4th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Adore, Bow Down, and Kneel before the Lord

 Many of you know that our beautiful church of St. Ignatius of Antioch was not the first church building built on this property. In 1903 a brick structure was built which was a combination church and school. Within a decade it was evident that the church wasn’t going to be big enough for the quickly growing parish. The population of the neighborhood was growing due to urban flight from the city for a number of reasons. For one, your great grandparents generation came out here as the city began filling up due to new immigrants coming to Cleveland, some from Europe and some from the American South. Secondly, due to new factories, the big industrialized steel cities didn’t smell to good, and to move out to West Blvd. was a break from crowded smelly city life. Thirdly, a new church needed to be built because the family was growing, bigger families needed more pews. But also, the catholic family was growing because the Catholics were successful in sharing their faith with their non-Catholic neighbors.

So, ground was broken for the new church of St. Ignatius on April 4, 1925, with a lower church and upper church—big enough to house this booming Catholic population. Some of you may remember when mass was celebrated downstairs in the lower church and busses would pick up parishioners from around the neighborhood, as the parking lot never could quite accommodate all the Sunday worshippers in those days. 

I wish I could take you on a tour of the lower church, but’s it just not safe enough to be wandering around down there. Maybe one day, we’ll be able to afford a renovation to make the lower level usable at least for a gathering and meeting area. The lower level was accessed by the outside stairwells, and entering the church, you’d first be probably be struck at first by the pillars topped with these beautiful carved capitals depicting the four evangelists. 

And then kneeling down at your pew, you’d see, written in latin above the sanctuary, the words of our responsorial psalm today, the sixth verse of Psalm 95: Venite, adoremus et procidamus et genua flectamus ante Dominum. Come, let us adore and bow down and bend the knee before the Lord. 

Every time you’d come to church, you’d see this reminder, of what made this building different from the skyscrapers downtown and even the family home. It is here that God is worshiped. It is here that we show our faith and our love for God, by bending the knee, by kneeling before him and adoring him in the Blessed Sacrament.

Parish council shared with me that there was once an attempt to remove the kneelers from church, and and I’m so glad there was some resistance by the parishioners, because kneeling before God in God’s house, is a constitutive part of Catholic worship, a posture of humility we see already practiced by our Jewish ancestors. 

This is why kneeling at the Communion rail—kneeling for Communion—was custom for Roman Catholics, for well over a thousand years, closer to two thousand, than one. As an acknowledgement that you were kneeling down before the Lord himself present in the Sacrament.

As many of you know I’ve begun to offer on a weekly basis, on Monday evenings,  the Latin Mass, for the Mass which fed and nourished the souls of your grandparents is being rediscovered by new generations of Catholics. This Monday night, in particular, I will be celebrating the Solemn High Mass for the Feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch, which is February 1st on the old calendar. If it’s been a few decades or you’ve never experienced Solemn High Mass, come check it out on Monday evening. You might not understand everything that’s going on…but that’s okay, do we ever? But you can come and adore and bow down and kneel and pray. 

Friday night, I assisted at a solemn high mass, at St. Paul’s Parish down in Akron, at the conclusion of their week of Eucharistic devotions. The pastor, Father Matt Pfeiffer, my good friend and classmate, shared a story during the homily, Friday night, a story from our seminary days. The seminarians make a winter retreat before the beginning of the spring semester every year, and we were at a retreat house down in Columbus. There’s a saying amongst seminarians that God doesn’t call the perfect, he perfects the called, and this little aphorism was on full display on this retreat. There was a pair of seminarians who just didn’t get along—huge personality differences—they just couldn’t see eye-to-eye. They argued, often. And on the last day of the retreat, in a moment of real vulnerability, one of these seminarians opened up, and shared with the group, he said, it’s no secret that this other seminarian and I don’t get along, but last night, I went to the chapel, to kneel down and pray before the blessed sacrament, and I was there for some time, and when I looked over across the chapel, there, kneeling in adoration, was, Michael. And I realized, that despite our differences, both of us loved the Lord, in faith and adoration we were united.

And that’s what being Catholic is all about, isn’t it? Despite our difference, we adore, we bow down, and we kneel in the unity of faith. Despite our differences, we set them aside when we walk through these doors. White, black, rich, poor, conservative or progressive. This place has always been that way, where the very diverse people from the neighborhood, could come and kneel and worship. 

