The Pharisees and Sadducees are alive and well and living in the USA. As you might recall, these groups were always twisting words and meanings of words (in vain) to get His followers to stop listening to Him. Of course they knew full well what they were doing! I prefer to give today’s version of these groups the benefit of the doubt, though, and hope that they are only misguided and uninformed about Christ’s teachings.
An opinion piece in the newspaper this morning proves my point. I’ll try to tackle each paragraph with my own humble thoughts.
Why Americans are keeping faith but losing religion
By Leonard Pitts Jr.
The Miami Herald
“Today, I quit being a Christian."
With those words last week on Facebook, Anne Rice delivered a wake-up call for organized religion. The question is whether it will be recognized as such.
*I would hope that most Christian Americans see Ms. Rice’s words for what they are and pray for her “re-re-conversion”.
"I remain committed to Christ as always," she wrote, "but not to being 'Christian' or to being part of Christianity. It's simply impossible for me to 'belong' to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For ten years, I've tried. I've failed. I'm an outsider. My conscience will allow nothing else."
*Being a Christian is not like being in a club or an organization. It’s being follower of Christ and His teachings (or as I like to call it—the Truth, as taught to us through Scripture and the Tradition handed down to us by the Apostles He commissioned for this purpose. We’ve all tried. We’ve all failed at some point or another. The real strength in being a Christian is perseverance and hope in His promise of eternal life with the Father. But to be “committed to Christ” is to be committed to the Truth.
You will recall that the author, famed for her vampire novels, (this might be part of the problem!) made a much-publicized return to the Catholicism of her youth after years of calling herself an atheist. Now, years later, she says she hasn't lost her faith, but she's had it up to here with organized religion.
*Christ set up the “organization” when He gave the keys of Heaven to Peter and told him twice (first in Matthew 16. then again in Matthew 18) that, “whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”! Why is it so hard to understand this?
"In the name of Christ," she wrote, "I refuse to be anti-gay.
*So do I! I must, out of love for my neighbor, point out the disorder of the “gay” life-style and pray for his repentance, but I love him nonetheless.
I refuse to be anti-feminist.
*So do I! I believe that all men and women are created in the image and likeness of God. They are equal in dignity, but different in body and physical abilities. I don’t buy into the “there is no difference between men and women” argument.
I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control.
*Does she really have all of the facts regarding the harm that artificial birth control methods do to the women who claim to be “feminist?”
I refuse to be anti-Democrat.
*I don’t know where she gets this. I know of no teachings that require Christians to register as Republican, Democrat, or Tea Party adherents.
I refuse to be anti-secular humanism.
*Usually, this means that one wants to be self-centered, instead of Christ-centered.
I refuse to be anti-science.
*Christianity, and Catholics in particular have always been the pioneers in scientific discovery. I would assume Ms. Rice refers here to embryonic stem-cell research, which has been woefully unproductive—which anyone who has an open mind can find out, with a little bit of on line research.
I refuse to be anti-life."
*Again, Ms. Rice is painfully ignorant if she can’t see that the Catholic Church has led the way for 2000 years in pro-life causes.
If that was not nearly enough for atheist observers, one of whom berated her online for refusing to give up her "superstitious delusions" completely, it was surely plenty for people of faith. But Rice is hardly the only one who feels as she does.
According to a 2008 study by Trinity College, religiosity is trending down sharply in this country. The American Religious Identification Survey, which polled more than 54,000 American adults, found that the percentage who call themselves Christian has fallen by 10 points since 1990 (from 86.2 percent to 76 percent) while the percentage of those who claim no religious affiliation has almost doubled (from 8.2 to 15 percent) in the same span.
*I take study results like this with a grain of salt. After all, statistics show that 100% of all statistics can be interpreted to say what they want to prove. Lol.
Small wonder atheist manifestos are doing brisk business at bookstores, and Bill Maher's skeptical "Religulous" finds an appreciative audience in theaters.
*Really? Bill Maher is skeptical of religion? I’m shocked! I stopped paying any attention to anything this hateful “comedian” says long ago. I now just pray for him.
Organized religion, Christianity in particular, is on the decline, and it has no one to blame but itself: It traded moral authority for political power.
*Christianity did not “trade” moral authority for political power. Christians simply realized that they would have to finally get involved in the political process to prevent the secular society from dictating immoral behavior. And now the secularists are angry that they are being reined in!
To put that another way: The Christian Bible contains numerous exhortations to serve those who are wretched and poor, to anger slowly and forgive promptly, to walk through this life in humility and faith. The word "Republican" does not appear in the book. Not once.
*Nor does“Democrat”. Or “Tea Party”. Or “Libertarian”. Or “Bible”.
Yet somehow in the past 30 years, people of faith were hustled and hoodwinked into regarding the GOP platform as a lost gospel.
*This is this writer’s opinion. I prefer to think that for the past 30 years, Christians have fought a valiant battle to stave off the “Babel”-type hubris and self-destructive behavior of the “me” generation.
Somehow, low taxes for the wealthy and deregulation of industry became the very message of Christ.
*I must have missed this chapter and verse in the Bible.
Somehow, hostility to science, gays, Muslims and immigrants became the very meaning of faith. And somehow Christianity became - or at least, came to seem - a wholly owned subsidiary of the Republican Party.
*Isn’t it funny how disagreement with the Truth, even when the Truth is conveyed charitably, is translated to “hostility”?
Consider that, after the election of 2004, a church in North Carolina made news for kicking out nine congregants because they committed the un-Christian act of ... voting for Democrat John Kerry.
*The key words here are “made news”. It shouldn’t have. Poor judgment on the part of misguided zealots should not be newsworthy. It only made the news because the media wanted to further their own anti-Christian bias.
Who can blame people for saying: If that's faith, count me out. Has atheism ever had a better salesman than Jerry Falwell blaming the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the ACLU or Pat Robertson laying Haiti's earthquake off on an ancient curse?
*We agree on this—these men are idiots who don’t understand the unsurpassed love and mercy of our Creator.
But what of those who are not atheists? What of those who feel the blessed assurance that there is more to this existence than what we can see or empirically prove? What of those who seek a magnificent faith that commits and compels, and find churches offering only a shriveled faith that marginalizes and demeans?
Its response to those people, those "seekers," will determine the future of organized religion. And it might behoove keepers of the faith to keep in mind the distinction Anne Rice drew in her farewell:
Christ didn't fail her, she said. Christianity did.
*I disagree. It’s her own perception of what she feels Christianity should do for her, rather than what her faith promises her.
This is the greatest error (in my own opinion) that all of us make at some point in our lives—that we shouldn’t have pain and suffering and yes (gasp!) even disappointment in this world. What we don’t want to hear is the message that Christ gave us many times in the Gospel:
Matthew 10:38
Anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.
Matthew 16:24
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
Mark 8:34
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me."
Luke 9:23
Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me."
Luke 14:27
And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
As far as Ms. Rice is concerned, she should really re-familiarize herself with Hebrews: Chapter 11.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Be prepared!
Our readings this week are all about being prepared for the Lord's coming! The reading from Hebrews says it all: "Faith is the realization of what is hoped for - - and evidence of things not seen." If our faith is strong, we will endure anything rather than miss out on the day of the Lord's coming. To journey in faith and trust in God, always leads to life, not death.
The first reading from Wisdom recalls the night before the flight of the Hebrew people into the desert. Faith alone in what God had promised could give them courage to actually flee into the unknown. And, of course, God rewarded their courage, and dramatically helped them to escape. Many other models of faith are mentioned in the second reading.
To those who have faith, all things are possible. Faith helps us to rely on God's power, not on our own. As the gospel points out, we are to live in this world as strangers who are on their way home. People who move from one place to another get rid of all they can from their old house and focus on furnishing the new house. They joyfully give away what they once cherished. Jesus said: "For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be." (Luke 12:34)
The first reading from Wisdom recalls the night before the flight of the Hebrew people into the desert. Faith alone in what God had promised could give them courage to actually flee into the unknown. And, of course, God rewarded their courage, and dramatically helped them to escape. Many other models of faith are mentioned in the second reading.
To those who have faith, all things are possible. Faith helps us to rely on God's power, not on our own. As the gospel points out, we are to live in this world as strangers who are on their way home. People who move from one place to another get rid of all they can from their old house and focus on furnishing the new house. They joyfully give away what they once cherished. Jesus said: "For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be." (Luke 12:34)
Two ways are set before us...I choose life
When I read this story on the internet this morning, it reminded me of an entry I made in my journal back in 2003, when the Scott Petersen case was going on. Here is what I wrote:
A letter-writer to the Stockton Record recently really got my hackles up. Some woman said she was anti- death penalty, but pro- abortion--sort of. She believes that taking a life as punishment for murder is wrong, as I do. But at the same time, she believes that taking a life for no other reason than unwanted pregnancy is somehow justified, because it is a "woman's right to choose." What a hypocrite!
The author was saying that she believed that charging a man with double homicide was justified (although the punishment is not) because the woman wanted her baby, and was making plans for his arrival. This leads me to assume that she (the letter writer) knows that the baby boy was living in the womb of the mother.
I'm confused. Is the baby only living in the wombs of women who want the child? What makes this baby any more alive than babies killed by abortionists? Was it because someone killed him other than his mother had she chosen to have an abortion? Is a life only determined as a matter of intent on the part of the parents? Is she saying that if the mother had been killed while on her way to have an abortion, the man should not be charged with the murder of the child? This is beyond my comprehension, I guess!
The pro-choice advocates know that a fetus is alive and shares the same rights and privileges endowed by God--that is, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But if it is an inconvenient pregnancy, the unborn baby is just another tumor to be removed, with no thoughts as to what the child may be able to contribute to the future of the world.
The real “choice” the Pro-“choice” crowd makes is to ignore the laws of nature (what else can a “fetus” be—if it is allowed to continue to grow in the mother’s womb—except a human being?) and of God.
The only comfort I take in contemplating abortion is that I believe the soul of the baby is formed at conception. And killing the baby before he or she enters the world sends the soul straight back to God in Heaven as a martyr for the faith, so he or she can join countless other saints praying for the end to this abomination of abortion.
I pray every day that God will somehow soften the hearts and minds of abortionists and those who seek abortions so we can become more pleasing to Him at the time of our death, which, no matter how much we fight it, will come. And we’ll have to answer to Him for the “choices” we made.
A letter-writer to the Stockton Record recently really got my hackles up. Some woman said she was anti- death penalty, but pro- abortion--sort of. She believes that taking a life as punishment for murder is wrong, as I do. But at the same time, she believes that taking a life for no other reason than unwanted pregnancy is somehow justified, because it is a "woman's right to choose." What a hypocrite!
The author was saying that she believed that charging a man with double homicide was justified (although the punishment is not) because the woman wanted her baby, and was making plans for his arrival. This leads me to assume that she (the letter writer) knows that the baby boy was living in the womb of the mother.
I'm confused. Is the baby only living in the wombs of women who want the child? What makes this baby any more alive than babies killed by abortionists? Was it because someone killed him other than his mother had she chosen to have an abortion? Is a life only determined as a matter of intent on the part of the parents? Is she saying that if the mother had been killed while on her way to have an abortion, the man should not be charged with the murder of the child? This is beyond my comprehension, I guess!
The pro-choice advocates know that a fetus is alive and shares the same rights and privileges endowed by God--that is, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. But if it is an inconvenient pregnancy, the unborn baby is just another tumor to be removed, with no thoughts as to what the child may be able to contribute to the future of the world.
The real “choice” the Pro-“choice” crowd makes is to ignore the laws of nature (what else can a “fetus” be—if it is allowed to continue to grow in the mother’s womb—except a human being?) and of God.
The only comfort I take in contemplating abortion is that I believe the soul of the baby is formed at conception. And killing the baby before he or she enters the world sends the soul straight back to God in Heaven as a martyr for the faith, so he or she can join countless other saints praying for the end to this abomination of abortion.
I pray every day that God will somehow soften the hearts and minds of abortionists and those who seek abortions so we can become more pleasing to Him at the time of our death, which, no matter how much we fight it, will come. And we’ll have to answer to Him for the “choices” we made.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Lily has a new blog!
Lily's old blog is out. Not completely. If you want to see the pictures and posts, you can still go to www.lilybugjuarez.blogspot.com. But I couldn't figure out how to get the header picture to change without screwing up the whole thing! So I just started a new blog. Just click on her picture at the left to see her new blog.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Do you hear what I hear?
"Speak Lord, your servant is listening!" (1Samuel 3:10)
“Be quick to listen and slow to speak." (James 1:19).
"You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed." (Luke 10:38-42).
"He who answers before listening--that is his folly and his shame." (Proverbs 18:13).
"This is my beloved Son; listen to him." (Mark 9:7)
"Do whatever he tells you." (John 2:5)
It's hard, if not impossible to communicate with someone who is not listening at all, or giving you only part of their attention. Christ must get frustrated with us! He loves us so much, and wants to become one with each of us, but it is hard if we are not being attentive to Him. We must turn the "noise" of the world off to make it easier to listen. Peace and quiet are so important!
“Be quick to listen and slow to speak." (James 1:19).
"You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed." (Luke 10:38-42).
"He who answers before listening--that is his folly and his shame." (Proverbs 18:13).
