The Annunciation Messenger

for those who have been looking...

2008-07-07T08:14:00.000-07:00

Here are the homilies from the end of Lent and the beginning of Easter. More to follow when I get the rest off of the desktop computer.

pax tecum
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Easter - 4th Sunday

2008-07-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

Easter – 4th Sunday

Acts 2:14, 36-41
1 Peter 2:20-25
John 10:1-10

Jesus said, “the shepherd calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out.”

Many have heard about the image of Jesus as the good shepherd, and have often seen a picture of Jesus with a lamb draped across his shoulders.

But here we have this image of the shepherd who calls his own sheep by name, leading them.
It connotes both a long familiarity, trust, and ongoing action.

In a similar but even better way, God chooses us, calls us by name, and wants us to learn the right way to go. Recall the sacrament of baptism. What happens there? First, the name of the person is given to the priest, who then baptizes the person by their name into the name of God. In this divine exchange God calls us by name and then also gives us His name. We are adopted into God’s family by baptism and are called to a divine inheritance.

Jesus, the divine shepherd, calls each of us by name into his family.

Jesus, the divine shepherd, leads us where we are to go.

Jesus’ main purpose in his ministry was to build the kingdom of God. Therefore his love is a constructive love.
It is a love that gives knowledge to the ignorant.
It is a love that gives freedom to those who are in bondage.
It is a love that gives healing to those who are wounded and are in pain.
It is a love that gives meaning and significance to confusion.
It is a love that gives eternal life to all who had been doomed to death.
It is a love that gives perfection to everything disfigured by sin.

The voice of Jesus the good shepherd, calls us to follow him into knowledge, freedom, healing, meaning, and the perfection of eternal life. Sounds like a good place, doesn’t it? Want to go there?

Jesus, the divine shepherd, will lead us where we need to go.

He calls us. We need to listen to him.

Well, the key to following Him is to do something we all struggle with. It is that little word – obedience. But in order to be led by Jesus we need to learn obedience to him.

Obedience is a tough sell in our culture. Because we all want to be independent. We all want to be assertive and to be leaders. And so we mistakenly believe that those qualities are contrary to the ideal of obedience. But I submit to you that the strongest and best people are those who have learned the art of obedience. Obedience to God is, in its essence, a deep listening to God. It is a receptivity to God that is unencumbered by selfishness.

In order to truly be a disciple of Jesus we need to learn to listen to His voice and then obey his commands.

Our listening to the Lord is a spiritual listening through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Rarely does the Lord speak audibly to us in his own voice, though I have heard this voice once. And I know others who have heard the audible voice of the Lord. But most often the Lord speaks to us through the chosen instruments of his kingdom. There are three interdependent voices that we need to recognize and hear. And they are all present during mass.

The first is the Word of God. The bible. If you want to hear God’s voice then listen to the readings from the bible during mass. Take note, and God will speak to you through sacred scripture.

The second is the magisterium. The magisterium is the pope and the bishops – those men who are called to continue the work of the apostles. Their instruction to us is present in the mass. Consider - the way we celebrate mass today is the fruit of the work of the bishops during the second Vatican council. And from time to time they ask us to consider different parts of the mass in order to instruct us in how we are to live as Christians.

The third is sacred tradition. This is the voice of countless men and women who have preceeded us in faith and whose voices are present in the prayers and songs that we offer, and other ways that we pray and live out our faith.

The Lord speaks to us through the bible, the magisterium, and tradition. They are interconnected and together offer us proper understanding of how the Lord leads us to the fullness of life.

This also illuminates a certain crisis that we as believers face. We don’t always like what we hear being spoken to us in the word of God, by the magisterium, and in sacred tradition. When the Church tells us to welcome the stranger - and it conflicts with our politics, we get uneasy. When the church tells us that artificial contraception is a sin – and it conflicts with our sexual practices, we prefer to discount this teaching as irrelevant. When the church tells us to be holy, and we are busy with our own lives, we tend to think of holiness as quaint and mainly for dead saints. We’re just ordinary people, we like to say.

But that’s not the way it works. Jesus calls you and me to follow him. He wants us to trust him with our lives. He has a good plan for you and for me. So the question put to us is whether or not we choose to listen to his voice and to follow him.

He truly is the good shepherd. He won’t lead you wrong. In him you’ll find freedom, healing, meaning, and life to the full. And he is calling us all. Let’s follow him into the fullness of the kingdom.

Easter 3rd Sunday

2008-07-07T08:11:00.000-07:00

Easter – third Sunday

“Jesus drew near and walked with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.

Now, isn’t that an interesting scenario. Clopas and the other disciple couldn’t recognize Jesus. Before I go on, I want to speculate something about the other disciple. Here’s a clue. One of the Mary’s at the foot of the cross was the wife of Clopas. It is probable that the unnamed disciple here was Mary, the wife of Clopas. It is also possible that Mary is unnamed in this story so that you and I can identify with her. The unnamed disciple can also be the reader.

So Clopas and the other disciple don’t recognize Jesus. There he was. Resurrected from the dead. Walking with them, and they didn’t recognize him. Do you ever wonder why this is?

Well, this is what I want to talk about tonight. How to discover what prevents us from recognizing Jesus and what will help us to overcome that little problem. Actually, it is a big problem, as we are about to see.

The first issue is that Jesus is veiled supernaturally from them. They are prevented. Most of the resurrection appearances have him cloaked in mystery at first, and then only through a gradual recognition or through signs are the disciples then able to recognize him.

In Clopas and the other disciple’s case, Jesus points out a few things to them. Let’s consider the words of Jesus to them for a moment.

After they tell the resurrected Jesus the story of the death of the Jesus as they knew him, He had this to say. Listen.
Oh how foolish you are.
How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke.

Here Jesus shows them two problems that they have.

How foolish. The problem here is one of ignorance. In fact, foolishness and ignorance often go hand in hand. We often consider older people wiser because – they have been educated by life. We presume they have learned life’s lessons and know how to do the right things. Whereas youth and foolishness go hand in hand because of lack of experience or ignorance. So what were Clopas and the other disciple ignorant of? Well, this is where Jesus gave them a crash course in sacred scripture. It says that Jesus explained all that refered to him in Moses and all the prophets.

Which brings up an interesting point for us today. Ask yourself this question. How educated am I in holy scripture? How educated am I in the teaching of the church? How educated am I in the sacred tradition of the Church? You know, a lot of Catholics kind of just stopped learning these things after 8th grade and the sacrament of Confirmation. As if that were enough. Or we have been rather spotty in our study of the things of God. Ask yourself another question. Would Jesus consider me wise? Or foolish if he appeared to me? Could I even recognize him?

Another problem. Slow of heart to believe.
Jesus himself predicted for them over and over that he would rise from the dead. He kept telling his disciples of the kind of kingdom he wanted to inaugurate. But they had other ideas – mostly take Jesus’ words on face value. Whatever the problem they had blocked themselves from believing Jesus words about his own resurrection. Which makes one wonder what other problems in belief that they had.
And these were two disciples who stayed pretty close to Jesus – and if it were Mary, right at the foot of the cross.
Which makes you and me wonder. What are our problems with belief in the words of Jesus? His promises in scripture. His miracles. His teachings about how we are to live?
So many catholics think they can just pick and choose what to believe and reject from the deposit of faith in sacred scripture, apostolic teaching, and sacred tradition. We can be very slow to believe – especially in the most challenging teachings of our faith. Where are you stuck?

Their foolishness and their slowness to believe, I think, blocked them from seeing Christ.

So what changed it for them?

Three things really.

The first thing that changed it for them was the very presence of Christ. Whether they recognized him or not he was walking with them and listening to their story. And so we must also recognize through faith that Jesus also walks with us, whether we recognize his presence or not. He is with us. And his presence changes everything.
The second thing that changed it for them was sacred scripture. Jesus opened the scriptures to them, explaining it to them so that they could understand. And he shows us clearly that in order for us to overcome foolishness we MUST be educated in knowledge of our faith. Therefore we must learn scripture. We must learn the teaching of the Church. We must learn the sacred tradition of the Church. It is through these means that Christ himself teaches us what we need to know so that we can recognize him.
The third things that changed it for them was the Eucharist. It was in the breaking of the bread that Jesus, in that moment, was unveiled. They could finally see him and recognize his presence. In that moment, he vanished. In that moment, their unbelief was overcome and they could see him. This leads each believer to contemplate the presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Which is why Adoration is such a significant prayer. Adoration of Jesus in the Eucharist leads us to a greater belief in his true presence. And where our belief is strengthened we can perceive him more and more clearly. Both in the breaking of the bread and in so many other ways.

Which leads us to the end result of growing in knowledge of faith and in strength of belief. It leads us into the heart of Communion. Clopas and the other disciple rushed back to Jerusalem – right to the apostles. The center of the Church Jesus established. They were in communion with the apostles and with the Lord, who had appeared also to the eleven.

And isn’t that what we ultimately want? To see Jesus? Oh that we are granted the wisdom and belief to see Jesus. Are not our hearts burning within us?

Easter Vigil 2008

2008-07-07T08:09:00.000-07:00

Easter Vigil
March 22, 2008

Romans 6:3-11
Matthew 28:1-10

We who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death.
We have been reflecting on the death of the Lord Jesus all week long.

On Palm Sunday we read the story of his passion and death according to St. Matthew.

Good Friday at 3 p.m. we read the story from the gospel of John and commemorated his death by venerating the cross. Venerating the cross is not easy. It reminds us of our mortality. That we too must take up our cross and follow him.

Good Friday at 8 p.m. we venerated the burial of Jesus by placing candles before the tomb and placing our prayer intentions within the tomb. People wrote down their sins, their weaknesses, and their pain, to bury these things with the Lord. Many people stayed, praying, even crying.

All week many people came for the sacrament of penance. In offering up our sins and our shame to the Lord, we place them on his cross to be crucified with him. And many people received, with tears running down their cheeks, the consoling and healing words of Christ – I absolve you of your sins. Our sin and our shame was nailed to the cross with him, and buried with him.
We who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death.

If we have died with Christ, we shall also live with Christ.
All through the Easter season and, really, every Sunday and every day, we as Christians reflect on the meaning of living with Christ. It is not a one time event celebrated only on Easter.

Jesus taught us that living with Him means right here and right now, as well as in eternity. He taught us to pray for the kingdom to come ON EARTH just like it exists in heaven.

Jesus said that the Kingdom of God is right here and right now. To enter into the Kingdom of God we MUST have faith in Jesus and in the Church that he established. Faith made real through practice of the sacraments of Jesus’ new covenant. Faith made real by practical application of the love of God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love of neighbor as we love ourselves. This is the work of love.
If we have died with Christ, then we must live with Christ.

To live with Christ is to see him.
After his resurrection Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary. Then he appeared to the disciples. Down through the ages various believers have reported seeing visions of him or of hearing his voice.
If you had the opportunity to see Jesus – I mean really see him, would you want to?
Then remember, seeing him will challenge you to the core. Consider:

For Mary Magdalene and the other Mary – He told them not to be afraid and to announce his resurrection to the other disciples. They did as he asked and became the first evangelists.
For Saint Peter – Jesus charged him to lead the apostles and asked him – do you love me? Then feed my sheep. He did as Jesus asked and became the first pope.
For Mother Theresa – Jesus spoke to her and showed her His presence in what she described as “the distressing disguise of the poor.” She did as Jesus asked and became a sign of His love to the poor of Calcutta and, subsequently, a sign of the love of Jesus to people all over the world.
To live with Christ is to see him.

Do you want to hear his voice? Then hear his voice in the Word proclaimed and in the prayers and sacraments of the Church. Put into practice what you hear. Blessed are those who have ears to hear, and really hear it.
Do you want to see him? Then see his presence in the Holy Eucharist, body and blood, soul and divinity? See his presence in his Holy Church. See his presence in the least of these his brothers and sisters who we are called to love through humble service. Blessed are those who have eyes to see, and really see Him.
Do you want to live with him? Then put to death all sin and shame that it may die with him. Take on the life he asks us to live in his kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven. For his Kingdom is the Church. The Church is his bride – the one for whom he laid down his life.
For you. For us all. That we may rise to new life in Him.

Permit me now, to say a few words to our brothers and sisters who do not speak English.

Celebramos hoy en esta noche la significancia de la muerte y resurrección del Señor. El bautismo que celebramos en esta misa es nuestra incorporación en la muerte de Jesús. Es decir, que nuestros pecados muere con Jesús. Por esto el bautismo es necesario. Tambien el sacramento de penitencia. Y porque?

Que podemos realmente vivir. Vivir con Cristo. Cuando celebramos la resurrección de Cristo celebramos una realidad presente. Cristo esta resucitado que nosotros podemos vivir con el.
El viva por su Palabra que proclamamos. Y en esta misa proclamemos MUCHO. Que escuchamos a sus palabras que podemos vivir sus mensajes a nosotros.

El viva en la Eucaristía – presente a nosotros en su cuerpo y sangre, alma y divinidad. Que recibimos su presencia que podemos vivir su vida aquí en la tierra como estará en los cielos.

El viva con nosotros cuando amamos a Dios con todo corazon, alma, mente, y fuerza. El viva con nosotros cuando amamos a nuestros próximos.

El viva que podemos temer no mas pero tener el gozo de sus promesas a nosotros. Vida nueva por el bautismo. Vida eterna por la cruz y la resurrección.

Viva Jesús
Viva Cristo Rey
Viva Cristo Resucitado
Viva Cristo Glorificado.
Alleluia!

Lent - 5th Sunday

2008-07-07T08:08:00.000-07:00

Lent – 5th Sunday
March 9, 2008

Ezekiel 37:12-14
Romans 8:8-11
John 11:1-45

Here we are at the 5th Sunday of Lent - almost finished with our Lenten journey. Easter is almost here.

The story of the raising of Lazarus in the gospel of John is the third major miracle story presented to us during the Lenten season. In the gospel of John it is also the last sign that Jesus performs pointing to his role as messiah. Once again, we are called upon to reflect on its meaning in light of the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and eucharist as celebrations of the paschal mystery.

The central question presented here for us is the one Jesus posed to Martha. He said; “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

The death and life presented to us are spiritual concepts. While Jesus raised Lazarus’ body from death in this event, at some point in time after that, he once again died. His body now sleeps in death, awaiting the final resurrection promised to us by Jesus and by the prophets.

The readings are full of the promise of resurrection. Ezekiel prophesies how the Lord will open our graves that we may rise from them. St. Paul writes about the bright promise given to us at baptism. God himself will conquer our sin and death and give life to our mortal bodies.

We also know through what scripture and the church teaches that all human beings will be raised from the dead. Some will be raised to live joyfully forever in the presence of God. Others will be raised to eternal separation from God in the punishment of hell.

The question of belief is, therefore, very practical.

Those who believe in Jesus will do as he calls them. Those who don’t believe in him will, in the long run, show themselves as children of corruption.

