In Spiritu et Veritate

Thoughts and After Thoughts; 01.23.11 Pro-Life Week Edition

2012-01-23T21:24:00.000-08:00

Thoughts and After Thoughts; 01.23.11 Pro-Life Week Edition

• Sunday marked the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion. On Monday, anti-Roe demonstrators are holding a “March for Life” in Washington. Both sides have reasons to celebrate.
The state of Roe v. Wade in 9 charts

While Roe continues to protect a woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy, a wave of state abortion restrictions last year reshaped the access and availability of abortion. These graphs and maps look back at how abortion rights, as well as abortion rates, have changed since the 1973 landmark decision.

• “Be Not Afraid” Hope for a Pro-Life Generation

• The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act developed by National Right to Life has served as a model for laws enacted so far in Nebraska, Kansas, Idaho, Alabama, and Oklahoma. Already in 2012, similar bills have been introduced in legislatures in Virginia, New Hampshire, and Florida, with additional states expected to join the list.

“Today, in our nation's capital, an unborn child can be killed at any point prior to birth, for any reason," said NRLC Federal Legislative Director Douglas Johnson. "Under the U.S. Constitution, the sole and exclusive legislative authority to protect unborn children within the Federal District resides with the Congress. If abortion remains unrestricted in the nation's capital, during the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth months, it will be because certain members of Congress, or the President, have obstructed this bill. If they do that, then they alone, under the Constitution, are fully accountable for that policy."

• Archbishop Chaput urges respect for life amid high disabled abortion rate.

• Whatcha gonna do about it? “Pope Benedict XVI has warned visiting US bishops that “radical secularism” threatens the core values of American culture, and called on the Church in America, including politicians and other laypeople, to render “public moral witness” on crucial social issues.”

• Obama praises ‘fundamental constitutional right’ to abortion

• Giving A Voice To The Voiceless

• The silliest pro-abortion argument ever (is one you hear all the time)

• 2012 Texas Rally for Life!

Join the Thousands of Texans Expected at the State Capitol in Austin on The 2012 Texas Rally for Life is fast approaching. Will you be there?
On Saturday, January 28, thousands of Texans will gather at 15th & Colorado Streets in Austin and march to the state Capitol to show the media and our elected officials that Texas is PRO-LIFE!

The Texas Rally for Life commemorates the tragic Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision in 1973, which made abortion legal throughout all nine months of pregnancy. In the wake of Roe, legal abortion in our nation has claimed the lives of more than 53 million unborn children and has hurt countless women and men.
Visit www.TexasRallyforLife.org for updated information.

The Rally will feature pro-life Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who is defending our state's Sonogram Law in federal court and will administer the Choose Life license plate fund to promote adoption. Also speaking will be Carol Everett, a former director of abortion facilities, who is now a pro-life leader, and Bishop Joe Vasquez of the Catholic Diocese of Austin.

Stand up for the more than 77,000 unborn babies who will lose their lives in Texas this year, unless we act now.

Plan to attend. Buses are coming from many areas, including from College Station, Corpus Christi, Forth Worth, Houston, San Antonio, and Victoria. Or organize a bus or car pool of people from your church or local pro-life organization to come with you.

Individual signs will be provided, but bring a banner from your church or pro-life organization.

Schedule for the 2012 Texas Rally for Life
Saturday, January 28, 2012

1 pm Note the new starting location! Meet in the parking lot at the northwest corner of 15th Street and Colorado Street for the march to the South Steps of the Capitol.

2 - 3 pm Rally at the South Steps of the Capitol with pro-life speakers and leaders from across the state.
Don't miss these other pro-life events happening the day of the Rally, sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Austin. (En espanol.)

CATHOLIC EVENTS:

7 a.m. Prayer Vigil at the South Austin Planned Parenthood Facility, 201 East Ben White Blvd. (Meet for a blessing first at 7 a.m. at San José Parish, 2435 Oak Crest in Austin.)

9:45 a.m. Rosary For Life led by teens and young adults while elementary school students reenact the Joyful Mysteries at San José Parish.

10:30 a.m. Diocesan Pro-Life Mass celebrated by Bishop Joe Vásquez at San José Parish. All priests of the diocese are invited to concelebrate. Our diocesan seminarians will be joining us. San José will serve lunch for $5 per person (cash or check) in the Parish Hall after Mass.

1 p.m. Texas Rally for Life – Gather for pro-life march at 15th Street and Colorado Street.

1:30 p.m. Texas Rally for Life – March to the South Steps of the State Capitol.

2–3 p.m. Texas Rally for Life – Program
on the South Steps of the State Capitol.

3:30– Party for Life at the University Catholic Center, 2010
5:30 p.m. University Avenue, hosted by the Catholic Long-horns for Life and the Office of Pro-Life Activities & Chaste Living. Come meet our diocesan seminarians and join us for food, fun, and friendship.

U-TURNS

2012-01-22T11:04:00.000-08:00

(THIS HOMILY WILL ALSO BE AVAILABLE SOMETIME WITHIN THE NEXT 24 HOURS ON VIDEO HERE. CLICK ON "Prayer and Worship" and then on "This week's homily".)

HOMILY, Third Sunday in Ordinary Time JANUARY 22, 2012 U-TURNS

U-TURNS

We call this liturgical year, "the year of Mark," because, for the most part, his is the gospel we will be hearing these Sundays. And Mark begins his Gospel with the first preaching of Jesus: "This is the time of fulfillment; the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the good news." The time is ripe; it is a gifted and graced opportunity; what people have waited a long time for, is coming to fruition - God is acting decisively on our behalf. Let’s look at those main three points of Jesus’ preaching:

"This is the time of fulfillment”: Mark focuses on Jesus’ identity. In Mark people don’t seem to understand who Jesus is and what is important about his message. Even Jesus’ disciples don’t comprehend. Mark is focused on proclaiming "Jesus Christ IS the Son of God" (1:1). Later, Peter will make his dramatic confession of Jesus (8:29) and finally the centurion at the foot of the cross will confess, "Truly, this man was the Son of God" (15:39). The time is ripe; it is a gifted and graced opportunity; what people have waited a long time for, is coming to fruition. “This is the time of fulfillment.”

Therefore, Jesus’ second point: the kingdom of God is at hand. As Paul urges vigilance for Christ, so Jesus’ entrance into the lives of the fisherman or into the lives of you and me, compels us to make a decision – now! Wait until the second quarter, or until I get the promotion, or until the kids are grown. No! It can’t wait because the Kingdom of God is at hand. It’s here. "No more waiting" Jesus seems to be saying.

Jesus, the Son of God has come to perfectly reveal the Father. It compels us to make a decision – now! And what is that decision? That’s Jesus’ third homiletic point: Repent and believe in the good news.

That’s the point I’d like to focus on today because, our faith, God’s grace and ultimately our eternal lives depend on it. In all three of our readings, the time is short and conversion is consequently an urgent matter. Conversion is a "turning from" evil and a "turning one’s life towards" the kingdom of God that is imminent. It's a complete eorientation.

Like Jonah and the prophets, Jesus preached repentance, "metanoia." He invited people to have a change of heart and return to God. He invited them to make a critical, necessary U-turn. After all, confession—whether it’s a confession of faith as in the Creed or the confession of the penitential rite, or confession in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, confession without repentance is merely bragging.

The springboard to this metanoia, this conversion--this repentance-- must be the recognition of sin—of our specific imperfections and rebellions and the recognition of the fact that, in principle and per se, as St. Paul points out in his letter to the Romans: “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Rom. 3:23)

During the period after the university examinations, when an unusually large number of students flunked, one of the boys went to his professor, and said: "I don't think this is fair, sir; I don't think I should have a zero on this examination." "I know it," replied the professor, "but we do not have any mark lower than that." : “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

This metanoia, this conversion, this repentance, this U-turn, must begin with the recognition of sin in our lives. There was another classroom, a theology class. As the professor began his lecture on repentance, he asked the class, "What must we do before we can expect forgiveness from sin?" After a long silence, one of the men in attendance raised his hand and said: "Sin?" Of course. Without the recognition of sin, what is there to expect forgiveness from?

Metanoia is the most common Greek word used in the New Testament for repentance or conversion. It means a fundamental change in one's thoughts, beliefs, attitudes and actions. It is a process of regeneration that comes by faith in Christ who urges us to cooperate with the work of this new kingdom by repenting and believing in the good news. And it always has a positive connotation because the focus is always on the superior state being approached, rather than the inferior prior state being departed from.

As I mentioned to the folks at Catholic Scripture Study Austin who were studying the penitential book of the prophet Baruch this week, a good model for metanoia for us as Catholics is the elements of making a good confession in the Sacrament of reconciliation. There are three of them; Three things are required of a penitent in order to receive the sacrament worthily:

4. He or she must be contrite—or, in other words, sorry for his sins.
5. He or she must confess those sins fully, in kind and in number.
6. He or she must be willing to do penance and make amends for his sins. In other words—to make a u-turn.

Brian was lacking in all three areas. Ducking into confession with a turkey in his arms, Brian said, "Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. I stole this turkey to feed my family. Would you take it and settle my guilt?" "Certainly not," said the Priest. "As penance, you must return it to the one from whom you stole it."

“I tried," Brian sobbed, "but he refused. Oh, Father, what should I do?" "If what you say is true, then it is all right for you to keep it for your family." Thanking the Priest, Brian hurried off. When confession was over, the Priest returned to his residence. When he walked into the kitchen, he found that someone had stolen his turkey. There’s a little of Brian in all of us I’m afraid.

God is delighted to forgive our sins, not once but each and every time we turn to him for mercy and forgiveness. But that is with the condition that we do sincerely regret sinning and we intend to turn our life around. We cannot expect forgiveness from our sins if we are planning to live as we lived before.

Repentance means acknowledging one's sins and seeking forgiveness. Jesus links repentance with believing the good news. Two sides of the same coin. "Repent and believe the gospel." What good is repenting if we do not believe we will find forgiveness? The good news that Jesus proclaims is that we do find forgiveness. Those who heard Jesus’ preaching find forgiveness and are invited to turn their lives toward him and change whatever keeps them from accepting and following him.

Jesus' call to metanoia sets the stage for what comes next, the call of the first disciples. Their response to his invitation is a concrete illustration of the radical change required. Metanoia means that a person going in one direction makes an about face and goes in the opposite. A person responding to the call of Jesus must reorient his/her life; take on a new way of being; rededicate energies and see and judge things from a new perspective. And what a huge turnaround the first disciples made.

There is something about Simon, Andrew, James and John's response that touches a deep place in us. Like them we want more in our lives: more of God; more fidelity, a prompt response to the call God; more spontaneity when a chance to serve shows itself; more joy about having less to weigh us down and inhibit our ability to get up and follow Christ; more whole-heartedness in our ministries; more satisfaction in God's service; more wisdom to know how to respond to life's current challenges; more clarity to see our jobs as ways of following Christ and more courage to face sickness and its limits.

For most of us, the call to follow Jesus has not nearly been as dramatic. There was no special moment, as in today's Gospel, when He approached us and asked us to be His disciples. Most of us were baptized, and raised as Catholics in our younger days. We went through the motions of prayer and church and sacraments. We learned the basics of Christian doctrine.

And maybe after some years of questioning and wandering, or maybe just laziness and indifference, we reached a point in our adult life when we began to take our Catholic faith seriously. But many of us have not consciously, purposefully and with the full-force of a radical change in life orientation, really engaged the metanoia Jesus is talking about.

In the original Greek the word for repentance is "metanoia." The root of the word refers to the eye of the heart. So, Jesus is inviting us to an entirely new way of looking at ourselves and the world. If "the eye of our heart" is changed, we will live with vision guided by the light that is Christ.

A Holy Sacrifice of Action

2012-01-17T11:52:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, JANUARY 17, 2012 Memorial of Saint Anthony, Abbott

A Holy Sacrifice of Action

"How long will you grieve for Saul, whom I have rejected as king of Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and be on your way.”

“Go to Jesse of Bethlehem” God tells Samuel, "Take a heifer along and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.' Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I myself will tell you what to do; you are to anoint for me the one I point out to you." I myself will tell you what to do. You see actions speak louder than words—and also louder than thoughts.

We have a great example of that in St. Anthony, the father of monasticism. He is variously known as Anthony the Abbot, Anthony of Egypt, Anthony of the Desert, Anthony the Anchorite, Abba Antonius and Father of All Monks.

Two Greek philosophers ventured out into the Egyptian desert to the mountain where Anthony lived. When they got there, Anthony asked them why they had come to talk to such a foolish man? He had reason to say that -- they saw before them a man who wore a skin, who refused to bathe, who lived on bread and water. They were Greek, the world's most admired civilization, and Anthony was Egyptian, a member of a conquered nation. They were philosophers, educated in languages and rhetoric. Anthony had not even attended school as a boy and he needed an interpreter to speak to them. In their eyes, he would have seemed very foolish.

But St Paul reminds us: “Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? (I Cor. 1:20)

The Greek philosophers had heard the stories of Anthony. They had heard how disciples came from all over to learn from him, how his intercession had brought about miraculous healings, how his words comforted the suffering. They assured him that they had come to him because he was a wise man.

Anthony guessed what they wanted. They lived by words and arguments. They wanted to hear his words and his arguments on the truth of Christianity and the value of ascetism. But he refused to play their game. He told them "If you think me wise, become what I am, for we ought to imitate the good. Had I gone to you, I should have imitated you, but, since you have come to me, become what I am, for I am a Christian."

Anthony's whole life was not one of observing, but of doing—acting and becoming. “Go and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.'” Anthony knew how to make a sacrifice to the Lord. Not a heifer, but a sacrifice of himself.
Sacrifice is defined as "a giving up of something for the sake of something or someone else."

We Catholics are used to making sacrifices, but do we make our whole life "a living sacrifice," as Jesus would have us do? St. Paul challenged the Church in Rome and he challenges us:

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” (Rom. 12:1) God says, “show me—don’t tell me.”

May the intercession of St. Anthony help us to do just that.

New Year’s Resolutions

2012-01-16T17:23:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, JANUARY 16, 2012 Monday, Weekday in Ordinary Time

New Year’s Resolutions

This is the time of year when many people are putting into practice their new year’s resolutions. Begin doing this, start doing that, do this a little more, do this a little less. I’m not sure where you are with that. I’m doing some fairly well and others, well, not so much. But at least I’ve prioritized my resolutions to put first on my list what God wants.

As we begin a new year, the Lord may be saying to us what He said to Saul. He may be saying: "Stop!" The Lord told Saul to stop disobeying Him, stop deceiving himself, and stop hating himself (1 Sm 15:17ff). However, Saul went right through the stop sign. He attempted murder, became involved in the occult, and finally crashed by committing suicide. Saul had many sins, but it seems that at the core of his sinfulness was an attitude of presumption. And the prophet Samuel says to Saul: "Presumption is the crime of idolatry."

Saul’s presumption—the root of all his troubles was that he was boldly arrogant in his acceptance and belief of what God wanted: the condition or basis for his presumption was vanity, pride and ego. Today's first Eucharistic reading shows the background for sins of presumption. King Saul had just built "a trophy in his own honor" (1 Sm 15:12), though ironically he had "little" self-esteem (1 Sm 15:17). God had a great vocation for Saul (1 Sm 15:17), but sadly, God's calling meant little to Saul because he made himself king of his own life.

Jesus reminds us that that must be an old—perhaps, last year’s attitude; but not today’s!

Before we accepted Jesus as Lord, Savior, and God by His terms, we had an old nature, an "old self" Perhaps like Saul’s (Eph 4:22). "We lived at the level of the flesh" (Eph 2:3); we had "old skins" (Lk 5:37), that is, an old fleshly nature. When we accepted Christ as Lord and King, we laid "aside [our] former way of life and the old self which deteriorates through illusion and desire, and presumption, and acquired a fresh, spiritual way of thinking" (Eph 4:22-23). We "put on that new" skin, the new nature in Christ (Eph 4:24).

But my brothers and sisters, if you try to dabble in Christianity without radically changing your life, beware! The Holy Spirit will not only see right through you; He will "burst" right through you:

“… no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined.”

The abundant, new wine of the Spirit "will spill out" and you will lose what little spiritual life you thought you had). In fact, you will lose your taste for the things of God. You will say, " I find the old wine better". That was Saul’s problem, he liked the old wine—his own wine better than the Lords.

But my brothers and sisters Jesus' plan is not to just add a little flavor and richness to the old wine; rather, His new wine is so rich and explosive that our old skins can't begin to contain it. His wine is for our good, it is for our welfare and it is eternal. If you haven’t already, make this your primary new year’s resolution: ! Receive the rich new wine of life in the Spirit. Receive your new skin today

Matt Maher "Hold Us Together"

2012-01-16T17:21:00.000-08:00

The Seven Daily Habits of Holy Apostolic People

2012-01-12T19:31:00.000-08:00

The Seven Daily Habits of Holy Apostolic People

by Father John McCloskey

You are reading this because you are interested in taking your spiritual life more seriously from this point on. You heartily assent to one of the key points of the Second Vatican Council: the importance of the doctrine of the universal call to holiness. You also know that Jesus is the one way to holiness, "I am the way, the truth and the life." The secret of holiness is constant prayer which could be defined as continual contact with the Holy Trinity, "Pray always and do not lose heart" (Luke 18:1).

There are various ways to come to know Jesus. We are going to speak briefly about some of them in this article. You want to come to know, love and serve Jesus the same way you learn to love and stay in love with anybody: your spouse, family members, and close friends, i.e. by spending a considerable amount of time with him on a regular and, in this case, daily basis. The payoff, if you will, is the only true happiness in this life and the vision of God in the next. There are no easy substitutes. Sanctification is a work of a lifetime and it requires our determined effort to cooperate with God's sanctifying grace coming through the sacraments.

The seven daily habits that I propose to you are the morning offering, spiritual reading (New Testament and a spiritual book suggested to you by your spiritual advisor), the Holy Rosary, Holy Mass and Communion, at least fifteen minutes of mental prayer, the recitation of the Angelus at noon, and a brief examination of conscience at night.

These are the principal means to achieve holiness. If you are a person who wants to bring Christ to others through your friendship, these are the instruments by which you store up the spiritual energy that will enable you to so. Apostolic action without the sacraments and a deep solid interior life will in the long run be ineffective. You can be sure that all the saints incorporated in one way or another all of these habits into their daily routine. Your goal is to be like them, contemplatives in the middle of the world.

I want to stress several points before examining the habits.

One, remember that growing in these daily habits, just like taking on a diet or a physical exercise program, is a gradual work in progress. Don't expect to insert all seven or even two or three of these in your daily schedule immediately, any more than you would attempt a 5K race after not having run regularly, or attempting to play Liszt after your third piano lesson. This haste would be inviting failure and God wants you to succeed at both your pace and His. You should work closely with your spiritual advisor, and gradually and fruitfully incorporate the habits into your life over a period of time in a way that fits your particular situation. It may even be that your life circumstances require a modification of the seven habits.

Second, at the same time you must make a firm commitment with the help of the Holy Spirit and your special intercessors, to make them the priority of your life–more important than meals, sleep, work and recreation. I want to make it clear that these habits cannot be acquired on the run. That is not the way we want to deal with people we love. They must be done when we are most alert, during the day, in a place that is silent and without distractions, where it is easy to put ourselves in God's presence and address him. After all, is not eternal life more important than our temporal life? All that will remain at the time of your particular judgement will be the amount of the love of God in your heart.

Third, I want to point out that living the seven daily habits is not a zero sum game. You are not losing time but rather, in reality, gaining it. I have never met a person who lived them on a daily basis who became a less productive worker as a result, or a worse spouse, or who had less time for his friends, or could no longer grow in his cultural life. Quite the contrary, God always rewards those who put him first. Our Lord will multiply our time amazingly as he did with those few loaves and fishes that fed the multitude with plenty left over. You can be sure that Pope John Paul II, Mother Theresa, or St. Maximilian Kolbe pray, or prayed, a lot more than the one and one-half hours that is required for the seven daily habits spread throughout the day.

The first habit is the morning offering, when you kneel down and using your own words, or a formula, you briefly offer up all the day ahead for God's glory. What is not so simple is what has to happen before the offering. As the founder of Opus Dei put it "Conquer yourself each day from the very first moment, getting up on the dot, at a set time, without granting a single minute to laziness. If with the help of God, you conquer yourself in the moment, you have accomplished a great deal for the rest of the day. It's so discouraging to find yourself beaten in the first skirmish (The Way, 191). In my pastoral experience, those who can live the "heroic moment" in the morning and in the evening going to bed on time will have both the physical and spiritual energy throughout the day to stop what they are doing in order to live the other habits.

The second habit is at least 15 minutes of silent prayer. Over time you may want to augment this with an extra 15 minutes at another time during the day. After all, who will not seek more time with such excellent company? Prayer is simply one on one direct conversation with Jesus Christ, preferably before the Blessed Sacrament in the Tabernacle. This is your "face time" or "quality time" if you will, when you can open up in speaking about what is on your mind and in your heart. At the same time you will be able to acquire the habit of listening carefully and prayerfully like another Mary (Lk. 10:38-42) to see what Jesus is asking of you and what he wants to give you. It is there that we come to understand his saying, "Without Me, you can do nothing."

The third habit is fifteen minutes of spiritual reading, usually consisting of a few minutes of systematic reading of the New Testament to identify ourselves with the words and actions of our Savior, and the rest of the time spent on a classic book of Catholic spirituality recommended by your spiritual advisor. As Bl. Josemaria Escriva puts it, "Don't neglect your spiritual reading. Reading has made many saints" (The Way, 116). In a way it is the most practical of our habits because over the course of years of practicing it we will read many times the life of Christ and acquire the wisdom of saints and the Church by reading dozens of books which enlighten our intellect so we can put the ideas expressed there into action.

The fourth daily habit is participating in Holy Mass and receiving Holy Communion in the state of grace. This is the most important habit of all the seven (cfr. John 6:22-65). As such, it has to be at the very center of our interior life and consequently our day. It is the most intimate act possible to man. There we encounter the living Christ, participate in the renewal of His sacrifice for us and unite body soul, to the Risen Christ and ourselves. As Pope John Paul II says in his Apostolic Exhortation, Ecclesia in America: "The Eucharist is the living and lasting center around which the entire community of the Church gathers" (no. 35).

The fifth daily habit takes but a moment or two. It is to stop what we are doing to pray the Angelus or Regina Coeli prayer to our Blessed Mother, according to the liturgical season, each day at noon. This is a Catholic custom that goes back many centuries. It is a wonderful way both to greet our Blessed Mother for a moment, as any good child remembers his mother during the day and meditate on the Incarnation and Resurrection of our Lord, which give such meaning to our entire existence.

The sixth habit is also Marian–praying the Holy Rosary each day and meditating on its mysteries, which surround the life of Our Lord and Our Lady. As Bl. Josemaria puts it, "For those who use their intelligence and their study as a weapon, the Rosary is most effective, because this apparently monotonous way of beseeching Our Lady, as children do their mother, can destroy every seed of vainglory and pride" (Furrow, 474). The Rosary is a habit that, once acquired, is hard to break. By repeating words of love to Mary and offering up each decade for our intentions, we take the shortcut to Jesus, which is to pass through the heart of Mary. He cannot refuse her anything!

The seventh habit is the brief examination of conscience at night before going to bed. Again the holy Founder of Opus Dei says "Examination of conscience. A daily task. Bookkeeping–never neglected by anyone in business. And is there any business worth more than that of eternal life?" (The Way, 235). You sit down, call on the Holy Spirit for light and for several minutes go over your day in God's presence asking if you behaved as a child of God at home, at work, with your friends. You also look at that one particular area which you have identified with the help of spiritual direction in which you know you need to improve in order to become a saint. You may also take a quick look to see if you have been faithful to those daily habits that we have discussed in this article. Then you make an act of gratitude for all the good that you have done and an act of contrition for those areas in which you have willfully failed. Then it is off to your well-deserved rest, which you strive to make holy through your interior dialogue with the Holy Trinity and your mother Mary as you drift off to sleep.

If a person honestly looks at their day, no matter how busy he is, (and I never seem to meet people who admit they are not busy unless they are permanently retired), he can usually find that he wastes some time each day. Think of that needless extra cup of coffee when you might have been able to drop by and visit the Blessed Sacrament for 15 minutes before beginning work. Or the half-hour or much more wasted on watching vapid and inane television programs or videos. Then there is the commuting time spent sleeping on the train, or listening to the radio in the car that could be used for the Rosary. How about that newspaper that could be read in ten minutes rather than twenty minutes, leaving room for your spiritual reading? And that lunch which could be finished in a half-hour, leaving time for noon Mass? Don't forget that half hour spent frittering away time at the end of the day when you could have done some good spiritual reading, examined your conscience and gone to bed at a fixed time restoring your energy for the next day's battles. The list goes on. Make up your own. Be honest with yourself, and with God.

These habits, lived well, enable us to obey the second part of the great commandment "to love our neighbor as ourselves." We are on earth, as was the Lord, "to serve and not to be served." This can only be achieved by our gradual transformation into another Christ through prayer and the sacraments. To live the seven habits will enable us to become holy and apostolic, always assured that when we fail in something big or small, we always have the loving Father awaiting us in the Sacrament of Penance and the prayerful help of our spiritual advisor to put us back on the right track.

A Sign That Changed the World

2012-01-12T18:18:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, JANUARY 12, 2012 Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

A Sign That Changed the World

There was a sign that changed the world. It was a dream accompanied by a vision. A vision of a sign. This sign, a simple overlaying of the Greek letters Chi (C) and Rho (R) symbolizing Christ, was an integral part of what we now know as the Labarum of Constantine.

Constantine reports having a vision of a sign, either while sleeping or seen in the sky, that came to be identified with Christ. With the vision and dream he saw the words, In Hoc Signo Vinces, "In this sign conquer", and was assured his victory over Maxentius. He placed the sign at the top of his standard and on the shields of his men and won the battle of Milvian Bridge outside of Rome in 312.

That victory made Constantine the emperor of the West. He surprised everyone by openly supporting Christianity, eventually making it the official religion of the Roman Empire.

A thousand years before there was a prequel where God appeared on the scene and ensured a victory for the Israelites against the Philistines.

“So the people sent to Shiloh and brought from there
the ark of the LORD of hosts, who is enthroned upon the cherubim…
On learning that the ark of the LORD had come into the camp,
the Philistines were frightened.
They said, "Gods have come to their camp.
They said also, "Woe to us! This has never happened before. Woe to us!
Who can deliver us from the power of these mighty gods?"

The sign of God—the sign of the cross of Christ: symbols of victory.

Seven hundred years later, it wasn’t a sign but God in the flesh in the person of Jesus the Christ that victory was achieved.

"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched the leper, and said to him,
"I do will it. Be made clean."

In another passage, St. Paul joyously exclaims: "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." (1 Cor.15:57-58)

Christ has won the victory over sin and death. But there is more that he wants to do for us. Where in your life do you need to gain a victory? Where are you experiencing defeat where God wants you to triumph? Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

“If God is for us, who can be against us? The Cross is a sign that can and has changed the world, but it can also change the individual lives and circumstances of those who trust in the one who died there—but yet still lives to tend to his sheep.

An Extraordinarily Abundant Life

2012-01-10T18:53:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time (B) JANUARY 10, 2012

An Extraordinarily Abundant Life

Today we begin the season of the Church year that we call "Ordinary Time," which means "ordered time" rather than "humdrum time." In the life of God, there really can be no such thing as "humdrum time." It’s all extraordinary! Today's Eucharistic readings proclaim that "ordinary" life in the Lord is new, exciting, and fulfilling.

For example, the citizens of Capernaum were "amazed" at Jesus and His "completely new teaching in a spirit of authority" (Mk 1:27). Some perceived it as just another ordinary day, not recognizing the extraordinariness that exists when God is on the scene. "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” “It’s just another ordinary day.” And with a mere four words, "Quiet! Come out of him!" demons flee and the day becomes exceptional.

In today's first reading, Hannah and Elkanah could not conceive a child; but the priest of God Eli, gives them an extraordinary blessing on what appeared to be an ordinary day: “Eli said, "Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him. Now they rejoiced (1 Sm 2:1ff) at the extraordinary new life she conceived (1 Sm 1:20). It is a common misconception among non-Christians that the Christian life is, frankly, boring. Christians of every stripe the world over are thought to be dull, humorless, austere people living dull, humorless and austere lives. As we know, nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, lived properly, a Christian life is ultimately more exciting, successful, and satisfying than most human beings can imagine! Most people are not aware that this is a primary reason Christ came as a man to this earth—to teach us how to live abundant, fulfilled lives. Notice His plain statement in the Gospel of John: "I have come that they [His sheep, Christians] may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." According to the very Founder of Christianity, His disciples, if they follow His teachings, will live enviable, full lives! They will have lives worth living!

I have known many people who walk in joy and radiate happiness. I have known many people who live lives of abundance, sometimes even in their economic poverty. I have known people who are engaged and engaging and full of life. They are almost invariably, Catholic Christians.

God wants you to know the joy of having fantastic relationships with Him and others. He wants you to know how living with character and godliness, with honor and integrity can change your whole outlook on life. When we live life in step with God’s teachings, we find amazing abundance and satisfaction. Love, joy, peace and a genuine excitement for life are just some of the fruits He intends for us to experience in extraordinary ways, in extraordinary times.

As Bishop Fulton Sheen once put it, “Believe the incredible, and you can do the impossible. It is only our want of faith that holds us back.”

