects of trade liberaization ; and (6) smuggling of detergents. The future of the local oleochemical industry hinges on the reliability of coconut supply and the price competitiveness of coconut oil vis-a-vis palm kernel oil and ethylene. Unless coconut production is increased and prices of coconut oil are competitive, the country's cocochemical industry will face a bleak future. Given threat facing the local cocochemical industry from palm kernel-based olechemical industries in Malaysia and Indonesia and from synthetic capacities, concerted efforts of both the philippine government and the private sector in undertaking a large-scale replanting program in the country are urgently needed. To be globally conpetitive in the world oleochemical market, the Philippines should not only be cost-efficient in copra/coconut oil production. but in oleochemical manufacturing as well. To expand the domestic and export markets of locally manufactured cocochemicals, researches aimed at developing new uses of cocochemicals must also be accorded priority in terms of budgetary allocation by local research funding institutions.

Tunisia is beset by deepening political and economic challenges. President Kais Saied is transforming the country's parliamentary system into an authoritarian presidential one that has become increasingly repressive. Arrests and convictions of opposition politicians have surged. Saied's aggressive anti-foreigner discourse has fuelled xenophobic sentiment and contributed to a spike in violent attacks against sub-Saharan migrants. Economically, Tunisia is grappling with the fallout of a decade of sluggish growth compounded by a series of economic shocks since 2020. The nation's public debt has soared, with significant debt repayments looming. As the country tries to deal with mounting financial constraints, its inability to attract foreign loans is further clouding its economic future.
Saied now must decide whether to embrace a credit agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) or potentially default on Tunisia's foreign debt. Against this backdrop, the EU and, in particular, Italy have a pivotal role to play. They can either help steer Tunisia toward a more stable economic future or watch it descend into chaos.A worrying political and economic outlook
While the protests that led to the Arab Spring began in Tunisia, the promise of a more democratic and egalitarian society in the North African country did not come to fruition. To be sure, the protests did lead to the overthrow of autocratic Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. Moreover, Tunisia was the sole country to emerge from the regional uprisings with a new democracy. That experiment, however, foundered after Saied – who was elected to the presidency in 2019 – seized a monopoly on power in July 2021. Over the past two years, he has replaced the country's semi-parliamentary system with one lacking checks and balances, consolidating power in his hands. People's fear of repression resurfaced. Since mid-February 2023, arrests and convictions of public figures, especially politicians, have accelerated, undermining a disorganised and divided opposition.[1] Meanwhile, large sections of the population have focused on survival in the face of a worsening economic crisis and have increasingly disengaged from politics.
President Saied has attempted to shore up his dwindling support by pushing nationalist policies. He has jailed members of the opposition in a move that seems aimed at bolstering his standing with swathes of the public who are frustrated with the former political class. Saied has also xenophobically accused sub-Saharan migrants of conspiring to change Tunisia's identity, creating a climate conducive to repeated violent attacks against a vulnerable minority.[2]
Economically, the country is still reeling from a decade of slow growth. After the 2011 uprising, the Tunisian government combatted rising unemployment in part by hiring hundreds of thousands of civil servants. Today, the public sector is the country's largest employer and half of the annual budget is spent on the public payroll.[3] At the same time, public and private investment in infrastructure, research and other growth-enhancing spending items has dropped significantly, leading to a sharp decline in GDP growth.
External factors also chipped away at the Tunisian economy. The Covid-19 pandemic brought a collapse in tourism. Russia's invasion of Ukraine, meanwhile, led to a spike in commodity prices. Surging inflation – particularly in food prices – and shortages of basic goods have eroded Tunisian living standards.
Against this backdrop, Tunisia's public debt has skyrocketed, reaching nearly 90 per cent of GDP in 2022, with substantial financing requirements needed to maintain current levels of spending.[4] Credit rating agencies have downgraded the country as it struggles to balance its budget. The latest downgrade took place in June, when Fitch lowered Tunisia's rating to CCC- (well into junk status territory).[5] As a result, access to international financial markets has been virtually shut off, given the prohibitive interest rates (over 20 per cent) that this sovereign rating would entail.
While the current account deficit has shrunk and foreign currency liquidity has improved over the past few months because of an uptick in tourism revenues and remittances from Tunisians working abroad, servicing its external debt will continue to be extremely challenging. With 2.6 billion US dollars in repayments scheduled for 2024 (including a euro-denominated bond maturing in February, equivalent to 900 million US dollars), it is still unclear how the government will be able to secure sufficient funds to meet these liabilities. The 2024 budget draft anticipates loans from Algeria and Saudi Arabia, as well as other, as yet unknown, external sources.[6]The IMF deal and the role of the EU
Despite these financing difficulties, Tunisia has not yet signed a deal with the IMF. In October 2022, Tunisia and the IMF agreed on the terms of a 48-month, 1.9 billion US dollar loan aimed at stabilising the economy, but Saied rejected the deal, fearing social unrest from cutting subsidies and reducing the public sector wage bill. The IMF board postponed the deal in response. Since then, the president has remained steadfast in his rejection of what he calls "foreign diktats" from the IMF and Western states.
The Europeans – in particular, Italy – have pressed the IMF to reopen negotiations and offered incentives to persuade Saied to accept a revised deal, despite their internal divisions on how to treat Tunisia. They are applying this pressure largely because the economic fallout from a debt default could further increase the number of people – both nationals and migrants from sub-Saharan Africa – leaving Tunisia for Europe. While some EU member states, such as Germany, have taken a more critical stance towards Kais Saied's authoritarian turn,[7] eventually the migration, security and economic interests of Italy and, to an extent, France seem to have prevailed within the EU.[8]
Due to its geographic proximity to Tunisia, Italy would receive a majority of a migration influx, at least initially. For this reason, the Italian government has reiterated its concerns over Tunisia's economic situation on multiple occasions, while refraining from expressing any criticism of the country's increasingly authoritarian turn and violent attacks against sub-Saharan migrants.[9]
The EU has offered incentives to Tunisia to accept a deal with the IMF. After Giorgia Meloni and later EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte visited Tunis in June, they unveiled 900 million euros in macro-financial assistance conditioned on a deal with the IMF and 105 million euros for joint cooperation on border management and anti-smuggling measures to reduce irregular migration to Europe.[10]
Despite the sweeteners the EU offered, the likelihood of a revised deal between Tunisia and the IMF has receded. In August, Saied removed the head of government, Najla Bouden, who had been directly involved in the negotiations with the IMF, and replaced her with a more pliant official, Ahmed Hanachi. Since then, Tunisia hasn't put forward a revised proposal to the IMF.[11] In October, the president reinforced his position by sacking Economy Minister Samir Saied after the latter claimed that a deal with the IMF would send a reassuring message to Tunisia's foreign creditors.[12]
Tunisia has also rejected part of the funds offered by the EU. On 3 October, Saied rejected the first tranche of EU financial help, declaring that this "derisory" amount ran counter to the agreement between the two parties and was just "charity".[13] The repercussions of this refusal on the rest of the EU's financial incentives are unclear.[14]A fork in the road
There are obvious reasons for Tunisia to secure a loan from the IMF. It would send a reassuring signal to Tunisia's foreign partners and creditors. It could encourage Gulf Arab states to provide additional financial support in the form of government loans and deposits with the central bank, and investment in the economy. That would provide the Tunisian government with breathing space. But implementation of reforms required under the loan's terms could set off anti-government protests by the country's main trade union (the UGTT) and, in turn, government-led repression. To forestall such a scenario, the president himself could incite protests and riots by using nationalist rhetoric to scapegoat the IMF for any unpopular measures required by the loan.
A no-agreement scenario, however, would have much more severe and potentially even catastrophic consequences. Without a loan, Tunisia would struggle to find alternative funding sources to meet its scheduled foreign debt repayments. Saied could then resort to a politically motivated strategic default, followed by negotiations to restructure the country's external debt. Some Tunisian economists and supporters of the president are advocating for this approach: they say that declaring bankruptcy on external debt would allow the government to hammer out a restructuring plan with creditors and argue that the impact on the economy would be fairly limited, thanks to Tunisia's capital controls and its banking sector's low exposure to foreign bonds. But this approach carries great risk, as a foreign debt bankruptcy could lead to a run on Tunisian banks and destabilise the financial sector. In addition, the government could end the central bank's independence to print money, fuelling an inflation spiral.
Politically, a default and its socio-economic repercussions could open the door to a dangerous spiral of social and criminal violence. It could also boost irregular outward migration, with Tunisians fleeing the growing political and economic chaos. Widespread protests may erupt against the disastrous social effects of the president's failed economic policy, prompting a violent response targeting businesspeople and political opponents for their alleged links to the West, as well as Western diplomats and the local Jewish community.Balancing economic support and respect for rights
In light of these two possible scenarios, the EU and Italy should continue to encourage the Tunisian authorities to negotiate with the IMF, which remains the least politically and economically destabilising option on the table for Tunisia, if carried out with due care. At a minimum, a revised deal should include reduced expenditure cuts compared with the earlier proposal, particularly in the context of energy subsidies.
At the same time, Italy and the EU should exercise caution and avoid turning their understandable concerns about Tunisia's stability into a blank check for the president. In particular, they should press the authorities to rein in the abuses perpetrated against migrants and stave off potential attacks against opposition politicians, businesspeople and the local Jewish community. Aside from humanitarian considerations, this would serve Italy's overarching goal of curbing migration: after all, attacks against the sub-Saharan minority have spurred outward migration, a trend that would accelerate if government persecution becomes even more severe.
While supporting the deal, however, the EU and Italy should also prepare for the possibility of Tunisia continuing to reject it and declaring a foreign debt default. In such a scenario, the EU should be prepared to offer emergency financing to the country to help with imports of wheat, medicines and fuel. In doing so, the EU should synchronise the positions of member states to prevent conflicting agendas. Schisms have already emerged between countries like Germany and Italy over how to address Tunisia's authoritarian drift. For this reason, acknowledgement of the importance of internal stability could provide a common ground in overcoming divisions and helping prevent a new wave of anti-migrant violence.Michaël Béchir Ayari is a Senior Analyst for Tunisia at the International Crisis Group. Riccardo Fabiani is the Project Director for North Africa at the International Crisis Group.[1] "En Tunisie, arrestation de deux dirigeants d'Ennahdha", in Jeune Afrique, 6 September 2023, https://www.jeuneafrique.com/1479880/; Mathieu Galtier, "En Tunisie, le spectre d'une «transition dictatoriale» après l'arrestation du principal opposant au président", in Le Temps, 18 April 2023, https://www.letemps.ch/monde/afrique/tunisie-spectre-dune-transition-dictatoriale-apres-larrestation-principal-opposant.[2] Lilia Blaise, "En Tunisie, les migrants subsahariens ciblés par des arrestations et des agressions", in Le Monde, 27 February 2023, https://www.lemonde.fr/afrique/article/2023/02/27/en-tunisie-les-migrants-subsahariens-cibles-par-des-arrestations-et-des-agressions_6163536_3212.html.[3] "La masse salariale du public accapare 16% du PIB de la Tunisie et la moitié des ressources de l'État", in Business News, 29 December 2021, https://www.businessnews.com.tn/-,520,115215,3.[4] Christy Un and Rugare Mukanganga, "What Next after Tunisia Rejects IMF and Austerity Burdens?", in African Business, 11 September 2023, https://african.business/?p=142637.[5] "Fitch Downgrades Tunisia to 'CCC-'", in Fitch Ratings, 9 June 2023, https://www.fitchratings.com/research/sovereigns/fitch-downgrades-tunisia-to-ccc-09-06-2023.[6] Mathieu Galtier, "Chine, UE… Qui prêtera 3 milliards d'euros à la Tunisie pour boucler son budget ?", in Jeune Afrique, 31 October 2023, https://www.jeuneafrique.com/1499339/.[7] Gabriela Baczynska, "Germany's Baerbock Joins Chorus Criticizing EU Migration Deal with Tunisia", in Reuters, 22 September 2023, https://www.reuters.com/world/germanys-baerbock-joins-chorus-criticizing-eu-migration-deal-with-tunisia-2023-09-22.[8] "France Offers Tunisia 25.8 Million Euros to Help Tackle Migration", in Reuters, 19 June 2023, https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/france-offers-tunisia-258-million-euros-help-tackle-migration-2023-06-19.[9] "Italy PM: We Are Facing a Huge Problem Related to Tunisia Stability and Possibly Its Economic Collapse", in Middle East Monitor, 21 March 2023, https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230321-italy-pm-we-are-facing-a-huge-problem-related-to-tunisia-stability-and-possibly-its-economic-collapse; "Meloni Tells G-7 IMF Should Take 'Pragmatic' Approach towards Tunisia", in The Arab Weekly, 22 May 2023, https://thearabweekly.com/node/60323.[10] European Commission, EU Comprehensive Partnership Package with Tunisia, 11 June 2023, https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/FS_23_3205.[11] Ahmed Eljechtimi, "IMF Official Says Tunisia Has Not Proposed New Loan Terms", in Reuters, 13 October 2023, http://reut.rs/3txN9N2.[12] "Tunisia President Sacks the Economy Minister over Statement about IMF", in Reuters, 17 October 2023, http://reut.rs/46AnLVB.[13] "Kaïs Saïed refuse la « charité » de l'UE", in Jeune Afrique, 3 October 2023, https://www.jeuneafrique.com/1488693/politique/le-president-tunisien-refuse-la-charite-de-lue.[14] Gregorio Sorgi, "Tunisia Hands Back €60M of EU Funding as Migrant Deal Tensions Soar", in Politico, 11 October 2023, https://www.politico.eu/?p=3698370.

The two rival faces of political Islam gained ground in Tunisia after the 2011 Arab Uprising, which ended autocratic rule. A transition government granted amnesty to leaders of Islamist movements—both militant and non-violent—and allowed them to openly preach or gain legal status as a party. Ennahda grew into one of the most powerful political parties, while three different jihadi groups employed violent tactics to derail the government and mobilize support for Islamic rule. Tensions between the rivals was reflected in 2013, when al Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb condemned Ennahda. "Don't be deceived by the people who call to democracy by decorating it under the name of the truth and give it a religious garment," it warned. Jihadists exploited the government's economic challenges, including unemployment, to gain public sympathy. As jihadi assassinations and bombings increased, protesters in 2013 blamed Ennahda for failing to reign in the Sunni militants. In 2014 elections, Ennahda lost 20 seats in parliament. It gradually evolved politically and, in 2016, renounced political Islam. "I am a Muslim democrat and they [jihadists] are against democracy," said Rachid Ghannouchi, the Ennahda cofounder. The division among disparate Islamist factions deepened as their goals and tactics increasingly differed. In 2017, separate extremist groups carried out 47 attacks on government and civilian targets across the country. Ennahda made a bit of a political comeback in the 2019 election when it lost 17 seats, but still won a plurality vying against more than 20 parties. Both militant and non-violent Islamists faced major setbacks. In 2021, Ennahda was forced out of politics by President Kais Saied, who banned the party and ordered the arrest of Ghannouchi and other party leaders. The government's aggressive counterterrorism also eroded jihadist capabilities. Militants launched only four attacks in 2022. EnnahdaSince it was founded in 1981, Ennahda has evolved from a religious opposition group repressed by the government into one of the most influential forces in Tunisian politics. A pivotal turning point was the 2011 Arab Uprising, which forced an autocratic leader from power and allowed opposition parties such as Ennahda to run for political office. Ennahda won pluralities in the 2011 and 2019 parliamentary elections, and it served as a kingmaker in forming a coalition government with secular parties in 2014. It was the most successful Islamist party in the Middle East, although its seats in parliament diminished with each poll. In 2021, Ennahda was forced out of politics, replicating the experience of other Islamist movements in the region. Its leaders were once again imprisoned. Ennahda's saga is a microcosm of the tensions between Islamist movements and secular political parties across North Africa and the Middle East. As the movement evolved, it even tried to shed its official Islamist identity. "We are Muslim democrats who no longer claim political Islam," Rashid Ghannouchi, Ennahda's leader, said at the 2016 party congress. Ennahda had historically made concessions to secular parties. But Ghannouchi's speech triggered skepticism among political rivals and foreign observers. "The party's internal culture is likely to remain Islamist or Islamist-inflected for a long time," insisted Monica Marks, a scholar of Islamist movements. In mid-2021, President Saied fired the prime minister, dissolved parliament, and assumed full executive power amid protests over the government's economic mismanagement and poor response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Critics called Saied's autocratic politics a coup, and new protests erupted against him. The divisions between Islamist and secular forces in Tunisia only deepened when Saied appointed a new prime minister and magistrates by decree and later introduced a new constitution. Opposition parties, including Ennahda, boycotted the late-December 2022 parliamentary election. They argued that a boycott was "better than participating in an electoral farce aimed at having the president expand his powers." In 2023, Ghannouchi was tried for "plotting against state security" for a video warning of civil war if opposition parties, both Islamist and secular, were banned from politics. He was sentenced to one year in prison. Ennahda party supporters wave the national flag during a demonstration against President Saied in Tunis on Oct. 15, 2022.Image CreditFactoidsParticipated in three elections – 2011, 2014, and 2019 Won 89 seats in 2011, 69 seats in 2014, and 52 in 2019Formed three coalition governments with diverse secular partiesLed two of the three governments between 2011 and 2021Timeline of Ennahda 1981: Rachid Ghannouchi and Abdelfattah Mourou founded the Movement of Islamic Tendency (MTI) in April. Ghannouchi and his followers were arrested in July. Rachid GhannouchiImage Credit1989: MTI adopted the name Ennahda in a failed bid for legal recognition. It was banned from running from parliament, so Ennahda members ran as independent candidates. They won more than 10 percent of the vote, according to government figures, but did not win any seats. The party claimed election fraud, alleging that it had won a greater percentage of the vote.1991: The government banned Ennahda and arrested thousands of members. Key leaders went into exile, mainly in Europe. It was marginalized for two decades. 2011: After the Arab uprising ousted the government of President Ben Ali, Ennahda leaders returned to Tunis and mobilized the party to run for office. It won nearly 40 percent of the vote and formed a coalition government with two secular political parties. Hamid Jebali, Ennahda secretary general, became the first post-authoritarian prime minister.2013: Two secular members of parliament were assassinated in separate attacks attributed to Ansar al Sharia. Tens of thousands of people protested in Tunis, which led to the fall of Jebali's government. 2014: Tunisia adopted a democratic constitution in January and then held another election in October. Ennahda came in second with 28 percent of the vote. Ennahda joined a governing coalition led by a secular party. 2016: Ennahda shifted its political association with religion. "We are Muslim democrats who no longer claim political Islam," Ghannouchi declared. 2019: Ennahda nominated Abdelfattah Mourou, its first candidate, for president. Ennahda did not advance to the second-round and threw its support to Kais Saied, who won. Running against more than 20 parties, Ennahda came in first in the parliamentary election with only about 20 percent of the vote. It again formed a coalition with secular parties. Ghannouchi became the speaker of parliament, setting the stage for a divided government. 2020: Ghannouchi survived a no-confidence vote in parliament. 2021: Protests erupted nationwide over economic mismanagement and the government's poor response to the COVID-19 pandemic. President Saied dissolved parliament, declared a state of emergency, and consolidated power. Ghannouchi decried Saied's actions. More than 100 Ennahda leaders resigned from the party, accusing Ghannouchi of doing too little. 2023: Saied's government imprisoned Ghannouchi as well as many other Ennahda leaders. The government also closed Ennahda party offices and banned its political meetings. Militant GroupsJihadism soared after the 2011 Arab Uprising, which toppled the autocratic government of President Ben Ali. Islamists were freed from prison and permitted to proselytize openly. Ansar al Sharia was founded in April 2011, just three months after the Arab Uprising. The group spread its message through in-person and online preaching. It exploited public frustration with poor economic conditions and provided public services­–including street cleaning–to gain adherents. Katiba Uqba bin Nafi, a jihadist movement affiliated with al Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), was formed in late 2012. It gained popular support by appealing to marginalized communities along Tunisia's border with Algeria. The group began conducting assaults against Tunisian security forces in 2013. In 2014, an offshoot of Katiba Uqba bin Nafi declared allegiance to the Islamic State. The group adopted the name Jund al Khilafah Tunisia, and it also drew support from marginalized communities in northwest Tunisia. Katiba Uqba bin Nafi and Jund al Khilafah competed with one another for power and influence, even as they sporadically launched attacks on civilians and security forces. In 2015, a lone-wolf gunman, allegedly inspired by jihadist ideology, opened fire on a beachside resort—killing 38 civilians, mainly tourists—in Sousse. "The terrorists have targeted the state, the revolution, and the Islamic principles but we will prevail over them," Ghannouchi said at a press briefing after the attack. Tunisia's coalition government, which included Ennahda, launched an ambitious counterterrorism campaign in the northwest and improved border security. With U.S. financial support, its counterterrorism program succeeded in decreasing attacks. In 2017, extremists carried out 47 attacks; in 2022, they were linked to only four operations. But the North African country has not fully eradicated jihadism. Ansar al ShariaAnsar al Sharia was founded in 2011 by Seifallah Ben Hassine, a Tunisian militant who had reportedly worked with Osama Bin Laden in Afghanistan. He was later captured in Turkey, extradited to Tunisia, and sentenced to 43 years in prison. Ben Hassine was granted amnesty and released from prison after the 2011 Arab Uprising. Ansar al Sharia espoused a hardline Salafi jihadist ideology and sought to impose sharia in Tunisia. In 2013, a leader said, "The state we envision is based on God's laws. This is not up for discussion." Ansar al Sharia combined community service, proselytization, and violence to achieve this goal, and it was an ideological rival to the non-violent Ennahda movement.Ansar al Sharia had historic links to al Qaeda. Between 2011 and 2015, the group launched sporadic attacks–including suicide bombings–against Tunisian security forces. It organized a protest over a controversial video about the Prophet Mohammed in 2012, in which Tunisians stormed the U.S. Embassy. The group's activity diminished in 2015, after its founder was killed in an airstrike. Katiba Uqba bin NafiKatiba Uqba bin Nafi (or the Fighting Group of Uqba ibn Nafi, a general in the seventh century who conquered parts of North Africa) was established in December 2012. It affiliated with al Qaeda in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), which is headquartered in Algeria. It operated primarily in the northwest Kasserine and Kef regions, traditionally areas marginalized by the central government. It recruited in Kasserine, where unemployment was twice as high as the national average. In 2013, Katiba Uqba bin Nafi launched a sporadic attacks on security posts throughout the northwest. The government deployed more forces and arrested fighters planning attacks and smuggling weapons. By 2018, Katiba Uqba bin Nafi began to lose territory and popular support. It has not claimed responsibility for any attack since 2019.Jund al KhilafahJund al Khilafah (or Soldiers of the Caliphate) was founded in 2014 after fighters of Katiba Uqba bin Nafi defected and declared allegiance to ISIS. It competed for fighters and territory in northwest Tunisia with Katiba Uqba bin Nafi, while also attacking civilians and security forces. The group targeted and killed civilians to intimidate local populations. It conducted kidnappings and assassinations of both security forces and civilians. In 2018, Tunisia's counterterrorism campaign limited Jund al Khilafah operations. Islamic State of Iraq and SyriaUp to 6,000 Tunisians joined ISIS between 2013 and 2019, with more than 20,000 others attempting to join the largest jihadi movement in the Middle East. the Tunisian government began to crackdown on jihadists in 2013. The creation of a caliphate in 2014 appealed to young, well-educated Tunisians, many of whom had grown disillusioned when the Arab Uprising failed to improve their employment and economic prospects. Foreign Fighters in Iraq and Syria by Country of Origin (2015)Source: Official estimates from respective governments. Unofficial estimates are by the Soufan Group, "Foreign Fighters: An Updated Assessment of the Flow of Foreign Fighters into Syria and Iraq," December 2015. FactoidsTunisian jihadists were responsible for the assassination of Ahmad Shah Massoud, an Afghan anti-Taliban leader, in the run-up to 9/11In 2015, a gunman opened fire on a resort in Sousse, killing 38 tourists in the most lethal attack in Tunisian history. Between 3,000 and 7,000 Tunisians joined the Islamic State, the largest percentage of foreign fighters from any country.Timeline of Militant Groups Note: This is not a comprehensive list of all jihadist activity in Tunisia.2000: Seifallah Ben Hassine and Tarek Maaroufi founded the Tunisian Combat Group, an affiliate of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) in Algeria. 2001: Two militants affiliated with the Tunisian Combat Group assassinated Ahmad Shah Massoud, leader of the Northern Alliance–an Afghan rival to the Taliban and al Qaeda. Osama bin Laden reportedly organized the murder in the run-up to the 9/11 attacks. The Tunisian Combat Group has been defunct since the mid-2000s, when its two founders were imprisoned in Tunisia and Belgium. 2011: Seifallah Ben Hassine, also known as Abu Ayyad al Tunisi, established Ansar al Sharia in April. Tunisia's democratic transition allowed Ansar al Sharia to openly proselytize. 2012: Protestors stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tunis in September. The Tunisian government blamed Ansar al Sharia. Katiba Uqba bin Nafi was founded in December. 2013: The Tunisian government blamed Ansar al Sharia for separate attacks that killed two members of parliament in Tunis. In August, the Tunisian government designated Ansar al Sharia a terrorist organization.2014: In May, Katiba Uqba bin Nafi attacked the Minister of the Interior's house in Kasserine, killing four policemen. Jund al Khilafah Tunisia was founded, after members of Katiba Uqba bin Nafi defected and declared allegiance to ISIS. Ansar al Sharia was blamed for at least 10 attacks against Tunisian security forces.2015: In March, two militants affiliated with ISIS opened fire on tourists at the Bardo Museum in Tunis. They killed 22 during the three-hour siege. In the largest jihadist attack in Tunisia's history, a gunman murdered 38 tourists in Sousse in June. Tunisia declared a state of emergency. In July, the U.S. military claimed to have killed Ben Hassine, the leader of Ansar al Sharia, in an airstrike in northern Mali. In November, an ISIS-affiliated jihadist killed two Presidential Guard members in a suicide attack.2016: Tunisian security forces prevented an attack by Tunisian nationals affiliated with ISIS-Libya in March. The operation killed 49 suspected terrorists, 13 security forces, and 7 civilians. The Tunisian Army killed the leader of Jund al Khilafah in November.2018: In October, a lone female suicide bomber wounded 20 in the heart of Tunis. No group claimed responsibility.2019: In June, two ISIS-affiliated jihadists launched twin suicide attacks in Tunis. One police officer and one security officer were killed. 2020: In March, two suicide bombers killed a police officer and injured six when they detonated their explosives across the street from the U.S. Embassy in Tunis. Jund al Khilafah beheaded a shepherd, who was reportedly suspected of collaborating with the government. His body was found in December near the Algerian border. 2021: Tunisian forces arrested the leader of Katiba Uqba bin Nafi.

