7th Sunday in OT 2019 - Love of Enemies & Breaking Cycles of Violence

Last week we heard the beginning of Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain from Luke’s Gospel—Our Lord’s instruction on how to live a blessed life—not living for wealth, for sensual pleasure, but weeping for one’s sins and being willing to endure suffering for the spread of the Christian Gospel. This week’s Gospel continues his great sermon and contains one of the most sacred, inspiring, and perhaps annoying and puzzling texts in the whole new testament: “To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” The Lord teaches not just tolerance for one’s enemy, not just vague acceptance, but love.

Who springs to mind when he gives that teaching: “your enemy” For some of us that might mean one of the great global enemies of history: perhaps the September 11 hijackers or Hitler, Stalin, or Mao Tse-Tung, or perhaps your most reviled politician. Perhaps it’s a bit more personal, someone in your life who you just don’t like, who annoys you to no end, or someone who betrayed your trust or caused you harm.

Our first reading contains a pair of enemies, Saul and David. Saul had become deeply jealous of David and sought to kill him. Saul led his vast army to hunt down David and kill him. But in today’s reading, the tide is turned: David has snuck into Saul’s camp, and finds Saul asleep, unprotected, and at his most vulnerable. With a single thrust of his spear, David could kill Saul easily—this mad tyrant who was trying to kill him, unjustly, aggressively, out of insane jealousy. David has every right, you’d say, to kill Saul.

What would you if your greatest enemy was delivered into your hands? Someone you hated, someone that hurt you, someone who has mocked you and made you feel inferior. What would you do if the tables were turned? David finds himself in this position. Now he was the one with the power, he was the one with the blade at his enemies throat. But he chooses not to strike, he breaks the cycle, he foreshadows the love of one’s enemy which Jesus teaches.

And Jesus’ admonition to love our enemies is central to his teaching. It is the great test. And when he says love, he’s not talking about an emotion or a feeling. Love is not a sentiment. Love is an act of the will, a choice to will the good of another, to work for the good of another. A parent loves their child when they work and sacrifice so that the child may grow and learn and become the person they are meant to be. Spouses love each other when they make sacrifices for the good of each other. A priest or religious loves the church when we sacrifice ourselves for the good.

To love one’s enemy is to will their good, and that is not easy.  Why? Why is that hard? Sacrifice is hard, forgiveness is hard. Lending to those who cannot or will not pay you back is hard. Love makes one vulnerable and that is dangerous, that is scary.

Sometimes we find our enemies so threatening because they reveal truths about ourselves that are uncomfortable to face: that we’ve been hurt and want vengeance for our suffering. Or we see in them some hardness that exists also in ourselves. Why did the Pharisees hate Jesus? He revealed their hardness of heart. They sought to put to death the innocent one because his innocence exposed their corruption. He revealed their need to control, their addiction to fame.  Our hatred of an enemy sometimes comes from our fear of having our own hypocrisy exposed. Our enemy is not fooled by our acting.

But if that’s the case, but if they reveal something unholy in us, learning to love one’s enemy is essential for becoming the people God made us to be. God wants to heal our brokenness and liberate us from our hardness of heart by teaching us to love our enemies. If someone, anyone exposes a lie that we tell ourselves, thanks be to God for them.

Another reason why love of enemies is central to the Christian way of life is that through love and patience and understanding and empathy we might win them back. By lending to someone who has no ability to pay us back we teach them something about God—we reflect the love of Jesus who died for sinners. Through our own act of mercy, we show that that mercy and love are possible—we show them the mercy of the Father.

For, as Christians, our task is to draw people in to the mystical body of Christ, to lead them to God. And if we write someone off, we judge them as irredeemable, if we say, they are too far gone, they are my enemy, and unworthy of my effort, then we are unfaithful to the mission of drawing all men to Christ.

It’s difficult to resist that tendency to become irrational with the irrational, to fight fire with fire, to meet short tempers with even shorter tempers, to write people off. But Christians are to break the cycle of hostility through patience, gentleness, and understanding. Our patience and generosity will often be the road on which God wishes to meet souls, to help them to know His goodness and love.
In just a week and a half we will begin the great season of Lent, the season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Consider offering up your Lenten penances for someone who you consider an enemy: perhaps someone who has hurt you, or someone who you think is bringing ruin to the Church or to the world, and pray for them daily, fast for their conversion, beseech God for the ability to forgive them. Pray for the ability to love them with the gentle and patient heart of Jesus, that when you speak to them, you may do so with the utmost understanding, and that you may learn from them what God wants to teach you through them. Every day bring them to God. I guarantee, to do so will change you for the better.

Jesus deliver us from the unwillingness to love. Help us to pray, to fast, to do penance, to will the good in everyone, to do good to those who hate us, to bless those who curse us, to pray for those who mistreat us, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

February 22 2019 - Chair of St. Peter - More than a piece of furniture

Reading through the parish histories, I came to discover that for its beauty and grand architecture St. Ignatius of Antioch is sometimes called the “Cathedral of West Blvd.”, I even had that printed on my business cards. And yet, there is only one cathedral in the diocese, in any diocese. For the cathedral is the church in which can be found the “cathedra” the seat of the bishop, symbolizing his authority as chief shepherd of the diocese. Bishop Perez has authority to teach, govern, and sanctify in this diocese because he is a successor of the Twelve Apostles, and has been appointed to sit in the cathedra of Cleveland by the one who sits in the Cathedra of Rome—the Chair of Peter.

Today’s feast celebrates that the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church founded by Jesus Christ has a chair in which Christ’s Vicar will sit until Our Lord returns. The Bishop who sits on the “cathedra” of Rome has a very important mission, not only to the Christians of the city of Rome, but to the entire People of God. He is the successor of the Apostle Peter to whom the Lord entrusted the keys to the kingdom of heaven.