The Bath of Enlightenment

2012-01-09T14:42:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord (b) Mon. JANUARY 9, 2012

The Bath of Enlightenment

In the second century, St Justin wrote that Christian baptism is a "bath of enlightenment" because those who are baptized are enlightened by the catechesis they receive when preparing for the sacrament. The "catechumenate" was a long and serious period of preparation, and new Christians really realized what a momentous change came about in their person and their lives when they entered the waters of baptism. Unfortunately nowadays, because very few of us were baptized as adults –and so had no catechumenate– there is a very weakened awareness among Christians of what it means to be baptized. It is probably not wrong to say that even among some regular Mass-goers, there is practically no awareness of our dignity or of the commitments that flow from it.

Throughout Advent and Christmas we have followed Jesus in the liturgy, from the moment he was conceived in the womb of Mary. Last Sunday, he was an infant, a few weeks old, in her arms. Suddenly, today, we find him at the Jordan river, a man in his early thirties. The gap is filled only by a long silence – broken briefly, just once – that is testimony to thirty years in which Jesus lived as we do. He willed to share our human condition "in all things but sin", including the grinding ordinariness of everyday human life. The Church teaches that all of Christ´s life –not just his birth, or miracles, or preaching, or his passion, but also those long anonymous years in Nazareth– worked our salvation. Not because they were ordinary, but because they were the ordinary actions of a man who was infinitely holy, with the holiness of God himself.

Nevertheless, his baptism surely was one of the moments when his human awareness of his own Person became more vividly present to him and situated him anew before the mission he was about to begin: the mission of the "Servant", here accepted and inaugurated. It was, to use St. Justin’s words, a "bath of enlightenment." Jesus´ prompt acceptance of his mission dedicated to bringing salvation, liberation and justice to the earth is what so pleases his Father. In fact, from the moment of his baptism is precisely when he began to go about "doing good works and healing all.”
What does baptism mean To us? Is it also a bath of enlightenment?

The meaning of baptism can be found in the four letters of the word RICE which can be used as a mnemonic device. R stands for Rebirth. In baptism we are born again by water and the Holy Spirit. We are cleansed from original sin and become sons and daughters of God in a special way. I stands for Initiation. At baptism we are initiated or admitted into full membership in the church, the community of the children of God in the world. C is for Consecration. In baptism we consecrate and dedicate ourselves to seek and to spread the kingdom of God. We commit ourselves to be servants of God, to do God’s will and serve God with our whole lives. And E is for Empowerment. At baptism the Holy Spirit comes into our lives and empowers us, equips us, gives us the moral strength to say no to evil and to live as God’s children that we have become.

Some of us have not been living our rebirth, our initiation into the Church, the body of Christ, our consecration or our empowerment as fully as we can and should—the way that Jesus did, But the good news of the Gospel is that the waters of Baptism flow with mercy and it’s never too late to live our baptism to the fullest as a renewed “bath of enlightenment.”

“Not So fast”

2012-01-09T14:36:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, The Epiphany of the Lord (B) JANUARY 8, 2012

“Not So Fast”

We are only a couple of weeks past Christmas and the rest of our world has moved on. The malls are already decorating for Valentine's Day and spring. The celebrations and feasts are over. Christmas decorations have been stored away for another year. People seem to be saying, "The music is over, the feast has ended." Back to school back to work. Today we say, “Not so fast”

Epiphany comes from the Greek for "manifestation." The feast of the Epiphany of the Lord keeps us focused on the manger of Christmas. But it really is a year-long celebration, because throughout this year in scriptures, the Mass and in our world, Jesus will continue to "manifest" God to us—to make God known to us.

In their homeland, the Magi saw a great star at its rising. Greatly impressed, they set out on their journey to follow the star to greet the newborn King at whom they believed the star pointed. After they had traveled for a time, they could no longer see the star. They were past the point of no return, and were not sure where God was now leading them. But the Magi did not give up on God's leading; they did not quit and return back home. They said, “not so fast,” and instead, they set out in faith for Bethlehem, and suddenly the star re-appeared. It's no wonder the Magi "were overjoyed at seeing the star" (Mt 2:10). God's guidance for their journey had resumed.

We say, “Not so fast,” because Faith is indeed a long journey—a life-long one. It leads us far from the security of the ´lands´ we are familiar with, to a far-off country where the rules of the game are different. It requires courage to set out on the journey, when one could stick to the comfort and security of home and ´what everyone else is doing´, and perseverance to continue it, especially when it is not clear where it is leading us (and with real faith, it never is clear).

Most of us were born into a Christian family; it is difficult for us to appreciate how great a grace faith is, and easy to take it so much for granted that we fail to exercise it. Then it can grow weak and be capable only of short journeys with few or no difficulties. Perhaps it can´t even travel past the everyday obstacles to find Christ our Lord: this current health problem, that difficult sister-in-law, the way that priest celebrates the Mass, that particular habit my husband has, the pull of all-those-things-I-have-to-do when it’s time for a few moments of prayer, what-my-friends-will-say or think…or what I think they´ll say or think.

From the magi, who were making the journey for the first time, we can learn how faith perseveres, even when the star is hidden, until it appears again, and we come upon the Savior of the world. Our Gospel says: “They were thrilled and excited to see the star. When the wise men went into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, they knelt down and worshiped him.” Can people who know us say that about us: “He is thrilled about his faith?” “She is excited about her relationship with Jesus?” “They are overjoyed and elated about their lifelong search for a deeper understanding of God?”

Someone who is constantly bad-humored, or self-centered, or sad, is not a sign that God is in the city; or if he is, not a sign that anyone would want to set out to be with him. Someone whose behavior and conversation is coarse and lewd and who profanes everything he sets his eyes on or turns his tongue to, is not a sign that the sacredness and the beauty of the good that supposedly reigns there.
Someone who destroys her neighbors´ reputation on a daily basis will not inspire people to say, "look how they love one another". Someone who lives only to have more of the ´stuff´ of this world is not likely to make people catch a glimpse of the next. What do I need to change, to be a more transparent window into the city of God?

On a cold morning three fruit farmers were warming themselves by the fireside. Soon two of them were engaged in a heated debate comparing their religions to decide which one was the true religion. Jim, the oldest among them, sat quietly listening to the debate. Suddenly the two turned to him and asked, “Decide for us, Jim. Which religions is the right one?” Jim rubbed his white beard and said thoughtfully, “Well, you know there are three ways to get from here to the mill. You can go right over the hill.

That is shorter but it is a steep climb. You can go around the hill on the right side. That is not too far, but the road is rough and full of potholes. Or you can go around the hill on the left side. That is the longest way, but it is also the easiest.” He paused and then added, “But you know, when you get there, the mill man doesn’t ask you how you came. All he asks is, ‘Man, how good is your fruit?
The wise men are wise not just because they followed the star to the manger, but also because they went forth and gave the message of the Messiah to the nations. Likewise, the shepherds not only went to the manger but were sent from the manger to tell everyone what they had seen and heard (Lk 2:18).

The goal of the search can turn out at first to be as disconcertingly unimpressive as the newborn child of a young couple without a home. And yet the grace of God can lead a man or a woman or a child to a bended knee and neck and life in adoration before this Child and acknowledge him as King. The encounter with the Child will also fortify the traveler to readily accept the inconveniences and sufferings necessary to protect what he has found, and return home by a different route, a more consecrated route than was previously planned.

My brothers and sisters, the important think about Epiphany is to realize that we need it all year long. The Magi were searchers and our presence this Eucharist today links us to them, for our search for God never ends--at least it shouldn't. All our lives we have come looking for and have found Jesus. The Magi encourage us today not to become too comfortable—not to give up in searching for God.

One of the definitions of the word epiphany is, “a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something.” The birth of Christ and the recognition that he is God come down from heaven is the most sudden, intuitive perception and insight into the reality and essential meaning of life and as such it needs to have a personally transforming effect.

Yes, for some people, the celebrations, the music and the feasts are over. And the decorations have been put away. Jesus is out of sight and out of mind. We say, “Not so fast,” because Jesus, the Jesus of Christmas and of the Epiphany is with us always—all year long.

May all of you come to fruitfully trust and rely on him throughout this New Year.

Thoughts and Afterthoughts, 01.08.11

2012-01-07T21:56:00.000-08:00

• Relying on God’s Protection is Ruled Constitutional (I kid you not). CT (Jan. 12) is reporting that:

“A Kentucky state appeals court ruled that a state law declaring dependence on God for protection is constitutional. The mandate requires Kentucky’s Office of Homeland Security to publicize God’s protective powers in its training materials and educational materials.”

Needless to say, I’m greatly relieved. I wouldn’t want to be a lawbreaker relying on God and his protective powers when driving through Kentucky.

• But wait, there’s more from CT (same issue): In Montreal, a Catholic group was fined for holding a Mass at in a municipal building despite the fact that they received prior authorization and paid rent for the space. “The fine came seven months later as the city found that the meeting contained ‘…prayer, religious song and religious celebration.’” Apparently odd things for Montreal officials to find at a Catholic Mass I suppose. Perhaps they were expecting a square dance. It’s an ironic twist that it took them seven months to figure this all out.

• It’s official. New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, president of the USSCB will be elevated to cardinal at the next consistory (he blogs about it here). I just hope I’m still around when he becomes pope.

• There are times when divorce forces people to do strange things. Burn sheets. Throw out clothes. Toss rings into the ocean. But when you get $100 million in your divorce, you can trump just about anything and that's what happened with Tiger Woods' ex-wife when she bought a $12 million home and bulldozed the whole thing.

• Got to hand it to those Hungarians. Their new constitution went into effect on January 1st. The constitution declares in its section on “Freedom and Responsibilities,” that: “Human dignity will be inviolable. Everyone shall have the right to life and human dignity; the life of the fetus shall be protected from the moment of conception.”

As the very cerebral but decidedly unhip editors at First Things put it: “Hungary, like, rocks.”

• At Quid Nimis, the inimitable BBMOE has an funny entry about a dinner invitation from some of her least favorite political friends, (Now We’re Getting to My Price) “ Yeah, well, I can imagine what "our" conversation would be about,” she says. “Some people say it with diamonds, some with flowers. I say it with steak knives.”

• M: This one’s for you. “All he needed was a horse.” I’m still all cracked up over that one.

• Five observations on the new cardinals.

Praying in His Will

2012-01-07T12:41:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, SAT. JANUARY 7, 2012 Christmas Weekday

Praying in His Will

C.S. Lewis’ classic, The Screwtape Letters is a dialogue, a satirical conversation between two demons, Wormwood and his mentor Screwtape, who are tasked with securing the demise of their human "patients," especially of those that are followers of God who they call, “The Enemy.” In one section, Screwtape is advising Wormwood about the dangers of prayer:

“Whenever they are attending to the enemy himself, we are defeated, but there are ways of preventing them from doing so. The simplest is to turn their gaze away from Him, to themselves. Keep them watching their own minds and trying to produce feelings there by the action of their wills.”

The best thing, of course, says Screwtape, is to, “ wherever possible, keep the patient from the serious intention of praying altogether.” But the next best thing is, if they have to pray, have them pray “by the action of their wills.” This prayer becomes in essence, not a prayer to God, but a mere manifestation of the ego. It is, an ego-prayer.

St. John calls us to something different:

“That if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
And if we know that he hears us in regard to whatever we ask,
we know that what we have asked him for is ours.”

Praying according to the will of God means that I let go of the habitual way of being fixated in one direction--my direction—often the wrong direction, and instead, praying from an attitude of surrender. Prayer is no place for illusions. Yet, each of us clings to illusions, and we will end up somehow bringing them into our prayers. This leads to what James called "asking amiss".
That does not mean that we don’t make requests of God; that we don’t express our desires to Him. Even Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane prayed that the cup of the cross might pass from him—and presumably—Jesus knew how to pray according to the Father’s will.

We know some things from 1 John:

a. We know that we belong to God, and that he wants to affirmatively answer our prayers.
b. We also know that the Son of God has come and has given us discernment to exercise..
c. And we are cautioned: “Children, be on your guard against idols.” The idols created in and by our egos.

If we keep these three things in mind and pray for our needs and the needs of others surrendering to God rather than trying to control every outcome, and becoming puppeteers of God, we can be fairly certain that: “…he hears us…and that what we have asked him for is ours.”

In a sense, this first step means deciding that we want to do God’s will even before we know what it is! Think about that for a minute. Would you sign a blank check for just anybody and trust them to fill in the rest on their own. Probably not! But knowing God’s will begins there. You can’t negotiate with the Creator of the Universe. He asks you to decide up front whether you trust him enough to sign over your life to him. Once you have taken that step of faith, then he begins to let you in on what he wants to do—what his good, pleasing and perfect will is and how we can and should pray. Screwtape and Wormwood, notwithstanding.

Can I Get a Witness?

2012-01-07T12:36:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Christmas Weekday FRI. JANUARY 6, 2012

Can I Get a Witness?

“So there are three that testify, the Spirit, the water, and the Blood.”

The Mosaic Law insisted on the absolute necessity of witnesses in all cases which came before a judge, especially in criminal cases. Not only in criminal cases, but in all cases, it was necessary to have at least two witnesses to make good an accusation against a person or to prove something in the (Dt 17:6). According to the Talmud (Pesachim 113b), if in a case of immorality only one witness came forward to accuse anyone, it was regarded as sinful on the part of that witness. In spite of prohibitions, false witnessing was a very common crime among the people, but it was a crime that led to a sentence of death.

So it’s important to John two bring home the point that in the case of God’s testimony, there’s not just one, not just two—as prescribed by law—but three incontrovertible witnesses. But what are they witness to? We have it in our first reading, that:

“God gave us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son.
Whoever possesses the Son has life;
whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life.”

That’s the case before the court. It can either be affirmed or denied. What do the witnesses say?

In the case of the Spirit:

“Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee
and was baptized in the Jordan by John.
On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open
and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him.
And a voice came from the heavens,
"You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."

That’s a pretty powerful testimony and witness!

“So there are three that testify, the Spirit, the water, and the Blood.”

Let’s talk about the water and the blood. On the cross, they both poured out of Jesus’ heart proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was dead. Yet, three days later he was alive and seen by thousands of witnesses. That’s a pretty powerful testimony and witness!

The claim is this: “God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
Whoever possesses the Son has life; whoever does not possess the Son of God does not have life.” We accept forever God’s testimony concerning His Son, Jesus. But The most important witness today though, is the witness of the transformed lives of Christians who become light, leaven and salt in a still unbelieving world that requires not just the testimony of one , or two, or three—but of each and every one of us.

A Father’s Child

2012-01-04T08:00:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Christmas Weekday JANUARY 3, 2012 TUESDAY

I heard it all the time growing up: “You’re just like your mother…you have her nose…you have her eyes.” “Eres el retrato de tu madre: you are the picture of your mother.” “You have all your mother’s mannerisms.”

The old saying "A chip of the old block" in most cases applies to every human, regardless of how different one may seem from one's parents. Qualities are inherited that cannot be suppressed and will always prevail despite how much one may want to differ from one's parents. Moral ideology, lifestyles, social influences, and physical attributes are all factors in the distinction between a child and his or her parents. It’s the same with us—created in the image of God, broken by the fall, but redeemed by Jesus the Christ.

“See what love the Father has bestowed on us
that we may be called the children of God.
Yet so we are.
The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Beloved, we are God's children now.”

So we share many of God’s characteristics.

What are these special Godlike qualities which man is permitted to share? Language for one. God spoke and everything that is came into existence. God spoke and the Verbum Dei, the Word made flesh came among us. God, has an intelligence, a mind. We also share creativity, holiness, immortality and freedom. And most especially we share love which is the essence of who God is. The Bible tells us that "God is Love" (1 John 4:8). Love is the quintessence of God’s character.

So at the beginning of this New Year, it might be a good exercise to take stock; to take personal inventory of ourselves and ask:

How do my creative endeavors reflect God in the world? In my intellectual life, is the mind of God manifested? When I exercise freedom, do I do so by making choices that reveal God the Father, in me? What does my speech reveal about my heavenly Father? And most importantly, does the unconditional love of God for me shine forth in my unconditional love for others?

Our reading tells us that, “The reason the world does not know us is that it does not know him.”

Is it possible then, that the world can come to know something of the Father, by getting to know something about me?

Really, I suppose that that is an answer that you have to come up with personally for yourself. But if the answer turns out to be no—our future in this world my brothers and sisters—becomes unthinkable.

Questions, Questions, Questions

2012-01-02T10:00:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Saints Basil the Great and Gregory of Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church JANUARY 2, 2012 MONDAY

Questions, Questions, Questions!

They’re like a dog with a bone; a tabloid reporter with a trashy lead. Questions, Questions, Questions. Insincere questions, to be sure, but questions nonetheless:

"Who are you?" "What are you?” “Are you Elijah?" "Are you the Prophet?" "Who are you, so we can give an answer to those who sent us? “What do you have to say for yourself?" “Why do you baptize?” John the Baptist was becoming a popular guy with multitudes marching out to the desert to hear him and to be baptized by him. So one can sense the questions, dripping with jealousy, sarcasm, and resentment. Even so, these are some excellent questions for us to ask of ourselves as we enter this New Year.

Really. Who are you? Can you say with St. Peter, “I am a member of a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people God claims for His own" (1 Pt 2:9)? You are you know.

"What are you?” “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” When a person has been redeemed by the blood of Christ and been forgiven from sin, a supernatural transformation takes place. He or she is given a new identity in Christ and therefore we called him or her a Christian.

"Are you the Prophet?" “But of course: through baptism I share the office of prophet with Christ. And not just that, priest and king too!”

“What do you have to say for yourself?" “ I have to say only what I was like, what happened and what I’m like now that I’ve found the source of all power, joy and abundant life in this world and the next. Why are you interested? I have time to talk about it with you.”

My brothers and sisters, if you haven’t done so yet, it’s time to claim and live your identity in Christ. If you haven’t done so yet, it’s time for participation in a new Christian springtime. If you haven’t done so yet—or in a while—it’s time for us lead others to the faith, hope and love we have in Christ. Pentecost is as possible today as when Peter preached the plain Biblical sermon that won three thousand souls to the Master in a single day. The same need exists. The same power exists.

When the great St. Athanasius died, the mantle of defender of the faith against Arianism fell upon St. Basil who we honor today. Defender of the faith: what a marvelous identity. St. Gregory was called to rebuild the faith in the great see of Constantinople, which had been under Arian teachers for three decades. There are still heresies, new lies out there: new and improved.

“Who is the liar” St. John asks in our first reading? “Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ.” We begin this New Year with questions and all questions ultimately have one answer; one Truth.

Ours is a confidence borne of true humility: seeing ourselves as we really are, and seeing ourselves as God sees us. A humble person is more likely to be self confident... a person with real humility knows how much they are loved and are willing to share that love with others. But if you run out of spiritual gas, everyone riding with you will be left stranded.

SPIRITUAL GPS

2012-01-01T12:17:00.000-08:00

HOMILY The Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God JANUARY 1, 2012

(This homily will also be available on video within the next 48 hours here. Click on "Prayer and Worship and then "This Week's Homily.")

SPIRITUAL GPS

For Christmas this year, I was given, probably the most practical gift I’ve received in many years. A Garman GPS for my car. Everyone who knows me knows I can get lost even around the corner from my house. Up until Christmas I would MapQuest everywhere I went. And I often still got lost. I know I’m directionally challenged and I know my navigational limitations so I’m also one of those rare breed of men who will stop and ask for directions. “I’m navigationally challenged—and I know that. I need somebody to point the way.

Today is the culmination of the Octave of Christmas, the eight day celebration of the feast that started on Christmas Eve. We keep this Octave Day as the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. In other words, we don't let Christmas end without looking explicitly at the role of Mary, and the indispensable part she played in the Incarnation and thus in our whole religion.

Would it be true, then, to say that today we turn away from Jesus to his Mother? Not at all because Mary the Holy Mother of God always points to her son Jesus as the Way. She is for Catholics, a sort of spiritual GPS, because in a twist of irony, Mary was formed by Jesus before Jesus was formed by her; so she always points and directs us to God—especially God incarnate.

Mary’s whole future would be fashioned entirely by her relationship with her divine Child. Who can deny that Mary’s Child influenced her formation far more thoroughly than she influenced His? The Child formed His mother even while she formed her Child. Obviously, the Child was the stronger influence, and not just because He was God, the Lord of the universe. Mary, who fashioned her God, was totally refashioned by her God in the process.

If we think about it a little, we will realize that every mother’s child very powerfully influences the mother’s life and completely forms it – unless she resists this influence by rejecting her responsibilities as mother to the extent that she neglects or rejects her maternal responsibilities.

If we look at the great artistic images of the Madonna and Child we find that the Mother points us back to her Son. Mary is contemplating Jesus, perhaps, or indicating him with her hand – as in the kind of Greek icon which is called hodegitria: literally 'pointing the way'. In St John's Gospel, our Lord calls himself 'The Way’, MARY POINTS THE WAY.

A helicopter was flying around above Seattle when an electrical malfunction disabled all of the aircraft’s electronic navigation and communications equipment. Due to the clouds and haze, the pilot could not determine the helicopter’s position and course to steer to the airport. The pilot saw a tall building, flew toward it, circled, drew a handwritten sign, and held it in the helicopter’s window. The pilot’s sign said “WHERE AM I?” in large letters. People in the tall building quickly responded to the aircraft, drew a large sign, and held it in a building window. Their sign said “YOU ARE IN A HELICOPTER.”

The pilot smiled, waved, looked at his map, determined the course to steer to SEATAC airport, and landed safely. After they were on the ground, the co-pilot asked the pilot how the “YOU ARE IN AHELICOPTER” sign helped determine their position. The pilot responded “I knew that had to be the MICROSOFT building because, similar to their help-lines, they gave me a technically correct but completely useless answer.”
Mary’s answer was yes to the God that formed her and yes to the God she helped form, both one and the same: The Way, the Truth and the Life—no guile, no wrong turns, no useless answers.

The natural bonding which holds together a mother and her baby gives an obvious basis to this unity of Mary and Jesus. But here the unity is more profound. Here the Child is also Mary's Creator and her Savior. His humanity has been assumed from the first moment of its conception by God the Word who is himself the self-expression of the Father, the Source of all. So he is his Mother's Creator. And it is by his gracious anticipation of his own redeeming work as man that Mary, at his birth as before it, is full of grace. So he is her Savior too. She knows this so she points to Jesus.

Sometimes, when I still get lost it’s because I didn’t program my GPS correctly or chose to ignore it. Or I map quested the directions wrong. Or I didn’t follow the advice of a helpful stranger. When I’m headed in the wrong direction or seem lost spiritually, it’s usually because I didn’t go in the direction that Mary points to, or I didn’t follow her example. See, Mary doesn’t just point to Jesus—she is a true follower.

In the Gospel reading, we are told that, “Mary treasured all these things and reflected on them in her heart.” (Lk 2: 19, 51) She took to heart everything concerning her Son Jesus, all that was said about Him by the angel Gabriel, who had announced to her that she would conceive this child by the power of the Holy Spirit; all that was told her by the shepherds who reported what the angel had said to them; all the events surrounding her Son’s coming into the world. In her heart, Mary reflected profoundly upon all this. Her whole process of thinking and responding, and her whole way of living were radically changed by her Son.

For us, men and for our salvation Mary received the Word into her womb and brought Him forth into the world. Mary now receives the Word with us, and with us she ponders it, leading us to accept it, and understand it, and live it. Thus she forms the Word of God in us, as once she formed Him in her womb. She knows best how to form Christ her Son in us, for she lived the whole Christ event with Him, and pondered it incessantly. She penetrated to an ever-deeper understanding of it.

Only through the mother’s right response to the child does she achieve her true identity, her authentic selfhood – as mother and as woman—as Mother of God. And she does this by exemplifying and modeling humility. Humility—it has been said—is the mother of all virtues, and the Mother of God had it in spades. Humility is the only true wisdom by which we prepare our minds for all the possible changes of life.
A few years ago, Pope Benedict gave a talk to a vast crowd of people gathered near the Marian shrine in Loreto, Italy, close to the Adriatic Sea coast. He called on Christians to live a lifestyle that “goes against the trend” and to emulate the example of Mary by transforming society through humility.

“Do not follow the path of pride, rather, follow the path of humility,” the Pope told an estimated 500,000. “Go against the current trend: do not listen to the persuasive and biased chorus of voices that today form much of the propaganda of life, drenched in arrogance and violence, in dominance and success at all costs, where appearance and possession to the detriment of others is openly promoted… Following Christ and imitating Mary, we must have the courage of humility; we must entrust ourselves with humility to the Lord because only then can we become docile instruments in his hands, and have the permission to do great things”.

My brothers and sisters, follow the example of Mary. Imitate her humility and set out towards the one she points to and The LORD will bless you and keep you! The LORD will let his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you! The LORD will look upon you kindly and give you peace! She is a dependable and foolproof spiritual GPS.

A Family Affair

2011-12-29T17:31:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, DECEMBER 30, 2011

A Family Affair

It must have been perfect right. The Holy Family: Jesus, Mary and Joseph. She was immaculately conceived and remained sinless, Joseph is holy and full of faith and well, Jesus is the Son of God and savior of the world. Could anything be more perfect? Many people idealize the Holy Family as well they should in terms of modeling. But it is a neglect of the human nature and the human condition to be Pollyannaish.

Let’s see:

There’s the stress of attempting to explain the Virgin Birth to extended family. There’s homelessness in the story. There’s the slaughter of the innocents and the forced flight to Egypt: no corporate relocation package involved. The only scene from Jesus' childhood that we are told about is when Mary and Joseph lost Jesus for three days. You can imagine the peasant couple frantically searching for their twelve-year-old Boy in the metropolis of Jerusalem.

He had emptied himself to assume the condition of a powerless and totally dependent infant. He came to an unfriendly world that at best ignored him (John 1:11), at worst sought to snuff out his life at its very beginnings (Matthew 2:13). He –and by extension his family--was taunted, eyed with suspicion, maligned and eventually decimated by a terrible murder. You couldn’t make this stuff up!

Not the stuff of your average, American, the white hats win and the hero gets the girl type of plot. The paradox is that it is a messy story and yet, a holy story. It’s far more Dostoyevsky and Kafka than Frank Capra. That’s what makes it real and credible and dare I say it, Catholic. We may idealize the holy nature of the Holy Family, but we can probably identify best with its messiness.

Many people can relate to this trauma more easily than to the saintliness of the Holy Family. Many of us are likewise searching for members of our families. We're searching for lost loved ones and for lost love. In sorrow and in pain, we search for acceptance, respect, encouragement, or hope. We can understand the pain of a three-day separation or even of three days in the tomb. Yet despite all the messiness of family life, we look to the Holy family because despite the tragedy and the ugliness, they accept the child as a gift of God (Luke). They accept that he is not their ´property´ but owes his first allegiance to God and must be consecrated to him.

They accept their son´s vocation even though it has deeply disturbing aspects: they were "marveling at what was being said about him". They accept the sufferings that will accompany their task as parents ("a sword will pierce your own soul" says Simeon). They accept the full responsibility of his education, so that he may grow in body, mind and spirit.

God's Word to us on this Feast of the Holy Family promises us that our searching and sorrowing will end. In the meantime, families with all their imperfections and pains are islands of Christian life in an unbelieving world. In our own time, in a world often alien and even hostile to faith, believing families are of primary importance as centers of living, radiant faith—not perfection.

Christ chose to be born and grow up in the bosom of the holy family of Joseph and Mary. That alone gives the family dignity despite the reality of—at times—pressures and discords... At this time of year when families are re-united again it is good to reflect on how our families are fulfilling God’s plan and making—where necessary—critical adjustments.

The family is often messy and uncomfortable, but it forces us to deal with each other. The family isn’t like a cafe. It’s not like cappuccinos and coffee cups. The family isn’t like family like Wal-Mart either. It’s not trying to sell something at low costs. People float from places like these depending on how cool the atmosphere is or how cheap the purchase. The family isn’t like these places. It is the place where we are forced to submit to Jesus and where grace is not cheap.

Set Apart for a Particular Purpose

2011-12-29T13:53:00.000-08:00

Set Apart for a Particular Purpose

HOMILY, Fifth Day in the Octave of Christmas DECEMBER 29, 2011

In today’s Gospel we hear the story of the presentation of Jesus in the temple. His consecration, as it were. For many people, when they hear term “consecrated,” they automatically think of people in religious life, nuns, sisters, priests, brothers and the like: people who make vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. But in a very real sense, all of these states are rooted in our consecration at baptism. As such, everyone who has been initiated into the Church through baptism, is in a very real way, consecrated and consecration is defined as, “being set apart, exclusively for a particular purpose.”

“Being set apart, exclusively for a particular purpose.” Do you think of yourself and consecrated? Here’s how the Catechism (901) puts it:

"Hence the [baptized] laity, dedicated as they are to Christ and anointed by the Holy Spirit, are marvelously called and prepared so that even richer fruits of the Spirit may be produced in them. For all their works, prayers, and apostolic undertakings, family and married life, daily work, relaxation of mind and body, if they are accomplished in the Spirit - indeed even the hardships of life if patiently born - all these become spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ… And so, worshipping everywhere by their holy actions, the [consecrated] laity consecrate the world itself to God, everywhere offering worship by the holiness of their lives…"

“…[1273] Incorporated into the Church by Baptism, the faithful have received the sacramental character that consecrates them.”

“Being set apart, exclusively for a particular purpose.”

