What goes around, comes around

"What goes around, comes around." This will always be so, as long as man chooses sin over virtues requiring self-denial. It is we who empower Satan whenever we consent to sin.

God, the most perfect of parents, forgives and restores to His friendship, sinners who repent and work to reform their lives. However, He also sometimes allows them to suffer the consequences of their selfish actions along with their innocent victims in hopes they will develop a keener, more compassionate conscience. Such was King David's experience after lust caused him to plan Uriah's death to marry his wife. We see him in fear, fleeing his palace, losing his kingship to Absalom, the son who betrays him.

Monday’s Gospel reading illustrates God's infinite saving power, His total defeat of evil. Jesus, traveling through pagan territory encounters a violent, self-destructive demoniac possessed by a "legion" of evil spirits. Christ never forces His will on anyone, but when the man prostrated himself before Him, Jesus commanded the spirits to leave him. The spirits, comfortable in pagan territory, begged not to be banished from the area, so Jesus allowed them to enter the nearby large herds of swine that then rushed madly into the sea to drown. Seeing the madman suddenly restored to his senses and their great loss of livestock, the natives, in fear, begged Jesus to leave them. However, His saving power remained with them. Jesus left behind the healed man to tell the wonder done for him by the One True God.

In both of these readings, humans are “beset”. Who among us is not “beset”? Who hasn’t felt completely overwhelmed? Sometimes we’re overwhelmed through our own fault (bad or nonexistent scheduling, discipline, choices); sometimes it seems that we’re being nibbled to death for no apparent reason.

Sometimes we want to strike back, or out, to heave the rocks and the dirt back in the direction they came from; other times we wish our own problems on others (lacking a herd of swine). I have some advice for these times:

First, take a deep breath. Then, ask Jesus to help you out of the mess that you got yourself into. That, really, is what faith is largely about—helping us overcome being “beset.”

We all like to hear those "3 little words"--Maybe if we start with kindness?

Last week, Lorenzo and Alicia went up to Angel’s Camp to meet with the priest who will preside at their wedding. He gave them a book of possible readings that they can choose from. Sunday’s second reading from the letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians is one of the choices they can make. Speaking about the qualities associated with love, it becomes for the bride and groom, and indeed all witnesses, an excellent measuring stick for our fidelity to all that love demands.

The most excellent example of love is, of course, Jesus. By surrendering the glory of heaven and becoming one of us He begins to demonstrate what true love is all about. He continues by His selfless ministry, which finally culminates on the Cross and His ignominious death. For us it is difficult to fathom imitating that kind of love, and we often give up before we really even give it a shot.

Paul's letter offers us another set of criteria, which are a reflection of divine Love, no less difficult to accomplish, but seemingly more within our reach. Let’s consider just one: "Love is kind." If we are willing to critically evaluate our behavior and motivations against those three little words and honestly discover that we measure up, then the other more familiar three little words will not be like mere clashing cymbals ringing discordantly with disturbing noise, but instead pure and beautiful because they'll be on pitch -- they will be true.

All I can think of when reading the Gospel is how some of us react to priests who preach things from the pulpit that don’t sit right with us, or make us feel like we’re not doing enough. We don't go so far as to drive them to the cliff to push them over, but our thoughts might be less than charitable. Or how we sometimes expect more and more from them week after week, not remembering that, like us, they can become dry in their presentations. I think we need to cut them some slack, especially in this Year for Priests—after all, they’re only human.

True God AND true man

I was asked by a couple of my regular readers why I don't post the readings and the mysteries of the rosary anymore. I would like to direct their attention to the left side of the blog where I have links to both of those. And so we have Saturday's reflection:



If we sat still for fifteen minutes, we could probably list a thousand different things to be frightened of; losing our job, finding out we have cancer, someone in our family getting sick, terrorists. Some would cause minor anxiety; others would give us a full-out case of the heebie-jeebies. What then? Should we be afraid?

Jesus is with us! If He does not rebuke the winds that tear at us, it’s probably because they have something to teach us. Or perhaps He uses them to drive us into Him, the Shelter and the Rock who saves us. Jesus is there! He is not asleep—He knows who we are and what we need to become the very best persons we can be. And He will provide it. And while everything storms and blows around us, He is there at the center - a core of peace, a place of calm, my strength, my Rock of comfort, my God.

Like the Apostles in that boat on that stormy night, surely you have asked yourself the same question from time to time that they did—“ Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?" “Who is Jesus?”

We know that He is the Son of God. We know that He is savior. We know that He is present to us in the Eucharist and in the Word. We know a lot about Him, but what we think we know is utterly insufficient. We must become like the disciples.

We must learn to know Jesus as friend, companion, teacher, guide, brother, Lord and God. We come to this by slow steps, but St. Teresa of Avila taught that to know Jesus as man and God was to enter into God's embrace. To learn who God really is we must embrace the humanity of Jesus Christ. That's a powerful and hard teaching. Most of us look to Jesus as God and forget that He was also human. We don't deny it, but we seem to overlook it. Sometimes in a homily or in a book we are reminded that there were times when He was frightened, sad, angry, joyous--there were times when He experienced every facet of the human existence.

So, to come to answer the question "Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?" we must be able to embrace both the divinity and the humanity. We need to learn to love Jesus in all that He is before we can begin to truly love Him for all that He has done for us. Who then is this? He is the only One, true man and true God, the eternal before all things. And He is the One who loves us.

Off the hook? Yes and No. Faith is a big factor

I'm sorry I didn't post yesterday. It was a loooonnnngggg day! I went to work at 4am, worked in Stockton until 3pm, then I had to drive to Fresno with 3 stops before getting there! I didn't get into the hotel room and settled until after 9pm. I was so sleepy I couldn't keep my eyes open, much less write anything coherent. Today was better. So here goes.
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It is clear from the story of David’s adulterous affair with Bathsheba and premeditated murder of her husband Uriah that David was a practiced sinner. He didn’t just “mess up” every now and then; he used his power over other people to get what he wanted. It doesn’t get much worse. But God used him to further the Kingdom of God anyway. So does that let him off the hook for his sins? Does it let any of us off the hook? Yes—and no.

The readings for Friday should remind us of the constant feelings of guilt and frustration most of us feel about our sinful natures. The Psalm is an oft-prayed prayer for mercy. Most of us recognize that our sin is always before us. And we know that God always sees it and that we deserve to be punished for it. But we believe that we don’t have to settle for that kind of relationship with God. We can ask for mercy. God will blot out all of our guilt. Wow! What kind of God is that?