He has the power to bind and loose, to enact laws for the good of the People of God to which they will be held accountable on judgment day.

A lot of people think that they can have Jesus without His Church. But the earliest Christians attest to Our Lord’s desire for his disciples look to the authority of the Pope. Peter the Rock is to be a source of unity for the Church--a remedy for the division toward which we always tend.

So, this feast day, is less about furniture, and more about the grace of God that helps us to remain united to Christ and to love each other, so that we can know the healing that comes from Christ, the strength to withstand temptation, the grace of repentance, and the courage to work always for the spread of the Gospel for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the Successor of St. Peter, our Holy Father Pope Francis, that he be strong in his mission and strengthen the whole Church in faith, we pray to the Lord...

For all bishops, that they grow in union with Peter, share the zeal of Paul, and lead us by the grace of the Holy Spirit, we pray to the Lord...

For those preparing for baptism and the Easter sacraments, that they may continue to conform themselves to Christ through Faith taught by St. Peter and his successors.

For the conversion of all people to Christ, for those who reject the Faith, for those who have fallen away from the Church, for those who mock and persecute Christians, for hardened and unrepentant sinners, we pray to the Lord.

For the sick and the dying, the poor and the oppressed, and all victims of war, violence, and the selfishness of their fellow man, that they may experience the peace and presence of Christ, we pray to the Lord.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Father, We rejoice in the call to belong to the Church, to believe in the Gospel, and to be united with the successors of your Apostles. Answer our prayers and increase our fidelity to the Gospel. Through Christ our Lord.

6th Week in OT 2019 - Wednesday - Gradual Healing of Spiritual Blindness

Yesterday, we heard how the apostles failed to understand Jesus’ identity. They feared because they forgot to take bread with them, not understanding, blind to the fact that the One who feeds—the living bread Himself—was with them. The account of the apostle’s spiritual blindness is followed by this morning’s passage of a miraculous healing.

And, this healing miracle i is unique among the miracles recorded in the Gospels as the only healing that takes place in two stages. After laying his hands on the man the first time, the man only achieve partial recovery. He couldn’t tell the difference between people and trees. It’s only after the second time that Jesus touches the man that his sight is restored.

The man’s gradual recovery symbolizes the slow and difficult process in Mark’s Gospel of opening the disciples’ eyes to understanding Jesus’ identity and mission. This blind man at first couldn’t tell the difference between peoples and trees. Well, it will not be until they see Jesus on a tree, on a cross, that the disciples will fully understand who he is: the faithful Son who undergoes suffering and death to save us from our sins.

Spiritual blindness is often overcome in stages. It often takes multiple encounters with God’s mercy, maybe even a lifetime, to overcome a particular sin. Perhaps that’s because seeing the real identity of a person is often accomplished in stages.  First, we see someone’s outward appearance, the color of their hair, the shape of their face.  But it usually takes time to see them at a deeper level—time spent in their presence, time in conversations, time working along-side of them—we come to know each other gradually.  Saint Paul even tell us this in I Corinthians: “At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known.”

Our true sight is not regained by staring at a television or computer screen for several hours a day.  Spiritual sight is regained, like in the Gospel today, by the encounter with Christ himself.  This occurs predominately in prayer—the Sacraments and in daily meditation and in serving Christ in the poor.
And as our sight is gradually restored, we see Christ more clearly and begin to see ourselves more clearly, how God sees us. May we be open to the encounters with Christ God wants for us today: in prayer and service 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 lifting of the veil from our eyes and hearts to be more attentive to the needs of the poor in our midst. We pray to the Lord.
For 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 clergy 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.

6th Week in OT 2019 - Be on guard against leaven

Throughout Mark’s Gospel, the disciples are consistently misunderstanding Jesus’ teachings, they are slow to understand who He is, and the implications of His presence with them.

St. Mark records the disciples failure to understand Jesus’ parable of the sower. After Jesus calms the storm on the sea of Galilee, they question “Who is this guy, who even commands storms”? They were completely baffled by Jesus when he later walks toward them on the water. And Jesus lumps the disciples in with the Pharisees who do not understand his teaching about purity and the tradition of the elders.

Today, Jesus is aware of their anxiety over only having one loaf of bread. Jesus then warns them to guard against the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod. The Pharisees consistently are filled with doubt, hardheartedness, failure to fully believe in Jesus. All these things, Jesus warns will cause you to be spiritually blind, like the Pharisees, to His true identity, to His mission, to His power. And Herod? We heard of Herod’s adultery, his ego, and permission to murder John the Baptist. The leaven of Herod is the moral cowardice, the violation of the moral law which blinds us to the truth of Jesus’ law of Love.

Jesus says we must guard against these things. We must guard against the things that cause us doubt and hard-heartedness toward the Gospel, and also the breaking of the moral law. Popular culture bombards the senses with error and examples of moral error. Whenever we turn on the television or go on the internet we must guard ourselves from anything that will cause hardness in us toward the Gospel. Whenever we have conversations with non-believers or Christians of weak or compromised faith, we need to be on guard toward error.

How many Catholics live together before marriage because that’s what the culture expects? How many don’t go to Mass because of the culture’s attitude toward religion? How many young Catholic college students lose their faith because of the errors and morals of the college campus? How many parents fail to teach their children to pray, to confess their sins because of prevailing culture attitudes?

Be on guard! We guard our minds and hearts from the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod by studying the faith, studying the word of God, studying what the Church teaches and why she teaches it. And by coming to Mass and recommitting to Jesus that our faith may be strong, that we may be courageous in the face of hostility and temptation, that we may keep the word of the Lord in all things, 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 grace to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, to love our neighbors and enemies and those who persecute us, and to share the truth of the Gospel with all.  We pray to the Lord.