Do you think of yourself and consecrated? A consecrated life is one that is set apart, fully devoted and dedicated to God. Throughout the pages of the Old and New Testaments, God’s desire is for His people to truly live for Him. “In apostolic undertakings, family and married life, daily work, relaxation of mind and body and even in hardships if patiently borne.”

This, my brothers and sisters is an awesome responsibility that is possible with the help of the Holy Spirit and by following the suggestions in today’s readings:

• keep his commandments.
• walk as he walked
• loves your neighbor
• love God

If Jesus, our high priest through whom we have been consecrated to God is the vine and we are the branches, we like Christ are consecrated to bear fruit.
Contrary to what many people present, Christianity is not just a casual acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior. Jesus will accept you exactly as you are. However, He doesn't want you to stay that way.

He wants you set apart, exclusively, for a particular purpose.

Theodicy

2011-12-29T13:44:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Feast of the Holy Innocents, martyrs (B) DECEMBER 28, 2011 WEDS. Theodicy

Theodicy

At the first Christmas, many innocent children were massacred by Herod. At this Christmas, the Herods of our time still convulse at the reality of God becoming man. They express their repulsion by killing children in and out of the womb through abortion, starvation, and abuse.

One must at times wonder how it is that God permits such evil. The problem of evil, how it can exist given an all-knowing, all-loving and al-powerful God is called theodicy.

The term theodicy was coined in 1710 by the German philosopher Gottfried Leibniz in a work in French entitled, Theodicy: Essays on the Goodness of God, the Freedom of Man and the Origin of Evil. The purpose of the essay was to show that the evil in the world does not conflict with the goodness of God and that, notwithstanding its many evils, the world is the best of all possible worlds. I think that’s true because of the sticky problem of free-will.

God created humanity with free-will so that we could—or our own accord—love him, love one another, do good and avoid evil. If we didn’t have free-will, we would be robots, automatons, marionettes manipulated by God. Forced or manipulated love is really no love at all.

Theodicy is a science which treats of God through the exercise of reason alone and there are always limits to reason when it comes to the divine mind of God. It is a science because it systematically arranges the content of our knowledge about God and demonstrates, in the strict sense of the word, each of its propositions. But it appeals to nature as its only source of proof, whereas theology sets forth our knowledge of God as drawn from the sources of supernatural revelation.

Why the problem of evil? Why the slaughter of holy innocents then and now? Quite frankly, I’m not certain and I’m not sure I want to be because, I would make myself God and I would tend to depend on self, rather than depending on God who is ultimately inscrutable in his purposes. We know one thing for certain, perhaps not through logic or reason alone, but through the superior knowledge of revelation and faith:

“Beloved: This is the message that we have heard from Jesus Christ and proclaim to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.”

So whether it’s the darkness of genocide, the blackness of abortion, or the dimness of poverty and human exploitation, or even the obscurity of our own personal trials and difficulties, we can find comfort—not in trying to always rationally figure it all out as if we ourselves were gods —but rather by recognizing that “The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD is on his heavenly throne…” That His ways are not our ways. That God is in charge, God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.

Destiny’s Children

2011-12-26T10:34:00.000-08:00

December 26, 2011 Feast of Saint Stephen, first martyr

I’m not sure why it popped into my head: that “pop” song by Byonce from a few years ago. It has nothing to do with Christ. Let me take that back. Everything has to do with Christ.

So, I was thinking of that song, at least the refrain, “Say My Name. Say My Name.” It reminded me of that captivating liturgical hymn from St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians (or as one lector at a Mass called it—the letter of St. Paul to the Filipinos), it reminded me of the ending: “[That] at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

“…at the name of Jesus.”

Over the last couple of days we have heard some very attractive readings:

No more shall people call you "Forsaken,"or your land "Desolate,"but you shall be called "My Delight,"

Or.

For a child is born to us, a son is given us;upon his shoulder dominion rests.They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero,Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.

On today’s memorial of St. Stephen the proto-martyr, the first martyr of the faith, we are reminded that when we say his name, all will not be—of necessity—peaches and cream. What an improbable juxtaposition: The celebration of a birth and the celebration of a death. All because someone said the word—the verbum dei: JESUS.

My brothers and sisters, Christmas points to birth—to life. But it also points to death: the death of St. Stephen because he dared to say THE NAME, and the death of Jesus on the cross. It also points—however—to the death of our fallen selves and to the possibility of new life. There can be no Mount of Transfiguration without Mount Calvary.

But we also have the promise.

I am reminded that that Byonce song, “Say My Name. Say My Name,” was composed and recorded when the name of her group was Destiny’s Child. Jesus was destiny’s child and so was Stephen—and so are we: “You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved."

So as we continue to celebrate the octave of Christmas we rejoice knowing that come what may, we are destiny’s children who will one day say with St. Stephen:

"Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Manstanding at the right hand of God."

Because I am, and you are, in the Name that is above every name: destiny’s child.

A Particular Birth

2011-12-24T22:17:00.000-08:00

DECEMBER 25, 2011 Christmas: Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord

From 1953 to 1957, CBS broadcasted a television show hosted by Walter Cronkite. It featured reenactments of critical, historical events. Shows included "The Landing of the Hindenburg", "The Salem Witchcraft Trials", "The Gettysburg Address", "The Fall of Troy", and "The Scuttling of the Graf Spee." The show was called, “You Are There.” Some of you may remember it because, you were. (I of course, just remember the later reruns.)

The series featured various key events in American and World history, portrayed in dramatic recreations. CBS News reporters, in modern-day suits, would report on the action and interview the protagonists of each of the historical episodes. Each episode would begin with the characters setting the scene. Cronkite, from his anchor desk in New York, would give a few words on what was about to happen. An announcer would then give the date and the event, followed by a loud and boldly spoken "You Are There!"

At the end of the program, after Cronkite summarizes what happened in the preceding event, he reminded viewers, "What sort of day was it? A day like all days, filled with those events that alter and illuminate our times... and you were there."

Were you there? Are you there?

“While they were there,
the time came for her to have her child,
and she gave birth to her firstborn son.
She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger,
because there was no room for them in the inn.”

Are you there? Were you there?

"Do not be afraid;
for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy
that will be for all the people.
For today in the city of David
a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord."

Are you there? Were you there?

St. Thomas Aquinas asserted that we can only get hold of universal concepts through experience of particulars, that is, inductively. Yet Aquinas also acknowledged that reality—universals and particulars—has its basis in the ideas of the divine mind. There, the natural and the divine interplay in such a way that universals are in their particulars, and particulars in the universals. For Christians, the perfect exemplification of the particular and the universal is located in the person of Jesus in whom the participative or unitive centering of all things eternal and temporal abide.

My point is that yes, Christ was, of course, born for the whole world—the universal, but he was also born for the particular: YOU. And even though his birth occurred two thousand years ago, you: John, Melissa, Francisco, Peter, Nancy, Tom, Cecilia: Insert your name because you are there. If you are in Christ, the scriptures tell us, and Christ is in you—you were there before the creation of the universe. You were there from the beginning of salvation history to the moment of the birth of the King; God—in the flesh.

You were there. You are there.

The difference between the Walter Cronkite show and the birth of Christ is that CBS makes you feel as if you were there. At the birth of Christ, you were—you are.

"Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields
and keeping the night watch over their flock.
The angel of the Lord appeared to them
and the glory of the Lord shone around them,
and they were struck with great fear.
The angel said to them,
"Do not be afraid."

You are there. It’s a very particular event; particular and particularly, for you.

"And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel,
praising God and saying:
"Glory to God in the highest..”

And you are there in the presence of love incarnate with a very particular and unique love that is exclusively for you.

G.K. Chesterton in his inimitable style—talking about God’s particular love for individuals said that God loves no two people qualitatively the same:
“To speak of having the same kind of regard for both is about as sensible as asking a man whether he prefers chrysanthemums or billiards. Christ did not love humanity. Christ never said he loved humanity. He loved men.

Neither can anyone else love humanity. That is like loving a gigantic centipede.”
In becoming one of us in a specific place and time, born of a mother whose identity Luke (1:26-27) takes great care to establish, Jesus expresses God’s relationship to the particular, this individual man or woman, rather than the abstract of ‘humanity’ or the collectivity of ‘people’.

His love for each one is now, it is permanent, and it looks at and thinks of each one of us as if we were the preferred one, even the only one. For each of us, as if we were the only one; for each of us he came. This is the conviction that drove St Paul to exclaim, “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me.” (Galatians 2:20).

Tonight God has become man for me. His is a love that needs to be lived in the singular. If truth be told, I am impressed by someone who loves so many so well; but I am won over by someone who loves me. Awareness of this singular love and preference is what should underpin our entire Christian and human personality, our everyday awareness of who we are. If I am so loved by Jesus himself, does anything else really matter? There are of course, other important things – but they are all connected to that--Christ and his love for me . Nothing can take away the joy that comes from this certainty. And there is no sense of genuine community—the universal—if I cannot first appropriate God’s particular love for me.

“Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.” I am there. You are there.

And as I gazed on the babe of Mary, the Son of God, I saw my own true self, for to as many as accepted him by believing in his name, he gave the power to become children of God, born of God in Christ Jesus!

If the Christ is born in Bethlehem one million times, and trudges the dusty roads of Palestine, or Austin, or New York, preaching for one million years, turning the world on its axis or reversing the laws of nature, but is not born in your heart and life –and in my heart and life – then what difference does the Gospel make?
But if you and I there—through him and with him and in him-- then we live because he lives in us, then the good news is personally true: God is for us. God is with us. God is among us. And we are thankful.

Drawn by God

2011-12-18T12:14:00.000-08:00

The Pre-Socratic philosopher Protagoras created a major controversy in ancient times. He had an idea was exceptionally revolutionary for his age when people believed in the mythological deities; an idea that conflicted with the pagan theism of his day. The philosophical doctrines of the early Greeks claimed that the universe was based on something objective, outside of human influence.
Protagoras is, of course, made famous by his dictum that, “man is the measure of all things.”

This aphorism is usually interpreted to mean that the individual human being, rather than a god or an unchanging moral law, is the ultimate source of value. This has become the basis of what Pope Benedict has repeatedly called an aggressive secularism that breeds a “dictatorship of relativism.” If indeed man is the measure of all things then everything is of necessity relative.

But, there is no way an honest reading of Scripture or the tradition of the Church that will leave a person with the notion that man is the measure of all things. God is the measure of all things. God is the Creator. Everything in creation is for and about him. Contrary to popular opinion—it’s really NOT, all about us.

Still. I wonder if at times, we Christians have not also bought into this notion of man as the measure of all things.

A kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children while they drew. She would occasionally walk around to see each child's artwork. As she got to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked what the drawing was. The girl replied, "I'm drawing God." The teacher paused and said, "But no one knows what God looks like." Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing, the little girl replied, "They will in a minute."

We may chuckle at this, but we too, often draw God. We draw a God that is frequently just a projection of our own egos and wills. We draw an illusory God rather than allowing ourselves to be drawn by God. Even David, the Psalmist who wrote the beautiful verse, “Unless the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it. Unless the Lord keep the city, he watches in vain that keeps it,”' (Psalm 126) –even he fell into the trap of drawing God, rather than allowing God to be God and being drawn by him.

King David, psalmist par excellence, provoked God by conducting a census, the implication being that David – not God – was in charge. David wanted to build God a house, and was told he should not. David is the one who must rely on God, not the other way around. While David has plans, God’s plans trump David’s.
It is not coincidental, I think, that God, through the prophet Nathan says, “I” ten times in this passage:

I will make you famous...
I will fix a place for my people Israel;
I will plant them so that they may dwell in their place
without further disturbance.
I will give you rest from all your enemies.,
I will raise up your heir after you,
I will make his kingdom firm.
I will be a father to him.

Indeed, man is certainly NOT the measure of all things—God seems to be saying.
Mary knew this. Mary knows she cannot do anything without God's grace.

In the Gospel, Mary is asked by God to become the Mother of Jesus. And she replies that she is God's handmaid, that without him she would be nothing. And so, through her God does build himself a house. In fact, God fulfills his promise to David in Mary.

David sought to exalt his kingship by conducting a census, and failed. Our Lady, bearing the King of kings in utero, submits herself humbly to a census, trusting that God would fulfill his promises in his way, in his time. For this we call her the Ark of the New Covenant, and indeed, the 'House of Gold'. She is God's true Temple because she did things God's way, and not her own. And she tells those who have ears to hear, 'Do whatever he tells you' (John 2.5).

Mary is that wise and prudent virgin who knows that the only true wisdom is to make all our plans within God’s plan, and prudently revise our plans whenever necessary, so that His saving will for all of human history may be done on earth.
Difficult you say? Consider this:

For Mary, the circumstances were hardly reassuring. She was just a young teenager. She believed God wanted her to remain a virgin, even in marriage. She lived in a cultural backwater. Her schooling would have been minimal. Moreover, as a faithful monotheistic Jew, she could not possibly understand a proposal involving three divine Persons; the angel´s considerate "explanation", that the "Holy Spirit" would "come upon her" amounted to a non-explanation. But none of these human factors was decisive.

That she came through in spite of them stems from four fundamental attitudes:

• She has unlimited trust in whatever God wills.

• She does not demand that first she must ´understand´;

• She accepts that God´s ways, even if their human ramifications, necessarily surpass us.

• She has no preconceived personal plans that are non-negotiable and to which God´s plan must be adjusted. To know and do his will is the hinge on which her life turns.

“Man is the measure of all things,” says Protagoras—and often the culture does too. But we believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and Earth, of things—and of possibilities—seen and unseen.

May ours be the prayer of Blessed, John Martin Moye who after nine years of mission work, frequently interrupted by persecution and imprisonment, founded the Sister of Divine Providence with this prayer:

“Providence of my God, I adore you in all your designs. I place my destiny in your hands, confiding to you all that I have, all that I am, and all that I am to become – my body and my soul, my health and reputation, my life, my death, and my eternal salvation. As I rely entirely upon you and expect all from your goodness, I will not give myself up to any useless anxiety. I confide to you the success of all my undertakings, and in all difficulties I will have recourse to you as a never-failing source of help.

I know that you will either preserve me from the evils I dread, or turn them to my good and your glory. Peaceful and contented in all, I will allow your Providence to govern my life without worry or over eagerness. Holy, wise, generous, and loving Providence! I thank you for the tender care you have taken of me up to this moment.
I humbly and earnestly entreat you to continue the same for me; direct all that I do, guide me in your ways, govern me at every moment of my life, and bring me into the fullness of being that you have destined for me from all eternity. May I please you and give you glory forever. Amen. (Act of Divine Providence)

Brothers and sisters, the virtue of abandonment to Gods divine will is the most sure way to perfection, happiness, peace and liberty

Thoughts and Afterthoughts 12.16.2011

2011-12-16T15:29:00.000-08:00

• On Tim Tebow and his “flamboyant” (ugh) Christianity.

• One can only “Whew!” on this one: Court drops seat belt charges against Pope Benedict In a case that brought amusement to the Vatican, a German court decided to throw out charges against Pope Benedict for not wearing a seat belt during his recent papal visit to Germany.

• The church should fear the sin of its own members more than hatred against Christians, Pope Benedict XVI said recently.” While the church has suffered from persecution throughout its history, it ‘is supported by the light and strength of God" and will always end up victorious.’” Not necessarily so, I suppose with sin which is essentially an act of self-persecution.

• Paul Vischer of Veggie Tales fame on Christmas PC in "Calling it a 'Holiday Tree is Insulting: “I think it is different when you say I'm going to put up a menorah but I'm not going call it a menorah, I'm going to call it a ‘holiday candleholder.’ There's a bit of disrespect in there. I think a lot of Christians just feel like the traditions of Christmas are being gradually stripped away from their Christian origins and called other things and it is fairly offensive.”

• First Things’ R.R. Reno on the ancient roots of the liturgy.

Dr. Rusty Reno, at the Thomas More College 2011 President's Council Symposium from Thomas More College of Liberal A on Vimeo.

• A springtime for Cuban Catholicism

• Abandon Yourself to this Book: A frequent recommendation of mine to spiritual directees, Abandonment to Divine Providence reviewed by Jeff Mirus. See also his Fundamentalism and the Abandonment of Reason

• DEATH TO PENNIES!

• Beware of those who love humanity but have problems with people: The Heartless Lovers of Mankind From the Wall Street Journal, January 5, 1987

• Truth in advertising at the Pilgrimage United Church of Christ

• Wait . . . What? In the course of an October story on an ill-fated Continental Airlines flight during which all restrooms in coach were broken, the reporter for the Star Tribune of Minneapolis sought reactions from experts. Calling the toilet failures a "bad situation that hasn't been addressed" was Robert Brubaker, a spokesman for something called the American Restroom Association, "a Baltimore-based advocacy group for toilet users." [Star Tribune, 10-15-2011]

• In a mind-boggling piece, Christianity today reports that In an unlikely alliance, the Family Research Council (FRC) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have found a common cause: the criminalization of bestiality in the military. One would think that that wouldn’t need to be in the The Uniform Code of Military Justice but, alas.

The Wisest Witness

2011-12-16T13:25:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Friday of the Third Week of Advent DECEMBER 16, 2011

There was a collision and so a crowd gathered quickly, as crowds always do. But the crowd was no help once police officers and insurance adjusters and lawyers showed up and wanted to know what happened. These people weren’t interested in hearing from the crowd; they wanted to hear from witnesses.

When the handful of witness (witnesses are always fewer than crowds) began to testify, their testimony had much in common. It couldn’t be doubted they were all speaking of the same collision. At the same time, no two witnesses said exactly the same thing. Each testimony differed slightly according to the witness’s angle of vision of the event.

No one thought of saying that only one witness could be right and therefore all others were wrong. Because different witnesses bring forward slightly differing testimonies we know that their story is authentic. We know that they haven’t conspired secretly to “cook up” something artificial.

In the days of his earthly ministry Jesus Christ collided with many persons and many institutions. The “collision” that Jesus was, invariably drew a crowd. But the crowd he drew can’t help us to understand what happened when our Lord acted and what continues to happen when he acts among us now. For this we need the testimony of witnesses. Their testimony is indispensable in our coming to grasp who Jesus Christ is and what faith in him entails.

We have some good witnesses: The scriptures and witnesses from history, just to name a couple. John the Baptist bore witness that Jesus was the Son of God (1:34). Although Jesus had no need to have recourse to any man's testimony, not even that of a great prophet, John's testimony was given for the sake of the Hebrew people, that they might recognize their Messiah. Jesus can also point to another testimony, better than that of the Baptist--the miracles He has worked, which are, for anyone who examines them honestly, unmistakable signs of His divine power, which comes from the Father; Jesus' miracles, then, are a form of witness.

The best witness of all though—after all is said and done—is the witness of our experience of the risen Christ. Having a living and vital relationship with Jesus Christ—a relationship of trust through faith, a relationship of communication, or prayer, both talking to and actively listening to him, provides the best testimony of who Jesus really is, what he came to do, and what difference he can make in our lives.

As we continue to celebrate Christ’s first coming and wait in eager expectation of his second—may we not lose sight this Advent—of the fact that the most important coming of Christ is the one in between: the coming of Christ into our hearts, minds and souls here and now. This is the most authentic witness of Christ in the world—the reality of Christ in us.

Prophets of a New World Order

2011-12-04T18:03:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, Second Sunday of Advent DECEMBER 4, 2011

Prophets of a New World Order

In case you haven’t heard, here it is, “It's time to open your eyes to see the Truth. When the time is right the elite are going to bring in their "New World Order" no matter what we do. They have already Set things in motion. Be prepared and do stay informed…"

“…The goal of the Elite is to set up a global fascist state. First they'll destroy this present world system and then they'll bring in their "New World Order." Assisting in this process are the new laws, CCTV cameras, biometric scanners, security equipment, and the like, that they are putting in place so that they will be able to get every individual subordinated to their will when the time comes. This is their main agenda, "Order Out Of Chaos" to seize control by fear introduced into the hearts of all people.”

Take a deep breath. No—I haven’t flipped out.

This is from the website that I was directed to by an conspiratorially-minded acquaintance who also happens to be a Catholic and a member of a well-known, lay religious order. As I read today readings I considered him and thought, “how sad.”

There are many these days who promise that a new world is coming. Some prophesy a cataclysmic shift in the political and economic order, while others promise a utopian society where an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system will rule human affairs. Words of doom and words of false comfort, I think.

In 1516, Sir Thomas More published Utopia, a work that is every bit as inscrutable as it is influential. The best guess at More’s true intention says that he meant it as a piece of wit; Utopia attempted to shame England with a portrait of an orderly but godless society. “Look! Even pagans can govern better than you!” was the idea. More was dismayed, however, when his joke seemed to fall flat. He soon distanced himself from his work, and when Thomas Müntzer cited Utopia in support of an argument for communal property, More said the book should be burned. Given the influence of utopian thought since then, it’s fair to characterize the last five hundred years as a history of not-getting-the-joke of Utopia.

The reality is that that we cannot build it. We must allow God to build it with us and in us. We are to become the living stones of God's new creation. As we know, John the Baptist did not flinch from denouncing injustices and demanding righteousness from those who claimed to be leaders of the people. Neither John nor the mightier one coming after him was especially interested in reforming structures or changing systems—which is not to say that they don’t need changing—they often do. But Jesus and the prophet, John mostly challenged people to change their personal lives.

All utopias are impossible because even if the fallen nature of man was perfected and government was perfect, we’d still have nature. If everyone believed in Peace, they would immediately begin fighting over the best way to achieve it. So while structures may need changing, they can only change when the individuals who create them change.

“Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;
he will prepare your way.
A voice of one crying out in the desert:
"Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths."

But how one might ask? “John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”

Yearning such as these must have been why so many people went out to hear the message of John the Baptist. They went into the place of ' new beginnings' which is what the desert represented. It was there that the people of God were found by him and from there that they were led by him into a new kingdom—a new mode of being.
This new world, this new kingdom begins not with a change of regime but with a change of heart—that is, with conversion. John tells us 'your job is to change you and in this way your world will be changed'. This is a consoling thought. "Be comforted, be comforted my people!" You can begin again; start anew,but begin with you.

It is repentance leading to conversion of life that makes straight the way of the one who comes with power; Humble and hidden power soliciting our response. Our reading from the prophet Isaiah is telling about this process of conversion.
The passage reflects the tender love God has for the injured and defeated chosen children whom God had brought to birth and nurtured. Chapter 40 begins a section in Isaiah biblical people call "Second Isaiah" and it is addressed to the Israelites in Babylonian captivity. "First Isaiah" (chapters 1-39) was meant to warn the people in Jerusalem of what would happen if they didn't change their ways. They didn't. So they were taken into exile in Babylon where they finally remembered their God and their covenant.

Psalm 137 is representative of their conversion:

“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
There on the poplars
we hung our harps,
for there our captors asked us for songs,
our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
“How can we sing the songs of the LORD
while in a foreign land?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.”

They repented. They converted. They sought to, “make straight the way of the Lord,” and now, in their place of misery, God speaks to them a word of comfort.

“Comfort, give comfort to my people,says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her
that her service is at an end,
her guilt is expiated;
indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD
double for all her sins.
Like a shepherd he feeds his flock;
in his arms he gathers the lambs,
carrying them in his bosom,
and leading the ewes with care.”

John the Baptist's words can be comforting for those who are willing to repent from their sin. He brings good news for those who yearn to be forgiven; but he doesn't have good news for people who are stuck in their self-righteousness, or who are indifferent to God and God's ways.

We search out ways this Advent to cry out with John, "Prepare the way of the Lord…." We hope our words and actions this season will instill hope in people, in their dying and in their pain, in their confusion and wanderings -- that God has not forgotten them, but is constructing a straight path to them. God's glory is about to be revealed to all with hearts disposed and eyes wide open. "Prepare the way of the Lord.”

But it is like the flight attendants tell us when we fly—put on your oxygen mask first—before helping the person sitting next to you.

Modern Science’s Christian Sources

2011-12-02T19:45:00.000-08:00

NB: I was discussing with a friend the Christian sources of modern science and recalled an article titled, well, Modern Science’s Christian Sources from the October issue of First Things:

Modern Science’s Christian Sources

Exploding the persistant myth that Christianity impeded the growth of science.

James Hannam

Back in 1978, Carl Sagan included a time line of scientific progress in his book Cosmos, showing that nothing at all happened between a.d. 415 and a.d. 1543. This barren period, he implied, was caused by the thousand-year dominance of Christianity. The “conflict thesis” of science and religion was born in the salons of ancien régime France, where philosophes like Voltaire and d’Alembert used it as a weapon against the Catholic Church. It was further developed in Victorian England by T. H. Huxley in his battle to diminish the influence of the clergy in London’s Royal Society. And it was perfected in American universities by the likes of Andrew Dickson White, the first president of Cornell University, who provided the theory with intellectual ballast in his heavily annotated A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology at the end of the nineteenth century. It has been promoted in countless articles in popular magazines and elementary-school textbooks.

The history of science is the story of how we went from being fundamentally wrong about the natural world to being, in large part, right. Science as we imagine it today—with laboratories, experiments, and a professional culture—did not appear until the nineteenth century, but its origins can be found much earlier, in the period commonly known as the “scientific revolution.” And the “scientific revolution” was a continuation of developments that started deep in the Middle Ages among people whose scientific work expressed their religious belief. The conflict thesis, in other words, is a myth.

The thesis rests on two further myths about scientific progress. First, many people still believe that science has advanced by fighting religious superstition and making the world safe for rational inquiry. It is true that certain religious doctrines contradict some scientific discoveries. The creation/evolution controversy is a case in point, but such quarrels have been surprisingly rare. Even the infamous trial of Galileo, the other example of conflict most often cited, was an aberration in the Catholic Church’s usual supportive attitude toward science.

The “scientific revolution” in the seventeenth century coincided with the period when Christian belief in Europe was at its strongest. Only after science had triumphed did religion start to suffer any sort of decline. And, if Christianity had tried to hold back scientific progress, the chances are that it would have succeeded. Modern science would not have arisen in Christian Europe at all.

As it happens, much of the evidence marshaled in favor of the conflict thesis turns out to be bogus. The Church never tried to outlaw the number zero or human dissection; no one was burnt at the stake for scientific ideas; and no educated person in the Middle Ages thought that the world was flat, whatever interpretations of the Bible might imply. Popes have had better things to do than ban vaccination or lightning conductors on churches. The thought of a pope excommunicating Halley’s Comet is absurd, but this has not prevented the tale of Calixtus III doing just that from entering scientific folklore.

It is remarkable that authors who consider themselves skeptics can swallow some of these stories whole. For instance, Sagan introduced his readers to a “baloney detector” in his later book, The Demon-Haunted World. It is a great shame he never used it on his own writings. In Cosmos he presented a completely fictitious account of the murder of the pagan philosopher Hypatia and falsely blamed Christians for the destruction of the Alexandrian library.

Zealous Victorian historians did find occasional examples of ecclesiastical stupidity, such as the Boston pastor who warned that lightning caused earthquakes. They rewrote history to make these marginal figures into leaders of opinion. Religious dissidents who paid the ultimate price for their faith were recast as champions of reason. Pope Boniface VIII issued a bull intended to stop crusaders from sending their bones home for burial. He would have been most surprised to hear that, according to Andrew Dickson White, he had in fact legislated against human dissection. When priests questioned a scientific theory, which they often did in their capacity as amateur scientists, their scientific skepticism was held up as an example of religious obstruction. Historians have been debunking these legends for over a century now, but each new generation of popular writers continues to recycle them.

But the legends are false, and their falsity suggests the problem. Modern science stands as one of the great achievements of Western civilization—not of Islam, China, or even ancient Greece. Many historians of science are still reluctant to admit this. They praise ancient Greek and Arabic sciences as successful on their own terms but have lost sight of the fact that the theories advanced by early science were largely false.

The second myth about the rise of science is that Westerners only picked up the baton from the ancient Greeks, or, as has been more recently alleged, the Islamic caliphate. The undefended corollary of the idea that the Church has held back scientific progress is that we must look outside Christendom to discover the origin of modern science. In reality, modern science is qualitatively different from the natural philosophy practiced by the likes of Aristotle or Avicenna. Aristotle started from the passive observation of nature and then built up a system based on rational argument. This had two enormous disadvantages: Compared to controlled experiments, passive observation is usually misleading, and not even Aristotle’s powers of reason could prevent blunders in his arguments.

His discussion of motion is a case in point. He observed that everyday objects tend to stop when nothing is pushing them and deduced the principle that all moving objects must be moved by something else. He elevated this principle to the status of a logical certainty and then used it to explain other kinds of motion. He even thought that it successfully proved the existence of God. If the universe as a whole is full of movement, he argued, it requires an exterior unmoved mover to keep it going. But of course, Aristotle observed only a specific instance that was not generally applicable. We now know that objects do not stop when there is no force on them. They tend to keep going in a straight line, a principle enshrined as Newton’s First Law.

Other observations led Aristotle to decree it certain that a vacuum can never exist, that heavy objects fall faster than light ones, and that the earth must occupy the center of the universe. All were wrong. Aristotle, alas, was mistaken on nearly all his claims about physics, not because he was a fool but because he was practicing a natural philosophy that could never lead to true theories.

To give another example: Premodern medicine was an unmitigated disaster, far more likely to kill patients than to cure them. Treatments such as bleeding and purging could only weaken the constitution of the sick, reducing their bodies’ capacity to fight off infection. Given the ineffectiveness of learned physicians, it’s little wonder that people put so much stock in miracles and magic. Perhaps the most surprising thing is that doctors were able to maintain their professional status through all the centuries when they could do little more than hasten their clients to the grave. It is modern medicine, modern Western medicine, that really can cure disease.