Our human condition has trouble grasping the nature of a God that knows all of our sins from the day we are born, but who can just turn His face away from our evil and in great compassion cleanse us from our offenses. Jesus gives us some insight into that God and His Kingdom. Jesus says that we don’t know how seeds sprout, grow, and yield fruit but they do. The potential is all in the earth and in the seeds. It is not because of the labor of the man who scatters the seeds. Even a small mustard seed can become a great plant. The Kingdom of God is like that. It is the place where miraculous things happen without our knowledge or intervention because God makes it happen.

When we reflect on this parable, it is easy to see how God used David to further the Kingdom of God. It wasn’t about who David was—rather it was about God. David was a very powerful leader, but he was terribly humanly flawed. That didn’t stop God from working through him the same way God works through a tiny mustard seed, and through us. Our sins do not stop God from working through us. God has great compassion on us when we acknowledge our offenses and call for mercy. God forgives us so we can move on.

We are going to sin. We can’t help ourselves. What we must do is acknowledge that much of what we do in our daily life is offensive to God, ask for forgiveness, and then be open to letting God work through us. That requires a lot of faith.

We need to be the rich soil that receives the Good News

Mark 4:1-20 is a pretty simple parable to understand, even if Jesus did have to explain it to His Apostles. Lots of people go to church. Lots of people say they are Christian, but how many are living the Christian life and acting on the word of God? Too often the word is like the seed in the first three circumstances. People go to church, but as soon as they leave, the words are gone. They don’t think about it again until next week. They get too busy with their day-to-day lives, and religion is choked out. Their good intentions are eaten up by materialism, or choked out by their daily lives, or their intentions don’t have roots and don’t survive in the outside world.

It’s not enough to hear the word of God—we must live it. We can’t let the faith and fervor we feel at church wither up and die outside the church walls. We need to hear the word of God, really listen, think about it, understand it, and live it. We need to be the rich soil in which God’s word can take root and thrive. It’s easy to let evil or apathy take over. It’s hard to have conviction and live God’s word, but the harvest will be amazing.


January 27 is the Feast Day of St. Angela Merici (1470?-1540). Here is the entry from AmericanCatholic.org telling of this holy woman who shares my mom’s first name:

Angela has the double distinction of founding the first teaching congregation of women in the Church and what is now called a “secular institute” of religious women.
As a young woman she became a member of the Third Order of St. Francis (now known as the Secular Franciscan Order), and lived a life of great austerity, wishing, like St. Francis, to own nothing, not even a bed. Early in life she was appalled at the ignorance among poorer children, whose parents could not or would not teach them the elements of religion. Angela’s charming manner and good looks complemented her natural qualities of leadership. Others joined her in giving regular instruction to the little girls of their neighborhood.

She was invited to live with a family in Brescia (where, she had been told in a vision, she would one day found a religious community). Her work continued and became well known. She became the center of a group of people with similar ideals.

She eagerly took the opportunity for a trip to the Holy Land. When they had gotten as far as Crete, she was struck with blindness. Her friends wanted to return home, but she insisted on going through with the pilgrimage, and visited the sacred shrines with as much devotion and enthusiasm as if she had her sight. On the way back, while praying before a crucifix, her sight was restored at the same place where it had been lost.

At 57, she organized a group of 12 girls to help her in catechetical work. Four years later the group had increased to 28. She formed them into the Company of St. Ursula (patroness of medieval universities and venerated as a leader of women) for the purpose of re-Christianizing family life through solid Christian education of future wives and mothers. The members continued to live at home, had no special habit and took no formal vows, though the early Rule prescribed the practice of virginity, poverty and obedience. The idea of a teaching congregation of women was new and took time to develop. The community thus existed as a “secular institute” until some years after Angela’s death.

The Conversion of St Paul

Tomorrow (Monday) is the Feast of St. Paul’s Conversion. The readings reflect the challenge doing difficult things. Sometimes it is hard to get moving, and it can be especially difficult to change directions if you are going the wrong way. Thanks be to God that He uses others in our lives to help get us moving and to help us to see clearly.

Few of us have dramatic experiences that change our lives in the manner of Paul. Paul’s Damascus experience resonates in a special way as we consider how his experience with Jesus changed his life’s direction. Paul’s youthful enthusiasm, wrought by his years of education and fueled by the approval of those in the reigning power structures within his community, took him down a path where he acted with great certainty in oppressing those who followed Jesus. But an encounter with Jesus forced him to answer the question: “Why are you persecuting me?” Oddly enough, Paul did not know who was asking this question. Perhaps he really did not know what he was doing. Or maybe the zeal with which he performed his actions blinded him.

When Paul learned it was Jesus, he did not respond with all of the arguments he had in his arsenal. I am a little surprised that he did not seek to justify his persecuting ways, as I probably would have. Instead, he just did what Jesus told him. We are told that later scales fell from his eyes and he was able to see clearly. The product of his new vision and his changed life has touched many other lives, too.

The story of Ananias is just as surprising as Paul’s story. Ananias was a faithful man who undoubtedly identified with the persecuted Christian brothers and sisters who suffered because of Paul. If I were in Ananias’ shoes, not only would I be fearful, but I would also be plenty irate with this zealous and arrogant persecutor of my friends. Isn’t it interesting that Ananias, who knew God’s voice, needed to ask God if he knew all the facts? I like his honesty. And I admire the fact that somehow Ananias was able to put all of this past aside, to the point of not only going to Paul and praying for him, but also in calling him his “brother”. What a remarkable story of forgiveness and faithfulness!

In my own experience, forgiving often seems difficult. Interior change is harder to begin than exterior conformity. But sometimes simply doing something precedes or accompanies a change of heart. Ananias provides a remarkable example of cooperating with God, and in doing so he participated in God’s wondrous work in and through Paul.

May God have mercy on each of us to help us to recognize situations where we are seeing with scales on our eyes, and to have the courage to change—even to forgive those who have trespassed against us. And may we appreciate the power of positive examples that are all around us.

Weekly weigh in--Week 4

OK, I'm going in the right direction again. I lost 2.5 pounds this week. Must have been the worrying that always accompanies auctions and company audits! Just kidding. More like watching my calorie intake.

I really don't know when I will be able to begin the gym or even walking--but it's in the near future! I need to be able to fit into a tux for Alicia's wedding and look good in it.

The Third Luminous Mystery--- The proclamation of the Kingdom of God

With each passing day, we find it easier to write "2010" on our checks and papers. But we also realize there's not much difference from "2009" in our daily living. We realize with that sinking feeling that we are living in another year of fears and uncertainties. In world, national and local news, there's not much to lift our spirits. More than ever before, we need to lean on God's Word and presence in our lives.