And what is belief in Jesus? Belief is the true essence of life. Life of the eternal sort produces fruit that goes beyond mere physicality. Belief in Jesus by truly doing what he tells us produces a radical kind of love that transcends. Consider: the greatest humanitarians have always been people of faith. Mother Theresa, St. Martin de Porres, Martin Luther King Jr., St. Katherine Drexell, Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton, are all examples of people living heroic lives of faith who left a legacy of pure love. And we believe that their spirits rest forever in God. Their works were works of the spirit. The fruit of their works was always love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.
And what is the fruit of having no faith? Think of the institutions set up that deny God’s existence. The Soviet Union was established in 1917 and its official creed was that God does not exist. It set out to destroy the Church. It was a source of murder, violence, corruption, and poverty. Consider modern capitalism. The era of “greed is good” has not left us. The pursuit of money as a God devalues the dignity of all human life and always results in the creation of a culture of death. Abortion, euthanasia, and every other assault against the dignity of human life is the eventual fruit of a life in the absence of the one true God.

The great test of our day is to live within all the temptations of this world and then to choose on a daily basis whether or not we truly believe in Jesus. Will we make a radical “yes” to him and then do as he calls us? This is what it means to live out the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and Holy Eucharist.

He calls us to love God. Will we?
He calls us to love one another. Will we?
He calls us to follow his commands as handed to us through scripture and tradition. Will we?
He calls us from death to life in the spirit. Will we?

Jesus’ question to Martha is also his question to us right now.
“I am the resurrection and the life;
Whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Lenth - 4th Sunday

2008-03-03T15:01:00.000-08:00

Lent – 4th Sunday
March 2, 2008

1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a
Ephesians 5:8-14
John 9:1-41

I am the light of the world, says the Lord. Whoever follows me will have the light of life.

And so is the faith we proclaim as Catholic Christians. It is not just a faith in a philosophy or a doctrine, but most especially a faith in a person. The person of Jesus – the light in our darkness.

Last week we heard the story of the woman at the well from the gospel of John and reflected on its sacramental character.

This week we are asked once again by the Church to hear these readings in light of the celebration of baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist which we will celebrate in a most special way at the Easter vigil.

Today is the story of the healing of the man born blind.
In some sense, the story is very simple. The man born blind represents all of us in our spiritual blindness. We are all born with it. The man born blind is anointed by Jesus with the clay that he makes, and then he washes in the pool of siloam. This ritual washing reminds us of the sacrament of baptism. After Jesus heals his physical sight, the man comes to have faith in Jesus and so he is spiritually enlightened. He comes to know Jesus as the light of the world.
On the other hand, the Pharisees, though they can see physically, remain spiritually blind. They refuse to have faith.

For us who prepare for the great celebration of Easter, the call of this gospel is two fold.
We need Jesus to save us from our own works of darkness. Where our eye looks with judgment toward another person, we need Jesus to illumine us with his mercy. Where our eye looks down on another person, we need Jesus to come show us the dignity of each human person. Where our eye looks lustfully at another person, we need Jesus to show us the beauty and freedom of chastity. When our vision is darkened by the lack of faith, we need Jesus to ignite a brilliant light of faith in our souls. Therefore St. Paul writes to the Ephesians telling them to “take no part in the fruitless works of darkness. We need Jesus to save us from our own works of darkness.

Jesus comes to make us the light of the world. Remember. He who is the light of the world said this to his disciples. You are the light of the world. And the Lord wants us to shine brightly for him to the whole world.

Shine for him.
When people practice hatred, let our love increase for them.
When people offend us, let us forgive them endlessly
When people are full of unbelief, let us plant seeds of faith in them
Shine for him.
When people are in despair, may we speak hope to them
When people are full of sadness, let us bring joy to them

Shine for him.
When people live in darkness, may we be light for them.

And we can only do that when Jesus is our love, our forgiveness, our belief, our hope, our joy, and our light.

He is the light of the world. To truly follow him is to have the light of life.

Lent - 3rd Sunday

2008-03-03T14:59:00.000-08:00

Lent – 3rd Sunday
February 24, 2008

Exodus 17:3-7
Romans 5:1-2,5-8
John 4:5-42

This weekend, and the next two weekend liturgies present these longer readings from the gospel of John. Each one is a reflection on the paschal mystery – that is, the death and resurrection of the Lord. Each one, therefore, also asks us to think about the meaning of baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist.

So let’s take a look at today’s gospel, the story of the woman at the well, and see what it tells us about the meaning of baptism, confirmation, and Holy Communion – the three sacraments of initiation.

So first, let’s revisit the story. Jesus meets the woman at the well, asks for a drink, and then they have this little bout of friendly verbal banter in the form of little riddles. You can almost see them having some fun with it, talking about water, then living water, and then getting a drink. Until, of course, Jesus throws in the zinger about stating the woman’s history with six different men. Then the conversation turns more serious and Jesus begins telling her about salvation. She gets all excited, forgets about the well water, runs off, tells the people of the town to come and listen to the rabbi at the well. The disciples show up while she runs off and Jesus tells more riddles to his disciples about food to eat that they don’t know about. In the end, the people in the town listen to Jesus and come to faith in him.

Now, let’s learn what to do with this story.

The first symbol is the “living water.” It refers both to the sacrament of Baptism and to the Holy Spirit conferred in baptism and confirmation and all the gifts we receive from those sacraments.

When Jesus begins to explain living water to the woman he does so by explaining worship. This is the fundamental purpose for our creation. To be in relationship with God. We are in relationship with God by receiving His gift to us and then offering it back with thanksgiving. Let me say that again. We are in relationship with God by receiving his gifts to us and then offering them back with thanksgiving. This is the essence of worship. We do this at mass. In fact, the word, “eucharist” means “to give thanks and praise” That’s what we do at mass. And the mass teaches us about a fundamental attitude we can apply to everything we do. To worship in Spirit is to truthfully acknowledge God’s gifts to us and give thanks. Therefore, in everything, give thanks to God.

So, our first Lenten instruction is this: Worship God in spirit and truth. How? By giving thanks in everything. This is worship in spirit and in truth.

The second symbol is the “Food which you do not know” and has the double meaning of the Eucharist and to the effect of the Eucharist in our lives.
The story of the Last Supper in the gospel of John does not include the institution narrative but does, however, uniquely include the story of the washing of feet. That is to say, Eucharist turned into action. After all, we Catholics believe the biblical truth that we are saved by both faith and works.

So Jesus talks about the food that means doing the will of God and finishing his work. Then he gives the example of the harvest – obviously referring not to crops but to people. Helping other people come to faith in Jesus.

This brings us to the second Lenten instruction which is: Help others people come to faith in Jesus.
How? Helping them to receive the living water of baptism and the Holy Spirit. To receive the true food of the Eucharist that strengthens us to do God’s will.
Consider: Have you ever helped somebody to convert to faith in Jesus and to be baptized, confirmed, and receive first Eucharist? Pray to the Holy Spirit to give you the opportunity to help others come to faith in Jesus.

The third symbol in the story is the woman at the well. She represents sinful humanity in need of salvation. Notice that she was there getting water in the heat of the day, not in the morning when the respectable women of the town would gather together. She was obviously something of an outcast in her town. Jesus talks to her – in and of itself something remarkable to her because this simply was not done. Then, Jesus tells her of her sins, but not in a way that judges or condemns her – even more remarkable. He just says that he knows her and repeats his offer of living water. The water of worship that wipes away past sins. That washes away guilt and regret. The water of the Holy Spirit that brings us into communion with God and with the saints. The flow of the Holy Spirit that sends us to tell others about how Jesus saves us from our sins. The woman at the well – with shame turned to joyful hope – became the first evangelist for her town.

Our third Lenten instruction. No more regrets. For Jesus has redeemed us by his death and resurrection. He has given us the living water of the Holy Spirit and bread from heaven – his own body and blood. He brings us into communion with our Heavenly Father along with all the saints. Jesus makes all things new.

Come, let us worship in spirit and in truth.

Lent - 2nd Sunday

2008-03-03T14:57:00.000-08:00

Lent – 2nd Sunday
February 17

Genesis 12:1-4a
2 Timothy 1:8b-10
Matthew 17:1-9

Do you ever get bummed out by Lent?

Some people really do. The whole idea of making the Church bare for mass. The whole idea of fasting and other personally chosen deprivations. The whole focus on repentance – reminding us that we are, in fact, sinners in need of salvation. For some people this time of year can get rather depressing.

Let’s add to the fact that it is February – traditionally one of the most depressing months of the year. Spring is trying to get here but February is generally colder, grayer, and damper than most other months.

Lent is a time of annual review. How have we done spiritually this past year? What do we need to repent of? What actions do we need to incorporate in our lives to fulfill the gospel Lenten call of fasting, almsgiving, and prayer?

February and Lent sometimes seem like they are that time of the year that we just have to slog through in order to get to the good stuff. And in a sense, that is true.

Consider the trajectory of the readings during Lent. Combine the readings all together and we get a long reflection on the meaning of the sacrament of baptism. It is connected with Jesus journey to the cross. That gut wrenching experience of Good Friday.

Jesus says over and over during Lent that the Son of man must suffer and be put to death. And on the third day he will rise from the dead.

And then he tells his disciples to take up their cross and follow him. Depressing thought. For if we will be his disciples then we must take that journey to Jerusalem along with him. We have to be willing to face difficulty and opposition for the sake of the gospel. We have to be willing to suffer. And we all have to face our own imminent deaths. For sooner or later we will all die. We will all have our own personal Good Friday, facing the deaths of loved ones and then finally our own death.

It’s no wonder that Lent can get so stark and bleak sometimes.

And so that’s why today’s gospel is so important in the Lenten cycle. This story of the transfiguration – where the disciples have a vision of Jesus in all his amazing glory conversing with Moses the lawgiver and Elijah the prophet. This is a little token, a foretaste, of what will come after Good Friday.

And, of course, Peter, James, and John didn’t get it at all. For this reason Jesus told them to be quiet about it until after the resurrection. And God the Father’s command to them? Very simply – “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”

The same message and the same voice when Jesus was baptized in the river Jordan. The second theophany of the Holy Trinity in the gospel story. Amazingly important.

And for two reasons.

God wants us to see. This story is where God shows us a small foretaste of the glory that he has prepared for us from the foundation of the world. Just as Jesus was revealed in his glory to the disciples, the other underwritten message is that we who believe and are saved by him may participate in his resurrection when he raises our mortal bodies from the grave.

God wants us to see these things yet to come. Even in the midst of our slogging through Lent. Fasting reveals to us the importance of the wedding feast of the Lamb in the Eucharist and in heaven. Almsgiving reveals to us God’s great generosity working through us. Prayer brings us into more intimate union with God. These actions open our eyes to see spiritually these things are truly glorious. The unveiling of things yet to come.

God wants us to hear. Did you hear God’s command to Peter, James, and John? “Listen to him”. Boy, that’s a tough one. In our frenetically paced lives it gets increasingly difficult to make ourselves listen. Too many things to think about. Too many things to do. Lots of stuff to analyze. We need to really listen. To hear more deeply God’s messages to us in our lives.

God wants to show you things. God wants to tell you things. All in the name of preparing you to fully enter into his heavenly kingdom. And how many times do we miss these fantastic revelations of God because we have no eyes to see and no ears to hear? Too busy? Too selfish? Too sinful?

So here’s a radical idea to lift your lent. Do this and you will honestly look forward to Lent every year. Ask God to open your eyes to see and open your ears to hear all this lent. And begin taking note in a little journal of the things you see and hear each day that inspire you. Remember, inspiration comes from the Holy Spirit.

When you do this the Holy Spirit will show you the glory of the resurrection. You will hear Jesus speak to you. And you will fulfill the commands given to us by God in this reading.
Rise, and do not be afraid.
Listen to him.

Lent - 1st Sunday

2008-03-03T14:56:00.000-08:00

Lent – 1st Sunday
February 10, 2008

Genesis 2:7-9,3:1-7
Romans 5:12-19
Matthew 4:1-11

Temptation.
Everybody faces it. We’ve been dealing with it since Adam and Eve in the garden. It’s the whole idea that there are things that are bad for us or bad for others that nevertheless look very appealing to do.

Food is great. But if we eat too much or eat the wrong stuff our health gets affected.
Sex is great. But if we have it with the wrong people or in the wrong way then the family and society are destabilized and public health is compromised.
Power is great. But if we abuse it then lots of people get hurt and we ourselves become dehumanized as we dehumanize others.

And so it goes. Adam and Eve wanted to be like God. But instead of receiving this godly identity as a gift from God, they decided to grasp it for themselves. They listened to a lie, took the forbidden fruit for themselves, and the rest is history. We, the sons of Adam and the daughters of Eve keep trying to grab a hold of the things we want. Tendencies toward pride and fear and greed keep the old cycle of temptation going.

And yet God in his graciousness sent us a gift through Jesus. Today we are going to learn how to overcome temptation by meditating on the temptations of Jesus.
Let’s take a look at his situation. He has been alone in the desert fasting and praying. In this situation he is probably at his weakest moment. Think about it. For those who are involved in recovery groups they have a little saying that when you are “hungry, angry, lonely, and tired” you need to HALT. These situations leave us vulnerable to our addictions and our temptations.
Certainly Jesus was hungry, lonely, and tired.
And then the temptations came
If you are the Son of God, then turn stones to bread.
If you are the Son of God, then jump from the parapet.
I’ll give you everything if you worship me.

What a sequence.
The first and most basic temptation the devil had was to strike at Jesus identity as the Son of God. Notice how he puts it to the question? Then he suggests something innocent enough. Turn stones to bread. But the whole idea here was to strike at Jesus core identity. And he strikes through the temptations of appetite. That is why people fall into sins of the appetite. They first believe a lie about their own identity. We believe that we are not loved. So we look for love and satisfaction in all the wrong places. We use food, drugs, sex, and other entertainments to mask our inner doubts. We believe the lie.

How did Jesus overcome? He never doubted who he was. He was grounded through prayer and knowledge of the Word of God. He was ready for this temptation and he overcame.

The second basic temptation the devil had was to strike at Jesus’ relevance in ministry. He takes Jesus to the parapet of the temple. This is the center of worship. This is a high place both literally and spiritually. And he says, just jump and see if the angels catch you. Satan even quotes scripture here. Satan strikes through the temptations of security and relevance.
This is how people fall into sins of insecurity and fear. We begin believing the lie that we are not loved or wanted or are important and so we do risky things to get noticed and to get attention. We believe the lie.

How did Jesus overcome? He never doubted his role. He was grounded in his identity through prayer and through knowledge. He was ready for this temptation and he overcame.

The third basic temptation the devil had was to strike and Jesus power and authority. He shows Jesus the world and promises to give it all to him in exchange for a little worship. Remember, Satan wants to be God and wants to be worshipped. For that matter, so do some people. So many people become willing to sell their very souls for power, money, and influence. All manner of evil and human misery come from these temptations.

How did Jesus overcome? He was solidly grounded in the idea that power and influence are ultimately a gift from God. You can’t grasp at these things. Rather, one must receive them with open hands from God and then return them to God. This is the fundamental idea of worship.