"This is my beloved Son; listen to him." (Mark 9:7)
"Do whatever he tells you." (John 2:5)
It's hard, if not impossible to communicate with someone who is not listening at all, or giving you only part of their attention. Christ must get frustrated with us! He loves us so much, and wants to become one with each of us, but it is hard if we are not being attentive to Him. We must turn the "noise" of the world off to make it easier to listen. Peace and quiet are so important!
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
The Peter Principle--My version
Thursday’s scripture readings are an interesting contrast showing God’s love and power and how we often do not trust in God’s love and power. In Jeremiah, God promises a new covenant with Israel. No longer will they have a need to teach their friends and relatives how to know the Lord. “I will forgive their evil doing and remember their sin no more.” The psalmist proclaims a heart contrite and humbled, “O God, you will not spurn.” And in Matthew, Peter, in response to Jesus’ question of who do you say I am, proclaims Jesus as the Christ.
Peter is just so human. Peter boldly proclaims to Jesus, “you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And then when Jesus says he is headed to Jerusalem to be killed, Peter takes him aside and boldly proclaims, that is a horrible plan, I can come up with a better plan than that. Imagine, telling God you have a better plan. Good thing I never do that.
I have family members and friends who have drifted from their faith in Jesus and His Church by the trappings and seductions of the secular world. Or maybe they never had it. I have tried logical arguments, and I’ve tried pulling their “guilt strings”. I try to set an example by my practice of my faith. But even if my example or guilt trips or arguments seem to show promise, I know that no one has ever been argued into a relationship with God. When someone establishes a walk with Christ, it isn’t my doing, it is the awesome power of God’s grace. I know that, too. So, why am I plotting out my arguments, guilt trips and ways to set an example? It may come down to control and trust. I want to be in control and I’m not sure I can trust God. Which is strange. I know that I am at my best as Christ’s ambassador when I simply pray and open myself up to the Holy Spirit. When I submit fully to God’s hand is when things seem to work out best. So, if that is my experience, why is control and trust such an issue? Why don’t I fully entrust myself into God’s hands? Why do I think I have to fix this or I have to do this on my own? I wish I knew. I’m an imperfect creation on a walk with my creator. And I don’t always seem to be able to follow the path He has laid out before me. Good thing we worship a loving, forgiving God.
My prayer today is for all of us who don’t seem to be able to relinquish control and simply trust the God who loves us.
Peter is just so human. Peter boldly proclaims to Jesus, “you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And then when Jesus says he is headed to Jerusalem to be killed, Peter takes him aside and boldly proclaims, that is a horrible plan, I can come up with a better plan than that. Imagine, telling God you have a better plan. Good thing I never do that.
I have family members and friends who have drifted from their faith in Jesus and His Church by the trappings and seductions of the secular world. Or maybe they never had it. I have tried logical arguments, and I’ve tried pulling their “guilt strings”. I try to set an example by my practice of my faith. But even if my example or guilt trips or arguments seem to show promise, I know that no one has ever been argued into a relationship with God. When someone establishes a walk with Christ, it isn’t my doing, it is the awesome power of God’s grace. I know that, too. So, why am I plotting out my arguments, guilt trips and ways to set an example? It may come down to control and trust. I want to be in control and I’m not sure I can trust God. Which is strange. I know that I am at my best as Christ’s ambassador when I simply pray and open myself up to the Holy Spirit. When I submit fully to God’s hand is when things seem to work out best. So, if that is my experience, why is control and trust such an issue? Why don’t I fully entrust myself into God’s hands? Why do I think I have to fix this or I have to do this on my own? I wish I knew. I’m an imperfect creation on a walk with my creator. And I don’t always seem to be able to follow the path He has laid out before me. Good thing we worship a loving, forgiving God.
My prayer today is for all of us who don’t seem to be able to relinquish control and simply trust the God who loves us.
Very interesting stuff!
On EWTN Live tonight, Father Pacwa had as his guest Father Richard Kunst, who collects "spiritual artifacts", with a special focus on items of papal history. He started out as a kid collecting autographs of politicians and sports figures, but he sold those shortly after his ordination and began collecting his current items. He says he has about 1500 items. One of the most interesting to me is not an item of the papacy, but a letter from Mother Teresa. Father Kunst wrote to her to ask her for her autograph, and in a kind but saintly way, she responded. I come close to tears every time I read this letter because of its simple, yet theologically deep content. Wow. Just wow. Click on this link to see the letter and browse Father Kunst's collection.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease!
Today’s readings (Jeremiah 31:1-7, Jeremiah 31:10-13 and Matthew 15:21-28), promise us that God hears us. The first reading and the song from Jeremiah promise that “with age old love I have loved you… again I will restore (or 'build') you” and claim “The Lord will guard us.” Then we have the story from Matthew of the persistent foreign woman who wore our Lord down until he finally said, “O woman, great is your faith,” and healed her daughter.
We all pray our prayers of petition: “Cure this illness. Help me do this. Make my car start, the storm pass, the decision come my way.” We want favors, we want comfort, we want miracles. I’ve written before that as a kid we said the rosary as a family (except Dad, who was not Catholic), and we were exhorted to pray devoutly for “the conversion of Russia,” and sure enough, in the ‘80s the “Evil Empire” of the Soviet Union collapsed. Yet the economic and social situations in Russia and other nations of the former USSR are surely not models of fully “converted” societies today–-I heard today that 60% of all pregnancies in Russia are aborted, and the life expectancy in that country has lowered from 67 to 57 years-- nor do we see perfection in any nation. We are always praying for “peace in the world.” We persist in asking for the miracle, the healing.
In fact, Jesus taught us to ask for miracles, teaching us to pray “Our Father … Thy Kingdom come…. Give us this day our daily bread … Deliver us from evil.” Look at the newspaper, turn on CNN: we haven’t exactly been delivered from evil, have we? Yet this Canaanite woman’s story encourages us to keep praying. After all, it’s only 20 centuries, a tiny bit of time in this planet’s history, since Jesus taught us to pray. We might as well persist a while longer!
Every day I get requests for specific prayers for such needs as cures of diseases, jobs for the unemployed, successful pregnancies, peaceful deaths for the dying, comfort for grieving families, support for our nation’s armed services. I believe that our prayers benefit the people we pray for. I know that praying for these people benefits me. I can’t give justice in words to how I feel after I’ve prayed on behalf of others’ needs. It’s like I don’t even think about my own needs anymore—I know they will be taken care of by someone else’s prayers!
Today is the feast day of St. John Vianney, the “Cure of Ars” (meaning the parish priest of the village of Ars in France), the patron saint of priests. He was famous for his faith, love, prayer and sacrifices, and huge numbers of people came from all over the world to have him hear their confessions. Remembering his example, let us pray today for the needs of our priests, and of all men and women who minister to their fellow Christians, teaching them to persist in prayer for the world’s healing as Jesus did, “Thy Kingdom Come.”
We all pray our prayers of petition: “Cure this illness. Help me do this. Make my car start, the storm pass, the decision come my way.” We want favors, we want comfort, we want miracles. I’ve written before that as a kid we said the rosary as a family (except Dad, who was not Catholic), and we were exhorted to pray devoutly for “the conversion of Russia,” and sure enough, in the ‘80s the “Evil Empire” of the Soviet Union collapsed. Yet the economic and social situations in Russia and other nations of the former USSR are surely not models of fully “converted” societies today–-I heard today that 60% of all pregnancies in Russia are aborted, and the life expectancy in that country has lowered from 67 to 57 years-- nor do we see perfection in any nation. We are always praying for “peace in the world.” We persist in asking for the miracle, the healing.
In fact, Jesus taught us to ask for miracles, teaching us to pray “Our Father … Thy Kingdom come…. Give us this day our daily bread … Deliver us from evil.” Look at the newspaper, turn on CNN: we haven’t exactly been delivered from evil, have we? Yet this Canaanite woman’s story encourages us to keep praying. After all, it’s only 20 centuries, a tiny bit of time in this planet’s history, since Jesus taught us to pray. We might as well persist a while longer!
Every day I get requests for specific prayers for such needs as cures of diseases, jobs for the unemployed, successful pregnancies, peaceful deaths for the dying, comfort for grieving families, support for our nation’s armed services. I believe that our prayers benefit the people we pray for. I know that praying for these people benefits me. I can’t give justice in words to how I feel after I’ve prayed on behalf of others’ needs. It’s like I don’t even think about my own needs anymore—I know they will be taken care of by someone else’s prayers!
Today is the feast day of St. John Vianney, the “Cure of Ars” (meaning the parish priest of the village of Ars in France), the patron saint of priests. He was famous for his faith, love, prayer and sacrifices, and huge numbers of people came from all over the world to have him hear their confessions. Remembering his example, let us pray today for the needs of our priests, and of all men and women who minister to their fellow Christians, teaching them to persist in prayer for the world’s healing as Jesus did, “Thy Kingdom Come.”
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Editorial cartoons with a Catholic sensibility
http://www.catholiccartoonblog.blogspot.com/
Go ahead! Read some of these. They're hit and miss, but I enjoyed a lot of them. I put a link on my favorites list.
Go ahead! Read some of these. They're hit and miss, but I enjoyed a lot of them. I put a link on my favorites list.
The 4th Watch
Here I am up at midnight again typing away as the fourth watch of the night approaches. The “fourth watch of the night” is that time between 3:00 AM and dawn. In winter and in summer awakening in that darkest part of the night often after the moon sets and before the paleness of dawn, I awaken and feel fear of the storms (or possible storms) that seem to surround my life. Fear of not having done enough, fear for those I love (and for whom I can do nothing but pray in this situation), fear about my own future, fear that something important is due and not finished – you name it, my “4 O’clock demon” wants to diminish any peace and joy in being human, wants to bring me to despair, or simply wants to make me miserable. Even though I personify the feeling I don’t really think of it as another creature so much as that enemy of human flourishing that dwells in my own less-than-courageous self that would be chided by Jesus’ “you of little faith.” It’s not that I have no faith – to say so would be to dishonor the wondrous gift of faith that God has given me through the Holy Spirit in Baptism, but I certainly can be one of “little faith” – that is one who allows spiritual desolation to take hold. Sometimes I remain like the other disciples, and huddle in the boat wondering if the winds and the waves of challenge surrounding my life will completely swamp me, but once in awhile I have the small courage of Peter who says to Jesus “command me to come to you.”
These days in the Christian community we need lots of folks with the courage of Peter. His at this moment of this story is not a great courage, but it is a wise courage. That is, he trusts his limited insight and tests whether what he sees is Jesus by asking him to give him the command that he is familiar with – “Come.” Perhaps he hears the Lord say “get out of the boat and walk on that stormy water – I will give you my power to do so.” That certainly is what he is willing to do. How many of us instead of asking for the truth of the vision in front of us huddle in the boat of the familiar way of doing things – unwilling and too frightened to test the new possibilities suggested by this way of experiencing Christ. There are new challenges, new ways of hearing and following the Spirit of Christ leading us that seem not to be “solid” enough that we are not willing to even try to discern where the Lord is in the event or experience.
Christ’s coming to us will often be in demanding, stretching, challenging ways – calling us out of the false securities within which we huddle in fear – but it at least is a fear we know. But what will we miss? Jeremiah gives us the clue at the end of today’s reading after we have thought about our sin and unworthiness: “When I summon him [or her] that one will approach me; how else should one take the deadly risk of approaching me? Says the Lord.” It is a deadly risk to respond to Jesus’ terrifying call – but what will die is crippling fear, do-nothing obstructionism, failure to grow and flourish, righteous certainty in something from the past that gives me security – in other words the very wounds that the Lord refers to earlier in the reading that have kept us from him.
So my 3:00 or 4:00 AM demon is the voice within me that doesn’t want to take the time to discern whether it is Jesus who calls me to some new and challenging task – the task of loving more deeply, responding more enthusiastically, trying something new and dangerous – and life giving! It is the fear that doesn’t want me to risk even praying to find out what the Spirit calls me to. It is the silent dread that refuses the work of opening my heart and mind to the call to “Come.” God spare me from that voice – or at least give me Peter’s modest faith that tremulously asks, “If it is you, command me to come,” that would be enough for me.
These days in the Christian community we need lots of folks with the courage of Peter. His at this moment of this story is not a great courage, but it is a wise courage. That is, he trusts his limited insight and tests whether what he sees is Jesus by asking him to give him the command that he is familiar with – “Come.” Perhaps he hears the Lord say “get out of the boat and walk on that stormy water – I will give you my power to do so.” That certainly is what he is willing to do. How many of us instead of asking for the truth of the vision in front of us huddle in the boat of the familiar way of doing things – unwilling and too frightened to test the new possibilities suggested by this way of experiencing Christ. There are new challenges, new ways of hearing and following the Spirit of Christ leading us that seem not to be “solid” enough that we are not willing to even try to discern where the Lord is in the event or experience.
Christ’s coming to us will often be in demanding, stretching, challenging ways – calling us out of the false securities within which we huddle in fear – but it at least is a fear we know. But what will we miss? Jeremiah gives us the clue at the end of today’s reading after we have thought about our sin and unworthiness: “When I summon him [or her] that one will approach me; how else should one take the deadly risk of approaching me? Says the Lord.” It is a deadly risk to respond to Jesus’ terrifying call – but what will die is crippling fear, do-nothing obstructionism, failure to grow and flourish, righteous certainty in something from the past that gives me security – in other words the very wounds that the Lord refers to earlier in the reading that have kept us from him.