Fortunately, there's a treasure of hope in this Sunday's readings, beginning with Nehemiah, appointed by King Artaxerxes to rebuild the city of Jerusalem, which lay in ruins following the exile. The spirits of the people also needed rebuilding, so Ezra, the priest, dusts off the neglected scrolls of the law and calls all the people together, even the children who are old enough to understand. From morning to night, Ezra reads to them the Law. Most had neglected its precepts for years. As they hear it read and explained by Ezra, they begin to weep tears of joy and of sorrow. After recommitting their lives to the Lord, they express their joy with days of feasting.

The Gospel describes an even greater "reading." As Jesus formally begins His mission on earth, He starts with His hometown of Nazareth. There, in the synagogue on a Sabbath, He reads to the people from the passage in Isaiah, which proclaims the coming messianic age. In a voice filled with the fire of the Spirit, He announces to them Isaiah's prophecy of a time of good news to the poor, liberty for captives, recovery of sight to the blind and freedom for the oppressed. Then, handing the scroll to an attendant, He proclaims to all present, "Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing." These words are the core of Jesus' message to both the people of His day and of our times! Talk about a reason to hope!

Then in the second reading, from St. Paul to the Corinthians, we find a blueprint for acting on the two readings we have heard. Some reflection points out the inspiration of the Holy Spirit on Nehemiah and Ezra and on Jesus. St. Luke tells us in the Gospel that Jesus came from the desert to Nazareth "in the power of the Spirit." It is the Spirit, too, that came upon us in our Baptism and Confirmation to make us part of the Body of Christ. The Church is one body, but made up of many members. How very different we are! St. Paul tells us that there are "important" members and "not-so-important" members. However, we are all needed, and must respect and support one another in charity.

Meditating on today's readings gives us every reason to hope and to act in 2010 as a unified Body of Christ, with our many gifts, witnessing and working for the fulfillment of the Kingdom.

Welcome Home, Lorenzo!

Alicia and Lorenzo went up to Angel's Camp today to meet with the priest who will be presiding at their wedding in June. Lorenzo found out the other day that he had never been baptized, and Father Petronio, after asking Lorenzo some basic questions about the Catholic faith and his faith in particular, told Lorenzo he would put him on a "fast-track" to receiving the Sacraments--Baptism, Reconciliation, Eucharist and Confirmation. He will receive all of them on February 13! He has asked me to be his sponsor and I (of course!) am elated that he asked me to be his Godfather as well as his father-in-law!

Father was impressed with Lorenzo's response to what he knew about the Eucharist. Many new "initiates" have trouble with this one, but Lorenzo answered, "It's the Body and Blood of Christ!" He didn't respond that it was a memorial, or a symbol--or just some bread and wine--he was adamant about the True Presence! I've seen Lorenzo go up to get a blessing when Alicia and I go to Communion and I've seen him disappointed when he was unable to. He'll make a great "spiritual head of his family". But if any man does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. (1 Timothy 5:8)

One of the first things I want to teach Lorenzo as the spiritual head of his family is summed up well in this article .

Again Lorenzo--welcome home to Christ's Church!

God is always in charge!

Well, it happened again—almost a total blackout of coverage by the major media outlets of the March for Life in Washington, DC. Thank God for EWTN. I wish I was able to go to the West Coast March for Life in San Francisco tomorrow, but I will be there in prayer. Please join me.

Hail Mary, Full of Grace the Lord is with thee,
Blessed are you among women and Blessed is the Fruit of your womb, Jesus!

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners—now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

I was speaking to a customer on the phone today, who was making a reservation for a moving truck to help her son and his wife move in with her. We got into a discussion about how maybe this country’s unemployment woes are part of God’s plan to get families closer to one another again. I told her it wouldn’t surprise me. We get so full of ourselves sometimes that He has to step in and slap us upside the head to remind us what is truly important.

Saturday’s readings remind us that war and fear have been a part of human experience for a very long time. Natural disasters and cruel human acts have always been with us, as has the faith of people to face these tragedies and, at times, even grow. One can’t help but be touched by the sorrow that David felt and the impact of the losses beyond just his immediate family and circle of friends. It’s another reminder of how interconnected we all are to one another. Our actions, or lack thereof, have ripple effects well beyond our viewing area. We are not isolated beings in this fragile world but a complex connected web where vibrations anywhere are felt in some way everywhere.

The psalm reflects a people reaching out almost in desperation for some favor or comfort from their God. In many ways, this feels different from the majority of psalms that seem to focus on praise. That sense of knowing that no matter what, God is there in all ways manifested and that the outcome will truly be okay is a tremendous gift. That does not mean the outcome will always be what fits my plans but I know that whatever, I need to not worry and hand it over and believe. Having the grace and faith to keep accepting is one of the most important parts of my prayers. The gentle bonk on the head that I’m not in charge!!

In the gospel, Jesus’ relatives think he is out of his mind! Of course, this doesn’t include Mary and Joseph. I can imagine how some of his actions and ways would have seemed so strange to those around him. Without the grace of the Holy Spirit to open our hearts and minds, we, too, might consider this over the edge. But then faith does not mean we believe what we see and feel around us—it goes beyond what might make sense and allows our hearts and minds to accept and believe without seeing. It is by the grace of God, that we KNOW Him and accept Him into our hearts.

When I got home and logged on to the Internet the first story I read in the “news” (and I use that term very loosely) was this story. Praise be to God!

Preparing to be sent

Whenever a new manager is placed or hired in one of the locations I have control over, it is my responsibility to train that individual. The way I usually (almost always—depending on circumstances) train them is to schedule the new manager for the same times I am working. This way, I can show him/her the correct or most efficient way to perform their new duties. I think it gives them confidence in their new job to know that I am close by in case something goes wrong. The more successful managers are those that listen and take the time to learn what I have to teach. They are usually the same managers who end up teaching me something new.

This method of training is not easy most of the time because of the diversity of the managers and their abilities to learn or their abilities to lead and manage others, but once they “get it”, it is a very gratifying experience for me. I tend to think of the managers I train as my “children” because we sometimes become quite close as a result of my training methods. When you spend 10 hours a day, six days a week, you really get to know one another. You learn to listen to, and respect one another’s opinions and by the end of the first week you’re not afraid to charitably disagree about differing styles of management and skills. It becomes a "give and take" that lets us both grow and leads the company to success.

When they are ready I "send them forth" into the battle that is known as Customer Service. Their success or failure is a reflection of how well I train them, so I always let them know I am just a phone call away for support. The more successful managers are those that remember to call on me when they get in tough situations, rather than trying to go it alone.