Over the past year, a surge in migrant people arriving from Tunisia to Europe has thrust the North African country into the heart of European political agendas, sparking concerns across the continent's capitals about its hardships and risk of economic and social collapse.
The immediate policy response involved a frenzy of Euro-Tunisian diplomatic activity guided by the Italian government – itself needing to demonstrate some kind of answer to increased migratory arrivals to its shores – and culminated in the signing of the EU-Tunisia Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in July 2023.[1] The MoU, structured around five key areas of collaboration – macroeconomic stability, trade cooperation, green energy transition, people-to-people contacts, and migration and mobility – is said by so-called "Team Europe" to aim fostering a strategic and comprehensive partnership between the European Union and Tunisia. However, observers highlighted its detrimental shortsightedness, the flaws in its legal nature, as well as the necessity to allocate political and financial resources beyond migration management to truly diversify the agreement.[2]
Against this backdrop, three European experts offer here considerations on challenges and prospects in EU–Tunisia relations and propose alternative avenues where cooperation can evolve, emphasising the creation of a stable and equitable political environment in both Europe and Tunisia.Putting Tunisia into context and empowering local voicesby Akram Ezzamouri[3]
Tunisia's path through political transition and democratic consolidation after the 2010–2011 uprisings earned it for years the label of "regional model" for advancements in public freedoms. However, in the current Tunisian context – marked by a continuous decline in rule of law and rights following the power grab by President Kais Saied in July 2021, a shrinking social space and an increasingly numbed political alternative – this standing is seriously compromised.
This change in the Tunisian trajectory has come hand in hand with Europe pivoting away from policies initially supporting reforms and the establishment of democratic spaces in Tunisia. Instead, the focus has shifted towards short-term securitisation measures addressing mainly European priorities in the fields of migration and counterterrorism, while overlooking the country's urgent socio-economic needs.
The signature of the EU–Tunisia MoU in July 2023 has proved yet another step confirming this trend and marking the establishment of an uncoordinated, transactional and unbalanced European approach to Tunisia. Presented by Italy and the European Commission as a blueprint for the establishment of new or rebranded relations with African countries,[4] both the focus of the MoU and the process underlying its design and implementation are reminiscent of past bilateral initiatives with Libya, Morocco and Turkey.
European measures externalising and informalising migration management,[5] coupled with more comprehensive dossiers spanning from energy cooperation, development and economic support have rarely produced the intended improvements in the Southern neighbourhood. On the contrary, they often proved to be self-defeating as they intertwined European interests with the illusion of authoritarian stability.
The recent abuses of migrant people's rights in Tunisia and the constant clampdown on voices opposing Kais Saied, highlight how ill-fated funnelling funds into the Tunisian government without concurrently supporting reforms in the country's security sector is. To forge a sustainable partnership, shared challenges between the EU and Tunisia should not be addressed in isolation; they should rather be linked to the broader Tunisian context of centralised power and social fragmentation.
In line with this, the so-called "Rome process", designed on the initiative of the Italian government to address irregular migration to Europe through the promotion of development in origin or transit countries,[6] must not overlook the underlying factors of instability related to the deterioration of governance. The Tunisian case is evidence of how strictly interconnected these issues are. The persistent socio-economic challenges drive people to leave the country, opting for perilous journeys across the Mediterranean.[7] This is exacerbated by the flourishing smuggling industry, a direct consequence of inadequate state control and documented collusions with elements within the Tunisian security forces.[8]
To improve the Tunisian situation and address the real root causes of instability, the EU should contribute to reinstating a safe and pluralist political landscape in Tunisia, particularly with an eye on the 2024 presidential elections, if maintained. Advancing EU–Tunisia relations in this direction is surely an uphill battle, given Saied's rejection of any external or internal pressure challenging his agenda, as well as the credibility crisis faced by European countries and institutions among the regional population, stemming from their stance and divisions on Israel's war on Gaza.[9]
However, empowering local voices and giving them space when discussing the way forward in EU–Tunisia relations could constitute a first step towards a more positive dynamic. It could also contribute to "ensure a safe and enabling environment for civil society, as well as freedom of expression, of the press, of peaceful assembly and of association", in line with what Italy recommended during Tunisia's fourth Universal Periodic Review in November 2022.[10]Folly of cynicism and naivete: Europe's failures to advance a Tunisia strategyby Colin Powers[11]
On 16 July, EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi and Mounir Ben Rjiba, Tunisian Secretary of State to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Migration and Tunisians Abroad, signed a MoU defining "a strategic and global partnership between the EU and Tunisia". In substance, the EU offered a package comprising financial assistance, support to Tunisia's border control capacity and to projects in the energy sector, and facilitation of legal mobility between the two parties. In exchange, they expected the autocratic regime in Tunisia to dutifully (and quietly) accept its role as a deputised patrolman for Europe's southern border.
Visibly ill-conceived as the MoU was – particularly in light of the Tunisian President's sovereigntist pretensions – it swiftly proved ill-fated too. A few months after pen was put to paper, Tunis would take the extraordinary step of returning a 60 million euro grant which had been designated as part of a previous European Covid-19 recovery programme.[12] Signalling a wider diplomatic breakdown, the reverse transfer also marked a de facto pause on the implementation of the MoU. Beyond the uncertainty that has come to prevail as a result, the EU suffered significant institutional and reputational damage from the entire venture. Team Europe's freestyling and sidestepping of treaty-making procedures not only pushed the bounds of legality. These actions also caused fissures amongst EU member states while introducing confusion both in Brussels and foreign capitals over who has the right to act in the Union's name abroad.[13] The Commission's attempts at paying off an autocrat whose record of repression, cruelty to immigrants and racialised human rights abuses grows with each day, meanwhile, has eaten away at Europe's moral standing and degraded the EU's status as a defender of international law.
To chart a better path in Tunisia and further afield, it is essential that Europe move beyond the superficial engagements it has favoured in addressing complex issues like immigration. There is, at this stage, little ambiguity about what drives Tunisians (and those transiting through the country) to brave a sea-crossing: it is the desire for a better life. Similarly, there is little ambiguity as to why such desires cannot be realised where those people currently reside. The Tunisian economy is structurally compromised, beleaguered by a domineering oligarchy, poor policy design and a subordinate position in global systems of production, trade and finance. Just as distressingly, the spectre of state violence haunts citizens and non-citizens alike at all times, with civil and political liberties won by way of the uprisings of 2010–2011 having been almost entirely wound back.
In view of all this, it should be obvious why an MoU like the one agreed to in July last year, even if honoured to the letter, would fail to deliver what its European signatories seek. Economically, the agreement lacks the scale, comprehensiveness and discernment needed to alter Tunisia's structural condition. Politically, it subsidises some of the institutions most responsible for popular repression and helps underwrite the Saied autocracy. In other words, the MoU helps reproduce the grievances compelling people to flee. If equipping a repressive government to intercept more boats off the Tunisian coast, then, an agreement of this type will never stop those boats from departing in the first instance. A wiser policy would attempt to address causality at its source. Materially, it might combine some measure of debt relief conditional on political and security sector reform with fair-minded revisions to trade and investment treaties and concessionary capital deployments for developmentally and ecologically useful projects, for starters.
Looking ahead, it is equally critical that the EU henceforth speaks with a single voice on Tunisia, that it installs mechanisms to restrict improvisational interventions like those led by the European Commission last summer, and that it adopts a people- rather than regime-first approach. Under von der Leyen's direction, Team Europe has been content to support Kais Saied under the premise that he might act as a guardian of stability. Weighing the upheaval Saied has already sown against the contributions he has made to the emigration wave, the misguidedness of this gambit can hardly be overstated. It is past time that Europe reverse course. Relevant parties in Europe need pursue a pact with Tunisia and the rest of Africa based not on the expedience a strongman may promise, but on a recognition of all people's fundamental dignity.Flipping the leverage script in EU–Tunisia relationsby Emmanuel Cohen-Hadria[14]
There was a time when High Representative Josep Borrell's predecessors were hoping to add Tunisia's democratic transition to the list of EU foreign policy success stories, next to the EU-facilitated Serbia–Kosovo dialogue and the EU-mediated Iran nuclear deal. Tunisia's democratic transition was expected to epitomise the success of a principled and transformative EU foreign policy. Since then, Tunisian domestic developments have forced the EU to fast-track its shift from a principled to a transactional approach. While the former failed to bring about changes in the country, it recently became clear that the latter has not succeeded in promoting the EU's interests.
In the weeks following the signature of the controversial MoU between Tunisia and the EU on 16 July 2023, irregular migrant arrivals in Italy increased.[15] Meanwhile, a poorly engineered plan, including promises of additional financial assistance, created expectations that the EU did not manage to meet. This culminated in the highly symbolic decision from Tunisia to refund 60 million euros of EU Covid-related aid in October 2023,[16] de facto freezing the implementation of the MoU.[17]
There was a time when Tunisia was seen as a showcase of the EU's comprehensive and united approach, with member states and EU institutions playing off the same hymn sheet. The signature of the MoU broke these dynamics, bringing back the EU's old demons of disunity. In a leaked letter to Commissioner Várhelyi, HRVP Borrell wrote that several member states had expressed their "incomprehension regarding the Commission's unilateral action".[18]
There are at least three takeaways from this episode.
First, assuming that the shift towards a more transactional foreign policy is most probably unavoidable, transactional moves need nonetheless to be carefully calibrated and negotiated amongst all EU stakeholders, if the EU wants to minimise the risk of backfire.
Second, the EU cannot afford poor coordination with other partners. The 400 million US dollar soft loan Saudi Arabia pledged four days after the signature of the MoU is probably good news for Tunisia in the short term.[19] It will indeed help the country's public finances stay afloat in the upcoming months. Yet, in the absence of any indication that Saudi Arabia's initiative was discussed with the EU, it ended up weakening further the EU's efforts to incentivise reforms in the North African country.
Third, over-prioritising migration in the bilateral relationship of the EU with its southern partners weakens the former and increases the playing field of the latter.
The bad news is that there is no easy fix. Migration will not disappear anytime soon from the top of the list of European priorities. Tunisia will not be the success story the EU had wished for. The EU should, however, make sure it does not turn into a complete failure story.[1] European Union and Tunisia, Mémorandum d'entente sur un partenariat stratégique et global entre l'Union européenne et la Tunisie, 16 July 2023, https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_3887.[2] Luca Barana and Asly Okyay, "Shaking Hands with Saied's Tunisia: The Paradoxes and Trade-offs Facing the EU", in IAI Commentaries, No. 23|40 (August 2023), https://www.iai.it/en/node/17362.[3] Akram Ezzamouri is a Research Fellow in the Mediterranean, Middle East and Africa Programme at the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI), Italy.[4] Benjamin Fox and Eleonora Vasques, "Tunisia Pact a 'Blueprint' for New 'Cash for Migrant' Deals, Says EU Chief", in Euractiv, 27 June 2023, https://www.euractiv.com/?p=1946104.[5] Catherine Woollard, "The EU's Dodgy Deal with Tunisia Is a Classic of the Genre: Undemocratic, Unlawful and Unlikely to Work", in ECRE Weekly Bulletin, 26 July 2023, https://ecre.org/?p=15766.[6] International Conference on Development and Migration Conclusions, 23 July 2023, https://www.governo.it/en/node/23251.[7] World Bank, Tunisia Economic Monitor, Fall 2023: Migration Amid a Challenging Economic Context, December 2023, http://hdl.handle.net/10986/40676.[8] Refugees International, "European and Tunisian Migration Policies: A Recipe for Failure and Suffering", in IAI Commentaries, No. 24|02 (January 2024), https://www.iai.it/en/node/17964.[9] Nathalie Tocci, "Europe's Stance on Gaza Has Undermined Its Credibility", in Politico, 5 January 2024, https://www.politico.eu/?p=4076316.[10] United Nations Human Rights Council, Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Tunisia (A/HRC/52/6), 14 December 2022, para. 145.73, https://undocs.org/A/HRC/52/6. See also the OHCHR website: Universal Periodic Review – Tunisia, https://www.ohchr.org/en/hr-bodies/upr/tn-index.[11] Colin Powers is a Senior Fellow and Chief Editor for the Noria Research MENA Program, France.[12] Jorge Liboreiro, "In Stunning Move, Tunisia Snubs Brussels and Refunds €60 Million in EU Aid", in Euronews, 12 October 2023, https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2023/10/12/in-stunning-move-tunisia-snubs-brussels-and-refunds-60-million-in-eu-aid.[13] Lisa O'Carroll, "EU States Expressed 'Incomprehension' at Tunisia Migration Pact, Says Borrell", in The Guardian, 18 September 2023, https://www.theguardian.com/p/pv3qp.[14] Emmanuel Cohen-Hadria is the Director of the Euro-Mediterranean Policies Department at the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed), Spain, and co-founder of Diplomeds.[15] "Migration Rates from Tunisia to Italy Increase Despite EU Deal", in Middle East Monitor, 30 August 2023, https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230830-migration-rates-from-tunisia-to-italy-increase-despite-eu-deal.[16] Jorge Liboreiro, "In Stunning Move, Tunisia Snubs Brussels and Refunds €60 Million in EU Aid", cit.[17] In December 2023, the EU and Tunisia came to an agreement on a 150 million euro financial programme part of the MoU. See European Commission, The European Union and Tunisia Come to an Agreement on a EUR 150 Million Programme, 20 December 2023, https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_6784.[18] Lisa O'Carroll, "EU States Expressed 'Incomprehension' at Tunisia Migration Pact, Says Borrell", cit.[19] "Saudi Arabia to Give Tunisia $500 Million as Soft Loan and Grant", in Reuters, 20 July 2023, https://www.reuters.com/world/saudi-arabia-give-tunisia-500-mln-soft-loan-grant-2023-07-20.

Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), the two militant movements in Gaza, have violently challenged Israel's right to exist since their creation in the 1980s. Both have a similar agenda—to defeat Israel and create an Islamic state in historic Palestine. "The day that enemies usurp part of Muslim land, jihad becomes the individual duty of every Muslim," Hamas said in its 1988 charter. Both groups rejected the 1993 Oslo peace accord between Israel and the PLO that created the Palestinian Authority. In a 1994 pamphlet, Fathi Shikaki, a physician and the co-founder of PIJ, decreed, "The only option to our people is continuation of the jihad with all our strength and to end the occupation." Both Sunni militias have been trained, armed and financed by Iran. Both also have the same allies in Syria and Hezbollah, a Shiite militia and political party in Lebanon.But Hamas and PIJ differ ideologically. PIJ, which was created as a small group of underground cells, has long been more extremist in ideology and tactics. Shikaki was born to a family of refugees in Gaza in 1951 and joined the Muslim Brotherhood while studying medicine in Egypt in the 1970s. He was heavily influenced by the ideology of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the Iranian revolutionary leader. In 1979, Shikaki published a book, "Khomeini – The Islamic Solution and the Alternative," that advocated for Sunni-Shiite unity in the struggle against Israel. Shikaki broke with the Muslim Brotherhood to prioritize the Palestinian cause. His books--including "The Shia and Sunna: An Unfortunate, Artificial Turmoil" published in 1985--promoted the same pan-Islamic vision espoused by Tehran. Shikaki was assassinated by Israel during a trip to Malta in 1995. His successor, Ramadan Shallah, also maintained close ties to Iran. "The Palestinian Islamic Jihad is another fruit of the Ayatollah Khomeini's fructuous tree," Shallah said during a 2002 meeting with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran.Hamas, an Arabic acronym for the Islamic Resistance Movement, emerged in 1987 during the First Intifada, or uprising, against Israel's military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Its origins were unrelated to Iran. Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, a quadriplegic and legally blind cleric, was the founder and spiritual leader. Born in 1936 in the village of al Jura, near the modern Israeli city of Ashkelon, he and his family fled to Gaza along with tens of thousands of other Palestinian refugees during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Like Shikaki, Yassin also spent time studying in Egypt and was inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood. But Hamas leaders promoted Palestinian nationalism in an Islamic framework – rather than Khomeini's pan-Islamism. "Nationalism, from the point of view of the Islamic Resistance Movement, is part of the religious creed," Hamas said in its 1988 charter. "Nothing in nationalism is more significant or deeper than in the case when an enemy should tread Muslim land."Hamas: Military WingHamas launched its first military operations against Israel in 1989. In separate attacks, it kidnapped and killed two Israeli soldiers in southern Israel. It stepped up attacks after establishing a military wing of underground cells--the Izz ad din al Qassam Brigades--in 1991. The militia was named after a Syrian-born preacher and militant who opposed Zionism as well as the British and French presence in the Middle East during from the 1920s. In the 1930s, he recruited hundreds of fighters, mainly among the rural poor, for the Black Hand, which attacked Jewish settlements and sabotaged British rail lines. He was killed in a shoot-out with British police near Jenin. He quickly became a hero among Palestinians and symbol of their cause.Hamas has attacked both Israeli military and civilian targets. It became infamous for suicide bombings and shootings at bus stops, restaurants and discos in the 1990s and 2000s. Hamas had a freer hand to operate in Gaza after the Israeli military withdrew in 2005. With the help of Iran and Hezbollah, it evolved into a larger, more disciplined, and better-equipped fighting force capable of pummeling Israeli towns with thousands of rockets and launching hit-and-run incursions over the Gaza border. Izz ad Din al Qassam fighters attend a military parade in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, on May 27, 2021Image CreditBy 2023, the Hamas militia had built a diverse inventory of weapons, including rockets, drones, mortars, incendiary balloons, and even torpedoes. The CIA has estimated its force at up to 25,000, while Israel and Western media reported up to 40,000 fighters. It concealed weapons, some provided from Iran and others crafted locally, in a vast network of tunnels underneath Gaza.Hamas fighters—some 1,200 trained militants, plus hundreds more from Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Gaza civilians who joined in after Hamas breached the security barrier around Gaza—demonstrated unprecedented capabilities in attacks on civilian kibbutzim communities and southern military bases on Oct. 7, 2023. Hamas used drones and snipers to cripple Israel's communications and early warning systems along the border. It coordinated air, land, and sea operations on 22 Israeli communities. It launched at least 2,200 rockets at southern and central Israel. Some reached Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, which Hamas rockets had rarely been able to reach in previous hostilities.Image CreditMilitants also perpetrated atrocities. They killed more than 1,400 civilians and soldiers in bloodthirsty massacres, which included murder, rape and beheadings of children, females and the elderly. Some Israelis were burned alive while they hid in safe rooms. More than 300 were soldiers, officers and reservists in the Israeli military were killed. The vast majority were civilians. Hamas had not employed such grisly tactics in the past. Hamas and PIJ also took more than 200 hostages back to Gaza.Hamas: Political WingHamas ran for the first time in the 2006 legislative elections. Many Palestinians looked to Hamas as an alternative to the ruling Fatah party, which had gained a reputation for corruption and ineffectiveness after four decades of dominating Palestinian politics. Although Hamas won 74 out of 132 seats, the party did not expect to have to form a government for the entire Palestinian Authority and make policy decisions. Fatah refused to join a Hamas-led government, so President Mahmoud Abbas – a longtime Fatah member and ally of Yasser Arafat—ruled from the capital in Ramallah in the West Bank while Hamas effectively governed Gaza. Abbas placed security forces in Gaza under his control. In response, Hamas created its own parallel security force. Tensions boiled over in 2007 when Hamas believed that Fatah forces were planning to remove the Hamas government from office in Gaza. Hamas seized control of Gaza, while the Palestinian Authority retained control over the West Bank.Since the Hamas takeover, Israel and Egypt have maintained a blockade on Gaza that has caused an economic crisis for Palestinians. Repeated negotiations between Hamas and Fatah—brokered by Egypt, Qatar and Syria—to form a Palestinian unity government failed. The Palestinian Authority has been unable to hold elections since 2006. In 2021, Abbas postponed scheduled elections. He cited Israel's refusal to guarantee that Palestinians in East Jerusalem could vote, although Hamas and other secular Palestinians wanted to hold the poll anyway. "In Hamas, we don't want to turn the situation into an internal Palestinian struggle. We want the language of dialogue, communication and dialogue to prevail among all Palestinians," Haniyeh said.Image CreditLeadershipYahya Sinwar: Sinwar's family fled or were expelled from al Majdal Asqalan, in what is now southern Israel, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. He was born in 1962 in a refugee camp in Khan Yunis, Gaza. Sinwar became politically active in the early 1980s while studying at the Islamic University of Gaza, where he earned a bachelor's degree in Arabic studies. Sinwar was arrested by Israel in 1982 and reportedly held for four months in administrative detention with no formal charges. He was arrested again in 1985 and held for eight months.Sinwar joined Hamas when it was established in 1987 and co-founded its internal security service in 1988. Israel sentenced him to four life terms in prison for orchestrating the abduction and murder of two Israeli soldiers and four suspected Palestinian "collaborators" in 1988. Israeli officials dubbed him "the butcher of Khan Yunis" because of his brutality of other Palestinians. Sinwar served 22 years. In 2011, Israel released him and 1,026 other Palestinians in exchange for Gilad Shalit, a soldier abducted by Hamas in 2006. The United States put Sinwar on "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" list in 2015. The Hamas Shura Council elected him to head the political bureau in Gaza in 2017. Sinwar was willing to compromise with the Palestinian Authority and engage in a hudna – or ceasefire—with Israel, according to Palestinian experts. "The offensive that Sinwar was mainly focused on was sending a shock to the Israeli political system [to] provide him with the necessary leverage to have a much wider exchange of prisoners and a more comprehensive deal" with Israel, Khalil Shikaki, a Palestinian academic and pollster, said at the Carnegie Endowment on Nov. 2, 2023.Ismail Haniyeh: Haniyeh's family fled from al Majdal Asqalan, in what is now southern Israel, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Born in 1962 in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza, he joined the Islamic Student Bloc while a student in 1984. He graduated with a degree in Arabic literature from the Islamic University in Gaza in 1987. When the First Intifada broke out, he participated in anti-Israel protests and joined Hamas. He spent six months in an Israeli prison in 1988 and another three years starting in 1989. Israel deported him and hundreds of other Palestinian militants to Lebanon in 1992.After the PLO signed the Oslo Accords with Israel in 1993, he returned to Gaza to head the Islamic University. He quickly climbed the ranks within Hamas. In 2001, he became the third-highest ranking official. In 2006, he headed the Hamas list in its first run for parliament. After Hamas upset the secular Fatah Party, Haniyeh was appointed prime minister of the Palestinian Authority. Hamas forced Fatah—its political officials and security forces -- out of Gaza in 2007. Palestinian President Abbas dismissed him, but Haniyeh remained the de facto leader of Gaza until Hamas leaders elected him to head the 15-person Politburo in 2017. The United States labeled him a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" in 2018. He left Gaza in 2019 and set up an office in Qatar. Haniyeh was reelected head of the Politburo in 2021.Khaled Mashaal: Mashaal was born in 1956 in Silwad, a West Bank town. He and his family fled to Kuwait during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. Mashaal was devout from a young age and joined the Muslim Brotherhood at 15. He received a degree in physics from Kuwait University and founded a student group called the List of the Islamic Right. Mashaal has been involved in Hamas since its inception, despite living in Kuwait. He founded a Kuwaiti chapter of Hamas but left the country when Iraq invaded in 1990. He moved to Amman, Jordan, where he headed the local Hamas chapter. He was elected the head of Hamas Politburo in 1996.Mashaal survived a botched assassination attempt by Israel in 1997. Two Mossad agents sprayed poison into his ear but were caught trying to escape. The ordeal earned him the title of "living martyr." Jordan expelled Mashaal and senior Hamas leaders in 1999 for "illicit and harmful" activities that could undermine national security. After a stint in Qatar, he set up an office in Damascus, Syria in 2001. The United States labeled Mashaal along with five other Hamas leaders as "Specially Designated Global Terrorists" in 2003.After Israel assassinated Hamas founder Sheikh Yassin in 2004, Mashaal became the overall leader of Hamas. He relocated from Damascus to Doha in 2012, after Hamas and Iran backed different actors in the Syrian civil war. In 2017, Haniyeh was elected to replace Mashaal. But the latter made a comeback in 2021 when he was elected head of the diaspora division, the second-highest ranking position.Image CreditPIJ: Military WingPIJ has had the second-largest fighting force in Gaza after Hamas. Its mission is to fight Israelis and replace the Jewish state, according to leaders. "The call to jihad and resisting the occupation should precede all other activities," Shallah said in 1998. It recruited primarily among young and educated men in Gaza willing to engage in bombings, suicide missions and assassinations against Israeli forces and settlers. But unlike Hamas, it has not provided social services, schools or health services so has not built wider public support. It also rejects political engagement, so has built no formal constituency. The difference between the two movements is that Hamas, which governs Gaza, has had to consider the costs—and potential backlash—of any operation against Israel. PIJ does not.PIJ launched its first attack on Israeli targets in Gaza in 1984. Shikaki and other PIJ leaders gained military training and new allies after Israel deported them to Lebanon in the late 1980s. Shikaki traveled to Tehran, where he met with Ayatollah Khomeini and was promised new aid and arms. Iran's Revolutionary Guards training the PIJ deportees at Hezbollah camps in Lebanon. PIJ and Hezbollah fighters began joint attacks on Israeli targets. In 1989, PIJ moved its headquarters to Damascus but maintained fighters in southern Lebanon. Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters in tactical gearImage CreditIn 1992, PIJ established the al Quds Brigades as a formal military wing. It rejected the Oslo Accords between Israel and the PLO in 1993. Throughout the 1990s, it escalated attacks on Israel in an attempt to derail the peace process. Its attack on a bus stop killed 21 Israeli soldiers and one civilian in 1995. During the Second Intifada from 2000 to 2005, PIJ carried out suicide missions, car bombings and mass killings on both military and civilian targets deep inside Israeli, including a pizzeria and bus stop in Jerusalem.Since 2018, PIJ has coordinated some of its operations against Israel with Hamas and 10 other militant groups at joint operations room in Gaza. The others included armed wings of secular groups such as Fatah, the PFLP and the DFLP. But PIJ has often acted independently, however. In 2019, 2022 and May 2023, PIJ conducted limited clashes with Israel, and Hamas stayed out of the fighting. But Hamas led the unprecedented Oct. 7, 2023 assault on Israel. After Hamas militants broke through the Israeli security barrier around Gaza, PIJ fighters reportedly followed a few hours later. They claimed to have taken 30 hostages back to Gaza.By 2023, its fighting force ranged from 1,000 to several thousand, according to State Department estimates. PIJ could have up 15,000 fighters, according to Western media and Israeli experts. Its weapons included more than a dozen types of rockets, some produced locally and others from Iran smuggled through tunnels from Egypt.Image CreditPIJ cells have historically been concentrated in Gaza but they have also operated in the West Bank. In 2021, PIJ commanders Jamil al Amouri and Wiam Iyad Hanon established the Jenin Battalion, a cross-factional militant group based in Jenin, a hub for militant activity. Israel killed Jamil al Amouri in June 2021 and Hanon in October 2023.LeadershipZiyad al Nakhalah: Nakhalah was born in 1953 in Khan Yunis, Gaza. His father was killed during the 1956 Suez Crisis. Nakhalah earned a bachelor's degree from the Gaza Teachers Institute. Israel arrested Nakhalah for the first time in 1971 for his involvement in the Arab Liberation Forces, a militant group. He was sentenced to life in prison but was released 14 years later as part of a prisoner swap with Israel in 1985. Three Israeli soldiers were freed in exchange for 1,150 Palestinians and Lebanese prisoners.After his release, Nakhalah organized the PIJ military wing. In 1988, Israel arrested him for involvement in the First Intifada and deported him and other militants to Lebanon. Nakhalah became the PIJ representative in Beirut. After Israel assassinated Shikaki in 1995, PIJ officials selected Ramadan Shallah to lead PIJ, with Nakhalah as deputy secretary general. The United States labeled Nakhalah a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" in 2014. In 2018, Shallah reportedly had a stroke and was hospitalized in Beirut. Nakhalah replaced him. Relationship with IranSince the 1979 revolution, Iran has armed, trained and funded proxies across the Middle East. In some cases, it created allies, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and a plethora of Shiite militias in Iraq. In other instances, Iran sponsored existing groups with overlapping goals, such as PIJ and Hamas in the Palestinian territories and the Houthis in Yemen. Iran's support for PIJ and Hamas has enhanced its revolutionary credentials among Arabs and the wider Muslim world, only partly about the Palestinian issue. Iran's goal has been to be the vanguard of the Islamic world, including in alliances with Sunni movements to transcend the sectarian divide.Image CreditHamas-Iran TiesFor more than three decades, Iran has provided financial support to Hamas, which ranged from $20 million to $50 million annually from 1990 to 2000. In 2008, Iran increased its financial support and increased the flow of weapons to Hamas. Iran reportedly produced or supplied many of the rockets fired by Hamas during the 2008-9 Gaza war with Israel. The conflicted ended when Israel declared a ceasefire in January 2009. The next month, Hamas political leader Khaled Mashaal visited Tehran. "You are our partners in the victory in Gaza," he said in a speech. Mashaal also thanked Iran's supreme leader and president "for all the financial, political and popular support which you have given to us. The Palestinian people will not forget."Iran's relationship with Hamas frayed when the Syrian civil war erupted in 2011. Hamas backed the Syrian rebels, while Iran backed the government of President Bashar Assad. As ties deteriorated, Iran suspended funding to Hamas in 2012. Relations began to improve after Hamas selected Yahya Sinwar to the political bureau chief of Hamas in Gaza. Iran and Hamas reconciled in 2017, and Tehran resumed its funding. "Relations with Iran are excellent and Iran is the largest supporter of the Izz ad Din al Qassam Brigades with money and arms," Sinwar said in August 2017. "The relationship today is developing and returning to what it was in the old days." Historically, Iran smuggled weapons to Hamas via Sudan, where the IRGC Qods Force operated warehouses and trained on rocket production, Fabian Hinz, an expert on missile proliferation, told The Iran Primer. Rockets were then smuggled via Egypt to the Sinai Peninsula through tunnels into Gaza. Smuggling became increasingly difficult after Egypt started sealing off or destroying Hamas tunnels in 2013 and Sudan cut diplomatic relations with Iran in 2016.Ismail Haniyeh (left) meets with Supreme Leader Khamenei (right) in Sept. 2019Image CreditIran increasingly trained Hamas fighters in Gaza and helped develop local weapons production. "Instead of giving them a fish or teaching them to catch a fish, we taught our allies and friends how to make a hook, and they are now in possession of missile capabilities and technologies," General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, said in January 2021. "Today, the Palestinians fire rockets instead of throwing stones."Hamas leaders have repeatedly expressed appreciation for Iranian support. "I give thanks to those who provided funds and weaponry to the courageous resistance, the Islamic Republic of Iran, [which] has not skimped in extending funds, weaponry, and technology to the resistance," Haniyeh said on a Hamas Telegram channel in May 2021. The State Department estimated that Iran provided Hamas with about $100 million pear year as of 2023.In October 2023, Iranian leaders applauded Hamas for its multi-pronged attack on Israel. Supreme Leader Khamenei called the unprecedented operation "a devastating earthquake" and a "great calamity" for Israel, even though the Palestinian group committed murderous atrocities and hostage seizures of Israeli civilians from homes, streets and even a music festival in central and southern Israel. In a telephone call with Haniyeh, President Ebrahim Raisi called the attack "the fulfillment of the 70-year-old expectation of the Palestinian nation and the Islamic Ummah (nation)." PIJ-Iran TiesKhomeini influenced the ideology of PIJ co-founders Shikaki and Abd al Aziz Awda, a preacher. Iran started funding PIJ in 1987, according to Shikaki. PIJ ties with Tehran deepened after Israel deported Shikaki and other PIJ operatives to Lebanon in 1988. Iran's Revolutionary Guards provided funding and military support to PIJ at camps in Lebanon and Syria. In 1991, Iran hosted PIJ, Hamas, and other groups for a conference, the International Committee for the Support of the Palestinian Intifada. Tehran sought to counter the Madrid Peace Conference convened that same year to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.PIJ increasingly depended on Iran for support. Starting in 2000, Iran reportedly paid PIJ millions of dollars in cash bonuses for each attack against Israel during the Second Intifada, which lasted until 2005. In 2002, Khamenei promised to increase support by 70 percent. "It is no secret that we say that the military assistance provided to the Palestinian resistance – from A to Z, from bullet to rocket – is assistance from the Islamic republic, Iranian assistance," PIJ spokesman Dawud Shihab said in 2012.PIJ-Iran relations appeared strained in 2015. Iran reportedly stopped or curtailed its financial support after PIJ refused to denounce the Saudi-led offensive against the Houthis, the Iran-backed rebels in Yemen. Tehran shifted support to the smaller and short-lived al Sabirin movement (or "the Patient"), which was headed by Hisham Salem, a former PIJ operative. But the Islamic Republic resumed support for PIJ in 2016. Aid increased to $30 million in 2018, according to Israeli media. "I am proud to say that the rockets that are used to pound Tel Aviv have an Iranian signature on them," Ramez al Halabi said during clashes with Israel in May 2021.In October 2023, Iranian leaders praised PIJ for participating in the Hamas-led attack on Israel. "What happened in the occupied territories and in the battle with the usurping Zionist regime was a huge, unique event in the past 70 years, and you really made the Islamic community happy with this innovative and victorious operation," President Raisi told Nakhalah during a phone call. "We consider the final victory of the Palestinian nation to be a divine promise and the Iranian nation always stands by the freedom-loving and independent nations, and at the top of them is the Palestinian nation."