For all those who share in the sufferings of Christ—the sick, the sorrowful, and those who are afflicted or burdened in any way, especially those effected by hurricanes and storms.  We pray to the Lord.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased clergy 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.

6th Sunday in OT 2019 - Sermon on the Plain

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus gives his most famous sermon on top of a mountain. For Matthew depicts Jesus like Moses who atop Mt. Sinai received the Law of the Old Covenant from God. Jesus—the New Moses gives the teachings of the new law—the law of the new covenant that he came to form between God and Man. In Matthew’s Gospel, atop what is now called the Mount of Beatitudes, Jesus taught about holiness and eternal life, about salt and light, about anger, adultery, and divorce, and the love of enemies, prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, about judging others and casting pearls before swine, and the imperative of building your life on the solid foundations of his teachings.

In Luke, Jesus gives his first major sermon, not from the top of a mountain. In fact, St. Luke tells us that Jesus came down from the mountain, and taught his disciples and this large group of people on a stretch of level ground. This passage of Luke’s Gospel is known as Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain, and is delivered immediately after spending a night in prayer and naming the 12 apostles.

Matthew’s Sermon on the Mount and Luke’s Sermon on the Plain contain much of the same content, in fact, Luke’s version is a bit more down-to-earth, clearer and direct.
“Blessed are you who are poor, for the kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry, for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping, for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you, and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man."

Just four beatitudes compared to Matthew’s eight. And on the surface…this is a pretty strange teaching. Blessed are your when you are poor? Well, no one wants to poor. Everyone tries to get out of poverty. Blessed are you who are hungry? In Jesus’ day, to go hungry was a sign that you were cursed by God. Know one likes to be hungry. Blessed are you who weep? This is getting more masochistic as it goes on. Poor, hungry, now sad? We seek to escape sadness, depression, and grief. And the last one is even more dramatic. You are blessed when you are hated, persecuted, condemned as evil for being a follower of Jesus. Well…where do I sign up?

How do we begin to understand these odd teachings? Jesus certainly shakes-up the expectations of his audience. Christians are to view and treat the world differently. We aren’t to trust in the same things the worldly-minded trust in, we aren’t to hunger or crave or seek the same things as the worldly-minded because we recognize that nothing in the world can satisfy our deepest hunger for God. We get in trouble when we attach that deepest spiritual hunger to the things and ways of the world; we end up frustrated, exhausted, spiritually depleted, and even lost in sin.

This odd teaching requires we go a bit deeper though. Jesus uses this phrase “blessed are you” in each of these sayings. The Greek word for “blessed” is “Makarios”, the same as in Matthew’s Gospel. “Makarios” is often translated as blessed, happy, fortunate, or divinely joyful. The Greeks used to call the island of Cyprus “makaria” the Island of Joy. The Greeks felt Cyprus was like a high-end resort: so fertile, beautiful, pleasant, safe, peaceful, and rich in minerals and natural resources, that its inhabitants were completely self-sufficient. They had no need to travel or trade in order to live in perfect physical comfort. Maybe, Luke had this in mind in writing “Makarios”, that following Jesus’ teaching, you receive what is sufficient for making your way to the heavenly paradise.

Blessed, fortunate, divinely joyful, in possession of what is necessary for eternal life, are you when you are poor, that is, when you are not attached to or controlled by material things, but rather, when God is your greatest possession, when you do not allow the material things of the world to keep you from knowing, loving, and serving God.

So much of our sadness comes from allowing the things of the world to control us and distract us from what is most important in life. The world tells us that joy and happiness are obtained by amassing houses, cars, mobile devices, clothes and shoes, grander and more luxurious vacations. The devil loves to convince us to work harder and harder for these things, which may bring some temporary gratification, but in the end leaves us exhausted. The devil loves using worldly allurement to draw us away from that which truly gives us life--prayer, service, devotion, worship, and communion—that is genuine encounter with God, and genuine authentic human contact. So how blessed are you when you are poor, detached, dispassionate about the worldly and rich in the things of God.

Okay. Blessed, fortunate, divinely joyful are you when you are hungry. Hunger is linked to the sensual. So, how fortunate when you are not addicted to sensual pleasure. Food and drink and sex are good, and the ability to enjoy them in their proper context is good. Catholics are not puritanical. God pronounced these created things good. But good, in their proper context, moderated by reason. Pleasure is good, but not God. What sinful man tends to do, is to make them into gods. We attach our infinite desire for God to these created things and bend our wills to obtain them inordinately. But because these things do not satisfy our deepest desire for God, it’s no surprise that addictions emerge around these things: food addiction, drug and alcohol addiction, sex and pornography addiction—Addictions which cause great damage to the psyche, to families, and to souls.

But blessed are you when hunger, when you are detached from these sensual pleasures, when you don’t let the pursuit of physical pleasure control your life. Jesus came to set us free from slavery to the sensual.

Thirdly, Blessed, fortunate are you who now weep. The weeping of the righteous in scripture is often linked to the acknowledgement of sin. Isaiah cried out and wept: Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips” Isaiah wept because he was unable to come into the presence of God because of his sins. And so, blessed are you when your recognize your sinfulness and weep for your sins and seek conversion.

What does the world weep over? Certainly not over offending God! One can’t help but think of the recent legalization of abortion up to and including the birth of the child in several states for any reason. As a kid, in popular culture there was at least some acknowledging that abortion was not ideal. The slogan was “make abortion safe, legal, and rare”. In 2019 we hear slogans like “shout your abortion” or “abortion on demand without apology”. People not weeping but reveling in the fact that innocent life is murdered. The world weeps not for the destruction of its moral compass. 

Rather, Christians blessed are you when you weep over sin. We do well to make spiritual reparation through prayer and fasting for sins that cry out to heaven and for the conversion of those who revel over and celebrate sin.