This reminds me of the gospel for Friday (and no, I'm not comparing my customers to "demons") lol:

“He appointed Twelve, whom he also named Apostles, that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons . . .”

As we get to know the men named by Jesus to be his Apostles, we are impressed by their diversity and perhaps surprised by their less-than-faithful performances. Peter’s denial, Thomas’ doubts, and Judas’ betrayal all remind us that the Lord did not choose perfect men without fault.

But in the brief line from Mark’s gospel quoted above, we are told of the common preparation that Jesus offered all of them before they were sent forth: Jesus called them “that they might be with him.” A period of apprenticeship preceded their missioning. It was necessary that they “be with” Jesus, watching him, listening to him, observing his way with people, before heading out on mission.

For us who desire to place our lives at the Lord’s service, this simple line from Mark’s gospel cautions us not to allow zeal for mission to pull us away from an attentive “being with” Jesus in prayer. We, too, need to “be with him” before going out to serve “in his name.”

We might ask ourselves today: how am I doing in that delicate balance between giving and receiving? Do I regularly listen in prayer? Do I take the time to “be with him” or do I too quickly run to do good in his name without waiting to learn how he wants me do serve him?

Lily's first steps

Well, she finally started taking a few steps without hanging on to someone or something. I'm so proud of her. I'm just sorry I wasn't here to see it in person because I was at work. I stopped by the house for a few minutes yesterday morning to pick something up for work, and she was "jabbering" away at me. Maybe she was telling me, "Oompah, don't be late getting home from work, or you'll miss my big debut!" I should have listened.

Prayer and fasting

I thought some of you might like to see Mom's rosary collection (she has over 80 of them from all over the world) after we put her new "Mary at prayer" wall plaque and the needlepoint Marilyn made for her the wall. Pretty neat, huh?



Sorry for the quality of the picture, but it was taken with my cell phone.

The collection is a good reminder for me of the devotion Mom has (and has inspired me to have) to the power of the rosary and the helping intercession of our Blessed Mother. Prayer and fasting is the one consistent message of Our Lady. Mom has it right.


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Well, it's time for the "weigh-in".

No change this week. I guess it's because I still haven't found the time to exercise. I am depending only on watching my calories and an occasional fast--which leads me to the gospel for Monday.

Fasting is a good discipline. If done in the spirit of prayer with the only point being an offering to God of self and a desire to free oneself from all the things that keep us from Him, it is an excellent discipline.

But too often we fast as a divided person. I’m like that—“I'll fast for peace, and besides it's a good way to start my new diet." We have only one eye on the goal, and so, at times it is simply better not to fast. And Jesus tells us clearly, while the wedding guest is with us, fasting is not required or even a good practice. (Mark 2:18-22)

God, our Father, sent Christ into this world to reach into the very hearts of men by revealing His genuine, self-giving and obedient love, teaching them how to participate in that love and so become true children of God. God is not pleased by the superficial performance of certain acts or privations. He wishes us to develop fresh, pliable hearts capable of expanding with a fullness of and an overflow to others of God's love.

The finest wine is Christ, God's gift of Love to us

I had the pleasure of interviewing a gentleman today who was applying for the position that was created when my friend lost his job the other day. His qualifications are outstanding. It is rare that we find someone so quickly when these positions become available.

Somehow the interview process came around to the subject of marriage and the applicant told me he was going through his second divorce right now. I had to share with him that while I was sorry it didn’t work out for him, it would be impossible for me to say, “I know how you must feel.” Because to be quite frank, I can’t even IMAGINE the concept of divorce—and not because I’m Catholic, but because I have been so blessed to have Marilyn as my bride for the last 35 years and for the rest of my life.


The conversation brought to mind the wedding feast at Cana from John’s Gospel which, to my pleasant surprise, is the Gospel reading at this Sunday’s Mass. My love for Marilyn at the beginning of our lives together was like a wine that we enjoyed together. As the years go by and the love grows, it becomes like the “finest wine” that was created by Jesus out of water at that glorious feast so many years ago.

The conversation also gave me the “grist” for my blog tonight. I hope you enjoy it.

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John's Gospel doesn’t present many miracles in its pages. There are three physical healings and two physical changes. There is the multiplication of the loaves and fish, and the changing of water into wine at the wedding feast in Cana. These are "signs" pointing toward Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. They are offered to those who can see these signs in hopes that they will come to believe in Him.

In the same Gospel there are often literary references back to the Book of Genesis. Both this Gospel and Genesis start with, "In the beginning." The first day of creation was the act of God's hovering over the "water" or “chaos”(Gen. 1, 2). God said, "Let there be light" and so there was and God called that "day" and the dark God called "night". In John's Gospel the good things happen in the day's light and the bad things take place in the dark.

For John, Jesus is Light and as John writes in his first chapter, "This Light was the life of the world."

There are six water jars in the story of the wedding feast and there were six days of creation in Genesis. The water of chaos or the unformed, is changed by the Word of God into seeable light and the water in the stone jugs is to be seen through the light of Jesus; making it a sign. The signs are to be seen and taken as lights shining on Jesus as Messiah.

This is the opening, or first day of the new creation. The wine-masters indicate that this new wine is more of a sign than the earlier one. For John, Jesus is the later wine, which completes the wedding feast begun with the first serving of wine, or the original creation of the universe. This of course, includes our human creation.

The disciples begin to accept Jesus as the Son of God. The real miracle is their acceptance of themselves as changed-into-new-wine people. This miracle continues taking place in our own lives as well. God continues breathing over our chaos, our spiritual formlessness, our darkness and bringing us into the light, through the Light that is Jesus.

We are just at the beginning of the Liturgical Year. We, like the disciples, are always coming slowly into the light of our being newly created through Christ's birth, life, death and Resurrection. Through the accounts of Genesis' creation stories, God comes out of hiding, just enough to allow us the freedom to acknowledge that there is a Person of “Beyondness”, Whose love does such things as giving us signs which we can accept, ignore or reject as mere possibilities or accidentals.

Last night just as I was getting ready to relax for the evening and write my entry, I got a call from one of the girls down at the store. She said that the key I had given her earlier in the day did not work in the door and she was ready to close the store and go home. I couldn’t understand why the key wouldn’t work—I just had them made and I tested all of them. I said to myself, “Can’t that girl do anything on her own? She’s probably using the wrong key!” But because the possibility was there that maybe the key didn’t work, I changed my clothes again and drove down there.

On the way there, the rosary was being prayed on the radio. “That’s not unusual”, you might say. Well it is since January 1st, when the radio station changed its programming schedule and no longer has a rosary on at eight in the evening. This rosary was being said in response to the earthquake in Haiti. It was a special program.