The Great Depression in Weber County, Utah, is an Oral History Project by Mack S. Taft for completion of his Master's Thesis at Utah State University during the summer of 1969. The interviews address the Great Depression through the eyes of individuals in several different occupations including: Bankers, Laborers, Railroad Workers, Attorneys, Farmers, Educators, Businessmen, Community and Church Leaders, Housewives, Children and Physicians. All of these individuals lived in Weber County from 1929 to 1941. The interviews were based on what they remembered about the depression, how they felt about those events and how it affected their life then and now. ; This is an oral history interview with Herbert Barnes. Mr. Barnes recalls working in a CC Camp during the Depression, the closure of the Ogden State Bank, and recreation during those years. He also talks about his experiences with peers in the CC camp, and the need to move from one job to another after he left it. ; 18p.; 29cm.; 2 bound transcripts; 4 file folders. 1 sound disc: digital; 4 3/4 in. ; Oral History Program Herbert Barnes Interviewed by Mack S. Taft circa 1960s Oral History Program Weber State University Stewart Library Ogden, Utah Herbert Barnes Interviewed by Mack S. Taft circa 1960s Copyright © 2016 by Weber State University, Stewart Library iii Mission Statement The Oral History Program of the Stewart Library was created to preserve the institutional history of Weber State University and the Davis, Ogden and Weber County communities. By conducting carefully researched, recorded, and transcribed interviews, the Oral History Program creates archival oral histories intended for the widest possible use. Interviews are conducted with the goal of eliciting from each participant a full and accurate account of events. The interviews are transcribed, edited for accuracy and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewees (as available), who are encouraged to augment or correct their spoken words. The reviewed and corrected transcripts are indexed, printed, and bound with photographs and illustrative materials as available. The working files, original recording, and archival copies are housed in the University Archives. Project Description The Great Depression in Weber County, Utah, is an Oral History Project by Mack S. Taft for completion of his Master's Thesis at Utah State University during the summer of 1969. The forty-five interviews address the Great Depression through the eyes of individuals in several different occupations including: Bankers, Laborers, Railroad Workers, Attorneys, Farmers, Educators, Businessmen, Community and Church Leaders, Housewives, Children and Physicians. All of these individuals lived in Weber County from 1929 to 1941. The interviews were based on what they remembered about the depression, how they felt about those events and how it affected their life then and now. ____________________________________ Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account. It reflects personal opinion offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ____________________________________ Rights Management This work is the property of the Weber State University, Stewart Library Oral History Program. It may be used freely by individuals for research, teaching and personal use as long as this statement of availability is included in the text. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Barnes, Herbert, an oral history by Mack S. Taft, circa 1960s, WSU Stewart Library Oral History Program, University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, UT. 1 Abstract: This is an oral history interview with Herbert Barnes. Mr. Barnes recalls working in a CC Camp during the Depression, the closure of the Ogden State Bank, and recreation during those years. He also talks about his experiences with peers in the CC camp, and the need to move from one job to another after he left it. The interviewer is Mack Taft. MT: Where did you live during the Depression years? HB: Well, I was living in Hooper at that time. The first that I remember of the Depression as being called such was when the Ogden State Bank was closed. That was the first talk that I remember much about. But I do remember this - that at the time it closed, I had a few dollars in there, and I lost the most of it. I think I only got $3 or $4 out of it, but I thought that I had sustained a very great loss. From that time on, I was conscious of the Depression. MT: What type of work did you do during the Depression years? HB: Well, at the beginning of it, I was rather small. As I remember in 1929, I was still in the grade school and just working with my two uncles - one, Leslie Powers, where I lived, and the other, George Powers. I worked for them in the summer months. During the winter I was, of course, in school. I would do chores both morning and night for either a neighbor or a relative or someone else. MT: During the latter part of the Depression, I understand you went into the CC Camp. Is that correct? HB: Well, I got out of school in 1936, and I looked all around for a job and couldn't find anything that would pay any kind of wages at all, or anything that was work, so that you could even say that you were working. So I had a chance to go into 2 the camp as a local man, and the place that I went first was down at Milford, Utah. I was only there for a short time, and then they transferred me back to Bountiful, from which place I could work in Salt Lake. I went to school there and learned drafting and photography and the things that they had us do. The things that we were doing at that time was working in the State Land Office, and the Federal Land Office, and working plats and things like they do in the county office. We learned how to make these plats so that they could be used in court and so that they would be of service to the Land Management Division. They called it at that time the Division of Grazing. MT: That big project that they had on Bountiful Peak, could you tell me anything about that? HB: Well, I really don't know very much about what the camps were doing in general. I went there once, but our work was entirely in the State Land Office and the Federal Land Office in Salt Lake City. Now, the majority of the boys that were in that camp belonged to a different division entirely. Part of them worked out at Woods Cross Bird Refuge, and a number of others did flood control work on the mountain. There was some planting of trees and brush, but I never was out on any of their projects to see what they had done. I know what the boys were doing at the time that I was there, but we were working when they were working, and during off-times, we went other places. MT: What seemed to give you the most difficulty during the Depression years, clothing or food? 3 HB: Well, neither one was a terrific job, although nobody had any money to spend. Most people didn't have money for luxuries during those days, but since your neighbor didn't have them, you didn't worry much about them either. The main mode of travel during that time had changed to the automobile, but kids didn't have the automobile to run with. The older people had the automobile, and the kids were allowed to drive a little in the daytime, but that was before the driver's license was in effect. So we didn't have to worry about being picked up by the local Highway Patrol. If you could sit behind the wheel and steer it down the road and stop it when you needed to, that's all that was asked. When the driver's license first came out, there were only about two or three questions that they asked. One of them was, do you know how to drive a car? The other was, have you got twenty-five cents to pay for the license? They did expect you, I believe, to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, but they weren't very strict with it at all. As far as I know, I never had to show a driver's license until around the year 1939 or 1940. Nobody ever cared. In fact, if you could find a job for $1,100, it was wonderful. Now, as a kid, I worked mostly in the summers for $1 a week, and my board and usually most of the dollar went into .22 shells, and a few luxuries at the store like candy. Money didn't mean a whole lot because the other kids didn't have any. If the other kids would have had money to spend to go to the shows and go places, it would have meant more. But at that time, if we did get any money we could spare, of course it went into groceries and clothes and the places that it had to go. But everybody had a deal worked out so that they could make a living one way or another. 4 Wages were very, very low. But at the same time, the merchandise that you needed to live on didn't cost much either. MT: What do you remember about the celebrations? HB: Oh, they were a big thing as far as the town was concerned. Usually they'd start between four and five in the morning with the brass band being driven around the town in a wagon, and their tones would carry further in the air. As they drove past the houses, they would wake everybody up, and sometimes they would yell from the wagon to get up and get going. "Let's see you at the celebration in a little while." And then things would usually get going at about 8:30 or 9:00. By 9:00 or shortly after, they would have the program starting, and it would go until noon. At the same time that was going, they would have the kids in their games and things out behind the grandstand. Of course they always had these little places where they sold root beer and Cokes and candy bars. Usually about thirty cents a day was what we spent at one of those places in a day. We spent half our money in the morning, and the other half in the afternoon. That would go then about as far as fifty cents does now. Then in the afternoon, they would have a baseball game and horse races, and they just had a real celebration. Then at night, they had a dance, and they had something to do until the last one home at night was just really dragging, I'll tell you. It was a day back then, and the park was loaded. It seemed like sometimes you'd have to hunt for hours for the one you were looking for, because everyone in the country was there. MT: Did they have regular dances there? 5 HB: Yes, they did, usually on Saturday night. That was a big night, and usually the dances were pretty good. I remember that, at the time, I didn't get in on too many of them, but dances were a big thing back in those years. Another thing that was big, was the plays that the town put on. They would have plays two, three, and four times a month, and the casts would all come from the town there, and would put on those plays. You would get into the play on your budget ticket that you got from the ward. Those budget tickets would cost the family anywhere from $3 to $5, and later on it got up to $10. When it got up to $10, people thought that it was pretty high. But during most of those rough years, the budget ticket for the family was only $3 to $5, and that was for the year and would get you into everything. Of course, the need for money wasn't as great then as it is now because the prices were not the same. As I remember, the Depression wasn't really over until the World War broke. From about 1936 on, it began to get just a little brighter, a little more pick-up in the economy, but it never got into swing until World War II came along. With the war calling for help and for merchandise, the economy picked up. But I would say that it was a good ten or eleven years that the old Depression hung on pretty solid. MT: What did you feel were good results of the Depression? HB: Well, a number of things. People had to learn how to economize. In the early 1920s, money was just a little more plentiful than it was later, and people made some pretty good money in a number of things after World War I. They were beginning to enjoy quite a number of little luxuries, and things were beginning to open up pretty good until the squeeze of 1929, and that affected everybody. A 6 number of people lost their homes and everything that they had, and money became so tight that if anybody had any, they would think twice before they let it go. There wasn't much money spent for quite a number of years. There were a lot of homes lost, a number of businesses lost, and the economy just tightened up to a point that if people had any money, well, they kept it. Those that didn't have it, it was sometimes hard to tell them from the ones that did because nobody was spending much or going many places. As I remember, a vacation then didn't mean that you were going far, and you didn't have very many of them. The automobiles of those days wouldn't take them to California and back in three days like they do now. They went more then on the train. But the train fare then was much cheaper than it is now. Of course the air service hadn't come in yet. If an airplane flew over, everybody would fly out the door to see which way it was going and how big it was. I remember when the radios first came to town. One of the first ones I had a chance to see was over at Thomas Lowe's. We went over there one afternoon and sat very quietly for about two hours and listened to the radio. I guess within the next six to eight months, we had one at our house too, but the radio then was only $25 to $30. That's quite different than it is now, and they didn't have the number of stations that they do now either. Along from about six in the morning, there was cowboy music, the Sons of the Pioneers, and a lot of other cowboy music. It was very popular then when the radio first came out. That was one of the main kinds of music there was on there. We hadn't come into all this jive and rock and this kind of stuff. 7 MT: What other programs did you listen to on the radio at that time? HB: Oh, Amos and Andy was a big one. I can't remember anything hardly about the first radio without Amos and Andy. They were the big ones, and the others I don't remember quite as well now. Maybe if someone mentioned the name, I would remember that too. But right at the minute, it seems that Amos and Andy were the big ones. The Hit Parade was also a big thing. As I remember that, it started along about 1934 or 1935, and by the time it got up to 1937 and 1938, that was quite a big thing. The Hit Parade usually went up about 10 songs, and later it went up to about 20 or more. But they had lots of things that are still played today that used to be on the Hit Parade. About everybody listened to that in the evening. MT: What are some of the big bands that you remember back at that time? HB: Well, I really don't remember any. I know them well enough when I hear them, but I've never been musically inclined enough to remember them. Dorsey is one we used to hear a lot. MT: What about the White City Ballroom? Did you ever go over there? HB: Oh yes. That was the main place for the Ogden area. That was a place that was usually always crowded, but anyway, those were some pretty good dances, too. They would dwarf Hooper's dance a long ways, even though Hooper was good dances. But the ballroom covered the whole intermountain area, and it was always loaded. MT: What about shoe repair? Did most of the places have shoe repair of their own? 8 HB: Well, as far as shoe repair is concerned, you could go into places like Kress's and Woolworth's and so on, and you could buy a pair of rubber soles and glue to put them on with for fifteen or twenty-five cents. You could buy the heels, and a lot of us at that time had a shoe last, and we learned to put the heels on them. We'd glue these soles on them, and that would take care of the minor jobs. You could buy these scout shoes for boys for $1, and I wouldn't say they're good by the standards of today. I don't think they had any arches in them, and I guess a lot of people got their feet ruined by them. But I'll tell you, the leather in them would wear like mule hide. They were tough. And there were repair shops all over, but they didn't charge today's prices. You could go in and get a pair of shoes fixed for $1 or $1.50, and I mean they were fixed. Today, you could buy a new pair of shoes for what it costs to get them repaired. MT: What did you learn in the CC Camps that has been beneficial to you and has stayed with you? HB: Well, I was one of three from this state that were in the camp that I was in. Most of the boys were from out of state. They were from Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, Louisiana, and a few from Ohio and Illinois, in that area. But most of the boys in that camp were the hillbillies of Kentucky, West Virginia, and Tennessee. They were downright mean, and they could play the harmonica, banjo, and guitar like I've never heard since, and do all kinds of dancing. I'm talking about the step dances and the stomps, and the kinds where you get up on the stage and entertain. But when I say mean, they would fight with their fists and knives and brass knuckles and clubs, and they didn't mind smuggling in guns and trying 9 them, too. I've seen them get mad and battered and cut, and I've seen boys from that group go into the penitentiary. I wouldn't be surprised if they still might be there. They went in for murder and rape and everything under the sun. Most of those boys were illiterate. They couldn't read, they couldn't write, but you couldn't cheat them on money. They knew everything down to the cent no matter how much you were talking about. They couldn't write their names. They had to put an X and have someone else sign under it. They didn't know anything, and they didn't want to know anything, but they could scrap. And they didn't mind a practical joke. If it got to be past a joke, that was just that much more fun. If they could get your goat, why they'd take that and your hide too. At night they might come in at midnight and give your bed a flip, and you'd land on your face on the floor and the bed on top of you. To them, that was a joke. MT: Are you still profiting from some of the things that you learned there? HB: Well, yes. I had experiences there that I will never forget. I could maybe go into a few of them. I learned a lot about drafting and photography, and the way the government operates as far as the land management is concerned. I learned how to read plats and know what they're talking about when they mention townships and meridians and all of these things, although I have not had much to do with them for years. It was a good basis and a good thing to learn. Even though I was with these boys from out of state, I didn't let that bother me. I had a lot of evenings to spend, and so I decided that since I had time to waste, I might as well profit by it if I could. 10 So about this time, Alida went on a mission. I wanted to go, so I tried to figure out a way to get enough money to go. I couldn't make enough to save. My mother wasn't working at a job that would bring enough money that she could keep me there, and there wasn't a relative with money enough, and the ward claimed that they were too poor. There was just no way that I could go on a mission. So I started work with the boys in the camp down there, and I converted three of the boys from the camp into the [LDS] Church. I know where two of them are today; one of them is a bishop back in Illinois, and the other is on the high council up in Canada. The other one I saw about five years after I brought him into the church, and I've never seen him since. But I was able to work with these boys long enough and often enough that I brought them in, and there were a good many others that I think I softened their hides. I was able to baptize some of them myself. MT: Is there anything else that you can think of that might be of interest? HB: Well, they had to have these camps to keep the young people off the streets, to keep them out of trouble. There was too many young people on the road; they were hitchhiking and were traveling all over, and there was no work at home, whether it was in California or Utah, in Minnesota or New York, or anywhere. There just wasn't any work anywhere. President Roosevelt decided that something had to be done, that crime was on the increase, and that all these people out of work and no money to pay them. They decided they didn't want just the WPA projects out of it. They wanted to teach the boys, to give them some military training - not with a gun, they didn't 11 do that. But they had to get up at 5:30 or 6:00 in the morning and shave and take a shower and clean up, and they had to get out to roll call and go to breakfast. They had to make their beds and be out in the truck to go to work at 7:30 or 8:00. They came back at noon if they were close enough, and then they came back at 4:30. They would have about an hour to do what they wanted to do or needed to do before supper. Then after supper, if they could get leave to go off the post, they could go wherever they wanted to go. Or if they stayed on the post, there were libraries and all kinds of training sessions. Of course there were a lot of them that had to take turns on KP, and they learned to peel potatoes by the sack. In the group that I was in, there were about 30-40 men, and they had to be fed three times a day. A lot of them learned to be cooks and learned to do other things. A lot of them found their life's work from their camps. Some of them learned to be auto mechanics, truck drivers, and tractor drivers, and they learned to survey and just all kinds of things. And a good many of those boys were not only off the streets for a period of time from one to three years, but they did have a chance to earn from $30 a month to $45 a month, gaining the training, and they had a chance to be moved around the country, sometimes two and three times while they were in these camps. They were put out of the area in which they lived so that they did see a new part of the country. It was a good experience for many of them. It at least got them off the streets and out of their folks' hair, and gave them something to do for a period of time. If they wanted to re-enlist, why, they could stay in for sometimes quite a 12 number of years. I guess quite a number of them were in three, four, five, and six years. Some of them couldn't get out fast enough, and some of them didn't want to leave. The training in there was almost as strict as it was in the military except that we never had to carry a gun. We had to take calisthenics, and they had to jump to the whistle and command of the lieutenants, captains, and majors, and all this kind of thing. On Sunday, they held a Protestant and Mormon service. Now in my camp, they were mostly all Catholics; there were very few Protestants, and no Mormons, only just four or five of us. Of course on weekends, I would take quite a number of the boys, and we would go into Ogden. I would see that they went to church with me. If they were coming to my place to stay for the weekend, they went to church with me. MT: As you look back now, what changes do you think might have been in your life, education-wise, and this kind of thing, if the Depression had not come along? HB: Well, this I don't know. I was really disappointed that I didn't get a chance to go on a mission. Now as I look back on it, that's where my mission was. I probably did much more good in that camp as a missionary than I ever would have done - well, I can't say that. But education-wise, why I don't know if I would have had a chance to go to college or not, or even if I would have wanted to. Jobs were hard to find, and I worked quite a number of good jobs after I got out of the camp. I worked for the Weber Central Dairy. I worked for the Amalgamated Sugar Company, and I worked for little short jobs here and there. But you couldn't get a steady job and stay with it. The institutions were not in a position at that time to hire very many people. All they wanted was to get them 13 over a short rush period. I worked for the California Pack, and just seasonal and short periods, and then the job was done. Then you'd get out and hustle another job. You'd maybe get a few days or weeks or a month, but nothing that you could call a steady job that you could stay with. If you could get a steady job, you were one of the lucky people for quite a few years. The thing that I wanted to do at that time was to be an auto mechanic, but then I'm about as far from that as I can get. I hardly know which end of the car has the motor on it any more.

Issue 61.5 of the Review for Religious, 2002. ; Challenge and Response Life and Death Theory and Reality Time and Eternity SEPTEMBER OCTOBER 2002 VOLUME 61 NUMBER 5 Revie~ forReligious belps p~ople respo~ anit b~ fi~itbful to God's universal call to bbliness . ~, Oy omaki~tff available to,~tbem tbe sp!ritual legacies that flow from tbi cbarismsof Catholic consecrated life. Review for Religious (ISSN 0034-639X) is published bimonthly at Saint Louis University by the Jesuits of the Missouri Province. Editorial Office: 3601 Lindell Boulevard ¯ St. Louis, Missouri 63108-3393 Telephone: 314-977-7363 ¯ Fax: 314-977-7362 E-Mail: review@slu.edu ¯ \Veb site: www.reviewforreligious.org Manuscripts, books for review, and correspondence with the editor: Review for Religious ¯ 3601 Lindell Boulevard ¯ St. Louis, MO 63108-3393 Correspondence about the Canonical Counsel department: Elizabeth McDonough OP Mouut St. Mary's Seminary; Emmitsburg, MaD, land 21727 POSTMASTER Send address changes to Review for Religious ¯ P.O. Box 6070 ¯ Duluth, ~\tN 55806. Periodical postage paid at St. Louis, Missouri, and additional mailing offices. See inside back cover for information on subscription rates. ©2002 Review for Religious Permission is herewith granted to copy any material (articles, poems, reviews) contained in this issue of Review for Religious for personal or internal use, or for the personal or internal use of specific library, clients within the limits outlined in Sections 107 and/or 108 of the United States Copyright Law. All copies made under this permission must bear notice of the source, date, and copyright owner on the first page. This permission is NOT extended to copying for commercial distrihu-tiott, advertising, institutional promotion, or for the creation of new collective works or anthologies. Such permission will only be considered on written application to the Editor, Review for Religious. view for religious LIVING OUR CATHOLIC LEGACIES Editor Associate Editors Canonical Counsel Editor Editorial Staff Advisory Board David L. Fleming SJ Clare Boehmer ASC Philip C. Fischer SJ Elizabeth McDonough OP Mary Ann Fopp~ Tracy Gramm Judy Sharp James and Joan Felling Adrian Gaudin SC Sr. Raymond Marie Gerard FSP Eugene Hensell OSB Ernest Eo Larkin OCarm Bishop Carlos A. Sevilla SJ Miriam D. Ukeritis CSJ SEPTEMBER OCTOBER 2002 VOLUME 61 NUMBER 5 contents 454 challenge and response Fire and Flame, Purification and Vocation Donna Markham OP spells out the healthy interpersonal life necessary for the women and men accepted into ministry. 462 Lessons from a Time of Distress Joel Rippinger OSB reflects as a male, a monastic, and an ordained religious on the sexual-abuse scandal in the church in order to discern the voice of the Spirit and the signs of the times in the events we have experienced. life and death 472 Choose Life: Reflections Ten Years after Five Deaths Regina Siegfried ASC celebrates the tenth anniversary of the murder of five Adorers of the Blood of Christ by noting 1) that Liberia is still in the grip of a life-and-death struggle, 2) that the paschal-mystery chari.sm of the ASCs is in clearer focus, and 3) that ASC mission in Liberia continues on. 481 Made Perfect through Suffering Marie Beha OSC reflects on the meaning of suffering seen in the light of the September triad of feasts--the Exaltation of the Cross, the feast of the Sorrowful Mother, and the Stigmata of St. Francis of Assisi. Review for Religious 494 hsory Right Relationships in Consecrated Life Dennis J. Billy CSSR applies the clear and extensive teaching on the spirituality of communion, what it means to live in right relationships with others, to the community life of reli-gious congregations. 511 Contemporary Theologies of the Vows Ellen M. Leonard CSJ compares and contrasts central ideas about religious life from contemporary writers Barbara Fiand, Diarmuid O'Murchu and Sandra Schneiders. 522 Discouragement Viewed through Mark's Gospel Eugene Hensell OSB enters us into an imaginative reading of Mark's Gospel in order to help contemporary religious communities to move away from our preoccupation with quantity and focus on the quality of our discipleship. 