Our identity, our relevance in life, and our power are ultimately gifts from God. The problem is that we constantly forget that fact. And so we try to grab hold of them for ourselves. But Jesus teaches us through his example that all these things are a gift we can receive with open hands.

So do you want to know how to overcome temptation? Do what Jesus did. The long and consistent practice of three things:
Prayer. He was completely grounded in his identity through prayer. That’s what it does for us. We know God and therefore we know who we are in God.
Fasting: Jesus became disciplined with his appetites. He ruled his body. His body did not rule him.
Bible. Jesus knew the word of God from memory. This gave him tools to call to mind when faced with temptation.
These three things – prayer, fasting, and the bible will strengthen you by God’s grace to overcome. Victory over sin and death is God’s gift to us through Jesus. Through the open hands of faith we can receive it.

Ordinary Time - 4th Sunday

2008-03-03T14:54:00.000-08:00

Ordinary Time – 4th Sunday
Stewardship Sunday
February 3, 2008

Zephaniah 2:3; 3:12-13
1 Cor 1:26-31
Matthew 5:1-12a

Blessed are they.
This is probably the most famous passage from Jesus’ sermon on the mount. The Beatitudes. Nine blessings given by Jesus for these attitudes and actions of his followers.

This is at once both familiar and also greatly misunderstood.

For example – let’s look at the first Beatitude – Blessed are the poor in spirit. Why would poverty of spirit be a blessing? What does that mean?

I would like to submit to you that all of these beatitudes are a sequence describing the process of conversion for believers. Illumination leads to interior convictions which leads to charitable action for the sake of the gospel.

Let’s take a look and see how this sequence works.

The first three have to do with attitude.

Blessed are the poor in spirit. What this means is the believer’s first realization of his or her own poverty of spirit. We can not save ourselves from sin solely by our own works. This is the first realization of the futility of our own actions apart from God. We are commanded to love God and love our neighbor, but we have to understand that apart from the grace of God we can not do it. So when we realize that we need God to save us and we ask for it, then something wonderful happens. A blessing comes. The kingdom of heaven is yours. But you’ve got to know your poverty of spirit first.

When we truly know our poverty of spirit, then another blessing comes.
Blessed are they who mourn. Mourning naturally follows the realization of poverty of spirit. This is sorrow for our sins and for the sins of the world. It is a good thing to feel bad about sin. To mourn. For when we mourn our sins and when we go to God, then we receive the promise. We will be comforted. And the blessing comes.

Next comes meekness. Who of us can be prideful if we experience poverty of spirit and the sorrow that follows? Meekness is being grounded in the solid reality of the human condition and our utter need for God. And when we are meek, then the blessing comes. The meek shall inherit the earth.

The next four have to do with actions.

Let’s list them now.
blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness
Blessed are the merciful
Blessed are the clean of heart
Blessed are the peacemakers

See here how the experience of initial conversion leads each believer to good works. Here we can see clearly how Jesus teaches that we are saved by faith and works. Works of righteousness, mercy, purity, and peace are the natural expressions of those who profess faith in Jesus. And they will receive the blessings. They will be satisfied by God. They will receive mercy. They will see God. And they will be called Children of God.

The final two are about the believer’s encounter with evil in the world.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. To persevere in goodness the face of overwhelming evil is not easy. But those who hold to their faith and continue in their good works are promised the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. These are the folks who are actively and vigorously persecuted because of their faith. They suffer greatly and many become martyrs. Jesus’ blessing for them is that they will receive a great reward in heaven.

So you can see here the sequence of the Beatitudes.
Blessings come with the first steps of our faith. Our interior reality changes when we recognize sin, mourn our sin, and become humble before God.
Blessings come with the works that are the natural expression of faith. Our interior reality will lead to our work to change the world.
And blessings come when the conviction of faith remains true despite temptation and persecution.

So, good people. Let us consider our calling by considering the works that come from our faith. As promised last Sunday, today is stewardship renewal. Let’s take a few minutes to consider our blessings and how we will express them in the ministry of this parish.

For our guests this (evening / morning), spend a few minutes in prayer for the parishioners of Annunciation as they recommit to the stewardship of time, talent, and treasure.

Last week all parishioners at mass were given a time and talent directory in order to become familiar with the ministry activities of the parish for this year. Hopefully, you had a chance to think about what you want to do in the parish this year. Today you received an intention form to fill out during mass. Please take a moment to write in your personal information at the top of the sheet and at the bottom of the sheet. We will use this to update our parish census.

Now, look at the bottom right hand corner where it mentions the Sunday offering. Since ministry can’t happen without financial support, let’s fill this in. We will use the figures you give us to establish the budget for next year.
If you are wondering what figure to put in there, then consider your gift by the percentages. If you give 5% of your income to the parish and then 5% of your income to other charities, then you will fulfill the biblical tithe. Also, please know that we keep your information private. But we need to know your intention so that we can figure out how to support the parish ministries.

Now let’s look at the big middle section. These are all the parish ministries happening this year. Please take a moment to fill in your commitment to either continue in a ministry or to begin in a new one. If you wish to resign from a ministry, please indicate that as well. Sometimes it is good make changes every so often.

Now that you have filled this out, you may turn it in with the today’s collection. If you need more time, then please feel free to take the time you need.

Dear people, blessed are you. Let’s build the kingdom of God.

new posts

2008-03-03T14:52:00.000-08:00

Dear friends,
I am once again woefully behind on posting. Seems when the blogsite is out of sight that it gets out of mind. Thanks to a friend who recently asked me if I am posting because he wanted to see the Lenten homilies. So here they are, from the 4th Sunday Ordinary through Laetare Lent. I have enjoyed preaching this Lent, and do hope that you have enjoyed listening and reading.
peace of Christ,
Fr. Bill

3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 1-27-2008

2008-01-27T19:24:00.000-08:00

Ordinary Time – 3rd Sunday
January 27, 2008

Isaiah 8:23-9:3
1 Cor 1:10-13,17
Matthew 4:12-23

The Word of the Lord. We say it after every reading. The Gospel of the Lord – we say after each reading of the gospel. This Word and Good News has power, according to our faith. It brings life and light to us. In Matthew Chapter 4 we hear two powerful commands from Jesus.

The first command is this: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

This are the first words of His call to every one to become his disciples. He spoke it to the crowds 2000 years ago, and he speaks the same words to us today. These words are universal.

Repent. We all know what it means. Turn away from sin. Believe the gospel. Live the commands of Jesus. We all know the areas where we fall short. Because we still sin. We still aren’t perfectly united with the Lord.

Repent. The follower of Jesus is a person who continues to practice repentance so as to strive for holiness of life. Because the goal is to become holy. To be united with Christ in this world and in the next.

Repent. One of the benefits of practicing repentance is that it begins to really open our eyes to see the Kingdom of God alive all around us. Sin darkens our comprehension. Sin limits our vision. Sin stunts our spiritual growth. But repentance from sin brings light, vision, and the fullness of the kingdom.

I would like to name three things that Christians can do to practice repentance. Do these things to live the Kingdom of God to which Jesus calls us.

Repentance practice #1. Formation of Conscience. We all know that we are supposed to follow our consciences. But if our conscience is going to provide good leadership then it needs to be a well equipped conscience. Your conscience gets equipped with knowledge and reason. Think about it this way. Nobody wants to follow a leader who is ignorant and has bad judgment. That can only go to a bad end. So form your conscience through study of the bible and the teachings of the Church. Kids, go to CCD every Sunday. Teens, go to youth group regularly. Parents. Work with your kids. While they are learning you will learn too. All adults. Study your faith every week. Think you are too busy? Try the Catholic CD’s we have in the vestibule. Listening to those in the car will equip you with good teaching and good stories. The development of knowledge and reason is a lifelong task. Everybody. Form your conscience.

Repentance practice #2. Examination of Conscience. If our conscience has some content and reason to it then we have some tools to work with in reflecting on our lives. Do this every night before bed. Spend a little time in prayer and in reflection on the day. Give God thanks for the light and grace given during the day. Ask God for pardon for the sins committed during the day. In that way we can rest in God’s peace during the night. Repentance practice #2. Examination of Conscience.

Repentance practice #3. The Sacrament of Penance. Jesus considered the practice of penance so important that he sacramentalized it for us. He gave the Apostles the power to forgive or to retain sins. This same power is shared with the priests of the Church. This power is given so that we all can confess our sins and be forgiven 77 x7 times. As many times as we need until that sin is worked out of our lives and is replaced by God’s love and peace. The Sacrament of Penance is a great gift of God to us. It is grace to overcome sin. Make use of it, good people. It brings us peace of heart. Repentance practice #3. The sacrament of Penance.

Listen once again to the first command of Jesus and take it to heart. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Now listen to the second command of Jesus. This was to Peter and Andrew. But make no mistake - it is also for us. Listen to his words. “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

For Peter and Andrew this meant the vocation to be apostles and high priests of the New Covenant. The greatest decision of their lives was to take this word of Jesus to heart. So they dropped their nets and began following him. Jesus made them new. Slowly but surely the new creation Jesus made through those words formed them into the men who would change the world.

Come after me. Jesus says it to you and me today.

Come after me. Each of us has a vocation that is God’s unique call in our lives. God made us for a good purpose. God has given each of us a new hope.

Come after me. For some people here this command of the Lord means a re-dedication of your life to the Lord. Because you haven’t been following him lately. So repent. Rededicate. Renew. Give yourself to Jesus once again.

Come after me. For others here this command of the Lord means a radical change in your life. Like Peter and Andrew, you need to drop what you are doing. You need to leave the past behind and take a new direction. You may need to leave everything familiar behind. Responding to this call will change your life. It may very well change the world.

Truly I tell you, the words of Jesus have the power to change everything. So hear them again with fresh ears.

Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.

Some election year points by Archbishop Chaput

2008-01-19T19:17:00.000-08:00

This election year's chief ecclesiastical contribution to the nation's public square will come with the release of the Doubleday volume of said title by Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver... which not a few are awaiting with bated breath.While the exact pub-date of Render Unto Caesar hasn't yet surfaced, the Capuchin prelate offers something of a preview: "10 points" of faithful citizenship in his current column for the archdiocesan weekly (emphases original):

Personal witness is always the best proof of what we claim to believe. And this year, like every other year, with or without an election, we need to apply the idea of Catholic witness in a special way to our public life as citizens. We might find it useful to remember 10 simple points as we move toward November.

1. George Orwell said that one of the biggest dangers for modern democratic life is dishonest political language. Dishonest language leads to dishonest politics — which then leads to bad public policy and bad law. So we need to speak and act in a spirit of truth.

2. “Catholic” is a word that has real meaning. We don’t control or invent that meaning as individuals. We inherit it from the Gospel and the experience of the Church over the centuries. We can choose to be something else, but if we choose to call ourselves Catholic, than that word has consequences for what we believe and how we act. We can’t truthfully claim to be Catholic and then act like we’re not.

3. Being a Catholic is a bit like being married. We have a relationship with the Church and with Jesus Christ that’s very similar to being a spouse. And that has consequences. If a man says he loves his wife, his wife will want to see the evidence in his love and fidelity. The same applies to our relationship with God. If we say we’re Catholic, we need to show that by our love for the Church and our fidelity to what she teaches and believes. Otherwise we’re just fooling ourselves, because God certainly won’t be fooled.

4. The Church is not a political organism. She has no interest in partisanship because getting power or running governments is not what she’s about, and the more closely she identifies herself with any single party, the fewer people she can effectively reach.

5. However, Scripture and Catholic teaching do have public consequences because they guide us in how we should act in relation to one another. Loving God requires that we also love the people He created, which means we need to treat them with justice, charity and mercy. Being a Catholic involves solidarity with other people. The Catholic faith has social justice implications — and that means it also has cultural, economic and political implications. The Catholic faith is never primarily about politics; but Catholic social action — including political action — is a natural byproduct of the Church’s moral message. We can’t call ourselves Catholic, and then simply stand by while immigrants get mistreated, or the poor get robbed, or unborn children get killed. The Catholic faith is always personal, but never private. If our faith is real, then it will bear fruit in our public decisions and behaviors, including our political choices.

6. Each of us needs to follow his or her own properly formed conscience. But conscience doesn’t emerge from a vacuum. It’s not a matter of personal opinion or preference. If our conscience has the habit of telling us what we want to hear on difficult issues, then it’s probably badly formed. A healthy conscience is the voice of God’s truth in our hearts, and it should usually make us uncomfortable, because none of us is yet a saint. The way we get a healthy conscience is by submitting it and shaping it to the will of God; and the way we find God’s will is by opening our hearts to the counsel and guidance of the Church that Jesus left us. If we find ourselves disagreeing as Catholics with the Catholic teaching of our Church on a serious matter, it’s probably not the Church that’s wrong. The problem is much more likely with us.

7. But how do we make good political choices when so many different issues are so important and complex? The first principle of Christian social thought is: Don’t deliberately kill the innocent, and don’t collude in allowing somebody else to do it. The right to life is the foundation of every other human right. The reason the abortion issue is so foundational is not because Catholics love little babies — although we certainly do — but because revoking the personhood of unborn children makes every other definition of personhood and human rights politically contingent.

8. So can a Catholic in good conscience support a “pro-choice” candidate? The answer is: I can’t and I won’t. But I do know some serious Catholics — people whom I admire — who will. I think their reasoning is mistaken. But at the very least they do sincerely struggle with the abortion issue, and it causes them real pain. And even more importantly: They don’t keep quiet about it; they don’t give up their efforts to end permissive abortion; they keep lobbying their party and their elected representatives to change their pro-abortion views and protect the unborn. Catholics can support “pro-choice” candidates if they support them despite — not because of — their “pro-choice” views. But they also need a compelling proportionate reason to justify it.

9. What is a “proportionate” reason when it comes to the abortion issue? It’s the kind of reason we will be able to explain, with a clean heart, to the victims of abortion when we meet them face to face in the next life — which we most certainly will. If we’re confident that these victims will accept our motives as something more than an alibi, then we can proceed.

10. Lastly, the heart of truly “faithful” citizenship is this: We’re better citizens when we’re more faithful Catholics. The more authentically Catholic we are in our lives, choices, actions and convictions, the more truly we will contribute to the moral and political life of our nation.

January 19, 2008

2008-01-19T19:09:00.002-08:00

Dear ones,

I've been really behind on my posting, so here is the rest of my Advent and Christmas season homilies. I look forward to reading your comments.

2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

2008-01-19T19:09:00.001-08:00

Ordinary Time – 2nd Sunday
January 20, 2008
National Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Isaiah 49: 3, 5-6
1 Cor 1:1-3
John 1:20-34

Here we are, back to regular old green ordinary time. Enjoy it while it is here, because it’s not going to last. After two more Sundays we begin Lent. Can you believe it? A short respite between the celebrations of the Christmas season and the austerity of Lent.