What does this story have to do with my previous reflection? I was very sleepy all day yesterday, and while I was saying my rosary earlier in the evening in front of the Blessed Sacrament, I fell asleep! I awoke before being embarrassed by snoring, but I did fall asleep. I tried to finish my rosary, but Mass started and I just didn’t get to it. So when I heard the rosary on the radio, I was dumfounded when I realized that I came into the program at the EXACT Hail Mary I last remembered saying when I had fallen asleep!

Some may call me a religious fanatic for thinking so, but I got the impression that Mary was helping me finish my rosary while she had my attention on the radio. The reason I think that is because when I got to the center I found out that sure enough, I had given my employee the wrong key. I don’t know how or why I did, but it was enough to get me in my car at that exact moment and it took me just enough time to get there that I was able to finish my rosary.

I think it was a sign. I am beginning to think there is no such thing in my life anymore as coincidence. The people I work with know that one of my favorite sayings is “Life is a choice.” Things don’t just happen. They happen as a result of the choices we make either deliberately or unintentionally, but not by coincidence. I have no idea why or how I could have given my employee the wrong key, but I have the feeling that just about everything that happens in my life and every choice I make is somehow the direct result of the love my God has for me and the love I have for Him.

What are friends for?

I read the gospel for tomorrow about 5 times and I couldn't get a handle on what to write, which is pretty unusual for me. The reason I can't think very straight tonight is because a co-worker and very good friend lost his job today. Please pray for him.

I thought if I found a picture on the theme of the gospel it would give me some ideas. I found the picture above on the 'net and it, coupled with a beer or two, immediately put two thoughts in my mind--

What are friends for, if not to risk a danger of falling through the roof or incuring the cost of repairing the same, simply to help another human being know the joy of being whole in God's presence?

And, which was greater--the cure of the paralytic or the forgiveness of his sins? What greater love can we show one another than the love of forgiveness?

Hmmm, some things are worth meditating on, don't you think?

An appeal from the Holy Father

I would now like to make an appeal regarding the dramatic situation in Haiti. My thoughts go out in particular to the people severely afflicted, just a few hours ago, by a devastating earthquake that has caused massive loss of human life, left a great number of people homeless, and left widespread tremendous material devastation. I invite everyone to unite themselves to my prayer to the Lord for the victims of this catastrophe and for those who mourn the dead. Be assured of my spiritual closeness to those who have lost their homes and to all people suffering in any way from this grave calamity, as I ask God to grant them consolation and relief amidst their suffering. I call upon the generosity of all so that our brothers and sisters living in this time of need and pain may not lack our concrete solidarity and the effective support of the International Community. The Catholic Church will not fail to take immediate action through her charitable institutions to meet the most pressing needs of the people. -- Pope Benedict XVI

For the Pope's intentions:

Our Father Who art in Heaven, hallowed by Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy Will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen

Hail Mary, Full of Grace! The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women and blessed is the Fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen

Everybody's lookin'

Everyone is looking for Him but they often don't know it. In the day to day grind, as they seek some reason to work and to live, they are looking for Him. They often can't realize it, because of all the internal "noise" that inhibits their search. Most of those "inner voices" come from our attachment to sin.

Sometimes we pray and pray and pray, and it seems there is no answer. We pray because we are looking for Him. We are hoping to see Him. We pray and seek, seek and pray, and wonder where He is.

And the truth is, He never leaves us. He loves us and stays by us. We seek Him, but we don't really look for Him. We only half seek Him, half-afraid of finding Him. We are actually half-afraid that if we do see Him, He will ask something we cannot give.

But He won't. He never has. "My yoke is easy, my burden light." The burden of a life free from constant fear and doubt is light indeed. God is with us--born to us as a Child in Bethlehem, and given us as our constant companion, our savior, our brother.

We may not find Him, but He will find us and preach to us--for that is why He came--to bring the love of the Father, the salvation of the world.

Trying to be a fisher of men

In reading my entry for yesterday, I don’t think I truly gave today’s gospel the attention I could have.

The story begins with the call of the first disciples—brothers Simon (who will be called Peter later on) and Andrew, and brothers James and John. I find it noteworthy, even remarkable, that Jesus doesn't seem to even consider doing His work alone. He has the power of God behind Him! Nature and the evil spirits obey Him! And yet it is also clear that from the beginning Jesus needed disciples. Or rather, God’s divine plan for our salvation needed people who would be with Him and would be drawn into His ministry and be able to witness to it.

Most of all, as we see in Mark's account of the story, He needed disciples that He could instruct in his very different and unexpected way of being Messiah. They would learn that He would lay down His life, according to the Father's will. They would learn that to be His disciples they, too, would have to take up their cross and follow Him. They learned that the very nature of being disciple was to be servant of all.

The first step was for them to lay down their nets, their ways of living their lives, and trust Him. If they were to gather people to Jesus they would do it in a completely new way, which He would teach them.

Am I strong enough and committed enough to “lay down my nets” and trust Him? I don’t mean we need to quit our jobs, leave our families and give all of our money to the poor—although we should give them what we can. But we can give our Lord all of our heart, mind and strength. In the last few years especially, I have tried to do just that by increasing my study of His word and following His commandments a lot closer.

In a sense, I guess I have “laid down my nets” and I trust Jesus to lead me where He wants me. This blog is a result of that trust. He has inspired me to spread the Good News to my family and friends and anyone else who wants to know the joy of knowing Christ.

There is a new apostolate hitting the secular airwaves that anyone wanting to know more about the Catholic faith and Tradition can go to for help. You can find them at http://www.catholicscomehome.org/ . Our Lord is still calling all of us, just as He called His disciples and friends over two thousand years ago. But now, He is using the technology He inspired in us to do it. Don’t you think it’s a good day to speak to our Lord about this invitation, and see where He leads you?

The "Good News" requires a response

I've often heard the phrase "good news", but I've never really spent the time to contemplate all the meaning it contains. Maybe I've become a little too familiar with it, have said it, and have thought about it too superficially.

It seems that much of what God reveals is at once simple and easily understood--at least on the surface. Because of the very simplicity of the words we almost instantly, at least intellectually, "get it." I suppose that's what God intended--that we would be able to comprehend Him and His goodness.

I think what we fail to appreciate, and sometimes miss altogether, is that we must go beyond knowing--to loving! We must exercise not just our intellect that resides in our mind, but also our "will" that resides in our heart. We must not only know; we must respond to what we have seen and what we have heard. We must be grateful, loving, humble, and obedient.