There’s been a lot of talk about unity these days. But any unity that is not based on living under God, or rather, kneeling before him, is artificial, and will never last. Honestly, I don’t think it’s a coincidence, that the civil unrest that we are experiencing in this country at this moment in history comes at a time when mass attendance amongst Catholics, church attendance in general, is at an all time low. For how can we have unity, if we do not rightly acknowledge and come to kneel before the source of that unity. 

Any national revival of civility, neighborly trust, or honesty in business, will only come as a result of spiritual and moral revival. And that is not something the government can mandate or enforce or fabricate. For without God, man can only impose an unholy uniformity through force and coercion, a counterfeit imposter of the sacred and charitable bonds of unity through Christ. 

You want to trust your neighbor again, kneel beside him in the eucharist. You want civility to reign even among people you disagree with politically? Kneel beside them. You want peace in your families, ensure you are kneeling together, and adoring the Lord together. 

To kneel before the Eucharist is to submit your life to Him, to renounce everything that does not come from him, anything unclean, as we heard in the Gospel, is to exorcized and expelled from our lives, any belief contrary to His teaching and the teaching of His holy church.

Those words, “Come, let us adore, and bow down, and worship” are an invitation that the Word of God makes to us, that we may know his peace and unity in this life as a foretaste of heaven. And yet, it is also a command, to carry that invitation to those we meet out in the world, to the unbeliever, to those who kneel before the false gods of the world, or only worship their own ego. We are sent by the Word of God into their lives, that, with God, we may be one, and know his peace and rest in his presence for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Jan 1 2017 - Mary, Mother of God - A good year or bad year?

So. Was 2016 a good year or a bad year? Well, that certainly depends on who you ask, doesn’t it? It was an election year, so we all suffered through an endless barrage of political commercials. Famous and beloved celebrities like David Bowie, Gene Wilder, Muhammed Ali, Florence Henderson, Carrie Fisher, and Debbie Reynolds, passed from this life. Tragedy struck many parts of our nation and world: over 600 people were killed and 1700 people injured in Mass shootings on American soil. In fact, 90,000 Christians died for the faith in 2016.

Tragedy aside, a lot of interesting things happened too. NASA’s Juno spacecraft entered orbit around Jupiter, 483 million miles from earth. Pope Francis and the Russian Orthodox Patriarch met and signed an Ecumenical Declaration in the first such meeting since the year 1054, nearly a thousand years ago. The first proven vaccine against the Ebola virus was found effective. And I think there was some basketball thing that happened here in Cleveland.

Two poignant events much nearer and dearer to our hearts: Our beloved Father Wendelken passed this year, and as you may have heard, Bishop Lennon the 10th bishop of the diocese of Cleveland retired this week. A temporary Apostolic Administrator was named by Pope Francis, Bishop Daniel Thomas, Bishop of Toledo will administer the diocese until a new bishop is named.

Was 2016 a good year or bad year? Well, what’s the criteria for such a judgment? The number of celebrities that passed away, technological breakthroughs, sportsball trophies?

A year, a day, a lifetime, should not be judged by the loss of celebrities or who won or lost various political elections. Rather, a year is judged by how well you treated others, whether or not you are holier at the end of 2016 than you were at its beginning.

How did you do? Did you develop and maintain new habits of prayer, service, and catechetical study? Have you properly repented for sins? Are you more patient, generous, joyful than you were a year ago?

If 2016 wasn’t as spiritually fruitful as it should have been, the turning of the year provides a wonderful opportunity to examine your life and to resolve to make the changes you need, the changes God is calling you to make. There is wisdom in making a New Year resolution, and I strongly urge you to consider a spiritual resolution.

Today we celebrate the great Feast of Mary, Mother of God. What resolutions, what changes do we need to make in our life? We but only have to compare ourselves to her. She is our model for what faithfulness and authentic humanity looks like: her prayer life, her openness to the will of God, her willingness to suffer for Him and to embrace the unknown, her charity toward family and neighbor. Look at her and listen to her. Like a good Jewish mother, she will tell you about the changes you need to make in your life. So, how will your 2017 be better than your 2016: if you become more like her. That’s it. It’s that simple.

We could spend the next year exploring what it means to become more like Mary. As St. Bernard said, there’s always more to say about Mary. There’s always more about her faith, her trust, her charity, her wisdom, to explore, to understand, and to emulate.