Islamic science suffered from similar drawbacks. Advances made by Muslim natural philosophers were significant but still modest. For instance, the importance of Alhazen’s investigations into the properties of light is undisputed. They were used by Roger Bacon in his writings on perspectiva and thence were integrated into the modern theory of vision developed by Johannes Kepler. Even so, Alhazen’s experimental method was limited and not carried forward by his immediate successors. Similarly, the intuition of Ibn al-Nafis in the thirteenth century concerning the circulation of blood between the heart and the lungs is deeply impressive. But there is no evidence that it influenced the rediscovery of this phenomenon by Michael Servetus and Realdo Colombo three centuries later.

Consequently, we should be skeptical about some of the claims made for Islamic science in recent television shows and books, not to mention Wikipedia. Unfortunately, the misattribution of scientific advances to Islamic sources has sometimes been the fault of the very pioneers who discovered them. Alchemy is a case in point. During the Middle Ages, Christian alchemists would write their treatises under the name of the fabled Arab savant Geber. Later historians mistakenly assigned developments such as the first production of powerful acids as well as the isolation of alcohol to Geber himself. Alcohol was even assigned an Arabic name by Christian authors. We now know that Geber probably did not write any of the works attributed to him.

There was one towering exception to the rule that early science tended to fail. Both the Greeks and Arabs excelled in mathematics. This was because pure rationalism works a treat when it is restricted to geometry and arithmetic. The imams had plenty of uses for math as well: The Muslim calendar follows the lunar, not the solar year, and mosques had to be oriented toward Mecca. Both these religious problems required mathematical solutions. It’s said that the complicated rules of Islamic inheritance made algebra indispensable. Even our word algebra is a corruption of al-jabr, the name of an Arabic textbook widely used by Christians.

With the exception of mathematics, in medieval Europe things were different. Aristotle’s faulty method was struck down by the Catholic Church, allowing previously forbidden ideas to flourish. The Church also made natural philosophy a compulsory part of the courses it required trainee theologians to follow. So, science held a central place in Christian centers of learning that it did not hold in Islamic madrassas. And Christianity itself provided a worldview especially compatible with experimental science.

In 1085, the great Islamic city of Toledo fell to Alfonso IV, king of Castile. Christian forces captured the magnificent library intact, and word soon spread about the fabulous riches contained therein. Europeans were well aware that they had lost much of the learning of the ancient world after the fall of Rome, and they were keen to reacquire it. The resulting movement to translate Arabic and Greek scholarship into Latin meant that, by 1200, Christians were back up to speed in science and mathematics.

Initially, some churchmen were suspicious about all this new knowledge and feared that it would be misused to challenge the faith. When a nest of heretics was found in Paris and its environs, the resulting panic led to a temporary ban on Aristotle’s natural philosophy at the university there. Scholars were furious and demanded that the forbidden books be reinstated. So, after a decent interval, the pope rescinded the ban and Aristotle took his place at the heart of Christian education.

As we can see, the danger of Aristotle was in his method. It was bad enough that several of his conclusions contradicted revealed theology, but the problem went deeper than that. Because he had tried to generate results deductively, Aristotle made them seem logically necessary. His admirers did not just claim that he was right; they said he had to be right. God himself was bound by what Aristotle thought because medieval theologians agreed that, though omnipotent, even the Deity could not defy logic. But in reality, most of Aristotle’s natural philosophy was wrong. Science could go nowhere until the dead hand of the Greek sage was lifted from it.

The Church had to deal with this, even though it was interested primarily in theology and not science. In 1277, the bishop of Paris, with papal approval, issued a list of opinions, drawn from the work of Aristotle and his medieval followers, that he declared heretical. The effect was paradoxically liberating. All of a sudden, European philosophers were freed to think outside the Aristotelian box. No longer could they assume that the Greeks were always right. Thus, if God willed it, vacuums were no longer deemed impossible. There could even be more than one universe. Now natural philosophers could speculate on all sorts of things previously ruled out of court. The result was that the fourteenth century became a scientific golden age when much of the groundwork was laid for ideas that later founded the work of Copernicus and Galileo. Let me give a few examples.

Copernicus, of course, is famous for proposing that the earth rotates and orbits the sun, rather than being stationary in the center of the universe, as Aristotle had taught. It is perfectly sensible to believe that the earth is at rest, especially given that we cannot feel it moving. However, in fourteenth-century Paris, the philosopher John Buridan and his student Nicole Oresme first developed the arguments, later used by Copernicus, to explain why we cannot tell if the earth is in motion.

Aristotle proposed that the universe turns around the earth each day. Buridan asked why it cannot be the other way around, realizing that what we observe would be exactly the same. He used the analogy of someone on a boat: “If anyone is in a moving ship and imagines that he is at rest, then should he see another ship, which is truly at rest, it will appear to him that the other ship is moved. . . . And so, we also posit that the sphere of the sun is everywhere at rest and the earth in carrying us would be rotated.”

Compare that to the argument used by Copernicus in his book from 1543, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres:

When a ship sails on a tranquil sea, all the things outside seem to the voyagers to be moving in a pattern that is an image of their own. They think, on the contrary, that they are themselves and all the things with them are at rest. So, it can easily happen in the case of the earth that the whole universe should be believed to be moving in a circle [while the earth is at rest].

Of course, like other Renaissance writers, Copernicus never acknowledges his debt to his medieval predecessors. Rather, he quotes a line from Virgil’s Aeneid, giving his argument a wholly spurious classical gloss. For what it’s worth, Copernicus also used the fruits of Islamic mathematical astronomy without attribution. As the fashion of his time demanded, he only would admit to using Greek and Roman sources.

Despite his correct argument about relative motion, John Buridan eventually decided that the earth was not moving. He imagined that if it were rotating, an arrow fired straight into the air would land some distance away because the earth would have moved before it reached the ground. His pupil, Nicole Oresme, realized this argument was false because the arrow inherits the motion of the earth when it is fired. The earth, bowman, and arrow are all rotating together. Galileo covers these thought experiments in great detail in his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (for which he was put on trial by Pope Urban VIII). But you would never guess from Galileo’s text that his arguments are actually rather old hat.

Even Galileo’s most important work, Dialogues on Two New Sciences, contains strong echoes of ideas developed in the fourteenth century. The formula he derives for the motion of a uniformly accelerating body was in fact discovered in the fourteenth century at Merton College, Oxford. And the diagrammatic proof that Galileo provides for this theorem was first illustrated by Nicole Oresme himself.

There can no longer be any doubt that the pioneers of early modern science were far more indebted to their medieval predecessors than they were inclined to admit. But by the sixteenth century, humanism, the political correctness of its day, meant that it was respectable to acknowledge the influence of the classical world while denigrating the Middle Ages. To a great extent, this is still true today.

The importance of medieval science extends beyond simply providing the theories that early modern scientists exploited. Medieval Christian theologians also developed the metaphysical framework within which it made sense to practice science at all.

Even in the face of today’s perceptions of a conflict between science and religion, Christianity has proved to be uniquely accommodating to the scientific study of nature. First, while there is little in the Bible that could be called science, the book of Genesis is very clear about where the universe came from. Contrary to Aristotle’s view that it is eternal, the Bible says that God made the world at the beginning of time. Christians believe that the world was created ex nihilo, out of nothing. God did not have to work from preexisting material that resisted his purposes. This meant that the creation turned out “good” and as God wished it to be.

Christian theologians held that he had also allowed the world to develop freely through natural laws he had ordained. The order of nature followed these laws. God was not personally manipulating each atom. By the twelfth century, William of Conches had already realized this. “I take nothing away from God,” he wrote. “All things that are in the world were made by God, except evil. But he made other things through the operation of nature which is the instrument of divine operation.”

Second, the Christian God is reliable. He is not capricious like the Olympians of ancient Greece or entirely beyond human comprehension like Allah. Natural philosophers (scientists, in our terms) knew that they could depend on the laws that he had laid down. Nature itself should reflect her creator by obeying his commandments. This gave Christians good reason to believe that science was a practical venture, that nature did follow fixed laws that could be discovered. As Thierry of Chartres, another theologian of the twelfth century, put it:

Because the things in the world are mutable and corruptible, it is necessary that they should have an author. Because they are arranged in a rational way and in a very beautiful order, it is necessary that they should have been created in accordance with wisdom. But, because the Creator, rationally speaking, is in need of nothing, having perfection and sufficiency in himself, it is necessary that he should create what he does create only through benevolence and love.

Third, Christianity made science a theologically justified and even righteous path to pursue. Since God created the world, exploring how it works honors its Creator. And because science studies the ordinary course of nature, it is not necessary to worry about the rare occasions when God does intervene directly through miracles. As John Buridan explained in the fourteenth century, “It is evident to us that every fire is hot, even though the contrary is possible by God’s power. And it is evidence of this sort that suffices for the principles and conclusions of science.”

Nonetheless, because God was free to do as he pleased, Christians realized it was impossible to work out the laws of nature through rational analysis alone. The only way to discover his plan was to go out and look. Science could not rely on pure reason to generate theories, still less on Aristotle’s “logically necessary” conclusions. God created the world in the way he wished to, not the way Aristotle said he had to.

Given the advantages Christianity provided, it is hardly surprising that modern science developed only in the West, within a Christian civilization. Although other religious traditions could have provided a similarly fertile metaphysical ground for the study of nature, none actually did so. Christianity was a crucial cause of the unique development of Western science, the only science that has consistently produced true theories of nature.

James Hannam is the author of The Genesis of Science: How the Christian Middle Ages Launched the Scientific Revolution (Regnery), which was shortlisted for the Royal Society Science Book Prize.

The Middle Coming of Christ

2011-12-01T13:46:00.000-08:00

Homily; Thursday of 1st Advent, 12.1.11; Children’s Mass, St. Gabriel School (Readings Below)

The Middle Coming of Christ

This week we started the Advent season in the Church. We have new colors, -new candles, wreaths, evergreens, new music—even a new Missal and new responses at Mass. Advent is the beginning of the Church Year for us. The word Advent means "coming" or "arrival." The focus of the entire season is -the celebration of the birth of Jesus the Christ in his First Advent or coming, and the anticipation of the return of Christ the King in his Second Advent—when he comes again.

Most people know that Jesus came as a baby the first time he came, and that he grew into a man who talked about what God and his kingdom are like; that he worked miracles and cured many people from their diseases and that he died on a cross for our sins so that we could be with God forever. Most people also know that Jesus is coming again to totally do away with sickness, and disease, and crime, and many of the problems that we still suffer from. But I’m not sure everybody know about a different kind of coming—the most important of all during this Advent season.

The most important coming of Jesus is when Jesus comes into our hearts—here and now –to transform us, to give us joy and peace and to be with us in everything that we do. Our first reading gives us a clue to what that’s like:

“He is your guide,
and he will no longer be hidden from you.
Whether you turn to the right or to the left,
you will hear a voice saying,
This is the road! Now follow it!”

But to hear his voice he needs to be with us, in our hearts and minds and spirits. How do we prepare for that? Well, think about studying for a test or a quiz. How do we study for an exam?

We read the material, then we re-read it. We study it deeply. We let it sink in—into our minds and our hearts, and our spirits so that it’s second nature to us. When the time comes to take the test, we are so fully prepared that we do well because we know the material and spent time with the subject of the test.

The same is true with preparing for Jesus dwelling in us. We need to spend time with him in prayer. We need to listen to him in our quiet time. We read the Bible and spiritual books to learn more about him. Then—just like in preparing for a test—Jesus will be in our minds, hearts and spirits so that HE becomes second nature to us. And when he is, we can much better appreciate his first coming in Bethlehem, his life and his ministry on our behalf and we will be better prepared to meet him when he comes again. St. Paul calls this “Putting on Christ.”

“Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Be ready and keep your lamps burning.” The good thing about our faith is that—unlike many tests—if we have not been ready, we can start new, begin again, get a fresh start. I encourage you brothers and sisters, to be ready for Jesus in your hearts; This is the road. Now all we have to do is to follow it!”

First Reading

(Isaiah 30:19b-21)

A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah

The Lord is kind, and as soon as he hears you crying,
he will come to help you.
The Lord has caused you trouble and sorrow
by not giving you enough bread and water.
But now you will see the Lord.
He is your guide,
and he will no longer be hidden from you.
Whether you turn to the right or to the left,
you will hear a voice saying,
“This is the road! Now follow it!”

The word of the Lord.

Gospel

(Luke 12:35-38)

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke

Jesus said to his disciples,
“Be ready and keep your lamps burning
just like the servants who wait up
for their master to return from a wedding feast.
As soon as he comes and knocks,
they open the door for him.
Servants are fortunate if their master find them awake
and ready when he comes!
I promise you that he will get ready
and have his servants sit down so he can serve them.
Those servants are really fortunate if their master finds them ready,
even if he comes late at night or early in the morning.”

BE NOT ANXIOUS

2011-11-26T09:26:00.000-08:00

HOMILY; NOVEMBER 26, 2011 Saturday of the Thirty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

BE NOT ANXIOUS

It affects our nervous system. It affects our cardiovascular system. It wreaks havoc on respiration. It weakens our muscles. It destroys our immune systems. It skews our thinking and our decision-making processes. It negatively impacts our behavior. It makes us isolate from others. Of necessity then, it will terrorize our spiritual lives. What is it? Anxiety!

Anxiety serves a useful purpose for all living organisms. Anxiety and its many effects acts as a type of safety mechanism to provide protection from harm, if necessary. However, in excess, or because of unrealistic or unfounded fears, the effects of anxiety may actually be deadly; Deadly to ourselves—mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually— and to our relationships with God and others.

For good reason then, Jesus warns us to, “…beware—or “be aware” of the anxieties of daily life,” because when it comes to unnecessary anxiety—what you don’t know, or what you are not aware of, can kill you, both physically and spiritually.
Every year I talk to many people for whom this time of year is not so much a period for expressing gratitude, celebrating Christ’s first coming or joyfully anticipating the next. Instead, the holidays become a source of dread. Thanksgiving, Christmas -they're supposed to be happy and fun.. But somewhere along the way the stress, the unrealistic expectations, the unreasonable demands, and all that other negative stuff show ups and the next thing you know, you're depressed, over-tired, and dreading one more day during the so-called "holiday season."

If you go to a Christian bookstore or the library, you will find many books and articles on how to reduce anxiety—especially during this holiday season. They are very many good tips and proactive strategies to minimize and mitigate stress, worry and anxiety. But the best antidote to anxiety is—I believe—complete trust and surrender to God through the risen Christ. It’s impossible to hold two ideas in the mind at the same time and so trust and abandonment to God in any given situation—casting all our fears upon him, as the scriptures enjoin us—is a sure remedy for stress, anxiety and worry.

“…beware—or “be aware” of the anxieties of daily life.”

A mnemonic device that works for me when I feel anxiety creeping up is to keep Charles de Foucald’s prayer of abandonment in my pocket and pray it frequently. Allow me to share it with you.

Father,
I abandon myself into your hands; do with me what you will.
Whatever you may do, I thank you:
I am ready for all, I accept all.
Let only your will be done in me, and in all your creatures.
I wish no more than this, O Lord.

Into your hands I commend my soul;
I offer it to you
with all the love of my heart,
for I love you, Lord,
and so need to give myself,
to surrender myself into your hands,
without reserve,
and with boundless confidence,
for you are my Father.

Like I said, it’s impossible to hold two ideas in the mind at the same time. One will give you abundant life now, where anxiety will lead us to a despondent and early grave. Christ says, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."

May the love, joy, peace, hope, health, healing, and so much more that our Good Shepherd has to share with us be with you now and forever.

The Catholicity of Sin and Mercy

2011-11-25T08:56:00.000-08:00

HOMILY; NOVEMBER 25, 2011 Friday of the Thirty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

The Catholicity of Sin and Mercy

Groucho Marx once remarked that he would never join a club that was willing to have him as a member. The joke was that he didn’t think too much of himself—and he therefore didn’t think much of any organization that would risk having him. This is not humility—it’s comic, self-defeating humiliation. Humility is knowing oneself as one really is. One of my favorite authors, Brennan Manning—in his Raggamuffin Gospel, says:

“Because salvation is by grace through faith, I believe that among the countless number of people standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands (see Revelation 7:9), I shall see the prostitute from the Kit-Kat Ranch in Carson City, Nevada, ….I shall see the woman who had an abortion and is haunted by guilt and remorse but did the best she could faced with grueling and confusing alternatives; the businessman besieged with debt who sold his integrity in a series of desperate transactions and embezzled from his employer; the insecure clergyman addicted to being liked, who never challenged his people from the pulpit; the sexually abused teen molested by his father and now selling his body on the street, who, as he falls asleep each night after his last 'trick', whispers the name of the unknown God he learned about in Sunday school.”

But how?' we ask. Then the voice says, 'They have washed their robes and have made them white in the blood of the Lamb. There they are. There we are - the multitude who so wanted to be faithful, who at times got defeated, soiled by life, and bested by trials, wearing the bloodied garments of life's tribulations, but through it all clung to faith.

My friends, if this is not good news to you, you have never understood the gospel of grace.”

One like a son of man coming,
on the clouds of heaven;
When he reached the Ancient One
and was presented before him,
He received dominion, glory, and kingship;
nations and peoples of every language serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not be taken away,
his kingship shall not be destroyed.

Why do you think he received received dominion, glory, and kingship; and nations and peoples of every language serve him? Speaking of the sinful woman who anointed Jesus with oil, he exclaimed: “"I tell you, her sins--and they are many--have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love." This is the Catholicity of Catholicism: that we are all sinners saved by grace through faith.

The story goes that a sinner was forbidden entry to the church. He took his woes to God. “They won't let me in, Lord, because I am a sinner.” 'What are you complaining about?' said God. 'They won't let me in either.”

We need to be Christ’s Church—the church of the acceptably imperfect, those who recognize the catholicity of sin, even our own; who have been forgiven much, rather than the Church where sinners are turned away. Where else would we go?

Giving Thanks; Getting Life

2011-11-23T10:56:00.000-08:00

HOMILY, WEDNESDAY OF 34TH WEEK OT NOVEMBER 23, 2011

Giving Thanks; Getting Life

In day’s first reading, we find King Belshazzar at a banquet eating, drinking and making merry with the vessels and silver and gold that he had plundered from temple in Jerusalem. Drunk, “they praised their gods of gold and silver, bronze and iron, wood and stone.” Then, behold—he’s interrupted in his merry-making by the finger of God and his handwriting on the wall. God warns Belshazzar that:

a. God has numbered your kingdom and put an end to it.
b. You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting
c. Your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians."

Tomorrow, most of us in the United States will also have a banquet: Thanksgiving dinner. Very likely there will be "handwriting on the wall." But, when we are in Christ and Christ is in us, the handwriting the scriptures tell us is much different—we become like Daniel in today’s story— a prophet of blessing to God and to others in our midst.

Yes, God has numbered our days on earth. But unlike the obstinate and rebellious Belshazzar, there will be no end to our life. We—with hopeful trust—look forward to the heavenly banquet that God has prepared for those who love him.

Yes, we have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. It is in our lack that God— through the atoning work of Christ—completes that which is lacking in us, through his love, mercy and transforming Spirit.

Yes, our kingdom may be divided on this earth, but we are subjects of another kingdom, “..where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves cannot break in and steal.”

Our thanks though is not just for the future—but also for the present. When we live life in step with God we find amazing abundance and satisfaction. Love, joy, peace and a genuine excitement for life are just some of the fruits He intends for us to experience despite the reality of difficult times.

We have much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. We have much to bless and praise the Lord for: even the inanimate things of the universe (our psalm) praise him: "Sun and moon, bless the Lord; Stars of heaven, bless the Lord; Every shower and dew, bless the Lord; All you winds, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever. Fire and heat, bless the Lord; Cold and chill, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever. Give glory and eternal praise to him.”

The Dominican mystic, Meister Eckhart was fond of saying that if the only prayer you said in your whole life was, "thank you," that would suffice."

My brothers and sisters, in the spiritual life, gratitude is a vaccine, an antitoxin, and an antiseptic—it is restorative and curative. I encourage you to go beyond just going through the motions this thanksgiving and you will discover the truth about a life—a grateful life— that’s really worth living.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Christ as King

2011-11-21T09:05:00.000-08:00

Homily; Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ the King NOVEMBER 20, 2011

Christ as King

In 1912 the Titanic went down. In those cold North Atlantic waters, 1200 people lost their lives; subsequent investigations found one thing that kept running through. The people on ship said there was always on that terrible, tormented night people were running through the galleys and corridors and above board saying, “Who’s in charge here? Who’s in charge here?" It seems in that terrible tragedy no one was in charge. That could well be the question of a lot of people today. Who’s in charge here?

People like to know who’s in charge. Who’s in charge of the government, who’s in charge of the church, who’s in charge of the family; knowing who is in charge gives security and strength, and where there is no leadership and where there is no power, there is a vacuum and all kinds of confusion runs into it. But not any old leadership will suffice.

History tells of some very interesting, if not very moral, monarchs. Ivan the Terrible merited his nickname by torturing enemies and friends alike for sheer pleasure. Henry VIII altered the moral code to suit himself and married six times, murdering two of his wives to clear the way for others. Montezuma, great king of the Aztecs, waged war solely to obtain thousands of captives for human sacrifice. Almost every monarch you can think of has grown rich at the expense of their subjects. One of the characters in 'Huckleberry Finn' sardonically remarks that, “All kings are mostly rapscallions,”—that is, rascals, rogues or scoundrels.

We want to know, who is in charge here?

In one government:

7 have been arrested for fraud
19 have been accused of writing bad checks
117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses
3 have done time for assault
71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit
14 have been arrested on drug-related charges
8 have been arrested for shoplifting
21 are currently defendants in lawsuits
84 have been arrested in the last year (344 or 64%)

That—by the way—would be the U.S. congress.
But to say "Christ is King" is to say something altogether different. When you’ve said that, you’ve said it all.

What king was ever like Jesus, born in royal David's city, Bethlehem, but in a stable not a palace, with no place to lay his head, and buried in another man's tomb. His accession to the throne was his entry into Jerusalem, the royal capital, riding on a donkey rather than in a state coach or chariot. His royal robe was a spittle-covered purple rag, his crown was of thorns and his sceptre a reed. He made his royal progress weak and bleeding through the streets, to the jeers not the cheers of the populace. At Calvary he was enthroned on an executioner's gibbet.

Christ the King has nothing in common with earthly rulers, so his kingdom can be nothing like an earthly kingdom. In his realm there are no masters because everyone is a servant. The King came to serve and not to be served, and we imitate him. Those who would be greatest in the Kingdom are those who make themselves the least. The reward for service is not promotion and financial gain but to be given further opportunities for service. When his subjects become rich or gain promotion, they are impoverished and demoted, the mighty being cast from their thrones and the lowly exalted. The lowest are the highest and tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the Kingdom first.

My brothers and sisters—this is Christ our King. Your King and my King. But he is not just our King. We all participate in the Kingship of Christ by virtue of our baptism into his body. as a child of God, each child is counted as a priest and king under the kingship and priesthood of Christ Jesus who is King of kings and Priest of priests. “To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him [be] glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen,” the scriptures proclaim. (Rev. 1:5-6)

Kingship: It is an office that was jeered at by the onlookers at the crucifixion; an office that was spat upon on the road to Calvary. The world in which we live cannot grasp the paradox of victory through pain. It cannot tolerate the paradox of glory through self-abandonment.

Sometimes, it’s even difficult for us Christians to live simultaneously in two kingdoms, that of this world and that of Christ. We are prone to amalgamate them, to make one look so much like the other that we can't tell the difference. But separate them we must because at the end, we will—as our Gospel today so poignantly points out—we will, one day, have to render an account of what we did with our participation in Christ’s high office
.
We seem to have fairly vague and hazy ideas about eternal life, and the necessary qualifications. We seem to understand that God loves all sinners, that He cannot exclude anyone, and that a sincere ‘sorry’ for our sins on arrival will assure all of us a place in the Kingdom. There is, often therefore, no real preoccupation here and now as to what we do or not do; everything will necessarily be all right in the end.

Certainly there is much of God’s justice and His mercy that goes beyond our understanding, but the import of the Gospels on judgment and separation contain elements that do not correspond to the ‘all comers welcome’ view. Throughout the Gospels we are given precise indications of our task in hand here and now, with a clear warning of the relation between how we accomplish this task and our acceptance or rejection by God after death. It is true that we are weak and sinful; we are also capable and strong. There is a clear difference between someone who completes his task, with errors (even serious errors), and someone who fundamentally errs in life.

We are all sinners, but there is a distinction between those who have sinned in life while fulfilling their task, and those who have only their sins to show.
You know, you can recognize the people who feel at home in the Kingdom, they are the ones who are ready to forgive. They are the people who feed and give drink to the hungry and thirsty, who welcome outcasts back into society, who clothe the naked and visit the sick and imprisoned. This difference between earthly kingdoms and that of Christ the King, between earthly subjects and gospel followers, is beautifully expressed in a verse written originally in Latin by John Chandler in the 19th Century: “Conquering kings their titles take from the foes they captive make: Though Jesus, by a nobler deed, takes his title from the thousands he has freed.”

Certainly Christ as Judge is not to be feared by those who understand the true nature of His Kingship. God’s promises in our first reading reassure us:
Thus says the Lord GOD:

I myself will look after and tend my sheep.
As a shepherd tends his flock
…I will rescue them from every place where they were scattered
...I myself will pasture my sheep;
I myself will give them rest… says the Lord GOD.
The lost I will seek out,
the strayed I will bring back,
the injured I will bind up,
the sick I will heal.

But we need to be His sheep, His flock, His lost, His strayed. His injured, His sick—under the Kingship of Jesus Christ. Is Christ really your King?
My brothers and sisters, I urge you to complete this sentence with me:

“If I truly believed in Christ is King I would __________________.” …Then—I would.

Christ and Culture

2011-11-18T14:11:00.000-08:00

HOMILY; TUESDAY OF THE 33RD WK. OT NOVEMBER 17, 2011 Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, religious

Christ and Culture

Richard Niebuhr was one of the most important Christian theological-ethicists of 20th century America. His brother Reinhold is perhaps best known in popular culture for having composed the Serenity Prayer. Richard is most known for his 1951 book Christ and Culture. In it, Niebuhr examined five possible responses of faith and the role of Christ and and Christians in contemporary culture, and he critiqued—pro and con—all five alternatives.

These were:

The Christ against Culture; an exclusivist position where the Christian culture rises in contrast to a dying pagan civilization.

The Christ of Culture; For the cultural Christian, history is the story of the Spirit’s encounter with nature or culture.

The Christ above Culture. Where history— Niebuhr uses culture and history interchangeably--is a period of preparation under law, reason, gospel, an ultimate communion of the soul with God.

The Christ and Culture in Paradox. A dualist position where history or culture is the time of struggle between faith and unbelief or a period between the giving of the promise of life and its fulfillment…and

The Christ Transforming Culture. For the conversionist, history is the story of God’s mighty deeds and humanity’s response to them. Conversionists live somewhat less “between the cultural times.”

Niebuhr was most attracted to The Christ transforming culture and I think that that is an ideal. At the same time, there are some aspects of contemporary culture that simply refuse to be transformed by Christ. It is at that point that we need to put Christ above culture, indeed, above anything that will not be transformed by him.

Today’s first reading is a narration of Mattathias’ refusal to be manipulated or intimidated into compromising his faith in the face forced apostasy and the blasphemies being committed in Judah and Jerusalem. His response?

"Although all the Gentiles in the king's realm obey him,
so that each forsakes the religion of his fathers
and consents to the king's orders,
yet I and my sons and my kin
will keep to the covenant of our fathers.
God forbid that we should forsake the law and the commandments.
We will not obey the words of the king
nor depart from our religion in the slightest degree."

Conflict between the demands of Christ and culture is neither new nor rare. From the early Christian martyrs of Rome to the Confessing Church of Nazi Germany, Christians have paid the price for rejecting the State's pretensions to supreme authority. Christians indeed have often been viewed as subversive of culture precisely because of their belief in a transcultural human destiny. As C. S. Lewis put it:
“There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations - these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.”

My brothers and sisters, our reading begs an examination of our own responses to the more negative aspects of contemporary culture, and how we bring the transformative power of Christ into the public square.

INVESTING FOR LIFE

2011-11-13T14:08:00.000-08:00

HOMILY; Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time NOVEMBER 13, 2011

(This homily will also be available on video here. Click on "prayer and Worship" then "This Week's Homily.")

Have you invested at all for the future? What is your investment savvy? What is your investment readiness? Financial experts tell us that at the bare minimum, three things are required for successful investing: A history of our past investment activity, an assessment of where we are now, goals and objectives that guide us where we want to be and a plan to get there. No responsible person would or should approach the investment of their money, time or talent without these minimal considerations taken into account.

Unfortunately, many of us are prepared to spend weeks and months planning an investment project and think the time both necessary and productive, and we may be right. But when it comes to our eternal salvation, or the salvation of others, we sometimes seem to drop our insistence on programming, the calculation of means, the measurement of results and to be satisfied with whatever is at hand to do the job—if we have the presence of mind to even consider that.
I’d like for us to consider this morning, how we are investing for life—that is the eternal life that we are all called to—in light of today’s readings, especially with respect to this parable of the talents.

“To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one--
to each according to his ability.
Then he went away.”

