June 30, 2017 - The First Martyrs of Holy Roman Church - Rejoicing at the Triumph of Faithful Love

The month of June is traditionally devoted to the Sacred of Jesus: the sacred Heart, aflame with love for God and man, shining with the light of truth, pierced with thorns to show Our Lord’s willingness to suffer for our salvation. July is devoted to the Precious Blood of Our Lord, shed on the cross, poured out to wash us of our sins and to sanctify the Church.

So how fitting, June transitions into July with three days of martyrs, St. Ireneaus, Saints Peter and Paul, and today the Holy Martyrs of Rome, who in imitation of the Sacred Heart shined with the light of truth and endured suffering for the Gospel, whose Blood, like the Precious Blood of Christ is poured out as a sign of God’s love.

We may think it strange that we almost seem to fixate on these bloody deaths, but I think Mother Church in her wisdom wants us to keep the image of martyrdom always in our sights. We are not to forget about these people. They are Christianity exemplified.

They are the ones who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. They are the ones who do not worry when they stand for judges and kings. They are the ones who love and forgive their persecutors. They are the ones who though betrayed by brother and father, they are the good and faithful servants who persevere to the end. They are the ones who, as Our Lord promised, will on his account be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and the Gentiles, who take Christ at his word, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” They are the ones who as St. Peter says, rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. “

I think Mother Church celebrates these martyrs so frequently, even throughout Ordinary Time that we may imitate their courage in our day to day, Ordinary sharing of the Gospel, their perseverance in the day to day Ordinary struggle against temptation, their forbearance in remaining patient with those who don’t quite get it, their spirit of mercy in forgiving those who persecute, and of course their all-consuming offering of the whole of their lives to Christ. The gift of self to God being the point of life, the purpose of life.

Christian heroes and martyrs | William A. Foster | The Library of Congress

The martyrs we celebrate today were those murdered by the barbaric Emperor Nero in 64 AD. Christians of course have been persecuted in every age, they continue to be persecuted in this age, put under the sword, imprisoned, beheaded by hate-filled adherents of false religions, but also in subtle ways, by governments and professionals, so-called experts, who think the world needs to just be a little less “Christian”.

May the martyrs lend us their courage and standing up for the Gospel, for spreading the Truth of Christ, that share in the triumph of their faithful love for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

That this fortnight of prayer for religious freedom may help people of faith remain vigilant in defending their religious liberty and that Christ may govern the minds of those who govern to promote the religious freedom and the common good according to his will.

That the witness of the martyrs may never be in vain.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers, we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to the supplications of those who call on you. Through Christ our Lord.

June 29, 2017 - Saints Peter and Paul - Catholicity and Unity

Towards the end of my first parish assignment at St. Columbkille in Parma, I was able to lead a wonderful pilgrimage to Rome. Our very first stop, after the 8 hour flight, was the Basillica of Saint Paul’s.  There, one is able to kneel and pray before the relics of Saint Paul himself, the Great Apostle to the Gentiles, who was martyred in Rome.

Kneeling before the relics of the man who gave so much, who suffered so much, who traveled through rapid rivers, steep mountains, malaria-plagued lowlands, and bandit-ridden passages, endured robbers, attempted assassinations, imprisonment, torture, and martyrdom all for the sake of the Gospel, all out of love for Jesus Christ, I thought, here is one of the great men of history, the heroes, an exemplar of the Christian life.  St. Paul pray for us.

No pilgrimage to Rome is complete without visiting the Basilica of Saint Peter. The basilica’s altar sits directly over Saint Peter’s. Pilgrims kneel there, in prayer, and in awe, before the holy relics of the man Jesus Christ himself called “the rock, upon whom I build my Church.”

One is struck by the shear of pilgrims in Rome: thousands and thousands of people, from all over the world, in pilgrimage and devotion. Among the relics of Peter and Paul, one truly encounters the Church’s Catholicity: comprised of living stones of people of every race, nation, and tongue.

Pope Benedict XVI wrote how it was fitting how both Peter and Paul came to Rome, the city that was the place of convergence for all people, which would become the primary place of the “universality of the Gospel.”

Interestingly, though the body of Paul is buried in the Basilica of Saint Paul and the body of Peter is buried in the Basillica of Saint Peter’s, the relics of their heads are enshrined in the Cathedral of Rome, the basilica of St. John Lateran. We celebrate the feast of the dedication of Saint John Lateran every year on November 9. For it is there among the heads of Peter and Paul, where the Pope, exercises his headship over the whole Church throughout the whole world.  To be faithful to Christ is to look to the leadership of Peter’s Successor.

Today’s feast reminds us that the Christian Faith is not something that the individual creates for himself, or a religion that we live out in isolation in our tiny corner of the world.  Christianity is something we have received from the Apostles on behalf of Jesus Christ, and that we live out in union with Christians throughout the whole world.  In great gratitude for our faith, and through the intercession of Peter, the rock, and Paul, the fearless preacher, may we give ourselves fully in generous and selfless service of the Gospel for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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The Lord Jesus built his Church on the foundation of the apostles and prophets. In faith let us pray.

The Lord prayed that the faith of Peter would not fail, may the Lord strengthen the faith of His Church and protect her from all dangers.

The Lord appeared to Peter after his resurrection and appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus, may he make us steadfast proclaimers of His resurrection.

The Lord called Peter, a fisherman, to be a fisher of men, may he raise up new vocations to the priesthood and consecrated religious life.

The Lord mercifully forgave Peter’s denials, may he have mercy upon all sinners, and all those who suffer illness or any other need.

The Lord gave Peter the keys of the kingdom, may the gates of that kingdom be open to all who trusted in Christ’s mercy while still on earth.

Heavenly Father, graciously hear the prayers of your pilgrim Church on this great Solemnity and grant our prayers of petition through Christ, Our Lord.

June 28, 2017 - St. Irenaeus - Faithful in season and out of season

Stained glass window of Saint Irenaeus | Église Saint-Irénée, France

Yesterday, the Church honored one of the great 5th century defenders of the faith, St. Cyril of Alexandria, who championed the motherhood of the Blessed Virgin Mary at the Council of Ephesus.

Today, the Church honors a defender of the faith from nearly 300 years prior. St. Cyril, lived in a time, when Christianity had become legalized. In fact, the Council of Ephesus, in 421 at which he presided was convened at the bequest of the Roman Emperor, Theodosius II, who was concerned about the theological divisions within his Empire.

St. Irenaeus, did not have the benefit of Imperial patronage. In fact, the Empire was still quite hostile to Christianity. St. Ireneus defended the faith against the Gnostic Heretics, and called Christians to faithfulness amidst the pagan debaucheries that persisted in those days.

St. Irenaeus was a bishop of Lyons, when in the year 202, under Emperor Septimus Severus issued an imperial decree calling for the murder of Christians. When under the shepherding of Bishop Irenaeus, the Christians refused to participate in the debaucheries which accompanied a certain pagan festival, assassins armed with daggers, stones and knives filled the city murdered thousands of Christians, with their 80 year old bishop, Irenaeus.

In two days, we've had a “white martyr”, Cyril, who confessed and taught the true faith in a time of peace, and today, a “red martyr” who witnessed to the faith through his many writings, but also with his life.

St. Paul writes to Timothy “to preach the word in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction.” We see these two bishops, separated by three centuries, being faithful to St. Paul’s injunction to the bishop Timothy.