And those who weep over sin, the Lord says, will one day laugh; those who acknowledge and repent of sin in this life will rejoice in the world to come.

And finally, blessed are you when you are persecuted for Christ. “Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!” The world wants to silence the Christian Gospel, wants us to compromise the moral teachings of Jesus, to water down the content of the faith, to change what has been received from Christ and the apostles. And we will face resistance when we trust in Jesus.

But Jesus promises blessedness, eternal life, and joy to those who persevere in the truth, who are willing to undergo suffering to courageously defend, patiently explain, clearly articulate, and unambiguously live the Christian faith in the face of error and confusion and persecution. We proclaim the Gospel of Life in the midst of a culture of death, but we do so joyfully, knowing that our efforts are made for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

5th Week in OT 2019 - Friday - Open our hearts to listen

The first chapters of the book of Genesis reveal God’s magnificent plan for creation. In the first chapter, the days of creation follow the divine logic: the light, the earth, the heavens, dry land, sea, vegetation, stars, the fish, the birds, the animals, and finally mankind.

In chapter two, we read of God’s plan for humanity. Humanity is to tend to creation and to marry.

Sadly, in chapter 3, we read of Adam and Eve stepping out of God’s plan, man’s rebellion. Instead of surrendering to the plan, trusting in God, obeying God’s commands, man and women choose to believe in a lie: that they can grasp at a future divorced from God and still live, that they can do anything they want without consequence, they can have their sin and their souls will remain intact, they can close their ears to the Word of God and still be able to hear correctly.

In the Gospel, the effects of Adam and Eve’s Original Sin are on display: a man deaf with a speech impediment. He cannot hear the words of his loved ones, he cannot communicate rightly as man was created to do, as we are created in the image of one who Speaks—who speaks creation into being, who created through the Word, who communicates his love between the three divine persons, who made us to be communicators of His own truth, goodness, and beauty.

But, in the Gospel, God’s plan of salvation is also on display. Through Jesus Christ the impediments to wholeness are healed, right relationship with God and neighbor is restored.

Jesus looking up into heaven and groaning before this particular healing reminds us that the ultimate healing took place when he looked up to heaven and groaned his last upon the cross.

Through the disobedience of Adam and Eve, we have inherited a world polluted with sin and death, our own human nature is marred so we do not hear God as we should, we do not see as we should, we do not speak as we should. But in Jesus, spiritual sight, hearing, and speech are restored, communion and communication are restored, and we renter God’s plan for our souls.

We face many times a day the same choice the Adam and Eve will face in the garden, will we listen to God or listen to the serpent. One choice will bring us life, the other will take it from us. As we just sang in the Gospel acclamation: “Open our hearts, O Lord, to listen to the words of your Son” 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.

For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief.

For ourselves and our parish, that the Lord may graciously receive us as a sacrifice acceptable to himself.

For the dead, for all of the souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Holy mass is offered.

Incline your merciful ear to our prayers we ask, O Lord, and listen in kindness to those who call on you in supplication.

5th Week in OT 2019 - Wednesday - The choice

Monday and Tuesday, we heard of how God brought creation into existence out of nothing. Unlike many pagan creation myths, material creation in the book of Genesis is ordered according to the divine plan and pronounced very good. And that goes especially for human beings—created in the image and likeness of God.

And today, we read the more detailed account of the creation of man and woman in the second chapter of Genesis.  God forms man from the dust, and settles him in the garden of Eden to cultivate and care for it.  God breathes into the man, the breath of life, and immediately gives him a job: to work the garden, to care for it, to guard and protect it—to maintain the Order God has created.

Along with this job, God also issues a command:  “You may eat of every tree in the garden, but of the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, you will not eat, for on the day you eat of it, you will die.”  So what’s at stake at the very beginning?  Life or Death.  Obedience brings life, disobedience brings death.  God’s not lying about this—He’s not just trying to scare Adam.  Obedience brings life, disobedience brings death.  Here’s the choice given to every human being.  What’ll it be?  Will you exercise your will according to the knowledge given you by God? Will you trust God? Or will you turn your will and mind against God? 

These theme will play out over and over again throughout the Scriptures.  Adam and Eve are given a choice. Noah, Moses, the Israelite people, the judges, the kings, the prophets and those who hear the prophets. Obedience—trusting in God—brings life; disobedience—trusting in yourself or the cunning lies of serpents—brings death.

In the Gospel today, Jesus lists actions which cause defilement and death: unchastity, theft, murder,
adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.  He says all these evils come from within, not from without.  Meaning, you can’t claim the “devil made me do it” or “the culture made me do it”, these are actions that people choose freely, they are contrary to the divine will, and they bring death. Moral choices have eternal ramifications.

May we use the breath of life that comes from God, to choose the good. May we trust him when we are tempted. May we repent of the evil we have done through our own fault. And, through our obedience to the Divine Will, may the Holy Spirit renew the face of the Earth, 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.
For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief.
For ourselves and our parish, that the Lord may graciously receive us as a sacrifice acceptable to himself.
For the dead, for all of the souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Holy mass is offered.
O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you are the source of all goodness, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith, we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

5th Week in OT 2019 - Tuesday - Made in the image and likeness of God

For the first four weeks of Ordinary Time, our weekday readings have all been taken from the New Testament letter to the Hebrews. Well, for some reason, our readings up until Ash Wednesday will be taken from the Old Testament. We’ll hear for two weeks from the first 10 chapters of Genesis and then from Sirach. We’ll hear of the creation of the world, the creation of the first humans, Adam and Eve, who God made for each other, who cling to each other as husband and wife. We will then hear of the fall of mankind, the story of Cain and Abel, and how at the time of Noah, wickedness had so filled with earth, that God sends a cleansing flood.