In ancient times in Greece, Rome and the Middle East, a talent, first of all, was a measure of weight - just as we have ounces, pounds, and tons. A talent was about fifty-eight pounds – quite a heavy weight.

But secondly, a talent was a unit of money. It was the value of a talent, a weight of gold or of silver. So you see that it was really a huge amount. One talent amounted to all that an ordinary working man could earn in three years. So, five talents was equivalent to fifteen years’ wages! The man in the parable was certainly generous in entrusting so much to his servants. And God, symbolized by this man, certainly has amazing confidence in all of us, entrusting His rich gifts to us to be used in His service, especially the gift of life. Think then of how weighty is our responsibility to God, to whom we have to give a strict accounting for how we have used His precious gift of life and all the resources He has given us for living that life well and fruitfully.

When teachers exhort their pupils to use or invest their talents well, they are saying to them, “If you wish to be successful in life, develop all your talents, cultivate your intelligence, your artistic skills, and all your native abilities of mind and heart and body. Use all these endowments in the best possible way. This, the teacher says to the students, is the way to success and happiness.

But is that all the Jesus is saying to us in the parable of the talents? Any pagan philosopher, such as Confucius, or Aristotle, or Plato would say the same to his disciples. Is that all that Jesus is saying? Is He merely saying, “If you wish to be happy, develop and use your talents well?” No. He is teaching something more profound.

The parable of the talents is really a story about the last judgment, and how to prepare to meet the Son of Man when He comes. He will come to require of us a full account of how we have lived our lives and invested the gifts he gave us. The parable tells us who will enter into the Lord’s own joy and glory, and who will be cast out into the exterior darkness—that is to say—the darkness of self-imposed, self willed, self-chosen separation from him who is eternal and perfect love and joy.
With that in mind, let’s look at some common errors of investment and their spiritual corollaries:

The first common error is Loss Aversion: it arises from the curious fact that a loss apparently is felt twice as much as a corresponding gain. My brothers and sisters, these are the paradoxes of our Christian faith:

• You have to give it away to keep it.
• You have to surrender to be victorious.
• You have to die to live.

There can be no loss aversion in our faith—we gain, only what we lose—and when we lose ourselves in Christ and in the sacrificial love of others, we found ourselves in the presence of God.

I’m reminded about a story of two investors—stock brokers actually. They’re in a bank, when, suddenly, armed robbers burst in, waving guns and yelling for everyone to freeze. While several of the robbers take the money from the tellers, others line the customers, including the two stock brokers, up against a wall, and proceed to take their wallets, watches, and other valuables. While this is going on, one of the stock brokers jams something into the other stockbroker's hand. Without looking down, the second stockbroker whispers: "What is this?" The first stockbroker : "It's the $100 I owe you!"

Selfishness, self-centeredness and ego have no place in the Christian life.
A second common error is called an extrapolation error: this is the mistake of blindly projecting into the future the pattern of the past, especially the most recent past. This error can consist of extending a negative trend.

Dwelling on past mistakes poison both the present and the future. We’ve all made mistakes, but the scriptures clearly tell us that, “If we confess our sins he is willing and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) Repent, confess and move on. If we don’t, we risk minimizing God’s investment in us—the death of his only son on the cross—for us.

Anchoring is where we all set a point of reference against which to make judgments, often whether we realize it or not. The problem occurs when we have the wrong anchor: other people’s opinions, buying into certain negative aspects of contemporary culture or anchoring our investments on the idea of profit for self—rather than for the kingdom of God.

A fourth common investment error is Nostalgia or too Rosy Retrospection - this error consists of shifting the blame for our portfolio losses to "the market" rather than our choice of investments. And on the positive side, we may take all the credit for good outcomes, whether or not that was true. This is true of the spiritual life as well. In the Christian life this can be translated as taking responsibility for our decisions and actions, while at the same time not taking exclusive credit for our successes. Humility—it is said—is the mother of all virtues because they facilitate all the other virtues.

Optimism Bias - is the forward-looking counterpart to rosy retrospection. Good outcomes are judged to be more likely than they merit while the possibility of bad outcomes is downplayed —even when we’re on the wrong path. In today’s second reading St Paul reminds us to be sober and alert:

“When people are saying, "Peace and security, "
then sudden disaster comes upon them,
like labor pains upon a pregnant woman,
and they will not escape.”

Then there’s the “Cheaper the Better” syndrome: The "cheaper is better" mentality weakens decision making capabilities and leads investors to dangerous assumptions and short cuts that only appear to be effective. There are no short cuts in the spiritual life either. St Thomas Aquinas famously made the distinction between “bonum in se,” or real goods in the spiritual life and “bonum utile,” or merely, apparent goods in the road back to God our creator. Accept no cheap imitation—in the spiritual life there are no short cuts or gimmicks that will provide instant success with minimum effort.

My brothers and sisters, the main focus of the parable of the talent is that in theis life, we are investing or preparing for the next. We are creatively investing for life—eternal life. We are not asked to be mere, passive functionaries; the Gospel passage obliges us to multiply what we have received, using all of our ingenuity, skill and hard work. The safest way to double your money is to fold it and put it in your pocket. The same is true of the Christian journey. The work of salvation, including our own—but not just our own—is to become the real and overriding concern of our lives.

The most valuable things in life are not measured in monetary terms. The really important things are not houses and lands, stocks and bonds, automobiles and real state, but friendships, trust, confidence, empathy, mercy, hope, faith and love.

LOOK BUSY?

2011-11-11T11:21:00.000-08:00

HOMILY; FRIDAY NOVEMBER 11, 2011

There’s an old joke about the second coming of Christ. The papal secretary bursts into the Pope’s office--for the record, none of the recent popes-- and says, “Your Holiness - Jesus has returned; he's out there in the Piazza San Pietro riding on a donkey and wowing the crowd.” And the Pope replies, “Quick, everybody - look busy.”

Look busy? We need to do quite a bit more than just “look busy.”
For the last couple of weeks we’ve had readings about preparing for the coming of Christ. We’ve read about the rich man’s steward: “Prepare a full account of your stewardship,” the master tells him.

This past Sunday, we heard the parable of the ten virgins, some of whom were prepared for the coming of the bridegroom, and some who were not. This coming Sunday we will hear the parable of the talents; those who were good stewards of the master’s possessions and those who were not. “Quick, everybody - look busy,” simply did not work in any of these stories, and it doesn’t work in today’s Gospel either.

"As it was in the days of Noah,
so it will be in the days of the Son of Man;
they were eating and drinking."

and,

“Eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we diet.” Similarly:
“Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot:
they were eating, drinking, buying,
selling, planting, building;
on the day when Lot left Sodom,
fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all.”

These readings are liturgically meant to prepare us— in our personal reflections—for both Advent and for the second coming of Christ. Our reflections though, must bring us to the ultimate question, “Am I ready for Christ’s return?”

If you are, then it should be an exciting, not a fearful anticipation. Waiting upon God has no more exciting task than to wait for Christ's return. A Christian was never meant to live on earth as if this was their total experience. Our lives here are like waiting for a bus. We have somewhere else to go. We have something else to do. Peter describes this 'waiting' by calling God's people aliens.

However, if you are not ready, remember: “Quick, everybody - look busy,” simply will not work. If we at any point have stopped eagerly waiting, it means that we are no longer anticipating His return. By not waiting essentially means that we can get along with what we have.

If we are, however, adequately prepared, we will hear those wonderful words that He has prepared for us since before the beginning of time: “Well done thou good and faith servant; enter into my joy.”

Why Eucharistic Adoration?

2011-11-04T14:04:00.000-07:00

by Fr. Robert Goedert, O.P.

I'm going to start with the second, or Vatican Council II. One of the many problems tackled by the Vatican Council was how to work for Christian unity, or how to heal the divisions in the church that Jesus established. This included the division between the east and west, the Catholic and the Orthodox that goes back over a thousand years and the more recent division between Catholic, Protestant and other religions that call themselves Christian.

In the Council's decree on ecumenism, the council tried to get Catholics to see how much we have in common with other Christian churches, to emphasize the beliefs we agree on rather than to concentrate exclusively on our differences in belief and practice. This was a good idea, but I think an unforeseen problem developed. With the effort to see what we believe together, there arose a tendency to water down Catholic beliefs, to dilute Catholic dogmas, to overlook differences, to pretend that they were not there in order to look friendly, more acceptable to non-Catholic Christians. The result, as many of us know was lukewarm Catholics. Catholics were saying things like: "it doesn't make any difference what you believe as long as you're sincere" or "as long as it makes you feel good". Some Catholics, seduced by self-declared theologians began to hold that there are no absolute truths. There's no right or wrong, black or white. Everything is gray. It can be anything you want it to be. Incidentally, when I refer to Catholics, I am not restricting it to just laity. With such an approach, that of `no-restrictions, no-obligation invitation', we should have expected to see a great flow of other Christians into the Catholic Church.

We did not see any such flow, but we did see a tremendous flow of Catholics out of the ranks of truly believing and practicing Catholics. We saw the tragic drop in Sunday Mass attendance, from over 75% to less than 25%. Something went drastically wrong.

It's still good for us Catholics to know what beliefs we hold to in common with other Christians, but now, it has become more urgent that we Catholics know how we are different; to recognize the treasures of faith that we have; treasures rejected or abandoned by other Christians. Today, we will concentrate on the principal Catholic belief that makes us Catholics different – different from the great majority of other Christians. That, of course, is our belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist.

We Catholics are different because we take Jesus Christ at His word. We believe that Jesus gave us His own body and blood in the special sacrament we call the Holy Eucharist. We Catholics actually believe that Jesus is really present in this sacrament! For us Catholics, the Holy Eucharist is not just a symbol. It is not just a memory. It is not just a promise. It is really Jesus Christ. The Holy Eucharist is not some ‘thing’. It is some ‘one’. It is Jesus, our Lord and our God. This is what we mean by the Catholic doctrine of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. This is why we call the Holy Eucharist "the Blessed Sacrament".

All the sacraments are blessed! All the sacraments give us the grace of Jesus but this sacrament gives us Jesus himself. This is what we Catholics believe.

Why do we believe this? Not because some theologians say so, not even because the Church says so. We believe this for only one reason, because Jesus Christ says so, and we believe Him.

Many who try to follow Jesus do not believe this, as we Catholics do. This fact should not surprise us any. Jesus had the same problem with some of His own disciples. When Jesus first told His own followers that He would give His body and blood as food and drink as spiritual nourishment for the soul, many of His followers – His disciples – would not accept that. They could not believe Him, so they left Him. Jesus did not try to call them back. He didn't say, "Now, wait a minute! You misunderstood me! I was only talking symbolically". No! He let them go. If they could not believe Him, they could not be His disciples. It was that simple.

Then Jesus asked His apostles if they wanted to leave Him too. He was ready to let His apostles go also. We know that Peter, speaking for the group said, "Lord, to whom should we go? We know that you only, have the words of eternal life".

The apostles took Jesus at His word, and we do too.

This sacrament of the Holy Eucharist comes to us through the sacrifice of the Holy Eucharist, the sacrifice of the Mass. This is evident because the Mass is the renewal of Jesus' death on the cross. In this sacrifice He gave up His human life, His physical body and blood, for our salvation. It was at the Last Supper that Jesus instituted the sacrament and sacrifice.

It was the night before He died. Jesus knew that He soon had to leave His friends. Friends He loved so much. He wanted to leave them something to remember Him by, but He did much better than that, He left Himself.

At the Last Supper, Jesus was looking ahead to the next day when He would die on the cross. This is why He said, "This is my body, which will be given up for you. This is my blood, which will be shed for you". Then He commanded "Do this in memory of me". We fulfill that command every day. As Jesus at the Last Supper was looking ahead to Calvary, so we in the sacrifice of the Mass, look back to Calvary.

This is why St. Paul could say: "When we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the death of the Lord". It's the same sacrifice on the cross and in the Mass – the same sacrifice.

Jesus chose this very special way to remain here with us. It was not just an empty promise when Jesus said, "I will be with you all days, even to the end of the world". He meant that! Jesus remains here with us today in the Mass as our Savior, in Holy Communion, as our spiritual food and in our tabernacle as our friend. Jesus died on the cross to give us this sacrament of His presence among us. This is the sacrament of Jesus' love for us.

I like the way Blessed Mother Teresa put it. She said, "When we look at the cross, we know how much Jesus loved us. When we look at the tabernacle, we know how much Jesus loves us now".

Some Catholics think, that we can share in the Eucharist and gain grace from the Eucharist only in the Mass by receiving Holy Communion. This idea limits the power and the love of Jesus too much. Certainly participation in the sacrifice of the Mass and receiving Holy Communion is the most powerful source of grace for us, but it is not the only source of Eucharistic grace. After the sacrifice is completed, the sacrament continues on. Jesus, in His sacramental body and blood remains here with us as our friend, just as He promised. This is why Eucharistic Adoration is so important.

This is why we should visit our friend, Jesus, in the Blessed Sacrament, to return His love for us and to draw spiritual strength and nourishment and encouragement from that love.

Unfortunately, there are many in the Church today who do not see the need or the value of Eucharistic Adoration. Some even oppose it, claiming that adoration of Our Lord in the Holy Eucharist is out of date in today's modern church

That's why it is so important for us today to realize that Eucharistic Adoration is very much in accord with the teachings of the Church, and especially of Vatican II.

One of the main points of Vatican II was to emphasize the importance of the Eucharistic liturgy in the worship of God and in the development of our own personal spiritual life. The Vatican council strongly advised us that the sacrifice of the Holy Eucharist, the Mass, should be the principal expression of our faith, and that all other devotions should spring from the Mass and leads us back to the Mass. Eucharistic Adoration does exactly that.

All experience shows that private prayer and adoration of our Lord in the Eucharist causes more frequent and more intense participation in the Mass.

Despite this teaching of Vatican II, about the Holy Eucharist, almost immediately after the Council, we began to see a steady tragic decline in respect for the Holy Eucharist. In some cases, the Mass seemed to be transformed from the worship of God to the entertainment of the people, then, to the worship of each other.

Reverence for the Blessed Sacrament diminished. Genuflections expressing our faith in the Real Presence of Jesus almost disappeared. Prayerful silence in our churches gave way to socializing.

For many, the church became a social hall instead of a sacred place for prayer and worship. The sacrifice of the Mass was often used as a vehicle for political statements. Eucharistic devotions were ridiculed as "old church", and almost disappeared from the Catholic scene. Today we have a generation or two of young Catholics who have never even seen benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Any document of Vatican II or any statement of the Church directed none of this decline. It's contrary to the faith and practice of the Church. This is why Pope John Paul has led the counterattack to restore the Holy Eucharist to its rightful place in the worship and spiritual life of the Church. Every year of his pontificate, Pope John Paul has written a pastoral letter about the Holy Eucharist to all the bishops and priests of the church. In these letters, the Holy Father demanded a stop to the abuses being committed against the Blessed Sacrament. He pleaded for a return to the reverence and traditions of the past, especially for the adoration of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. The Holy Father reinforced his words with action. In 1991, Pope John Paul began perpetual adoration of the Eucharist in St. Peter Basilica in Rome. In 1991, the Holy Father approved the canonical establishment of the lay association for perpetual Eucharistic adoration to promote adoration in every Catholic parish throughout the world. This is the lay association that I work for. Shortly after the Air Force retired me, this lay group recruited me and for the past twelve years they have been sending me to parishes all over our country to promote Eucharistic Adoration.

Listen to what the Holy Father says. Pope John Paul says this: "The Church and the world have a great need of Eucharistic worship". Jesus waits for us in this sacrament of love. Let us be generous with our time in going to meet Him in adoration. Notice how the Holy Father is asking you to be generous with your time. He is not asking for your money but something much more precious – your time.

A few years ago at the International Eucharistic Congress in Spain, the Holy Father in his remarks at the opening of the Congress said – first, he thanked all the parishes and people who had promoted adoration of the Eucharist in preparation for the International Eucharistic Congress. Then he prayed that such perpetual exposition and adoration of the Eucharist would be established in every Catholic Church throughout the world.

There is no question or doubt about where Pope John Paul stands with regard to adoration of the Holy Eucharist.

During these past twelve years I've been in parishes all over our country and beyond preaching on Eucharistic Adoration, often helping parishes start a program or helping them give a boost to a program already established. I've learned a lot. I've learned, particularly, of the great benefits from the people who participate in Eucharistic Adoration. They tell me what it's done for themselves and their families.

I've learned from pastors, too, about the growth of spirit and spiritual life in their parishes. They've told me about the increase in attendance at Mass on Sundays and weekdays, stronger marriages and happier families, and about the increase in vocations to the priesthood and religious life. One pastor told me that since his parish began perpetual Eucharistic adoration, his Sunday and weekday Mass attendance has doubled and the Sunday collection has tripled!

Of course I've also heard some objections to Eucharistic adoration. Some complain that Eucharistic adoration is too private, too personal and even too quiet. This complaint seems to be based on the idea that our worship of God must always, always be a community exercise. It must always involve a lot of people, with much activity and maybe even lots of noise. Prayer does not always have to be that way. Jesus himself showed us that. Look at the examples in the life of Jesus. Throughout His life as a good, practicing Jew, Jesus faithfully participated in the public worship of God by attending the services in the temple at Jerusalem, or in the local synagogues. Just as we assist at Sunday Mass, we are following the good example of Jesus, but Jesus also frequently went off by himself to pray – in the desert, up on the mountains, to be alone with his Father, to communicate with his Father privately to pray quietly, to worship, to thank, to ask for help and strength, especially before major events and decisions in His life. Jesus prayed in private for forty days in the desert before beginning His public ministry. Again, before he chose the twelve apostles, from among his disciples, Jesus spent the whole night in private prayer. The night before he died, Jesus prayed alone to his Father asking for the strength to bear the suffering that He knew that was coming to Him the next day. We should follow this example of Jesus also.

Another problem we often hear is the lack of time, especially with so much work to do for God and His people. Some ask, "Can we really justify the luxury of spending time in private prayer? Wouldn't it be better to spend that time, say, visiting the sick"? To answer that question, let me turn again to Blessed Mother Teresa. You can see I'm a great fan of Blessed Mother Teresa, but then who isn't? The whole world knows that Blessed Mother Teresa's sisters devote their lives to seeking out and caring for the most helpless and abandoned of the poor, the sick and the homeless. Most of the world knows and admires the work of Mother Teresa's sisters, but I doubt that many know about the prayer life of their community. Each day, before they go out into the streets to find the sick and the dying, Blessed Mother Teresa's sisters spend two to three hours in prayer, assisting at Mass and in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Once a well-meaning critic asked Blessed Mother Teresa how she could justify her sisters' spending so much time in private prayer instead of using that time to serve the sick and the poor. Blessed Mother Teresa replied, "If my sisters did not spend so much time in prayer, they could not serve the sick and the poor at all". Their prayer before the Holy Eucharist is the source of the strength and all that is needed to carry out their extremely difficult apostolate.

The love of God must be expressed and strengthened so that love of neighbor might flow from it.

One time when Blessed Mother Teresa was visiting in our country, a group of American women asked her what they could do to help her in her work. Blessed Mother Teresa replied, "The greatest help they could give her would be to spend one hour each week in silent adoration before the Blessed Sacrament". That is good advice for us too.

Sometimes those who object to Eucharistic adoration complain that adoration is too much "Jesus and I". They charge that adoration intends to be selfish, turning our thoughts and attention inward instead of reaching out to others. Again, an obvious response is to look at Blessed Mother Teresa's sisters and just to mention the time they spend in private prayer and adoration. I doubt that anyone can match their concern for their neighbor, especially for the most desperate of the abandoned. Who would dare to call their work selfish? Any pastor who has Eucharistic Adoration in his parish will testify that the regular adorers are among the most active members of his parish. From my own experience, preaching in many parishes, I know that active adorers are very often, also the most active pro-lifers in the parish. If we could get adoration going in every Catholic parish, perhaps we could at least get Catholics out of the business of killing babies.

In 1996, Pope John Paul wrote a letter commemorating the 400th anniversary of the Forty Hours devotion. He wrote this: "Closeness to the Eucharistic Christ in silence and contemplation does not distance us from our contemporaries but on the contrary, it makes us open to human joy and distress, broadening our hearts on a global scale. Anyone who prays to the Eucharistic Savior draws the whole world with him and raises it to God". Obviously, there is nothing selfish about Eucharistic Adoration.

Some of the mistakes about Adoration and all other personal devotions and private prayer, I think, are rooted in a misreading and misunderstanding of Vatican II.

One of the main thrusts of Vatican II was its emphasis on the social nature of man, and consequently of the church. Man is a social being. He lives in a community – the family, parish, city, nation, and world. The church, too, is social. In the "Constitution of the Church in the Modern World", Vatican II declared that the role of the church is not to oppose the world, not to conquer the world but to work with the world to improve it. Carrying this social concept into the realm of worship, Vatican II issued the Constitution on the Liturgy, emphasizing the social and community nature of the worship of God.

This document with the subsequent decrees implementing it directed the changes, which were probably the most visible results of Vatican II, had the greatest impact on the everyday Catholic. These changes were all aimed at a greater understanding and participation in the liturgy by the faithful. Community participation has always been the ideal but it was not easily accomplished. Despite the difficulties in the early days after Vatican II, I think we can say that now, the social nature of the worship of God and community participation in the liturgy is generally acceptable.

With participation in the liturgy and the emphasis on the Mass as community worship, a new problem has arisen, an unfortunate side effect. Some Catholics now have the idea that there is no longer any need for personal, private prayer. Even at non-liturgical devotions such as the Rosary, Stations of the Cross, Novenas, and Benediction, that all these are now obsolete. Some even go so far as to say that such devotions are discouraged and even forbidden by Vatican II and that's utter nonsense.

There is nothing in Vatican II that supports any of these ideas. In fact, the Council said just the opposite. In the Constitution on the Liturgy, the Council says: "The spiritual life is not limited solely to participation in the liturgy. The Christian is indeed called to pray with his brethren but he must also pray to the Father in private". Long before Vatican II, we had the words and example of Jesus himself attesting to this need. Jesus constantly exhorted his followers to pray. As I mentioned earlier, He often went off by Himself in the desert or up on the mountain to pray. We always have a need for personal communication with God. No matter how much community prayer we have, no matter how good the participation is, we all still need personal communication with God, which can be achieved only through personal prayer. Personal prayer is needed for its own sake as well as for the sake of liturgical community worship. Community worship depends on personal prayer. Trying to build community prayer without personal prayer is like trying to build a brick church without the individual bricks. Proper participation of liturgical worship (community prayer) can be achieved only by a soul prepared and energized by personal devotion and private prayer. Those who habitually criticize the past and old ways often charge that Catholics at Mass concentrated on externals. But too often today, participation in the sacrifice of the Mass is just that, concentration on externals – music, banners, symbols, and novelties with no apparent realization of the great mystery and sacrifice being re-enacted at the altar. That realization only comes with personal prayer and meditation.

External worship, no matter how beautiful, is hollow, if not animated by internal worship. That's why community prayer needs and depends on personal prayer.

Personal prayer is needed for its own sake, also. It is true that man is a social being. He must live and worship as a member of the community, but first, as an individual. There are certain activities of his life that man must do himself, for himself. I think there is an apt analogy between the physical life of man and his spiritual life, between the needs of his body and the needs of his soul. The human body needs food, air and rest to remain alive. Each human being, to maintain normal human life has to supply these needs himself. No one can eat, breathe or sleep for you. You've got to do it yourself! Without the proper physical nourishment of food, air and rest, no man or woman can carry on physical activity and growth. The undernourished individual cannot fulfill his role in the community as a social being.

The same thing applies to the spiritual life. The soul needs the spiritual food of the Eucharist, the spiritual rest of meditation and the spiritual air of prayer. Without this proper spiritual nourishment the human soul cannot mature and flourish spiritually as an individual and consequently cannot fulfill his role in worshipping God as a member of the community. The individual can go through the motions of public prayers, singing, standing and kneeling, but it is only external worship. Missing is internal worship which results only from personal communication with God. Just as air is essential to physical life, so prayer is essential to spiritual life. When you stop breathing, you are dead physically. When you stop praying, you are dead spiritually.

Some of you might be wondering why I'm making such a big issue of this, why I think it is so important to be talking on this subject now. After all, the doctrine of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist has been the heart of our Catholic faith, devotion and worship from the very beginning of Christianity. But, we all know also, the current symptoms in the church tell us it's time again to do some serious thinking about this farewell gift that Jesus gave to us. We're all familiar with the surveys conducted a few years ago that seem to lead to the conclusion that only about twenty-seven percent, I think it was, twenty-seven percent of Catholics believe in the Real Presence as the Church teaches it.

Personally, I think that the observers interpreted the result of that survey a little bit wrong. I don't think that it was only twenty-seven percent believed; it might have been only twenty-seven percent knew the teaching of the Church. That's our big problem, a case of simple lack of knowledge. Most of these Catholics just do not know what they believe, or what they as, Catholics should believe. They simply have not been taught the Catholic faith. Look at the condition of Catholic education for the past thirty-five years. Fortunately the Catholic bishops have finally realized that it is a disaster. Most a few years ago, the Archbishop who headed the commission on education publicly declared that the Catholic religious education is a shambles and had been that way for at least thirty years. The result is two or three generations of young Catholics who know virtually nothing about their faith. They do not know what they believe or why they believe. The older generations have heard very little to reinforce what they have learned in their youth. Obviously, we have a lot of re-educating to do.

One final area must be considered. Spending time with Jesus in adoration should not strike us as unusual. It is really a very natural human activity. When two people love each other, they want to spend time together to visit, to get to know each other better. You cannot love someone you do not know. Adoration of our Lord in the Eucharist is your chance to know Jesus better.

One of the best aspects of Eucharistic adoration is this: how you spend your time with Jesus is entirely up to you. There is no one preaching to you, reading to you, telling you when to stand, sit, kneel, sing this or whatever. You are on your own. In most adoration chapels there are books available, some holy hour books, to help you get started if you need them. Most of us do at times but you're basically on your own. You spend your time with Jesus any way you want. You can pray your Rosary, you can read your Bible, or you can do some other spiritual reading. But I always say: remember, you are there to visit with your friend, Jesus. Talk with Him; tell Him your problems, your needs or your concerns. Tell Him about your joys, too. Chances are He doesn't hear about those very often! Sometimes I think all Jesus hears from a lot of us is the complaints and the "gimmes". Lord, gimme this and Lord gimme that. But most important, is to stop and listen, let Jesus do some of the talking. He's been waiting for a chance to visit with you, but your life is so busy with work, family and school, your line is always busy. Jesus can't get through to you. It's time to give yourself a break. Take a little time out for a private visit with your best friend, Jesus. The whole purpose of our human existence is to live forever with the Blessed Trinity in heaven, to enjoy forever, the victory of Jesus over sin and death. We get a foretaste of that eternal happiness and peace when we visit and adore Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

This is why thousands of people from all across our country will testify that one hour each week with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is the most peaceful, the most satisfying hour of their whole week.

So finally we go back to our subject entitled: "Why Eucharistic Adoration"? Why should you spend time visiting with Jesus in the Eucharist, simply because Jesus himself, your best friend, invites you. He said it so warmly, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened. Come to me and I will refresh you". Who could refuse such an invitation from your very best friend? God Bless You.

X Marks the Spot

2011-10-28T08:25:00.000-07:00

Homily; St. Gabriel’s Catholic School, Children’s Mass October 27, 2011

X Marks the Spot

A couple of months ago, I had put a few dollars in a jacket pocket for safekeeping. I completely forgot about it. Then a couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to wear that jacket, and was happy to find twenty dollars that I didn’t remember I had. It was like finding a lost treasure. A small one, but a treasure nonetheless.

But if I had left it there, eventually, I would have taken that jacket to the cleaners and the chemicals of the dry-cleaning process would have destroyed that money. Everything that’s material will eventually erode and disappear—that’s one of the laws of physics. But our first reading tells us that, “God has something stored up for you in heaven, where it will never decay or be ruined or disappear.” That’s eternal life with perfect happiness, with God who is love, forever. That’s really something to rejoice about.

But there’s one thing we need to remember: and that is that "X marks the spot."
There was a time, when someone who had something of great value would often bury their treasure so that no one could find it and take it away. Of course, there was always the risk that one might forget where their treasure was buried, like me and the twenty dollars in my jacket, so to make sure that they would remember where it was, they would often make a map. Usually they would mark the spot where the treasure was with an "X" on the map. That is where we get the expression, "X marks the spot."

Have you ever dreamed of finding an old map and following it to a spot where a pirate had buried a chest full of glittering gold? I want to tell you about a treasure that is more valuable than a chest full of gold -- and I will even tell you how to find it.

Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is like what happens when someone finds a treasure hidden in a field and buries it again. A person like that is happy and goes and sells everything in order to buy that field.”

If you would like to find the treasure that Jesus was talking about, all you have to do is remember that "X marks the spot." (Hold up the cross at an angle so that it looks like the letter x.) Jesus died on the cross so that you and I could enter into the kingdom of heaven. When you look to the cross and put your trust in Jesus, the treasure will be yours.

So remember, when you’re sad, or scared, or frustrated; when you’re not sure what direction to go; when you are doubtful or unsure, look at the cross and imagine it on its side to see the X. That X, the cross of Jesus is the greatest treasure in the entire universe, and when you trust in Jesus, you will never be disappointed.
To be with Jesus, in this life and the next, is the greatest treasure one could ever want. It is more precious than silver, gold, or jewels. That is why Jesus calls us to give up all that we have and follow him.