So my 3:00 or 4:00 AM demon is the voice within me that doesn’t want to take the time to discern whether it is Jesus who calls me to some new and challenging task – the task of loving more deeply, responding more enthusiastically, trying something new and dangerous – and life giving! It is the fear that doesn’t want me to risk even praying to find out what the Spirit calls me to. It is the silent dread that refuses the work of opening my heart and mind to the call to “Come.” God spare me from that voice – or at least give me Peter’s modest faith that tremulously asks, “If it is you, command me to come,” that would be enough for me.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
What matters to God
Knowing many things, having great possessions, actually being good avails humans of nothing. Time and life go on while we are here and after. Vanity is like smoke or wind - it all vanishes. Nothing is of much value or importance. One person can labor for a lifetime and when that person dies, the profits and accumulations might be given to one who did nothing to deserve it all.
The basic message is the old one of, “You can’t take it with you.” Instead of the meaning of the word “vanity” concerning superfluous clothes and cosmetics, I offer the word, “Fragile” or “symbolic”. Everything is sacramental, that is leading beyond itself. The theme here is that what is, is, and will not be, very soon. This text is not meant to be a bucket of cold water, but a reflection upon the shortness of life’s span and even more deeply, a pointing to the possibility of a life beyond the fragile.
There is an old saying, “You can’t take it with you, except the things you gave away.” We all might be looking for the loopholes, but there aren’t any. Do we wonder just what does “matter to God?” Luke’s Gospel stresses the centrality of holding on to Jesus as we saw last week with Mary’s sitting at the feet of Jesus while Martha was doing many other good things.
We all have things of great value, emotionally, materially, historically. We all have possessions. The thing is not what we possess, but what possesses us. We know that it is so easy to receive the gifts and not the hand Who offers them. Reception is sacramental; to cling to them for our value and identity is sacrilegious.
The man of the parable in today’s gospel reading is quite self-satisfied, even though it was the land that gave him his abundant crop. He is preparing himself for a life of easy self-reliance. Maybe his farming neighbors will think more highly of him, because of his bigger barn. He has lost contact with the fragility of his own life. Apparently he has not been sharing much and so he will take nothing with him. What seemed to matter to the man of the parable was himself and his personality establishment.
The parable does not say that he will not receive eternal life with God in heaven. The parable is meant to remind us all that life is short and fragile and what matters to God has to do with God’s becoming bigger within the human experience.
The basic message is the old one of, “You can’t take it with you.” Instead of the meaning of the word “vanity” concerning superfluous clothes and cosmetics, I offer the word, “Fragile” or “symbolic”. Everything is sacramental, that is leading beyond itself. The theme here is that what is, is, and will not be, very soon. This text is not meant to be a bucket of cold water, but a reflection upon the shortness of life’s span and even more deeply, a pointing to the possibility of a life beyond the fragile.
There is an old saying, “You can’t take it with you, except the things you gave away.” We all might be looking for the loopholes, but there aren’t any. Do we wonder just what does “matter to God?” Luke’s Gospel stresses the centrality of holding on to Jesus as we saw last week with Mary’s sitting at the feet of Jesus while Martha was doing many other good things.
We all have things of great value, emotionally, materially, historically. We all have possessions. The thing is not what we possess, but what possesses us. We know that it is so easy to receive the gifts and not the hand Who offers them. Reception is sacramental; to cling to them for our value and identity is sacrilegious.
The man of the parable in today’s gospel reading is quite self-satisfied, even though it was the land that gave him his abundant crop. He is preparing himself for a life of easy self-reliance. Maybe his farming neighbors will think more highly of him, because of his bigger barn. He has lost contact with the fragility of his own life. Apparently he has not been sharing much and so he will take nothing with him. What seemed to matter to the man of the parable was himself and his personality establishment.
The parable does not say that he will not receive eternal life with God in heaven. The parable is meant to remind us all that life is short and fragile and what matters to God has to do with God’s becoming bigger within the human experience.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Funny (I think)
On a particularly hot summer day, the priest began the Mass by saying, "Dear children, our air conditioner went out this morning. The restrooms are out of order, and our PA system is on its last legs. We are having all sorts of problems with facilities today."
To which the congregation, being very devout Catholics replied, "And also with you!"
To which the congregation, being very devout Catholics replied, "And also with you!"
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
We are clay in the Potter's hands
Over the past few weeks—or has it been months?—I have heard several people say things that make me wonder if they “get it”. One of my friends has an acquaintance with a “man” who feels “trapped in a woman’s body.” There have been quite a few stories lately of children who have been “diagnosed” with a “condition” that is “cured” by “gender reassignment.” These are children under the age of 10! They don’t even realize what “gender” is yet! How can they be confused? Are the doctors and the parents of these children saying God made a mistake?
Then there are those who say, “I hate my life!” Or, “Life sucks!” Or, “Why does everything bad happen to me?” Or, “What did I do to God to deserve this?”
Then there are those who say, “I hate my life!” Or, “Life sucks!” Or, “Why does everything bad happen to me?” Or, “What did I do to God to deserve this?”
We have to remember that God does not cause bad things to happen. He can’t—Everything about the Nature of God is good. If you know your Bible at all, you’ll find in Genesis that everything God made and continues to make is good. He allows bad things to happen so that our faith and free will can be tested. A good thing to remember also is that He will never give us more than we are capable of handling, regardless of what we think. He knows our limitations better than we do. And, whether we realize it or not, He sends His Holy Spirit to help us. We only need to be open to receiving His help.
We do not always realize that we are being formed by the events and circumstances of our lives. Sometimes in retrospect, the "pieces" of our life make sense and we can see the hand of God in what has happened.
Jeremiah makes reference to clay in the hands of the potter, a clear image of how God can be forming us throughout our lives. The gospel of Luke depicts a change in Martha with the death of her brother, Lazarus. Earlier Mary sat quietly at the feet of Christ while Martha busied herself with food preparations. This time Martha seeks out Christ and expresses an act of faith, believing that Christ could have prevented the death of her brother.
It is a challenge sometimes remaining open to the events that can change us. Events can be wasted on us if we spend our energy reacting negatively instead of leaning gracefully and lovingly into the hands of the Potter, God Himself.
Monday, July 26, 2010
My own little corner of heaven
I took a break yesterday from my Sunday routine of yard work, Mass, Eucharistic Minister at the hospital, and visiting Mom to take a “mini-retreat”. My intention was to go salmon fishing in the San Francisco bay, but the captain of the charter boat I usually hire each year called me to say that it would be a waste of my time and money to go out. The fish are simply not out there yet. So my back-up plan was to go golfing and practice so I don’t look like a complete doofus when my brother Dick, his wife Jane (yes, that’s true!) and I go golfing during his visit next week. I was going to go into the foothills and hit a few balls and enjoy God’s creation in the process.
While the "harvesters" are able to tell the difference between the weeds and the wheat, we must ordinarily remain in some uncertainly about whether we truly have chosen God enough, whether we have loved Him enough. Any certainty about whether we are "saved" or not can be a form of self-delusion and lead to pride, laziness, and a fatal assumption that we are "good enough." That sort of thing can be deadly in our human relationships, and it is no different in our relationship with God.
I simply do not know whether I am weed or wheat while I am alive, and the fact is that I am both --- but which is the dominant side of who I am? While I myself am responsible for the choice, it is up to God to decide what I have actually chosen. And that is where the virtue of hope comes in.
The kingdom of heaven starts small, as small as the smallest seed you can see. A still, quiet voice in the human heart, speaking and reminding us that God is always present. Sometimes there will be no sign of it on the outside. But within, there is the yearning, the striving for heaven here and now.
But no matter how small it starts, with gardening and attendance, paying attention to God and what is important, with the slightest care, the smallest amount of devotion, it can grow by leaps and bounds -- a seedling, a shrub, a bush, a tree. And when it has grown, when we've allowed it to take root, it has another supernatural property -- it summons, from every corner of the earth and sky, those who would join. People can see the blessing of it; people can feel its comforting presence. And they are drawn to it. They are drawn to the cool shade of it on a hot summer day.
When we allow grace to work, we allow the Kingdom of Heaven to take root. And this kingdom is not for us to hoard and enjoy alone. It has as its chief characteristic the need to be shared, the desire to grow to include everyone.
When you open yourself up to God, do not be surprised that others see it in you and start to want to be near you. Do not underestimate the ability God has given you to change your part of the world into a corner of heaven.
I enjoyed my “mini-retreat” and the time of reflection—no matter how short it was, but I missed more than I would have realized my weekly visit with Mom and visiting the sick at the hospital and bringing Jesus to them. It goes to show you that you never know what you’ll miss until you do—In this case, my duties as Eucharistic Minister (and son) create my own little “corner of heaven.”
I put the golf clubs in the car and headed off to Mass, intending to leave from the church to the course. During Mass, I made the decision I didn’t want to golf after all, but take advantage of the time I had to myself to just relax and pray. Then to spend some quality time with the family when they got home from their overnight stay at the cabin.
I started by going over the readings for last week and the coming week. When I got to last Saturday’s readings about the weeds and wheat growing together, it took me back to a conversation I had with Dad quite a few years ago. What a brilliantly simple man he was!
I was about 11 or 12 years old and we were out in the back yard working in the garden. He wanted me to help pull the weeds. There were some pretty flowers that he took really good care of in the flowerbeds around the house, but in the vegetable garden, he was pulling them out! So I asked him, “How do I know which is a weed, and which plant isn’t?” He replied, “If it isn’t what we planted, no matter how beautiful it is, it’s a weed, because it can take over the whole garden and the vegetables won’t grow or get as big as we want them to, so it doesn’t belong here.” Sin is like that. It can be quite beautiful and seductive, but it is never what God intended to be in His garden.
In the four Gospels, Jesus tells us of many ways that we have to choose between living joyfully with God forever and being forever separated from Him, in great pain over our loss.
The special spin that Jesus puts on this question of our choice is that we have a whole lifetime to make it in. God provides us with all that we need to choose Him and to make that choice concrete in our life rather than just a vague wish or orientation, and we must make that one central choice of our life in terms of the small daily choices that inch us closer to God or away from Him.
I simply do not know whether I am weed or wheat while I am alive, and the fact is that I am both --- but which is the dominant side of who I am? While I myself am responsible for the choice, it is up to God to decide what I have actually chosen. And that is where the virtue of hope comes in.
The kingdom of heaven starts small, as small as the smallest seed you can see. A still, quiet voice in the human heart, speaking and reminding us that God is always present. Sometimes there will be no sign of it on the outside. But within, there is the yearning, the striving for heaven here and now.
But no matter how small it starts, with gardening and attendance, paying attention to God and what is important, with the slightest care, the smallest amount of devotion, it can grow by leaps and bounds -- a seedling, a shrub, a bush, a tree. And when it has grown, when we've allowed it to take root, it has another supernatural property -- it summons, from every corner of the earth and sky, those who would join. People can see the blessing of it; people can feel its comforting presence. And they are drawn to it. They are drawn to the cool shade of it on a hot summer day.
When we allow grace to work, we allow the Kingdom of Heaven to take root. And this kingdom is not for us to hoard and enjoy alone. It has as its chief characteristic the need to be shared, the desire to grow to include everyone.
When you open yourself up to God, do not be surprised that others see it in you and start to want to be near you. Do not underestimate the ability God has given you to change your part of the world into a corner of heaven.
I enjoyed my “mini-retreat” and the time of reflection—no matter how short it was, but I missed more than I would have realized my weekly visit with Mom and visiting the sick at the hospital and bringing Jesus to them. It goes to show you that you never know what you’ll miss until you do—In this case, my duties as Eucharistic Minister (and son) create my own little “corner of heaven.”
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Catching up and continuing my pilgrimage
I haven't posted on my blog as regularly as I would like, because I like it to be of a certain quality of writing. I just haven't been very pleased with my skills lately. I know what I want to say, but it doesn't sound the same once I put it on paper. I related this to a couple of you who have wondered about my health this week, so to put your fears to rest, I'm going to write an entry tonight to prove I'm not sick, just tongue-tied. ========================================================================
My plan this morning was to attend Mass at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Fresno. This plan would have had two significant meanings for me. The first was to continue my pilgrimage to visit every church in the Fresno and Stockton dioceses. The second was to finally see the inside of the church where I was baptized!
I say finally, because this was my fifth attempt to attend a Mass or just to get inside the doors of OLMC! Every time I have tried previously, no one ever showed up, and there was a “CLOSED” sign in the window of the parish office. Today was no different.
According to the website, daily Masses are Tuesday through Friday at 8:00 AM. So I got there at 7:30 to look around and say a few preliminary prayers before Mass was to start. By 7:50, no one had opened the doors, nor had anyone driven up to the church. I’m beginning to wonder if I’m not supposed to include this church in my pilgrimage until all of the others have been done!
A less-determined pilgrim would have given up on Mass today, but there are plenty of churches I haven’t seen yet, even here in Fresno. I remembered that I would be passing by the diocesan Cathedral (St. John’s) on my way to the store I was working today, so I headed over there. In less than 5 minutes, I was there (on time) for Mass. At first glance, it seemed a lot smaller than my own “home” cathedral in Stockton, the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption. After Mass, I took a couple of minutes to look at it more closely. It does appear to seat less than Assumption, but the sanctuary in St. John’s is much larger and ornate—almost 25% of the entire church is the sanctuary.