535 Time as Gift Carolyn Humphreys OCDS reviews how we might make time, God's gift to us, our gift back to God. 541 Heaven: The Day the Drilling Stopped Sister Mary Stephen Brueggeman PHJC reviews her changing ideas of heaven which bring her closer to the truth of our life forever with God. flep r n en s 452 Prisms 546 Canonical Counsel: Automatic Dismissal 552 Book Reviews September-October 2002 prisms L the United States the first anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attack upon the New York World Trade Center towers and the Washington DC Pentagon headquarters rouses many reflections about the changes in daily life that this vivid sad event brought about. With the subsequent anthrax scare, mail service was delayed and has never fully recovered because of precautionary restrictions on packages and letters. Any major public event-- sporting, political, musical, and even religious--now includes the aspect of a heightened security. Even more evidently, the rigorous security screening that has been imposed upon all air travelers has caused a reduction in the number of passengers, no matter how hard the major airlines have tried to entice them back. Review for Religious, too, has been affected by the September 11 events. Let me share with you how I have experienced this effect. In my fourteen years as editor, I have generally had a large number of manuscripts--unsolicited--flowing across my desk. I estimate that among them I have chosen one third for publication. But last October to January, it was as if the river had run dry. The flow of manuscripts became a trickle, and there was little improvement until the recent summer months. Why such a dramatic and universal change, including even our writers from other parts of the world? Let me offer an interpretation of this phe- Revie'~ for Religious nomenon. There is a classic book about mystical prayer, by an anonymous author, titled The Cloud of Unknowing. I do not want to talk about mystical prayer, but I would like to describe our human status after September 11 as entering a cloud of unknowing. The events of that day raised up life-and-death questions, yes, but more than that. An urge to examine human relationships, religious motivations, social inequalities, and the secularizing of world cultures came to the fore. In addition to these huge issues came the church scandal of sex-abuse by priests and the mishandling of these cases by bishops. Questions abounded, but not many ways of making an ade-quate response. In this tumultuous milieu, talking of pieties and priestly service and religious-life problems seemed unimportant or even petty. Important issues had arisen, and dealing with them seemed far more necessary than writing about them. I was reminded of St. Paul's words "we are perplexed, but not in despair." I believe that we all were caught in a kind of cloud of not knowing what to think or say. We were perplexed, but our mood was not one of despair. True, article submissions show something of a rebound in recent months. But I am under no illusions. Just as we live with the continuing effects of this day, so I believe that we will continue to find that our thoughts are being stirred in new ways, our affect is being shaped, and our choices are being challenged. We still remain perplexed. September 11 is more than a tragic event in one nation's history. The year just past has seen dyings in many aspects of civil and church life. We have entered a new era of examina-tion of our humanity in relation to one another and to God. The September I 1 event challenges the secular domination of any one culture and demands that social inequities within coun-tries and between countrie~ be dealt with in new ways. With St. Paul, we too can say that we are always carrying about in our body the dying of Jesus, the confusion that sin is and brings. But we live--and our authors are continuing to write--so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body. Our hope finds expression in this prayer: "On each of our dyings, shed your light and your love." David L. Fleming SJ September-October 2002 DONNA MARKHAM challenge and response Fire and Flame, Purification and Vocation What can be said about vocations in the midst of the " fire storm in which we find ourselves these days? How do we encourage idealistic, good-hearted, and generous young women and men to throw their lot in with us in the midst of such sinfulness and pain? Over the course of my Dominican life, when I have been particularly grief-stricken or have found myself afraid or angry or unable to think clearly about a given crisis, I have called upon my Dominican "ancestor" Catherine of Siena to intercede for me, to beg the Spirit to help me. In that spirit I summon up this prayer, written by a contemporary Dominican woman, Patricia F. Walter, to set the scene for these reflections: Fire of Exodus, Flame of Pentecost, time and again you have beckoned us into the desert and propelled us from the upper room. Melt our resistance, dispel the frost of fear. Enkindle our longing, warm our compassion, and transform us in your fiery Spirit. Donna Markham OP, executive director of Southdown, presented these reflections (here somewhat edited and abridged) as a talk at the Serra International Convention in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on 30June 2002. Her address is Southdown; 1335 St. John's Sideroad East; RR #2, Aurora, Ontario; Canada L4G 3G8. Review for Religious Living Flame of Love, burn deep within us. Give us the strength to endure the heat and set our hearts afire. Catherine herself lived in and preached to a church in crisis. She was somewhat of a scandal in her day. She was a woman who others felt did not know her place, a woman who went into prisons, a woman who traveled with men, a woman seeming "not too tightly wrapped" as she spoke with God in strange ways, a bold woman who dared confront the pope. Nonetheless, we see in her the fusion of wisdom and love that led her to the marginalized and suffering poor, and also to the suffering within herself. God does not call perfect people to discipleship. As Catherine faced the suffering deep within the church and the suffering deep within herself, the dark side of life and of her own personality became apparent to her, and she faced it. She was not afraid to respond to God's call. "Vghen we are whom we are called to be, we will set the world ablaze," she wrote. It was in that conviction that she extended her love unreservedly to those she met along the way. Her compassion and mercy touched the imprisoned, the terminally ill, the intellectually misled, those condemned to die, and social pariahs of all sorts. Her loving determination to be true to whom God called her to be emboldened her. She found the courage to take on some of the most painful situations of her day. Catherine shows us that, even when everything is stripped away (our status, our security, our comfort), if we are whom God has called us to be, unreservedly extending ourselves to suffering people of every kind, we will fill our world with the fire of Pentecost. This is the Christian vocation. It is to this that we dare to call our young people, to be dedicated women and men of Jesus' gospel-- persons who, true to their personal call, bring healing and mercy into this broken world. God does not call perfect people to discipleship. Our Contemporary Context These days we Catholics are experiencing how suffering calls us to purification and forgiveness, how it beckons us to September-October 2002 Markham * Fire and Flame, Purification and Vocation transformation. God's Spirit nudges us in our shock and sadness to open our innermost selves ever more humbly to the Pentecostal fire of conversion. We do so in the assurance that a loving and faithful God promised to be with us in the cloud by day and, in the darkness of the night, to be with us as a pillar of fire. So it was for every stage of the Israelites' journey (Ex 40:38), and so it is for this suffering church, brought low and humbled in desert days. We count on God to be with us now, to lead us forward and to call us to purification and transformation. The community of faith needs leaders who are as generous and dedicated as they are unafraid. We count on strong lay leadership, and we count too on those who are willing to give themselves to the service of the gospel as chaste, celibate religious and clergy. Our humbled and sinful church--led by God throughout salvation history and infused with God's spirit-- calls forward those who will lead. We dare to do so knowing full well that this is an extraordinarily complex time, a time of shattered trust, the disillusion of broken shards. At the dawn of this postmodern era, when we face crises in our world and in our church, we more than e~er need leaders who will counter narcissistic individualism and alienated self-reliance. We need leaders who will witness to and proclaim the healing power of a compassionate and merciful God. We cannot settle for mediocrity. Among us are spirit-filled women and men. Members of our families, they are old, young, and in between. We need to believe in the church's power to be an influence toward good; we need to pray for God to call them, and we ourselves need to call them. Rampant skepticism, pervasive questioning, and the deconstruction of authority typify this emerging postmodern era. We can neither turn back history nor simply reapply modern solutions (that worked well several decades ago) to postmodern crises. Walking along humbly and perhaps quite anonymously in these fragmented times are those who will inspire us and help us make sense of what appears chaotic and meaningless. My sense is that the only way we can survive on this planet is by countering postmodern deconstruction with gospel-focused reconstruction. The leaders of the postmodern faith community must be courageous souls willing to pose serious and soul-searching questions. Will we proclaim with our actions and our Review for Religious words the centrality of relationship with God, with the communion of saints? How will we commit to sharing faith across the community of believers, with Christians and with other persons of faith as well? Will we act as agents of healing and reconciliation in our broken world? Will we develop new ways of standing amid the tension of our differences, becoming parmers rather than adversaries in the midst of some inevitable conflict? Clearly, perhaps more than ever, we need clergy, religious, and lay leaders who will help us notice the good that we hold in common and will move us to deepened generosity, justice, compassion, and forgiveness. VCho are these people who will minister among us, this humbled people of God whom we call church? Those who can be instruments of healing and hope; those who will venture into areas of the world, or of the intellect and the soul, where others cannot or will not go; those who will walk into areas of human experience that desperately need the gospel to be proclaimed-- women and men courageous enough to let themselves feel the Spirit's fire, become deeply converted, and thereby lead others to conversion. Aptitude for Priesthood and Religious Life This is no time to settle for less-than-healthy p~ople in our seminaries and formation houses. We do not ask for perfect people, but we ask for fundamentally healthy people. A balanced and healthy spiritual life--people at home before God, with a personal relationship to God--is the basis of a vocation. Without sometimes finding Jesus in the contemplative silence of prayer, and also in activity with and among the worshiping community, ministerial life becomes hollow rhetoric and wooden routine. Similarly, as people's relationship with God must be strong, so must their relationships with others be mature, rich, and fulfilling. We all have memories of relational disasters that have punctuated the history of ministry in the church. Frightened, socially uncomfortable, hostile, and aloof religious and clergy have been professed or ordained, sometimes unwittingly and sometimes as a conscious way of filling slots. At this time we must not repeat such arrangements. Rather, we must count on psychologically stable men and women who can handle the Septentber-October 2002 Markham ¯ Fire and Flame, Purification and Vocation demands of working in a church and world that are in a period of upheaval. The capacity to endure the stresses of this time, remain faithful to the gospel, and proclaim the countercultural message of Jesus' compassion and care is predicated upon mature psychological development. Relationship with God, relationship with others, and relationship with oneself constitute the basic health of ministers of the gospel. The mature human being is able to connect with others, can sometimes separate from others without becoming despondent, and can be interdependent, reliant on others. Without his intimate relationship with God, Moses could not have risked the harshness of the desert, the Israelites' long exile, without a clear home, without even the comfort of a clear destination. All the while, however, the pillar of fire was there. And it is still with us. When we are grounded in relationship with God--even when we are'not certain of the terrain we walk upon, even when we seem lost, even when we are tempted by mirages or seduced by the securities of the past--we dare to continue on. A strong reliance on God enables healthy ministers to rely also on companions in the difficult search for a true and loving response to the signs of these times of ours. Those who cannot relate, who do not have close or sustained friendships, or who are exploitive or manipulative in their interactions with others do not belong in the priesthood or religious life. Nor do stiff, distant, rigid, detached persons who are dismissive or controlling of others. Living with a damaged ability to connect with others in healthy ways, such persons are highly vulnerable to exploitive sexual behavior. As the ability to connect with others and with God is important, so is the ability to take leave, to separate from others. In the spiritual life there are times when God seems silent or distant. Spiritually healthy persons are attuned to the God of silence, the God shrouded in the cloud. Emotionally healthy individuals can tolerate separation. They do not function out of an insatiable neediness for continued nurturance and affirmation. Clingy, demanding, possessive people do not exercise ministry well. Their pastoral style is indecisive, hesitant, and largely ineffective. Good pastoral ministry includes the capacity to be interdependent. Priests and religious must be able to find God in Review for Religious the community of believers, even as they are stretched and challenged within that community. Stand-alone "talking heads" who believe their mission is to infuse knowledge and faith into subordinates manifest the worst of postmodern narcissism. Puffed-up arrogance issues from deep insecurity and gnawing inadequacy. Because they are preoccupied with themselves, their pastoral style is likely to be experienced as secretive and mystifying. The women and men accepted into ministry today must be secure in their personal identity and confident in God's incredibly persistent accompaniment, even in the nighttimes of their experience. They must be deeply aware that the mission of Jesus transcends their own self-focus. We might well ask ourselves what must occur in our admission and formation processes to ensure that those who will be ordained or professed are persons of this kind. As is evident from these comments, a healthy interpersonal life is the place to begin. In her classic book, The Birth of the Living God, psychoanalyst Anna Maria Rizzuto comments exquisitely on the important connection between people's relationship with God and their ability to form relationships with others. People's relational life--including their ability to depend on, separate from, and collaborate with others--is mirrored in their God quest and thus is the touchstone for their spiritual life as well as their ministerial life. This is evident in Moses' life in the desert, in the lives of the disciples' gathered and inspirited in Pentecost's upper room, and in the life of Catherine of Siena bringing the gospel's truth to so many. Implications for Formation When, from their personal experience of candidates, admissions board members have made positive evaluations, those judgments should be confirmed by psychological evaluations. Far from being enemies of the faith journey, the social and behavioral sciences can give candidates valuable insight and assist their continued growth, along with confirming that they have the psychic strength to handle ministry in a restive church. The Thomistic adage that "grace builds on nature" seems apt. That is, we cannot take severely damaged persons into our seminaries September-October 2002 Markham ¯ Fire and Flame, Purification and Vocation and religious communities with the expectation that somehow, if they pray enough, they will be able to take the stress of ministry today with a modicum of effectiveness. That would be unfair to both the individual and the people of God. Psychological evaluation is helpful in screening out those who have personality disorders or cognitive deficits that would interfere with trustworthy and effective ministry. After admission to a seminary or a religious congregation, discernment continues. That two-way process of determining if there is a fit between the individual's gifts and the charism of priesthood or a particular religious institute should be diligently undertaken by the candidate and the formation directors. If either party has any doubt, the process should be terminated. Serious errors are made when either the individual or the formators decide to continue the process in spite of serious concerns. The candidate who says he or she must simply pray harder in order to be happy and at peace in the life, or the formator who says "Let's give him one more chance" or "Let's send her to psychotherapy," is setting the stage for unhappiness or, worse, for future ministerial dysfunction. The discernment process must take place in prayer and serious dialogue. Wonderfully dedicated persons may not be called to a life of chaste celibate ministry. Doubts on either side necessitate making the difficult decision to terminate the process. In light of the demands of these times, other things too seem imperative in fostering healthy vocations in seminaries and houses of formation. Along with necessary courses of study, serious spiritual direction by trained directors is probably more important today than it ever has been. The general quest for meaning in our culture, people's longing for connection to the Sacred, and pervasive skepticism affect all of us and inevitably affect the spiritual life of candidates for priesthood and religious life. Assisting candidates to have a contemplative personal relationship with God and to be comfortable seeking harmony with God's spirit active in our world is surely a crucial undertaking of the formation process. Candidates today must experience a radical call to ministry. They must have a strong altruistic desire to extend themselves to others, especially those in critical need. Central to formation, and I would say crucial today, is some form of immersion among Review for Religious the marginalized, the disenfranchised, the suffering, the angry. The world cries out for compassion and healing. People yearn for the love that can cast out the terror that lurks in corners of rage and despair. Without burning desires to put lives wholeheartedly at the service of Jesus' mission, without willingness to feel uncomfortable or inadequate, ministry in the postmodern marketplace is likely to be sadly ineffective. Critical and Creative Fire It is my growing sense that we are not engaging in formation in ways that meet the needs of persons preparing to minister in this time. I wonder if we are not still imposing modern solutions on postmodern realities. In a world disconnected, divided, and fragmented, heightened attention to community-building seems crucially needed. With our seminaries and houses of formation still separated from the culture, I wonder if we are missing something terribly significant as we prepare people to be healing agents in that culture. Regarding formation, critical and creative thought is needed. Varied apostolic opportun-ities, cooperation across gender lines, and intelligent immersion in the crises of these times must be balanced by solid theological knowledge and spiritual experience and commitment. We search for ways to promote vocations, and we strive to have minds and hearts ever more ready for the fire of God's Spirit. We believe that our faith life is precious, that healing can and will happen, that there is more life than death, no matter how cold or dark things may seem. Like Catherine, we too pray that our resistance may be melted, that the frost of our fear may be dispelled, and that, warming us by burning away impurities in us, God will give us a fierce fervor that can set hearts of the next generation on fir!! In a world disconnected, divided, and fragmented, heightened attention to community-building seems crucially needed. Septentber-October 2002 JOEL RIPPINGER Lessons from a Time of Distress Inf the citizens of the United States developed an entirely ew way of looking at things in the months after 11 September 2001, members of the Roman Catholic Church in North America underwent a similar transformation in the first six months of 2002. The numbing succession of stories on cler-ical sexual abuse, episcopal cover-ups, and lay outrage over the betrayal of trust by church authorities have constituted a seismic shock, whose tremors continue within the Catholic Church in the United States. The reaction of laity and religious alike has been accelerated and imensified by the extensive media cover-age of these matters. In describing American Catholic reaction to the sexual-abuse scandal, one can say that it is equal parts outrage, sad-ness, and alienation. One of the notable and positive consequences of these events is that church authorities have given greater heed to the voices of Catholic lay people. Opinions of the laity are now received with a seriousness and sympathy that until recently were hard to detect. This development is all to the good. At the same time, the ordained in the church and those in positions of authority have been chastened and humbled more than many would have thought possible, an eventuality that few think would ever have been self-initiated. All that being said, a perspective on recent events that has not received much attention is that of religious in the church. Joel Rippinger OSB writes from Marmion Abbey; Butterfield Road; Aurora, Illinois 60504. Review for Religious More particularly, I can speak from the position of a male, a monastic, and an ordained religious. Perhaps more uniquely, I can speak as an historian whose perspective sees all that has occurred as an unprecedented watershed in the church's his-tory. From this perspective my hope is that my reflection may enable fellow religious to discern the voice of the Spirit and the signs of the times in the events we have experienced. Before attempting an objective historical judgment of this crisis in Catholicism, an inventory of personal emotions seems appropriate. The images that come to mind are of being caught in a storm at sea without a rudder or being thrown into one plot twist after another like a character in an action film. For any man who spent all of his adult years as a religious (and then also as ordained), never before these events was there a need to cope with a feeling of collective shame. If at one time vowed celibates sometimes felt that they were being distortedly per-ceived as asexual persons or just marginalized singles, now they felt that people were perceiving them as among the sexually perverse. The sense of accomplishment that for many years had accompanied their apostolic labors was now undercut by reve-lations that the very people being served had been betrayed by ministers themselves. People have long been aware, of course, that religious have in their communities a support system that diocesan priests and numerous lay ministers often do not have. I agonize over the plight of the growing number of new DPs, not displaced persons but displaced priests, men who have been removed from their assignments as a result of allegations but who lack access to the same network of healing that religious communities have and who, hounded by the press, seem to have become nonpersons like people struck from party lists in totalitarian states. For the increasing number of religious engaged in the ministry of spir-itual direction, the size of the crisis is soon evident. Lawyers and public-relations personnel for dioceses find themselves in a war zone as they face a hostile press and wounded families of vic-tims of sexual abuse. Catholic social services confront the dispir-iting discovery that their funds have been siphoned away for payments to victims of sexual abuse. Ranks of good priests find their public profile diminished and their spiritual strength sapped as they go about their ministry with the self-conscious- Septeml~er-October 2002 Rippinger ¯ Lessons from a Time of Distress ness that comes from ,facing misplaced suspicion at every turn. It is arresting to consider that among the few safe places of hos-pitality and confraternity for these persons to seek restoration in are religious houses. The Lens of History When one looks at the present crisis historically, a number of seminal issues come to the surface. The first is that nativist and anti-Catholic sentiment, so powerful in various periods of American history, has reappeared. That sentiment was clearly seen in the way that the secular press seized on the issue of sex-ual abuse. The New Yorker and National Review, the Boston Globe and the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, odd bedfellows on other topics, joined in their insistence on full disclosure and even in their misunderstandings of Catholic teaching. The confusion of the vow of consecrated celibacy of religious and the promise of celibacy taken by diocesan priests was only one of many errors regarding the Catholic Church that appeared in the press. Fact checkers could be unconcerned that some simple down-to-earth accuracy escaped their investigative radar scanning. The print media, however, paled in comparison with the television indus-try. The traditional networks and the cable news leaders were both drawn to the story. Whether it was the American cardi-nals meeting in Rome or the American bishops meeting in Dallas, the confluence of church symbolism, sexuality, and inept or corrupt authority drew coverage that smacked of tabloid jour-nalism. (One had to strain to find any voice given to superiors of religious houses or congregations. With a few notable excep-tions, both local and national networks ignored that realm of Catholic vowed life.) In all this, one wonders what direction the film industry, already given to frequent caricatures of Catholic priests and religious, might take in future screenplays involving the church. Compared with earlier periods of anti-Catholicism in American history, however, contemporary treatment is less offensive. When one thinks of the fictionalized treatment of women's religious life in The Awful Disclosures of Maria Monk in the period prior to the Civil War, even the present-day embel-lished broadsides are slight in comparison. As much as the polit- Review for Religious ical cartoons that burst into the attention of the American pub-lic in 2002 seemed to lack all respect for the institutional church, they do not approach the Thomas Nast cartoons of the 19th century or the caricatures of Al Smith when he ran for president in 1928. An element of the current crisis that is a significant change in popular perception of the Catholic Church in the United States is an anticlerical slant. The American hierarchy, which until recent years had been heralded for its leadership regarding respect for life and in forming public policy on social-justice issues, was now the target of not only mavens of the media but also many ordinary Catholics. On the intertwined matters of sex and money and power, people scrutinized the conduct of the church's ordained authority figures. For those called to witness to the evangeli-cal counsels of consecrated celibacy, poverty, and obedience, there was little chance to miss the irony. While the United States for years resisted the per-vasive anticlericalism of European nations such as France, Italy, and Spain, it is increasingly evident that the status of the ordained in North America has been reduced markedly. Although this reduced status has not been felt with the same forcefulness among religious men and women, the high percentage of ordained members among the former and people's proclivity to think of both groups together sug-gest that the status of religious in Catholic eyes will be not be as high as it was up to the council. Beyond any doubt, there is a growing resentment toward the clerical culture of recent years. Whether directed towards closeted decision making by bishops or towards an air of unassailable authority among local priests, resentment is real and not restricted to feminists or to lay men and women with liberal agendas. Establishing the extent of this resentment by opinion polls would not seem as pressing a need as dealing with discernible causes of such resentment. It is hard to gauge just how powerful the media were in generating adverse public opinion against the Catholic Church Nativist and anti- Catholic sentiment, so powerful in various periods of American history, has reappeared. September-October 2002 Rippinger ¯ Lessons from a Time of Distress Scandalous behavior on the part of the clergy and religious, and also closeted policy making on the part of bishops, have been recurrent themes of American Catholic history. in the face of so much questionable behavior. Today's media have no real historical antecedent. The media treatments of Watergate and Humanae vitae provide matter for suggestive comparison but not for accurate assessment. In the public eye, the hierarchy and its representativesappear to have suffered an erosion of credibility that is without parallel. Insofar as this will have an effect on the church's image as a whole, it is bound to undermine the perception that ordinary Catholics and others have of members of religious congregations. Another historical perspective worth noting is that scandalous behav-ior on the part of the clergy and reli-gious, and also closeted policy making on the part of bishops, have been recur-rent themes of American Catholic his-tory, not merely developments of recent years. One strains to see such histori-cal awareness present in assessments of today's situation. Before the screening mechanisms of today, communities of men and women religious often took in individuals whose pasts were at best