The Lord Jesus in the Gospel warns his church against false prophets, wolves in sheep’s clothing, trees that bear rotten fruit. Well, we are certainly thankful for those men and women who bore good fruit for the sake of the kingdom, who suffered that the true faith would persevere through the centuries.

Today concludes three weeks of reading through the Sermon on the Mount. We Jesus’ instruction lived out in lives of the saints, their faithfulness, their commitment to the truth, their willingness to suffer for Christ. May the Saints aid us in striving to be faithful to all the Lord teaches and commands, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

That this fortnight of prayer for religious freedom may help people of faith remain vigilant in defending their religious liberty and united in making their voice heard on behalf of the rights of the Church.

For an increase in vocations to the priesthood and consecrated religious life, for the sanctification of marriages, and for increased commitment on behalf of all the faithful to the works of mercy and the evangelizing mission.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

June 27, 2017 - St. Cyril of Alexandria - Champions of the Truth

Today, we celebrate the memorial of St. Cyril of Alexandria, Bishop, Doctor, and Father of the Church. He is most famous for presiding over the Council of Ephesus in 431 as Archbishop of that city and the Pope’s representative. He was the principle defender of Our Lady’s title “Mother of God”—“God bearer”—Theotokos, in the Greek.

Listen to his words, from this morning’s Office of Readings, “That anyone could doubt the right of the holy Virgin to be called the mother of God fills me with astonishment. Surely she must be the Mother of God if our Lord Jesus Christ is God, and she gave birth to him! Our Lord’s disciples may not have used those exact words, but they delivered to us the belief those words enshrine, and this has also been taught us by the holy fathers.”

A couple things going on here. First, St. Cyril teaches us, whenever there is a theological question, to look to the scriptural and apostolic tradition. Scripture is clear that Jesus is the Word Made Flesh, and that he took that flesh from the Virgin Mary, “he fashioned a body for himself from a woman and shared our flesh and blood”. Cyril also looked to the Church Fathers, like St. Athanasius, who taught nothing contrary to the Scriptures. St. Athanasius several times calls Mary, Theotokos, in his writings.

St. Cyril shows that Mariology, the study of Mary, enshrining Mary with beautiful titles that extolling her virtues and her role in salvation history is part of our earliest Tradition.

St. Cyril also shows that good theology is an application of right reason and common sense. Jesus is God, Mary is his mother, therefore she can be called Mother of God.

Isn’t it interesting that we have as our Gospel today, on this feast of this logical, learned, holy doctor and defender of the faith, this short little passage from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus telling his disciples not to “throw pearls to swine”. I’ve always connected this passage with our work of evangelization.

There comes a point, when we are spreading the faith, that we come across people who show contempt for the faith, who have no interest in it, no desire for repentance or intellectual conversion. If people show open disdain for the holy word of God, then it is prudent to withdraw and take the good news elsewhere. It is unwise to waste time preaching to those who only balk at the message, and especially to lose your temper over it.

I think of St. Cyril: showing clear reasoning, pointing to scripture, apostolic tradition, the church fathers. And still, there were heretics who clung to their errors. There is a point when the discussion is over: you accept the true faith, or you don’t, and there will be eternal consequences for that. As Our Lord told his Apostles, “those who reject you, reject me”

Like St. Cyril we are called to be learned in the words of Scripture and the teachings of the church fathers, so that we can explain and spread the faith clearly and patiently, to be champions of the Truth for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

That this fortnight of prayer for religious freedom may help people of faith remain vigilant in defending their religious liberty and united in making their voice heard on behalf of the rights of the Church.

For all those who reject the faith, for those who show contempt for the holy word of God and the Catholic Church, for their openness to the Truth, and that all Christians may be committed to spreading the faith boldly, patiently, and clearly.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

Monday - 12th Week of OT - You CAN teach an old dog new tricks!

You’ve no doubt heard the sayings, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” or heard someone claim that they are “too old to change their ways”.

Abram was 75 years old when God called up to begin a new, and perhaps the most important, chapter in his life. Abram was called away from his accustomed surroundings, his homeland. He needed to be uprooted and to be transplanted to a new environment where he could become whom God made him to be. Even his name was even changed. Abram was not resigned to his old age but trusted God when he heard the call to something new.

Perhaps, it’s not even old age, but an old habit. Something, we’ve done for so long we don’t think we can change. If it is a sinful habit, then it’s definitely a change that we need to trust that God is calling us to. But perhaps, it’s a mode of prayer that has become stale, or type of prayer that was fruitful, but which we set aside, like the daily rosary or a weekly trip to the adoration chapel.

The Lord commands us to remove the wooden planks from our eyes.  Have we gotten in a habit of viewing the world with bitterness, grumpiness impatience?

How do we know what God is calling us to? How can we detect the planks that blind us? Before getting into bed at the end of the day, it is an indispensable spiritual practice to examine our conscience in light of God’s commandments and the virtues.  This involves questioning our motives, our actions, and interactions.

Did I treat the cashier at the supermarket with kindness? What was the reason I was so quick to gossip about the faults of my family members? Did I pray today as much as God is calling me to pray? Where was I selfish with my time today?

Sometimes we are hesitant to engage in this sort of thorough examination, because we are afraid to see just how big those planks really are, or we have a sense to the change that God is calling us to, and it frightens us.  Faithfully examining the conscience takes real humility, the humility to admit that I need to grow.  And without humility there can be no growth in the spiritual life.  And if we are not growing spiritually, it is likely that we are stagnating, or even dying.

The Lord is always challenging us to grow in holiness through the perfection of the virtues and our daily habits.  May we always be open to the new life God wishes to share with us, for His glory and the salvation of souls.
 
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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

That this fortnight of prayer for religious freedom may help people of faith remain vigilant in defending their religious liberty and united in making their voice heard on behalf of the rights of the Church.

That our young people on summer vacation may be kept safe from the poisonous errors of our culture, and that their families may be places where the faith is practiced and cherished.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

12th Sunday of OT 2017 - "What you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops"

This week we celebrated the feast of two of my favorite saints, saints who truly exemplify this Sunday’s Gospel: two English saints, the martyrs St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More.

You may be familiar with the story which brought these two holy men to their martyrdom. King Henry VIII desired to divorce his wife because she was not bearing him a son.  At the time Henry was a Catholic; in fact, Catholicism had flourished in England for over a thousand years. Henry had himself written theological texts defending Catholicism against the Protestant Errors of Martin Luther.

But, the desire for an heir, a male son, became an all-encompassing pursuit for the King. Wanting to marry another woman who might bear a son, the King asked the Pope for an annulment. But, after a thorough examination, the Pope decreed that marriage was valid, there were no grounds for an annulment.

The King didn’t like being told what he could and couldn’t do, so King Henry claimed that he was head of the Church in England, and granted himself the annulment.

He then forced all the bishops and all government officials to sign and swear an oath to these claims: they had to swear publicly, that the King was head of the Church, which contradicts the Catholic Faith.

You’d think that this claim would be met with clear denunciation on the part of the England’s bishops; but no. And even though, it is clear from Scripture and the uninterrupted teaching of the Church, that our Blessed Lord while he still walked the earth made St. Peter and his successors the head of the Church, all save one of the Bishops folded to political pressure, and spoke the words the king wished to hear. One lone bishop witnessed to the true faith with his life, that bishop was St. John Fisher.