About the Mass. It was in Spanish. I attend a lot of Spanish-language masses when I’m out of town. I don’t know why, it just works out that way. It doesn’t really matter, because the structure of the Liturgy is the same no matter what language it’s in. And I usually read the next day’s readings every evening so I don’t miss out on the Liturgy of the Word. I’m getting better at understanding the homilies, too. It’s amazing the number of words I pick up on. What happened at today’s service is an example.
At two different points during the service, cell phones started ringing! They were turned off rather quickly, but not before taking everyone’s attention from the liturgy to the source of the interruptions. After the Liturgy of the Eucharist and concluding prayers, but before the final blessing and “ite misa est”, the priest said (in Spanish), “It is necessary that I speak about respect for Our Lord for a few minutes.” At least that’s what I heard. As I said, I am not fluent or even conversant in Spanish, but I am quite certain the Holy Spirit was allowing me to understand Father’s words. He spoke about the reverential attitude we should exhibit when we enter the house of God to listen to His Word and receive the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of His Son. He reminded us that weekday masses only last about 30 minutes and it was a show of disrespect not to give Jesus our undivided attention while we were guests in His house. He said we should leave our cell phones in our cars before coming to see our Lord.
This got me thinking about the gospel earlier in the week about Mary and Martha. Martha seemed more concerned about the duties of the world, while Mary ignored everything else to listen to the Word. Jesus lovingly told Martha that, while he appreciated her labors, Mary had chosen the better path. Just as I was thinking about this, I heard the priest saying the names of Martha and Mary. Who needs a language class, when you’ve got the Holy Spirit translating for you?
=======================================================================
Now, my reflection for tomorrow:
Faith is a gift from God, as necessary as the air we breathe. In addition to our physical life, He has made us in His image by giving us a human spirit through which He silently communicates His love and truth to us.
Some dismiss this, because unbelief has deafened and blinded them to God. Others are so comfortable in sin that their only concern is satisfying their desires. A third group performs all the visible signs of faith, but has neither "heart knowledge" nor a true love for Christ that develops in those who have a prayerful relationship with Him. The latter are open to receive His gift of Faith, which is a deep-seated, totally trusting belief in God's Word and in His love for all humanity.
These humble, steadfast people live quietly, but they unwittingly provide this world with a strong witness that God, in Christ, is present on earth and ever offering us His graces through His Spirit of love and truth. Jeremiah refers to these as faithful shepherds who will help unite and guide God's people to live in a spiritual covenant that will one day symbolize their nation as a divine throne attracting all the world's nations.
Christ's parable of the "sower" refers to those sent by God to sow His "Seed," to inspire faith in His holy Word by generously casting it upon the minds and hearts of all those in the land. But the seed's growth depends on the "ground" in which it falls.
For example, if the seed falls on an insensitive, foot-hardened path, it will lie there to be stolen by the evil one. Rocky ground may joyfully receive the seed but it lacks sufficient soil to allow the seed to develop strong roots, and the plant dies for lack of nourishment. The seed sown among thorns is suffocated by worldly concerns; earning riches is more exciting than waiting for God's gifts.
Only a rich, yielding, receptive soil will understand what the precious seeds will bring forth, and it gives itself to promoting a large and nourishing crop. It is man who determines the goodness and the growth of God's life in this world.
My plan this morning was to attend Mass at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Fresno. This plan would have had two significant meanings for me. The first was to continue my pilgrimage to visit every church in the Fresno and Stockton dioceses. The second was to finally see the inside of the church where I was baptized!
I say finally, because this was my fifth attempt to attend a Mass or just to get inside the doors of OLMC! Every time I have tried previously, no one ever showed up, and there was a “CLOSED” sign in the window of the parish office. Today was no different.
According to the website, daily Masses are Tuesday through Friday at 8:00 AM. So I got there at 7:30 to look around and say a few preliminary prayers before Mass was to start. By 7:50, no one had opened the doors, nor had anyone driven up to the church. I’m beginning to wonder if I’m not supposed to include this church in my pilgrimage until all of the others have been done!
A less-determined pilgrim would have given up on Mass today, but there are plenty of churches I haven’t seen yet, even here in Fresno. I remembered that I would be passing by the diocesan Cathedral (St. John’s) on my way to the store I was working today, so I headed over there. In less than 5 minutes, I was there (on time) for Mass. At first glance, it seemed a lot smaller than my own “home” cathedral in Stockton, the Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption. After Mass, I took a couple of minutes to look at it more closely. It does appear to seat less than Assumption, but the sanctuary in St. John’s is much larger and ornate—almost 25% of the entire church is the sanctuary.
About the Mass. It was in Spanish. I attend a lot of Spanish-language masses when I’m out of town. I don’t know why, it just works out that way. It doesn’t really matter, because the structure of the Liturgy is the same no matter what language it’s in. And I usually read the next day’s readings every evening so I don’t miss out on the Liturgy of the Word. I’m getting better at understanding the homilies, too. It’s amazing the number of words I pick up on. What happened at today’s service is an example.
At two different points during the service, cell phones started ringing! They were turned off rather quickly, but not before taking everyone’s attention from the liturgy to the source of the interruptions. After the Liturgy of the Eucharist and concluding prayers, but before the final blessing and “ite misa est”, the priest said (in Spanish), “It is necessary that I speak about respect for Our Lord for a few minutes.” At least that’s what I heard. As I said, I am not fluent or even conversant in Spanish, but I am quite certain the Holy Spirit was allowing me to understand Father’s words. He spoke about the reverential attitude we should exhibit when we enter the house of God to listen to His Word and receive the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of His Son. He reminded us that weekday masses only last about 30 minutes and it was a show of disrespect not to give Jesus our undivided attention while we were guests in His house. He said we should leave our cell phones in our cars before coming to see our Lord.
This got me thinking about the gospel earlier in the week about Mary and Martha. Martha seemed more concerned about the duties of the world, while Mary ignored everything else to listen to the Word. Jesus lovingly told Martha that, while he appreciated her labors, Mary had chosen the better path. Just as I was thinking about this, I heard the priest saying the names of Martha and Mary. Who needs a language class, when you’ve got the Holy Spirit translating for you?
=======================================================================
Now, my reflection for tomorrow:
Faith is a gift from God, as necessary as the air we breathe. In addition to our physical life, He has made us in His image by giving us a human spirit through which He silently communicates His love and truth to us.
Some dismiss this, because unbelief has deafened and blinded them to God. Others are so comfortable in sin that their only concern is satisfying their desires. A third group performs all the visible signs of faith, but has neither "heart knowledge" nor a true love for Christ that develops in those who have a prayerful relationship with Him. The latter are open to receive His gift of Faith, which is a deep-seated, totally trusting belief in God's Word and in His love for all humanity.
These humble, steadfast people live quietly, but they unwittingly provide this world with a strong witness that God, in Christ, is present on earth and ever offering us His graces through His Spirit of love and truth. Jeremiah refers to these as faithful shepherds who will help unite and guide God's people to live in a spiritual covenant that will one day symbolize their nation as a divine throne attracting all the world's nations.
Christ's parable of the "sower" refers to those sent by God to sow His "Seed," to inspire faith in His holy Word by generously casting it upon the minds and hearts of all those in the land. But the seed's growth depends on the "ground" in which it falls.
For example, if the seed falls on an insensitive, foot-hardened path, it will lie there to be stolen by the evil one. Rocky ground may joyfully receive the seed but it lacks sufficient soil to allow the seed to develop strong roots, and the plant dies for lack of nourishment. The seed sown among thorns is suffocated by worldly concerns; earning riches is more exciting than waiting for God's gifts.
Only a rich, yielding, receptive soil will understand what the precious seeds will bring forth, and it gives itself to promoting a large and nourishing crop. It is man who determines the goodness and the growth of God's life in this world.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Blind, gullible and stupid
Can you believe this? Click on the link.
Idiocy
I hope no one I know is so stupid as to try this. Showing love by biting is something reserved for food, in my opinion!
Idiocy
I hope no one I know is so stupid as to try this. Showing love by biting is something reserved for food, in my opinion!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Free will
Human beings value their freedom very much. There have been many wars throughout history and to this day over personal freedom. Free will, a gift from God, enables us to be free to make our own choices, but also comes with some responsibilities.
We know many instances where countries and perhaps where individuals within a family take away another's freedom. Unfortunately with our weaknesses as individuals we sometimes get ourselves into situations that compromise our freedom. How many "crosses" are of our own making?
Throughout the ministry of Christ, He constantly, but gently, urged His listeners to follow Him and His way. The Jewish people of His day were bound by hundreds of laws that they were to follow. The term "yoke of the law" referred to that reality. Instead, Christ said, "Take MY YOKE upon you and learn of me because I am meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:29-30)
We know many instances where countries and perhaps where individuals within a family take away another's freedom. Unfortunately with our weaknesses as individuals we sometimes get ourselves into situations that compromise our freedom. How many "crosses" are of our own making?
Throughout the ministry of Christ, He constantly, but gently, urged His listeners to follow Him and His way. The Jewish people of His day were bound by hundreds of laws that they were to follow. The term "yoke of the law" referred to that reality. Instead, Christ said, "Take MY YOKE upon you and learn of me because I am meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:29-30)
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Blessed Kateri
On July 14, we Catholics celebrate the “Lily of the Mohawks,” Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha (“Gaw-deh-lee De-ga-kwe-tha”). Because my daughter Alicia chose Blessed Kateri for her patron saint at her confirmation, it's an especially appropriate day to give her a great big bearhug and tell her that I love her very much! I think she knows how much I love her, but it's always nice to hear it, too. She is always in my prayers and I hope she is in yours, as well.
Kateri was born near the town of Auriesville, New York, in the year 1656, the daughter of a Mohawk warrior. Her mother died when she was young, she was raised by aunts and uncles, and eventually rejected by her tribe when she converted to Christ. She had to leave her family to practice her faith. In the four years that she lived as a disciple of Jesus before her death at age twenty-four, she cared for the sick and aged and dedicated herself to prayer and penance. Her greatest devotion was to the crucified Jesus and the Eucharist. Blessed Kateri lived a simple, humble life. She is a beautiful “icon” through whom we can catch a glimpse of the message of Wednesday’s scriptures.
In the Isaiah passage the Lord pronounces woes against the nation Assyria. Assyria was an instrument God used to punish other nations but then attributed its might and wisdom to itself. Assyria becomes arrogant, and for this God plans to bring punishment. Arrogance is defined as "an attitude of superiority manifested in an overbearing manner or in presumptuous claims or assumptions."
No word could better define how the nation of Israel had become at the time if Isaiah. To show the people of Israel their folly, Isaiah uses some beautiful imagery asking, "Will the axe boast against him who hews with it? Will the saw exalt itself above him who wields it?" Of course, the answer is no: the axe has no power over him who swings it, just as the saw can do nothing to the person who cuts with it. Axes and saws are powerless, inanimate objects.
The Israelites were nothing more than axes and saws, but in their arrogance they believed they had great power and could ignore God's laws. In reality they had no power at all, especially in the face of God's anger.
As our scientific knowledge, our success and our seemingly great accomplishments continue to expand, it seems God gets smaller and smaller. But as our own presumptuousness grows, God really never gets smaller. In fact our true need for Him grows larger and larger. Don't ever be fooled by letting arrogance creep into your life!
Blessed Kateri is the anti-Assyria because she never forgot her Creator and never exalted herself. In humility and love she served God.
The refrain of the responsorial psalm is “The Lord will not abandon his people.” Blessed Kateri was persecuted by her own tribe. Although she loved her people, she felt compelled to travel to a place where she could practice her faith. I can’t fathom the courage required of a twenty-year-old, single, Native American, young woman living in 1676 who abandoned all to embrace the crucified Jesus. Yet, through it all she experiences the love of God. The one who made the ear hears her cry. The one who made the eye sees her faith. Her inheritance is the Spirit who does not abandon His people.
The gospel lesson records one of the prayers of Jesus. Jesus praises the Father for hiding His will for the world from the wise and learned and revealing it to the childlike. It is the Blessed Kateris of the world to whom the Father reveals His will. The haughty, the proud, the wise, the learned simply are not enough like children to be able to receive it. God would give it to us but we are too full of ourselves. There is no room within our hearts for the gracious will of God.
Kateri was born near the town of Auriesville, New York, in the year 1656, the daughter of a Mohawk warrior. Her mother died when she was young, she was raised by aunts and uncles, and eventually rejected by her tribe when she converted to Christ. She had to leave her family to practice her faith. In the four years that she lived as a disciple of Jesus before her death at age twenty-four, she cared for the sick and aged and dedicated herself to prayer and penance. Her greatest devotion was to the crucified Jesus and the Eucharist. Blessed Kateri lived a simple, humble life. She is a beautiful “icon” through whom we can catch a glimpse of the message of Wednesday’s scriptures.
In the Isaiah passage the Lord pronounces woes against the nation Assyria. Assyria was an instrument God used to punish other nations but then attributed its might and wisdom to itself. Assyria becomes arrogant, and for this God plans to bring punishment. Arrogance is defined as "an attitude of superiority manifested in an overbearing manner or in presumptuous claims or assumptions."