But these green Sundays are so full of life for us, so pay attention to them and enjoy them. Green is about growing spiritually in the ordinariness of life. This week is one of those themed weeks – National Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

To begin opening this idea up, let’s take a look at the 2nd reading. We heard a mere three verses from 1 Corinthians, but they are packed with significance. In these verses they give clues to what Paul will address in the rest of the letter. And I submit to you that these three verses pack a real punch when dealing with Christian unity.

So, Paul addresses the Church in Corinth and calls them people who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy. He links their holiness to all those everywhere who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, pay attention to this reality – people of Annunciation Church. You have been sanctified in Christ Jesus by your baptism. People of God, you are called to holiness. Your call to holiness is connected with all people of good will in the world who call upon the name of Jesus. For that reason alone we must dedicate ourselves to prayer for Christian unity. For our prayer will lead us to work of unity.

How do we do that? Let’s now turn to the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Numbers 820-822 concern themselves with our work towards unity.

First, let’s understand what the Church says that unity is not.
Unity is not the idea that all paths lead to the same goal. Thus the Church does not view all religions as being equal. If we taught that then we would have to abandon the idea of objective truth. And we can’t do that because Jesus taught objective truths. Jesus made the claim that he himself is the way and the truth and the life. Therefore all paths are not equal and do not lead to the same goal. This is relativism. It is an error. It is a lie that leads us away from the truth.

Sacred scripture teaches us that Christ bestowed unity on his Church from the very beginning. The Roman Catholic Church is the only Christian denomination which clearly traces its roots all the way back to Jesus Christ and the twelve apostles. All other denominations have split away from this one foundation. But this gift of unity given by Jesus to the Church remains within the Church as something it can never lose. In a universal sense.

However, you and I as members of the Church can either promote unity or we can lose it. Like the parable of the talents, we must exercise the gift of unity. An unused gift is one that is taken and given to someone who will actually do something with it.

So, what do we do to exercise this gift? The catechism gives us seven items. Listen carefully.
A permanent renewal of the Church. The Church is “semper reformandi” that is to say, it must always be continually renewed. Be continually refreshed by the Holy Spirit.
Conversion of heart. We must be converted and live holier lives. If unfaithfulness to the gospel causes divisions, then our faithfulness to Jesus and his teachings brings about unity within the parish and among all those who claim Jesus as Lord.
Prayer in Common. We must seek opportunities to pray both within our parish and to be inviting to all people of good will. These opportunities bring us to a change of heart and holiness of life.
Community. When we come to know one another as friends we can more easily seek the truth of Jesus Christ together.
Ecumenical Formation. We as Catholics need to be clear about what we believe and develop skills for sharing what we know in a respectful and friendly manner.
Dialogue. We as Catholics must seek opportunities to share the reason for our hope with others. Through these holy conversations we draw ever closer to the truth.
Collaboration. Among Christians of good will, we can do works of service together in building up the common good.

Those are seven very clear things that we can commit ourselves to both as individuals and as a parish. However, one final thing is clear to me. Christian Unity is bigger than we are. It is bigger than the reach even of the Roman Catholic Church. Christians have been factioned for the past one thousand years. While the Catholic Church has been doggedly persistent in maintaining unity through the ministry of the bishops and fidelity to the apostolic tradition, we’ve witnessed an almost hopeless factionalism in the past five hundred years.

Several years ago a local pastor at one of the protestant Churches decided to visit us for daily mass during lent. I remember how excited our daily mass crowd was to host this local pastor. I also was pleased that the pastor could be with us. I was pleased because I respected this person as someone who loved God and was dedicated to serving God. This person was both pastoral and intelligent and whose company we all enjoyed. And it was always great except at communion time. Because it was during this holy sacrament of unity that we were regularly reminded that our denominations were not one. That our communion was divided. Each time this pastor came forward at communion time, and I imparted the blessing rather than the Eucharist, I felt a painful twinge. Everything in me desired to give the Eucharist. But we can only give and receive the Eucharist honestly. It signifies unity. And both of us knew that this was not the case between our denominations.

Ultimately, Christian Unity is going to be the work of Christ himself. Only he can make the sad divisions among us to cease. Only he can work the miracle of making us one body and one spirit.

For this reason John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”

And he will. Someday his triumph will be completed. Meanwhile we pray for unity. And we wait in joyful hope.

Epiphany

2008-01-19T19:06:00.002-08:00

Epiphany
January 6, 2008

Isaiah 60:1-6
Psalm 72
Ephesians 3:2-3a, 5-6
Matthew 2:1-12

“We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.”

So said the magi from the east to King Herod as they neared the end of their journey. Of course, the child was not in the royal court of Herod, but was in Bethlehem, as the chief priests and scribes indicated was prophesied. When they got to Bethlehem, they gave homage and they gave gifts. What does this story mean?

The clue comes, of course, from the name of this feast day. Epiphany. It is a great word. It means “manifestation or illuminating realization.” It’s symbol is the star. The light that guided them to their destination – the manifestation of God in the baby Jesus.

All these senses of epiphany come together in this story from the gospel of Matthew. God himself was revealed to the world through the birth of Jesus. An epiphany of God. The understanding of God’s intention was also present. An epiphany of God’s intention. It all came together.

God sent his only son as savior of the world. Not just for the Jews, the children of the promises to Abraham, but to all the nations. The magi symbolize all the nations of the world, coming to adore Jesus. This is truly a catholic vision of God’s plan.

Of course, we all knew this more or less. Does it have anything to do with us today?

Well, interestingly enough, the bishops have declared the week of January 6 to be National Migration Week. All Catholics are called upon to think about the issues around immigration in this country. And it does have a connection with this feast day.

Consider the experience of the Magi. They journeyed from their homeland as pilgrims seeking the Christ. They faced danger, political intrigue, and plots from the Herodian court. And they were
Consider the experience of the Holy Family. After the visit of the Magi they were forced to flee Herod’s murderous intentions, became refugees and immigrants, and lived in the land of Egypt for a time. Their experience is the experience of all refugees and migrants.

For that reason alone every Catholic in the United States of America should be sympathetic to the plight of immigrants and refugees.

You know, one of the things I am most proud of in our parish is the broad based support for the Hispanic immigrants in our parish and in our county. This parish has given courageous support through prayer, through advocacy, and through welcoming the strangers in our midst. I am proud to be a part of this ministry in this parish. Those we have welcomed are no longer strangers, but friends who are among us.

One of the things I am most proud of in our country is that we are all a country of immigrants. Americans are people from every race, nationality, culture, and language. We get placed into the national “melting pot” and each new addition adds new seasoning to who we are. Our national identity is being continuously formed. In this sense it is a little bit like heaven. We come from everywhere.

Of course, the best earthly example of heaven is the Roman Catholic Church. Why? Because it is the only institution that literally consists of people from every country, nation, language, and race. It is the Kingdom of God on earth – pointing to the eternal reality of the Kingdom of Heaven.

One of the interesting conundrums we face is when political interests conflict with religious interests. In this case sometimes our American identity conflicts with our Catholic identity.

Let me give two examples.
Catholic Social Teaching principal #1. the life and dignity of the human person. We believe and teach that human life has dignity and worth from conception until natural death. Thus legalized abortion, infanticide, euthanasia, eugenics, and the death penalty contradict the teaching of the Church on the life and dignity of the human person. The Church’s teaching is pretty clear on these issues.
Catholic Social Teaching principal #6. Solidarity. We believe and teach that we are one human family, irregardless of language, race, or culture. We are our brother’s keeper in this shrinking world. We are all connected. The core of the virtue of solidarity is the pursuit of peace and justice. Thus, racism, sexism, poverty, and war are all serious issues. The Church makes some pretty clear statements about these issues.

So let me return to the theme of this week. Immigration. The Life and dignity of the human person and the theme of solidarity converge on this issue fairly clearly. The bishops of this nation, in accord with the teachings of the Holy Father, have spoken clearly about immigration reform for the sake of the immigrants who are among us.

And yet, we Catholics in the parishes and the pews are very divided about this issue. Consider. There are 65 million people in the United States who call them Catholic. If we understood the social teaching of the Catholic Church and were united with our bishops on these issues, do you think we would make a difference? You bet we would. Our problem is that we identify too much with Republicans or with Democrats and not nearly enough with the Kingdom of God.

The Roman Catholic Church is a sleeping giant in this nation. I would love to see it wake up and find its moral voice. Our current laws allow human life to be ripped from the womb. We need an epiphany. Our current laws actually encourage a permanent underclass because of our terrible immigration laws. Families are divided. I witness these things first hand. We need an epiphany.

The fact of the matter is this. Our Lord Jesus Christ was nearly murdered as an infant. Thus he shows solidarity with infants and children. Our Lord Jesus Christ was a refugee and immigrant. Thus he shows solidarity with refugees and immigrants. Our Lord Jesus Christ was executed by the state. Thus he shows solidarity and compassion for lawbreakers and evildoers who are executed.

He comes to save us all and to gather us into the Kingdom of Heaven.
Let us do him homage.

Holy Family

2008-01-19T19:06:00.001-08:00

Holy Family – Feast of
December 30, 2007

Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14
Colosians 3:12-21

Today is the 5th (6th) day of Christmas – and it is not the feast of five golden rings (six geese a laying). Instead, it is the feast of the Holy Family.

On this day we have Joseph, Mary, and Jesus - the Holy Family – as an image for our contemplation. Lots of times our experience of the Holy Family is in nativity scenes or holy cards or statues. They always look so beautiful and peaceful.

But the scriptures show us that what they confronted some serious difficulties. They had a rocky start due to Mary’s pregnancy – the holy family nearly ended in divorce at the very beginning. Then they had to travel in Mary’s 9th month. A crazy despotic king was after them when Jesus was about two years old. They became immigrants and refugees and lived in Egypt for a few years. These were hardly peaceful circumstances. And yet, they were the holy family who lived in peace and in unity.

How did they do it? For that matter, how can we do it? How can our families be holy families?
After all, the odds are against us, if you look at national statistics.

Just getting a family started and then trying to keep it together can be a daunting task.

The scriptures give us some good practical examples of how to be a holy family.

From both the book of Sirach and from the letter to the Colossians the key word is respect. Respect for parents. Respect between husbands and wives. The truth is that respect can carry us a long way toward the exercise of greater virtues in our lives. St. Thomas Aquinas said that grace builds on nature. So when we exercise natural virtue, it provides more room for the supernatural virtues. Respect is a natural virtue.

Good old fashioned manners are a marvelous way to practice the virtue of respect. From “please” and “thank you” to the finer points of acting like ladies and gentlemen, the virtue of respect can be the glue that holds together a family, just as it is the glue that can hold together a society.

All of us know that there has been a rise in uncivil public behavior through this past generation. Course language, course gestures, course humor, and an increasing lack of respect has affected our society to the point that uncivil behavior has been accepted as quite normal.

You want to have an affect on family life and on society? Do something counter cultural and cultivate formal manners. They give us practical means of respect. Not sure what to work on? Have a family meeting and make a list of civil behaviors to cultivate in the family. Behaviors that exemplify respect in the way we talk and dress and inter-act. Then, help each other in positive ways to work on respectful behavior. All of us can work on this in the coming year.

Of course, God wants us to go deeper than just manners. After all, even good manners can become stiff and cold. That’s not appealing either.

Listen to the words of St. Paul. He said this: “Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another… and over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection. And let the peace of Christ control your hearts.”

Wow. How many people would like to live in a family that had all that going on? Pretty good, huh?

Husbands, love and cherish your wives in the way that she would like to be loved and cherished. Wives, love and respect your husbands in the way that he would like to be loved and respected. Not sure what that is? Easy. Ask each other. Give each other concrete examples. Decide what you want to work on as a family for next year and then make a plan to work on it. Parents, the best gift you will ever give your children is to show them how to love and respect another person. You show them and they will give it back to you. The same is true with priests and parishes. We are all in this together.

Pray together as a family. In order to have the supernatural virtues of love and joy and peace we need to give God space to work in our families. Pray together every day. The rosary and scripture reading are two very good tools for family prayer. The Church gives us lots of options here. But pray together.

We need holy families. The world desperately needs holy families that are filed with heartfelt compassion, humility, patience, love, and peace. God’s plan for your family and for mine is that we grow that way. Then we are a sign of hope and a source of strength for others.

Just like Joseph, Mary, and Jesus are a sign of hope and a source of strength for us.

Christmas

2008-01-19T19:03:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2007

This reading from the gospel of Luke retells the eternal story of the birth of Jesus. Here before us we have the (living) nativity scene to help us remember that God became a little baby, was born of the virgin Mary at Christmas, and came with a mission to save us.

Tonight I want us to think about the people who are present at the birth of Jesus. Mary and Joseph – aware of God’s plan and obedient to it. In awe of God who was physically present with them – and yet helpless like a little baby. Imagine how they must have looked with love and adoration at Jesus after he was born.

And then there are the shepherds. The angels announced the good news to them and so off they went in obedience to the message. They made the sacrifice and traveled through the countryside in order to see Jesus. And to adore him.

Obedience and adoration. These are the examples of Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds for us to think about this Christmas.

So let’s unwrap the idea of obedience and adoration a little bit.

We’ll talk about obedience first. I want to tell you want this means. Now, for those of you who have heard me say this before, it’s a good reminder. And for those who haven’t it’s a good insight. Obedience comes from the latin root ob audire. It is a verb and it means – “to listen. Or to give ear to” So the very idea of obedience comes from attentive listening.
Mary and Joseph and the shepherds all listened to God’s invitation and responded positively. They were open to the idea and went along with it.

So now I want to say that listening to God is a very important thing for us to think about this Christmas. Because Christmas is about obedience to God’s good plan for each of us.

Now, if God had something important to say to you, then would you be open to listening to it? Yes or yes?

Would you like to know how you can listen to God?

First, you have to decide that you want to listen. So make a commitment at this mass tonight give lots of time this year to listening to God.

Second, you have to use the time effectively to listen to God. So here are some things you can do.
Make a commitment to attend mass every Sunday. Now, there are already two reactions to this one in the congregation. The first is this – I already go. Tell me something new. The second is this – the last time I went the priest was boring, or said something I disagreed with, or I got totally distracted by that kid running in the aisle throwing cheerios, or that grouchy person said something mean to me, or…..you get the idea. Lots of little reasons. But it’s not about the priest or the music or the kid or the grouch or any of those other things. It is about God. And if you make the commitment to attend mass every Sunday to listen to God then you will have a good chance of actually hearing something.

Now, that you have decided to commit – or re-commit to mass every Sunday, then do this. Pray to the Holy Spirit before mass starts to give you one message from the mass that you need. Now, I guarantee you that if you do this then you are going to get messages that will be powerful. They will change your life. Somewhere during the mass, in the reading or the homily or the songs or the prayers, the Holy Spirit will make a little light go off in your head and you will think to yourself – that’s it!