So let’s just examine one part of her faith today. What do we see Mary doing in the Gospel today? After the unique and profound experience of giving birth to the Savior of Humanity, after shepherds come to worship, and angels come to sing, we find “her keeping these things and reflecting on them in her heart.” She sat in silence and reflected.

How thoroughly unmodern of her! I call it unmodern because what is our modern tendency? To go from one thing to another without reflection: a new iphone app, a new Netflix show to binge watch, a new sale at Kohl’s, a new video game, a new flavor of frappacinno, a new fad, a new selfie. We are obsessed with novelty. And we go from thing to thing with so little reflection upon what matters most in life.

You want a New Year’s Resolution? 10 minutes before bed: turn off the tv, turn off the iphone, turn off your anxious thoughts about what will happen tomorrow, and reflect, like Mary, upon what God is doing in your life. Where is God calling you to grow? What is God wanting you to learn? What are the virtues God wishes to strengthen in you? What are the inspirations God wants you to follow? If you have a hard time beginning your reflection, read a line from the scriptures of the day, or a paragraph from one of the great spiritual masterpieces, like Thomas Kempis’ Imitation of Christ.
To live more reflectively in 2017 will help sanctify our year, it will help us remain centered on Christ, it will help us discover the presence of God in our life, that he is with us in good times and in bad, molding us and shaping us in this crucible of time, to become the people, his sons and daughters, as he made us to be.

Pope Francis, this morning from Rome, said: “Let us pause before the manger to contemplate how God has been present throughout this year and to remind ourselves that every age, every moment is the bearer of graces and blessings.”

May the Great Mother of God, Mary Most Holy, this year, this day, to become the people God made us to be, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: August 16 2016 - St. Stephen of Hungary, first of his name

There are a number of saints who were kings: St. Edward, Good King St. Wenceslas, St. Hedwig, and a number of saintly queens: St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Clotilde, St. Margaret of Scotland. Even some saintly royal couples like St. Henry and St. Cunigunde.

Though Americans today still take some fascination in the weddings of the royals of England, for many, the idea of royalty and monarchy is somewhat suspicious. Though there are many many problems with our government, such corruption and godlessness, it’s hard for us to imagine anything else. Benevolent and wise monarchs seem like something more out of a fairy tale than a reasonable form of government, though Thomas Aquinas did believe it to be the highest form of government possible on earth, modeled after heaven which is ruled by a king, the King of Kings.

Around the year 1000, the disparate and often warring tribes of Celts, Romans, Huns, and Slavs were formed united into a Christian Kingdom under St. Stephen, the first of his name, and first King of Hungary. Most of his people were still pagan, as was his own father, the family only having converted to Catholicism when Stephen was 10 years old.

As his people were given to violence and revolt, Stephen guided his people toward peace and order by admitting Christian missionaries from Bavaria into his country.  The attempt to convert his people was met with hostility. His people wanted to hang on to their old religion and old pagan ways.  But Stephen fasted and prayed, he established monasteries and built churches.  He also made blasphemy and adultery crimes. 

Through his strict, yet benevolent rule, King Stephen brought about order and peace. He was a true evangelizer of his country.  He consecrated the nation to Mary, whom he called “the Great Lady”. He, himself gave religious instruction to the poor, and in view of his many good works and spread of the faith, the pope bestowed on him the title “Apostolic King.” 

A Hungarian parish here in the diocese of Cleveland, is named after St. Stephen’s son, St. Emeric.  Cleveland, in fact, is a hub in the united states for immigration from Hungary.  Cleveland was known as “Little Budapest” for many years, having the second largest Hungarian community outside of Budapest itself.

Listen to these powerful words, St. Stephen wrote to his son, St. Emeric: “I urge you above all things to maintain the catholic and apostolic faith with such diligence and care that you may be an example for all those placed under you by God.”

St. Stephen built his house on the solid rock of the Gospel.  He was not spared hardship or suffering, his evangelical efforts were met with resistance, but he entrusted his work to Our Lady, sought to conform himself with Christ, and fasted and prayed for the spread of God’s kingdom. 

By St. Stephen’s example and prayers, may all we all we can today, using whatever influence, gifts and talents God has granted us, for the spread of His Kingdom, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.