Slow and steady wins the race?

Here's my first weigh-in for my diet I started last Sunday. I've lost 5 pounds! It's not as strong a start as my last diet a couple of years ago, but I also haven't been able to get much exercise in. This 5 pounds must have come strictly watching my calories. I hope to show a better loss next week, because I want to start using the recumbent bicycle at the gym this week. Keep watching! At this rate, I should be in "fighting shape" just in time to retire!

Is that a piece of the sky that just hit my head?

The sky must be falling. It's not like me to agree with much of anything the pundits on the opinion pages write these days, but this guy and this guy and this guy all make very valid points. Two of them are very similar opinions on the same subject of partisan (and immature) politics as usual, while the other guy writes about a subject that is becoming closer and closer to my sensitivities as I learn more about immigration issues from Sarah and her example to me.

It just doesn't matter! He welcomes us all!

Woman or man, Jew or gentile, black or white, weak or strong, rich or poor, educated or uneducated—it doesn’t matter, God shows no partiality.

Those of us who proclaim Christ as Lord are all seen as the same in the eyes of the Almighty, together forming the body of Christ. Sure, we all have different gifts and therefore different functions within the body. But He shows no partiality. He welcomes us all and rewards us all the same—with eternal life.

We all began in this world the same - as sinners. Through the miraculous and magnanimous gift of baptism we went down into the water imperfect and came up a new creation, clean of sin and equal to all the others who proudly proclaim themselves "Christian."

This Sunday we celebrate the baptism of our Lord. We should take some time to reflect on how this simple act in water ties us all together into one body, with Christ as the Head of that Body.

Faith is being able to wait on the will of God

I'm sorry there was no post yesterday--the laptop froze up for some reason. It's also acting up again tonight, but I'll try to put something together anyway.



At Mass this morning, the sermon was on joy vs happiness. I've written on the subject before, in this post. Today's gospel got me meditating on it again though. Here's a guy who is covered in sores that must be very painful. Not only that, but because of the lerposy, he cannot be around his family or friends anymore, so he must be very lonely as well. His faith is so strong that he knows the only cure for his condition is a miracle from God. And through his faith, he knows that Jesus is going to bring that miracle about. Here's the kicker, he doesn't demand that Jesus cure him, he ASKS to be cured. I get from the wording in the gospel ("if you will it") that the leper is perfectly willing to remain in his current condition until it is the will of God to effect the cure. That's what faith is.



I would like to write more on this subject, but with this computer issue in a hotel room, I'm getting frustrated and I'm not in a very Christian mood right now. So more tomorrow. I'm sorry.

The freedom of complete love

The readings for this week keep revealing to us the depths of the mystery of God's love for us, and how freeing that love can be for our hearts and our living.

There is a powerful invitation here. To let God's love not only touch us but to LIVE IN US. When God's love remains in us - makes its home within us - then every day is different. The stuff that used to pre-occupy our hearts is replaced by this love of God. And, God's love occupying the center of our hearts begins to shape how we feel, how we react and respond to others. When we encounter the foolishness of others or even the cruelty of others, we respond the way God does. We feel sad that this person or these persons are broken somehow and we feel compassion and love for them - not because they have earned love, but because they need love. The instinct to defend ourselves or to strike back or to hold on to a hurt - often motivated by fear - is literally driven out by God's love in us.
In Wednesday’s gospel we heard the story of the disciples and how they were terrified at seeing the Lord walk toward them on the water. After they had recognized Him and He joined them in the boat they were amazed, but yet their hearts were hardened.

The disciples of Jesus experienced the encounter between the human Jesus, they had come to know, and the power of God. Jesus didn't come to make sure that this lake would never have another storm on it, let alone that all bad weather would be taken away. Jesus came to offer us the confidence in Him that would allow us to place our trust in God - as Jesus did.

From time to time, we have experiences that are incredibly "storm-like." We feel "at sea," far from the shore and it feels like our ship is taking on water and could capsize at any moment. The fundamental fear is that we are simply out of control of situations. Nothing we can do, no resource we have at our disposal, can make it better. We feel hopeless and at times the panic of it all takes over.

During my adoration last night, I was reading today’s gospel and a line from that gospel, “About the fourth watch of the night…” reminded me of my own experience on July 5, 2000 (has it really been almost 10 years ago?) that was incredibly “storm-like” and fearful.

That’s the morning when “at the fourth watch” two men broke the door down to the motel room I was staying in and, while one of the men held a gun at my head, the other started stuffing everything he could find of value into a pillowcase. The guy with the gun was also busy ripping the watch off of my wrist and searching for my wallet (he didn’t find it, as I had kept it in the car that night—Providence?). I was frozen in fear. The stories you hear of a life flashing before your eyes when in imminent danger of death are true, at least they were for me in this incident. I discovered that I too was “hard of heart” when it came to understanding Jesus’ role in my life.

We need to let the story in the gospel touch our hearts. When Jesus sees his disciples' terror, He gives them courage by reminding them that He is near and therefore, they have nothing to fear. The invitation to us is to place our trust in Him - today and in every storm we encounter.

To be clear, Jesus doesn't promise that every burden will be lifted or that everyone in our life will be nice, all the time. He doesn't promise us that we, or our loved ones won't experience terrible things, even death itself. His promise is that His love can drive out our fear - our sense of powerlessness, our sense that we are all alone in this.

And, when we barely believe we can trust so completely in His love, it usually means we have failed to understand the meaning of the miracle of the loaves (that we read on Tuesday) for us today. Jesus is with us as food for our journey, as "Bread that gives life," as the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." Jesus' self-sacrificing love teaches us to surrender to the Father's redemption of all from the power of sin and death. The food we receive in His being broken and given for us is the gift of eternal life and gives us an example for and nourishment to love others as we have been loved.

Contrast the disciples (and me) in fear with the message from John’s letter this week, where he tells us that God is love and there is no fear in love. This is one of the same men who was terrified in the boat, whose heart was hardened and who is now telling us we have nothing to fear! What a difference from one scene to the next.

It took the disciples some time to really understand who Jesus was and what He was doing. The Spirit took His time working and softening their hearts until they had achieved complete understanding. And once they had this understanding they began to spread the gospel to the far corners of the world.

I am still struggling to understand completely what the Lord has in mind for me before He calls me home, but I think if the robbery were to happen again today it would not be as terrifying for me because of a stronger faith and better Sacramental life than I had then. I know Jesus (and His Blessed Mother) is there and “has my back.”

I believe this is something that happens to all of us over the course of our lives in Christ, although maybe not as dramatically. What we once feared (death), we come to understand and it is through His eternal love that fear is driven out and we live in peace.