Final step. When you hear that little message – tell me, are you going to remember it? Well, for the vast majority of us who get distracted and whose memories have sprung fatal leaks, you need to write it down. So get yourself a little Christmas present this year and buy a journal. Write these little messages from mass down in your journal. You need to write this stuff down in order to remember it. And I guarantee you that when you start to hear the Holy Spirit speaking to you, you won’t be wondering if that was it. These messages that the Holy Spirit gives are tailor made for you. They will knock your socks off with their power. They will be simple and clear. All you have to do is make the commitment to listen. God will bring the inspiration and then the light bulb will go off in your head.

So here are the steps. 1. Commit to mass every Sunday. 2. Pray to the Holy Spirit to speak to you. 3. Write down what you hear.

If you start accumulating these little messages from God to you during mass, then you will find that the mass changes from something strange or boring to something that becomes as important to your life as food. And food’s pretty important. Try not eating for a week. Spiritual food is also just as important.

Do you want joy in your heart?
Then be like Mary and Joseph – come to Jesus. Listen, and adore.

Do you want peace in your heart?
Then be like the shepherds – come to Jesus. Listen, and adore

Do you want wisdom – a better way of thinking and acting?
Then be like the saints down through the ages. – come to Jesus. Listen, and adore.

Oh come let us adore him, Oh come let us adore him, Oh come let us adore him. Christ the Lord.

Advent - 3rd Sunday

2008-01-19T19:02:00.000-08:00

3rd Advent

Isaiah 35:1-6a, 10
James 5:7-10
Matthew 11:2-11

Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord.

Patience is one of those tough virtues. Especially at this time of the year when life seems to go into hyper-drive. Students are strung out because of finals. Holiday shoppers are rushing to finish their purchases. Diminishing light leaves people more susceptible to depression and grumpiness. Winter weather tends to snarl up our plans. In the midst of all these distractions we are called to patience.

Be patient. This is the word for the 3rd Sunday of Advent.
On the first Sunday of Advent we heard the admonition to Stay Awake and be Prepared.
On the 2nd Sunday of Advent we were instructed to Repent. The Kingdom of God is near.
Today. Be patient.

And what for, exactly? Notice that the letter of James ties patience to the coming of the Lord. The coming of the Lord is in the sacraments when the Church worships. The coming of the Lord is at the end of our lives when we die and then are judged. And the coming of the Lord is at the end of time when he returns again in glory. Our patience is tied to the events of the coming of the Lord.

How do we practice this patience?
I suggest that the practice of patience is supported by the instructions we have received in the previous two Sundays. Stay awake. Be Prepared. Repent. Practicing these instructions helps us to wait for the coming of the Lord. I’ll take this moment to remind the assembly that we are celebrating the sacrament of penance next Thursday in a special liturgy. If you haven’t gone to confession yet – this will be a great opportunity. Stay awake and be prepared. Repent. Be patient.

James said that in order to wait patiently we need to make our hearts firm. Making our hearts firm means that we know what we believe and that we stick to it. For example, if you believe that you love someone, then you stick to it, no matter what. Love doesn’t quit. In like manner, patiently waiting for the Lord means you know your faith in the Lord and you stick to it. Do you know your faith in the Lord? More or less? Make your heart firm. Grow in knowledge of your faith and stick to it.

James also said this: do not complain about one another, that you may not be judged. Here is a great way to practice patience. Make your home, your car, and your workplace free of complaining about one another. No whining, complaining, criticisms, negative talk, or gossip.
Now, this one is tough. We human beings love to complain. Started when we learned to pout at age 2 ½ and then just got more sophisticated with age. But we all know the results of complaining about each other. We get angry with each other and then we have distrust, divisions, dissentions, and on and on it goes. Have we been there before? It’s never good, is it. Listen to St. James. Don’t complain about each other.

Too hard a habit to break? Try this as a habit breaker. Put a think rubber band around your wrist. Every time you complain, snap the rubber band.
Some of us are already thinking about the blisters we’d get. But after they heal I bet the level of complaining in the community would dramatically decline.
Make your hearts firm. Don’t complain about each other.

Stay awake and be prepared.
Repent.
Be patient.

All of this has a purpose. Remember, we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Because the coming of the Lord is drawing near. It’s coming. When it happens the words of the prophet Isaiah will be fulfilled when he said:
“Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return and enter Zion singing, crowned in everlasting joy; they will meet with joy and gladness, sorrow and mourning will flee.”

So, my good people, for the time being:
Stay awake and be prepared
Repent
Be patient - waiting in joyful hope for the coming of our savior, Jesus Christ.

Advent - Second Sunday

2008-01-19T19:01:00.000-08:00

2nd Sunday of Advent
December 9, 2007

Isaiah 11:1-10
Romans 15:4-9
Matthew 3:1-12

Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!

This basic, simple message comes to us loudly and clearly every Advent. John the Baptist, the prophet of the messiah, says clearly to the people that they must repent. The messiah is coming. He will come to judge – gathering the wheat into the barn – and burning the chaff with unquenchable fire.

Notice the responses of the people.
The good response, which many participated in, was to acknowledge their sins and then be baptized by John in the river.

Notice the example of John in this passage. John symbolized doing penance. First, notice how he fasted. His diet during this time consisted of – locusts and wild honey.
Think about it. How many here would like to go on a special fast where the only food you ate was bugs and honey. Notice what he wore. Camel’s hair.
As a member of a priestly family, he had access to clothes and was heir to his father’s place as a priest in the temple in Jerusalem. Priests wore good clothes.
John wore itchy camel hair. John did penance and he fasted.

Notice who gives the wrong response to John’s message. The Pharisees and Saducees. They refused to acknowledge sin. They refused the baptism of John. They refused penance and fasting. And so John warned them that judgement was coming.

Add all this up and it is a very strong message. Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Repent is an interesting word. It comes from the latin “pentare” – which means “to think.” Put the prefix “re” in front of it and we get the English word “repent.” Literally it means –re-think.

And isn’t that the issue – that we need to “re-think” our lives. To get out of our heads the wrong thinking that brings us to sin. To get into our heads the right way of thinking so that we practice virtue.

Last week we heard the message – stay awake. Be prepared.
This week we hear the message – repent for the kingdom of God is at hand.

We need to hear this message at this time of year.
Did you hear the examples that John gives of what is coming?
The axe and the tree. The ax lies at the root of the tree. Those that do not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
The winnowing fan. He clears his threshing floor and gather the wheat into the barn. But the chaff will be burned.

All of this adds up to some serious stuff.
Stay awake. Be Prepared. Repent. The kingdom of God is at hand.

During Advent we make ourselves conscious of the first coming of Christ at the incarnation in Bethlehem. What a sweet event. Christmas.

During Advent we also make ourselves conscious of the second coming of Christ in glory. Remember what we acclaim during the Eucharistic prayer. Dying you destroyed our death, rising you restored our life. Lord Jesus come in glory.

Jesus is coming again soon. He will come again to this earth in glory. And maybe we are living in the last days. Maybe it will be this year. Or next year. Or in the next ten. Who knows.

I do know one thing. I guarantee that he will come again for every person in this room within 120 years. And for a lot of us it is going to be a lot sooner than that. Count the days and months and years. Jesus is coming. Stay awake. Be Prepared. Repent. The kingdom of God is at hand.

So what are we supposed to do?

Well, I just happen to have some ideas from scripture.
Do what John did to prepare. Penances. He wore camel hair and ate bugs and honey. Anybody game for that? Too severe for you? Think it through. A penance is designed to help us remember the way in which our minds need to be changed. John needed to be focused on his mission and courageous enough to stand up to the Pharisees and to Herod. He had to avoid pandering and political correctness. Camel’s hair, bugs, and honey helped him do that. What will help each of us to avoid our particular temptations and to focus on our mission? Figure it out. Do penance.
Do what St. Paul suggests. Here are two ideas from him:
He mentions the “encouragement of scriptures”. Read the scripture so that you can be encouraged in hope. Simple. But the bible helps us to change our way of thinking. Get more of it in your head. Read the scriptures.
He also mentions this: “welcome one another as Christ welcomed you.” There is nothing like the practice of Christian hospitality in preparation for Christmas. Remember that when you get caught in a traffic jam in front of Mall St. Matthews. Welcome one another as Christ welcomes you.

While all of this may sound a little severe, just remember this. These acts of faith. Penance, Reading the bible. Christian hospitality. All help us to focus on the kingdom of God which is among us now and which is prepared for us for all eternity. A kingdom of justice and faithfulness. A kingdom of peace and love. A kingdom of eternal glory. It is here. And it is coming.
So…Stay awake. Be Prepared. Repent. For the kingdom of heaven it at hand.

Pope Benedict' new encyclical - spe salvi

2007-12-02T15:59:00.000-08:00

ENCYCLICAL LETTER: SPE SALVI
OF THE SUPREME PONTIFF
BENEDICT XVI
TO THE BISHOPS PRIESTS AND DEACONS
MEN AND WOMEN RELIGIOUS
AND ALL THE LAY FAITHFUL
ON CHRISTIAN HOPE

“SPE SALVI facti sumus”—in hope we were saved, says Saint Paul to the Romans, and likewise to us (Rom 8:24). According to the Christian faith, “redemption”—salvation—is not simply a given. Redemption is offered to us in the sense that we have been given hope, trustworthy hope, by virtue of which we can face our present: the present, even if it is arduous, can be lived and accepted if it leads towards a goal, if we can be sure of this goal, and if this goal is great enough to justify the effort of the journey. Now the question immediately arises: what sort of hope could ever justify the statement that, on the basis of that hope and simply because it exists, we are redeemed? And what sort of certainty is involved here?...

FULLTEXT.

Family Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

2007-12-02T14:54:00.000-08:00

Family Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Prayer steps to consecrating your family to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
The family consecration

It is an act whereby the family devotes itself to the Sacred Heart as to its King, recognizes Him as its King, and promises to make Him reign and rule over the whole family.

Two elements
1. the head of the family recognizes the right of the Sacred Heart to rule over his family
2. an act of the will, by which he submits both himself and his family to the dominion of the Sacred Heart

Obligations of the family
1. to keep God's commandments and precepts of the Church
2. to discharge the duties of their state of life
3. to avoid whatever displeases the Sacred Heart, whatever endangers faith and morals
4. to imitate the virtues shone in the Holy Family of Nazareth: mutual charity, obedience,
5. prayer, purity and devotion to work
6. to cultivate a spirit of true piety by
* night prayers in common
* assistance in Mass
* frequent communion
* devotion to the Sacred Heart (on First Fridays and Feast day)
* Visible manifestation
* The image of the Sacred Heart must occupy a prominent place of honor.
* Members of the family must greet Him on coming in and going out of the house (through words of praise).
* They will share with Him reunions and rejoicings, making Him truly a member of the family.
* The family will best pray in common before Him especially in times of difficulties
(also on First Fridays and feast of the Sacred Heart)

Ceremony preparation
- set the consecration on a day when all members of the family can be present
- decorate the image with flowers and candles in a prominent, permanent place
- prepare the family internally by confession, Mass and communion
- obtain a diploma of consecration where members will sign their names.

Procedure
Blessing of the home
- members of the family carry lighted candles
- recitation of "the Apostles' creed"
- all kneel for the solemn act
- the father of the family recites:

O Most Sacred Heart of Jesus,
You revealed to St. Margaret Mary Your desire to rule over Christian families;
behold, in order to please You, we gather before You this day,
to proclaim Your full sovereignty over our family.
We desire henceforth to live Your life; we desire that the virtues,
to which You have promised peace on earth, may flower in the bosom of our family;
we desire to keep far from us the spirit of the world, which You have condemned.
You are King of our minds by the simplicity of our faith;
you are King of our hearts by our love for You alone, with which our hearts are on fire,
and whose flame we shall keep alive by frequently receiving the Holy Eucharist.
Be pleased, O Sacred Heart, to preside over our gathering together,
to bless our spiritual and temporal affairs, to ward off all annoyance from us,
to sanctify our joys and comfort our sorrows.
If any of us has ever been so unhappy as to fall into the misery of displeasing you,
grant that we may remember, O Heart of Jesus,
that You are full of goodness and mercy toward the repentant sinner.
And when the hour of separation strikes and death enters our family circle,
whether we go or whether we stay, we shall bow humbly before Your eternal decrees.
This shall be our consolation to remember that the day will come when our entire family,
once more united in heaven, shall be able to sing of Your glory and Your goodness forever.
May the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the glorious patriarch St. Joseph
deign to offer You our act of consecration,
and to keep the memory of it alive in us all the days of our lives.
Glory to the Heart of Jesus, our King and our Father.The whole family recites in unison:We consecrate to You, O Heart of Jesus, the trials and joys,
and all the happiness of our family life,
and we beg you, to pour out Your best blessings, on all its members,
present and absent, living and dead.
And when one after the other, we shall have closed our eyes in holy death,
O Jesus, may all of us in paradise, find again our entire family, united in Your Sacred Heart. Amen.

Recitation of the Litany of the Sacred Heart

Lord, have mercy on us
Christ, have mercy on us
Lord, have mercy on us
Christ, hear us
Christ, graciously hear us,
God the Father of heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, Son of the Eternal Father, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Spirit, in the womb of the Virgin Mother, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, substantially united to the Word of God, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, of infinite majesty, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, sacred Temple of God, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, tabernacle of the Most High, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, house of God and Gate of Heaven, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, burning furnace of charity, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, abode of justice and love, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, full of goodness and love, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, abyss of all virtues, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, most worthy of all praise, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, King and center of all hearts, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom dwells the fullness of divinity, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, in whom the Father was well pleased, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, desire of the everlasting hills, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, patient and most merciful, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, enriching all who invoke You, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, fountain of life and holiness, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, propitiation for our sins, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, loaded down with reproaches, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, bruised for our offenses, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, obedient unto death, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, pierced with a lance, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, source of all consolation, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, our life and resurrection, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, our peace and reconciliation, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, victim of sin, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, salvation of those who trust in You, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, hope of those who die in You, have mercy on us.
Heart of Jesus, delight of all the saints, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, spare us O Lord.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Jesus, meek and humble of Heart, make our hearts like unto Thine.

Let us pray:

O almighty and eternal God, look upon the Heart of Your dearly beloved Son, and upon the praise and sanctification He offers You in behalf of sinners, and being appeased, grant pardon to those who seek Your mercy, in the name of the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns in You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, world without end. Amen.

Prayer for the departed members of the family

Our Father...
Hail Mary...
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls and the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.