These ancient stories contain time truths that we do well to reflect upon and learn from.
Today we hear of the fifth, sixth, and seventh days of creation, particularly the creation of Man. Man is created on the sixth day, the same day as the beasts. The number six in the bible is often associated with the bestial. The number 666 is the number of the Beast in the Book of Revelation. What separates man from beast? Well, the biblical understanding of the human person is based on the words we read today: “God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them.”

To be created in the image and likeness of God means, we have an intellect.  We can reason, we aren’t like the beasts which are directed by instinct alone.  We have a free will. 

One biblical scholar said, though both the beasts and man are created on the sixth day, man is created create FOR the seventh day. And what does God do on the seventh day?  He rests, and he reflects.  Animals do not have the capacity for self-reflection.  Animals cannot write poetry and “War and Peace”.  Animals do not have the capacity to reflect on their call to holiness.  They do not care for what is true, good, or beautiful. They do not gather in worship, they do not celebrate the mysteries of salvation, they do not reflect upon the Word of God.

We will hear in chapter 3 just what happens when humanity gives in to listening to the beast instead of listening to God. The sad history of sin, violence, and division comes from living for the sixth day rather than for the seventh. So may we cultivate what is best in us, may our lives reflect our divine pedigree, by living not for what is base and fallen, but for what is true, good, and beautiful 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.
For all who are oppressed by any kind of need, that the Lord may graciously grant them relief.
For ourselves and our parish, that the Lord may graciously receive us as a sacrifice acceptable to himself.
For the dead, for all of the souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Holy mass is offered.
O God, our refuge and our strength, hear the prayers of your Church, for you are the source of all goodness, and grant, we pray, that what we ask in faith, we may truly obtain. Through Christ our Lord.

Feb 11 2019 - Our Lady of Lourdes - Apparitions and Miraculous Healing

The first apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the 14 year old girl named Bernadette Soubarou was on this day, February 11, in 1858.  Bernadette reported seeing a young woman dressed in white, with a rosary in her hand, and a yellow rose on each foot.

Many find the idea of a Marian Apparition strange.  But, one cannot deny the biblical evidence that Mary loved to visit people.  She lovingly visited her cousin Elizabeth to share her joy of new life. Mary attended the wedding at Cana. She went to see Jesus in Capernaum. She was there in Jerusalem during her son’s Passion, and approached him during His way of the cross. And she approached him on Calvary, and stood by him during his suffering.  She was with the apostles, in prayer, on Pentecost.

Tradition has it that Mary appeared to the Apostle St. James on his apostolic journey to Spain, even before her bodily assumption into heaven. In her many apparitions throughout the centuries her message is basically the same: be faithful to her son, pray and work for the conversion of sinners. In other words, the Blessed Mother repeats the message she first gave at the wedding at Cana, “do whatever he tells you.”

At Lourdes, the Virgin Mary told Bernadette to pray for the conversion of sinners by praying the Rosary and meditating on the salvific events in the life of Christ. And of course, to build a chapel.

Today, more than 7 million people make a pilgrimage to this place, every year.  Though Church authorities have only officially recognized about 70 miraculous cures at Lourdes, countless people have experienced healing in some way.

In 1992, Pope John Paul II, who had such a great devotion to Our Blessed Mother, designated the 11th Day of February as a World Day of Prayer for the Sick: “a special time of prayer and sharing, of offering one’s suffering for the good of the Church, and reminding us to see in our sick brother and sister the face of Christ who, by suffering, dying, and rising, achieved the salvation of mankind.”

We unite ourselves in a special way today with all those who turn to God for help in their afflictions, who seek his peace and healing.  May we be instruments of peace and healing for them, with Mary, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That Our Lady may protect the Church from all evil, and aid us in the mission of the Gospel.

That all government leaders may be awakened to the supreme dignity of each human life, and that all people of our nation may work together for an end to the culture of death.

That through Immaculate Mary, Queen of Peace, hatred, violence, and cruelty will cease in the world.

That the sick may draw strength, consolation, and healing by turning to Our Lady, who
intercedes for us from her place in heaven.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

We pray, O Lord our God, that the Virgin Mary, who merited to bear God and man in her chaste womb, may commend the prayers of your faithful in your sight. Through Christ our Lord.

4th Week in OT 2019 - Friday - Unafraid to preach the Truth

If you were reading Mark’s Gospel from beginning to end, this long passage of John the Baptist’s martyrdom comes as an unexpected interlude.  In the previous verses, Jesus sends out the Twelve apostles on a special mission to teach and cure the sick and drive out demons.  But before their return, St. Mark relates this lengthy account of the execution of John the Baptist.

St. Mark uses the life and arrest and death of John the Baptist to foreshadow what will happen to Jesus. Jesus will be arrested and condemned to death on pretty shady charges built on lies and selfishness. But the fate of John the Baptist is also a lesson for all of us. For taking up the Gospel mission, we too might have to face the hostility of the world.

Why did Herodias want John dead? She harbored a grudge against him and wanted to kill him because he dared to call out their public and flagrant sin. John had incurred the wrath of the ruling family by publicly denouncing their adulterous conduct. And this leads to another question: why did John bother with the Herods?

Likely John knew that the behavior of political leaders has a powerful impact on the moral environment of the country at large. The Herodian scandal had the potential of normalizing adultery, dulling the consciences of the people and putting obstacles in their hearts rather than preparing the way for the Lord.  And like the prophets of old, John was willing to risk his life for the message of God.

St. Mark connects the fate of John with the sending out of the apostles. For the apostles have the mission of calling sinful humanity to conversion. And Mark makes no secret that Christians will likely garner the hatred of the world for preaching the Gospel. St. Mark later records this sentiment from the lips of Jesus himself who says, “You will be hated by all because of my name.”