questionable. When sexual promiscuity or the misuse of alcohol occurred, typically it would take place outside the cloister and.involve the clergy in their pastoral assignments. When such misconduct became known publicly, the tolerance of the faithful was amazing, especially when the perpetrators would be reassigned to other parishes or missions. Therapeutic interventions and the reporting of specifically criminal actions to civil authorities were absent as procedural options until recent decades. Even many years after these events, historians found themselves frustrated by the selective purging of pertinent correspondence or data in community and diocesan archives. The upshot was that the press did not have access to records in the manner that exists today. In addition, there was an understanding that journalists would not cross a line in regard to investigating Catholic Church institutions. The culture that produced Hollywood's idealized images of priests and religious Review for Religious portrayed by Spencer Tracy, Bing Crosby, Loretta Young, Gregory Peck, and Ingrid Bergrnan did not deem it appropriate to uncover the darker side of that image. New Aspects of the Present Crisis One striking irony in the unfolding of recent events in the sexual-abuse scandal is the supporting cast that came into the public eye. The pray, pay, and obey lay people of the preconciliar era had now acquired positions of power and influence within the church. So, although the persons accused of criminal or immoral behavior were almost exclusively male and ordained, the church voices being heard were largely lay and even female. Women religious serving as chancellors (coordinating the func-tioning of diocesan offices) were asked to speak for the church. Lawyers, whether representing victims or perpetrators, pro-fessed their Catholicism and often a background of Catholic education. Catholic education, in fact, has had a role in the overall picture of the current sexual-abuse crisis. The primary apostolic work of many religious communi-ties, religious education has proved to be the very venue in which much sexual abuse took place. The large-scale lawsuits instituted against orders in Canada and the United States (to say nothing of Ireland and Australia) for systematic victimization of students signaled how vulnerable these institutions had become. The moral scandal in all of this seems to have been more the sin of omission by persons in authority who failed to intervene than the sexual crimes themselves. Some critics took note of the lack not only of moral integrity among administra-tors of Catholic schools, but also of a professional stance and adequate structures to deal with such criminal behavior. In both cases, administrators of religious schools were forced to admit to a complicity in allowing perpetrators of abuses to continue in their work. This situation pointed to a real deficiency in religious for-mation as well. Just as the sexual-abuse scandals in the United States in the last half of the 20th century indicated the flawed formation provided for many priests in seminaries, so too the formation programs of religious communities do not appear to have prepared people well for celibate commitment. Celibacy September-October 2002 Rippinger * Lessons from a Time of Distress and sexuality in formation programs were usually treated only in a general and allusive way that was felt to be circumspect, seldom with a candid and detailed explanation of realistic areas of struggle. An even sadder irony is that considerable numbers of vocations to the religious life were themselves sexually abused. Fear of divulging any information about such abuse only made the climate of conflicted feelings and shame more pronounced. Maintaining that secret and carrying the hurt of their past exacted a price that religious orders are only beginning to real-ize. As important as the vow of consecrated celibacy was for the identity and witness of all religious, it did not "keep up" with the culture. The sexually saturated American culture since the 1960s sent people to religious houses with sexual experience and atri-tudes that were considerably removed from, if not at cross pur-poses with, the ascetical tools they were expected to acquire in their spiritual life. For many generations, candidates came to religious com-munities at an early age and led lives sheltered from the wider world. In recent decades, more mature (that is, older) candi-dates with more education and more independent and sophis-ticated career experience made for an entirely different set of expectations. As much as Generation Xers and the millennium generation were recognized as requiring a new manner of for-marion, especially for developing the skills required by a celibate commitment and for developing a deeper understanding of their sexual identity, formation programs that provided this were the exception rather than the rule. Sadly, too, the emerging need in the last decades of the 20th century to assist older religious who had awakened to their sexuality as a more complex reality than they had previously realized was typically overlooked or ignored by religious communities. In recent years there has been tension and conflict between the discipline of psychology and the more traditional skills of the spiritual life such as fasting, mortification, and a deepening prayer life. Too frequently the matter appeared as an either/or proposition. Either one bought into the therapeutic model and relied upon the work and recommendations of trained clini-cians to deal with misbehavior, or one thought that only an ascetically proficient religious could be trusted to give effective witness. In truth, both the discipline of psychology and the tra- R~vie~ for Religious ditional methods of acquiring gospel holiness were needed as partners, not opponents. Religious superiors, many of whom had trained therapists in their communities, began to see the need to model such a partnership. Another facet of religious life that has been accentuated by the distressing events affecting the larger church has been, for want of a better term, a sense of entitlement. Part of the judg-ment rendered on the American ~riesthood by contemporary observers is that ordained men have generally been encouraged to see themselves as special, people having a status that put them on a pedestal. The connection of this attitude with nar-cissistic behavior and a feeling of deserved entitlement is not hard to make. The same holds true for the attitudes of exclu-sivity and domination that were attached to the role of the ordained. Insofar as religious communities, consciously or unconsciously, adopt such attitudes, they play into the hands of those who want to write them off as irrelevant to the modern world. One of the commonly employed descriptions of religious life in the last forty years of renewal has been its prophetic role. The term implies a forceful, unsparing, and honest stance in the face of evil or oppression. The fact that the veil on much of the evil behavior in the Catholic Church had to be lifted by persons and institutions outside it says much about consecrated life's complicity. For many years, communities and congrega-tions expended much energy and resources on the small minor-ity of the "troubled." It became standard operating procedure to deal with such matters in the closed circle of community. The reasons for this seemed evident. First of all, only the superiors would have all the facts to make the decision. And there was the need to respect both promised confidentiality and the good name of the institution. Somehow this learned behavior was able to compromise any impassioned effort to deal with the issues underlying these cases of moral failing and misbehavior. How much of the moti-vation behind this was because of religious obedience and humil-ity and how much of it was indifference and a desperate desire to preserve an image is hard to say. But the fact remains that few voices of prominence from the ranks of religious (one thinks of the Dominican Father Thomas Doyle, whose recommendations September-October 2002 Rippinger ¯ Lessons from a Time of Distress on sexual abuse to the American bishops in 1985 were largely filed away) were willing to play David against the Goliath of the church hierarchy. In some respects, many church authorities, when confronted with the revelation in early 2001 of sexual abuse of religious women in Africa by church figures, were other instances of not wanting to hear the prophetic voice. The history of religious life tends to teach that the minis-terial needs of each generation change, and so religious com-munities have to adapt to those needs. The church today would do well to prepare a good number of compassionate and com-petent men and women religious to minister to the victims of sexual abuse. The great capacity of religious in previous eras to form new ministries and institutions to deal with changing pas-toral needs will be tested again in this case. The professional training needed to provide such personnel should be a part of ordinary programs of formation. If seminaries throughout the United States are now committed to detailed screening and comprehensive instruction in the area of sexuality and celibate skills, religious communities should do no less. Historians can also be of assistance in future years. When one reads the available popular or scholarly histories of reli-gious congregations and communities in the United States (and they are many), one searches largely in vain for any serious or systematic discussion of sexual misbehavior, or of substance abuse and severe emotional problems. Part of the reason for this, as alluded to earlier, is that much of the record of such activity has been expunged from archives and other records. But there is no evading the truth that such scandals have had an influence on the character and development of many commu-nities and congregations. A beginning needs to be made towards having discreet, honest, and sensitive histories written on such matters so that the problem of silence and averted eyes no longer prevails. In the history of the modern church and modern conse-crated life, real transformation and spiritual progress have almost always been initiated by outside events. The Protestant Reformation and the French Revolution's destruction of reli-gious houses had positive effects within the Catholic Church. Reformed congregations and new houses of religious emerged to confront the new challenges of the time. Review for Religious The situation today, in the church and in North American relig!ous life, has similarities with those earlier historical moments. As much as the current crisis contains elements that are entirely new (for example, the mass media that shape much of public opinion and the "age of litigation" that surrounds the church in the United States), there nonetheless is much to learn from both the distant and the immediate past. New voices must be heeded, and a new genera-tion of leaders will be needed to change church and com-munity structures that have failed. To accomplish that daunting challenge, they must preserve the best of tradition and listen more carefully than their predecessors to the lessons of the past and the voice of the faithful around them. New approaches to ministry will be proposed, and they will enlist the ranks of religious women and men to The church today would do well to prepare a good number of compassionate and competent men and women religious to minister to the victims of sexual abuse. redirect their commitment and their resources. A new paradigm of formation in religious life must more realistically and pro-foundly prepare people to live a celibate commitment. Such a paradigm will blend the distinctive charism of tradition with the revised understanding of how religious life at the dawn of the new millennium has been changed unalterably by yet another tectonic shift in the geography of consecrated life. The proto-cols of the past (whether they be called secrecy, damage control, or protecting the institutional image at the expense of individ-uals) have been found wanting. It is incumbent upon the present and future generations of religious to effect a conversion wor-thy of their vowed commitment. September-October 2002 life and death REGINA SIEGFRIED Choose Life: Reflections Ten Years after Five Deaths Ten years ago five Adorers of ~he Blood of Christ were murdered in Liberia, where the congregation had had missionaries for twenty-two years. It seemed then that the deaths ended what the sisters had worked hard to build. God, though, told us long ago: "I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live" (Dr 30:19). Now, ten years later, some of the picture does not look nearly as bleak as it did in 1992. Three things are more obvious now than they were when the five Adorers were killed on 20 and 23 October 1992. One is that Liberia is still in the grip of a life-and-death struggle; another is that the paschal-mystery charism of the ASCs is in clearer focus for many members. The third is that the ASC mission in Liberia has not ended with the deaths of the five missionaries. Commemorating the tenth anniversary and celebrating the lives of the five murdered ASCs, this article focuses not on their deaths Regina Siegfried ASC last wrote for us in our May-June 2002 issue. Her address is Department of Theological Studies; Saint Louis University; P.O. Box 56907; St. Louis, Missouri 63156. Revi~'w for Religious but on the situation in Liberia and on the valiant spirits of people there who continue their legacy. The community's mission in Liberia began in 1970 in the coastal village of Grand Cess, in the Cape Palmas diocese. By 1984 the Adorers had eleven sisters ministering in Gardnersville (a suburb of the capital city, Monrovia), in Kle, and in Grand Cess. In 1989 civil war broke out, with Charles Taylor leading the rebel forces. Allegedly, rebel soldiers shot Joel Kolmer ASC and Barbara Ann Muttra ASC on a Tuesday, while they were on a short automobile journey away from their Gardnersville convent, and three days later other rebels came to their convent and shot Kathleen McGuire, Agnes Mueller, and Shirley Kolmer. My community has had ten years to assimilate those stark facts, to grieve intensely, to remember lovingly, and now to celebrate gratefully those lives generously poured out. Liberia Ten Years Later To keep these five deaths in perspective, it is necessary to realize that, since 1989, 200,000 Liberians have died; 800,000 more are refugees in neighboring countries and elsewhere. More than 1 million Liberians are internally dis-placed within the country. All of the country's infras-tructure lies in ruins and the economy has collapsed. However, leaders of the seven warring factions in Liberia are engaged in a lucrative underground econ-omy. In June 1996, deputy assistant secretary of state for African affairs. Ambassador William Twaddle testified before Congress that the National Patriotic Front of Liberia alone may have made $75 million a year from the sales of Liberia's timber, iron ore, rub-ber, gold, and diamonds.' The murder of Liberian President Samuel Doe in 1990 brought intense civil war. The seven Adorers then in Liberia fled the country. By March 1991 Sisters Shirley Kolmer and Joel Kolmer returned and were followed in August by Sisters Barbara Ann and Agnes and by newcomer Sister Kathleen. The sisters worked with youth to help them refocus their lives after fighting at too young an age. September-October 2002 After the sisters' deaths in 1992, fighting .continued to devastate the country. In September 1996 Ruth Sando Perry headed the Liberian New Transitional Government. During that same year armed conflict once again erupted in Monrovia, but by August the warring factions signed the Abuja II Peace Accord. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf opposed Charles Taylor, leader of one of the factions; he defeated her for the presidency in May 1997. On 14 March 2001, testifying before the House International Relations Subcommittee on Africa, Senator Russ Feingold unequivocally labeled him a war criminal: "We have all read the appalling accounts of atrocities committed in the region. I believe that some of the responsibility for these terrible abuses rests upon Charles Taylor's shoulders. In fact, I believe that Liberian President Charles Taylor is a war criminal." Jeffrey Bartholet's in-depth article and analysis of Taylor in the 14 May 2001 issue of Newsweek argues that Taylor is "a dictator adrift . He maintains the faCade of democracy, while ensuring that no one threatens his power" (p. 31). In May 2002 the International Herald Tribune reported that fighting had once again broken out in Monrovia. Taylor's government troops attempted to quell a rebel offensive. Adding to Taylor's self-serving indifference to the plight of the people of Liberia are other grim conditions that compound the misery: child soldiers, illegal diamond trade, crumbling and destroyed country-wide infrastructures, and deforestation of a once breathtakingly beautiful and fertile land. Boys orphaned by the war joined factions that offered promises of booty, power, and the glamour of guns. Girls became the mistresses and servants of older soldiers, with rape and resulting pregnancies fo~ girls too young to be mothers. Some children were forced to kill as part of an initiation rite and to ensure their complicity and loyalty to a faction? With the theoretical peace of August 1996, many of the child soldiers were disarmed. But taking guns from children does not mean they are educated, prepared with skills, or rehabilitated for society. Often with no parents, no home, and no school to return to, these child soldiers were well on the way to becoming today's lost young adults. In assessing the plight of the child soldiers, Stephen G. Price, of the office of justice and peace for the Society of African Missions, has written: Revie~a for geligio~,s Rehabilitation requires some kind of reconciliation in the larger Liberian society, where the atrocities of war experience can be faced in some way, and a means of living with the memory of them is achieved. It also involves responsible persons hearing young fighters tell their own stories of personal involvement. The grief, terror, and guilt will be a huge emotional burden, and a bomb waiting to explode again, if it is not expressed.3 Although the war may be technically over in Liberia, the fighting and refugees have spilled into neighboring Sierra Leone. That country's Revolutionary United Front smuggles diamonds through Liberia, where Charles Taylor reportedly takes a cut of the pro~fit.4 The African Faith and JustiCe Network newsletter of March 2001 reports that nongovernment organizations and the United Nations have succeeded in getting the diamond industry to commit itself "to rapidly developing a Certification of Origin system that would allow global markets to exclude diamonds originating in civil-war situations. However, the industry has moved slowly to implement this commitment, prompting more active calls for UN or government action" (p. 5). The same newsletter says that fighting over diamonds has closed so many clinics and pharmacies that people are unable to get appropriate drugs or treatment for common, easily treatable illnesses. Child soldiers, illegal diamond smuggling, and ordinary Liberians without ordinary social services and a working infrastructure--all are signs of death, destruction, and general mayhem. But only on one level. Liberians continue to choose life; the forces for life outnumber the seemingly grim, death-dealing, and nearly hopeless situations they face every day. Their natural tendency toward optimism and a God-centered hope sustain them. Nongovernment organizations such as Catholic Relief Services, the Society of African Missions (SMA fathers), other missionaries, But taking guns from children does not mean they are educated, prepared with skills, or rehabilitated for society. September-October 2002 Siegf!'ied ¯ Choose Life the Africa Faith and Justice Network, Senator Feingold's testimony, the clean diamond act, and programs such as Development, Education, and Leadership Teams in Action (DELTA) and Development Education Network-Liberia (DEN-L) are slowly, surely, and quiedy restoring life to this country. Located in Gbarnga, Bong County, and committed to training lay leaders to "promote grassroots participation in sustainable development and good governance,''5 DEN-L trains workers, community leaders, and unionists to analyze local and national situations and to network, advocate, and work for a Liberia where life is sustainable. DEN-L is but one example of an organization staffed by fearless committed people who envision a country where peace and reconciliation bring new life. The ASC spirit lives on in lay associates who still gather to pray, to remember, to celebrate. Lay people now staff the Catechetical Village Leadership Training Center in Kle, Bomi County, begun by Antoinette Cusimano AS in 1986. The sisters' house in Gardnersville is a clinic. Five Liberian brothers staff Sister Shirley Kolmer School in Barnersville. Sister Kathleen McGuire School is a newly built structure in Cooperfarm, a village near Monrovia. The work of Sister Barbara Ann in healthcare is continued in Tubmanburg and Kle and many surrounding villages by a nurse trained by Barbara Ann and her staff. Another aide trained by Barbara Ann works in the clinic in Kle; the clinic had been the sisters' home. Since it is the custom of the Liberians to name their children after some persons important to them, some Liberian girls now answer to the names of sisters who served in Liberia, including the slain sisters. Despite it all, perhaps because of it all, the spirit nurtured by the five ASCs and other ASC missionaries lives in the people who carry on their legacy without their presence. The missionaries have risen in the people. ASCs Ten Years Later The sisters have risen in the people of Liberia. How do their spirits live in the congregation of Adorers of the Blood of Christ? The answer to that question impels us to focus on the charism, our legacy from Maria de Mattias, founder of the Adorers. The Review for Religious Constitution of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ is quite clear about the charism: Our charism as Adorers of the Blood of Christ is deeply rooted in the death-resurrection mystery of Jesus. Ours is a paschal identity, signed in the blood of the Lamb. As a congregation we are to bear witness in hope and joy to the living presence in our world today of Christ's redeeming love, which gives meaning to human suffering and can render it powerfully liberating and life-giving. (§22) Shaped by and immersed in this basic mystery of Christianity, the Adorers expect this "paschal identity" to permeate their corporate and personal lives. Baptized into the life and death of Jesus, vowed to God as sisters in a congregation whose constitution encourages its members to be "ever more credible witnesses of God's tender love, of which the blood of Jesus is vibrant sign and unending covenant pledge" (§3), the paschal-mystery charism of the Adorers found stark reality in the lives and deaths of the sisters in Liberia. These five credible witnesses lived and died the charism. Charisms of communities are wild, fiery, free, hard to control by law and institutionalization. If this is true of eharisms in general, it is certainly true for the Precious Blood charism, which pulses with the life of the paschal mystery, urging contemplation, speech, and action, impelling us to mission.6 The Precious Blood charism is rooted in historical times that were rife with political and social unrest. Injustice for the poor of society was so common that it was not given much consideration except for the countercultural founder who was on fire with the gospel message of God's reign. Fire and passion for the mission, the urgency to be with the marginalized of society, pushed our founder and our pioneer members to take risks that appeared foolish to the complacent. These are the same qualities that urged five Adorers to return to Liberia in the face of evidence that pointed to staying home, staying safe. Such vision demanded conversion on the part of Maria de Mattias and of the five killed in Liberia. It calls for the same in us. Joe Nassal CPpS writes in a similar vein when he says: To be a disciple of the Precious Blood today is. to stand with those of Matthew 25: the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the ill and im- September-October 2002 Siegfried ¯ Cboose Life Our sisters died because of what they believed in-- God's love for all people, especially the poor and suffering. prisoned. This implies that, when we stand with those who are at the margin of our society, we are no longer in the center ourselves. We allow those with whom Jesus identifies to pull us out of our cozy and comfortable cocoons into the real world where pain and suffering is ever present.7 Ten years ago grief was too raw, tears and disbelief too close, for comfort. But ten years have given the Adorers time and space to contemplate the mystery of those terrible days in late 1992. Life has indeed gone on. We know the slain sisters would expect us to get on with the mission. But, for many Adorers, "getting on with the mission" meant and means soul-searching, questioning, pondering the paschal mystery in a new light. Contemplation of Jesus' life with a focus on the paschal mystery means reflection on the reality of blood poured out for the sake of others. The fact and the symbol of Jesus' shedding of blood calls Christians, especially congregations dedicated to the Precious Blood, to consider the totality of a life gift, the meaning of giving all even to the point of death. From a pragmatic view, both Jesus and the sisters killed in Liberia were in the wrong place at the wrong time, yet they stood up to the wielders of power and the forces of destruction. The disciples of Jesus, like the Adorers, needed to theologize about the meaning of seemingly meaningless deaths. Marcia Kruse, a U.S. Adorer,s reflects that: "Actions and events become signs or symbols of a deeper meaning. Our sisters died because of what they believed in--God's love for all people, especially the poor and suffering. Their lives and deaths are symbols, examples of total giving, and that total giving is what we are called to." Wherese Wetta, another Adorer from the United States, writes: "Five of our Adorers had given their very lives because of their solidarity with the Liberian people. The sisters knew that Review for Religious the Liberian people were brothers and sisters to us, redeemed by the Blood of Christ and sacred in God's eyes." Mini Vadakumchery, an Adorer from India, communicates in the same vein: "They offered themselves as a living sacrifice and answered the cry of the poor. Today I . . . am ready to risk and challenge my life in any situation." Violence, political and social unrest, and neglect of the weakest in society are streams that run through the time of Jesus, through the 19th-century founding of our congregation, and through today's world--the living and dying in the present-day neglected country of Liberia being a prime example. But another stream of compassion, standing with, and advocacy mingles with those deeply stained waters. Whenever people throw in their lot with the disenfranchised of society, with those who need our presence as much as we need theirs, then the saving power of Jesus finds a home, and everyone finds a home. The stream of life weakens the stream of death. This is the cycle of paschal-mystery theology--life ultimately means resurrection. The wood of the cross had its effect on bitter desert water, as Moses experienced typologically at Marah: "He cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet" (Ex 15:25). This is part of paschal-mystery theology. Jesus came that people may have life and have it to the full; this means going beyond the bitter and the sad, beyond death, to resurrection, that joy beyond joys. Matija Pavic, one of the Adorers in Croatia who lived amid ¯ the war and destruction in that country, writes in a similar vein: Since their martyrdom I can say we feel greater closeness among us, at the level of the province and of the congregation as well, as if their martyrdom itself strengthened and drew us together, waking us up to the seriousness of our life commitment at the same time. We experienced the truth of the word that we are called to witness to Christ even to shedding of our own blood. We were overwhelmed by feelings of worry, compassion, and prayer; it was as if th¢:ir suffering spilled over into us. At the same time we were sure that their blood was not shed in vain. We know that it will be a new seed for the kingdom of God here on earth.9 September-October 2002 Sieg?Cried * Cboose Life The congregation continues to choose life. Many of us are ministering in the same areas that we were ten years ago, but the awareness, the consciousness, is deeper than before the events in Liberia. As a United States province we offer more assistance to victims of violence, are more attentive to women and children and to work with refugees. Today the charism has taken on a new dimension of reconciliation. We want to be reconcilers in our torn world, living the life, death, and peace of Jesus where we are and seeking out areas where reconciliation is needed. Life is precious; we cherish each other and try not to take one another for granted. If we are to become our charism in our society, we must respond to the call that the charism voices in our hearts. The paschal mystery invites us to life through death. It is our legacy to insure that the spirit of the sisters killed in Liberia lives in us as vibrantly as it does in the people of Liberia, whose lives they touched graciously, joyously, and effectively. Notes ~ Ezekiel Pajibo, "Liberia: A Brief Overview," Africa Faith and Justice Network, March 1977. 