Invocations

Sacred Heart of Jesus, Your Kingdom come.
Sacred Heart of Jesus, protect our families.
Heart of Jesus burning with love of us, set our hearts on fire with love of You.
Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in You.
Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation.
Glory, love and thanksgiving be to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Final hymn
Signing of the consecration dimploma
Indulgence gained
plenary indulgence - confession and communionindulgence of 7 years

Renewal of the family consecration to the Sacred Heart
This done every year on the first anniversary or feast of the Sacred Heart or Christ the King or any important family occasion.

hymn
apostles' creed
act of consecration
prayer for departed members
prayer for the family

O God of goodness and mercy,
to Your fatherly protection we commend our family, our household, and all that belong to us.
We commit all to Your love and keeping.
Fill this house with Your blessing
even as You filled the holy house of Nazareth with Your presence.
Keep far from us, above all things else, the taint of sin and reign alone in our midst by Your law,
by Your most Holy Love and by the exercise of every Christian virtue.
Let each one of us obey You, love You, and set himself to imitate in his own life Your example,
that of Mary, Your Mother and our Most loving Mother,
and that of Your blameless guardian, St. Joseph.
Preserve us and our house from all evils and misfortunes,
and grant that we may always be resigned to Your divine will
even in the sorrows which it may please You to send us.
Finally, give to all of us the grace to live in perfect harmony
and in the fullness of love toward our neighbor.
Grant that every one of us may deserve, by a holy life,
the comfort of Your holy sacraments at the hour of death.
O Jesus, bless us and protect us.
O Mary, mother of grace and of mercy, defend us against the wicked spirit;
reconcile us with Your Son,
commit us to His keeping, so that we may be made worthy of His promises.
St. Joseph, foster-father of our Savior, guardian of His Holy Mother, head of the Holy Family, intercede for us, bless us and defend our home at all times.
St. Michael, defend us against all the wicked cunning of hell.
St. Gabriel, make us understand the holy will of God.
St. Raphael, keep us free from all sickness and from every danger to our lives.
Our Holy Guardian angels, keep our feet safely on the path of salvation day and night.
O Holy Patrons, pray for us before the throne of God.
Yes, bless this house, O God, the Father, who has created us.
O God the Son, who suffered for us upon the Holy Cross.
O Holy Spirit, who has sanctified us in holy baptism.
May the one God in three divine persons
preserve our bodies, purify our minds, direct our hearts and bring us all to everlasting life.
Glory be to the Father, glory be to the Son, glory be to the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Final hymn
Indulgence gained
plenary indulgence - same conditionsan indulgence of three years

Making the consecration is one thing, living the consecration is another
To be made by at least one member of the family
- daily Mass and communion
- first Friday devotions
- family holy hour each month
- daily rosary
- observe the month of June with Mass and communion as often as possible
- renewal of the family consecration on the feast of the Sacred Heart

copied from prayer book by Dennis-Emmanuel CabreraJuly 25, 2005

Author's note: This consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus will help all Catholic families to be of one mind, one heart and one spirit in Christ.

First Sunday of Advent 2007

2007-12-02T14:53:00.000-08:00

1st Advent
December 2, 2007

Isaiah 2:1-5
Romans 13:11-14
Matthew 24:37-44

Well here we are – the first Sunday of Advent. Already! We begin a new Liturgical year this evening at the vigil mass. The church is decorated in violet and pink, the advent candles are in place, and there are sure signs in this place that Christmas is coming. The great celebration of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ is just four weeks and a couple of days away.

As if we didn’t know that Christmas is coming, the world out there has been decorating since November 1 and the stores have been trying to lure people in to buy more gifts than they can afford. Getting prepared for so many means presents and party favors. And so it goes.

But the scriptures present us with an entirely different view of preparation.

In the gospel Jesus tells the disciples that the day of the coming of the Son of Man will be like it was in the days of Noah. He describes the population as “eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage.” In other words, ordinary life. They were preoccupied with the cares of ordinary life. As Jesus describes the day of the coming of the Son of Man, he describes people working in the field and at the mill when it happens. People doing the ordinary things of ordinary life.

Did you ever notice how busy ordinary life can get? How preoccupied we can get with it? Just as a test, how many people here think that you need more complexity in your life? More things to add to your schedule? No volunteers? The fact of the matter is, especially at this time of the year, the ordinary cares of life have us all quite preoccupied.

It is precisely for this reason that the Holy Spirit has carefully provided us with these readings this weekend. The message is this:

Stay Awake! You Must Be Prepared! It is at the hour that you do not expect that the Son of Man will come.

He was born in the fullness of time in Bethlehem. He comes in word and sacrament to strengthen his people in holiness. He will come again in glory with salvation for his people.

Stay Awake! Be Prepared!

St. Paul has an interesting take on being awake and prepared. Let’s check back to the 2nd reading from the 13th chapter of the letter to the Romans. Paul says first to throw off the works of darkness.

And he has quite a list about those works of darkness.
Orgies and drunkenness, promiscuity and lust, rivalry and jealousy.

Throw off the works of darkness.
Maybe that little list names some areas of darkness in your life. Or perhaps there are other areas. Perhaps you have forgotten how to do an examination of conscience. It always is interesting to me when people come to me for confession after not having been for many years and will tell me that they have not sinned or done anything bad. What that reveals to me is that this person has lost the ability to do an examination of conscience. Has lost the sense of what sin is. Listen, if Mother Theresa went to confession every two weeks – and most of the world considered here a living saint – then you and I just simply need a better sense of what holiness really is so that we can throw off the works of darkness in our lives.

You want to throw off the works of darkness? Do a good examination of conscience on a daily basis. There are pamphlets in the vestibule about this. If you have forgotten how to do a good examination of conscience, then these will teach you some of the basics.
Throw off the works of darkness. Stay Awake. Be Prepared.

Paul then says to put on the armor of light. Later on in the text he explains it this way. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.

How do you do that? Well, I have a couple of ideas for us.
We first put on the Lord Jesus in the sacrament of baptism. It is in the sacraments – those seven signs of the New Covenant – that we put on Christ. So we are encouraged to make frequent use of the sacraments of the Church. To live the sacramental life every day. The Church also provides us with sacramentals. Those are the little signs of our faith. Holy Water, crucifixes, prayers and devotions. Last week we talked about consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I have that information in the vestibule. I recommend it. I plan to use it with my family at Christmas. These sacramentals are good faith reminders of our sacramental union with Jesus. And these should always lead us to good works. Because, as St. James reminds us in his epistle, we are saved by faith and works. Faith without works is dead. So works of peace and justice are the evidence of putting on the armor of light. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ through faith and through works. Stay Awake. Be Prepared.

The third little piece that Paul mentions is this: Make no provision for the desires of the flesh.

What a great message to get during this time of endless Christmas parties. Tis the season for weight gain and Santa Clausian girth. What a great opportunity for us all to counter-balance these with some actions of private penance – reminding our flesh of who the boss is.

The Holy Spirit makes great provision for us – reminding us of what is truly important. Giving us an eternal perspective on things. Dear people – dear members of the body of Christ.

Stay Awake. Be Prepared.
For at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.

Good Books

2007-12-02T14:51:00.000-08:00

I've mentioned some good books lately in the bulletin and in homilies. Here's a few of those:

The Biblical Basis for the Catholic Faith, by John Souza
Theology of the Body for Beginners, by Christopher West

Enjoy!

32nd Sunday Ordinary Time

2007-11-17T19:15:00.000-08:00

32nd Sunday Ordinary Time
11-11-2007

2 Maccabees 7:1-2,9-14
2 thessalonians 2:16-3:5
Luke 20:27-38

Life is short. If you live only for 20 years or as long as 100 years, life is still very short. In fact, when you compare one human lifespan to eternity, then there is really nothing to compare. All our lives are just a brief preparation for what is to come – Eternal Life.

The scriptures are full of references to the doctrine that human beings were created as eternal beings. The flesh is mortal but the spirit is immortal. It cannot die. It will live forever. Furthermore, the Old Testament includes references to the resurrection of the body which the New Testament makes explicit.

In the gospels, Jesus is confronted by the Saducees who questioned Jesus about the resurrection. They denied the idea that the dead will rise on the Lord’s Day. And so Jesus answered their question by explaining the matter to them – that the dead will indeed rise, but that those who are raised will be like angels and will be the children of God.

There is an important line in the teaching that Jesus gives – one to which we must pay attention.
“Those who are deemed worthy to attain to the coming age and to the resurrection of the dead”

The scriptures and the Church teach that after we die there are three possible places for us to go. Heaven. Purgatory. And Hell.

There has been a wrong teaching going around about the resurrection – that of universalism. This refers to an idea that everyone will be saved by Jesus. There is no possibility of hell. Or that there is no hell at all. No Satan. No demons. No condemnation.

Let me say categorically that the scriptures and the Church clearly teach that hell exists. Satan exists. Demons exist. People can be sentenced to hell because of their evil deeds and lack of repentence. Jesus taught this very clearly in the gospels. For this reason the Word became flesh, dwelt among us, died for our sins, and was raised from the dead so that we might have life. We need a savior and Jesus came to save us from the terrible fate of Hell. And what is hell? Scripture teaches that it is flames. Eternal torment. Eternal separation from God. The place where Satan and all his fallen angels have already been sentenced for all of eternity.

Let me say also that the scriptures and the Church categorically teach that Purgatory exists. It is called by other names in the bible. Hades. Sheol. The abode of the dead. It clearly is not heaven but it also is clearly not the lake of eternal fire. It is the way of purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven. St. Paul describes this in 1 Cor 3:15 when he says that when we are judged, each person’s work will be tried. And what happens if a righteous man’s work fails the test? “He will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” Let the reader understand that this fire doesn’t refer to a sentence to hell. No one is saved in hell. This passage also can’t refer to heaven. There is no suffering or loss in heaven. So the doctrine of purgatory is the only sufficient explanation of this scripture, and others like it.

It is important for us to know about what happens to us after death. And our aim is Heaven. Eternal life with God. This is the will of God for us.

In the past couple of weeks we have reviewed some basic Catholic practices that each of us must do so that we may be converted and prepared for heaven.
Pray every day. Pray from the heart. Use the prayers the Church gives us like the rosary, the liturgy of the hours, the morning offering, and many other prayers. Pray!
Read your bible every day. God’s word will help you change how you think.
Go to confession – monthly if possible. There is not one person here who doesn’t need confession on a regular basis.
Fast – weekly on Fridays.
Attend mass every Sunday at the very least. Daily mass is very good.

These five simple steps: prayer, the bible, confession, fasting, and mass will help you to attain heaven. It is through these faithful practices that each of us can be made worthy of the promises of Christ. It is through opening our hearts to Christ that he can do what St. Paul described in Thessalonians. For He who has loved us and given us everlasting encouragement and good hope through his grace, will encourage our hearts and strengthen them in every good deed and word.”

31st Sunday Ordinary Time

2007-11-17T19:13:00.000-08:00

31st Sunday Ordinary Time
November 4, 2007

“The Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.”

Here is a short and sweet synopsis of Jesus mission. To seek and to save what was lost.

In the case of the gospel story – it was Zacchaeus. He was rich. And unhappy. But when Jesus found him and called out to him, his life was completely changed.

Notice how this happened for Zacchaeus. When Jesus called out to him he immediately received Jesus with joy. His joy in receiving Jesus took practical form through generosity. He gave half his possessions to the poor. He promised to pay back anyone he defrauded four times the loss.

And so Jesus came to stay in his house. In this, Zacchaeus and all his household were changed forever. That’s what happens when Jesus comes to stay with us.

Recently I read the draft of the strategic plan for St. John. While we are going through some final revisions, there are many fine ideas for the parish. One in particular pleased me more than all the rest. It is this: to begin reserving the blessed sacrament at St. John. Now, I think you all may recall one of the necessary items for reservation of the blessed sacrament in the tabernacle is to arrange for the church to be open for a little while every day for prayer.

I want to encourage you in this plan. I believe that you will find this to be a real turning point in the history of St. John. And to this end I want instruct you in five steps that I believe will prepare you for this.

Pray. Simple and fundamental enough. But I encourage you to pray daily. Pray by yourselves. Pray as a household. And gather here in the Church daily for prayer. Make use of the rosary, the liturgy of the hours, the divine mercy prayer, scripture reading, and many other prayer forms available to us. Use authentic Catholic prayer but do it ecumenically. Let St. John Church become a center of daily prayer for all the people of the area.
Read the bible. Every day. We need to be nourished by the Word of God so that our faith may grow. Everything necessary for salvation is found in holy scripture. Put your bible in a prominent place in your home. Read it as a family. A little every day. If you are not sure where to start, then use the references we put in the bulletin to prepare for next week’s mass. The more we put the Word of God in our heads the more that our way of thinking gets changed. Read your bible.
Fast. Now, fasting is one of those devotional practices that seems to have fallen by the wayside in the past generation. But the scriptures have never stopped telling us that we should fast. Jesus instructed his disciples to do this. The church has never stopped telling us to do what our Lord tells us to do. I invite the parish to reclaim Fridays as a day of fasting. Eat simply on Fridays and offer this sacrifice as a prayer for the parish and for the all the people of Henry County.
Go to confession. In the past generation Catholics in the United States have not made good use of this sacrament. Many go months or even years. This ought not be. There is not one person here who would not benefit from receiving the sacrament of penance at least monthly. You and I, we all need to receive the grace that comes from the sacrament of penance.
Mass. Obviously this is important for Catholics. We have always taught that Sunday mass is important because it respects the commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy. The ten commandments are the main biblical points to help us understand what mortal sin is and how to avoid it. Willfully skipping out on Sunday mass is a mortal sin. It violates the commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy as a day of worship. We need Sunday mass. It is sad that only about 30% of people who call themselves Catholic actually attend mass every Sunday. We have some work to do to evangelize our inactive brothers and sisters. But there is a bit more here. In the old covenant there were certain feasts that were important for Jews to observe. The gospels show the Holy Family in perfect observance of these feasts. In the new covenant these feasts have been observed as part of the Catholic system of Holy Days of Obligation. But it seems like only about 40% of Catholics who attend Sunday mass also attend Holy Days of Obligation. So let me ask. Was the Church full for the feast day of All Saints? If past experience is any indication then we still need work on this. Let’s keep up with our attendance. And I will add one more point to this. Preparation. Make time to prepare for mass prior to its beginning. Preparation begins at home with prayers and meditation on the scriptures that we proclaim in the mass. Do preparation and then the mass will open up for you as a beautiful act of worship full of meaning. God will speak to you through the readings, the prayers, and the music at mass.

So these five steps. Prayer; fasting, reading the bible, confession, and mass, will pave the way for great spiritual renewal at St. John Church. It will help you toward fulfilling your goals in the strategic plan, especially the goal of reserving the blessed sacrament in the tabernacle here at St. John.

Jesus will work through you to seek out and save those who are lost. This is what happens when Jesus is invited to come and stay in this house.

30th Sunday Ordinary Time

2007-10-31T20:59:00.000-07:00

30th Sunday Ordinary Time
October 30, 2007

Sirach 35:12-14,16-18
2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18
Luke 18:9-14

In today’s gospel we get one of the more famous of Jesus’ quotes:

“Whoever exalts himself will be humbled,
And the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

People like to use this quote either to point out somebody’s humble nature or to point out some haughty person’s future fall. Maybe not a bad way of using this quote but perhaps Jesus has a little more in mind for us when he gives this instruction.

Consider the context. This instruction comes just after his teaching on perseverance in prayer – we heard that last week, and just prior to his receiving and blessing the little children – and asking his disciples to become like them.

So prayer and humility are linked in a vital way in the scriptures for us.