In a world of spineless jellyfish afraid to preach the Gospel, be a John the Baptist. For the Lord also said, “there is no one born of woman” greater than he. May we each be faithful to the Gospel commission to preach the Gospel fully and with courage 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 grace to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, to love our neighbors and enemies and those who persecute us, and to share the truth of the Gospel with all.  We pray to the Lord.
For all those who share in the sufferings of Christ—the sick, the sorrowful, and those who are afflicted or burdened in any way, especially those effected by hurricanes and storms.  We pray to the Lord.
For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased clergy 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.

Feb 06 2019 - St. Paul Miki and Companions - Martyrs willingly face rejection

In the first five chapters of St. Mark’s Gospel, Jesus’ ministry has gained incredible momentum: he’s preaching in synogogues all over galilee. He has manifested his divine power by casting out demons both in jewish and gentile territory, he’s calmed a stormy sea, he’s healed countless sick, he’s even raised the dead. We hear today how Jesus then goes to his native place where he is rejected. The Greek word translated "offense" is skandalizomai, meaning "to stumble over an obstacle"; it is the word from which we get our English word "scandal." Why were they scandalized? Jesus lived such an ordinary life among the people of His community that they found it incredible that He should be anything special. They rejected him because they were not willing to get beyond their preconceptions about Jesus. So the Lord proclaims: “"A prophet is not without honor except in his native place”

In a sense, it was good for his disciples to witness the Lord’s rejection by his townsfolk. Because, they, like him, would have to face the same fate. They would have to be willing to preach his Gospel, even when it meant being rejected by one’s own family.

The martyrs throughout the centuries, like Paul Miki and his 25 companions, suffered that ultimate rejection for the sake of the kingdom. Paul Miki and his companions were martyred on February 5, 1597 on a hill overlooking Nagasaki, Japan. The group was comprised of 6 Franciscans from Spain, Mexico, and India and 3 native Japanese Jesuits.  Among the 17 lay Japanese Catholics martyred there were native Japanese catechists, doctors, simple artisans and servants, old men and innocent children. After being forced to march 600 miles from Kyoto to Nagasaki, they were all hung on wooded crosses with ropes and chains and then put to death by the thrust of a lance by their own native countrymen.

For nearly two hundred years, priests, religious, and Christians missionaries, Catholic and Protestant, were banned from Japan.  And, when missionaries returned to Japan in the 1860s, at first they found no trace of Christianity. Yet, soon they discovered thousands of Christians living around Nagasaki. They had secretly preserved the faith that Paul Miki and his companions died for two hundred years.

Because of the martyrs willingness to suffer rejection, Christianity was preserved. When John Paul II visited Nagasaki in 1981, he said, “In this holy place, people of all walks of life gave proof that love is stronger than death. They embodied the essence of the Christian message, the spirit of the Beatitudes, so that all who look up to them may be inspired to let their lives be shaped by unselfish love of God and love of neighbor.”

May we allow that unselfish love of God and love of neighbor lead us to that willingness to strive and suffer for the spread of the Gospel for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
The martyrs professed their faith by shedding their blood, may we have a faith that is constant and pure.

The martyrs followed in Christ’s footsteps by carrying the cross, may we endure courageously our earthly trials and all the misfortunes of life.

The martyrs washed their garments in the blood of the Lamb, may we be helped by their prayers to avoid the weaknesses of the flesh and worldly allurements.

That all missionaries may have courage and strength in their witness to the Gospel, for an increase in priestly and religious vocations, and for increased willingness among Christians to answer the missionary call.

For the sick and all who suffer, may their suffering be united to those of Our Savior and know his consolation and peace.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

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

Feb 05 2019 - St. Agatha - The Powerful Faith of the Virgin Martyrs

After offering a series of parables about the Kingdom of God, St. Mark gives us series of stories of Jesus manifesting the power of God. We hear of Jesus calming the storm—showing his Divine authority over the destructive powers of nature, we heard yesterday of Jesus’ exorcism of Gerasene demoniac—showing his Divine authority over the powers of evil which seek the destruction and corruption of human nature. Today we hear two stories: the curing of the woman stricken with a hemorrhage for 12 years, and then the raising of Jairus’ daughter from the dead. Here Jesus shows his Divine authority over terrible human disease which the most learned of doctors and experts could find a cure. And he shows his Divine authority over the most terrible of human afflictions—death itself.

By stringing these stories together, St. Mark helps us to place our faith in Jesus as Lord and Son of God, who is victorious over the powers of sins and death through his own cross and resurrection.
It is this faith that gives the martyrs, like St. Agatha who we honor today, such courage and conviction in their own trials. St. Agatha is one of the great virgin martyrs of the early Roman church, who in the midst of persecution, chose to be faithful to Christ no matter what the cost. 

Saint Agatha was born in Sicily to rich and noble parents. Out of love for Christ, she consecrated herself to the Lord and His service. When a government edict called for the suppression of Christianity, St Agatha was arrested for resisting the advances of a degenerate civil official. To punish her for wishing to protect her chastity, she was sent to a brothel, a house of prostitution. When she persevered in protecting her chastity, her breasts were cut off, and she was sent to her martyrdom.

The world needs witnesses to holiness like St. Agatha. And the power and love of God shines so brightly in the witness of the virgin martyrs—that corruption, and perversion, and violence, and death do not get the last word.