Better luck tomorrow

I had an opportunity to go to adoration at St. Anne’s today just before the 5:30pm Communion service. It wasn’t a Mass, because two of the priests are on vacation, and Father Brandon is on a retreat. It’s weird that they are all gone at once, but we all need rejuvenation once in a while, even priests (ESPECIALLY priests!).

Usually when I go to adoration, I just meditate, say a rosary or two and maybe the Divine Mercy chaplet and before I know it, Mass has begun. I rarely ask for favors (even though I’m sure He would be open to them) because I feel like I’m there to thank Him for what He’s already blessed me with—my family, my friends, my job, my home, my life.

Today though, I had a simple request. I wanted inspiration for tonight’s blog. I have been hot and cold on my entries because some days I just don’t have the time or the right mind-set for a proper meditation. My brother Bob once told me when talking about requesting favors from God, “Be careful what you ask for—because when He grants your request, it might be a lot more than what you expect!”

I no sooner asked for the inspiration than thoughts started flooding my mind. So many, in fact, that it was hard to sort them out and I won’t be able to use them today, because my mind is too full. I think the simplest of the thoughts may be the best inspiration for today. And so here are the thoughts that raced through my mind for the hour in no particular order.

The Eucharist. Thanksgiving. The Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ. The Mass. The Liturgy of the Word. The Passion. Trust. Hope. Faith. Love. Mary. Yes. Persistence. LOVE.

Now I have a headache. Too much thinking. I guess I’ll offer it up. In the meantime, readers, you'll have to wait until tomorrow for a profound meditation--in fact, I've already started writing it.

All you need is love (and trust in the Lord)

The Psalm on Tuesday reminds us that we are to follow the Lord and treat all people with justice and love. Every nation on earth will adore the Lord God when his people follow his teachings to bring peace and justice to all and defend the afflicted and the children of the poor. What a concept! Instead of complaining that someone is “undocumented” and labeling them “illegal” or “criminal” when all they have done is come to our country to make a better life for themselves, why not find a way to bring them into the fold of Christ’s mercy and justice? Like the loaves and fishes, the love we show them can only multiply if the love is given in Jesus’ name.

The readings this week prompt us to continue the good feeling we have had during this Christmas season. Now that the Lord has come and is manifested to all who believe, they will hear His message to hear the cry of the poor. In this way we join all others in the world in our worship and adoration of the Savior. Now, in early January after the Epiphany we see that love is like the five loaves and two fishes – there never seems to be enough food to go around until we start giving it away.

Back more years than I care to remember, there was a popular song by the Beatles that said, "All you need is love." But the “love” that John, Paul, George and Ringo were singing about was more of a love borne of relativism, than one of Truth. Some two thousand years ago, John, the disciple that Jesus loved, was also saying that all we need is love. But he had it right—God is love. And this is the love we truly need. It takes me back to my post a couple of days ago when I pointed out that you must love God above all else, and the love of neighbor just naturally follows.

According to Mark’s account of the parable, Jesus first said to His apostles: "Give the people something to eat" before the miracle occurred.

It's strange that Jesus would say something like that just to make the point that they (the apostles) could hardly begin to feed such a multitude and to point up that, "Oh, by the way, watch Me and see what I can do."

Obviously, Jesus didn’t mean that. So what did He mean when He told the apostles to give the people something to eat? Of course we don't know for sure, but it seems He was exhorting the apostles to do "something" to help, something to alleviate the problem of the moment.

About the only thing they could do was to search out what little food was available and make it available to the Lord who can do all things. I think that’s the lesson for us, to put our gifts however seemingly small and insignificant at the disposal of the Lord who can multiply beyond our belief what little we thought we had.

Very often, in our own personal circumstances, we despair at the little resources we have, be it time, money, talent, or knowledge. We think that if only we had "this", or we were like "that", we would achieve our goals. Yet each day we're called to use what we're given -- even though it may be little -- and God will bless and multiply our efforts according to the purpose He desires.

So let us remember that in the face of daunting and mind-challenging obstacles, we must not stop and despair but we must continue to use all the resources that are available to us and just trust in the Lord that He will make up for our discrepancies and shortfalls according to His holy will.

How very blessed we are to have a God and Creator that loves us so much that if we remain in love, we remain in Him and He in us! How truly blessed we are that He loves us unconditionally even when we don't deserve it! How truly blessed we are that He loves us, man and woman, black and white, rich and poor, young and old. How truly blessed we are that He loves us so much that He gave us His only Son as ransom for us and our sins.

How do you know?

There is a point in everyone’s life when (I think—I hope) they realize that no matter how successful or happy they think they are, there is still something (Someone?) missing. It explains why people see the Virgin Mary in toast, or the profile of Christ in a car’s window after washing. I know that God humbled Himself so lowly that He chose a stable-full of animals to be born of a virgin, but toast and glass are not humble, that’s just plain silly.

Then there are seemingly credible apparitions that have either been recognized by the Church for their Truth and message, and others that haven’t.

In John’s Letter we hear something very important: how to know the spirit of truth and differentiate it from the spirit of deceit.

So that we don't have to struggle, fret or worry whether we've got it right, the answer is given, simply.

The way we know a spirit of truth is by what it says. Does it acknowledge Jesus as the Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary? Jesus, who was crucified, died, buried and raised up on the third day? Who ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father? If a spirit confesses this, it is The Spirit of Truth, The Holy Spirit. It is the same Spirit Who innervates the Catholic Church, gives Her life, preserves Her, protects Her, guides Her.

Do you want to hear a Spirit of Truth, know a Spirit of Truth? If you do, listen to the Spirit speaking through the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church; the Spirit that speaks thorough the Sacred Word, through Sacred Tradition, through the Magesterium. That's where you will hear the Spirit of Truth, where you will come to know the Spirit of Truth, and nowhere else!

Not just an author, but Living the Word

I guess because I finally got a comment from someone other than family, I was really curious about the commenter. I knew that he was the author of the book that I reviewed (sort of) last week, but that was really all I knew about him. So I took the time to research a blog he writes and I am surprised to find out how much alike we are from our family dynamics to our sense of humor about it.

I was even more surprised to read in one of his newer entries that he has recently taken the LSAT test to see if he is qualified to enter law school to pursue a degree in immigration law--a valuable, much needed profession that will let him, as he puts it, "put his faith into action". I know what a noble cause this will be because my daughter Sarah's specialty is immigration law and I am so proud of her knowing she is putting her faith into action every day through her endeavors.

I put a link to his blog on the left titled "Living the Word". I hope you enjoy his writing as much as I am beginning to.