2 Stephen G. Price, "Child Soldiers in the Liberian War," SMA Office of Justice and Peace, March 1997. 3 Price, "Child Soldiers." 4 Washington Post, 17 April 2000. s Taken from "Information about the Development Education Network Liberia." 6 Some of the ideas on paschal-mystery charism are taken from my article "The Missionary Heart," Review for Religious 54, no. 6 (November-December, 1995): 913-917. 7 Joe Nassal CPPS, Passionate Pilgrims: A Sojourn of Precious Blood Spirituality (Carthagena, Ohio: Messenger Press, 1993), p. 17. 8 Adorers worldwide were invited to submit reflections on the effect the sisters' deaths had on them. Some of their comments are included in this article. 9 Translated by Viktorijika Tomic ASC. Review for Religious MARIE BEHA Made Perfect through Suffering ISn the days immediately after the terrorist attack of 11 eptember 2001, the liturgy celebrated--yes, "celebrated"-- a familiar cycle of feasts: on 14 September the Exaltation of the Cross, the next day the feast of the Sorrowful Mother, and two days later the commemoration of the Stigmata of St. Francis of Assisi. This triad has always touched my heart, but I never really understood the reason. Last year the cycle's themes grew in clarity as, in the light of the September tragedy, the why of suf-fering demanded deeper answers. So many innocent people had died, so many others suffered multiple losses, and so many of us, perhaps all of us, had our lives, our attitudes, changed. As has been said over and over, "nothing will ever be the same." Amid all this, what was the liturgy asking us to celebrate? How did these past events touch the present of our suffering? What did it all mean? Exaltation of the Cross The very titling of the feast holds paradox. If familiarity were not dimming the challenge, we would all be aghast every time a cross is exalted to a place of honor in a church or home, every time it is raised up in blessing. Unfortunately, we take Maria Beha OSC, frequent contributor to our pages, lives at the Monastery of St. Clare; 1916 North Pleasantburg Drive; Greenville, South Carolina 29609. Septe'mber- October 2002 Beha * Made Perfect through Suffering this linking of cross and glory for granted. After all, it is the cross of Jesus that we are lifting up. Familiar religious senti-ment blunts the starkness of the reality. But what about our own suffering? Could that be lifted up? This was my question. As I explored the readings for this feast, they only height-ened the cross's mystery, inviting us in the entrance antiphon to "Glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" and stressing in the preface that God has "decreed" that we should be "saved by the wood of the cross." As I pondered the paradox of these too familiar phrases, still others came to mind. "It was fitting that God . . . in bringing many children to glory should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings" (Heb 2:10). And, equally mysterious, "he learned obedience through what he suffered" (Heb 5:8). Suffering redeems. That is what the phrases proclaimed, what I had always heard and said. But was it what I believed, what I had experienced? To raise the question in the first person singular was to realize just how much ambiguity remained in my act of faith. Certainly I believed that the suffering of Jesus was redemptive; that was unquestioned bedrock. But what about human suffering, other people's as well as my own? Specifically how did the tragedy of 11 September hold potential for redemp-tion? And how about the bone-wrenching pain of my friend so seriously injured in a near-fatal auto wreck? And the grief of a single mother whose three small children died when flames swept through their trailer home? The examples easily became an almost endless litany.of human misery and grief. I began to feel myself slipping down into a vortex of tragedy that could only paralyze. I hurried back to Jesus and the exaltation of his cross. From the beginning of his ministry, Jesus revealed God's compassion for human suffering. Just the sight of the grieving widow at Naim was enough to call forth a life-giving response. Jesus took the dead man by the hand and "gave him back to his mother" (Lk 7:11-17). No one had asked Jesus to do anything. It was as though the mother's suffering compelled him to act. And how many times throughout the Gospels Jesus responds to pain in the same way, healing lepers, the blind, the deaf, the lame. As Mark says, "wherever he put in an appearance, in vil-lages, in towns, or at crossroads, they laid the sick in the mar-ketplaces and begged him to let them touch just the tassel of Review for Religious his cloak. All who touched him got well" (Mk 6:56). Others ~possessed by demons, many of whom we would today consider emotionally ill, also called forth Jesus' compassion. He drove out the demons, freeing those who had been in their grip. In word and deed Jesus tells us that God is on the side, not of suffering, but of new life, freedom, health, healing. In other words, suffering is not to be gloried in but rather to be worked against. In the end time of a "new heaven and a new earth [God] will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more" (Rv 21:1, 3-4). This is where we are going, but the life and death of Jesus amply testify that suffer-ing is integral to our ever arriv-ing at that kingdom of glory. While working against suffering in the life of others, Jesus also accepted it in his own. He real-ized early on that responding to God's call would bring suffer-ing, not only to himself but also to those whom he loved. From the beginning of his ministry, he warned his disciples of his coming passion and rebuked Peter sharply for refusing to accept this reality: "Get behind me, Satan" (Mt 16:23). Even the everyday of Jesus' life was punctuated with the hardships of an exhausting ministry, complicated by a lack of understanding on the part of those closest to him and subject to harassment by the religious leaders. Mark's Gospel (6:6) says he was "amazed" at their "hardness of heart." How it all must have hurt him! His own family thought him "out of his mind" (Mk 3:21) and came to take him away. His closest friends, the likes of James and John, were more concerned about their sta-res in the kingdom (Mk 10:35-40) than in what Jesus was trying to teach them. On the last night of his life, his disciples' lack of understanding would degenerate into a cowardice that left him alone at the end. If suffering was present throughout Jesus' life, his death and dying were terrible: an innocent man condemned to the most shameful of deaths, done in by the jealousy of religious leaders Jesus tells us that God is on the side, not of suffering, but of new life, freedom, health, healing. September-October 2002 Beba ¯ Made Perfect through Suffering For suffering to be redemptive we must not seek it out, exaggerate it, or add to it. whose legalistic observance covered over the corruption of dead men's bones. Betrayed by one of his own, deserted by all but a handful of his alleged followers and supporters, tortured and mocked by his executioners, yet "he did not open his mouth" (Is 53:7). Even in the agony of death by crucifixion, his words were full of love for his mother, for the one disciple who remained faithful, and for the dying thief. To his Father his final plea was one of concern for others, "Forgive them, they know not what they are doing," accompanied by his own complete sub-mission, "Into your hands I commend my spirit" (Lk 23:34, 46). Jesus' death summed up his lifelong attitude of accepting the suffering that came to him in accord with his prior choice. "Not my will but yours be done" (Lk 22:42) summarized who he was and what he was about. As a conse-quence of this first love, Jesus responded to the suffering in his life in such a way that it became redemptive. That is what we cele-brate on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross and what we must experience in our own salvation history if we are ever to embrace the mystery of suffering. Have we ever, perhaps only in retrospect, seen something painfully difficult become redeem-ing grace? I know that for me a debilitating illness that con-fined me to total bed rest for six months when I was a cocky twenty-two-year-old was grace beyond compare. During those endless days of being unable to do anything, I had time to think long thoughts, to sift through my life values and lay aside some of the driving ambition that might very well have detoured my whole religious life. I began to learn how fragile my control of events and how life's meaning had to go deeper. I am sure you can add your own experiences of the redemp-tive value of suffering: the family that finds unity and union in caring for a sick child, the marriage that is strengthened by cop-ing with serious financial difficulties, the struggle to get an edu-cation that makes learning a lifelong priority. The list goes on and maybe needs to--showing us over and over how our faith can grow stronger through the redemptive power of suffering. Revie~v for Religious But at some point the very examples we recall also reveal that suffering is a two-edged sword. Its redemptive potential is not automatic. We all know people whom suffering has shrunk into self-absorption, and we know whiners and complainers who specialize in self-pity. Many of us do not have to look any fur-ther than our own hearts to recognize how destructive suffering can be. It can occasion a crisis, with people choosing a path of lifelong bitterness, defeat, despair. Redemptive suffering moves in the opposite direction, open-ing us to others and to God. It shrinks our pain, putting it in perspective, not the stoic perspective that "well, things could be much worse," but faith's perspective that suffering is not the end, that God brings healing, health, joy, resurrection. For suffering to be redemptive we must not seek it out, exaggerate it, or add to it. Ours is not to be the self-centered pain that protests with injured innocence, "Why me?" Nor should we try to find some husk of self-satisfaction by compar-ing our burden of pain with someone else's. Each person's suf-fering is unique, if for no other reason than that this present difficulty is piled on a unique miscellany of memories and past experiences. Trustful acceptance of suffering keeps us moving in the direction of redemption and healing. Our suffering takes on true meaning when it is caught up in the passion of Jesus. In our suffering we are being invited to "complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church" (Col 1:24). Already in baptism we are immersed in the dying and rising of Jesus. What began in his redemptive act continues as we accept the cross into our own life. Each time a choice of ours says no to sin and yes to new life in Christ, we live out the possibilities of our baptism. Each time we offer God the daily bread of our ordinary lives, we present to him a living sacrifice of praise. The Eucharistic transubstan-tiation changes not only ourselves but our world. We must focus, not on our own immediate experience of pain, but on Jesus, "fixing our eyes on the head of our faith . . . who suffered the cross" (Heb 12:1). I can recall vividly a woman who suffered ten long years from multiple sclerosis, experiencing all of its terrible dimin-ishments till at the end she was completely immobilized, unable to so much as move herself in bed. When asked, foolishly September-October 2002 Beha ¯ Made Perfea through Suffering enough, "How are you today?" her invariable response was, "Just the way God wants me to be. And how are you?" I think hers was a highly personal, well-lived translation of Jesus' own faithful response "Not my will but yours be done." She did not choose suffering, but when it came she accepted it and so dis-covered grace and peace despite the pain. Compassion's Power Suffering comes not only in our own flesh but also in the pain that others must bear and we with them. In some ways this suffering-with-another is more difficult than simply bearing our own pain, since pain deepens when all we can do is stand by helplessly. We can neither prevent another's journey toward death nor live the journey for them. We cannot force anyone to choose health and healing. Demanding that someone get coun-seling is not therapeutic; hiding the cigarettes only adds decep-tion to the mix; neither leads to conversion. Yet just "being with" another seems too little. How often I have heard parents express their wish that they could wrestle with cancer themselves rather than stand by helplessly while their child endures the awful rounds of surgery, chemo, and radiation. And how much pain is added to the suffering of a dying husband or wife, leaving behind a. spouse whose loneliness they know will never be healed. People suffer the added burden of helplessness when their friends lose their job, their health, or their home. "I don't know what to say, what to do!" we exclaim, with truth. But, hopefully, we do not use such inability to solve another's problem as a pretext for noninvolvement. Perhaps this is one of the uncon-scious reasons we seal our hearts against caring too much; instinc-tively we know it will cost us. True love is willing to risk the personal suffering that accompanies compassion. If love exposes us to greater suffering, it is also true that suffering with another can open our hearts for greater love. Children who have lost their parents in a tragic accident pull at our heartstrings. Accompanying someone facing a terminal ill-ness can give us an impetus to sort through and rearrange our own values. The terrible tragedy of 11 September 2001 stirred an unprecedented outpouring of generosity, people giving because they just had to. Strangers worked together as part- Review for Religious ners. People who lived next door became neighbors. People dis-covered strength they did not know they had when others' needs called it forth. Helping someone even in ordinary circumstances can cre-ate a close bond. Just taking a few moments to greet a new-comer can open the door to a lasting relationship. Taking the first step toward reconciliation may result in a friendship cemented now in the experi-ence of mutual forgiveness. It almost seems that some expe-rience of shared suffering, of difficulty overcome, is neces-sary if relationships are to mature into true intimacy. Exposing our vulnerability, allowing another to be with us in our pain, not only presup-poses trust but enlivens it as well. We come to know each Pain and suffering offer not only opportunity for growth, but also possibility of destruction or division. other in deeper, more personal ways. Our love has been tried and is more secure because it has passed the test. Love "suffers with," and "suffering with" can deepen love-- but not always. Once again, pain and suffering offer not only opportunity for growth, but also possibility of destruction or division. The sickness of a child may lead to parental quarrels and divorce. Friendships falter and fail in the face of difficult times and circumstances. How many siblings find themselves locked into bitter quarrels after the death of a parent? And, on a larger scale, a national tragedy can initiate a cycle of blame and mutual suspicion, of escalating violence and threats of revenge. Suffering is always a two-edged sword. It reveals hearts. That is what we celebrate on the feast of our Sorrowful Mother. Mary's love for her Son exposed her to tremendous suffering, and that suffering deepened and revealed her love. "A sword will pierce your own soul" (Lk 2:35) was a promise consequent on her accepting her unique vocation. A call from God, any call from God, implies going beyond one's present comfort level. So Mary's "Be it with me according to your word" (Lk 1:38) meant that her life would never be the same. She was being asked to transcend her power to understand, control, even September-October 2002 Beba * Made Perfect through Suffering explain. Inevitably others would be uncomprehending, some-times judgmental, even condemning. There was nothing she could say or do to make it easier for those who loved her, or for those who did not. Her only option in the face of this suf-fering was to trust that the God who called was faithful. That faith would be tried when her own Son remained behind in the temple without a word of explanation to her or Joseph. "Why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been searching for you with great anxiety." Their mother-son relationship was secure enough to survive his counterques-tion, "Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be about my Father's business?" (Lk 2:48-49)~ Out of this suffering must have come some deeper level of trust and understanding. Still later their tested relationship would grow into Cana's fuller confidence, "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn 2:5), and all through Calvary's final hours. There their love faced its ultimate test of mutual surrender. Mary gave her Son back to the Father; Jesus gave his mother to another "son." Mary's "Be it done according to your word" .was consummated in Jesus' "Into your hands I commend my spirit." But that cry of ultimate shared suffering was not the end. Out of it came new and eternal life, pain transformed into last-ing joy. We have no recorded appearance of the risen Jesus to his mother. Maybe it occurred but was too private, too personal, to be recorded. Maybe Jesus and Mary knew each other so well that there was no need for such confirmation. What we do know with faith's assurance is that now they are united beyond suf-fering in love's joy. Compassion breaks hearts open, leaving them vulnerable to more pain but also to more love. It did so for Mary; it can do the same for us if we are willing to risk a love that suffers because of caring for another. Such love is very different from the passivity of self-centered suffering that we bring on our-selves and which has almost no value. Worrying over all the "maybes" of our fears for self or others is common enough, but it accomplishes nothing. While acknowledging that we .are wor-riers, we also need to move proactively toward more produc-tive thinking. Similarly the murmuring and muttering that runs its compulsive tape through our minds needs closure, not the self-defeating stance that allows the pain to go on because "that Review for Religious is just the way things are." Ill health, our own or other peo-ple's, is not allowed to serve as a semilegitimate excuse for imposing unnecessarily on the goodwill of others or withdraw-ing from the concerns of the wider community. Similarly, true compassion does not permit people to become victims of the tragedies that have befallen them. Contrast self-indulgent forms of suffering with true compas-sion, where an individual goes beyond ego's narrow, rigid bound-aries to reach out to others in their pain. Such self-sacrifice is life-size, opening us to love's demands, risking involvement beyond our capacity to control the cost; it is redemptive. Such was the passion of Jesus; such was Mary's compassionate love. Christocentric Suffering Fruitful suffering is incarnational. It both accepts and works against the here-and-now pain that comes into our own lives and the lives of others with whom we risk love's involvement. This kind of suffering makes a real difference in us, in our very selves. It did so in particularly dramatic ways in the life of Francis of Assisi, and this is what we celebrate on 17 September when we remember his reception of the stigmata, having his body marked with the wounds of Jesus. What happened to Francis is what must happen in some way in our own lives. Sharing in the pas-sion of Jesus is meant to mark us, to make us different. The process begins when we look long and lovingly at Jesus and see how unlike him we are. This is the sinful self that needs conversion, and such radical repentance is bound to be costly. Changing old patterns of behavior which we recognize as self-defeating, but which still offer the comfort of familiarity, exposes us to the awkwardness of the new and untried. Letting go of habits, even habits that have been helpful in the past but no longer contribute to our growth, seems as risky as a child's first steps without support. All of these changes, not only from bad to good but also from good to better, initiate a cycle of falling, failing, struggling, starting, over. It is the cross of repentance that encourages true growth. The pain of conversion, both initial and ongoing, is made more bearable as long as we feel we are in control. Determining what we are going to change, the timing, when and how much, September-October 2002 Beha ¯ Made Perfect through Suffering There comes a time when all our activity is fixed on only one point, that of obedience and surrender. means that the very self is never much threatened. And yet it is this self, which has a mind of its own, a will of its own, that must die. Growth into Christ implies obedience. Suffering that is redemptive, then, is both active and passive. These two elements are related not as contradictories, as though some pain were active and some passive, but rather as the con-cave and convex of the same reality. Living as a Christian requires asceticism. We must make a choice, take a stand, do something. Even when pain comes into our life unbidden, we are actively responsible for the attitude we take toward it. And yet suffering is not to be chosen for its own sake; it must, as we have seen, be worked against. Still there comes a time when all our activity is fixed on only one point, that of obedience and surrender. In the end we are asked to give back to God all that God has first given us: our activities, our gifts, our relationships, our very lives. But this is not where we begin. First we give thanks to the "one who has given us everything needed for life" (i P 1:3) by using whatever we have received in the service of others. And we continue to do that as long as we can, accepting the suffering that is implicit in generous service: fatigue, the disci-pline of constancy, the boredom of daily routine. We continue to give despite the discouragement of failure, of plans that go wrong, and perhaps of the ingratitude of those whom we are trying to serve. In simply doing what is ours to do, we come to know the purification of active suffering. We learn that saying yes to others includes a no to ourselves. Francis knew this only too well. His decision to follow Christ more closely cost him dearly. He lost his relationship with his family (especially his father) and with friends, gave up his dream of glory through knighthood. Kissing the leper at the beginning of his conversion meant going beyond the comfort-able generosity of tossing someone a coin. His call to preach the gospel included all the hardship of an itinerant lifestyle. Embracing Lady Poverty meant going without the security of Review for Religious possessions. Even the great number of followers who were attracted by his example brought its own suffering, complicat-ing with the onerous responsibility of administration the simple life he desired. In addition to these sufferings, Francis also deliberately practiced a demanding asceticism. In fact, he afflicted his body so severely that he ruined his health, a mistake he came to rec-ognize and regret. At the end of his life he owed Brother Body an apology and said so. But Francis's initial mistake does not mean that freely chosen asceticism is of no value. On the con-trary, the small suffering implied in such self-imposed disci-pline incarnates our desire for God and makes room in our hearts for deeper union. This was Francis's experience and that of so many of the saints. It can also be ours, if we embrace the active asceticism of emptying ourselves of some perfectly good and legitimate things in order to make room for God. Fasting is the classic example of such discipline. Food is necessary for our survival and is one of our everyday pleasures as well. Our enjoyment of food is healthy. Unfortunately, many and even most of us overeat or undereat, and that is unhealthy. We indulge ourselves, passing up the vegetables and taking a second desert. We abuse food and ourselves in the process. I sometimes suspect that a piece of fruit as the symbol of the first temptation is especially apt, since eating remains a problematic area for many people. And so fasting retains its importance as a spiritual discipline. Setting some limits on what, when, and how much we eat can give some realism to our need to die to that demanding self of ours which expects ready gratification. A reasonable fast not only does not endanger our health, it p~obably promotes itq while also letting us share in some small way in the hunger of the multitudes in our world who lack enough food to live on. What we save by cutting back on snack food, or on expensive kinds of meat, can be given away? as an immediate fruit of our fasting. On a more profound level, some experience of hunger can stir in our hearts a greater hunger for God. This is what Francis knew when he incorporated fasting into his way of life. Because his fasting was both a consequence and an expression of love, it finally came to be strict without being rigid. His severe fasts during six forty-day Lents left him //0'1 Septentber-October 2002 Beba ¯ Made Perfect tbrougb Suffering with an empty stomach but a heart full of love for creation, for his brothers and sisters, and above all for God. At the end Francis became free enough to enjoy good food, the sweetmeats his friend LadyJacoba brought him, and to exhort his brothers to rub the very walls with meat on Christmas. His fasting along with occasional feasting came to incorporate the worship of enjoyment, gratitude, and praise. Yet as time went on Francis's suffering was less and less a matter of his own decision and choosing. It became more pas-sive, something done to him where his only activity was the choice of response. Illness, aggravated by the imprudent asceti-cism of his early days and by the crude medical practices of the time, wearied both his body and his spirit. His stomach gave him almost constant pain. His eyes failed, and this man who had so rejoiced in the beauty of creation became almost blind. Even more of a heartbreak, some friars who had at first embraced his gospel way of life came to find it too much for them. They rejected Francis, demanding that he turn over the governance of the order to another. He lived out his final years in submission and obedience. Suffering abounded in his last years, and to this was added the pain of the stigmata. The wounds in his body were real; they bled profusely enough to require bandaging. The nail marks in his feet made every step difficult, and in the end he had to consent to ride on a donkey. His hands became more and more useless, and he hid them in the ample sleeves of his tunic. How did Francis respond to all of this suffering? When his eyes were cauterized, he prayed Brother Fire to be gentle with him. When his body was too worn to go any further, he returned to San Damiano, the place of his beginnings. There Clare and her sisters tried to care for him, and there in the midst of des-olation of body and spirit he composed his glorious Canticle of the Creatures: "Praise, my Lord, for Sister Moon and Brother Sun. for Sister Water and Brother Fire. for fair and every kind of weather." Yes, praise for every kind of weather and every gift of nature and grace, for the good times and the days of pain. Praise. And gratitude, because it is all gift. This is what the stigmata celebrates: not just the fact that Francis's body was marked by the cross, but that his whole life was. He embraced suffering, accepted what came to him, while Review for Religious working against it in his ministry of healing and serving oth-ers. His heart was filled with compassion for all God's creation, his own friars, the lepers, all in need. And at the end his lifelong desire to be like Christ left him marked with the wounds of the passion. What happened in his life must happen in ours, if not in such dramatic ways, at least with equal reality. Suffering will mark us as Christ's own. We will be signed with the sign of the cross. This is what I think we celebrate in the triad of feasts that mark mid September: the Exaltation of the Cross, the Sorrows of Mary, and the Stigmata of St. Francis. Each feast hints at suffering's true meaning. First of all, it is redemptive, intended to lead us into greater freedom and love. If this is to happen, we need to accept the suffering that inevitably comes into our lives, but also to move with all our strength in the direction of health and healing. And we need to do this regarding not only our own pain but the pain of others too. Compassion, standing with others in their pain, will open us to more suffering. But there is where we will want to be if we love enough. Still, it will be costly. Life will bring us suffering that we somehow choose, but also some that we do not choose but must learn to accept. This suffering will mark us with the wounds of the passion. What our little cycle of September feasts celebrates, then, is this: that in our lives suffering is redemptive both as gift and as given. This is what it was for Francis, for Mary, for Jesus. It is what the suffering that comes into all our lives is meant to be for us. Starshine Starshine is sometimes all the light we need to get our bearings. a heavenly.reminder of light beyond measure, that will not yield to the nightclouds haunting the horizon of our heart. Diana SeagoOSB September-October 2002 DENNIS j. BILLY Right Relationships in Consecrated Life theory and reality Right relationships reminds me of Anne Quirk's children's novel, Dancing with Great-Aunt Cornelia, a story about a dysfunctional New York family and a thirteen-year-old girl's discovery that her eccentric, incredibly tall, and extremely rich great-aunt is really her grandmother. Near the end of the story, the family finally comes to terms with its denial, insensitivity, anger, and odd way of relating. The reconciliation takes place at a dance party hosted by Great-Aunt Cornelia in her enormous Manhattan town house just off Fifth Avenue. Although tensions run high at first, eventually the entire family let down their guard and end up dancing with one another--and quite enjoying it. As Connie, the young narrator, puts it: "I'm sure I danced with my father, with Bendey, with my mother, and with Eleanor, too. For a while I guess we were all dancing together, in a sort of tango with seven people and a large dog. Maybe it was actually more of a tangle than a tango.''