Christians today are surrounded by innumerable pressures to forsake the faith, to make compromises with the world, which are repugnant to the teachings of Christ. We do well to invoke Agatha and the virgin martyrs on behalf of our young people, that they will value Christian chastity above the perversions of our culture, and all of us do well to invoke Agatha, that we may be willing to suffer in order to allow the power of Christ and love of God shine in our lives for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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Through the intercession of St. Agatha and all the holy virgin-martyrs, for an increase in chastity, purity, and modesty and for greater respect for the dignity of the human body and all human life.
That all of our young people may be kept safe from the poisonous errors and vices of our time and be kept in close friendship with the Lord Jesus through the faith of their families, daily prayer, attendance at Mass, and the practice of the virtues.
For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, immigrants and refugees, 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 all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.
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

4th Week in OT 2019 - Monday - Jesus and the demon-possessed Gerasene

To this day, numerous caves dot the shoreline of the east side of the sea of Galilee in the territory of the Gerasenes.  Even in daylight this would have been an eerie place to be sailing by, for many of the caves were used to bury the dead.  In Jesus’ time, the caves were popularly regarded as a favorite haunt of demons.

As Jesus steps ashore, he is immediately challenged by the demonic powers that seem to hold sway in the area, as if guarding their territorial rights. The moment Jesus sets foot on land, a demon-possessed man emerges from the tombs, wild-eyed, shouting, and bearing marks of self-muti
lation. Unclean spirits have taken over his personality resulting in a life of unbearable torment and alienation. Unable to function in human society, he lives among the tombs, the realm of the dead. This is a picture of what the devil wants for mankind—slavery to the tyranny of evil, not only on this earth, but for all eternity.

Because of original sin, Satan has acquired a certain domination over all human beings; in all of us the image of God is defaced to some degree.  Unholy desires to rebel against God, to forsake the use of reason, to violate our human dignity through sin, tempt each one of us.

Upon seeing this poor soul, Jesus shows his decisive and complete power over the forces of evil.  In the previous passage, Jesus calmed the winds of the storm—over the power of destruction in nature—with a single word. Now this story illustrates Jesus’ power over the forces of destruction within the human person.

Those forces still exist in us—those tendencies towards alienation and selfishness and self-pity. But through Baptism and the Sacraments and the life of prayer and charity we are brought into a new relationship with God, who works through our faith and the faith of the Church to bring deliverance from evil.

We pray today, that in our communion with the Lord, he will step into the territory of our hearts and expel those destructive powers in us, free us from the shackles and chains of sin, that we may live in perfect love towards God and our neighbor, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.
 
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That the preaching and teachings of the Pope, Bishops, and clergy may be a source of strength and guidance for the Holy Church.
That those in civic authority may submit their minds and hearts to the rule of Christ, the Prince of Peace and Hope of the nations.
For the liberation of those bound by evil, those committed to sin an error, those oppressed or possessed by evil spirits, and for the conversion of the hardest hearts.
For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, immigrants and refugees, 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 all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.
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

4th Sunday in OT 2019 - Miracles and Christian Faith

One of my favorite subjects to talk about with the children over in the school is miracles of Jesus. I like to see how many of Jesus’ famous miracles the school kids can list off: changing water into wine, walking on the sea of galilee, bringing sight to the blind, calming storms, multiplying the loaves and fishes, raising Jairus’ daughter from the dead, raising his friend, Lazarus. Once, a school kid said that one of Jesus’ miracles was curing big cats. “Big cats”, I asked? Yeah, he cured the leopards. Never a dull moment in the priesthood.

Jesus was famous for performing miracles. “ But, why did Jesus perform miracles?” I ask the school kids. And they usually do a pretty good job with that too. Jesus performed miracles because he loves us, he and he wants people to know that He is God.

People from all around galilee came to know that Jesus could perform miracles. They would come to him in great crowds. And many came to believe in his Divinity, when they saw his signs and heard his teachings.

After the Ascension of the Lord into heaven, the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders, as they spread the Gospel in fidelity to their great commission.  There are stories of Saint Thomas performing miracles in India, Peter raised Tabitha from the dead, Paul healed the sick at Malta and raised the dead. Saint Jude the Apostle has been known throughout the centuries as the patron saint of hopeless causes—his prayerful intercession has brought countless miraculous cures.
And throughout the history of the Church many saints could perform miracles: Saint John Bosco, whose feast was on Thursday, performed so many miracles that Pope Pius XI said that in the life of Don Bosco, “the supernatural almost became natural, and the extraordinary, ordinary”.  Don Bosco performed many healings; he once even raised a young boy from the dead who died in a state of mortal sin so the boy could make a sacramental confession.   Countless miracles fill the lives of saints like Patrick, Catherine of Siena, St. Kevin, Benedict, and Clare.

I personally witnessed what I believe to be a miracle from a modern day saint.  I was attending world youth day in Toronto and we were all camped out in a field on Saturday night, as we were to celebrate Sunday Mass in the morning with Holy Father Pope John Paul II.  At about 5 a.m. it started to rain.  Everyone woke up and covered themselves in tarps and umbrellas, but it was pretty miserable as sprinkling quickly turned into downpour.  When Mass started it was raining harder than ever, and everyone was totally soaked. 

You might know that during the Easter Season it is common to use The Rite of Sprinkling: the priest sprinkles the congregation with Holy Water to recall the saving waters of Baptism. At Mass that morning, Pope John Paul II looked out at the crowd in the pouring rain and declared, "Today we will have the Rite of Sprinkling by natural means!" He then said, “May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins and bring us to everlasting life.” And within seconds…seconds, the rain stopped and the sun came out, and Mass continued with the Gloria.

Speaking of miracles, February 3rd is the feast of Saint Blaise. Saint Blaise was a bishop and martyr from the 4th century who miraculously cured a young boy who was choking to death. St. Blaise is invoked as the patron saint of throat ailments, and so we will bestow the blessing of throats at the end of Mass today.

In the Gospel today, Jesus had come to Nazareth, into the synagogue of his youth, and read from the scroll a passage of how the messiah would come performing miracles: the blind would see, the deaf would hear, and a time of favor from the Lord would be inaugurated.  Jesus explained how this prophecy was being fulfilled in their hearing.