Dear Jesus, nothing we have can compare to life in the kingdom of heaven. Help us to place our trust in you, so that we may find that priceless treasure. Amen.

Thoughts and Afterthoughts: 10.27.11

2011-10-27T20:24:00.001-07:00

• In an editorial in the Jesuit magazine America, the editors point out that the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate ( CARA at Georgetown University) has found that 77% of Catholics have not heard of the upcoming changes in the Mass. It’s not very consoling to know that only 23% of Catholics (the rest) are actually attending weekly Mass

• Cain’s unorthodox web ad.

• Survey: Religious identity slips among U.S. Catholics: One in four Americans call themselves Catholic, but a survey released Monday finds this is more a cultural brand label for many than a religious identity.

• Religious liberty threatened in America, Archbishop Gomez warns

• Benedict XVI has named Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington, D.C., as the relator-general for next year's synod of bishops on new evangelization. A much needed synod and a very qualified appointee.

• …and another great appointment: St. Joseph hailed as model for upcoming 'Year of Faith.'

• Quote of the Week:

“If Christianity is true, then it does not have a point other than to point to God who is the point of everything. If one asks about the point of doing anything, then ultimately, if one pushes the question far enough and it is a serious enough matter, then one will come to the point of everything, the ultimate goal and purpose for our lives, and that is what religion is all about. A religion that tries to market itself as useful for some other purpose—because it helps you live a stable life, because it gets rid of stress or makes you wealthy—is shooting itself in the foot. If it has to justify itself by serving some other end, then it cannot be a religion that one could take seriously. The point of religion is to point us to God who is the point of everything. That is why it makes no sense to ask whether belief in God is ‘relevant’ because God is the measure of all relevance.”

- Fr. Timothy Radcliffe, OP. Former Master General of The Dominican Order of Preachers in his book: What is the Point of Being a Christian?

• Pat Robertson of the 700 Club has become quite the embarrassment to Evangelicals. A few weeks ago he stated that Christians could and possibly should divorce if their spouse contracts Alzheimer’s disease. A week or so ago he claimed that the animals that escaped from an Ohio zoo were cited in the Book of Revelation which made explicit reference to “escaped lions, tigers and bears running around Ohio biting gay people” as a prelude to the Rapture. The televangelist also contradicted local officials who had warned Zanesville residents to remain indoors until the all the animals had been accounted for: “Really, those animals won’t bite you unless you’re gay.” This week he criticized the Republican presidential candidates for being too “extreme.” Really?

• I recommend this book to, well, everybody: Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade, SJ: Abandon Yourself to this Book, “Abandonment to Divine Providence.”

• Fundamentalism and the Abandonment of Reason

• Russell Saltzman on “Weird Weddings; Funny Funerals.”
“Oh, I think I’ve mentioned before the pregnant bride who wanted Yummy, Yummy, Yummy, I Got Love in My Tummy as a wedding solo. I did refuse that request despite such affecting lyrics as:

Yummy, yummy, yummy,
I got love in my tummy
And as silly as it may seem
The lovin’ that you’re giving
Is what keeps me livin’
And your love is like peaches and cream.

It was hard, I will admit, to argue against it.”
The comments will crack you up as well.

• Stephen Barr, a member of the FIRST THINGS editorial board and resident physics expert, was recently on EWTN to discuss his book, Modern Physics and Ancient Faith, and the myth that the Christian faith is hostile to science.

An Eternal Multi-Level Marketing Plan

2011-10-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

HOMILY. OCTOBER 23, 2011 Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

An Eternal Multi-Level Marketing Plan

Many of you may be familiar with multi-level marketing plans and organizations. They are the kind of organizations that sell their products by recruiting their customers to become agents, and their customers become agents, and their customers become agents and so on. It’s in a sense, a pyramid. I know that word has negative connotations because of the various financial ponzi schemes but it is a sound marketing strategy. Perhaps you know or have been involved in some of these organizations that have used this tactic successfully: Shaklee, Avon, A.L. Williams and Herba-Life immediately come to mind.

There is a much more ancient and very successful multi-level effort that attracted a lot of attention around the year 33 AD, and it was started by the Jesus, Our Lord. He chose twelve who he mentored for three years in a sort of on-the-job-training program. And when he was finished, he sent them out into the world; he gave them—at the moment of his ascension—what is known as the great commission:

“Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; …. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:16-20
And so they did what Jesus had told them, and what Jesus had taught them. How successful were they?

They went out and evangelized, and they—by the power of the Holy Spirit—brought in new disciples, who made more disciples, who made more disciples, until Christianity had spread, despite terrible persecutions though the Greek and Arab worlds, into the Mediterranean Basin covering portions of three continents, Europe, Asia, and Africa, and then throughout the entire known world. How did they do it? Our second reading gives us a snapshot that not only gives us a history of how it happened, it also portends some responsibilities for us as well.

Let’s look at the sequence:

First, Jesus provides a model; a standard for the Christian life that the apostles and disciples imitated. “You know what sort of people we were among you for your sake,” says Paul. They were, as Jesus exhorts in our Gospel, loving God with all their hearts, minds and souls, and their neighbors as themselves. It’s a lifestyle that of necessity attracts because love always attracts—it never repels. When Jesus said, “I will make you fishers of men,” he meant that we are to be the bait. So then a curious thing happens. The Thessalonians became models themselves. St. Paul says to them: “...you became imitators of us and of the Lord... you became a model for all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has gone forth.”

They did the opposite of what the rest of the world was doing: They did not molest or oppress an alien. They did not take advantage of widows, they did not profit from others, they did not engage in extortion: they engaged in compassion, love and mercy.

There are several implications for us

First, as I never tire of mentioning, the Church exists to evangelize: it is the primary reason for her existence. Pope Paul VI’s encyclical Evangelii Nuntianti, or On Evangelization in the Modern World makes clear:

"We wish to confirm once more that the task of evangelizing all people constitutes the essential mission of the Church. It is a task and mission which the vast and profound changes of present-day society make all the more urgent. Evangelizing is in fact the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize, that is to say, in order to preach and teach, to be the channel of the gift of grace, to reconcile sinners with God…”

“…to evangelize is first of all to bear witness, in a simple and direct way, to God revealed by Jesus Christ, in the Holy Spirit, to bear witness that in His Son God has loved the world. Thus it is the whole Church that receives the mission to evangelize, and the work of each individual member is important for the whole…Moreover, the Good News of the kingdom which is coming-- and which has begun --is meant for all people of all times. Those who have received the Good News and who have been gathered by it into the community of salvation can and must communicate and spread it.”

So here’s the recipe:
1. Be imitators of Christ.
2. Invite others to a relationship with Christ through the sharing of your faith.
3. Help equip them to be evangelizers as well.
4. And live what you proclaim:

Feed the hungry; Give drink to the thirsty; clothe the naked; harbor the harborless; Visit the sick; Ransom the captive; and bury the dead. These are the corporal works of mercy that must accompany the proclamation of the Gospel. Indeed, they are an integral part of the proclamation of the Gospel.

The Call of Christ to his followers is to, "Go and make disciples of all nations..." This divine mandate from our Lord Jesus has been, thankfully, re-emphasized in the Catholic Churchsince Second Vatican Council. Pope John Paul II and now Benedict XVI have consistently called all Christians to join in what he calls a "new evangelization and mission to the nations." A call that “no believer or institution of the Church is exempt from proclaiming Christ to all people." (Mission of the Redeemer, 3)

I am thrilled that in our own parish, so many men have taken this call to heart, especially the ACTS Retreat leadership team and the ACTS retreatants who have deepened their faith and commitment these past four days. It was a privileged, humbling and inspiring experience to have journeyed with them these past four days as they offered themselves to God and to a deeper understanding and commitment to their relationship with the risen Christ.

United for the faith among ourselves we can more easily share the faith with others. And given our fallen human nature, the call to conversion at the heart of the Gospel will only be heard if it is made with love for the one who has not yet adequately accepted the faith. Since no Christian evangelizer preaches himself or herself, and we are all also in constant need of conversion, the call to conversion must be made with humility and with goodwill and respect for the dignity of those in need of conversion and we, are always counted among them.

READING 1 EX 22:20-26
Thus says the LORD:
"You shall not molest or oppress an alien,
for you were once aliens yourselves in the land of Egypt.
You shall not wrong any widow or orphan.
If ever you wrong them and they cry out to me,
I will surely hear their cry.
My wrath will flare up, and I will kill you with the sword;
then your own wives will be widows, and your children orphans.

"If you lend money to one of your poor neighbors among my people,
you shall not act like an extortioner toward him
by demanding interest from him.
If you take your neighbor's cloak as a pledge,
you shall return it to him before sunset;
for this cloak of his is the only covering he has for his body.
What else has he to sleep in?
If he cries out to me, I will hear him; for I am compassionate."
RESPONSORIAL PSALM PS 18:2-3, 3-4, 47, 51
R. (2) I love you, Lord, my strength.
I love you, O LORD, my strength,
O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
My God, my rock of refuge,
my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!
Praised be the LORD, I exclaim,
and I am safe from my enemies.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
The LORD lives and blessed be my rock!
Extolled be God my savior.
You who gave great victories to your king
and showed kindness to your anointed.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
READING 2 1 THES 1:5C-10
Brothers and sisters:
You know what sort of people we were among you for your sake.
And you became imitators of us and of the Lord,
receiving the word in great affliction, with joy from the Holy Spirit,
so that you became a model for all the believers
in Macedonia and in Achaia.
For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth
not only in Macedonia and in Achaia,
but in every place your faith in God has gone forth,
so that we have no need to say anything.
For they themselves openly declare about us
what sort of reception we had among you,
and how you turned to God from idols
to serve the living and true God
and to await his Son from heaven,
whom he raised from the dead,
Jesus, who delivers us from the coming wrath.
GOSPEL MT 22:34-40
When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together, and one of them,
a scholar of the law tested him by asking,
"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"
He said to him,
"You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your soul,
and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments."

Thoughts and Afterthoughts: 10.10.11

2011-10-10T13:38:00.000-07:00

• Pepper spray, batons, police, protests. That’s the stuff of the OccupyWallStreet (with which on some issues, i.e. corporate bailouts I am in sympathy) which is spreading to major metropolitan areas. It came to Austin, TX right in front of the capitol. The whole thing turned into one big dance party. The police were pleased. The politicians were pleased. I laughed my “head” off.

• Speaking of Occupation, see: “Religion and Occupy Wall Street” as well as “Advice for Occupy Wall Street: Think Smaller.”

• I don’t have anything against trick-or-treating. It is has become a cultural event devoid of its original nefarious origins. Still, see: “Halloween Trappings Can Trigger Asthma, Allergies.” Besides, aren’t there things we can do that night for All Souls Day, or the vigil for All Saints Day? I’m almost certain that that wouldn’t “Trigger Asthma, Allergies.”

• “The Wealth and Health of Nations:” A report released this week from the Social Trends Institute: "What Do Marriage & Fertility Have to Do with the Economy?", is all the more timely considering the latest efforts of Zlotnik and her colleagues in their resolve to implement population management programs.

• “Tamping down” the Fr. Pavone controversy.

• “ARCHBISHOP DOLAN ASKS NATION’S CLERGY TO PREACH ON POVERTY, EDUCATE AND ADVOCATE FOR POOR AND JOBLESS.” SEE HIS EXCELLENT LETTER TO ALL US BISHOPS HERE.

• “Mormonism takes center stage at conservative event.” Should it matter that two of the Republican candidates are Mormons? Or that one of them might become president. We Catholics have been there, so I have to respectfully disagree with our Evangelical friends. And should it matter that the article was run by the Washington post which is owned by the Rev. Sung Myung Moon and the “Moonies.” Not a lick.

• “Food Crisis grips North Korea.” I don’t mean to be flip, and we should pray for a solution and for the people. But a food crisis in a communist country? Say it isn’t so. Cuba’s Castro has been blaming drought for fifty years. The reality is that communism doesn’t work as an economic system and distribution systems is not part of the communist skill-set.

• Maternal health group denied funding over Catholic beliefs. Expect more of this.

• Joshua Mercer: Religious liberty isn't just about the freedom to go to Mass every Sunday.

• “Pittsburgh bishop calls accusation made against him 'false, offensive'”: Bishop Zubik said every priest fears "someone, sometime, somewhere, somehow will level a false accusation against him. That nightmare has been realized for me."

• Bishops reissue 2007's 'Faithful Citizenship' with new introduction : A new introduction to the U.S. bishops' document on political responsibility reminds Catholics that some issues "involve the clear obligation to oppose intrinsic evils which can never be justified," while others "require action to pursue justice and promote the common good."

• Medieval IT Support

• Jeffery Vaughn (First Things) speculates on how Americans will receive the new Mass translation. “A New Translation and an Old Fight.”

• This slide was included in a Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) training presentation at a state university.

“Khalilah is a Muslim, and Janice is a Catholic. One day, Khalilah loses her favorite ring. Janice grabs Khalilah’s hands, bows her head, and starts praying to St. Anthony, the patron saint of lost things. Khalilah pulls her hands back and reminds Janice that she is a Muslim. Janice gets upset, tells Khalilah that she will never find her ring because she is a heathen, and storms off. Over the next couple of weeks, Janice stops by Khalilah’s desk over and over again to ask if she found her ring. When Khalilah said that she had not, Janice would smirk and tell her it is because she refuses to pray to St. Anthony. As a new employee, Khalilah is scared to mention anything to her supervisor, because she knows her supervisor is also Catholic.”

Yeah, why do Catholics always grab your hand and start praying to St. Anthony when you lose something? I mean, this happens all the time, right? It ain’t just happening in fictional situation with Muslims, is it? (It couldn’t be, otherwise the EEOC would have used a more relevant example.

The Heavenly Banquet

2011-10-09T19:15:00.000-07:00

HOMILY, OCTOBER 9, 2011, Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Were you invited to the Presidential inauguration ball? I wasn’t either. How about the recent wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton? I didn’t get that one either. I must say though. I am very popular so I do get a lot of invitations in the mail. I get invitations to send money to various charities daily. Visa and MasterCard invite me to send them money each and every month. I like receiving party invitations though. Everyone loves a party.

We just love to get together. Anytime we have something to celebrate, out comes the food. We have wedding banquets and we have birthday parties. We have intimate candlelight meals with our wife, or with our fiancée. We go out to lunch when we want to chat with a friend. We invite people to dinner because we enjoy their friendship. We even eat together at times of sadness, like funerals. Thus, we express our solidarity and our support for our friends in times of sorrow.

God knows very well that we love to have meals together to celebrate friendship, so in the Bible again and again He uses the image of a great meal together to symbolize the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is like a great dinner celebrating the friendship between God and His people.

God is saying in today’s readings, “Come, celebrate friendship with me! Listen to the secrets of my heart!” At the Last Supper, His final meal together with His disciples, Jesus said, “No longer do I call you servants…I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.” (Jn 15:15)
In the first reading today, from Isaiah, God is saying, “I want friendship with you; I want to celebrate life with you!” “On this mountain, the Lord of hosts will provide for all peoples a feast of rich food and choice wines.” (Isa 25: 6) So that the joy of our friendship with Him will be complete, in His compassion and by His power He will destroy death forever; He will wipe away the tears from all faces. The prophet Isaiah speaks of the abundant providence of the Lord of hosts for all peoples.

The Lord offers us companionship. The history of that word, companionship, teaches us that food is the fuel of relationships. The word “companion”, from the Latin com “with” and panis “bread”, reminds us that food — and the brief respite allotted to people throughout history for sharing meals — feeds more than the physical body; it also nourishes generosity and friendship. To eat with someone implies a level of comfort with that person — a sense of security that mitigates the primordial fear that our provisions will be stolen from under our noses. Stolen from under our noses? Not with God.

Our familiar Psalm—the twenty-fourth Psalm—reinforces the prophet:

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want...
You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.”

In the Gospel, we find Jesus lamenting because so many of the people invited to the feast, a feast fit for a king, are reluctant to come to a wedding dinner for His Son, the Son of God, come to marry His bride, the Church. Why? Because they are too busy. One has to go tend to the farm. Another has to go tend to his business. There really is little time for companionship with God. There are oh so many things to do, places to go, people to see, horizons to conquer. Ring a bell? My brothers and sisters, if the shoe fits wear it. But outgrow it.

As originally told by Jesus the parable of the wedding feast dealt with the rejection of Jesus by his own people, the people of Israel. But it is recorded in the Gospel and read aloud in the liturgy because it also refers to us today. How do we refuse friendship and companionship with God? We do sometimes don’t we?

Reliable statistics show that over sixty percent of the people who claim they are Catholics are very indifferent about the Eucharist, the sacred banquet to which Christ invites them. Over sixty percent of our people think so little of the Eucharist that they will miss Sunday Mass at the drop of a hat. There is something wrong with us when we find no joy in celebrating with God and his people.

Jesus offers us an invitation so much greater than an invitation to an earthly wedding. He invites us to the ultimate, royal wedding, the wedding feast of the Lamb. But there’s a catch right? There’s always a catch right? Well—yes there is. You must be properly attired.

Let me give you a couple of suggestions regarding the dress code. Paul writes in Ephesians:

“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."

An elderly woman rushed up the stairs to the church, late for the wedding. An usher asked to see her invitation. “I don’t have one,” she said. “Well then, are you a friend of the groom?” “I should say not,” snapped the woman, “I’m the bride’s mother.” See, she wasn’t properly attired because of the resentment that she had against her future son-in-law.

The other dress code suggestions—also from St. Paul:

Colossians (3:12) “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

Romans (13:14) Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the world.”

You have no wedding garment, if you are not clothed with the good works of love and kindness, compassion, generosity, you just wouldn’t fit in at the heavenly banquet. Do we need to be perfect? Of course not Yet, the Gospel reminds us that—while we are invited to the banquet, a banquet that by the way was paid for at a very high cost, the outstretched arms of Jesus on a cross, there is a necessary correspondence on our part in good deeds if we are to be found worthy of God’s presence. Conversion, if it is real, is not only a mental, notional turning towards God, but is also, necessarily, the source of action in our lives. Only the truth that touches our wanting bears the proper fruits of conversion, good deeds.

These are not isolated good deeds, as if we could segment and confine our experience of God to certain areas of our lives. God can only be loved with a whole heart and a whole mind, and it is only this type of conversion that enables us to live, and to want to live, the demands of the Gospel. As in the case of the guest found to be unworthy, it is our actions that reveal the degree of real conversion of our lives to God.

When you experience the joy of celebrating your friendship with God in the Eucharist, then you, like St. Paul, will be serene and happy even in the midst of life’s daily difficulties.

Paul says from prison, “I know how to suffer want and how to enjoy abundance. I know how to be brought low and how to have plenty: Whether I have or have not, I am perfectly at peace. For my great treasure is God. For me to live is Christ, to die is gain.”(Phil 2:21) “I can do all things in Him who gives me strength.”(Phil 4:13)

So, my brothers and sisters, let us fully accept and respond to God’s invitation to love, share as often as possible in the Eucharistic wedding banquet, and continually be empowered and transformed in love, and we will be able to say with our Psalmist:

“Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
forever.”

Naming Grace

2011-10-07T19:04:00.000-07:00

HOMILY, FRI. OCTOBER 7, 2011 Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary

Readers of the gospels experience no surprise when hearing of the opposition which Jesus encounters, even in the face of his healing miracles; it’s a rather common theme. However, the extent to which his opposition will go to deny his divine origins seems to reach a kind of highpoint in today’s passage from Luke. To the absurd accusation, “By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he drives out demons” Jesus responds with an unmasking of this senseless opposition while also revealing the heart of that opposition.

Jesus first demonstrates, with logic, that the accusation defies common sense. His accusers were being passionately irrational: no power opposed to God will attack itself! It’s as if Jesus is telling the crowd, “think, think, think about what you’re saying here.” Second, he challenges his accusers by reminding them of the tradition of exorcism in Israel: “. . . . by whom do your own people drive [demons] out?”

Finally, he moves to the focal point of their opposition: the refusal to acknowledge, in the person and teaching of Jesus, the Kingdom of God, capable of destroying Satan’s power and working in the world...The world in which we live proclaims boldly and defends loudly the separation of the secular from the religious. We are familiar with opposition to any acknowledgement of the intervention of the Kingdom of God in daily events. This is the crux of the problem with the people attacking Jesus. That Jesus, being only human, cannot intervene in human affairs and events; even the most severe ones.

However, even among believers, doubts about God’s nearness can mix all too easily with statements of faith. In the face of this world’s darkness, believers sometimes wonder about this Kingdom of God and its power and lose hope.
Certainly, those who witnessed the crucifixion of Jesus must have thought similar thoughts.

Those early believers, however, learned to trust that the cross of Jesus was the sign that the Kingdom of God need not be separated from earthly events, no matter how tragic. The gospel invites us today to pray for the faith that sees that trusts in the power of the Kingdom among us, in the power of Jesus, of the Father and of the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit.

My brothers and sisters, think, think, and think with both the intellect God gave you but also with the eyes of faith: the Kingdom of God has come upon you.
However much God is doing in your life right now, he can do so much more when we avoid doubts about God’s nearness.

I challenge you to a special exercise today, this week. Name the grace. Be vigilant throughout the day and take the time to see and trust God’s power today; at work, in prayer, in relationships, in the marketplace or wherever you may find yourself. I promise, you will see it if you try. And pray, Holy Mary, Mother of God and Our Lady of the Rosary; pray for us, and show us today, the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.

Completing the House of the Lord

2011-09-20T07:55:00.000-07:00

HOMILY, TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 20, 2011

Completing the House of the Lord

In our reading from Ezekiel, we see the Hebrew people returning from exile, seeing the temple built and participating in the life of the temple by offering sacrifices and celebrating the Passover. For the work on the house of God to be completed there must be three elements. They must build the building, make the sacrifices, and celebrate the Passover (Ezr 6:14, 17, 19). We have usually been successful in physically building the building. We have met in homes, built parish churches, and even erected cathedrals. This parish church started out in an old movie theater that is now a Chinese buffet. How far we have come.

Let’s look at a couple elements of building and maintaining God’s House.
First, there’s sacrifice: we know longer have to offer, thank goodness, rams, bulls and he-goats anymore (wouldn’t that be a literal circus) for our God has offered a once-and-for-all sacrifice for our sins. Still, there are sacrifices to be made; sacrifices of money, time and talent to help keep God’s house and God’s people continually proclaiming the Gospel and the Kingdom. There are the sacrifices of prayer and praise, the sacrifice of our bodies and minds, and of, ultimately, of our very lives. There’s a cost to redemption. He died so that we might live. Our sacrifice is that we must now also die—to ourselves—so that we may live with him forever and bring others into the kingdom with us.

Then there’s the Passover. Our Passover is the Christ event and our Passover meal is the Eucharist. St. Augustine says that, “"Recognize in this bread what hung on the cross, and in this chalice what flowed from His side... whatever was in many and varied ways announced beforehand in the sacrifices of the Old Testament pertains to this one sacrifice which is revealed in the New Testament." God’s house is a place where the Passover of the Eucharist is celebrated daily, frequented by the faithful often, and received worthily.

Lastly we need sacramental ministers. In our reading these were the Levites and priests. In many parts of the country churches are closing because of a lack of priests, and many priests, especially in rural areas are pastoring multiple parishes. My brothers and sisters, we not only need to pray for vocations, but we also need to encourage them within our own families. And we need to pray for priests who are continually run down by the demands of ministry and by the media, and an increasingly anti-Catholic stream in the popular culture.
We also need lay leaders in the Church: religious education teachers, extraordinary Eucharistic ministers, scripture group leaders, small faith group leaders, retreat leaders and lectors, just to name a few.

In our Gospel, Jesus says, “"My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it." And in other places he adds, “joyfully.” Joy in the church and in Christ is the sign of a mature Christian. How can we not be overjoyed when we can meet Jesus, in person, everyday in his house.

“Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord. I rejoiced because they said to me,"We will go up to the house of the LORD." My brothers and sisters, this is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it, especially in the house of our Lord.

Bioethics: Prenatal Testing; What Are the Moral Concerns?

2011-09-18T18:30:00.000-07:00

An essay by Fr. Thomas Petri, O.P., which addresses the positive and negative aspects of genetic testing.

Prenatal health care has advanced significantly in the last few decades, especially as a result of the development of the ultrasound in the 1970s. For many obstetric physicians, prenatal testing is the sine qua non of their medical practice. Testing is accomplished through a variety of means. Some methods are invasive like an amniocentesis or a fetoscopy. Other methods are less so like an ultrasound or serum screening.

In 1987, the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith said that prenatal testing "is permissible, with the consent of the parents after they have been adequately informed, if the methods employed safeguard the life and integrity of the embryo and the mother, without subjecting them to disproportionate risk."[1] There are a number of positive benefits of prenatal testing. The testing may help to determine whether the child suffers from any number of conditions: Down Syndrome, spina bifida, and Trisomy 18, to name just a few.

This information can be very helpful and even medically therapeutic. A prenatal diagnosis may result in a changes in treatment and care during the pregnancy itself. It may necessitate a change in the mode of delivery when the time comes. Doctors may be able to perform therapeutic actions in the womb to bring benefit to the child. For example, a shunt might be inserted into the developing skull of a child suffering from spina bifida to ease pressure by draining the buildup of fluid.
Moreover, once a child has been diagnosed prenatally with a specific medical condition, a plan of medical treatments after his birth might be established. The parents, too, can benefit significantly. They are given the time and psychological space to prepare for the birth of a child who will require special attention with unique medical needs.

There are some moral concerns with prenatal testing and prenatal diagnosis, however. As with any medical procedure, its benefits must be weighed against its risks. The risk to the mother and to the baby must be considered in relation to the benefits of the knowledge one hopes to gain: how will one use the information that comes from a prenatal diagnosis?

Unfortunately, there are some serious moral issues surrounding prenatal diagnosis, or, rather, how clinicians and parents respond to a difficult diagnosis. The legalization of abortion in 1973 led to the development of the so-called "therapeutic abortion." Clinicians often advise early prenatal testing so the "full range of options" might be available to parents, including both therapy and "termination." Studies have shown that roughly nine out of ten children diagnosed prenatally with Down Syndrome, spina bifida, and other difficult conditions are aborted (although for some conditions the rate falls to an equally unacceptable six out of ten). [2] While, in theory, therapy is one stated benefit of prenatal diagnosis, the statistics are clear: abortion is the preferred "treatment" for a suffering child.

While the term "eugenics" is strong, there is no other word for the systematic practice or mindset that seeks to terminate persons with limitations (physical or otherwise). Pope John Paul II lamented that this eugenic mentality had passed into clinical practice. In his 1995 encyclical "On the Gospel of Life" (Evangelium Vitae), he wrote that prenatal diagnosis is often "used with a eugenic intention which accepts selective abortion in order to prevent the birth of children affected by various types of anomalies. Such an attitude is shameful and utterly reprehensible, since it presumes to measure the value of a human life only within the parameters of ‘normality' and physical well-being, thus opening the way to legitimizing infanticide and euthanasia as well." [3]

The difficulties in raising children with special needs are not insignificant. Likewise, the psychological distress that comes with the knowledge that one's child may not live long after her birth is real and can bring much suffering. But Christians believe that all life is a gift from the One who is the Lord of Life. We are not free to do with this gift what we please.

To terminate the life of one's child to avoid cost and suffering is not only morally grave, but it is also against our human dignity. It is against the dignity of the child, but it is also against the dignity of the parents, who find life's true purpose in parenthood. Since it is an action against the designs of creation and of love, selective abortion proves not to be therapeutic at all; it ultimately results in regret, shame, and guilt, even as the parents grieve the loss of a child.

Many parents turn to selective abortion because they may feel pressured by medical staff, friends, family, and a society which views limitation as degrading and inhumane. All the more reason, then, for Christians to rally to these parents during their difficult pregnancy, to buoy them up with lasting prayer, support, and assistance. More than that, the Gospel should permeate every aspect of a Christian's life, whether he be a janitor, a doctor, or a politician. Christian doctors are obligated to practice medicine with right reason illumined by the Gospel.

A life of virtue requires us to respect every life from conception to natural death, regardless of that person's ability to communicate, to be productive in society, or that person's physical limitations. A Christian has a higher motive than this. Our Lord once said, "Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me" (Mt. 25:40). Who is the least among us if not a voiceless suffering child in the womb?

Rev. Bro. Thomas Petri, O.P., is a candidate for the S.T.D. in moral theology at the Catholic University of America.

[1] Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, "Instruction on Respect for Human Life" (Donum Vitae), I, 2.
[2] See Caroline Mansfield, et al., "Termination rates after prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome, spina bifida, anencephaly, and Turner and Klinefelter syndromes: a systematic literature review," Prenatal Diagnosis 19 (1999): 808-812.
[3] Pope John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, no. 63.

Follow Inspiritu by Email

2011-09-15T23:56:00.000-07:00

You can now follow In Spiritu via email. See the too; bar on the right and enter your email. Invite others as well.

Thoughts and Afterthoughts: 9.15.11

2011-09-15T10:50:00.000-07:00

• News from the September, Christianity Today Issue:

o Mark G. Shroeder, Michelle Bachmann’s pastor and president of the ultra- conservative protestant, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod on the teaching that the Pope is the antichrist :

“Certainly, we do not deny this teaching or attempt to hide it. At the same time, it is not a topic of daily discussion or a regular theme in Sunday sermons.”