No word could better define how the nation of Israel had become at the time if Isaiah. To show the people of Israel their folly, Isaiah uses some beautiful imagery asking, "Will the axe boast against him who hews with it? Will the saw exalt itself above him who wields it?" Of course, the answer is no: the axe has no power over him who swings it, just as the saw can do nothing to the person who cuts with it. Axes and saws are powerless, inanimate objects.
The Israelites were nothing more than axes and saws, but in their arrogance they believed they had great power and could ignore God's laws. In reality they had no power at all, especially in the face of God's anger.
As our scientific knowledge, our success and our seemingly great accomplishments continue to expand, it seems God gets smaller and smaller. But as our own presumptuousness grows, God really never gets smaller. In fact our true need for Him grows larger and larger. Don't ever be fooled by letting arrogance creep into your life!
Blessed Kateri is the anti-Assyria because she never forgot her Creator and never exalted herself. In humility and love she served God.
The refrain of the responsorial psalm is “The Lord will not abandon his people.” Blessed Kateri was persecuted by her own tribe. Although she loved her people, she felt compelled to travel to a place where she could practice her faith. I can’t fathom the courage required of a twenty-year-old, single, Native American, young woman living in 1676 who abandoned all to embrace the crucified Jesus. Yet, through it all she experiences the love of God. The one who made the ear hears her cry. The one who made the eye sees her faith. Her inheritance is the Spirit who does not abandon His people.
The gospel lesson records one of the prayers of Jesus. Jesus praises the Father for hiding His will for the world from the wise and learned and revealing it to the childlike. It is the Blessed Kateris of the world to whom the Father reveals His will. The haughty, the proud, the wise, the learned simply are not enough like children to be able to receive it. God would give it to us but we are too full of ourselves. There is no room within our hearts for the gracious will of God.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
A life of forgiveness is a life full of the grace of God
Forgiving someone you love is infinitely easier than someone you don't. The spirit of what Jesus says about forgiveness is that we should forgive ANYONE who needs it many more times than will feel comfortable or "right" or fair.
Part of what communicates God's grace in the world is the Spirit-freeing aspect of the act of forgiveness. Giving hurt and anger up to God and forgiving the person who created that them relieves such a burden. Everyone has done something, somewhere, sometime, to hurt another person -- whether intentionally or not, whether seriously or not -- so we all have something to consider within ourselves that needs forgiveness. God's forgiveness, through Christ, is meant to free us from the bonds of death. Death as expressed in the lies and deceits with which we live; death as expressed in the separations we experience in our relationships with others; death as expressed in the greatest separation: that of ourselves from God.
In the forgiving process, we are the ones needing forgiveness first. Whether we reflect on the forgiveness gained for us by Christ on the cross, an instance of our being forgiven by someone else, or a time where we have forgiven someone -- forgiveness starts at "home". Without recognizing the grace we have received, we simply cannot truly and honestly extend that grace to anyone else.
Forgiveness, being a grace of God, is free but not cheap. Forgiveness takes work and commitment. The work part is the inventory of just how we feel about the person and the situation creating the need for forgiveness. The work part includes looking at our own culpability in a situation and if it exists, owning it -- however small or seemingly insignificant. The work involves seeing the other person through the eyes of Christ. The work takes true shape in the encounter with the one who has hurt us. The work ends in the letting go of the anger, disappointment, and disillusionment that rests in our heart, binding our spirits. Laying it down at the foot of the Cross and stepping away, turning our backs on it. Trusting that God will give us what we need to heal, to become whole, to forgive.
Commitment comes with the change in our heart and soul--a change that is nothing short of a miracle. Commitment to forgiveness reveals itself in gentleness, in loving forgiveness of our own imperfections, and in loving forgiveness of the imperfections of others. Commitment to forgiveness brings a deep abiding joy to our hearts and souls which radiates outward. Commitment to forgiveness is just that...a commitment. Living a life of forgiveness, forged in our hearts by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ demands an effort to be engaged in a relationship with Christ.
Engagement in a relationship with Christ brings us to that deep abiding joy in our hearts and souls because of the forgiveness we receive, time and time again. Engagement in a relationship with Christ is about accountability. We are accountable to God through Christ. When we become engaged in a relationship with Christ, we become part of the Body of Christ.
Part of what communicates God's grace in the world is the Spirit-freeing aspect of the act of forgiveness. Giving hurt and anger up to God and forgiving the person who created that them relieves such a burden. Everyone has done something, somewhere, sometime, to hurt another person -- whether intentionally or not, whether seriously or not -- so we all have something to consider within ourselves that needs forgiveness. God's forgiveness, through Christ, is meant to free us from the bonds of death. Death as expressed in the lies and deceits with which we live; death as expressed in the separations we experience in our relationships with others; death as expressed in the greatest separation: that of ourselves from God.
In the forgiving process, we are the ones needing forgiveness first. Whether we reflect on the forgiveness gained for us by Christ on the cross, an instance of our being forgiven by someone else, or a time where we have forgiven someone -- forgiveness starts at "home". Without recognizing the grace we have received, we simply cannot truly and honestly extend that grace to anyone else.
Forgiveness, being a grace of God, is free but not cheap. Forgiveness takes work and commitment. The work part is the inventory of just how we feel about the person and the situation creating the need for forgiveness. The work part includes looking at our own culpability in a situation and if it exists, owning it -- however small or seemingly insignificant. The work involves seeing the other person through the eyes of Christ. The work takes true shape in the encounter with the one who has hurt us. The work ends in the letting go of the anger, disappointment, and disillusionment that rests in our heart, binding our spirits. Laying it down at the foot of the Cross and stepping away, turning our backs on it. Trusting that God will give us what we need to heal, to become whole, to forgive.
Commitment comes with the change in our heart and soul--a change that is nothing short of a miracle. Commitment to forgiveness reveals itself in gentleness, in loving forgiveness of our own imperfections, and in loving forgiveness of the imperfections of others. Commitment to forgiveness brings a deep abiding joy to our hearts and souls which radiates outward. Commitment to forgiveness is just that...a commitment. Living a life of forgiveness, forged in our hearts by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ demands an effort to be engaged in a relationship with Christ.
Engagement in a relationship with Christ brings us to that deep abiding joy in our hearts and souls because of the forgiveness we receive, time and time again. Engagement in a relationship with Christ is about accountability. We are accountable to God through Christ. When we become engaged in a relationship with Christ, we become part of the Body of Christ.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Faith is good medicine
I’ve been so mentally and physically exhausted lately that I was not going to write a blog tonight—in fact I was just turning out the lights and the television (it’s 1 o’clock in the morning), when I heard someone cite a Mother Teresa quote. That alone would not generally move me to write, but the fact that it’s the 3rd time I heard the quote today in 3 different contexts tends to tell me the Holy Spirit is prompting me to write this short note of thanksgiving and praise to Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Mother Teresa’s quote is, “God doesn’t want us to be successful. He wants us to be faithful.” Worrying about all the health and family dramas playing out on the home front the past few weeks has brought me thisclose to losing my mind. The worry has also had an effect on my ability to do my job at a standard I can be happy with. I decided to make a commitment to prayer, giving all of the issues to Jesus through Mary and trusting that it’s all a part of His plan to strengthen my faith and the faith of those around me. God has already answered my prayers to most of the health issues (Praise Him always!)! As far as my job stress, my boss has been really good about it, giving me some time to work things out and taking it relatively easy on me, but it’s time I buckle down and get the job done. After all, I want to be successful. And I believe I will be, as long as I remain faithful to God.
Mother Teresa’s quote is, “God doesn’t want us to be successful. He wants us to be faithful.” Worrying about all the health and family dramas playing out on the home front the past few weeks has brought me thisclose to losing my mind. The worry has also had an effect on my ability to do my job at a standard I can be happy with. I decided to make a commitment to prayer, giving all of the issues to Jesus through Mary and trusting that it’s all a part of His plan to strengthen my faith and the faith of those around me. God has already answered my prayers to most of the health issues (Praise Him always!)! As far as my job stress, my boss has been really good about it, giving me some time to work things out and taking it relatively easy on me, but it’s time I buckle down and get the job done. After all, I want to be successful. And I believe I will be, as long as I remain faithful to God.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Jesus is at the door of our souls
All that we have is a total gift: "Without cost you have received: without cost you are to give." (Matthew 10:8)
At our baptism we became sons and daughters of Christ. Through that sacrament and Confirmation we are challenged to carry out His mission. In Matthew 10, Christ spells out clearly what we are to do and that we have His assurance that He is always with us.
If only all of us understood that challenge, given in love, by Love Himself!
How often, instead, we hear the comments such as, "I don't get anything out of going to Mass." It is a spillover from our secular society where so often we are looking for rewards without putting out any effort .
Persons speaking in that manner have yet to grasp the tremendous gifts that we have been given, the gifts of faith and redemption, given by God Himself from the Cross. Christ doesn't force Himself on anyone, but He is always at the door of our souls, waiting in love for us to give Him some time and space in our hearts.
At our baptism we became sons and daughters of Christ. Through that sacrament and Confirmation we are challenged to carry out His mission. In Matthew 10, Christ spells out clearly what we are to do and that we have His assurance that He is always with us.
If only all of us understood that challenge, given in love, by Love Himself!
How often, instead, we hear the comments such as, "I don't get anything out of going to Mass." It is a spillover from our secular society where so often we are looking for rewards without putting out any effort .
Persons speaking in that manner have yet to grasp the tremendous gifts that we have been given, the gifts of faith and redemption, given by God Himself from the Cross. Christ doesn't force Himself on anyone, but He is always at the door of our souls, waiting in love for us to give Him some time and space in our hearts.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Love is an action, not a feeling
In Matthew (Chapter 9) we hear that Jesus is going from town to town preaching the Good News of the Kingdom and curing people of their illnesses and disease. It then says that His heart was moved with pity for them, for they were troubled and abandoned.
Like Jesus, we all encounter people who in one way or another are troubled. Some naturally move our hearts to be compassionate while others do not. Often those who don't are the ones whose troubles are self-inflicted and yet they are in most need of kindness and help. Yet, like sheep without a shepherd they have no one willing to shelter them from the catastrophes of their lives.
At times like this it is well for us to remember that love is not a feeling, but a response.
To be imitators of Christ means that we choose to be loving, even when we feel the least inclined. Let us choose then to cooperate with God and the gifts and grace He has given us and let our God-given hearts be moved with pity.
Like Jesus, we all encounter people who in one way or another are troubled. Some naturally move our hearts to be compassionate while others do not. Often those who don't are the ones whose troubles are self-inflicted and yet they are in most need of kindness and help. Yet, like sheep without a shepherd they have no one willing to shelter them from the catastrophes of their lives.
At times like this it is well for us to remember that love is not a feeling, but a response.
To be imitators of Christ means that we choose to be loving, even when we feel the least inclined. Let us choose then to cooperate with God and the gifts and grace He has given us and let our God-given hearts be moved with pity.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Praying for "Justice for All"
This weekend's celebrations of our beginnings as a nation stir our hearts to renewed loyalty to our beloved country.
Yet our nation is now in the throes of a huge debate about policies concerning immigrants. Our borders once offered hope and hospitality to the stranger. No more! The torch of Lady Liberty in New York harbor is as much a warning fire as it is a beacon of hope. At the same time, the number of displaced peoples in the world has reached 20 million. How much of our freedom are we willing to share?
The Scripture readings for this Sunday offer food for reflection, and God's recipe for peace. Beginning with Isaiah, we hear that the Lord offers a future of peace and prosperity to Israel following the Babylonian captivity. "As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; in Jerusalem you shall find your comfort."
In the Gospel, Jesus and His apostles and disciples are on the way to Jerusalem to fulfill this ancient prophecy. In every village and hamlet, they preach the Good News, heal the sick and drive out demons. Jesus instructs them to travel very light, relying on the people to feed and protect them. They are not to take staff or traveling bag.
Unfortunately, Jerusalem rejects the message, puts the Son of God to death, and seals its own fate, not the peace of Jerusalem, but its eventual destruction in the year 70AD! No wonder that, when Jesus arrives, He weeps over the city's rejection, again using the image of God as a tenderhearted mother.
Our late Holy Father, John Paul II, reminded us that peace begins in the human heart. Peace will only come from those whose hearts are filled with God's love and obedience to His plan for the world. At the same time, Paul reminds us in the second reading, that the disciple must be prepared for rejection, bearing the marks of the Cross on his or her own body.
On this Fourth of July, may we remind ourselves that, when we practice "justice for all," God will send us the peace for which we so long.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
If only we could see things as Christ does!
Christ entered His hometown and a paralytic was brought to Him. Christ's first concern was for the condition of the man's soul, and He forgave his sins. This infuriated the people and they questioned His ability to do so. (Matthew 9:1-8)
Throughout most of the Old Testament, time after time the people of Israel are shown great mercy after great disobedience to God. They never seem to learn! But God’s patience with us and mercy toward us is always greater than our disobedience to His will. He eventually sends His beloved Son to die for us and show us that death is just the beginning!