Thomas More had been chancellor of the kingdom, the highest office in the land, next to the throne. Thomas, in fact, was a very good friend of the King’s and a close confidant. As a high ranking official, te too was being pressured to acknowledge the king’s claim to have this authority to redefine Christianity, to redefine marriage. But Thomas was a man of true faith. He resigned his office, and stood up to the king, who was his friend. For this he was imprisoned, and eventually beheaded.
Henry VIII ended up marrying not just one wife, but six; he beheaded two of them, and simply dismissed two others.  And he is responsible, at least partially, for this grave wound within the Church, a wound which continues to weaken Christianity’s witness.

Bishop John Fisher and the statesman Thomas More were faithful even when numerous bishops, priests, and government officials pressured them to contradict their faith. In fact, Thomas was pressured by members of his own family. They were Catholic, they knew the faith, they tried to convince Thomas just take the oath publicly, while keeping the true faith in your heart. But he said, no, what is oath but words of the heart spoken publicly, words spoken to God.

Our Lord in the Gospel today urges us to be faithful, and to be bold in proclaiming our faith publicly: “The words that I’ve spoken in private, speak in the light, those words that you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.” Our faith is to be shared, shouted from the rooftops. What we do publicly, how we act, how we treat people in public, these things matter. Someone once said, you can tell a lot about what is in a person’s heart by how they treat a waitress, a cashier, a salesperson. We are to reflect the goodness of God, and the love of God, in public, to strangers, to our spouses, to our parents, to our children.  How we act at a restaurant, at the supermarket, in the parking lot, these things matter.

We should also not be afraid to share our faith. I was talking to a parishioner this week. He was…well..complaining about a pair of Jehovah’s Witnesses who came to his door. He told them that he didn’t have time to talk with them, and that they aren’t going to convert him anyway, since he was solid in his Catholic Faith. I told him, of course they aren’t going to convert you, but your job is to convert them! That was an opportunity God was giving you to share your faith. He said, well, they gave me some reading material. And I said, that’s fine, but what did you give them? A Catechism, a holy card, a pamphlet on our Faith, anything? No, Father, I don’t have that, I didn’t have anything to give them, I just wanted to get back to my yardwork.

Saints like John Fisher and Thomas More believed that there is nothing more valuable, nothing more important than our Catholic faith. And if we really believed that, we should never be afraid to share it, to practice it openly, to pray publicly, in the workplace, at the restaurant. I tell the kids at school, that I hope I never see them eat at a restaurant without praying before their meal.

I know people who will not attend bible study or adult faith formation, they won’t volunteer at summer bible camp, or go to daily mass, or even pray the rosary on an airplane, because they don’t want to give off the impression that they are “one of those Catholics”…”too religious”…”too serious about religion”…

We live in such a strange age. In some parts of the world, Christians die for the faith, and in many parts of our own neighborhood, many would rather die than practice it!

Don’t be afraid to shout your faith from the rooftops. That’s certainly part of the Gospel today.
The other part, is a great warning: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” If faced with the choice between dying for the sake of Christ or denying him to save one’s life, we must remember that the worst thing our enemies can do is kill our body; but they cannot kill the soul. Better to save one’s soul than to preserve one’s physical life. Therefore we should revere God much more than we fear our persecutors, for only God can determine our eternal destination.

As he climbed the steps of his place of martyrdom, St.Thomas More was asked if he had any last words. He said, “I die the King’s true servant, but God’s first.”

May our faith take precedence over all of our earthly duties and relationships. May this Eucharist deepen our conviction of the Truth that we possess in our Catholic faith, and deepen our commitment to proclaiming it from the rooftops, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

June 23, 2017 - Sacred Heart of Jesus - Our Most Merciful Redeemer

Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is an expression of our faith in God’s love and mercy as made visible in Christ. Through the visible wounds of Christ, we see the invisible love of God.

Pope Pius XI described veneration of the Sacred Heart of Jesus as the epitome of our entire religion. In 1928, Pius XI wrote a beautiful encyclical called Miserentissimus Redemptor, On Reparation to the Sacred Heart. The sacred heart he wrote, “the sum of all religion” and “the pattern of perfect life.”

We are called to love like Our Miserentissimus Redemptor, Our Most Merciful Redeemer.

Pius XI says, meditating on Christ, “we see Him laboring for man, sorrowing, suffering the greatest hardships, "for us men and for our salvation," well-nigh worn out with sadness, with anguish, nay "bruised for our sins" and healing us by His bruises (MR 13)”. Love means a willingness to suffer for the Will of God, for the salvation of men.

This is why earlier this week, we heard of the suffering of the martyrs as the highest expression of our faith.

The Church is called to make reparation to the Sacred Heart on behalf of all sinful humanity who continues to turn to sin rather than God. The Church makes reparation for all clerics who preach a false gospel, for all of us who are ungrateful for the gifts God bestows upon us, those who respond to the call to spread the Gospel with negligence, those who are indifferent to the Gospel.

Jesus’ overflowing charity, his call to repentance, is met with so much forgetfulness, negligence and contempt. There are attacks against the Church, godless institutions seeking snatch young people, as Pius XI says, from the bosom of their mother the Church.”

Yet, how more lamentable, he says, “among the faithful, washed in Baptism with the blood of the immaculate Lamb, and enriched with grace, there are found so many men of every class, who laboring under an incredible ignorance of Divine things and infected with false doctrines, far from their Father's home, lead a life involved in vices”

What an age we live in! In some parts of the world, Christians die for the faith, in many parts of our own country, many would rather die than practice it!

Love of God certainly impels us to make reparation for our failures to love, and to seek all the more, God’s grace to love as we should, to be faithful to the whole Gospel, not just those parts that suit us, for the glory of God and salvation of souls. 

[below is a link to Pius XI's Encyclical and the Prayer of Reparation with which he ends the encyclical]
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In reparation to the Sacred Heart for all sin and all blasphemy, we pray to the Lord.

For an increase in faith, hope, and love for all Christians, we pray to the Lord.

That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

That this fortnight of prayer for religious freedom may help people of faith remain vigilant in defending their religious liberty and united in making their voice heard on behalf of the rights of the Church.

That our young people on summer vacation may be kept safe from the poisonous errors of our culture, and that their families may be places where the faith is practiced and cherished.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. 

Link to Miserentisimus Redemptor: https://w2.vatican.va/content/pius-xi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xi_enc_19280508_miserentissimus-redemptor.html

Here is the Prayer of Reparation which Pius XI ended his encyclical:

O sweet Jesus, Whose overflowing charity for me is requited by so much forgetfulness, negligence and contempt, behold us prostrate before Your altar eager to repair by a special act of homage the cruel indifference and injuries, to which Your loving Heart is everywhere subject.