What a relief!

o Hot Topic: “Should Churches Try to Minimize Disruption in Services?” Opinions from yes to no:

At South Carolina's NewSpring Church, children are not admitted to the main service and doors are locked after the sermon starts. In North Carolina, Elevation Church leaders removed a boy with cerebral palsy from church because he was disrupting the service. The incidents raise the issue of how to respond to disruptions in worship. Should churches try to minimize disruptions in services?

"Willow Creek puts a priority on creating an environment that helps people engage in worship without distractions during the service. By providing a variety of venues (main auditorium, parents' viewing rooms, a video café area) where people may view the service, no one has to miss the message, regardless of their circumstances. We rarely have issues with disruptions during the service, but if one arises, the Guest Ministry team assesses the situation and takes appropriate next steps, which could mean respectfully suggesting one of the alternate viewing options."
Christine Daye, guest ministry director, Willow Creek Community Church

"One thing I used to tell students in the course of a class is as a pastor, you're responsible for leading the assembly on Sunday morning, and the assembly depends on you not to allow disruptive people to take over the service and to allow things to be planned and well-timed. What I had in mind was more like somebody saying, 'I need to make an announcement,' standing up and talking 30 minutes and taking over the service. But also what I thought about was people having a heart attack or some kind of seizure in the service—that's more likely to happen with the age of our congregation—and I would advise them to think in the back of your mind, 'Now what will I do, if that kind of thing happens?' If someone keels over, it's very insensitive of the pastor to say 'All right, we'll keep singing, don't worry about it,' but to think about saying something like, 'And now, I'm going to ask the ushers to assist our brother in need, and let's all be in prayer or let's all stand and sing Hymn 214.' But I have found the Holy Spirit to be wonderfully disruptive, sometimes upsetting our plans and timing, and to be faithful, we must be open to this sort of spirit-induced disruption."
William Willimon, bishop, North Alabama conference, United Methodist Church

"I want to see disruptions minimized so that the Word can be proclaimed with clarity and without distraction. Even so, churches should be hospitable to all, including those who engage in behavior that seems 'disruptive' to others. In the end, we should embrace this tension rather than resolve it. Each local church should continually rely on the Holy Spirit in order to know instinctively when the disruption is detracting from the Word or when the disruption is a divine reminder that we are called to minister to the people with us, not the idealized church community in our minds."
Trevin Wax, author, Counterfeit Gospels

"At the root of the question of distraction is really the question of the greatest commandment—love your neighbor as yourself. Is it necessary for us to come into worship service late? Are we being considerate of other people? No, probably not. We're not thinking of other people, we're just doing the best we can. Is it equally wrong to judge that person for showing up late? Yeah, sure it is. We have to bear with one another. I think at the end of the day it comes down to that: Bearing each other's burdens and being understanding of each other's shortcomings and mistakes. When a family shows up to church late, it might be because they don't want to hear the worship, and it might be because they have three kids and it's hard to get out the door."
Michael Chanley, executive director, International Network of Children's Ministry

"I'm all for good manners—I shush my kids like crazy during church. And I'm all for cry rooms and church nursery and children's church. But churches that put a ton of energy into avoiding disruptions at all costs bug me. Partly because I'm not sure God cares all that much about disruptions (he has a long history of disrupting things himself). But also because I think God's more concerned with us welcoming folks into his house—and extending love and grace—than he is about making sure people mind their p's and q's perfectly while they're there. It seems these churches we hear about that shuttle disrupters out of a service care more about the comfort of the people in the pews than they do about the glory of God."
Caryn Rivadeneira, author, Mama's Got a Fake ID and Grumble Hallelujah

"People shouldn't be viewed as disruptions. Disrupting moments provide opportunities to demonstrate patience and gentleness. People must be treated with dignity and respect. How leaders respond in the moment can speak louder than any prepared sermon. We must learn to navigate the fine nuances between discouragement, distraction, disruption, and danger in a service."
Mark DeYmaz, directional leader, Mosaic Church

"Usually disruptions in services are regarded as coming from children. I really appreciate churches that regard the typical children noise as holy noise. One church I visited has taken cries of a child and said to the congregation, 'Turn that cry into a prayer that you're praying for the underserved people of the world whose needs are not being met.' But if a disturbance comes from someone in a tantrum, a child is having a tantrum, then I think that child needs to be removed from the service so that child is not embarrassed by their out-of-control behavior. So it depends on the nature of the disturbance, but to say there should be no disturbances in a worship service creates a very Western, cognitive-oriented worship service. Holy noise that is even sometimes distracting can be a great, beautiful sound to our God."
Scottie May, associate professor, Wheaton College

"The apostle Paul insisted that worship be done 'decently and in order,' because God is a God of order. In the context of his rebuke of the Corinthian church's practice of communion (1 Corinthians 11), he is particularly upset with the narcissistic attitude of those who attend the agape meal thinking only of themselves (e.g., cutting to the front of the buffet line, showing up drunk). I suspect he would say much the same to many of our contemporary churches that have taken their cues from modernism's emphasis on the individual to the point that, with capitalistic salesmanship, we encourage folks to seek out their preferred style of worship and their favorite preacher in the same manner in which they scour the grocery aisle for their favorite brand of cereal. So it's no wonder that some find their preferences upset by a child with special needs (who actually may have been the visitation of Christ among them, a la Matthew 25), or show up and leave when they want based on musical tastes. The willingness to be shaped by a community into which God has called us—to be formed into Christ's likeness by folks we'd not have chosen to be with if it had been up to us—is lacking in the lives of those whose preferences in worship are disturbed by their preferences. And that is what seems to have happened at Elevation Church and NewSpring. So when Jesus shows up with cerebral palsy, let him stay; and insist that the folks around him stay with him, even if the preacher or the music isn't to their liking (unless, of course, they're hemorrhaging or the building is on fire), because disruptions due to individualistic preferences (such as getting up in the middle of worship to get a latte) are precisely the kinds of actions that Paul reprimands in Corinth."
Dennis Okholm, professor of theology, Azusa Pacific University

o “Pat Robertson Says Divorce Okay if Spouse has Alzheimer's.” He’s getting wackier by the day. See also: Pat Robertson Repudiates the Gospel: The broadcaster's advice to divorce an Alzheimer’s patient is more than an embarrassment.

• “Though a new Colorado law mandates contraceptive coverage in its student health plan, Denver’s Regis University has reaffirmed that it will not provide or refer for contraceptives.” Now there a Catholic, Catholic school.

• “The breakaway traditionalist group, the Society of St. Pius X, could be offered the status of a personal prelature within the Catholic Church if it agrees to some core Church teachings outlined at a Sept. 14 meeting in Rome.” While unity is doubly important these days, unity at any cost is not. For the moment, I find this problematic at a number of levels.

• In late August, Pope Benedict was reported to have made a statement that was taken up by some as evidence that he agreed with this notion of Catholics as historically inadequate evangelizers. I’ve referred to this before on the pages, but related, see my Homiletics and Pastoral Review article of a few years ago, “Why Do Catholics Become Evangelicals?”

• RR Reno on the”Cosmopolitan Conservative” A good read for the intolerant tolerant and the tolerant intolerant.

• The Legal, Canadian Fourth Trimester Abortion (AKA Infanticide) or, “Kill Your Newborn Baby, Don’t Go to Jail”

• Latest news on the continuing Fr. Frank Pavone saga:

o CBR Will Soon Lead Informational Pickets Outside Catholic Facilities & Activities in the Diocese of Amarillo, TX

o Father Pavone to seek new diocese, bishop extends inquiry; group will picket parishes.

• A new study on abortion's effects on a woman's mental health.

• Speaking of health, I had a minor surgical procedure from which I am recuperating. I covet your prayers and appreciate all of those who have been praying for me.

The Divinity of Compassion; The Compassion of Divinity

2011-09-13T16:24:00.000-07:00

SEPTEMBER 13, 2011, MONDAY; Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom, bishop and doctor of the Church

The Divinity of Compassion; The Compassion of Divinity

Several things immediately came to mind as I read this passage from Luke’s Gospel. The first is something new, the second is the context in which that something new occurs and the third is the reaction of the assembled crowd.

The new thing is that this is the very first time that Luke calls Jesus Lord in his Gospel. Not once for seven chapters has he used a divine title for Jesus. What makes him do so now? I think that it is in response to Jesus’ overwhelming compassion, a compassion that speaks of his divinity. “When the Lord saw her, he was moved with pity for her and said to her, "Do not weep."

The word "compassion" was borrowed by the English from the French. The French word is originally from the Latin words "com" [with] and "pati" [to suffer]. In other words, to have compassion for someone is to “suffer with” that person. Clearly, Jesus was moved to suffer with the grieving woman who not only has lost a son whom she dearly loves, but she is also a widow; losing her only son would mean that what she had to look forward to was a life of destitution and begging.

God is most God, when he is loving and compassionate; and we are most like God when we are loving and compassionate. Suffering with others in their struggle and their pain.

God being God in the person of the God-Man Jesus, evokes a unique reaction: “Fear seized them all (that is to say awe), and they glorified God, exclaiming, "A great prophet has arisen in our midst," and "God has visited his people." Jesus, is God’s hand of mercy stretched out to us. But it is one of the enduring paradoxes of our faith that we can only receive what we are willing to give away.

St. John Chrysostom, whose name mean “golden throat” because of his magnificent homilies and his exposition of the sacred scriptures was a reformer of the first order as well. He once wrote:

“Do you wish to honor the body of Christ? Do not ignore him when he is naked. Do not pay him homage in the temple clad in silk, only then to neglect him outside where he is cold and ill-clad. He who said: "This is my body" is the same who said: "You saw me hungry and you gave me no food", and "Whatever you did to the least of my brothers you did also to me"... What good is it if the Eucharistic table is overloaded with golden chalices when your brother is dying of hunger?

In the footsteps of Jesus, St. John Chrysostom emphasized charitable giving and was concerned with the spiritual and temporal needs of the poor. He also spoke out against the abuse of wealth and the abuse of personal property. And he always put his money where his mouth was.

The Dominican mystic, Meister Eckhart was fond of saying that, "You may call God love, you may call God goodness. But the best name for God is compassion." And I add that the exercise of compassion is a prerequisite for calling oneself Christian.

Poisoning Ourselves

2011-09-11T11:22:00.000-07:00

HOMILY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2011, Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Poisoning Ourselves

(A VIDEO OF THIS HOMILY IS AVAILABLE HERE.)

We have been deluged with tragedies and catastrophes lately. The fires in Bastrop Texas, earthquakes and hurricanes; and today we commemorate the tenth anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attack. That's on the cover of every major newspaper and magazine and on all the radio and television programs. Today I'd like to talk about another tragedy. that brought with it, redemption.

A few years ago, on Monday morning, October 2, 2006, a gunman entered a one-room Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania. In front of twenty-five horrified pupils, thirty-two-year-old Charles Roberts ordered the boys and the teacher to leave. After tying the legs of the ten remaining girls, Roberts prepared to shoot them execution style with an automatic rifle and four hundred rounds of ammunition that he brought for the task. The oldest hostage, a thirteen-year-old, begged Roberts to “shoot me first and let the little ones go.”

Refusing her offer, he opened fire on all of them, killing five and leaving the others critically wounded. He then shot himself as police stormed the building. His motivation? “I’m angry at God for taking my little daughter,” he told the children before the massacre.

The story captured the attention of broadcast and print media in the United States and around the world. By Tuesday morning some fifty television crews had clogged the small village of Nickel Mines, staying for five days until the killer and the killed were buried. The blood was barely dry on the schoolhouse floor when Amish parents brought words of forgiveness to the family of the one who had slain their children.
The outside world was incredulous;-incredulous that such forgiveness could be offered so quickly for such a heinous crime. Hundreds of media questions were received about the shooting; questions about forgiveness rose to the top. Forgiveness, in fact, eclipsed the tragic story, trumping the violence and arresting the world’s attention.

Within a week of the murders, Amish forgiveness was a central theme in more than 2,400 news stories around the world. The Washington Post, The New York Times, USA Today, Newsweek, NBC Nightly News, CBS Morning News, Larry King Live, Fox News, Oprah, and dozens of other media outlets heralded the forgiving Amish. From the Khaleej Times (United Arab Emirates) to Australian television, international media were opining on Amish forgiveness. Three weeks after the shooting, “Amish forgiveness” had appeared in 2,900 news stories worldwide and on 534,000 web sites. This, my brothers and sisters, is powerful impact of forgiveness.

Fresh from the funerals where they had buried their own children, grieving Amish families accounted for half of the seventy-five people who attended the killer’s burial. Roberts’ widow was deeply moved by their presence as Amish families greeted her and her three children. The forgiveness went beyond talk and graveside presence: the Amish also supported a fund for the shooter’s family.

There was a book written that explores the many questions this story raises about the religious beliefs and habits that led the Amish to forgive so quickly. “All the religions teach it,” mused an observer, “but no one does it like the Amish.” Regardless of the cultural seedbed that nourished this story, the surprising act of Amish forgiveness begs for a deeper exploration. How could the Amish do this? What did this act mean to them? And how might their witness prove useful to the rest of us?

I think that the Amish took to heart the core of all of our readings today.
“Wrath and anger are hateful things,yet the sinner hugs them tight.”
They have a saying in the various twelve-step programs, “Harboring unforgiveness, holding grudges, a lack of forgiveness is like drinking poison, and expecting the other person to die.”

It’s a poison for us physically. Our bodies are negatively affected, especially our auto-immune systems that tend to break down with the stress of an unforgiving, grudging and vengeful heart. It is poison for us mentally and emotionally.
It’s a poison for us spiritually.

“The vengeful will suffer the LORD's vengeance,for he remembers their sins in detail. Forgive your neighbor's injustice; then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven. Could anyone nourish anger against another and expect healing from the LORD? Could anyone refuse mercy to another like himself, can he seek pardon for his own sins?

Good questions our readings ask; and answer. Peter approached Jesus and asked him,
"Lord, if my brother sins against me,how often must I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus answered, "I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.”
There is both power and symbolism in that number “seventy times seven.” The number, “seventy times seven,” represents infinity, limitless, unfathomable.
This teaching directly reverses the revenge of Lamech in the Old Testament who wanted revenge seventy times seven in Genesis 4:24. Jesus’ teaching is an obvious reversal of the law of revenge found in Genesis 4:24 which says “If Cain is revenged seven fold, truly Lamech seventy-seven fold.”

The Greek word for forgiveness means to “let go.” We are to “let go” of feelings of resentment, rage, wrath, revenge, retaliation, retribution when someone has hurt you/me. We don’t forgive naturally. Rather, the Spirit of Jesus slips into our hearts, minds and spirits and heals us, ever so slowly. Deep forgiveness from the heart is not always a rational decision but it is healing. Like all healings of the heart and mind, they are usually slow, unhurried and gradual. But we can start somewhere. Let me suggest two starting points:

Firstly, if there is a situation in which you find it difficult to forgive, stop and repeatedly ask God to forgive the person. Think of Jesus on the cross, crying out to God, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” Then ask the Holy Spirit to help you heal and forgive completely. Forgiveness doesn’t mean that the offending act was okay, it means that we ask God to remove all guilt for the offending person, even when early on; it is difficult for us to forgive.

Secondly, and this is something that I frequently suggest to spiritual directees and pastoral counselees. Make a list of the top ten or twenty things that you would want for yourself. For example, an intimate relationship with God, peace and contentment, health and security etc. Once you’ve completed that list, pray it every day for a month—or for as long as it takes—but pray it for the person you have had difficulty in forgiving. You will find that resentment and unforgiveness will begin to melt away as you pray good things for the offending person, and mean it.

My brothers and sisters, there is no love without forgiveness, and there is no forgiveness without love. To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness.

-------------> Follow In Spiritu------>

Welcome Alma!

2011-09-10T02:06:00.000-07:00

The Spot You Got

2011-09-09T00:01:00.000-07:00

Homily; September 9, 2011, Friday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time. Memorial of Saint Peter Claver, priest:

The Spot You Got

"How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me remove the speck from your eye,' yet fail to see the plank lodged in your own?" —Luke 6:42

There is an old saying: “if you spot it, you’ve got it.” That is to say that the only reason that you can spot a deficiency in someone else is because you have experienced that deficiency in yourself.

There is an irony of human psychology about which I was just speaking with a member of the parish. We seem to judge others by their actions, but we tend to judge ourselves—not by our actions—but more by our intentions.
If we’re driving for example, and someone cuts us off, we have a judgment about the offender’s actions.

Some people have a language of gestures for that kind of thing that involves a finger, or so I’m told. But when we cut somebody off in an improper lane change, we don’t use the same rule. We justify ourselves not by our action but by our intention--“It was an accident, I didn’t mean to do it. You were in my blind spot.” Understand that the driving example is merely a metaphor for our faulty, habitual way of being.

This Gospel always reminds me of an Ogden Nash poem.

“A little seed fell in the ground and soon began to sprout. Now which of all these flowers around, it mused shall I turn out. The rose too red, the violet too blue, the lilac to white. And so it criticized each flower around, this supercilious seed; until it woke one summer hour and found itself a weed.”

“How can you say to your brother,
"Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,"
when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?
You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly
to remove the splinter in your brother's eye."

My brothers and sisters, there is only one cure for this way of being and perceiving. The only remedy is the queen of all virtues: HUMILITY.
To paraphrase St. Augustine, "The sufficiency of my merit is to know that my merit is not sufficient." There is a saying in the Jewish Talmud that says that, “"He who sacrifices a whole offering shall be rewarded for a whole offering; he who offers a burnt-offering shall have the reward of a burnt-offering; but he who offers humility to God and man shall be rewarded with a reward as if he had offered all the sacrifices in the world."

Turn to Jesus our one true sacrifice: He will remove any specks or planks from your spiritual sight so you can follow Him, with abandon so that we can avoid spiritual eye patches.

Labor and the Kingdom

2011-09-04T09:23:00.000-07:00

HOMILY, OCTOBER 5, 2011, LABOR DAY.’ Monday of the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary

Labor and the Kingdom

Let me tell you a little, modern parable. There was this Catholic woman that worked as an administrative assistant to one of the executives of the company. Most everyone liked her; she was kind, funny, always willing to give a helping hand to her coworkers. She was a very ethical person. Where many others in her department were willing to cut corners to leave work early or to get a project pushed though, or merely to cover their backsides, she would not.

Most people admired her for the courage of her convictions. But there was a small cadre of workers in her office that became very jealous and envious of her, despite her many kindnesses to them.

So several times a week, this group gathered around the water cooler to gossip about her. Mostly lies of course. They watched her closely to see if she would do something so that they might discover a reason to accuse her. But they couldn’t, so they made things up, manufactured lies and convolutedly interpreted company policy and operating procedures so they could manufacture a scenario that would be damaging to her. The damages they heaped on her—despite her quiet confidence and her immense faith—were beginning to take its toll, and the attacks were getting more vicious as time went on.

One day, working with the company ledgers and reports she recognized that there was serious malfeasance going on in the office. Many in the office, most of them her detractors, were skimming on their sales, padding their expense accounts, and worst of all, shorting their medical customers in such a way that was extremely hazardous to their health. Their very lives were threatened because of other’s greed.

She had no choice but to approach the president of the company. She entered his expansive and beautifully appointed office, sat before his desk and proceeded to make an arrangement with him. She would tell him all on one condition. That all of those involved received an opportunity for rehabilitation, to turn away from their malfeasance, and turn to over a new leaf. The second condition was that she personally take the punishment for their actions, without them knowing it. The deal was struck. She was fired on the spot.

“The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely
to see if he would cure on the sabbath
so that they might discover a reason to accuse him. They became enraged
and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.”

My brothers and sisters, on this celebration of all us who labor and toil, let us remember first of all the work of Jesus Christ for us and for our salvation. His birth, death and resurrection that transformed the penance of Eden into the dignity of fruitful work. Let us remember our responsibility to bring justice to the workplace, but also mercy. Let us remember the dignity of work, and the human dignity of the working, human person. Let us remember that we are to be salt, leaven and light in the world—even in the work place.

All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence and always within the context of our relationship with the risen Lord.

Something Old, Something New

2011-09-02T18:40:00.000-07:00

Homily, September 2, 2011 Friday of the Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time

Something Old, Something New

As I reflected on today’s readings I couldn’t help but notice the contrast between, -something old and something new. At weddings the bride is traditionally encouraged to have something old and something new.

Something old, something new
Something borrowed,something blue
And a silver sixpence in her shoe.

"Something old" symbolizes continuity with the bride's family and the past.----------"Something new" means optimism and hope in her future role as a wife. It is the same with us; the bride of Christ—the Church. We remember the past but are always re-creating.

In our first reading from the epistle of St. Paul to the Colossians, St. Paul inspires us to something old, that, ironically, leads to something new. Looking back at the Christ eventhe acknowledges the source of all reality:

“Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible.”

At the same time our readings call us to something new in Christ.

"No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.
Otherwise, he will tear the new and the piece from it will not match the old cloak.
Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.
Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins,
and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.
Rather,new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins."

Freshness comes everyday when we wake up. We don’t win today’s games with yesterday’s home runs. Today represents a new wine that we cannot pour into old wineskins. Today represents, something fresh. A new vision. A view from a different perspective.

Sometimes we need to find solace in the past—in old traditions--and sometimes we need to be invigorated by the freshness of the present now—the new work of the Holy Spirit.

And that, my brothers and sisters is,I think, one of the glories of our Christian faith. Everything is old, but everything is also new.

The Resurrection of the Dead

2011-08-28T20:23:00.000-07:00

Homily; Mon. August 29, 2011, The Memorial of the Martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist

The Resurrection of the Dead

St. Stephen is the first martyr, the proto-martyr in the early Church. You may recall, that it was Saul—later to become St. Paul the Apostle who tracked Stephen down and held the coats of his men while they stoned Stephen to death. But before the martyrdom of St. Stephen, Saint John the Baptist was beheaded by Herod, simply for calling a spade a spade, for pointing out that he was in illicit marriage. “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife,” he tells Herod.

I always wondered why St. John the Baptist, the follower of Jesus, his cousin, who even baptized Jesus, was not declared the first martyr. I always also found it ironic that Paul, who as Saul, murdered many Christians, is now the chief proponent of the doctrine of the resurrection and as such, he is asserting that at the final judgment, all of those he killed will be resurrected to eternal life.

When I was a seminarian in St. Louis, we often got together socially with students from other seminaries. When we had an event in which we visited with the United Church of Christ seminary, not the Church of Christ, but the very liberal United Church of Christ, I was shocked to find that most of the students and most of the professors did not believe in the resurrection of Jesus or the doctrine of the resurrection of the faithful. I thought to myself, what’s the point of being a Christian, if Jesus was either a liar or a lunatic?

Can someone be so smart that they actually become stupid? Later I found out that several Presbyterians that I know, theology professors, also denied both the resurrection of Jesus and the doctrine of the resurrection of the faithful.

“We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,
about those who have fallen asleep
so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope…
For the Lord himself, with a word of command,
with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God,
will come down from heaven,
and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left,
will be caught up together with them in the clouds.”

Is it possible that the disciples of Jesus, at first cowered and afraid, would venture into the world knowing that they would all be martyred if they had not personally witnessed the resurrected Christ? And if,as the scriptures and church tradition over 2000 years has taught, Christ was resurrected, and it is that same Christ who promises the resurrection of the faithful what are we to say about people who claim Christianity but deny its central tenet,a tenet that if not true, would have demolished the emerging church in a matter of months.

My brothers and sisters, St. Paul who encountered the risen Christ on the road to Damascus exhorts us to believe in the resurrection, and he says, “Therefore, console one another with these words.”

May the reality of the resurrection of Christ and of those of us who persevere to the end move us to proclaim with the Psalmist:

“Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.”

And the wondrous deeds that he promised, even after we leave this mortal life.

Thinking Like God

2011-08-28T16:59:00.000-07:00

HOMILY, AUGUST 28, 2011 Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Thinking Like God

In our Gospel today, there is a particular phrase that begs reflection. “You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do." Well yeah! Are you God? No way! Am I God? No way, but I sometimes think so, and act so! We’re human. Peter is human. How in the world are we expected to think like God? When Jesus says, “You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do," the obvious implication is that we can and should think like God. In fact, Philippians (2:5-6) states definitively, and authoritatively “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.”But how?

By maintaining the values of God, the will of God, as it were. God’s mindset is quite different from our world’s and God’s values are different from what we often value. However, we have access to God’s mind through the work of Jesus and the power of the Spirit.

In our Lord’s Prayer we say, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.” Sometimes our prayer becomes so familiar that we begin to lose the meaning of what we pray. We pray that God’s will be done in the world and in us. But, we often do nothing about it— it becomes just a meaningless, repetitive and empty recitation.

To do this, to think like God, to merge his will to ours, we must constantly tear down the idols we build in place of God, and build up his image within us. We must let our inner experience of God take root in our lives and actions making everything else a secondary consideration. To do otherwise is to make us the same as Peter to whom Jesus says, "Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do."

St. Paul appeals to the Christian community at Rome and to us, not to lose their identity as Christians, to not live according to the pagan customs of the times. They are to be renewed in their minds so as to live out their Christian identity as God wills it to them.

“I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,
to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship.
Do not conform yourselves to this age
but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and pleasing and perfect.”

“Do not conform yourselves to this age
but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that you may discern what is the will of God.”

Sometimes though, we can be rebellious. We prefer our own choices and desires before those of God. But God is God and somehow, in the mysterious interplay between the sovereignty of God and our own free will, God’s will is ultimately accomplished.

In our first reading, Jeremiah, at first was not thinking like God either. He exclaims: “You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped; you were too strong for me, and you triumphed.” Jeremiah recognized that he was circumventing the will of God, but somehow, God showed him his will in as circuitous way. Jeremiah was ultimately happy that despite his own devices, his own rebellion, God’s will was ultimately achieved. “You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped.” O that we would always allow ourselves to be duped when we are not thinking like God, not joining our will to his.

Part of me says, “who in the heck are you, who are we, to presume that we can know God's will? We have a tough enough time trying to figure out what we even want in our own lives.” But I'll tell you this, you and I are on the right track when we deal with the reality that God has a will for our lives, and he wants us to think with his mind. It is not always painless. It is not always easy. It doesn't always make us happy. But it is always fulfilling.

Jean-Pierre de Caussade, in his wonderful work, Abandonment to Divine Providence reminds us that our only solution is total abandonment to divine providence. When we abandon ourselves to him and his will, we will be thinking like God.

He says:

“If we have only enough sense enough to leave everything to the guidance of God’s hand, we will reach the highest peak of holiness…The more God takes from the abandoned soul, the more he is really giving it…the more he strips us of natural things, the more he showers us with supernatural things,” …and knowledge of his will and his mind. “The great and firm foundation of the spiritual life is offering ourselves to God and being subject to his will in all things.”

So let me give you a few suggestions on how to think with God, how to merge your will with his:

1. First as De Caussade suggests, we need to abandon ourselves totally and wholly to divine providence, moment by moment, inch by inch, day by day. This is can only be done at this moment. Right here, right now. And then in the next moment. God is eternal, he has no future or past, and he is without the constrictions of time and space. The past is gone and the future is never guaranteed. We must find God in the present moment. If we say,”I will think like God, I will follow his will, later, tonight, tomorrow…we’re already not following his will—we’re following our own.

2. Secondly, God leads by the precepts and principles of His Word! The Bible shows us the way. Familiarize yourself with the Holy Scriptures, Don’t read them, study them, meditate them, pray with them. As St. Jerome rightly put it, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.

3. Thirdly, God leads us by the power and prompting of the Holy Spirit. We need to always appeal to the Holy Spirit to show us God’s will. Romans 8:26 reminds us that, "Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered."

4. Fourthly, God leads us by the wise counsel of others. God will use others to direct our path as we seek wise council. This too will never countermand Scripture, or the Spirit’s leading. It will test us to make sure we hear the Spirit correctly, and are on the right track.

5. Fifthly, we are to pray and think through issues, considering all options in making a decision. God gave us an intellect and it is through the intellect that we parse the promptings of the Spirit.God gave us brains; let's use them. This is the virtue of prudence.

6. Finally, God’s Will is best know when we cultivate Intimacy with Christ, in adoration, at Mass, in prayer.

My brothers and sisters, to paraphrase Plato, “The end of life is to be like God, and the soul following God will be like Him.” I leave you with the prayer to the Holy Spirit composed by Cardinal Désiré-Joseph Mercier in the early 20th century. He said that if you pray it every day, and mean it, the secret of sanctity and happiness will be revealed:

“O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore You. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I should do; give me Your orders. I promise to submit myself to all that You desire of me and to accept all that You permit to happen to me. Let me only know Your Will.” Amen?

Thoughts and Afterthoughts 8.23.11

2011-08-23T13:51:00.000-07:00

• BREAKING: Planned Parenthood center closing! As of 1:30 central time – just over 100 slots left for the webcast. Plus some good news just added. From Shawn Carney Campaign Director for
40 Days for Life:

The timing of this breaking news couldn't be better!

We just got word that a Planned Parenthood office is
CLOSING ITS DOORS forever -- directly due to the "Weak
Link" that Abby Johnson (former Planned Parenthood
director turned pro-life advocate) will be revealing on
tonight's one-time-only LIVE webcast event!

We'll share the latest news tonight -- at 9 PM Eastern
(6 PM Pacific) -- so if you haven't already, be sure to
register for the FREE online event by going to:

http://PlannedParenthoodsWeakLink.com

As I write this, 2,887 people have already registered to
attend tonight's webcast -- and we only reserved 3,000
slots for the event ...