Consider the two characters in today’s parable. The Pharisee entered the temple and began to pray, telling God all about personal virtues and then being grateful that he is not like all those other bad people. Jesus called the Pharisees arrogant hypocrites. In this case, unable to admit their sin and their need for God.

The second character is the tax collector who came to the temple to pray. But he came as a penitent. He asked God for forgiveness and mercy because of his sins. And Jesus says that this was the person who went home justified in the eyes of God.

It reveals an attitude that Jesus asks of all of his disciples. To have a heart that is humble and contrite.

That means having a realistic sense of our own condition and the humility to acknowledge our utter dependence on the grace of God.
We are sinners. Go ahead and admit it. We are all sinners. We need God to save us. And there is no other way.
So what can we do to cultivate a heart that is humble and contrite?

I have two practices in our Christian tradition that I think will help us all on our road to conversion

The first practice is fasting.
The gospels, the new testament, and the old testament all clearly teach that there are times when believers should fast. And as Catholics we used to have a pretty good tradition of fasting but in the past 40 years or so we’ve abandoned it in a big way. We need to reclaim this important devotion. Jesus fasted. The apostles fasted. And we also should practice fasting. Why?
A couple of reasons. The first reason is simply because God asks it of us through the teachings of the bible and the teachings of the church. So for no other reason than simple obedience it is good for us to fast. But it is good to know what we get out of it. And that brings us to a second reason for fasting. Fasting brings us self discipline. We can say to our bodies every so often that we live not by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. So it follows that a third reason to fast is that it brings us freedom. It makes us free from our bad habits and our sins through our little sacrifice offered in faith. A spiritual exchange takes place when we fast. A new clarity comes to us through fasting.

And when to fast? The Church asks Catholics to fast at least one hour prior to receiving Holy Communion, except in the case of small children or those who are ill. The Church also asks Catholics to fast during Lent in a special way leading us to Easter. Many of you here recall when all Catholics refrained from eating meat on Fridays. You know, the Church never officially said that we should no longer fast after Vatican II. We just kind of stopped doing it. But where have we gone morally in the past 40 years in this country? Perhaps it is time to fast.

Let me suggest this to the Church. Let’s reclaim Friday as a day of fasting, in preparation for the mass on Sunday. A very good way to fast on Fridays is to eat only simple bread and drink only water or other simple drinks.

Fasting will help you to cultivate a heart that is humble and contrite.

The second practice in our Christian tradition is the Sacrament of Penence.
This is another practice that many of us have chucked since Vatican II. Prior to then, the lines were long each Saturday to receive the sacrament. Admittedly, many people approached the sacrament out of habit or out of fear. So when people learned that they didn’t have to go out of pious habit or out of fear, then they simply stopped. But again, what has happened to the moral compass of this nation, and of the Catholic Church in the past 40 years? In many ways Catholics have become indistinguishable from the hedonistic culture all around us. What goes in the culture seems to go the same in our parishes. And that ought not be. We are called to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. But our salt has become flat and our light has been hidden. Many Catholics have been years without going to confession. And I say with certainty that there is not one single person here in this parish who would not benefit from monthly confession. Not you, not me.

It takes lots of humility to approach the sacrament of penance. We have to admit our faults to a priest who knows us.
But what do we get out of the sacrament of penance? Why go?
We go to declare our faith in Jesus who is faithful to wash us from our sins. We go to receive sanctifying grace and mercy. We go so that Jesus can convert our hearts. We go so that Jesus can make of us saints in his kingdom.

So today you receive two more steps on your road to conversion. Fasting and Confession. Practice them, and you will find justification with God. You will find humility. And God will exalt you.

29th Sunday Ordinary Time

2007-10-31T20:58:00.000-07:00

29th Sunday Ordinary Time
October 21, 2007

Jesus asks a compelling question in Luke 18:8. When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?

This is one of those challenging questions that each of us needs to consider very seriously. This has implications for us personally, as a parish, as well as us as a people in our nation.

In pondering the question, what, do you say, is the verdict at this time? Jesus came to establish a Church filled with saints who would be victorious over sin and death through conversion of heart. And so we have to ask ourselves. Are we saints? Are we deeply engaged in the process of conversion? Or do we live more like Christian pagans, hardly distinct at all from the non-Christian culture that is present all around us?

We’ve got to be aware of this question because Jesus asks us both as a people as well as individuals – will he find faith in us when he comes?

For he comes.
He comes today in sacrament to strengthen us in holiness. We gather at mass to be fed by the bread of life. And he who is the bread of life asks us to examine ourselves carefully and be reconciled with one another and with God prior to approaching the altar. But how many of us have approached this altar lackadaisically time and time again without being reconciled? How many of us have gone years and years without the sacrament of confession? How often do we fail to attend to our conversion?

He comes.
He comes at the end of our lives, when the temple that is our body is destroyed in death. And when that time comes will our lives give testimony to faith in him? Will we have been converted or not? Scripture teaches quite clearly that Heaven, Purgatory, and Hell are all very real destinations at the end of our lives? Our judgement will be based on our choosing conversion through faith in Jesus Christ. Or not.

He comes.
He comes at the end of the ages to pour judgment upon the earth. To gather his elect into the eternal kingdom. To sentence the devil and all his followers into the eternal fire. Every day we live is a day closer to this final date with destiny.

He comes, and what he asks of us is to have the faith that leads to conversion.

So be converted. We all need this message. Be converted. We are not yet holy enough. We are not yet converted enough. We are still too much of this world and not nearly enough of the kingdom of God. Be converted.

Yes. Conversion can sometimes seem to be very difficult. But the scripture gives us some very basic things we can do to speed ourselves along in our conversion. And if we are persistent in these little steps of conversion, then God will make of us the saints he intends for us to be.

Here are two little steps from today’s scriptures to help us on our road to conversion.

Pray. As simple as this is, often enough we get very lazy about our prayers and forget to do them on a daily basis. Or we get into a rote recitation that has no heart to it. Pray every day. Morning and night. Pray without becoming weary. Use the tools for prayer that the church gives us. Daily mass. The Rosary. Lectio Divina. Litanies and songs. Meditation and reflection. Quiet conversation with God. Eucharistic Adoration. Need I go on? We have many tools for prayer. Persevere in prayer according to Jesus’ instruction. Pray, and get closer to Jesus. Pray with the help of the saints in heaven and with the Church on earth. Pray always without becoming weary. Pray.

Read the bible. The bible contains everything we need for our salvation. But often enough the bible becomes a dusty book on the coffee table or a forgotten item on the shelf. Take it out and read it. St. Paul in 2nd Timothy tells us that sacred scripture gives us wisdom for salvation through faith in Jesus. The bible is necessary. Take it up and read a little bit every day. Ask the Holy Spirit for inspiration prior to reading and then you will always receive a little message to help you in your conversion. Read the bible and, as St. Paul says, you will find it useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that you who belong to God may be competent and equipped for every good work. Do you want to be equipped for every good work? Read your bible. Every day. Read your bible.

Do these things. Do them faithfully and persistently. And God will make of you a saint in his kingdom. Your light will shine brightly in a darkened world. And when he comes he will indeed find the faith that he himself gave to you when you opened the door of your heart through prayer and through his holy word.

I close using the words of St. Paul as a benediction, with a little adaptation, regarding these two little steps.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power:
Pray always without becoming weary. Let the Church say amen.
Read sacred scripture every day. Let the Church say amen.
Be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient. And be convinced and encouraged, through all patience and teaching. Let the Church say amen.
May almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

25th Sunday Ordinary Time

2007-09-22T18:52:00.000-07:00

25th Sunday Ordinary Time
September 23, 2007

Amos 8:4-7
1 Tim 2:1-8
Luke 16:1-13

Have you ever noticed how much the gospels teach about money and possessions? If you read with this in mind you will see that a large percentage of Jesus teaching connects in one way or another to money and possessions. It is an interesting study for those who care to take it up.

Let’s get into today’s gospel and see what it teaches us.

First the steward. He was called to account for squandering property. We are not told exactly how. But the end result is that the master’s business is losing money and as a result the steward is about to get fired.

Let me fill in a couple of details stewards and ancient businesses.
these stewards often charged a commission to the customers. This became a profit for the steward.
we know from the story that the customers “owed” something to the master. It is probable that the steward was charging interest on the loans, something which was against the biblical law. This was called “usury” in the old testament.

The steward’s response to the threat of getting fired was this. He called in the customers and apparently eliminated the commission that he charged. Maybe even some of the interest on the loan. The cuts in the promissory notes were up to 50%.

By eliminating his commission he hoped to create gratitude in his customers and thus get welcomed into their homes after he was fired. He also ensured that the debtors would pay their debt to the master more quickly. The parable ends by saying that the master praised the steward for his prudence.

The second section of today’s gospel is this series of sayings.

Jesus talks about a person being judged by his trustworthiness in small matters, or lack thereof.
Then Jesus gives them the zinger at the end. He says - No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate on and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.
Mammon means material wealth or riches. In other words, mammon is your stuff and your money. You can’t be devoted to it and to God at the same time. When all is said and done, you will love one and hate the other.

This parable and these sayings help us understand the attitude that we as Christians should have towards our money and our stuff.

Here it is. Get ready.
It all belongs to God. We are only stewards of these resources.
Period. No ifs ands or buts.

Everything we have. Our houses, our bank accounts, our possessions, our stock portfolios, everything ultimately belongs to God. Everything that we count as a material possession is a gift to us from God.

And it is a gift from God with a purpose.
I will tell you first what the purpose is not.

The purpose is not so that you and I can get rich and satisfied for our own benefit.
God does not give us our time, talents, and treasure purely for ourselves. That’s just selfishness. It is a sin. If we think that we are the sole possessors of our money and our stuff and that’s all we are after, then we are in trouble. Jesus directly implies here that the person who is greedy and selfish actually hates God.

The gift of our time, talent, and treasure. That is our abilities, money, and stuff, is meant to become a blessing from God to us for everybody.
Let me restate that. Your money. Your talents. Your time. Is given to you by God so that you can be blessed by it and use it to bless other people.

God commands this in the bible. The Old Testament commands a tithe – 10% be given back to God. The new testament instructs that Christians give as an exercise in trust and in gratitude. And God promises to bless us even more when we choose to trust by being generous.

God doesn’t need our stuff. God owns it all. But we need to exercise faith filled generosity.

Consider this. If you follow God’s commands when you have small amounts of money and resources, then it is likely that God will bless you with greater and greater amounts. He will do this because he can use you to bless people. Imagine if you had a hundred million dollars. How generous would you be then? How generous are you now in giving back to God?

If we are not faithful in small things, then God cannot use us to be a blessing to others in greater ways. So here’s the question. Will you love God with the money and the stuff entrusted to you today? Will you give and trust God? When you receive more, will you trust God and become more generous?

God intends great things for you. God wants to use you and me to be instruments of his blessing in the world.

Will you love God and trust God with everything that you have and even everything that you are? With your whole self? Will God truly be Lord of your life?

Jesus said. “No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.”

2007-09-08T18:08:00.000-07:00

23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
September 9, 2007

Wisdom 9:13-18b
Philemon 9b-10,12-17
Luke 14: 25-33

“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”

What is all this hate talk here? Usually, when we talk about the good news of Jesus it is about how he revealed the love of the Father for the whole world. Is this the same man who told his followers to love their enemies and pray for their persecutors? Isn’t this the same Jesus who told his disciples to love one another as he loved them? This seems bizarre.

Likewise, at the end of the teaching today Jesus says this. “Anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.”

Well, we’re not sure about that one either. Wouldn’t the world grind down to a halt if we all gave up our possessions?

This seems disturbing.

The parabolic images that go along with this teaching are not so pleasant either. An unfinished building that becomes a joke. A defeated king. Unfortunately, the third image of this teaching is not included in the reading today but I will give it to you now.

Vs. 34-35.
“Salt is good, but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; they throw it away. Let anyone with ears to hear listen.”

The third parabolic image is spoiled salt. Useless and worthy only of being thrown out.

What are we supposed to do with all this disturbing imagery?

Let me draw a parallel for you regarding this teaching. Maybe this will shed some light.

Whoever desires to marry must first renounce all former girlfriends or boyfriends. You can’t take them with you into the marriage. Not even one. Furthermore, whoever desires to marry must also renounce all possessions as being exclusively yours. All possessions become part of a common household for the sake of wife, or husband. In fact, when you have children, you really begin to understand detachment from things. Kids tend to break stuff. Don’t be too attached. Finally, whoever desires to marry but doesn’t make a firm commitment of love, respect, and fidelity in the marriage will experience its ruin. Decline of commitment to love, respect, and fidelity turns wedded bliss into a living hell. Like an unfinished building project. Like a defeated king. Like salt that loses its flavor. Useless and worthy only of being thrown out.

Make a little more sense now?

Jesus tells his disciples that it is the way with the kingdom he came to establish. For us to be partakers of the new covenant he asks us for a firm commitment. Don’t say yes, go part way, and then back out of it. Let your commitment be unshakeable.

Wouldn’t it be great if all marriages held together with an unshakeable commitment by both husband and wife? How good life would be if all were faithful.

Wouldn’t it be great if all Christians held to their faith and practiced it with an unshakeable commitment? How good the world would be if all were faithful to the call of Jesus?

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you and I followed Jesus to the extent that everything about us and everything that we are would be devoted to the love of God? Imagine the transformative effect on my life? On your life? And on the whole world?

I suppose that the trickiest part of this whole challenge from Jesus for each of us is this. It means that I have to trust him with everything that I have and everything that I am. I have to trust that he has my best interests at heart. That he has a good plan for me within his kingdom. I have to trust that it is worth it to offer everything up to follow him. My family. My possessions. My own life. Everything.

If I don’t do it. Then I really am not his disciple. Gotta give it all. No holding back anymore.

Let anyone with ears to hear – listen.

2007-09-08T18:07:00.000-07:00

Oops,
forgot to post last week's homily. Here it is.

22nd Sunday Ordinary Time
September 2, 2007

Sirach 3:17-18, 20, 28-29
Hebrews 12:18-19, 22-24a
Luke 14:1, 7-14

Humility.
Sirach tells the reader to conduct your affair with humility.
Luke tells the reader that the one who humbles himself will be exalted.

Humility.
It is one of the seven virtues. It is necessary

The word humility has its roots in a couple of interesting words. Humilis means low. Another word, humus, means earth. I like that.

A way of understanding humility is to think of it as the idea of being completely grounded in reality. Feet planted firmly on the ground. You are never higher than you actually are when you are humble.

Humility is the opposite of being proud, haughty, arrogant, or assertive.

Humility is deferential towards others.

And God asks us to be humble.

Consider the humility of Almighty God. God, omnipotent, almighty, gloriously exalted in heaven, is humble. That is, completely grounded in reality. God is reality.

God comes to us in very humble ways. When the Word became flesh God decided to grow in the womb of his mother Mary. Rather than being born in the splendor of a palace he was born in a stable and laid in a manger. He grew up just like all of us. He went through potty training when he was two and zits when he was twelve. He was a humble carpenter in Nazareth before he began his ministry at age 30. He was never flashy about his ministry but did it in realistic ways. Yes, he performed miracles. He did them to show us the reality of the kingdom of God.