Mindful alas! that we ourselves have had a share in such great indignities, which we now deplore from the depths of our hearts, we humbly ask Your pardon and declare our readiness to atone by voluntary expiation not only for our own personal offenses, but also for the sins of those, who, straying for from the path of salvation, refuse in their obstinate infidelity to follow You, their Shepherd and Leader, or, renouncing the vows of their baptism, have cast off the sweet yoke of Your Law. We are now resolved to expiate each and every deplorable outrage committed against You; we are determined to make amends for the manifold offenses against Christian modesty in unbecoming dress and behavior, for all the foul seductions laid to ensnare the feet of the innocent, for the frequent violations of Sundays and holidays, and the shocking blasphemies uttered against You and Your Saints. We wish also to make amends for the insults to which Your Vicar on earth and Your priest are subjected, for the profanation, by conscious neglect or terrible acts of sacrilege, of the very Sacrament of Your Divine Love; and lastly for the public crimes of nations who resist the rights and teaching authority of the Church which You have founded. Would, O divine Jesus, we were able to wash away such abominations with our blood. We now offer, in reparation for these violations of Your divine honor, the satisfaction You once made to Your eternal Father on the cross and which You continue to renews daily on our altars; we offer it in union with the acts of atonement of Your Virgin Mother and all the Saints and of the pious faithful on earth; and we sincerely promise to make recompense, as far as we can with the help of Your grace, for all neglect of Your great love and for the sins we and others have committed in the past. Henceforth we will live a life of unwavering faith, of purity of conduct, of perfect observance of the precepts of the gospel and especially that of charity. We promise to the best of our power to prevent other from offending You and to bring as many as possible to follow You.

O loving Jesus, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, our model in reparation, deign to receive the voluntary offering we make of this act of expiation; and by the crowing gift of perseverance keep us faithful unto death in our duty and the allegiance we owe to You, so that we may one day come to that happy home, where You with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, God, world without end. Amen.

June 22, 2017 - Sts. John Fisher and Thomas More - "The highest expression of faith"

Saint Paul wrote to Timothy: “For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires.”
Many such times arose throughout Church history; many, not long after Paul penned those words from prison, himself arrested for preaching the Gospel.

St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More lived in such a time. Catholicism had flourished in England for nearly over thousand years, when the king sought to make himself head of the Church. You’d think that this claim would be met with clear denunciation on the part of the country’s bishops; but no. And even though our Blessed Lord made St. Peter and his successors the head of the Church while he still walked the earth, all save one of the Bishops folded to political pressure, and spoke the words the king wished to hear.

One lone bishop witnessed to the true faith with his life, that bishop was St. John Fisher.

St. Thomas More had been chancellor of the kingdom, the highest office in the land, next to the throne. He too was being pressured to acknowledge the king’s authority to redefine marriage. He resigned his office, and stood up to the king, who was his friend. For this he was imprisoned, and eventually beheaded.

Listen again to the collect prayer for today’s feast: “O God, who in martyrdom have brought true faith to its highest expression.” Faith is brought to highest expression when we stand up for the faith amidst worldly pressures. When we teach true doctrine, even when the world longs to hear with itching ears, teachings which will suit their own desires.

Each of us is called witness to the truth of the true faith in our own lives: it is a matter both of professing that faith with our lips—with our words—and with our actions.  We each face difficult moral choices, and the faith must be our guiding light, even when we know that the difficult decision will involve hardship or suffering.

The eve of John Fisher and Thomas More each year begins a fortnight of prayer for religious freedom in our country. During this fortnight of prayer for freedom, we do well to invoke the intercession of Saints John Fisher and Thomas More for freedom from government interference in the practice of the faith, and for our ability to stand courageously for the truth of the faith, even to suffer for it if necessary, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

That through the intercession of Saints John Fisher and Thomas More, this fortnight of prayer for religious freedom may help people of faith may remain vigilant in defending their religious liberty and united in making their voice heard on behalf of the rights of the Church.

That our young people on summer vacation may be kept safe from the poisonous errors of our culture, and that their families may be places where the faith is practiced and cherished.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, especially Fr. John Jenkins, who died this week, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

Grant, we pray, O Lord, that your people may turn to you with all their heart, so that whatever they dare to ask in fitting prayer they may receive by your mercy. Through Christ our Lord.

June 21, 2017 - St. Aloysius Gonzaga - Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving bring purity of heart

The Gospel Reading is familiar to us; we hear it at least twice a year, most notably on Ash Wednesday, at the beginning of the penitential season of Lent.

And we hear in this Gospel about the three penitential practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. To the Jews of Jesus’ day, prayer, fasting, and almsgiving were very important spiritual practices.  In this teaching, Jesus is clear that his disciples are to continue to engage in these practices. These practices help us to detached from the things of the world, in order to focus on the one thing that really matters.
There was an order of monks who lived by the phrase: “Semper Quadragesima”, which means,
Always Lent.  They tried always to live in that penitential Lenten Spirit because it is so effective at guiding us away from selfishness to become truly generous and full of God's spirit.

These practices help us to obtain that purity of heart, which Jesus calls for in the beatitudes.
St. Francis of Assisi says, “A man is truly pure of heart when he has no time for the things of this world, but is always searching for the things of heaven”

The Saint we honor today, Aloysius Gonzaga, was especially noted for his purity of heart. By age 11 he was teaching catechism to poor children and fasting three day a week and practicing great austerities. After reading a book about Jesuit missionaries in India, Aloysius announced his desire to be a priest in the Society of Jesus, though it took four years for him to obtain permission from his father, who had more worldly dreams for his son.

And upon entering the Jesuits, his sanctity was truly evident, and he would enter into ecstatic prayer not only in chapel, but sometimes at meals and recreation periods. His love for God prompted him, also to serve the sick and needy. He sought the face of the Lord always. And that is the great promise Jesus makes in the beatitudes: blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God.

Prayer, fasting, giving alms are so powerful, they purify us from earthly cares, they open a window into heaven.

Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, have been taken up as concrete spiritual disciples since the beginning of the Church. And the saints remind us that through them we can achieve the sanctity God desires for each of us.

May our year-round prayer, fasting, and almsgiving bring us great purity of heart that we may radiate the light and love of Jesus for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That all Christians will recommit themselves to fervent prayer as to grow in greater love and holiness.

That we may fast often from the things of the world, in order to seek and value the things of heaven.

That the Church may commit to almsgiving and acts of charity in order to care for the needs of the poor and store up treasure in heaven.

Through the intercession of St Aloysius Gonzaga, patron of young people, that the young may be blessed with true faith, the desire to serve the Lord above seeking the pleasures of the world, and for an increase in vocations to the priesthood and consecrated religious life.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, especially Fr. John Jenkins, who died this week, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

Grant, we pray, O Lord, that your people may turn to you with all their heart, so that whatever they dare to ask in fitting prayer they may receive by your mercy. Through Christ our Lord.

Tuesday - 11th Week of OT 2017 - Love of enemies

Teaching us fallen humans how to love is at the heart of Jesus’ mission.  He tells us today that not only are we to love our neighbor, but our enemies as well: those who persecute you, those who sin against you, those with whom your country is at war, those who cut you off in traffic, those who may have bullied you a half-century ago in grade school, those who seem to be bringing ruin to our country and even our church.  Love them.

God loves them indiscriminately and generously; he seeks that they be perfected in love just as he seeks that we be perfected in love. Jesus died for them, just as he died for us.  To be perfect like God is to love not only our nice neighbors but everyone, to do good to not just those who do us good, but to all.

When Jesus commands us to love, he’s not talking about a feeling, but concrete acts of love.  Feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, sheltering the homeless, counseling the doubtful, instructing the ignorant, praying for the living and the dead, forgiving injuries.

Maximus the Confessor wrote, “Readiness to do good to someone who hates us is a characteristic of perfect love.”

Charity is to be shown to all irrespective of color, distance, nation, or character.