For Life,

Shawn Carney
Campaign Director
40 Days for Life

• A Postmortem: London Riots: The Legacy of Social Inequality or Proof of Moral Collapse? An interview with veteran journalist and Londoner Joanna Bogle.

• Ahhh! If home is where the heart is (and the body, blood, soul and divinity) then this was one of their better decisions. Welcome back!!! “Sedevacantist Sisters Reunite With Church: Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Church describe their long journey back to recognizing the Pope. On the other hand, there is the continuing saga of the Lefebrites.

• Catholic backers of new Arizona abortion regulations are happy that Planned Parenthood of Arizona is no longer offering abortions at seven of its 10 locations after new laws were passed. Now, for the rest of them….

• Dominican Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist who have had such phenomenal growth they’ve been featured on Oprah, not once but twice.

• Another Grateful Survivor of the Culture of Death. I had actually posted this before but it’s worth a reprise. During a recent concert in Haiti, Andrea Bocelli paused between songs to tell his audience a very personal story---a "piccola storia", as he called it---in which he encouraged struggling mothers to make the "right choice" and choose life for their children. See also the Fox

• This is gonna be a screamer of free program (audio or printable)to better know your Catholic faith. I will remember the quotation on the banner ad for useful occasions:

Faith, gives a basic understanding of the relationship between faith and reason, faith and authority, and faith and the Church. If you want to put your faith in action, it’s a good idea to know what the Church teaches about faith.

• Eight Religion Problem?” If they do, it's similar to the Libertarians' religion problem.

• Hurricane Irene marks 1st big US threat in years.

• Commemorative 9/11 wines stirring controversy and stoking anger. I’m not angry but I sympathize with the critique.

• “Whether Michele Bachmann Really Could

The Role and Responsibility of Catholic Parents

2011-08-22T08:52:00.000-07:00

The Role and Responsibility of Catholic Parents
by Deacon Harold Burke Sivers

The Holy Family and Ours

Frankly, I don't know how Joseph and Mary did it. They possessed immense courage and enduring faith at a time of tremendous upheaval early in their marriage. They had their lives turned completely upside down and yet lovingly followed God's will for them, even without understanding the still unfolding Mystery of God's plan in salvation history, and the pivotal role they would play in it. By the witness of their lives, the Blessed Virgin and her husband personify the primary and most important vocation in family life: following the will of Christ and living in conformity to His commandments.

Catholic mothers and fathers today continue to till the soil in the Lord’s vineyard following the example of the Holy Family. In and through sacramental marriage the family “is the natural society in which husband and wife are called to give themselves in love and in the gift of life. Authority, stability, and a life of relationships within the family constitute the foundations for freedom, security, and fraternity within society. The family is the community in which, from childhood, one can learn moral values, begin to honor God, and make good use of freedom. Family life is an initiation into life in society” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, #2207).

The Role of Mothers

Mothers and fathers both have important roles to play in the domestic church, the church of the home. “In God’s eternal plan, woman is the one in whom the order of love in the created world of persons takes first root […] The dignity of woman is measured by the order of love, which is essentially the order of justice and charity” (Pope John Paul II, Mulieris Dignitatem, 29). In other words, in God’s mind from all eternity when he decided to create beings made in His image and likeness, and imbue them with life-giving love, it is within a woman’s being—within her heart and soul—where His love first establishes a foundation, takes firm root, and finds a welcoming home. The spirituality of woman is rooted in the fact that she is the heart of love and through her special relationship with the Holy Spirit (as one who gives life) woman is truly the teacher of love to all humanity.

Mothers provide nurturing care of their families, teach us how to pray, encourage and nurture spiritual growth and development, and are living examples of the meaning of sacrificial, self-giving love which is the genesis and source of an authentically feminine spirituality. Through the lens of the Blessed Virgin Mary, “we see [in all motherhood] the reflection of a beauty which mirrors the loftiest sentiments of which the human heart is capable: the self-sacrificing totality of love; the strength that is capable of bearing the greatest sorrows; limitless fidelity and tireless devotion to work; the ability to combine penetrating intuition with words of support and encouragement” (Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Mater, 46).

The Role of Fathers

Both men and women are called upon to image God but “it is necessary that the man be fully aware that in their shared parenthood he owes a special debt to the woman. […] Women are more capable than men of paying attention to another person, and that the man—even though he shares in the parenting relationship—always remains outside the process of pregnancy and the baby’s birth; in many ways he has to learn his own ‘fatherhood’ from the mother” (Pope John Paul II, Mulieris Dignitatem, 18).
A man becomes a man and a father by doing things that a father ought to do.

In revealing and in reliving on earth the very fatherhood of God, a man is called upon to ensure stability and harmony within the family. He does this by exercising generous and selfless responsibility for the life conceived in the womb of the mother; by taking a more active role in, and making a more serious commitment to his children's education and prayer life, a task that he shares with his wife; by working in a job that is never the cause of division within the family but promotes and provides for its security and unity; and, most importantly, by being a living witness and example to his children of what it means to live and act as a man of God, showing his children first-hand what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and how that relationship is lived-out daily by loving the truth, goodness, and beauty of our Catholic faith.

Any man can be a daddy but it takes a real man to be a father, and the sooner we earthly fathers begin to appreciate the great gift we have been given and begin living the mission of service to our families—when we begin to make a gift of ourselves to our wives and children, and participate deeply and personally in the Fatherhood of God—the faster we will arrive at a civilization of love and a culture of life rooted in the transforming power of the Father’s endless mercy and love.

The Church of the Home

Mothers and fathers bear witness to their responsibilities by creating a home where tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and humility are the rule; where education in the virtues takes place, requiring mothers and fathers to teach their children self-denial, sound judgment, and self-mastery—the preconditions of all true freedom. Being free to love as God loves means that parents must help their children place the interior, spiritual aspects of their lives above not only the exterior, material aspects of society but also above those instinctual urges that are particularly strong in the teen years. Christian parents, by their example, must help their children live the greatest commandments: love of God and our neighbor.

The Seven Catholic Senses

2011-08-21T15:17:00.000-07:00

Homily, Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time , AUGUST 21, 2011

The Seven Catholic Senses

There are of course, unless impaired by some illness, five senses that the human person enjoys.

The sense of smell: or olfactory abilities. This sense can also be expressed metaphorically. For example, think of the phrase, “I smell a rat.” In a Christian sense I would compare that to Christian discernment. Christian discernment is the ability to be open to the movement of the spirit in our lives through the engagement of the mind. Spiritual discernment requires prayer and conscious and constant contact with the risen Lord.

We also enjoy the sense of taste: Taste is actually and scientifically speaking, the ability to respond to dissolved molecules and ions called tastants. Humans detect taste with taste receptor cells. These are clustered in taste buds. Each taste bud has a pore that opens out to the surface of the tongue enabling molecules and ions taken into the mouth to reach the receptor cells inside. We can also, metaphorically speak of a sense of taste in terms of aesthetic appreciation. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder but at the same time, our sense of taste, for example our sense of modesty, should be affected by our faith. Just like the sense of smell and taste are physiologically, closely related, so is spiritual discernment and our redeemed sense of taste.

Thirdly, we have the benefit of the sense to touch. Your sense of touch originates in the bottom layer of your skin called the dermis. The dermis is filled with many tiny nerve endings which give you information about things. Some areas of the body are more sensitive than others because they have more nerve endings. Do I need to say more? The virtue of chastity involves living the lifestyle that God calls us to live out throughout our entire lives, whether we’re married, single, man or woman.

Our auditory power, our sense of hearing is self-explanatory and I don’t want to get into the scientific aspects of all of the senses. I will say this though, just because we hear, doesn’t necessary mean that we listen. Did you know that the word obedient comes from the Latin word, “obediere” which literally means “to listen?” Though prayer and meditation we can learn to listen to the voice of God. We also cultivate the spiritual life when we learn to listen to one another.

Finally we have the sense of sight. From the moment you wake up in the morning to the time you go to sleep at night, your eyes are acting like a video camera. Everything you look at is then sent to your brain for processing and storage much like a video cassette. In the spiritual life we need to exercise a couple of priorities: 1). Custody of the eyes: monitoring what we take in because what we take in is engraved in the video of our minds. 2). Secondly, we have to have some sense of Christian vision. The book of Proverbs reminds us that, “Where there is no vision, the people perish,” (Prov. 29:18) God wants us to look ahead to new endeavors for his kingdom.

There are two other senses that are essential for a fruitful Catholic life though; a sixth and seventh sense.

In popular culture, the sixth sense is usually associated with ESP, extra-sensory perception, fortune-telling and such. Like Debbie.

Debbie visited a psychic of some local repute. In a dark and gloomy room, gazing at the tarot cards laid out before her, the tarot reader delivered the bad news: “There’s no easy way to say this, so I’ll just be blunt – prepare yourself to be a widow. Your husband will die a violent and horrible death this year.”
Visibly shaken, Jennifer stared at the woman’s lined face, then at the single flickering candle, then down at her hands. She took a few deep breaths to compose herself. She simply had to know. She met the tarot reader’s gaze, steadied her voice, and asked: “Will I get away with it?”

That’s not quite the Catholic sixth sense that I’m referring to. What I am referring to is alluded to in today’s Gospel:

"Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and
he asked his disciples,
"Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"
They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Simon Peter said in reply,
"You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

The sixth sense I’m referring to is your Jesus-talk—your Christ-speech. Who do you say that Jesus is? What is your concept of Jesus and based on that concept—what do you say about Jesus? How often do you talk about him with others, especially within your own family, the domestic church? In Deuteronomy, God commands his people about God-speak and God’s law divine law: “thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”

Our Psalm today says:

“I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart,
for you have heard the words of my mouth;
in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;
I will worship at your holy temple.
”
“For you have heard the words of my mouth?” What are the words that come out of your mouth with respect to Jesus? What are the words out of your mouth to him and about him? Is your talk to and about Christ frequent, occasional or rare? How does your relationship with the risen Christ and your words to him and about him impact on the words that you speak to others? Or, does your regular everyday speech reflect your Jesus-talk—your Christ-speech? These, I think, are important questions for reflection. But not just for reflection.

The seventh Catholic sense is what I like to call the “Act-Sense.” No, not accent as in “he has a Spanish accent.” But rather, the ACT-SENSE—the ability to act on who we say Jesus is, and who we believe Jesus is. In the Catholic life there is always orthodoxy which literally means, “right” or “correct” worship. But there is also orthopraxis, which means “right” or “correct” action. Our ACT-SENSE, or our actions should always reflect on our belief, our worship, our Jesus-talk—your Christ-speech and the other five senses that I mentioned.

When a scribe asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was he replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” For Catholics love is a verb not a noun. It’s not the warm fuzzies—it’s about action for the benefit of the object of our love.

My brothers and sisters, we are a sensory people. Especially we Catholics. We are a sacramental people. The sights, sounds, smells, tastes, the things we touch and the sounds we make and hear have significant meaning. Both Aristotle and following him St. Thomas Aquinas, asserted that through the natural law, everything that we know, all of the knowledge that we accumulate, we receive and retain through the senses.

Aquinas went further to talk about not natural law which is limited, but Divine Law which is perfect, and by which means we are perfected in the spiritual life.
We naturally use our biological senses, but our spiritual senses have to be trained and exercised. It changes our minds, renews our hearts and leads us profitably down the progressive road of conversion. For as Paul reminds us in our second reading:
“For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.”

RSVP

2011-08-18T11:57:00.000-07:00

Homily, August 18, 2011, Thursday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time

RSVP

Jesus' parable of the wedding feast contains two stories. The first has to do with the original guests invited to the marriage feast. The king had sent out invitations well in advance to his subjects, so they would have plenty of time to prepare for coming to the feast. How insulting for the invited guests to then refuse when the time for celebrating came! They made light of the King's request because they put their own interests above his. They not only insulted the King but the heir to the throne as well. The king's anger is justified because they openly refused to give the king the honor he was due. Jesus directed this warning to the Jews of his day, both to convey how much God wanted them to share in the joy of his kingdom, but also to give a warning about the consequences of refusing his Son, their Messiah and Savior.

He gives a similar warning to us. In becoming man, God made the ultimate sacrifice for our participation in the heavenly banquet in the kingdom of God. Our refusal to participate in the grace—the unmerited favor—that he has provided for us at great cost, will have dire, eternal consequences.

On the other hand, the second part of the story focuses on those who had no claim on the king and who would never have considered getting such an invitation. The "good and the bad" along the highways certainly referred to the Gentiles and to sinners. This is certainly an invitation of grace – undeserved, unmerited favor and kindness! But this invitation also contains a warning for those who refuse it or who approach the wedding feast unworthily. Grace is a free gift, but it is also an awesome responsibility
.
The noted Lutheran Bonheoffer said something about cheap grace that I think reflects the people that insulted the king:

"Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves, the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate. Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life."

My brothers and sisters, God invites each of us as his friends to his heavenly banquet that we may celebrate with him and share in his joy. Let’s not take the invitation lightly because it costs far too much. In fact the cost of the invitation is priceless. Are you ready to feast at the Lord's banquet table? Make sure you RSVP—everyday. Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for and received daily.

God’s Chosen People

2011-08-13T18:43:00.000-07:00

God’s Chosen People

HOMILY, AUGUST 14, 2011, Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

When we think of the term, “God’s Chosen People,” I suppose many people immediately think of the covenant the God made with Abraham or perhaps just of Jews in general. Who are God’s chosen people? Is it the Jews of the Old Covenant? Is it the Christians of the New Covenant? I’m reminded of a quip by Golda Meir, the famous, fourth prime minister of Israel who said, “We the chosen people? Let me tell you the one thing I have against Moses. He took us 40 years into the desert in order to bring us to the one place in the Middle East that has no oil!"

To say that there are a chosen people means that there has to be insiders and outsiders. Those that are “in” and those who are “out.” Each of today’s Readings speaks of the universal nature of God’s salvation. Isaiah 56, probably written after the return from the Babylonian exile, declares the Lord’s promise that all those who “join themselves to the Lord” (v. 6), not just the Jews, will come to God’s holy mountain.

Our Psalm (67), on the occasion of the harvest, hopes that all nations will come to acknowledge the justice of the Lord’s ways. St. Paul, reacting to an apparently disdainful attitude of some Gentile converts towards Judaism, declares that God’s salvation is also for the Jews, and that it is Paul’s intention to bring about the conversion of Jews through his work among the Gentiles. God's gifts are for all who are ready to receive them.

The curious case of a pagan woman’s insistence is recalled in St. Matthew’s Gospel. It is curious because of Jesus’ apparent initial refusal to answer the woman’s petition. But, God's gifts are for all who are ready to receive them. She was! "O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And the woman's daughter was healed from that hour.”

The attitude of our Catholic Church when it comes to a chosen people is perhaps best summarized by James Joyce who quipped in his novel Finnegan’s Wake, “Catholic means ‘here comes everybody.’” In the Catholic Church, in the Christian faith, in the plan of salvation, there are no outsiders. Gods’ gifts are for all who are ready to receive them.

But sometimes we Christians, we Catholics, can take an exclusivist position that is diametrically opposed to the inclusivity of the Gospel in which there is no Jew, no Greek, no slave or free, no male or female. Sometimes it’s subtle, at other times it’s more overt. But it’s there. I see it all too frequently. And it reminds me of a terrible tragedy.

When the Titanic sank, many people perished needlessly. Most of the lifeboats were barely half-full, and at least two of them were not filled at all and were never even launched. When the ship went down, most people who perished didn't drown, but froze to death in the icy waters. This happened largely because only one of the lifeboats tried to rescue the people in the water. The people in the other lifeboats were afraid those in the water would swamp their boats if they tried to rescue them. They stayed away from the drowning people to protect themselves in their grossly under-filled lifeboats!

This also reminds me that the Church is often depicted as a boat or a ship. Ironic isn’t it. St Catherine of Siena is often depicted with the ship that is the Church on her shoulder. The Church that is a sanctuary for all and a comfort to all—on behalf of Christ.

Christian Salvation is for All: All the readings refer to God’s salvation offered to all people. It is a truth of the Catholic faith that Jesus Christ, as God made man, offers through his teaching and through his death and resurrection the way to salvation for all peoples. “For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples,” declares our first reading.

Though limited in historical time, his teaching, life, death and resurrection have a universal effectiveness and application. This means that in the human life of Jesus each and every person can find the key to understanding the meaning and value of his own life, and the power and the strength to follow him.

God’s chosen people? Gods’ gifts are for all who are ready to receive them. “Catholic means ‘here comes everybody.” Unfortunately, not everyone knows this, that God’s grace and participation in His eternal kingdom is open to all. And so St. Paul—in the Book of Romans exclaims: “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Rom. 10:14)
We believe that everyone has the right to his or her opinion and should be respected, even if those opinions do not agree with our own. We seem to say with Voltaire: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

A consequence of this way of thinking (not wrong, but incomplete thinking) is a lessening in the apostolic or missionary zeal among Christians. If someone has the right to be wrong, and is sincere in his beliefs, why insist on our ways? Is it not showing a lack of respect to suggest that someone might be wrong in their thinking or their choices and values in life?

It is always necessary to respect others’ views, and Christians reject labeling people according to their views or beliefs. But it is not their freedom of thought that we wish to question, but what they see and interpret, in their freedom. As Christians, we believe that the life of Jesus Christ offers each person an example of the truth of what he or she experiences, in freedom. We also believe that each person can, through God’s grace, experience the presence of Jesus Christ. We wish to help each person turn his eyes in the right direction and his ears to the right sounds of this experience. True acceptance of the Christian experience does not come through imposition or obligation, but through a real experience of the truth and attraction of the presence of Jesus Christ and his way of life. And so we are always proposing, never imposing. Our mission is to serve, and not to dominate. It must always remain a dialogue, and never an imposition

This is a challenge for us Christians especially in today’s ever-increasingly secular culture. But it’s always also our responsibility to witness in word and in deed to the truth of our Catholic faith, with clarity and with charity. And this can begin with friendship.

I have many friends who are Jewish, atheist, agnostic, Muslim and everything in between. You can be sure that each and every one of them know about my relationship with the risen Christ and the difference that has makes in my life, and I try, sometimes miserably, to demonstrate my faith in my interactions with them. I have respect for their faith or lack of it. I don’t force the issue. Some have become Catholic, some have not. But they know that Gods’ gifts are for all who are ready to receive them. I must always remember that God does the work of transformation, not me.

On the other hand, you would be surprised how many people secretly want to talk about faith but fear being pressured by fanatics.

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Rom. 10:14)

My brothers and sisters I am sure that you have many such friends as well. Let me tell you what St. Augustine had to say about friendship:

“He truly loves a friend who loves God in the friend, either because God is actually
present in the friend or in order that God may be so present. This is true love. If we love another for another reason, we hate him more than we love him.”

In teaching friends to love God in one another, Augustine urges them to a creative love, which, like Christ’s own, loves men not for what they are, but in order that they may become, leading them to the goal where God is all in all.... God is the end as he is the beginning of all true friendship.

The question of who are God’s chosen people is simple; everyone! I Timothy tells us that God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. But…

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?”

Thoughts and Afterthoughts: 8.11.11

2011-08-11T14:09:00.000-07:00

• Politico is reporting that Texas Governor Rick Perry to make 2012 presidential intentions clear Saturday in S. Carolina Speech. I'm not sure how I feel about his candidacy for a number of reasons.

• ‘Your Amygdala Made You Do It’ — Is Neuroscience Disproving Free Will? The continuing attempt to enforce materialistic determinism.

• Archbishop Timothy Dolan on Preserving Our Catholic Faith: Choice quotes:

In the end, of course, our challenge is not to change the teachings of Jesus and His Church to conform to our whims, but to change our lives to conform to His teaching.

So, plug in whatever word you want in the boilerplate headline: "Group Challenges Vatican on its Policy of __________________" - abortion, marriage, euthanasia, lying, stealing, artificial contraception, sexual acts outside of marriage, ordination of women - fill in the "flavor of the day," but the headline is still inaccurate: these are not "policies" decided by some person in the Vatican; these are not "bans" put out by some committee. These are doctrines, timeless teachings not ours to alter.

Don’t miss reading the entire article here. Related to the above, see also: “Doctrine and Policy: The Authentic Catholic Mind”

• George Martin on “The Never Ending Culture Wars.” We've taken some licks lately.

• Bill Cosby said that, “Fatherhood is pretending the present you love most is "soap-on-a-rope." But wait, there’s more! “The Secret of Dads' Success: How Fathers' Teasing, Tickling, Wrestling Teach Kids to Whine Less and Be More Independent”

• New Gallup Poll Shows Planned Parenthood More Extreme than Most Pro-Abortion Americans: “For instance, the poll found that 79% of people who say they are pro-choice want to make abortion illegal in the third trimester, a majority (52%) of pro-choice people even want abortion to be illegal in the second trimester as well!...In addition, the poll found that 63% of pro-choice people say they want to ban partial-birth abortions.

• Forget CEO’s. Obama and congress really need to do a little something something (tounge in cheek): “Matt Lauer makes $17 million, topping annual TV news salaries. Katie Couric's five-year, $65 million contract with CBS News expired earlier this year,” In related news, news: Video: MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan has a meltdown over the meltdown.

• Lila Rose (of Live Action) leads crowd decrying abortionist privileges at Colorado Catholic hospital.

• Best quotes from Poland’s June 30 debate on total abortion ban

• What I call the lost sacrament of silence: “Silence if key to contemplation, Pope reminds audience”

• Yuck!!! “Orange diocese increases offer to buy for Crystal Cathedral”

• Now Governors are dictating what Catholic hospitals can and cannot do viz. The Bishops’ Health Care Directives: “Ahead of hospital merger, Kentucky newspaper rips Catholic influence.”

• I’m sorry, despite the good intentions, this is not just wrong, it’s kitsch at its worst, the kind of kitsch that rightly brings ridicule to Catholics who have a 2000 year tradition of excellence in the arts. The Curt Jester reporting on, I kid you not, on "Papal Toilet Paper":

Renova, a Portuguese paper company, is celebrating Pope Benedict XVI’s upcoming trip to Madrid by releasing special edition Papal toilet paper. The yellow and white rolls–representing the colors of the Papal flag–are being released for World Youth Day. The product’s description on Renova’s website calls them “streamers,” yet they come in the same packaging as their toilet paper and can only be found in the toilet paper section of their site. Don’t be bashful, for Renova asks you to “Open your windows to celebrate!” when the Pope comes to Madrid.

• Take the “Sacraments Quiz” at AMDG.

The Nature of the Soul

2011-08-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

What is the soul? If it does exist, where is it? Do animals have souls? In this video, Br. Clement Dickie, O.P. explores the Catholic understanding of the nature of the soul. Rooted in the thinking of St. Thomas Aquinas, this talk attempts to answer much of the modern misunderstanding about the nature of the soul as the principle of life. This lecture is the last in a series of summer lectures held at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Zanesville, OH. This lecture was given on July 26, 2011.

Do Dogs Have Souls: The Nature of the Soul from Province of Saint Joseph on Vimeo.

The Miracle Before the Miracle

2011-08-09T14:07:00.000-07:00

Homily, August 7, 2011, Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Miracle Before the Miracle

Both the Book of Kings and St. Matthew’s Gospel recall an appearance of God in natural phenomena. The prophet Elijah is running for his life from the death threats of Jezebel. He rests in a cave on Mt. Horeb, God’s mountain. He recognizes the voice of Yahweh not in the mighty hurricane, or the earthquake, or the raging fires. But in something else. In our Gospel we also have natural phenomena: The well-know story of Jesus walking on the sea and calming a storm that threatens to overwhelm and capsize their boat.

There has been a long history of trying to demythologize the miracles of the Bible. One of the most famous of these demythologizers was the 20th century Protestant theologian, Rudolf Bultmann. A biographer of his, John F McCarthy wrote that:

“Bultmann describes in detail the New Testament "mythology" that in his estimation needs to be eliminated, including the three-storied world of heaven, earth, and hell, the supernatural activity on earth of God, good angels, and demons, the working of nature-miracles, diabolical temptations, heavenly visions, the power of the Spirit, the reign on earth of Satan, sin, and death, the event of Redemption by a God-man, and the future coming of Christ.” All that has to be disposed of just like yesterday’s garbage.

For Bultmann and his post-modern theology, all these things are nonsense. So according to this view, the fleeing Israelites who crossed the Red Sea, by God’s miraculous intervention, didn’t really cross the Red Sea, they crossed the so-called “Reed Sea” which is more like a shallow lake that they actually could wade through, in about six inches of water. Which beg the question, how did all those Egyptians and their chariots drown in six inches of water? Or how King Solomon built and maintained a fleet of merchant ships in about six inches of water? It was called Ezion Geber and you can still see its remains today near the resort city of Elat at the Northern end of the Gulf of Aqaba on the Red sea.

For Bultmann, these stories of miracles are silly and need to be eliminated. Well, I think Bultmann and his way of explaining away the reality of miracles is silly. I disagree with almost every point of his post-modern theology. But as they say, even a broken clock is right twice a day. I agree with Bultmann that some of the greatest miracles of the Bible are not natural, or that is, the suspension of physical laws.

For me some of the greatest miracles in the Bible take place, before what we would immediately recognize as miracles. Think of it as the miracle before the miracle. The miracle that makes all other miracles, including the epic ones, possible. And that miracle is prayer. I don’t just mean any old kind of prayer or foxhole prayers. I’m talking about that consistent merging of ourselves with God in such a way that our will becomes so closely aligned to God’s will, and God’s to ours that we experience a kind of mystical union with God.

In our first reading we hear about supernatural events, miracles if you will: strong and heavy winds that tear away at the mountains, crushing rocks, earthquakes, fires.

“But the LORD was not in the wind.
After the wind there was an earthquake—
but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake there was fire—
but the LORD was not in the fire.

After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. That’s where Elijah found God—in the still, small voice it is only with the stunning quiet of the aftermath that the Lord speaks to Elijah in the "sound of sheer silence," the miracle before the miracle, where God makes him a prophet of the Lord.

We should always invite the Spirit of God to introduce thoughts and ideas to us. About scripture, about his will, in fact, about any matter. "Teach me to do Thy will; for Thou art my God: Thy Spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness" (Psalm 143:10 "Teach me to do Thy will; for Thou art my God: Thy Spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness" (Psalm 143:10).. "With my whole heart have I sought Thee: O let me not wander from Thy Commandments" (Psalm "With my whole heart have I sought Thee: O let me not wander.

This is the most important kind of prayer. The miracle before the miracle. Oh we know that there are different types of prayer, we engage in many of them in the Mass:

1. Prayers of Adoration

2. Prayers of Expiation or Contrition

3. Prayers of expressions of our love for God,

4. Prayers of Petition

5. Prayers of Thanksgiving

Too many people however, think that prayer is merely asking. Prayer is sometimes asking, but moreso,

Prayer is not just asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is daily admission of one's weakness. It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart.

In our Gospel reading, Jesus in the previous story had just heard about the beheading of his cousin, John the Baptist. What did he What did he immediately do? “He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place,” to pray, to unite his angst with God. This is the miracle before the miracle because immediately after spending time in prayer and meditation, he comes back to his disciples and they feed lunch to five thousand people with five loaves of bread and a couple of fish. The miracle behind the miracle is prayer that preceded it.

Then after what must have been a daunting task, feeding 5000 people, what does Jesus do? He engages is the miracle behind the miracle—again!

“After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When it was evening he was there alone.” The miracle before the miracle. After communing with God, after prayer, after uniting himself to God, then and only then, does he calm the storms and the winds and walked on the sea.

I have so many people tell me that they find it hard to find time for prayer, especially contemplative prayer. How is the miracle behind the miracle in your life? Or could it be that because you are not engaging in the miracle behind the miracle, you’re not getting to the miracle at all? Is it because we don’t pray that we indirectly affirm the Bultmann? Could it be that you are missing out on God blessings, because you fail to unite your will with God’s will in prayer. Could it be that because you’re too busy with the lightning, windstorms and the earthquakes of life we miss, God’s “still small voice,” that is always a voice of consolation.

Henry Beecher Ward has said that, “It is not well for a man to pray cream and live skim milk.” To pray for the cream of God’s great work in our lives, but our prayer to him is mere skim milk.

I like a line from our second reading, this could be a definition for prayer by St. Paul: “My conscience joins with the Holy Spirit.” That is how Paul could say, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me!”

That is why Thomas Merton could say that, “Suspended entirely from and by God’s mercy, I am content for anything to happen.”
How do we pray? Prayer is, above all, the search for an experience of God in our lives. Prayer is not just the external and formal practice of adoring God, as valuable as that may be. We can experience God in prayer, an experience that, even if in one short moment, can change our lives, our desires and our priorities forever.

To experience God in prayer we need to take prayer seriously. We need to leave all other concerns behind, and to turn our mind and heart to search for God in prayer. This is not easily done; those beginning in prayer complain of constant distractions. This happens because we are not used to the act of contemplation; our minds flit from one random idea to another. Slowly though, we can learn to turn our minds to the reality of God’s presence, and begin to prepare ourselves to engage God through prayer. Certainly, it is God, not us, who reveals himself to us;, but even God, in a certain sense, requires and depends on our proper dispositions.

There is a real need to know what the experience of Christian prayer is, and how we may ready ourselves to receive it— this sacrament of silence before God—is key—it is the miracle before the miracle and it leads to the greatest miracle of all— our union with God, for the first purpose of prayer is to know God.