Consider how he comes to us today. In baptism he gives us the gift of salvation in a simple way through water and the Holy Spirit. In the sacrament of confirmation he gives us his Holy Spirit in a more profound way to empower us for ministry. But again, it is humble and quiet. At mass he comes to us through the agents of simple bread and simple wine to become spiritual food for us. Humble. Simple. Real. That is the humility of God.

And through Jesus God gives the gift of salvation to every single human person. He allows for us to receive the gift, not just of salvation from our sins, but also to become his beloved sons and daughters, heirs of his promises through Jesus.
Everybody has the opportunity to receive this gracious gift from God. None of us deserve it. All of us have committed sin.

This is why Jesus tells his disciples to be humble. The parable of the banquet warns us against all those false social distinctions. Jesus shows us how to regard one another as God regards us. Equally. That is why he tells us that we ought to be inviting the socially outcast to our gatherings.

And that is what the mass is. Everybody is welcome at God’s party. There is no distinction among us.

Our humble God gives us his own dignity through Jesus. And by becoming like our humble Jesus, we will know his glory.

Be humble.
And blessed indeed will you be.

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time

2007-08-25T19:37:00.000-07:00

21st Suday in Ordinary Time
August 26, 2007

Readings:
Isaiah 66:18-21
Hebrews 12:5-7,11-13
Luke 13:22-30

My son, do not disdain the discipline of the Lord or lose heart when reproved by him, for whom the Lord loves, he disciplines; he scourges every son he acknowledges.”

A lot of times, when people hear the word, “discipline” connected with the son of a Father, they often think of the word punishment. In other words, when a kid is going to get some discipline from his dad he may be thinking of what his mother said to him after some unfortunate childish misdeed - like "just wait till your father gets home." And we all know what that means.

I am going to concede to you that this understanding is an unfortunate misunderstanding both of the positive role of a parent and a misunderstanding of the positive role of God in our lives.

The word discipline is related to a more religious word that we often use – disciple. To disciple is understood much more like the verb “to teach.”

This captures much better the positive role of a mother or father who teaches her children how to grow up to become good human beings. In like manner this scripture describes to us the positive role of our Heavenly Father who loves us and who wants to teach us the way of holiness and perfection.

Of course, if you are going to be taught, then you have to want to learn. Nothing worse than a student who doesn’t want to learn.

Do you want to learn from God? Then strive for it.

First, you can’t really learn something unless you really want to. If you decide that you don’t want to be discipled by the Lord, then you will live without it. Lots of people do. But if you decide that you want to be discipled by Jesus in the way of perfection. And you decide to do it every day. Then you will truly become his disciple. This is why Jesus said that his disciples would have to forsake everything in order to follow him. In other words, we have to become totally open to learning from Jesus – to becoming his disciple – to being disciplined by him. But you won’t learn from him unless you decide that you want to learn. So first, you must decide that you want to learn from Jesus more than anything else.

Second, you must listen. Listening with an open heart to Jesus means that you take his teaching seriously. It means that you decide to apply it to every aspect of your life. You must listen to the teachings of the gospel and to the teachings of the Church – and be obedient to those teachings. Don’t get caught in the bind of picking and choosing what teachings you like and rejecting those you don’t like. The bible calls this "double mindedness". Jesus said it this way. "You can’t serve God and mammon at the same time." In the book of Numbers when Joshua began his leadership of the Israelites into the promised land he made this declaration. "Choose this day whom you will serve. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." You must decide to truly listen to the teachings of Jesus and take them to heart.

Third, you must expect the best. Jesus described his discipline in these words. ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn from me, for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Hebrews describes the results of discipleship in these words. It brings the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by it.” Your drooping hands will be strengthened and your path will become clear and straight. What is lame will be healed. St. Paul described it this way when he wrote, "the Lord works everything out for good for those who love the Lord." In other words, you can expect the best, most positive results when you choose to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus. He will not lead you wrong. You can expect the very best from him.

The Lord loves you. And because he loves you he calls you to be his disciple. With all your heart, learn from him. And he will fulfill the joy of your heart.

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

2007-08-18T18:42:00.000-07:00

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
August 19, 2007

Readings:
Jeremiah 38:4-6;8-10
Hebrews 12:1-4
Luke 12:49-53

“Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.”

Now, what kind of words are these that come from the one whom we title the Prince of Peace. Didn’t the angels herald his birth with the acclamation – peace on earth to men of goodwill?

Setting the earth afire and causing division is very counterintuitive to what we normally think of as Jesus’ mission. And yet, here it is. Set the earth ablaze. Cause division. What are we to do with that?

Consider Jeremiah. Jeremiah was called by God to the prophetic ministry. He was to speak the Word of God as God inspired him. Jeremiah had the awful task of telling the people that they had been sinning and that they must repent. That judgment was coming in the form of an invasion by the armies of Babylon.

Poor Jeremiah. For being faithful in delivering the word of God he was despised by the king and his court. He got paid for his faithfulness by being thrown into a well and left to die. Talk about setting the earth ablaze and causing division.

This was often the case for prophetic ministry. Prophets declare to the world the signs of the times and confront the world with its need for repentance. These words aren’t often well received by people. We would rather that people tell us how good and special we are and just leave it at that. We would rather not be confronted with our sins. And yet, isn’t this necessary for healing to take place.

Consider the case of the person who has been experience various kinds of pain for a long time but won’t go to the doctor because he fears a diagnosis of cancer. He fears the possibility of bad news more than knowing the truth. So he continues in his pain without seeking help.

Our sin is often the same way. It corrodes away the human spirit and needs healing just as much as the worst form of illness. And yet so many choose to rationalize away their sinful behavior. What is really needed is a cleansing fire. Separating ourselves from that which is evil so that we may become good, and pure, and perfect.

In Hebrews we hear the Lord instruct us to “rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us.

How do you do that? Well, I am convinced that every kind of sin – and name for yourself whatever is bugging you – every kind of sin happens to us when we aren’t in union with God. When we stop listening to God and start listening to the desires of our flesh or to the temptations of the devil, then we commit sin. Stray away from God and sin has the opportunity to be conceived in our hearts. Once conceived, later on we find ourselves doing things we never thought we would ever do. Every form of anger, lust, pride, and avarice comes from being separated from God.

But the letter to the Hebrews gives the Christian the way to rid ourselves of sin. It really is so easy that it is hard to believe. It says – persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus.

That in a nutshell is the key.

Remember when Peter saw Jesus walking on the water? Peter asked Jesus to let him step out of the boat and walk with him. Jesus said ok so Peter did and was walking on the water just fine until – what? Peter took his eyes off of Jesus and onto the wind and the waves. Once his eyes were off of Jesus then he was sunk. Literally. Oh you of little faith – why did you doubt?

Same with you and me. When we seek the Lord with our whole heart and desire to be in full communion with him, then the result is that we become rid of every burden and sin. When our joy is with the Lord and we seek to give ourselves fully to him in love, then there really isn’t much room in our lives for sin. Plain and simple.

How do you seek the Lord with your whole heart? Pray at all times. This is not difficult, really. While it certainly includes a regular habit of formal prayer, it is also a matter of maintaining an awareness of the presence of the Lord with you at all times. Some say that praying always is impossible. I disagree. I will tell you how.

From an opposite experience, think of a time when there was something really worrying you. It stayed present in your mind all day long. You went to work, or school, and attended to the duties of your day, but that worrisome thing gnawed at you all day long without stopping. Your mind brooded on it.

Well, in a different kind of way, our minds and hearts can be fixed on Jesus as we go through the day doing our work. But with our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus he truly becomes our leader in all we do. When our attention is on him he perfects our faith. He separates us from sin and corruption and makes us holy – God’s saints on earth. Ablaze with the fire of God’s love.

This is the message. When we are on fire with the love of God we become God’s instruments of salvation in this world. We can lead people to a saving and sacramental knowledge of the Lord. We can confront evil and oppression wherever it is and overcome it. We can literally change the world. We can become the light of the world and the salt of the earth. We could walk on water and move mountains just by keeping the eyes of our faith firmly fixed on the Lord. Oh how I wish for us to be set afire. Blazing with the love of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.

2007-08-15T18:32:00.000-07:00

The Installation Mass for Archbishop Kurtz
August 15, 2:30 p.m.

Today the Archdiocese of Louisville, along with many guests and friends, gave a typically warm Kentucky welcome to Archbishop Kurtz. Warm, both in the sense of the effusive joy of the congregation as well as the temperature of the day - around 98* outside and something only slightly less warm and muggy inside the Louisville Gardens where the mass was held.

The procession was grand with the servers, many deacons, many more priests, and more bishops present in Louisville than I have ever seen before. The applause was strong and heartfelt as Archbishop Kurtz took his place at the cathedra. The assembly was eager in listing to the reading of the papal bull by the nuncio. And then there was another grand procession of people representing the Archdiocese and the civic community who formally greeted and welcomed Archbishop Kurtz to Louisville. All this in the opening rites.

These welcomes in the opening rites of the mass reached their climax when the congregation sang the gloria. This moment was particularly poignant to me. As we sang and acknowledged God's goodness, I felt a powerful sense of unity with and love for the people of this Archdiocese -this large and close knit family of Catholics gathered in one place. I knew so many of them and I knew for a moment in a more profound way of the love of God drawing us together. My heart was moved by the goodness of this blessing.

For a moment, I knew that heaven would be like this feeling of singing the Gloria. One voice, united in love with people who I love, giving praise to God who has been so good to us.

"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord..."

2007-08-15T18:31:00.001-07:00

The Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
August 14, vigil mass

Readings:
1 Chronicles 15: 3-4,15-16; 16:1-2
1 Corinthians 15:54b-57
Luke 11:27-28

“Death is swallowed up in victory.
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”

In the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Mother into heaven we gather to proclaim an important truth.

Mary is the pattern for our salvation.

Here, in this feast day, she is the pattern for the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Her body was not subject to decay at the end of her earthly life. Rather, she was taken body, soul, and spirit into heaven. She is the ecclesial pattern. As it goes with Mary, so it also goes for all the Church.

We believe in the resurrection and in life everlasting. Amen.

Just one little problem for all of us. While, Mary was the spotless virgin predestined to become the mother of God and preserved by grace from sin, and the new Eve who always said “yes” to God, and the ark of the new covenant, that hasn’t been the case with you and with me. How many of us over the age of three are completely without sin?

The human race needs a savior. Someone to overcome our sin and our death. And so we rejoice, also, in this feast because through Jesus we may receive the grace to become pure and spotless like Mary. We must become through the grace of Jesus, like her, Mary, the immaculate one.

This is why, when Jesus heard people say that his mother was blessed because she was his mother, that he offered a slight amplification of her blessing.

He said, rather, “blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” Why? He wasn’t repudiating his mother. On the contrary, he was elevating the particular reason why she was truly blessed. She heard the word of God spoken to her and offered a continuous “yes” to it. Because of that, despite the sorrows she had to endure on this earth, Mary was also a woman who was full of grace, joyful, and blessed. She gave a complete “yes” to God and I believe that she is the most joyful of all God’s creatures. She is the immaculate one. The joyful one. The one who never endured the corruption of death but was rather taken up into heaven body, soul, and spirit.
Now, given a choice, would you rather experience more of the misery and suffering that results from sin? No? I didn’t think so. Don’t ask the logical question that extends from that. So why keep sinning? It only results in misery, death, and then hell.

Rather, do you prefer to be filled with love, joy, peace, kindness, and all the virtues that come from giving our complete “yes” to God and being filled with the Holy Spirit?
Yes, or yes.

Then Mary is the pattern for you. She is the model. She is the blessed one. Do not be afraid, good people, to give your “yes” to God as completely as Mary did.

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

2007-08-12T18:04:00.000-07:00

18th Sunday Ordinary Time
August 5, 2007

Be rich in what matters to God.

So the rich man had a great harvest, built bigger barns, and then he died before he could enjoy any of it. What a tragedy. What a shame.

And important for us to hear in this day and age. We are the richest country in the world. We, the people of Shelby County, are generally very well off compared to the rest of the world. Maybe not compared to our neighbor down the street, but believe you me compared to the rest of the world practically every person in this parish is in the top 2%.

Which is why Jesus’ instructions about wealth is important for us. Jesus told the rich young man that he had to sell everything, give it to the poor, and only then could he follow Jesus. Jesus told the people that it would be easier to fit a camel through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. So in case you don’t quite get the instructions from the gospel, our wealth and possessions can be a real obstacle to our salvation.

So many folks get possessed by their possessions. They get so consumed by the stuff in their houses and their savings and stock options that they diminish the space in their lives for God. How many of us can easily get caught in that kind of cycle. We can spend lots of our energy on our stuff and our money and for what. Do you want to know what God thinks of that?
Well, this is what God said of the rich man in the parable today. He said, “you fool.” God could certainly say that to this present foolish generation. Would he say it of you? Of me?

What can we do to practice the wisdom of God in regard to our money and possessions? How do we become rich in what matters to God?

I have five little instructions for us today. They are as follows:
Acknowledge that everything belongs to God.
practice gratitude
Practice generosity
Practice tithing and giving offerings
Practice good stewardship.

Acknowledge that everything belong to God. Your stuff really isn’t yours. You are just a steward of what ultimately belongs to God. A good way to practice this acknowledgement is to have a little prayer ceremony at home where you dedicate every jot and tittle of your stuff to God. Repeat this kind of prayer as needed until the idea sinks in. All my belongings belong to you oh God.

Practice gratitude to God. Gratitude is a key to the spiritual life and it helps us to understand that God is our gracious provider. Gratitude leads us to deeper trust in God.

Practice generosity. Since none of us can out-give God, then we can trust in his provision for us. Consequently, we can feel a willingness to become generous with our money and possessions. Remember, Jesus made this promise: give and it will be given to you, pressed down, shaken together, a good measure. For what you measure out will be measured back to you. I tell you that I personally have found this principle to be true over and over again.

Practice tithing and giving offerings. Tithing is the biblical discipline of giving one tenth of our income to God – usually through one’s local parish, archdiocese, and other organizations dedicated to building up the kingdom of God. Offerings are what are given above and beyond the tithe proscribed by the bible. In fact, I will be bold enough to say this. Any lack that we have in our ministry of the parish has much to do with disobedience to God in these matters of generosity and tithing. Conversely, any abundance we have in ministry stems from those individuals who become obedient to God’s work in regard to our money and possessions.

Finally, practice good stewardship. Care of our possessions and prudent investment of our resources, coupled with a willingness to be generous with is, even to give it all away when called upon, leads to a powerful sense of spiritual freedom.

Good people, be rich in what matters to God. Acknowledge that all belongs to God. Be grateful. Be generous. Tithe and give offerings. Be a good steward of God’s gifts. And then you will become rich with the treasure that does not rust or wear out. It is the better part that will never be taken away from you.