The people had already heard of some of the healing miracles Jesus had performed.  So what was their response to his radical claim—the claim that he was the long-awaited for Messiah?
Well, initially they were favorable toward him.  They thought, hey, this is the son of Joseph, the carpenter.  If this guy is really the Messiah, we are his home-town boys, this is going to be favorable for us.  He’s been performing miracles, I could definitely use one of those.  A miracle-working messiah, and I’m his next door neighbor.

But, Jesus knew their hearts, and he detected a problem—a stumbling-block.  They wanted the miracles without discipleship.  They wanted the fame without the hard work.  They wanted the glory without the responsibility.  They wanted resurrection without the cross. 

Detecting this problem, Jesus tells two stories from the Old testament, one about the widow of Zarapheth, and the other about Naaman the Syrian. These two people were non-Jews, non-Jews who received healing and blessing and miracles from the God of the Jews, while Jews were passed up and deprived of blessing and miracle because of their lack of faith.

In relating these stories what is Jesus saying here, first to the people of Nazareth and secondly to us? Just because you are from Nazareth doesn’t mean you will inherit the kingdom. Salvation requires faith, it requires discipleship.

Jesus’ miracles, as our school kids point out, are to help us know and follow Jesus. Sometimes I think we are deprived of miracles for good reason, because God knows that we’ll receive the miracle and then go right back to the life of sin and unbelief.

Incited by Jesus’ insinuations, the townsfolk rose up, and drove him to the edge of a cliff to kill him. A few minutes ago they were saying how great he was, praising the gracious words coming from his lips; now they were filled with murderous fury? Why?  Jesus exposed some darkness in them, some hard-heartedness. And some people are not willing to change.   Jesus did not come to satisfy selfish requests. But rather, to help us, once and for all to overcome all selfishness, and to show us that it is the path of self-sacrifice and Christian belief which leads to heaven. 

This has everything to do with who we are as members of the Christian Church in this 21st century.  For we can easily fall into the same trap as the people of Nazareth, we can start to take Jesus for granted, or we can become bitter or angry when God doesn’t grant us miracles on our terms. We, like the citizens of Nazareth, all too easily driven Jesus to the fringes to throw Jesus off the cliff, so we didn’t have to think about him, so he wouldn’t prick our consciences, so we wouldn’t have to change our life, so we wouldn’t have to get off the couch.

The saints and the Christians you know have not driven Jesus to the fringes. Rather, through lives of  prayer, lives of service, they live in grateful response to have received salvation in Jesus Christ.  For the thrust of the Christian life is gratitude for already having received the miracle, the only miracle, that in the end truly matters: the gift of new life through baptism, the second chance at heaven. That’s the miracle. The most important miracle. The revivification of souls dead in sin brought about by Jesus’ own self-sacrifice, his suffering and death on the cross.

This is why weekly mass is essential for Christians. Without weekly mass we begin to take that miracle for granted, Our Lord’s self-sacrifice, his suffering and death for granted. And then we know how easily worldly preoccupations can creep in, Christian devotion are set aside, Christian service is left for others. Soon, the things of the world take on greater importance than the things of God. And our souls begin to separate from the source of life and goodness.

When we receive the Lord in faith, we begin to become our best-selves. We begin to see the amazing miracles God is working in the world now. May we make the choice to believe in the miracle of new life through Jesus, and change our lives accordingly, that he might make us his instruments of bringing sight to the blind, liberty to captives, and good news to the poor for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

3rd Week in OT 2019 - Friday - God causes the growth

On Wednesday we heard from Mark’s Gospel the great parable of the sower: a parable to explain Jesus’ earthly ministry and the different responses he encountered. Through his preaching of the Gospel, the Lord was scattering seed, preaching to all who would hear him. Some would ignore his teaching, some would initially accept it, even enthusiastically, but would abandon it because of their rocky hearts; some would accept it, but the thorns of their worldly and sinful attachments would cause the gospel message to be choked in their hearts. Some would rightly cultivate their minds and hearts, to make their souls rich soil for the reception of the Gospel, and these ones would bear fruit for the kingdom of God.

Today’s reading contains two parables. The first speaks not so much about our individual responsibility in cultivating the soil of our souls, not so much the work that we must do, and the efforts that we must make. Today’s first parable deals with God’s work, what God does in the soul. In this parable of the seed sprout and growing in a way that is mysterious even to the farmer, Our Lord teaches us that our growth in holiness and the growth of the Church is ultimately God’s work.

St. Paul alluded to this parable when he said, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth. Therefore, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who causes growth.” Christian humility acknowledges that God is the one who brings about growth and blessings and holiness.

But this parable also serves as an encouragement for those who think their efforts are fruitless. When we don’t see a parish growing as we would like, when we don’t see a lapsed catholics return to the church as we’d like, when we don’t see ourselves excelling in a particular virtue as we’d like, we are encouraged by this parable to keep the faith, and allow God to work according to God’s timeline.

We must do our part: preaching, teaching, engaging in works of charity, examining our consciences and repenting of our sins. And we must not allow our egos or personal preferences to get in the way of the work God wants to do. For true renewal, true spiritual growth involves allowing God to be God, to lead us out of our selfishness, to surprise us in our preconceptions, to bring us out of comfort zones, to transform us into saintly witnesses of his goodness, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That every member of the Church may cultivate minds, hearts, and souls to receive the Word of God more deeply and fruitfully.

That leaders of nations may find guidance in the Word of God for proper governance and the pursuit of justice for all.

That Christian families may be places where the Word of God is studied, understood, obeyed, and cherished.

During this Catholic Schools Week, for the students, teachers, staff, and alumni of St. Ignatius School and all of our Catholic Schools.

That the word of God may bring consolation to all those who suffer: for the sick, those affected by inclement weather or political turmoil, the indigent, those who will die today, and those who grieve.

For the deceased members of our families and parishes, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, and for N., for whom this Mass is offered.

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