Ash Wednesday

40 years ago Catholic churches were, for the most part, filled to capacity on Ash Wednesday as the season of Lent began. One could feel the solemnity of the day. Just about everyone knew that you were Catholic if you had the Sign of the Cross above your eyes, and you were respected for your faith. Many employers even paid for the day off for Catholics to observe this Holy day. Over the last 30 years or so, however, there has been a general decline in Sunday Mass attendance, let alone Holy Day observances. When I go to daily Mass, attendance is anywhere from 6 (yes, you read that right!) one time to 100 or so. I notice that attendance is greater in the other cities I visit than in Stockton. When I attend in Stockton, the average is about 25 compared to 50 or 75 in any other parish. And, Stockton probably has more priests! There are more "Communion Services" in the other cities than in Stockton. Of course I like to attend either early morning, which is not for everybody, or after work when most people just want to go home and relax. I rarely go at the 8AM or Noon Masses. When I do, attendance is a little greater at those times. Anyway, compare that to 40 years ago and it's somewhat distressing. Not just the Mass attendance, but the awareness of what we as Catholics believe in general. After receiving my ashes this morning, every single person I encountered mentioned that I had a "grease mark" on my forehead and maybe I should clean it off. This gave me a few things to meditate on today.

In the old days, the ashes were distinctly a "Sign of the Cross" and there was no mistaking the "mark of faith" even to non-believers. Over the last couple of Ash Wednesdays though, I have come away with a "smudge" of ash that doesn't lend itself to identifying me as a repentant sinner preparing for the Passion of Christ and His crucifixion. I noticed, probably scrupulously (I'll have to confess that), that those who received the ashes from the priest today were more recognizable as a cross. Of course, he was also slower in administering them. Maybe we just need to slow down in today's world, or it could be that the Eucharistic Minister I received ashes from just had no talent for drawing crosses. As I said, I may be a bit too scrupulous in this matter.

Also, as I mentioned before, Catholics used to be respected for their faith and were a "moral compass" for the world. Whenever anyone asked me today what the smudge was and I explained it was ashes, most of them shrugged and smiled that smile that says, "Oh, you're one of those people.--Do you really believe all that stuff?"

But on the positive side, I was (and remain) ready to explain and defend my faith to anyone who asks. I was actually hoping someone would be curious enough to ask me questions about the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church.

Maybe next time.

Lily's Baptism and other exciting news

Is 43:25

It is I, I, who wipe out, for my own sake, your offenses; your sins I remember no more.

2 Cor 1:21-22

But the one who gives us security with you in Christ and who anointed us is God; he has also put his seal upon us and given the Spirit in our hearts as a first installment.

Today was the big day! Liliana Noelle Juarez was cleansed of original sin and given her "first installment" of the Holy Spirit, which will give her "security in Christ". Of course she will receive further "installments" in whatever other Sacraments she receives (and practices) in the future--Eucharist, Penance, Confirmation, Marriage (or Holy Orders!) and much, much later, Last Rites. The great thing about receiving the Holy Spirit is that once you have Him within you, He never leaves. One may "tune Him out" at times, but He remains very close to us to lead us back to Christ if we will just pay attention to Him.

I have been thinking about Alicia's baptism today. It was pretty much the same then as it is today. We had to have a "pre-baptism" class, followed by the Baptism. We were asked to write down why we wanted our child baptized. I was (and remain) so overwhelmed by the blessing that is Alicia, that I felt I had to thank God by "putting the seal of Christ" on her. I wrote that God blessed us with the gift of a child that we may call our own, but the child really belongs to the One who created her. As her parents, Marilyn and I were given the responsibility to see that she learned to know and love the Father of us all. The only way I knew was to teach her by my own faith, hope and love of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

I will take Lily's birth and today's baptism as a sign that God is pleased with how Alicia turned out.