Eternity has already begun for each of us. The moment we were conceived in our mother's womb, our eternity began! That we will always be -- is an awesome thought! This gospel helps us keep our focus on what is really important. Our lives are often fast-paced and we can easily allow the concerns of life to overwhelm us. The reality is that each decision and action we make has an impact on our future. Often it takes some tragedy in our personal or family life to readjust those priorities. We have to remember that no matter what “life” or other people hands us, Jesus is there to help us through our difficulties. Many want to turn from Him when things are going badly—they may even blame Him for the difficulties. That’s ludicrous—Jesus can’t be blamed for His creations’ poor decisions and disobedience of His commandments or even for natural disasters. We have to further remember that God can and does allow bad things to happen so that a greater good can come from it—our challenge is recognize the good, even while lamenting the bad.
One way to help us keep on track with our spiritual goals and priorities is to take time early each day and map out our priorities. A prayer to the Holy Spirit to show us the way through the day is also important. Then at the end of each day a brief re-examination of the day will help us to realize how we are doing.
We will not be perfect, but at least God knows that we are striving to be as perfect as we can be. God knows that we are human and He still finds delight in each of us!
Throughout most of the Old Testament, time after time the people of Israel are shown great mercy after great disobedience to God. They never seem to learn! But God’s patience with us and mercy toward us is always greater than our disobedience to His will. He eventually sends His beloved Son to die for us and show us that death is just the beginning!
Eternity has already begun for each of us. The moment we were conceived in our mother's womb, our eternity began! That we will always be -- is an awesome thought! This gospel helps us keep our focus on what is really important. Our lives are often fast-paced and we can easily allow the concerns of life to overwhelm us. The reality is that each decision and action we make has an impact on our future. Often it takes some tragedy in our personal or family life to readjust those priorities. We have to remember that no matter what “life” or other people hands us, Jesus is there to help us through our difficulties. Many want to turn from Him when things are going badly—they may even blame Him for the difficulties. That’s ludicrous—Jesus can’t be blamed for His creations’ poor decisions and disobedience of His commandments or even for natural disasters. We have to further remember that God can and does allow bad things to happen so that a greater good can come from it—our challenge is recognize the good, even while lamenting the bad.
One way to help us keep on track with our spiritual goals and priorities is to take time early each day and map out our priorities. A prayer to the Holy Spirit to show us the way through the day is also important. Then at the end of each day a brief re-examination of the day will help us to realize how we are doing.
We will not be perfect, but at least God knows that we are striving to be as perfect as we can be. God knows that we are human and He still finds delight in each of us!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Death Stars
http://www.splendoroftruth.com/curtjester/2010/06/death-stars/
Thanks to the Curt Jester for today's entry!
Thanks to the Curt Jester for today's entry!
Friday, June 25, 2010
I am not worthy to receive you....
"O Lord, I am not worthy to receive you." The translators of the liturgy probably used this phrasing because it nicely combines the sense of reception as of a host to a guest and reception as of receiving the Eucharist. But it is from this scripture passage that they derive the prayer that is so central to our liturgy and to our lives.
We are not worthy of ourselves. But the interesting fact of Catholic Doctrine is that we are made worthy not of ourselves, but by God's love for us. The compassionate love of a father makes what is dirt and clay, what came from nothing, worthy to receive God in His fullness when we partake of Holy Communion.
Lord, I am not worthy to receive you -- but only say the word and I shall be healed! Healed of what? Healed, in part, of my unworthiness. We have a saying in America -- You are what you eat. I read that and with respect to Holy Communion, I pray, "May it be so!" Because in receiving Holy Communion, we receive God Himself. And we receive God, "under our roof," the roof to this body that serves to keep us in, and so many things -- including God, if we should choose -- out.
St. Thomas Aquinas reminds us that the only thing we can do on our own is reject God; even accepting God requires God's grace. So it is well to remember and to pray with this centurion -- "Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed."
May it be so for all of us who love Him.
We are not worthy of ourselves. But the interesting fact of Catholic Doctrine is that we are made worthy not of ourselves, but by God's love for us. The compassionate love of a father makes what is dirt and clay, what came from nothing, worthy to receive God in His fullness when we partake of Holy Communion.
Lord, I am not worthy to receive you -- but only say the word and I shall be healed! Healed of what? Healed, in part, of my unworthiness. We have a saying in America -- You are what you eat. I read that and with respect to Holy Communion, I pray, "May it be so!" Because in receiving Holy Communion, we receive God Himself. And we receive God, "under our roof," the roof to this body that serves to keep us in, and so many things -- including God, if we should choose -- out.
St. Thomas Aquinas reminds us that the only thing we can do on our own is reject God; even accepting God requires God's grace. So it is well to remember and to pray with this centurion -- "Lord I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed."
May it be so for all of us who love Him.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
What, then will this child be?
When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.
When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child, they were going to call him Zechariah after his father, but his mother said in reply, “No. He will be called John.”
But they answered her, “There is no one among your relatives who has this name.” So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called. He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,” and all were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God.
Then fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, “What, then, will this child be?”
For surely the hand of the Lord was with him. The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the desert until the day of his manifestation to Israel.
As I meditated on this reading today, three themes kept running through my mind:
“Fear came upon all their neighbors”. We don’t like to think about it, but we are all sinners. We tend to put our sins on the “back burners” of our minds until we are reminded by some event (great or small) that God is truly among us and knows our thoughts and actions. Then we become “fearful” that He will punish us. Our emphasis should be more on sorrow that we’ve offended him, and making a firm purpose of amendment to avoid sin, rather than fear of eternal punishment.
“All these matters were discussed”. I imagine most of the discussion was in the form of gossip. I can hear it now; “Did you hear about Zechariah and Elizabeth?” “They called their son ‘John’! There has never been a ‘John’ in the house of Zechariah! Who do they think they are?” As Dennis Miller says, “I don’t want to go on a rant here, but…..” Gossip is the main thoroughfare of scandal. We would do well not to participate. ‘Nuff said.
“What, then will this child be?” Of course we know the story of John. What I got to thinking about this part of the reading though, is the universality of the question. Every parent has the same question when a child is born. We all want the best for our children, and we truly believe they can be anything they want to be. The trouble comes when we don’t support them by giving them the proper tools and education so they can become “strong in spirit”. Every child—no, every human being—has a purpose: to love and serve God with all our heart mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. It is the degree to which we fulfill that purpose that is important and essential to our eternal happiness with Jesus in Heaven.
When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child, they were going to call him Zechariah after his father, but his mother said in reply, “No. He will be called John.”
But they answered her, “There is no one among your relatives who has this name.” So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called. He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,” and all were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God.
Then fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, “What, then, will this child be?”
For surely the hand of the Lord was with him. The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the desert until the day of his manifestation to Israel.
As I meditated on this reading today, three themes kept running through my mind:
“Fear came upon all their neighbors”. We don’t like to think about it, but we are all sinners. We tend to put our sins on the “back burners” of our minds until we are reminded by some event (great or small) that God is truly among us and knows our thoughts and actions. Then we become “fearful” that He will punish us. Our emphasis should be more on sorrow that we’ve offended him, and making a firm purpose of amendment to avoid sin, rather than fear of eternal punishment.
“All these matters were discussed”. I imagine most of the discussion was in the form of gossip. I can hear it now; “Did you hear about Zechariah and Elizabeth?” “They called their son ‘John’! There has never been a ‘John’ in the house of Zechariah! Who do they think they are?” As Dennis Miller says, “I don’t want to go on a rant here, but…..” Gossip is the main thoroughfare of scandal. We would do well not to participate. ‘Nuff said.
“What, then will this child be?” Of course we know the story of John. What I got to thinking about this part of the reading though, is the universality of the question. Every parent has the same question when a child is born. We all want the best for our children, and we truly believe they can be anything they want to be. The trouble comes when we don’t support them by giving them the proper tools and education so they can become “strong in spirit”. Every child—no, every human being—has a purpose: to love and serve God with all our heart mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. It is the degree to which we fulfill that purpose that is important and essential to our eternal happiness with Jesus in Heaven.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Happy Father's Day!
A Father's Prayers of Petition
As the guardian of my family, that I constantly instill Catholic values, I pray to the Lord.
When I am discouraged and weary, give me the grace to be strong, I pray to the Lord.
To be a source of patience, understanding and love to my family, I pray to the Lord.
To teach my children always to do Your will, using the Blessed Mother and Saint Joseph as examples, I pray to the Lord.
Help me willingly and joyfully to accept the sacrifices I must make for the common good of my family, I pray to the Lord.
Help me to instill in my children a love for Jesus and His Church so that they will be witness to others, I pray to the Lord.
In gratitude for my Father
Dear God, the Father of us all, Father of Life, I thank you for my father. Along with my mother, through the marvel of your creation, my father gave me the gift of life itself. He was such a blessing to me while he was still with us. I still miss him so much. He was such a good teacher and mentor, such a wonderful example of how to live a life of faith. I thank you for what he left me as gifts of love and faith. I pray that he has enjoyed your embrace and that the relationship he and I had might someday be renewed with you in heaven. Until then, I entrust him to your love and ask you to let him look out for me and to assist me to stay on the path to you. Please take care of him now and be generous with him as you prepare him for the rewards of eternal life you have prepared for him.
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“Dadisms” are a dad's favorite way to teach his kids the basics of life.
Here are a few “dadisms” I can remember hearing when growing up, and that I have probably said to my kids, despite my best efforts at avoiding using some of them:
•Don't ask me, ask your mother.
•You snooze, you lose.
•A little dirt never hurt anyone--just wipe it off..
•I'm not just talking to hear my own voice!
•Stop crying or I'll give you a reason to cry.
•You're gonna like it, whether you like it or not!
•If your friend jumped off a bridge would you?
•Don't look at me in that tone of voice!
•What do you think this is, your birthday?
•What part of NO don't you understand?
•I don't care what other people are doing! I'm not everybody else's father!
•Didn't your teacher learn you anything?!
•Two wrongs do not make a right.
•Don't use that tone with me!
•Am I talking to a brick wall?
•Enough is enough!
•Don't make me stop the car!
•What did I just get finished telling you?
•Act your age.
•Is that a threat, or a promise? (Likewise)
•We’ll get there when we get there!
•Go tell your mother she wants you.
•Who said life was supposed to be fair?
•Life is a journey and you've just reached one of many speed bumps to come.
•As long as you tried your hardest, that's all that matters.
•If ifs and buts were candy and nuts then we'd all have a merry Christmas.
•Don't believe anything you hear and only half of what you see.
•If you're gonna be dumb, you've gotta be tough.
•Worrying about things you can't change is like a rocking chair... it gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you anywhere.
•It's hard to be good, and easy to be bad.
•What do you think I am, a bank?
•You didn't beat me. I let you win.
•This will hurt me a lot more than it hurts you.
•We're not lost. I'm just not sure where we are.
•If you can’t be good, be careful.
•I'll tell you why. Because I said so. That's why.
•Do what I say, not what I do.
•I'm not sleeping, I'm resting my eyes.
•That's not a tear, I have something in my eye.
As the guardian of my family, that I constantly instill Catholic values, I pray to the Lord.
When I am discouraged and weary, give me the grace to be strong, I pray to the Lord.
To be a source of patience, understanding and love to my family, I pray to the Lord.
To teach my children always to do Your will, using the Blessed Mother and Saint Joseph as examples, I pray to the Lord.
Help me willingly and joyfully to accept the sacrifices I must make for the common good of my family, I pray to the Lord.
Help me to instill in my children a love for Jesus and His Church so that they will be witness to others, I pray to the Lord.
In gratitude for my Father
Dear God, the Father of us all, Father of Life, I thank you for my father. Along with my mother, through the marvel of your creation, my father gave me the gift of life itself. He was such a blessing to me while he was still with us. I still miss him so much. He was such a good teacher and mentor, such a wonderful example of how to live a life of faith. I thank you for what he left me as gifts of love and faith. I pray that he has enjoyed your embrace and that the relationship he and I had might someday be renewed with you in heaven. Until then, I entrust him to your love and ask you to let him look out for me and to assist me to stay on the path to you. Please take care of him now and be generous with him as you prepare him for the rewards of eternal life you have prepared for him.
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“Dadisms” are a dad's favorite way to teach his kids the basics of life.
Here are a few “dadisms” I can remember hearing when growing up, and that I have probably said to my kids, despite my best efforts at avoiding using some of them:
•Don't ask me, ask your mother.
•You snooze, you lose.
•A little dirt never hurt anyone--just wipe it off..
•I'm not just talking to hear my own voice!
•Stop crying or I'll give you a reason to cry.
•You're gonna like it, whether you like it or not!
•If your friend jumped off a bridge would you?
•Don't look at me in that tone of voice!
•What do you think this is, your birthday?
•What part of NO don't you understand?
•I don't care what other people are doing! I'm not everybody else's father!
•Didn't your teacher learn you anything?!
•Two wrongs do not make a right.
•Don't use that tone with me!
•Am I talking to a brick wall?
•Enough is enough!
•Don't make me stop the car!
•What did I just get finished telling you?
•Act your age.
•Is that a threat, or a promise? (Likewise)
•We’ll get there when we get there!
•Go tell your mother she wants you.
•Who said life was supposed to be fair?
•Life is a journey and you've just reached one of many speed bumps to come.
•As long as you tried your hardest, that's all that matters.
•If ifs and buts were candy and nuts then we'd all have a merry Christmas.
•Don't believe anything you hear and only half of what you see.
•If you're gonna be dumb, you've gotta be tough.
