The comments of Cardinal Robert Sarah, the prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship, given at a liturgical conference in London on July 5, concerning the direction in which the priest faces during Mass has caused quite a stir. Even Father Federico Lombardi, the papal spokesman, had to weigh in on the subject after the Holy Father, Pope Francis, had a private meeting with Cardinal Sarah.

So many dramatic events have occurred around the world in the past few weeks that it’s sobering to attempt to find a common thread. Perhaps, it is that we are standing at a pivotal time when either the rule of order will dominate or chaos will become the day-to-day continuum.

The coldblooded murders of police officers in Dallas during a peaceful demonstration on July 7 have shaken our nation to the core. Following a week in which we have seen two black men, one in Louisiana and the other in Minnesota, killed in incidents with the police, these unspeakable tragedies are horrible examples of the effects of our fallen human nature, the presence of sin in the world, and the real effects of what occurs when we forget who and what we are and what we are created to be.