And in case any of you have been wondering, we went to Sonoma yesterday for Alicia's birthday. She wanted to visit some wineries and have a picnic lunch. While we were at the last winery, Lorenzo called Marilyn, Sarah and myself over to the bar where he and Alicia were tasting and he proposed to Alicia and gave her a beautiful ring. No date has been set yet. We'll let you know.

New beginnings

Gn 8:6-13, 20-22 At the end of forty days Noah opened the hatch he had made in the ark, and he sent out a raven, to see if the waters had lessened on the earth. It flew back and forth until the waters dried off from the earth. Then he sent out a dove, to see if the waters had lessened on the earth. But the dove could find no place to alight and perch, and it returned to him in the ark, for there was water all over the earth. Putting out his hand, he caught the dove and drew it back to him inside the ark. He waited seven days more and again sent the dove out from the ark. In the evening the dove came back to him, and there in its bill was a plucked-off olive leaf! So Noah knew that the waters had lessened on the earth. He waited still another seven days and then released the dove once more; and this time it did not come back.

In the six hundred and first year of Noah's life, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the water began to dry up on the earth. Noah then removed the covering of the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was drying up.
Noah built an altar to the LORD, and choosing from every clean animal and every clean bird, he offered burnt offerings on the altar. When the LORD smelled the sweet odor, he said to himself:"Never again will I doom the earth because of man since the desires of man's heart are evil from the start; nor will I ever again strike down all living beings, as I have done. As long as the earth lasts, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease."

Mk 8:22-26 When Jesus and his disciples arrived at Bethsaida, people brought to him a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. Putting spittle on his eyes he laid his hands on the man and asked, "Do you see anything?" Looking up the man replied, "I see people looking like trees and walking." Then he laid hands on the man's eyes a second time and he saw clearly; his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly. Then he sent him home and said, "Do not even go into the village."

Both readings today got me thinking about Lily’s baptism coming up this Sunday, as well as the Sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist.

I think the “water that was all over the earth” can be likened to the waters of baptism in that God used it to basically start creation all over again with Noah and his family. The flood was Mankind’s “second chance” to try to get our purpose in existence right. It “opened our eyes” to what God is capable of and the mercy He bestows upon those who are faithful to Him. But in opening our eyes this “first” time, we still could not see the big picture of God’s eventual Incarnation in Jesus Christ that would free us from the bondage we were placed in under sin. It would take a second cleansing, with the Blood of Christ, to let us see clearly God’s plan for us.

It’s the same thing with our baptism in the Name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. We are given the gift of life from the Father and at Baptism we are cleansed of the sins of Adam and marked with the sign of faith in Christ the Son through the Holy Spirit. This is the first “healing”, as when the blind man “saw people looking like trees and walking”. He was not aware of details. After Jesus laid hands on him the second time, everything became clear. After Baptism, God uses our parents and Godparents and the Grace of the Holy Spirit to help us learn about our Creator and Jesus so that He may lay His hands on us (“dwell in us”) personally a second time (actually many times, through the Sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist)to heal us and to help us, if we have faith, to see clearly what we must do to spend an eternity of joy with Him, as was intended from the very beginning.

Looking for a good Carpenter?

Mk 8:11-13The Pharisees came forward and began to argue with Jesus, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. He sighed from the depth of his spirit and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign? Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation." Then he left them, got into the boat again,and went off to the other shore.

The Pharisees are an enigma to me. They are the “Scribes” who wrote and interpreted the early Scriptures, yet they couldn’t see the fulfillment of them in Jesus. I think that is why, in today’s Gospel, Jesus “sighed from the depth of his spirit”---it was that same sigh we all use when we are extremely frustrated at those who just don’t seem to “get it”, even when the answer in right in front of them!