•Worrying about things you can't change is like a rocking chair... it gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you anywhere.
•It's hard to be good, and easy to be bad.
•What do you think I am, a bank?
•You didn't beat me. I let you win.
•This will hurt me a lot more than it hurts you.
•We're not lost. I'm just not sure where we are.
•If you can’t be good, be careful.
•I'll tell you why. Because I said so. That's why.
•Do what I say, not what I do.
•I'm not sleeping, I'm resting my eyes.
•That's not a tear, I have something in my eye.
Friday, June 18, 2010
Learn to focus on things that matter
When I first read the passages from Chronicles and from Matthew presented on Saturday they did not seem to belong together. Chronicles relates a wrathful Lord, one Who is intent on providing the Jewish people with the lesson of the day – transgress the Lord’s commands and find themselves smashed by invading Arameans. Jesus, on the other hand, provides a most spiritual message – detach yourselves from material goods and wants, and be more trusting, as are the birds and the wildflowers.
But when I reflected on these passages later, it seemed to me that they are related after all. The princes of Judah engaged in conduct that demonstrated they had lost their focus, had taken an easier way, had mistaken the value of their gift from God and thus placed short-term expediency over long-term growth. They ceased to be other-directed and focused on the Lord, and were more self-directed and focused on self. I can only think of our country today. We’ve taken prayer out of the picture altogether it seems, and built a culture of self-reliance that will only lead us further away from God unless we regain our senses and remember Who gave us our “self” in the first place. Self-reliance is not necessarily a bad thing, as long it is used for the greater glory of God and directed toward loving our families, friends, and yes, even enemies as we love ourselves.
Jesus tells His listeners that they should focus on things that matter and not those that are distractions. Jesus challenges His listeners to live more simply, less acquisitively, more spiritually. Jesus encourages us to be more faith-filled and less troubled by the things we are powerless to change. We are all guilty of this. I frequently have trouble concentrating on the Mysteries when I’m saying the rosary. Instead, I wonder how my day is going to go tomorrow, or even worse sometimes I even lament on how my day today has gone! What’s the sense in that? What’s done is done! It can’t be redone! I have to refocus on Christ and the Gospel (the Good News!) that he proclaims. That gives me hope for the things I have to do tomorrow and provides me with the direction I need to focus on Jesus as He presents Himself to me through those whom I interact with throughout the day.
Three recent incidents have occurred that made me feel (and forgive me, Lord, if this sounds egotistic or prideful) that I’m getting closer to being on the right track spiritually and evangelically, even if not consistently.
Yesterday, Mom and I were talking to a woman who said she “used to go to the Catholic church, and would like to go again, but I can’t.” I should have asked her right then what she meant, then reassured her that it’s never too late to come home and ask for forgiveness. But I wasn’t thinking evangelically then, and the moment passed and didn’t re-present itself. What strikes me now as I think of it again is that I felt a real sorrow that she was allowing anything to keep her from the Body of Christ. It was like an ache in my own heart.
Today, my boss said something very mildly crass as a joke and immediately apologized to me for allowing me to hear it. I mean it was VERY mild, and the fact that he thought it might have offended me actually made me feel good for HIS sake! I didn’t feel offended, but I took his apology as an apology to the Body of Christ and in my mind’s eye, I could see Jesus smile!
Then I had someone else today ask me if I thought there would be any changes to the Church under Benedict XVI’s papacy vs. Pope JPII. I said I don’t think there will be any changes in regards to faith and morals between the two because they were both chosen by the Holy Spirit to lead the Church in the direction Jesus intends it to go. He said he didn’t think it was important WHAT church someone went to, as long as he believed in God and Jesus Christ. I told him that while that IS the bottom line, I feel that it’s also important to be a member of the Church that Christ Himself founded upon the “rock” that is Peter. All I feel qualified to do at this stage of my spiritual development is to plant seeds and trust that Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, will cultivate the soil, water the seeds and reap the harvest.
But when I reflected on these passages later, it seemed to me that they are related after all. The princes of Judah engaged in conduct that demonstrated they had lost their focus, had taken an easier way, had mistaken the value of their gift from God and thus placed short-term expediency over long-term growth. They ceased to be other-directed and focused on the Lord, and were more self-directed and focused on self. I can only think of our country today. We’ve taken prayer out of the picture altogether it seems, and built a culture of self-reliance that will only lead us further away from God unless we regain our senses and remember Who gave us our “self” in the first place. Self-reliance is not necessarily a bad thing, as long it is used for the greater glory of God and directed toward loving our families, friends, and yes, even enemies as we love ourselves.
Jesus tells His listeners that they should focus on things that matter and not those that are distractions. Jesus challenges His listeners to live more simply, less acquisitively, more spiritually. Jesus encourages us to be more faith-filled and less troubled by the things we are powerless to change. We are all guilty of this. I frequently have trouble concentrating on the Mysteries when I’m saying the rosary. Instead, I wonder how my day is going to go tomorrow, or even worse sometimes I even lament on how my day today has gone! What’s the sense in that? What’s done is done! It can’t be redone! I have to refocus on Christ and the Gospel (the Good News!) that he proclaims. That gives me hope for the things I have to do tomorrow and provides me with the direction I need to focus on Jesus as He presents Himself to me through those whom I interact with throughout the day.
Three recent incidents have occurred that made me feel (and forgive me, Lord, if this sounds egotistic or prideful) that I’m getting closer to being on the right track spiritually and evangelically, even if not consistently.
Yesterday, Mom and I were talking to a woman who said she “used to go to the Catholic church, and would like to go again, but I can’t.” I should have asked her right then what she meant, then reassured her that it’s never too late to come home and ask for forgiveness. But I wasn’t thinking evangelically then, and the moment passed and didn’t re-present itself. What strikes me now as I think of it again is that I felt a real sorrow that she was allowing anything to keep her from the Body of Christ. It was like an ache in my own heart.
Today, my boss said something very mildly crass as a joke and immediately apologized to me for allowing me to hear it. I mean it was VERY mild, and the fact that he thought it might have offended me actually made me feel good for HIS sake! I didn’t feel offended, but I took his apology as an apology to the Body of Christ and in my mind’s eye, I could see Jesus smile!
Then I had someone else today ask me if I thought there would be any changes to the Church under Benedict XVI’s papacy vs. Pope JPII. I said I don’t think there will be any changes in regards to faith and morals between the two because they were both chosen by the Holy Spirit to lead the Church in the direction Jesus intends it to go. He said he didn’t think it was important WHAT church someone went to, as long as he believed in God and Jesus Christ. I told him that while that IS the bottom line, I feel that it’s also important to be a member of the Church that Christ Himself founded upon the “rock” that is Peter. All I feel qualified to do at this stage of my spiritual development is to plant seeds and trust that Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, will cultivate the soil, water the seeds and reap the harvest.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Science continues to search for the obvious
This story appeared on the internet today and reminded me of a joke that pretty much sums up what any true believer in God’s existence and power believes:
One day a group of scientists got together and decided that man had come a long way and no longer needed God. So they picked one scientist to go and tell Him that they were done with Him. The scientist walked up to God and said, "God, we've decided that we no longer need you. We're to the point that we can clone people and do many miraculous things, so why don't you just go on and get lost."
One day a group of scientists got together and decided that man had come a long way and no longer needed God. So they picked one scientist to go and tell Him that they were done with Him. The scientist walked up to God and said, "God, we've decided that we no longer need you. We're to the point that we can clone people and do many miraculous things, so why don't you just go on and get lost."
God listened very patiently to the man. After the scientist was done talking, God said, "Very well, how about this? Let's say we have a man-making contest." To which the scientist replied, "Okay, great!" But God added, "Now, we're going to do this just like I did back in the old days with Adam." The scientist said, "Sure, no problem" and bent down and grabbed himself a handful of dirt. God looked at him and said, "No, no -- you go get your own dirt."
It really amazes me how many scientists can’t seem to “see the forest through all of the trees in their way”! It seems like a pretty simple equation to me. All of the THINGS they are discovering had to be created at some point in time out of NOTHING. Just Who do they think created all of the circumstances that led to the “big bang” in the first place?
It really amazes me how many scientists can’t seem to “see the forest through all of the trees in their way”! It seems like a pretty simple equation to me. All of the THINGS they are discovering had to be created at some point in time out of NOTHING. Just Who do they think created all of the circumstances that led to the “big bang” in the first place?
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Well, the wedding has come and gone! It was beautiful and spirit-filled. For those of you who couldn’t attend, look on Lily’s blog at the left for some preliminary pictures. More will be available in about a week. First we have to get them from the photographer, then we’ll have to figure an easier way to get them all in a format that is easy to load and view. I’ll keep you posted. Thanks to all of you who sent well-wishes and gifts to the newlyweds. Please keep them in your prayers of thanksgiving this week.
Well, the wedding has come and gone! It was beautiful and spirit-filled. For those of you who couldn’t attend, look on Lily’s blog at the left for some preliminary pictures. More will be available in about a week. First we have to get them from the photographer, then we’ll have to figure an easier way to get them all in a format that is easy to load and view. I’ll keep you posted. Thanks to all of you who sent well-wishes and gifts to the newlyweds. Please keep them in your prayers of thanksgiving this week.Thursday, June 10, 2010
On the eve of the eve of my daughter's wedding
When Alicia was in 2nd or 3rd grade she came to me and asked me something I will never forget—“Daddy, how come you and Mom don’t argue and fight like a lot of the other kids’ parents?” I told her it was because we love each other very much and didn’t have much to argue about. That settled it. I didn’t ever have to answer the question again.
Now that she’s getting married, I want her (and the world) to know what I think has made my love for her Mom better and greater every day since we got married in the hopes that her marriage to Lorenzo becomes as strong and loving as ours is. Alicia’s wedding this Saturday has had me prayerfully considering my love for Marilyn (and thanking God for her!) in the past few weeks and why I think our marriage has been a happy one. I think it’s because we never approached it simply as just something a man and woman do when they “have feelings” for one another. Rather, we take our vows and the promises we made to each other and to God very seriously, even on those rare occasions when we do have disagreements or get mildly angry at one another.
The way I see it, the three virtues of faith, hope and charity are the cornerstone of any marriage in the Persons of the Trinity. Marilyn and I, either consciously or unconsciously (and “prodded” by the Holy Spirit), have used this foundation since day one.
In the Scriptures the relationship between God and God's people is often described in terms of a marriage. The early Christians, reflecting on Christ's love for us, also used this image. Christ and the Church embrace in mutual love and self-giving, even as do husband and wife (see, for example, Ephesians 5:21-33). "'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:31-32).
Faith is where it begins. Not only a faith in God, but in one another. We will each make mistakes—it’s what makes us human. The challenge in a marriage is to remember to give our partner the benefit of any doubts and believe that he is not acting out of selfishness but out of a concern for what is right for the union. The word “fidelity” is derived from “faith”. We sometimes forget that it takes three persons to make a marriage; a man, a woman, and God. That’s why Jesus elevated marriage to a Sacrament—bringing the Eternal Father into the relationship provides us (through prayer) with an arbiter to help us see more clearly the path back to agape love. That’s why including Him in the marriage is very important.
Hope is important to keep the flames of love alive. We each have to share our hopes and dreams often by speaking “with” one another instead of “at” one another. Obviously we already agreed a lot of these hopes and dreams during our courtship, or we wouldn’t have agreed to get married. I always try to use the word “trust” along with hope because hope without trust is just an empty dream and that can kill love faster than anything. We have to trust that we will realize our dreams as a couple “someday”—even if “someday” never comes! That is what keeps the marriage and the love alive through the blessings of the Holy Spirit.
Charity is probably the hardest virtue to accomplish in a marriage, because it always—ALWAYS—requires sacrifice. Sometimes, in fact most of the time, the sacrifices are small, but occasionally larger sacrifices have to be made for the good of the marriage. Remembering the sacrifice that Jesus made for all of us on the Cross can help encourage us in this regard. Charity can show itself in many ways, like preparing a special meal for our husband or wife even if we’ve had a hard day. Simply remembering to say, “I love you”, even when we’re not in the proper mood or disposition. The hardest part of the sacrifice is making it joyfully and without malice to our spouse.
There is no “Handbook of Marriage”. Every relationship is different but I guarantee that every relationship will grow stronger if we remember to keep faith (the Father), charity (the Son), and hope (the Holy Spirit) alive for as long as we live.
Now that she’s getting married, I want her (and the world) to know what I think has made my love for her Mom better and greater every day since we got married in the hopes that her marriage to Lorenzo becomes as strong and loving as ours is. Alicia’s wedding this Saturday has had me prayerfully considering my love for Marilyn (and thanking God for her!) in the past few weeks and why I think our marriage has been a happy one. I think it’s because we never approached it simply as just something a man and woman do when they “have feelings” for one another. Rather, we take our vows and the promises we made to each other and to God very seriously, even on those rare occasions when we do have disagreements or get mildly angry at one another.
The way I see it, the three virtues of faith, hope and charity are the cornerstone of any marriage in the Persons of the Trinity. Marilyn and I, either consciously or unconsciously (and “prodded” by the Holy Spirit), have used this foundation since day one.
In the Scriptures the relationship between God and God's people is often described in terms of a marriage. The early Christians, reflecting on Christ's love for us, also used this image. Christ and the Church embrace in mutual love and self-giving, even as do husband and wife (see, for example, Ephesians 5:21-33). "'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.' This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:31-32).