Do you find readiness to love in yourself? Readiness, eagerness, willingness, inclination to engage in those acts of love.  Would those who are close to you describe you as someone that is eager to love anyone you met? Eager to forgive, eager to pray, eager to take someone under your wing, eager to share the Gospel?

Charity is a virtue.  It’s a habit. It’s hard in the beginning, but as any habit, it gets easier, and then it becomes joyful.

The Eucharist is the Sacrament of Charity—it is the gift that Jesus Christ makes of himself, thus revealing to us God’s infinite love for every man and woman.  May the Eucharist we receive today draw us deeper into the life of God who is love, the God who loves us perfectly, that we may be instruments of that same boundless charity, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the bishops of the Church will act as true prophets through their faithful teaching, their courageous witness, and their self-sacrificing love. We pray to the Lord.

That government leaders around the world may carry out their duties with justice, honesty, and respect for freedom and the dignity of human life.  We pray to the Lord.

For the Church’s missions amongst the poor and unevangelized throughout the world, that the work of Christ may be carried out with truth and love. We pray to the Lord.

For the grace to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, to love our neighbors and enemies, and to share the truth of the Gospel with all.  We pray to the Lord.


That the Lord will be close to all those who share in the sufferings of Christ—the sick, the sorrowful, and those who are afflicted or burdened in any way.  We pray to the Lord.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray to the Lord.


O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

Monday - 11th Week of OT 2017 - Practicing Self-Restraint

We’ve been reading through the Sermon on the Mount now for a week in which Jesus teaches his disciples throughout all the ages about living blessed lives, holy lives, lives that shine with the brightness of God’s goodness. We are to strive for blessedness by following God’s commandments, the moral law, and Jesus’ teachings.

Jesus recalled the fifth commandment earlier in the sermon, “You shall not kill” calling us to revere human life as sacred. The Lord calls us to such reverence for our brothers and sisters that we are to avoid not just murder, but even anger, hatred, and vengeance.

Today, he goes even further: “When someone strikes you on the one cheek, turn the other to him as well.” To most of the world, this sounds like weakness: being a pushover. But those who follow the message of Christ are anything but weak.  There is tremendous strength shown in turning away from the inclination for revenge.  Revenge is easy.

When someone strikes you on the right cheek, the immediate reaction is strike back them, or to begin plotting their punishment or demise. It’s easy to retaliate, to curse at someone who offends us, to return an insult for an insult. We even see this fallen behavior in little children, who break the toys of their brothers and sisters because they were mean. Revenge is easy, and it base, juvenile.

And Jesus offers another path, the path of moral and spiritual maturity.

Now, when it comes to turning the other cheek, Jesus is not saying we should be doormats and pacifists. Jesus offers clear words about take up a sword” for self-defense. Never does he condemn, say, military service.

But he is clearly teaching us here, that we are not simply to follow every desire that we have, starting with the very deep, nearly instinctual desire to strike back at those who hurt us: either physically or verbally, and including our desires for food, sex, money, gambling, gossip, and control.

Jesus calls us to be people of peace: and that requires self-control in the face of hostility, well-trained powers of discernment in order to know how best to act in a particular situation, and the ability to be humble when our egos are bruised.

May the Lord continue to lead us and guide us in the way of blessedness, to heal and raise up our wounded fallen natures, and transform them into instruments of God’s goodness for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

For all of us who struggle with disordered attractions, sinful inclinations, and temptations to serious sin, for the grace to remain faithful to the teachings of Christ, and for mercy for those who fall.

That our young people on summer vacation, may be kept close to the truth and heart of Jesus.

That the love of Christ, the divine physician, may bring healing to the sick and comfort to all the suffering.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

Corpus Christi Sunday 2017 - The Eucharist and the Father

We are blessed with a beautiful convergence of liturgy and life this weekend! As a nation, we celebrate Father’s Day. And liturgically, we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi, the Body and Blood of Our Lord.

What does these two celebrations have in common? I’d say, “quite a bit!”

On Father’s Day’s we thank our fathers. Without our earthly fathers, we would not have life. So many of our fathers provide for their families through the sweat of their brows. They make sacrifices so that their families may enjoy the good things of the world. Our earthly fathers teach us virtues like courage, fortitude, patience, patriotism, and self-sacrifice. So we thank our earthly fathers today both living and dead.

The Eucharist is also about thanksgiving. The very word Eucharist comes from the Greek New Testament ‘Eucharistia’ which means thanksgiving. Every time we gather for the Eucharist, we first and foremost give God thanksgiving for the gift of our salvation, for sending His Only Son to die for our sins. Without this sacrifice, there would be no hope of heaven.

And, the Eucharist is the great thanksgiving to the Father for all of his work. For everything He has accomplished in creation, redemption and sanctification, for everything accomplished by God now in the Church and in the world, for everything that God accomplishes in bringing the Kingdom to fulfilment. Thus the eucharist is the Church expressing her thankfulness for all God's blessings; she offers thanksgiving on behalf of the whole creation.

This is why a week without Eucharist, just doesn’t feel right. In the Eucharistic prayer the priest prays on behalf of the people and in the name of the Christ the Son: it is right and just, our duty and our salvation always and everywhere to give you thanks, heavenly Father.

Failing to honor and thank God for the blessings we enjoy throughout the week is serious matter. So the entire Body of Christ, all of God’s people, need to gather for Eucharist every week, and failing in this obligation is a serious sin, which must be confessed if one wishes to receive Holy Communion in a state of grace.

On Father’s Day we also honor our fathers, and we are reminded of the fourth commandment to Honor our father and mother, always. The Catechism says that honor and respect flows from gratitude for our parents.  So we recommit to obeying our Father’s in what they ask for the good of the family.
The Eucharist is about honoring the Father as well. For, obedient to His Father’s Will, Jesus poured Himself out for the salvation of the world, he instituted the Sacrament of His Body and Blood. We honor the Father, by uniting ourselves to Jesus in this celebration.

In Catholic Europe, Father’s Day has been celebrated on March 19, the Feast of St. Joseph, patron of Fathers, since the Middle Ages.  In the U.S. the third Sunday of June, is set aside for our Dads, only recently, coming as a sort of afterthought to complement Mother’s Day in May. Perhaps, this is a reflection of our sometimes-complex or strained relationships with our earthly fathers.

For some, Father’s Day evokes mixed feelings at best, hurt feelings at worst. Earthly Fatherhood is meant to be a reflection of the goodness and graciousness of the Heavenly Father. And yes, so many of our Father’s reflect God’s goodness. But sometimes, sadly, they don’t; or our expectations of them are unrealistic. Some father’s run away from their responsibilities, some father’s betray their children’s trust.

On Father’s Day we hope that some of the “Father-wounds” we carry around, can begin to heal.
And here is another important connection with the Eucharist. It is through the Eucharist, that the wounds of sin and division come to be healed. When we receive the Eucharist in a state of grace, there is healing of our spiritual wounds. Our relationship with the Father wounded by sin is healed, our relationship with our neighbor is healed.

Also the wounds that come from the wear and tear of life. Not to mention our own sin, but think of how many violent images, perverted images we see, stories of corruption of man’s inhumanity to man. The corruption of the world takes its toll. Our culture is like living in a poisoned underground mine filled with noxious fumes which obscures the true light of the sun. But in the Eucharist, the Father gives us a breath of fresh air, and glimpse of the light of the True Son, His Son, given for us all.
So, when we receive the Eucharist, our souls are oriented to the Father the source of all healing and life, our souls are oriented to the Son, who shows that the meaning of life is to do the will of the Father, and our souls are oriented to the Holy Spirit who restores the gifts from our Father which we lost through sin.