The Pharisees knew, from the earliest writings that “the blind will receive sight and the lame walk, the lepers will be cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead will be raised up, and the poor will have the Gospel preached to them.” (Mt 11:5) Jesus did all of these things in their midst and they still denied seeing the “signs”. Even as He was dying, they demanded that He show them proof of His authority by lowering Himself from the cross. But He remained true to His promise and denied them yet another sign. He knew that even if He had lowered Himself, they would require yet another, and another, and again another “sign”. They couldn’t see the signs right in front of their eyes!

As we were getting ready for Mom’s “90th Birthday Extravaganza” this week, all of my siblings and a boatload full of other relatives and friends showed up here in Lodi to help her celebrate. It was great to see my brothers and sister again all in one place at the same time! We don’t get a chance to do this often enough. I see each of them individually periodically, but not all together. It was pretty cool for me.

Sometime Friday Dick mentioned that we should replace Mom’s screen door, which was in really bad shape and falling off the frame. “We’ll wait for Bill, since he’s the carpenter,” he said. I remember thinking, “I’ve got to use that line somehow this week in a blog”.

Sure enough, after getting beat up on the golf course Saturday morning (the brothers got “beat up”—I was playing to my usual standard), Dick brought up the screen door. I said to Bill, “When Dick said we would wait for the Carpenter, I had an entirely different thought, but I guess you’ll have to do.” Bill replied, “And whattya know? You got both.” We had a good laugh, but the more I thought about it all day Saturday, Sunday, and now into Monday, it was really a profound thought.

Christ is truly present in the Eucharist, and we, as Catholics receive Him into our very souls every time we receive Communion. He is not limited to the Eucharist, however, so we should also look for Him in others and more importantly show Him to others through our words and actions. This is the sign that He is among us. There are still Pharisees around who are looking for more, but until we each see Him at the particular judgment, we’ll have to be content with finding Him and showing Him to those around us.

God's Sense of Humor

The 1st reading today is about the creation of man. It's also Charles Darwin's 200th birthday. Pretty ironic, huh? Who says God doesn't have a sense of humor?

The reading actually deals with finding a companion for Adam. The Lord brings every animal to Adam and allows him to name each one, but none of them are suitable companions. So God puts him to sleep, takes a rib, and makes Eve. My meditation on this all day has been about the fact that all of the creatures of the earth were made from dust (including Man) except the woman. She was created "flesh of my flesh, and bone of my bone" (Gn 2:23), which, when you think of it, makes woman the equal of man, not inferior in any way--not someone to make an object out of or to abuse or mistreat--a true "soul mate". I took meditation deeper and dwelt on the meaning of the marital union that husbands and wives enjoy, and why gay men and women cannot and must not "marry". When the two "become one body" (Gn 2:24) and create new life in the Creator is like coming full circle with the story of creation. Pretty straightforward, yet mind boggling and wonderful at the same time when you take the time to really think about it.

The least of our bretheren

Gn 2:4b-9
At the time when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens while as yet there was no field shrub on earth and no grass of the field had sprouted, for the LORD God had sent no rain upon the earth and there was no man to till the soil, but a stream was welling up out of the earth and was watering all the surface of the ground the LORD God formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life,and so man became a living being.

I was reminded of an old joke today. A scientist says to God, "You're not so great. I can also create a man." God says, "Ok, prove it." The scientist reaches for a lump of clay, and God says, "Uh-uh. Make your own dirt."

We've become so proud of ourselves. We can clone animals (can human beings be far behind?). We have the "choice" to determine who lives and who dies. We've made it legal in some states (Oregon and Florida come to mind) to end the lives of those who are a burden. We create lives in a test-tube solely to destroy the life to harvest the stem cells that have no more value than adult stem cells that we can get without destroying life. We have determined in some of the more "open-minded" states that homosexuals should be allowed the SACRAMENT of marriage, even though there is no possible way for that "union" to procreate, as God has commanded us. Some of our government leaders have now gone on record to say the contraception will help the economy by lessening the burden on the already overtaxed citizen. To paraphrase catholic (small 'c') House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, "How will we ever afford health care for everyone if the population keeps growing? Oh, woe is us!" Please pray long and hard for her soul, and the souls of all the other politicians who share her views. Let's ask God to show them the light of His Truth, and soon.