~ Dennis J. Billy CSSR, a frequent contributor to our pages, may till 25 January 2003 be reached at Mount St. Alphonsus Retreat Center; P.O. Box 219; Esopus, New York 12429. 1~eview for l~etigio~ Festivity and Dance To my mind, living in right relationship with others is much akin to taking part in a festive dance. What matters is not whether we know how to dance, but whether we are willing to participate and, if need be, even play the part of the fool. Many of us, unfortunately, have failed to recognize this important fact of life. Quirk's funny and eccentric story with its festive (and quite unexpected) ending reminds us of our human penchant for being continuously "out of step" with each other and refusing to take part in the celebration of.life. It pokes fun at our pet peeves and silly vanities that get in the way of our capacity to love. It puts a mirror before us and encourages us to take a good look at ourselves and at those around us. We may see that our attempts at getting along with one another are often "more of a tangle than a tango." But we may notice, as well, our deep desire to get it right, to be "in sync" with the people in our lives, despite the differences, the awkward diffidences, that keep us apart. Our desire to participate in this great dance of life comes from deep in the human heart, evincing the divine love within us. The Christian God is the God of the living. The life of the Trinity affirms the sacred character of festivity and dance. Celebration, for this God, flows from love and is closely allied to it. In his book The Third Peacock, Robert Farrar Capon breaks through our traditional stereotypes of God and involves the Father, Son, and Spirit in a heavenly bash of ongoing creation: And God the Father looked at the whole wild party and he said, "Wonderful! Just what I had in mind! 7by! 7by! 7by!" And all God the Son and God the Holy Ghost could think of was to say the same thing. "Tbv! %v! Toy.t" So they shouted together "Tbv meod!" and they laughed and laughed for ages and ages, saying things like how great it was for beings to be, and bow clever of the Father to think of the idea, and how kind of the Son to go to all that trouble putting it together, and how considerate of the Spirit to spend so much time directing and choreographing. And forever and ever they told old jokes, and the Father and the Son drank their wine in unitate Spiritus Sancti, and they all threw ripe olives and pickled mushrooms at each other per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.2 September-October 2002 Billy ¯ Right Relationships in Consecrated Life Our yearning for reveling, celebration, and dance, the desire to be at one with ourselves and to live in communion with those around us derives from something within us that is, at the same time, far beyond us. According to our Catholic belief, it is rooted in the ground of all reality, in the intimate life of love of a God who simultaneously is both one and many. The Christian God exists in and for communio: for unity in diversity and vice versa. Our desire for communion and right relationship stems from our being created in the image and likeness of this mysterious, personal, yet transcendent ground of love. Even though we are fallen, dysfunctional, bent out of shape (however one wishes to term it), the imprint of divinity grows within and manifests itself in our deepest longings. We yearn for communion with one another ultimately because of God's yearning for communion with us. We are miserably out of step with one another, yet haunted by the deeply rooted hope that things can and will get better, not through our own doing, but because of the God who made us, loves us, and holds us in being. A Spirituality of Communion Recent church documents highlight how important it is for believers to nurture a "spirituality of communion" in their lives. In Novo millennio ineunte (2001), his apostolic letter on the new millennium, John Paul II puts it this way: A spirituality of communion indicates above all the heart's contemplation of the mystery of the Trinity dwelling in us, and whose light we must also be able to see shining on the face of the brothers and sisters around us. A spirituality of communion also means an ability to think of our brothers and sisters in faith within the profound unity of the Mystical Body, and therefore as "those who are a part of me." This makes us able to share their joys and sufferings, to sense their desires and attend to their needs, to offer them deep and genuine friendship. A spirituality of communion implies also the ability to see what is positive in others, to welcome it and prize it as a gift from God: not only as a gift for the brother or sister who has received it directly, but also as a "gift for Review for Religious me." A spirituality of communion means, finally, to know how to "make room" for our brothers and sisters, bearing "each other's burdens" (Ga 6:2) and resisting the selfish temptations which constantly beset us and provoke competition, careerism, distrust, and jealousy. (§43) It would be difficult to come up with a more comprehensive vision of living in right relationship with others. The pope invites us to contemplate the mystery of the Trinity within our hearts and to discern its presence in those around us. He asks us to be aware of the presence of others, to minister to their needs, and to reach out to them in a spirit of friendship. Doing so means making room for others in our lives and allowing them to make room for us. It means living in communion with them on every level of our human makeup: the physical, emotional, intellectual, social, and spiritual. The pope's words describe a vision of "right relationship" that few would fault or disavow. Most of us have no problem accepting his vision of communion or right relationship. Our trouble is putting it into practice. I am reminded of Walter Principe's distinction about the different levels of spirituality: the experiential, the doctrinal, and the analytical? We accept the teaching on the "spirituality of communion" and can easily accept it as a vision that we should look to and strive to implement in our lives. We can even study, analyze, and criticize it for the purpose of making it a more coherent body of teaching. On the experiential level, however, many of us have difficulty taking the steps to make this teaching on communion and right relationships an integral part of our lives. We experience a gap between what we envision and who we really are. That gap may be small or large. The size of it determines how much dysfunction we experience in our personal, family, and community lives. The pope invites us to contemplate the mystery of the Trinity within our hearts and to discern its presence in those around us. 497 . September-O,'tober 2002 Billy ¯ Right Relationships in Consecrated Life To my mind, the key question is not whether the gap between vision and experience exists, but whether we recognize it and are taking steps to make it smaller and smaller. We need to recognize the gap, accept it as something that will never fully go away (at least in this life), and take appropriate steps to narrow it. This task is not a one-time challenge, but must be taken up again with each new day. The Vision of Vita Consecrata My suspicion is that religious have a particularly difficult time coming to terms with the discrepancy between the vision of the life to which they have been called and their actual experience of it. I say this because the church places so much hope in consecrated persons' being "true experts" at achieving communion that the gap between vision and lived reality is bound to be quite large. This vision is presented quite clearly in Vita consecrata (1996), John Paul II's postsynodal apostolic exhortation on the consecrated life. As the following excerpt demonstrates, consecrated persons must live up to enormous expectations: A great task also belongs to the consecrated life in the light of the teaching about the church as communion, so strongly proposed by the Second Vatican Council. Consecrated persons are asked to be true experts of communion and to pradtice the spirituality of communion as "witnesses and architects of the plan for unity which is the crowning point of human history in God's design.". The sense of ecclesial communion, developing into a spirituality of communion, promotes a way of thinking, speaking, and acting which enables the church to grow in depth and extension. The life of communion, in fact, "becomes a sign for all the world and a compelling force that leads people to faith in Christ . In this way communion leads to mission, and itself becomes mission"; indeed, "communion begets communion: in essence it is a communion that is missionary." (~46) A little later the document makes it clear that an important aspect of this "spiri~ality of communion" is "an allegiance of Review for Relig4ous mind and heart to the magisterium of the bishops, an allegiance which must be lived honestly and clearly testified to before the people of God by all consecrated persons, especially those involved in theological research, teaching, publishing, catechesis, and the use of the means of social communication." To be sure, "because consecrated persons have a special place in the church, their attitude in this regard is of immense importance for the whole people of God." The document points to the testimonies of founders and foundresses, who demonstrated "a constant and lively sense of the church." To further its claim, it cites the loyal devotion, to the church of such great saints as Francis of Assisi, Catherine of Siena, Ignatius Loyola, Teresa of Avila, and the Little Flower. Such examples of full ecclesial communion need to be constantly recalled if consecrated persons "are to resist the particularly strong centrifugal and disruptive forces at work today" (§46). Speaking, thinking, and acting with the magisterium are thus considered in the light of a vital role given to consecrated persons in the church universal in accord with the venerable tradition of great saints and founders and foundresses and with a view to the church's missionary nature. These ever expanding contexts give an added richness to the concept of the spirituality of communion and should not be overlooked. Only by taking them into account can consecrated persons understand their important role in the post-Vatican II era and "be nourished from the wellspring of a sound and deep spirituality" (§93). Another key text on the spirituality of communion comes later in the same document when institutes of the consecrated life are given the specific task of spreading this spirituality of communion: The church entrusts to communities of consecrated life the particular task of spreading the spirituality of communion, first of all in their internal life and then in the ecclesial community, and even beyond its boundaries, by opening or continuing a dialogue in charity, especially where today's world is torn apart by ethnic hatred or senseless violence. Placed as they are within the wbrld's different societies (societies frequently marked by conflicting passions and interests, seeking unity but uncertain about the ways Septentber-October 2002 Billy * Right Relationships in Consecrated Life to attain it), communities of consecrated life--where persons of different ages, languages, and cultures meet as brothers and sisters--are signs that dialogue is always possible and that communion can bring differences into harmony. (§51) This paragraph affirms the pope's hope "that all will grow in the understanding and spirituality of communion" (§50). It also supports his earlier statement about the obligation of fraternity as a form of witness to the Trinity: "By constantly promoting fraternal love also in the form of the common life, the consecrated life has shown that sharing in the Trinitarian communion can change human relationships and create a new type of solidarity" (§41), one which does everything "in communion and d!alogne" (§74) and which favors "that 'dialogue of life' which embodies a basic model of mission and of the proclamation of Christ's gospel" (§102). Notice the threefold range of this special task entrusted to consecrated persons. They are to spread the spirituality of communion first within themselves, second within the ecclesial communion, and third beyond its boundaries. Motivated by their deep personal love for Christ (see §84), they reach out in dialogue that "is the new name of charity, especially charity within the church" (§74). --YO0 Implications for Consecrated Life I would like to take a. deeper look at just what this "particular task of spreading the spirituality of communion" (§51) might mean for members of institutes of consecrated life. The threefold framework of internal life, ecclesial communion, and beyond will be particularly helpful in this regard. Internal Life. In the first place, institutes of consecrated life are called to put their own houses in order and live in harmony: "In an age characterized by the globalization of problems and the return .of the idols of nationalism, international institutes especially are called to uphold and to bear witness to the sense of communion between peoples, races, and cultures" (§51). They do so first and foremost by living out their common charism in communion with each other, even though they represent various age groups, nationalities, cultural backgrounds, and theological perspectives. The attempt of such communities to dialogue Review for Religious among themselves and to bring unity out of the diversity of their experience is an effective sign of that community of heart and mind to which all are called. This communion in the institute's internal life should exist on all levels of its communal makeup-- local, provincial, and general--and should foster cooperation between these levels, in keeping with the principle of subsidiarity. A natural outgrowth of this internal application of the spirituality of communion is cooperation among the different institutes themselves (see §52). Bound by the common call to the evangelical counsels, these institutes, both old and new, should regard one another with profound respect and strive to work together in their efforts to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to the world. Relationships among such institutes should not be marred by jealousy, indifference, or suspicion. The document recalls St. Bernard's words about the various religious orders: I admire them all. I belong to one of them by observance, but to all of them by charity. We all need one another: the spiritual good which I do not own and possess, I receive from others . In this exile the church is still on pilgrimage and is, in a certain sense, plural: she is a single plurality and a plural unity. All our diversities, which make manifest the richness of God's gifts, will continue to exist in the one house of the Father, which has many rooms. Now there is a division of graces; then there will be distinctions of glory. Unity, both here and there, consists in one and the same charity. (§52) In this spirit the document encourages coordinating bodies such as the conferences of major superiors and the conferences of secular institutes to work in harmony with each other as well as with the episcopal conference of each country. They are also encouraged "to maintain frequent and regular contacts with the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, as a sign of their communion with the Holy See" (§53). The point of all this is that the spirituality of communion, once it is lived within the life of an institute of consecrated life itself, should naturally overflow into similar relations beyond its boundaries. Ecclesial Communion. For this reason, the pope also encourages mutual relationships of respect and collaboration Septentber-October 2002 Billy ¯ Rigbt Relationships in Consecrated Life between institutes of consecrated life and every level of ecclesial communion: with other states of life within the church (the laity, the clergy) and also with brothers and sisters of the various Christian confessions. All of this should be done out of respect for the common dignity shared by all the faithful (§31), but in such a way that "the identity of the institute in its internal life is not harmed" (§56). In this context, cooperation with the laity receives special mention. The document notes that "many institutes have come to the conclusion that their charism can be shared with the laity" (§54). This sharing takes many forms, from sharing their spirituality to various kinds of pastoral collaboration. As a result, "the participation of the laity often brings unexpected and rich insights into certain aspects of the charism, leading to a more spiritual interpretation of it and helping to draw from it directions for new activities in the apostolate" (§55). Emphasizing the equal dignity of both men and women before God (§57), the document specifically deals with the role of consecrated women. It describes them as "signs of God's tender love towards the human race" (§57) and points out that "women's new self-awareness also helps men to reconsider their way of looking at things, the way they understand themselves, where they place themselves in history and how they interpret it, and the way they organize social, political, economic, religious, and ecclesial life" (§57). Ecumenical dialogue is yet another level of ecclesial communion to which institutes of consecrated life must give due attention. Lectio divina, common prayer, dialogue in friendship, cordial hospitality, and common undertakings of service and witness are among thq many forms of ecumenical dialogue. The work of Christianity is not just the work of these institutes that were specifically founded for this purpose or because of a later calling (§57). The pope makes it quite clear that "no institute of consecrated life should feel itself dispensed from working for this cause" (§101). Special emphasis is given to the monastic tradition in the Eastern Catholic Churches for the help they can give in promoting unity with the Orthodox churches and given also to monasteries of contemplative life, to whom the pope entrusts "the spiritual ecumenism of prayer, conversion of heart, and charity" (§101). Review for Religious Beyond. The spirituality of communion moves consecrated persons beyond the bounds of the Christian communion of faith into dialogue with other faiths and cultures: "Because 'interreligious dialogue is a part of the church's evangelizing mission,' institutes of consecrated life cannot exempt themselves from involvement also in this field, each in accordance with its own charism and following the directives of ecclesiastical authority" (§102). They do this primarily through "the testimony of a life of poverty, humility, and chastity, imbued with fraternal love for all" i§I02). Dedicated to that "dialogue of life" which finds its mission in the proclamation of the Good News, they "promote appropriate forms of dialogue, marked by cordial friendship and mutual sincerity, with monastic communities of other religions" (§102). Other areas for cooperation include concern for human life and efforts to promote the dignity of women (§102). All such efforts, moreover, require proper formation, study, and research, together with deep faith and personal and spiritual maturity (§102). Finally, the "spirituality of communion" asks institutes of consecrated life to place themselves at the service of all humanity. Their service to the world involves "a life of self-giving love" (§75). Indeed, "the fact that consecrated persons fix their gaze on the Lord's countenance does not diminish their commitment on behalf Of humanity; on. the contrary, it strengthens this commitment, enabling it to have an impact on history, in order to free history from all that disfigures it" (§75). This means, first and foremost, offering "the witness of a life given totally to God and to their brothers and sisters, in imitation of the Savior, who out of love for humanity made himself a servant" (§76). It also means living .a life of genuine inculturation, one that "requires attitudes similar to those of the Lord when he became man and walked among us in love and meekness" (§79). In their attempt to serve as "a gospel leaven The "spirituality of communion" asks institutes of consecrated life to place themselves at the service of all humanity. September-October 2002 Billy ¯ Right Relationships in Consecrated Life within a culture, purifying and perfecting it" (§80), they follow the church in its preferential option for those "in situations of greater weakness" (§82). This includes "the poor, in varied states of affliction., those on the margins of society, the elderly, the sick, the young, any and all who are considered and treated as 'the least'" (§82). Some of the concrete ways in which they meet the needs of the poor include the care of the sick, their presence in the world of education, their presence in the field of social communications, and the evangelization of culture (see §§83 and 96-99). Their life of evangelical poverty, moreover, "is a value in itself," which, "accompanied by a preferential love for the poor," is expressed "especially by sharing the conditions of life of the most neglected" (§90). To be sure, "there are many communities which live and work among the poor and the marginalized; they embrace their conditions of life and share in their sufferings, problems, and perils" (§90). To summarize: The spirituality of communion is kindled by God in the institute of consecrated life and is meant to have a ripple effect on the entire life of the church. Arising within the institute, where members of various ages, cultures, and educational backgrounds live together in a spirit of fraternal love, it reaches out to other institutes, to other states of life within the church, to other Christian denominations, to other religions, and to all of humanity. It does so in a spirit of dialogue and service to give witness to the personal presence of Christ in the world and to the power of the Trinity to transform human relationships. Its mission is to build relationships of solidarity wherever human beings congregate and to be a sign of the intimate life with God to which all are called. The Gap between Vision and Experience The above presen.tation shows that the Catholic Church has a clear and extensive teaching on the spirituality of communion, what it means to live in right relationship with others. While this teaching has concrete implications for communities of consecrated life, the problem we are facing, as I suggested earlier, has to do with narrowing the gap between the teaching we profess and our actual lived experience. We need to take a good, hard look at these urgent practical concerns. Review for Religious One way of doing so is to adapt the psychological language of action, voluntary disposition (or habims), and attitude to the experience and needs of consecrated life today. According to this understanding of human behavior, an action involves a single deliberate object and intention, while a voluntary disposition (as opposed to an unwanted involuntary habit) refers to an active pattern of behavior acquired through the continuous repetition of actions. An attitude, in turn, is an active disposition voluntarily acquired through the repetition of options, those value choices that define a person's life project. An action, in other words, is singular and concrete; a voluntary disposition, a deep-rooted deliberate pattern of behavior; an attitude, a deeply ingrained option for a particular set of values.4 Ideally, there exists a strong continuity be-tween a person's actions, voluntary dispositions, and attitudes. In real life, however, this continuity can manifest varying degrees of strength and is often even disrupted. The same could be said of the actions, voluntary dispositions, and attitudes of a family, group, or religious community. When applied to communities of consecrated life in the light of the church's teaching on the spirituality of communion and the gap between vision and lived experience, it is of paramount importance that we find a way of helping to shape people's attitudes. To do so, we must recognize that there is a circular relationship between actions, voluntary dispositions, and the formation of attitudes. That is to say, attitudes give rise to various actions and voluntary dispositions and are at the same time shaped by them. To overlook these important relationships is to risk forming consecrated persons whose actions run contrary to, or at best are inconsistent with, the values they truly hold and which define their life's project. This circular relationship between actions, voluntary dispositions, and attitudes means that religious communities Ideally, there exists a strong continuity between a person's actions, voluntary dispositions, and attitudes. September- October 2002 Billy ¯ Right Relationships in Consecrated Life must develop complex strategies for narrowing the gap between vision and lived experience. Such a strategy must involve an ongoing interplay between teachings, structures, practices, and critical reflection that enables individuals and the community to test and verify the vision that defines them so that it can be authentically nuanced (and perhaps redefined) to express what they truly are called to. From there, the community needs to develop structures and practices that will reinforce in daily life the values expressed by this defining vision. For the desired attitudes to truly take hold, these structures and practices need.to be firm yet flexible, taking into account the three principles of church teaching about right relationships: the dignity of the human person, the common good, and the virtue of solidarity. In today's world, communities of consecrated life cannot be effective instruments of the spirituality of communion if they do not make great efforts to inculcate these principles in the lives of their members. To do otherwise would increase the gap between vision and lived experience rather than narrowing it. Narrowing the Gap In his popular bestseller Maybe (Maybe Not), Robert Fulghum offers some important insights into what he calls the public, private, and secret lives of everyday life: Public lives are lived out on the job and in the marketplace, where certain rules, conventions, laws, and social customs keep most of us in line. Private lives are lived out in the presence of family, friends, and neighbors who must be considered and respected, even though the rules and proscriptions are looser than what's allowed in public. But in our secret lives, inside our own heads, almost anything goes.s Although Fulghum is writing about American society in general, his insight has, to my mind, special significance for our topic. If, in their attempts to narrow the gap between vision and lived reality, communities of consecrated life do not give due consideration to the attitudes behind the various dispositions and actions that they ask of their members, a dangerous rupture can take place between the public face they present to the outside Review for Religious world, the private life lived within the community, and a secret life known only to a few, hidden from other members, and institutionally suppressed and even denied. When this occurs, the dysfunction within a community can reach great intensity and cause great misery for both the members and those they claim to serve. A religious institution, I am suggesting, has not only a public and a private life, but also a secret life. For members to live in fight relationship with others, all three of these lives need to be acknowledged, understood, and dealt with in mature and responsible ways. Otherwise the gap between vision and lived experience will increase rather than diminish, and the community will be based on an illusion, living in a house of mirrors, where appearances deceive. A community of consecrated life, in other words, needs to get in touch with its shadow side, the darker part of the community's life, which influences decisions even though the community may be only peripherally aware of them. Only by acknowledging this dark side, taming it, and then befriending it will a community ever come to understand itself and be able to channel its vast resources in creative and constructive ways. I do not intend to go into specifics about what all of this means for the evangelical counsels or life in community. The church's teaching on these constituent elements of the consecrated life is clear and has been adequately developed elsewhere. What I will say, however, is that, when examining the spirituality of their particular institutes, communities need to look at the various gaps that exist