The Eucharist is the Father’s answer to the prayer His Son taught us: “Give us this day our Daily Bread”.

Where the world teaches self-reliance—to be independent of our fathers, Jesus teaches that our relationship with the heavenly Father must be different. Growing in holiness means become increasingly dependent on God and childlike, turning to God for our daily bread.

Sometimes we develop “trust-issues” with God, because our earthly trust has been betrayed or injured. Some people conclude that God doesn’t love them, or doesn’t exist, because they have been so betrayed.  But Jesus teaches us to trust that the Heavenly Father does love us, he cares us about us, he wants what is best for us, and wants us to turn to Him, to learn to rely on him, to trust, to obey, and to surrender to His Holy Will.

At the Eucharist we become children again, children of the Father. We honor our Father by obeying his command to keep holy the Sabbath. We sing like children, praising our Father in joy. We come before the Father humbly, admitting our failures to be the people he made us to be. We come to thank Our Father for his manifold gifts. We come to the Father to learn how he thinks, to hear His words, to be instilled with his wisdom. And we come to the Eucharist as children to be fed by the Father.

As we come forward to receive the Eucharist today, may we do so thankfully, humbly, and open to the healing the Father wishes to effect in our lives and the gifts he wishes to bestow upon us from His bounty for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Friday - 10th Week of OT 2017 - Salvation from the death that works within us

I read an article recently in the National Catholic Register, by a very good priest, Fr. John Longknecker, a former Evangelical pastor, who was received into the faith, with his family about 20 years ago. He’s a rarity, in that, he is a married Roman Catholic Priest. He was ordained through a special provision which allows for the ordination of previously married non-Catholic clergy who convert and who discern a calling to the priesthood. But that’s not the point of the article.

He wrote an excellent on the current debate in our culture concerning same-sex marriage. He tries to explain why the Church’s position, prohibiting same-sex marriage and same-sex activity is prohibited. He writes, “in the present debate over same-sex marriage Americans simply cannot comprehend that Catholics operate according to a different set of systems. We believe that same-sex activities and same-sex marriage are wrong, not primarily because we think such things are “yucky” and not because we “hate gays” or because we want to tell them they are all going to hell. We believe these things are wrong for clear and articulate reasons.”

Our culture doesn’t understand, and many Catholics who want to accommodate immorality don’t understand, that our teachings on these things are not based on sentimentality, but based on unchangeable, objective moral principles and also on the word of God.


Fr. Longnecker’s reasoning are rightly applied to not just the prohibition on same-sex marriage, but all of the moral teachings of the Church, including the Lord’s prohibition of divorce and adultery, which we heard in the Gospel today.

The world doesn’t understand us because our culture now values sentimentality over right reason, and it expects us to do the same, and will persecute us when we don’t.

But we put our faith not in the changing fancies and sentiments of man, but in the Logos, the Word-made-flesh, who came not to accommodate our sins, but to free us from them, to free us from the “powers of death at work within us” as St. Paul said in our first reading.

Yes the Lord loves us, and he loves lost sheep. But remember he goes out to the lost sheep to free them from the brambles. And the Lord will fight for those sheep who reject him, who keep returning to the poisonous brambles of sin until their last breath. But in the end, there are eternal consequences for rejecting Him and his Truth.

The forces of our sinful disordered nature conspire to keep us from rising with Christ to a life of charity and truth. Through his grace, may we know the strength we need to resist the powers of darkness within us, that we may choose life, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

For all of us who struggle with disordered attractions, sinful inclinations, and temptations to serious sin, for the grace to remain faithful to the teachings of Christ, and for mercy for those who fall.

That our young people on summer vacation, may be kept close to the truth and heart of Jesus.

That the love of Christ, the divine physician, may bring healing to the sick and comfort to all the suffering.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

10th Week of OT 2017 - Thursday - More than external obedience

“Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.”  In terms of external obedience to the law’s regulation, the scribes and the Pharisees were known as model followers of the Torah, they practiced a zealous concern particularly for ritual purity, keeping themselves ritually clean for God by following the Levitical law: avoiding contact with unclean things and unclean people like Gentiles and prostitutes.

How could Jesus demand his followers to observe a greater concern than that as a condition for entrance into heaven?  It sounds impossible.

Following Jesus means much more than external obedience.  One scripture scholar wrote, “Jesus’ teaching calls for a radical interiorization, a total obedience to God, a complete self-giving to neighbor, that carries the ethical thrust of the law to its God-willed conclusions.”

The purpose of the Levitical law was to form people with hearts of authentic love of God and love of neighbor. And so the standard of righteousness preached by Jesus Christ goes beyond that of the scribes and Pharisees:  it requires much more than external conformity to the law’s regulations.  God could have made automatons or mindless robots for that. But automatons and robots can’t love.

So, the way to heaven involves much more than mindless and heartless obedience to particular precepts. The way to heaven, the way of Christ, isn’t simply about saying certain rote prayers and particular times or giving x amount of dollars to the Church throughout the year: if I do this, and I do that, then I’ll go to heaven.  Jesus is saying the opposite.  Following him is not just about performing particular actions, but performing them with heart of love. Not just doing the right things, but doing them for the right reasons.

Mere outward observance of the law does not produce love. Certainly, we should avoid doing things that directly hurt other people, such as killing, adultery, and lying. Obeying the law is a necessary minimum. If you are asking, “what is the bare minimum to get into heaven?” you are asking the wrong question. Rather, true disciples need to cultivate the inner attitudes and dispositions that transform the heart and build up love: the patience, meekness, purity and mercy that Jesus teaches throughout this Sermon.

The way of Christ calls for constant conversion, constant turning away from hard-heartedness, cultivating hearts of mercy and divine love for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That our bishops and clergy may be zealous in preaching and teaching the truth of the Gospel, and that our future bishop of the diocese of Cleveland may be a man of true faith and the Holy Spirit.

That all of Christ's disciples may seek the conversion of mind and heart taught by our Master.

That our young people on summer vacation,  may be kept close to the truth and heart of Jesus.

That the love of Christ, the divine physician, may bring healing to the sick and comfort to all the suffering.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

June 13 2017 - St. Anthony of Padua - Patron of the lost

Saint Anthony of Padua has been honored since the 11th century by Catholics around the world. Anthony belonged to that first generation of the followers of St. Francis known as the Friars Minor. Unlike Saint Francis, Anthony was ordained to the priesthood.  But like Francis, he preached the Gospel, and united himself to Christ crucified. Anthony is also a doctor of the Church, and laid the foundations for the Franciscans great intellectual heritage.

In 2010, Holy Father Benedict XVI gave a beautiful summary of Saint Anthony’s life and spirituality.  He said, “Anthony, in the school of Francis, always put Christ at the center of his life and thinking, of his action and of his preaching.”

Franciscan, doctor, preacher, priest. Yet, St. Anthony is of course widely invoked as the patron saint of lost things. The little jingle goes like this: "St. Anthony, please look around; something is lost and must be found." This attribution comes from an incident from Anthony’s life.

As the story goes, Anthony had a book of psalms that was very important to him. Besides the value of any book before the invention of printing, the psalter had the notes and comments he had made to use in teaching students in his Franciscan Order.