There was another time in history when mankind was this proud of themselves.

Gn 11:1-8
The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words. While men were migrating in the east, they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, "Come, let us mold bricks and harden them with fire." They used bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the sky, and so make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth." LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men had built. Then the LORD said: "If now, while they are one people, all speaking the same language, they have started to do this, nothing will later stop them from doing whatever they presume to do. Let us then go down and there confuse their language, so that one will not understand what another says." Thus the LORD scattered them from there all over the earth, and they stopped building the city.

Almost seems like we've come full-circle, doesn't it? Only the next time, we won't be scattered. We'll be gathered unto Christ where he will separate the goats from the sheep.

Mt 25:31-46
Jesus said to his disciples: "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him,he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right,'Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food,I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.' Then the righteous will answer him and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?' And the king will say to them in reply, 'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.'
Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.' Then they will answer and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?' He will answer them, 'Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones,
you did not do for me.' And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Who are the "least of our bretheren" if not the unborn child or the elderly? Certainly the poor of the world are included in this, and we must take responsibility for them, as well. But NOT at the expense of the unborn or the "inconvenient".

Happy Candlemas Day!

You know, there are times when I miss being an altar boy, even though I wasn’t very good at it. Of course, when I was an altar boy, Masses were said in Latin. I had a hell of a time with the language. I never could say all of the required prayers correctly. Father Stroup said he would say them with me in a loud voice so that if I did stumble, no one would notice—“All I ask is that you try,” he said. And I did. And I was very uncomfortable every time I had to serve by myself. But now that we say the Mass in English, how I wish I were 10 years old again! On the other side of that coin, I wish Masses still had the old “bells and smells” feeling of reverence.

What made me think of this was Mass today. Today was the Feast of the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple. Another word for it is “Candlemas”. It is 40 days after Christmas and traditionally the day when all of the candles in the church are blessed. I attended Mass at the Cathedral and Father Armistead celebrated. I really like him. He celebrates a good, orthodox Mass (except when he comes down to the foot of the altar to give his homilies—I think this is supposed to be a no-no), and he always has a good homily that helps me relate the readings to my own life. I digress. Father Armistead likes to preside at the Masses where traditional observances are celebrated. We said a quick blessing over the candles at the start of Mass today, and then Father said we could take some home with us, so I grabbed a couple.

Anyway, we got to the readings and I was thinking about the set of New Testament readings we’ve been listening to lately—Hebrews. It might just be me, but the author of Hebrews really seems to be a “down-to-earth”, tell-it-like-it-is sort of person. It’s almost like a textbook, explaining the parallels between the Old and the New Testaments. I really get a lot of good stuff out of Hebrews.

Today’s Gospel has been a real good one for meditation. Especially the part about Anna:

Luke 2:36-38
There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

Think about it. Anna lived seven years with her husband after marriage. In those days they got married at about 12 or 13 years old. Let’s assume she was a good catch in her heyday, so she was a bride at 12. That means she became a widow at 19 years old. She lived that way until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer for 63 years! What patience! How many times must she have been frustrated in her search for the Messiah, wondering if He would ever come! But she persisted in prayer and thanksgiving to the Almighty God day after day, month after month, and year after year, trusting that He would answer her prayers. What was her reward? She was allowed to see our Lord while He was still an infant! Being a new grandfather with a pretty special baby in the house, I can only imagine the joy Anna felt!

Dear God, how many times have I neglected to pray simply because I was too tired or lazy? This woman persisted for 63 years! Sounds a lot like Mom, doesn’t it? Or Grandma? Or Aunt Jenny, Aunt Teresa, Aunt Barbara? No one could hold a candle to the faith they gave me through their examples—pun intended on Candlemas Day.