Faith is where it begins. Not only a faith in God, but in one another. We will each make mistakes—it’s what makes us human. The challenge in a marriage is to remember to give our partner the benefit of any doubts and believe that he is not acting out of selfishness but out of a concern for what is right for the union. The word “fidelity” is derived from “faith”. We sometimes forget that it takes three persons to make a marriage; a man, a woman, and God. That’s why Jesus elevated marriage to a Sacrament—bringing the Eternal Father into the relationship provides us (through prayer) with an arbiter to help us see more clearly the path back to agape love. That’s why including Him in the marriage is very important.
Hope is important to keep the flames of love alive. We each have to share our hopes and dreams often by speaking “with” one another instead of “at” one another. Obviously we already agreed a lot of these hopes and dreams during our courtship, or we wouldn’t have agreed to get married. I always try to use the word “trust” along with hope because hope without trust is just an empty dream and that can kill love faster than anything. We have to trust that we will realize our dreams as a couple “someday”—even if “someday” never comes! That is what keeps the marriage and the love alive through the blessings of the Holy Spirit.
Charity is probably the hardest virtue to accomplish in a marriage, because it always—ALWAYS—requires sacrifice. Sometimes, in fact most of the time, the sacrifices are small, but occasionally larger sacrifices have to be made for the good of the marriage. Remembering the sacrifice that Jesus made for all of us on the Cross can help encourage us in this regard. Charity can show itself in many ways, like preparing a special meal for our husband or wife even if we’ve had a hard day. Simply remembering to say, “I love you”, even when we’re not in the proper mood or disposition. The hardest part of the sacrifice is making it joyfully and without malice to our spouse.
There is no “Handbook of Marriage”. Every relationship is different but I guarantee that every relationship will grow stronger if we remember to keep faith (the Father), charity (the Son), and hope (the Holy Spirit) alive for as long as we live.
By the way, the date that Alicia and Lorenzo chose for their 1st day of a new life together happens to be the Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Who better to have as a reminder of unconditional love than the Immaculate Heart of the Mother of God? I hope (trust) that Our Blessed Mother will be a constant source of help and guidance to both of them (and Lily), and that she will continue to lead them to her Son. Amen.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
The privilege of being a Christian
It is a privilege, as well as a big responsibility, to call ourselves Christians. The day of our Baptism changed our very identity. It is up to us with our gift of free will to form and inform ourselves on an ongoing basis as that person. Every encounter with another person is important.
Anger is a normal emotional reaction, but it is how we handle that emotion that is significant. This is a challenge for most people. Christ taught us that we are to love everyone. We have proof of that love through His death on the cross. To falter in quenching anger is tricky, and we may fail at times, but we are to separate the actions of another from their person, and continue to love them. This is especially important when we are caring for children, the helpless and the elderly. They always need to be assured of our love even though their actions might make us angry. For example, how many parents have had to contend with powder being sprinkled all over a room? Or crayon marks on the wall? Or had to repeat, “NO, NO, NO!” at least 10 times before the child obeys? Oh, the joys of parenthood!
In the gospel, Christ said, "I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment." (see Matthew 5:22)
Monday, June 7, 2010
And a little child shall lead them.....
My granddaughter Lily is a great teacher, but she doesn’t know it! Lately I have been struggling to make sense of the world’s seeming lack of morals and decency, and I must admit that it sometimes scares me that Lily will be growing up in an age that will test the resolve of even the most faithful follower of Jesus Christ.
Lily has taught me that it is TRUST in Our Lord’s love for us that will get us through. Of course, she didn’t tell me this in so many words, but by her example. Let me explain. As she is learning to walk (she’s really good at it now, by the way) she is becoming more and more independent of the grownups around her. But every once in a while, she stumbles or comes to an obstacle that she feels is a little too large to navigate alone.
This has happened several times while I was watching her, and she didn’t whimper or whine or get upset. She merely looked me in the eye and, without saying a word, she held out one hand for me to hold on to and help her get up by herself or to get around that obstacle. The absolute trust she has in my love for her that she shows by this action sends me to the brink of tears every time she holds out her hands like that.
It also reminds me that as long as we trust in God’s love for us, we know we’ll be alright.
Lily has taught me that it is TRUST in Our Lord’s love for us that will get us through. Of course, she didn’t tell me this in so many words, but by her example. Let me explain. As she is learning to walk (she’s really good at it now, by the way) she is becoming more and more independent of the grownups around her. But every once in a while, she stumbles or comes to an obstacle that she feels is a little too large to navigate alone.
This has happened several times while I was watching her, and she didn’t whimper or whine or get upset. She merely looked me in the eye and, without saying a word, she held out one hand for me to hold on to and help her get up by herself or to get around that obstacle. The absolute trust she has in my love for her that she shows by this action sends me to the brink of tears every time she holds out her hands like that.
It also reminds me that as long as we trust in God’s love for us, we know we’ll be alright.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Blessed are they.......
The first reading and the psalm on Monday this week say that God will take care of His faithful, and in Jesus’ time it certainly did not seem true. People were often persecuted for their religion. They still are. So how can these two seemingly different things both be true? The Lord told Elijah that he should go east and he would be taken care of, and he was. In the psalm we are told, “Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. The Lord will guard you from all evil; he will guard your life. The Lord will guard your coming and your going, both now and forever.” But that doesn’t always seem true.
I was watching a movie about Pope Paul VI on EWTN the other night. In one scene, he is praying in his chapel and he asks Jesus, “Why? Why is there still war? Why is there still pain and agony and suffering?” The Holy Father falls into a dream and finds himself in Jerusalem being led by a simple shepherd on a cobbled street up to the top of a hill. When they reach the top, the shepherd says nothing, but points towards the horizon, where the Cross of Christ is lit up. It was very powerful.
There are many good and devout people who have a very tough time. Why is God not taking care of them? And why are so many bad people not just getting by, but really flourishing?
In the Gospel, Jesus explains this disparity. He says that the people who now seem to have it the worst will get their reward in heaven. Those who are insulted and persecuted, but who stay true to their faith, though they suffer now, their reward in heaven will be great. The attributes that God rewards are not necessarily the ones that bring material success here on earth. Those who are humble, poor in spirit, will never have a kingdom on earth, but theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Those who mourn here will have their comforted in the next world. This world is not the end; it’s just the beginning. Even though we have disappointments here and everyone mourns at some point, these things are only Earthly and they do not last. The comfort of heaven is for eternity. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness don’t always get it here on Earth. There is speculation that nearly 5% of death row inmates are actually innocent. Many of those innocent people will die for crimes they did not commit, which is one more reason why I personally do not believe the death penalty is justified—ever. Justice doesn’t always happen here, but God’s justice is supreme and unerring. People who fight for righteousness here sometimes suffer for their convictions. People often suffer for their religions. People suffer for Jesus’ sake. And that doesn’t always seem right or fair.
But often—not always, but often—the people who are successful in this world do it at the cost of morals and ethics and justice. They do not uphold righteousness, but they have the material and popular success in this world. But that may be the best they will get. They were concerned with the world, and they have the riches of this world. But those who put God first, even though they suffer for it here, will have a greater reward in heaven—where it really counts.
I was watching a movie about Pope Paul VI on EWTN the other night. In one scene, he is praying in his chapel and he asks Jesus, “Why? Why is there still war? Why is there still pain and agony and suffering?” The Holy Father falls into a dream and finds himself in Jerusalem being led by a simple shepherd on a cobbled street up to the top of a hill. When they reach the top, the shepherd says nothing, but points towards the horizon, where the Cross of Christ is lit up. It was very powerful.There are many good and devout people who have a very tough time. Why is God not taking care of them? And why are so many bad people not just getting by, but really flourishing?
In the Gospel, Jesus explains this disparity. He says that the people who now seem to have it the worst will get their reward in heaven. Those who are insulted and persecuted, but who stay true to their faith, though they suffer now, their reward in heaven will be great. The attributes that God rewards are not necessarily the ones that bring material success here on earth. Those who are humble, poor in spirit, will never have a kingdom on earth, but theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Those who mourn here will have their comforted in the next world. This world is not the end; it’s just the beginning. Even though we have disappointments here and everyone mourns at some point, these things are only Earthly and they do not last. The comfort of heaven is for eternity. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness don’t always get it here on Earth. There is speculation that nearly 5% of death row inmates are actually innocent. Many of those innocent people will die for crimes they did not commit, which is one more reason why I personally do not believe the death penalty is justified—ever. Justice doesn’t always happen here, but God’s justice is supreme and unerring. People who fight for righteousness here sometimes suffer for their convictions. People often suffer for their religions. People suffer for Jesus’ sake. And that doesn’t always seem right or fair.
But often—not always, but often—the people who are successful in this world do it at the cost of morals and ethics and justice. They do not uphold righteousness, but they have the material and popular success in this world. But that may be the best they will get. They were concerned with the world, and they have the riches of this world. But those who put God first, even though they suffer for it here, will have a greater reward in heaven—where it really counts.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
New Poll Shows Public Support for Life Continues to Increase
In a news story on May 14, 2010, the Gallup organization reported-as was true in 2009-that more Americans call themselves "pro-life" than "pro-choice." In a graph embedded in the article, the overall "pro-life" trend is very evident.
In 1996 only 33 percent of Americans called themselves "pro-life" while 56 percent claimed to be "pro-choice." In the May 3-6, 2010 survey, 47 percent report that they are "pro-life" but only 45 percent assert a "pro-choice" stance.
Gallup also reported: "All age groups have become more attached to the pro-life label since 2005, with particularly large increases among young adults and those aged 50 to 64 years in the latest period between 2007/2008 and 2009/2010."
You can review the news story from which this was taken here.
In 1996 only 33 percent of Americans called themselves "pro-life" while 56 percent claimed to be "pro-choice." In the May 3-6, 2010 survey, 47 percent report that they are "pro-life" but only 45 percent assert a "pro-choice" stance.
Gallup also reported: "All age groups have become more attached to the pro-life label since 2005, with particularly large increases among young adults and those aged 50 to 64 years in the latest period between 2007/2008 and 2009/2010."
You can review the news story from which this was taken here.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Dualities
We do not choose the world into which we are born. The ways of the world are thrust upon us. The status quo has a power that can be consuming. What matters most--persons, sustaining life, care for the vulnerable--often is swept aside. For thoroughly acculturated people, Scripture reads like notes from outer space. Who speaks such language any more? A mistrusted being, God is less real than the fleeting price of oil.
Paul reminds us that we are not helpless: the practices of faith have the power to move our lives. Scripture opens up a deeper understanding of what is real and what matters. In following Christ, we enter into a totality where self and world reveal the sacred. We learn to think, feel, and act as persons set free. In this freedom, we are not alone before the bonfires. The Word illumines reality and brings hope to the shadows.
Modern thought so often deals in dualities: the self is severed from community, fact from value, suffering from joy, transcendence from immanence, faith from reason. With these splintered forms, much is lost. The practices of faith heal divisions of all kinds; they restore our ability to think and awaken us to the goodness of this world.
Paul reminds us that we are not helpless: the practices of faith have the power to move our lives. Scripture opens up a deeper understanding of what is real and what matters. In following Christ, we enter into a totality where self and world reveal the sacred. We learn to think, feel, and act as persons set free. In this freedom, we are not alone before the bonfires. The Word illumines reality and brings hope to the shadows.
Modern thought so often deals in dualities: the self is severed from community, fact from value, suffering from joy, transcendence from immanence, faith from reason. With these splintered forms, much is lost. The practices of faith heal divisions of all kinds; they restore our ability to think and awaken us to the goodness of this world.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Stirring up the flames
When I read the readings for Wednesday today, the Holy Spirit reminded me that what Paul wrote to Timothy in the first reading is an excellent example of how the teachings found in scripture are still applicable today.
Paul wrote:
For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control. So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel with the strength that comes from God.
Paul reminds his brother in Christ that he needs to "stir into flame the gift of God." It seems Timothy had been without Paul for some time and had become lax in his duties as a Christian leader. The fire of his calling had died out. As Paul goes on to explain, Timothy was not to be ashamed of his calling and that his soul contained the power of love and not the spirit of a coward. Finally, he reminds Timothy that his strength is in God.
The same is true for us. We need to constantly stir the flame of our faith and never be ashamed to proclaim Who our Lord and Savior is, and what He has done for us. To do anything less is cowardice and not of the Spirit our Lord gave us through our Baptisms and Confirmation. Our strength and hope is in God and, with God behind us, what else does one need?
Paul wrote:
For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control. So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel with the strength that comes from God.
Paul reminds his brother in Christ that he needs to "stir into flame the gift of God." It seems Timothy had been without Paul for some time and had become lax in his duties as a Christian leader. The fire of his calling had died out. As Paul goes on to explain, Timothy was not to be ashamed of his calling and that his soul contained the power of love and not the spirit of a coward. Finally, he reminds Timothy that his strength is in God.
The same is true for us. We need to constantly stir the flame of our faith and never be ashamed to proclaim Who our Lord and Savior is, and what He has done for us. To do anything less is cowardice and not of the Spirit our Lord gave us through our Baptisms and Confirmation. Our strength and hope is in God and, with God behind us, what else does one need?
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