A novice who had already grown tired of living religious life decided to depart the community. Besides going AWOL he also took Anthony’s psalter! Upon realizing his psalter was missing, Anthony prayed it would be found or returned to him. And after his prayer the thieving novice was moved to repentance. He returned the psalter to Anthony and returned to the Order, which accepted him back.

St. Anthony is invoked as patron of lost things, however more importantly is a patron of lost souls— those who have fallen to mortal sin, have abandoned the Church and have grown apathetic to the practice of the faith. And for this we should invoke him more often than we lose our car keys! When your heart is grieved over family members who have left the Church, pray to St. Anthony! For those young people who seem to be lost in a sea of sin, pray to St. Anthony! For those who are angry at the Church or preach a false Gospel, pray to St. Anthony!

In a sermon, Anthony said, “If you preach Jesus, he will melt hardened hearts; if you invoke him, he will soften harsh temptations; if you think of him, he will enlighten your mind; if you read of him, he will satisfy your intellect.”

Most importantly may Saint Anthony always help us to find Christ: in the poor, in one another, in our Sacred Worship, in our prayer, that we may know God’s help in every trial and faithfully follow the teachings of Christ, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the holy Church of God, that the Lord may graciously watch over her and care for her.

For the peoples of all the world, that the Lord may graciously preserve harmony among them.
That the members of the Franciscan Order and all those consecrated religious may inspire us to strive for greater holiness.

For the priests of the diocese who begin a new parish assignment today, especially for the newly ordained, that they may be faithful Christ in every dimension of their ministry.

For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief, especially for the sick and victims of war and terror and natural disaster.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you yourself are the source of all devotion, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

Monday - 10th Week of OT 2017 - The roadmap to eternity

The Greek philosopher Aristotle taught that man’s highest goal, the motive behind all of his actions, is happiness.  The desire for happiness is the one goal that unites all of humanity.  He used the Greek word “eudaimonia” to describe “earthly happiness” that comes through living a virtuous life, a life where the passions are brought under control of the right reason, a life where one pursues the highest things.

There was another greek word, “makarios”—used to describe the blessedness and immortality of the gods. And at the very end of his Nicomachean Ethics, in which he spends so much time explaining what it takes to achieve eudaimonia, earthly happiness, he hints at the possibility of man seeking “makarios”, the blessedness of the gods.

Today’s gospel reading begins Jesus’ great sermon on the mount, from which we’ll be reading from for the next three weeks. And Jesus doesn’t just hint at the possibility of blessedness for his followers, the very first word of his sermon, is markarios, blessed are you, blessed will you be. Jesus speaks of our deepest longing, we are not made simply for a short earthly life. We are made for eternity, and Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is the roadmap to eternity, to blessedness.

Jesus will show that eudaimonia and makarios are linked: eternal blessedness will certainly involve earthly virtue. However, our deepest longing isn’t simply earthly happiness, our deepest longing is union with God. And Jesus promises that, too!

So often, we look for happiness and joy in all the wrong places, so Jesus in this Sermon is going to help lead us out of this spiritual slavery, this constant pursuit of looking for happiness where we shouldn’t. Jesus teaches us to seek first the kingdom of God, to build our houses on the solid rock foundation of his teaching, so that we may filled with true life.

Just as Moses gave the 10 Commandments of the Law upon a mountain, Jesus, on a mountain, gives a new Law, not simply an ethic, but a roadmap to union with God, to communion, to intimacy.

As I did last time these readings came up, I encourage you to read through chapters 5 through 7 of Matthew’s Gospel in one sitting. Jesus speaks these words to every age of the Church, to every person. May we receive his teaching with open minds and hearts, and strive to be faithful to all he taught, that we may achieve the end for which we are made, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the holy Church of God, that the Lord may graciously watch over her, preserving her from error, helping her to rejoice in the Truth of the Gospel.

That the faith may be practiced in all Christian families, for strengthening in charity among spouses, that parents may be examples of faith to inspire their children that the young may learn and practice virtue and prayer.

For an increase in vocations to the priesthood and consecrated religious life.

For the healing of divisions caused by heresy, and moral and doctrinal error among Christians.

For those who do not believe in God and for those who have fallen away from the Church.

For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief, especially for the sick and victims of war and terror and natural disaster.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you yourself are the source of all devotion, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

Trinity Sunday 2017: Are all religions the same?

It is common in today's world to run into people who believe that all religions are basically the same. In fact, it is even becoming common to run into Catholics who have adopted this viewpoint. It is considered the “tolerant, open-minded” point-of-view.

But in reality, it is just the opposite: to claim that all religions are the same is the most close-minded and intolerant viewpoint someone could have in regards to religion.

Sure, every religion tries to address our basic desire for happiness.  Most religions try to answer the great question about life after death, and address the difference between right and wrong, each makes assertions concerning man’s relationship with and understanding of the spiritual realm.

But study the religions for more than 15 minutes and it’s clear that they deal with those ultimate questions in different ways and even come up with vastly different answers.

Atheistic religions say there is no God at all. Pantheistic religions say that everything in the universe is a part of god or identical to god. Polytheistic religions say that the divine realm is full of numerous, competing gods. Monotheistic religions, like Christianity, believe in one, all-powerful, eternal God.
But the differences don't stop there. Inside each of those groups are different explanations of the nature of God, the nature of salvation and happiness, and how eternal life can be achieved.

It is a sign of close-mindedness or laziness to simply say that all religions are the same: it's a refusal to show respect for what religious people really believe.

When a Christian discusses the nature of God with a Muslim, one of the first issues that arises is the mystery of the Holy Trinity.

Muslims, like Jews and Christians, believe there is one God, all-powerful and transcendent. Their concept of God somewhat resembles what is revealed about God in the Old Testament. Mohammed, the founder of Islam lived in the Middle East in the sixth and seventh centuries, grew up among Jews and Christians, and inherited Monotheism from us.

One of the factors in his rejection of the Trinity, that God is Three Person, was that at the time, Christians in the middle east were scandalously seeking to resolve their theological differences in violent ways, and rejecting the authority of Rome. Muhammad was exposed to the Arian, Nestorian, and Monophysite heresies from an early age. And these heresies, denials of Jesus’ divinity, play out in the Koran, which portrays Jesus not as God, not as the Second Person of Trinity incarnate, but simply a man.

So this divided Christianity was the environment in which Mohammed adopted and popularized the Muslim, non-Christian idea of God. He rejected what Jesus and the New Testament revealed about the Holy Trinity, that God is three divine persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

It is true that the Trinity is hard to understand: How can God be both one and three? How can the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit be fully God, and yet distinct persons? Our minds cannot grasp this completely.

And yet, that very fact makes the doctrine of the Trinity ring true. It shows that no merely human mind would have been able to come up with it. And it also shows that God, the Creator of the universe, exists in a way that we, mere creatures, cannot fully understand - and that makes perfect sense. God should exceed our ability to understand him; if he didn't, he wouldn't be much of a God.
Saint Augustine, who is one of the most profound Trinitarian Theologians said, “Si comprehendis, non est Deus” which means, “If you understand, it’s not God.”  The minute you say, yes, I got it now, I fully understand it: that’s not God, says Augustine.  The Trinity is greater than human understanding.

But that doesn’t mean he is totally unknowable or unapproachable. God invites us into a living, vibrant relationship with Himself. He has revealed that he is a Trinity. He has revealed that He is a loving Communion and desires to share His life with us.