Potpourri post

Just before Thankgiving (the day before I got sick) I went to the doctor for a checkup so that I could be "cleared" to join a gym that is paid for by Marilyn's employer.

I weighed in at 245 lbs. My waist, based on the last pair of pants Marilyn bought me, is 40". (I think my "waist" is smaller, but I can't tell, because my belly is in the way! lol)

So I decided starting tomorrow I will be on a diet and exercise program. I'll start by watching my calories and cutting down on the sodas and sweets. I know I have the willpower for that part of it based on my recent abstinence for 40 days for life. Not only that, but about a year and a half ago, I was able to lose 32 lbs. (I was down to 200) in about 8 weeks, so I know I can do it. I would like you, readers, to "keep me honest" by reminding me of my commitment if you see me slacking off. Don't nag me! Just remind me. My biggest problem will be the exercise. I guess I'll try the gym out. I'll update my weight every Sunday. I just weighed myself for the formal beginning of my program, and I'm at 239.5 lbs. I guess I lost about 5.5 lbs from my illness and fast. So I'm already on my "weigh".



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I received a puzzle book, entitled Brain Games from Alicia and Lorenzo on Christmas. They know how much I like to do word games and crosswords during my lunch hours, so it was a very thoughtful gift.

I was solving some of the puzzles today when I came to this puzzle, which is supposed to “increase your brain power” through creative thinking and logic. It is titled, “Vitamin Vic”:

As Vitamin Vic pushes his grocery cart through the produce section, you observe that he picks up cucumbers but not lettuce. He grabs a zucchini, but not asparagus. He picks up peas but no onions. Now he’s approaching the cabbage and potatoes. Based on his previous selections, which one will Vic choose?

I chose cabbage. It was obvious that cucumbers, zucchini, and peas all grow on vines. Since neither cabbage nor potatoes grow on vines, I figured cabbage at least “looked” like it grows on a vine. The PhD who designed the puzzle however, said in the answer that potatoes grow on a vine. The last time I looked in the fields around the delta where I live, potatoes are a “tuber” or root vegetable. They do not grow on vines. Oh, well. I guess the author’s PhD is not in agriculture. But I’ll give him this. It certainly is “creative thinking”.

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I got some pretty good news today. I’m finally going to get the company van back so I don’t have to keep transferring moving vans back and forth to the different cities I work in. It might not be back in time to pick Mom up at the end of the week, but it will be more comfortable for her to go back and forth to church from now on.

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Another pleasant Christmas surprise! I got a 42” HDTV for Christmas from Santa (You know they say when you stop believing is when you stop getting presents from him!). Unfortunately (we thought) in order to get HDTV programming and get the full effect of the improved graphics you have to have a special converter from the cable company (at a slightly higher charge, of course). I really don’t mind, since another one of the benefits of the special box is the addition of EWTN television (and a couple of other channels I’m not really interested in, but I’ll take them). But the best thing about the new TV is the picture I get when watching the food network! Ummm!

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I had to work on Friday and Saturday so I stayed close to home while Marilyn and the family went up to the cabin until Sunday. I can’t wait until they get home. Oompah misses Lily Bug!

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Pretty funny start in 2010 compared to a pretty un-funny 2009

I found a reference to this year-end review written by Dave Barry for the Miami Herald. It's pretty funny in parts. I'll let you decide which parts.
http://www.miamiherald.com/living/columnists/dave-barry/v-fullstory/story/1397654.html

Contrasts in celebrating

New Year’s Eve. Traditionally, it’s a time for making a lot of noise. This is true no matter where you live. I was watching (just for a minute or two—because I really don’t make much ado myself about it) the celebrations from all over the world on the TV last night and most of the celebrations were really over the top, considering the year we've just had. But then again the old year is out, we've just celebrated the birth of Christ again, and so we are once again filled with the Hope that arrives with His coming.

I’ve heard that in Rome it is customary when the clock strikes midnight that any broken glass—mirrors, plates, and so forth—are thrown out of the windows and doors into the streets to try and “exorcise” the bad luck that supposedly accompanies these incidents and welcome the good news of a New Year. There is so much broken glass and debris that visitors are actually warned to watch where they are walking so they don’t get hurt by all the shards in the streets.

In the US—in fact in my own neighborhood last night—you hear firecrackers, shouts of “Happy New Year!” and even gunshots as the New Year is ushered in.

I heard from a reliable source that in Scotland, there is a tradition that you race from tavern to tavern to proclaim the New Year. You run because the tradition holds that the first person to set foot in a particular tavern on that early morning is entitled to a free “pint”. Sounds fun, but it seems to me that the fastest runner would very quickly become the slowest witted.

The point I’m trying to make is that in reading the Bible there are lots of times when noise is the result of hearing good news—it’s part of our human nature. Admit it—when you hear great news there is usually a lot of whooping and hollering and carrying on. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

Think of the shepherds that heard of the birth of Christ from the Angel of the Lord. They went “in haste” (meaning with hearts full of great joy—remember that Mary went “in haste” to visit her kinswoman Elizabeth) to the stable. Then after seeing the Good News for themselves, they went out into the countryside probably shouting and dancing every time they met someone else on their way and relating to them what they had heard and seen.

Contrast these perfectly reasonable (well, in some cases anyway) ways most of us deal with good news to Mary at the times she is mentioned receiving good news in the gospels.

The angel Gabriel came to her and told her she was “full of grace” and that “the Lord is with you”. Can you imagine the joy that would bring to you and me? But Mary “was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be”. (Luke 1: 29) She didn’t ponder long, however, (because she was, after all, FULL of GRACE) and we know the rest of this story.

After the shepherds finally reached the stables after their visit by the angel of the Lord, they were beside themselves with joy at what they had heard and Whom they had seen. But “Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart”. (Luke 2:19)

Even after finding her Son who was (she thought) lost in the hustle and bustle of Jerusalem, she didn’t go overboard (at least it’s not recorded that way) in her joy at finding Him. In fact, like any parent who is relieved to find a lost child, she gently scolded Him, by telling Jesus that she and His father were worried about him, and he shouldn’t have wandered off by himself. He, in turn, reminds her of His ultimate destiny, “and his mother kept all these things in her heart”. (Luke 2:51)

Mary really knows how to celebrate. Let me rephrase that. Mary knows that before celebrating, it is proper to thank God for everything good that happened to her. She was aware, even as a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old that there would be plenty of time for celebrations in the eternal presence of our Creator.

It's a lesson we would all benefit from learning. We can celebrate good news. We just don't have to be "noisy" about it. Plenty of time for that later.