He invites us to become the people He made us to be by placing faith in what He has revealed, and to grow in union with Him through His Church—through the practices of our faith, the sacraments, the reading of Scripture, and prayer.

The world claims there are many paths to eternity: Our faith claims there is One: through the One who says, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” Christianity is not simply a religious system among many; it is The Way, it is the relationship that God Himself established that we might become the people he made us to be, for the forgiveness of sins and the granting of eternal life.

No, Catholics don’t believe in some generic idea of God, or the god of the philosophers, some faceless, nameless divine force. No, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are real, and we can know them, and have an intimate relationship with them, and become their instruments in the world.

Just as you get to know someone by spending time with them and doing work with them, so too, we come to know Father, Son, and Holy Spirit spending time with them, by working alongside them, by along them to work in us, by reading what the Scriptures reveal about Them, what the great Church Fathers have written about them, and by spending time in their service.

God has revealed to us that He is Trinity because he wants us to know Him and he wants us to share His love.

Today, as we profess our faith in God, One and Three, may we be ever more transformed into His instruments, that we may spread the True Faith, that he may draw souls to Himself through us, for His glory and the salvation of souls.

June 9 2017 - St. Ephrem the Syrian- Exulted in singing God's mysteries

My first parish assignment as a priest was St. Columbkille Parish in Parma. Today, June 9 on the old calendar was the feast of St. Columbkille; he isn’t celebrated universally, rather, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Ephrem, a poet, teacher, orator, and defender of the faith born early in the 4th century in Syria.

When St. Paul was converted on the road to Damascus, Jesus was already known in Syria; and it was there, in Antioch, in Syria, that Jesus’ disciples were first called “Christians”. We celebrate every year the feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch, who in a sense inaugurated an era of martyrs in the early Church.

Yet, even under threat of continuous persecution, a school of theology developed in Antioch, one of whose most prestigious disciples was John Chrysostom. Monasticism flourished as well: St. Simeon the Stylite and St. Maron lived not far from Aleppo.

So when we hear about Christians being driven out from Syria, we are talking about an attack on the deepest roots of Christianity.

St. Ephrem defended the faith against the Arian Heresy in his day. In the 4th century, the denial of the divinity of Christ was spreading throughout the world. One of the reasons Arianism was adopted by so many people, nobility and common folk alike, was propaganda: really catchy hymns containing heresy carried this error. The theology was false, but the tunes were memorable.

To combat error, Ephrem wrote beautiful hymns containing faithful doctrine, in order to catechize the people.  For this he was called “the harp of the Holy Spirit.” In icons and religious art, he is often depicted holding a harp and the opening prayer referred to St. Ephrem as “exulted in singing God’s mysteries.”

The Church certainly faces physical threats of violence in places like Syria, Christians are being driven out wholesale. In 2011, Christians in Syria numbered 1.25 Million; in 2016, we were less than 500,000. But, we also face theological threats, there and everywhere: cultural propaganda which denies the existence of God, the divinity of Christ, the natural moral law—cultural propaganda which normalizes serious sin, perversion, adultery, and violence.

In many places, Christians, even Bishops, accommodate these errors, rather than holding firm. Heretical hymns, like those in Ephrem’s time, crept into our Masses. Many of the hymns that came after the Second Vatican Council were theologically lacking at best, downright heretical at worst, some of them are simply ugly music, unbefitting the sacred mysteries. These heretical hymns and poor catechesis in many places has, at least partially, contributed to the erosion of the practice of the true Faith.

So we certainly seek the help of God and the help of the Saints in refortifying the Church from error, re-evangelizing those who have drifted away, convicting the hearts and minds of our young people. May St. Ephrem help us to sing the true praises of Christ, free from error, free from sin, for the building up of the Church, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the holy Church of God, that the Lord may graciously watch over her, preserving her from error, helping her to rejoice in the Truth of the Gospel.

For the peoples of all the world, that the Lord may graciously preserve harmony among them, and deepen in them the virtues of justice and religion.

That the Christians of Syria and our brothers and sisters persecuted throughout the world may be delivered by the hand of God from all danger.

For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief, especially for the sick and victims of war and terror and natural disaster.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you yourself are the source of all devotion, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

Thursday - 9th Week of OT 2017 - Spouses who pray together...

The last section of the reading from Tobit is one of the Old Testament passages which may be chosen for the celebration of the Sacrament Marriage. Tobiah and Sarah have just married and her parents have escorted them to the bridal chamber to spend their first night together. And before retiring for the night, Tobiah asks his wife to pray with him: together they ask the Lord to bless their union.

I am always happy when young couples request this reading for the marriage ceremony. Tobiah and Sarah provide a wonderful example for all newly married couples looking to start their marriage off on the right foot. For a good marriage is one where the spouses invite God to play an active role in their lives and to nourish and sustain them for the years to come.

The couple that prays together, stays together. Making time for prayer is not always easy. It isn’t true for single people, and more difficult when you add another person’s schedule into the mix. Once children enter the picture, spouses can become caught up with play dates, sports practices, music lessons, and the like.

In marriage communication between the spouses is a top priority, but communication also with the heavenly Father. Although they’ve only been married a few hours in our reading today, Tobiah and Sarah are already thinking like a holy couple: praying for God’s mercy to be upon them, that they be allowed to live together to a happy old age together, thanking God for his bountiful goodness and asking for his continued blessings.

So many families are for some reason embarrassed to pray together.  But family prayer, especially weekly Mass, is essential for holy marriage, for holy families. I tell young couples: Praying together will open up new vistas of intimacy, and will bring you the strength from God you will need for all of life’s challenges.  I promise, you will never regret the time you pray together, you’ll never regret saying yes to the obligation to come to Holy Mass every week.  But all of us regret the time that we do not give to God.

They look to God plan for marriage, to the joining of Adam and Eve to be partners for life: partners not simply in pursuing earthly plans, but partners according to God’s plan, that man and wife be made holy through the demands of married life.

As a celibate priest, I am constantly inspired by the example of our holy couples, and also concerned for our young people who do not place God at the center of their lives, who begin marriage preparation with little or no faith. If you have such a young person in your life, remind them once again about the importance of faith, help them to rediscover, or discover for the first time, the true presence of God with the Church.

We all look to the example of Tobiah and Sarah, the need to begin all of our endeavors and throughout all of our endeavors, beseeching God’s mercy, that we may serve Him faithfully, and be made worthy of our eternal homeland, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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For Pope Francis and for all the bishops and clergy of the Church: that they will continue to lead us and guide us in Spirit and Truth and in the practice of love towards all.  We pray to the Lord.

For all engaged couples preparing for the Sacrament of Marriage, that sustained by God’s grace they may prepare rightly and chastely, grow in mutual respect, and love each other with true charity. We pray to the Lord.

That all newly married couples may always have a true and generous love for each other; may they receive the rich blessing of children, and may they know the constant support of their family and friends, and that all married couples, may be faithful to the Gospel in every dimension of their married life.  We pray to the Lord.

For the grace to develop a habit of prayer which will sustain us throughout the challenges of life.

That the sick, lonely, elderly, homeless, and all those experiencing trials or suffering of any kind may be strengthened by God’s love and know His comfort and peace.  We pray to the Lord.
For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.
O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you yourself are the source of all devotion, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.