September 30 2020 - St. Jerome - Studying, Cherishing, and Practicing God's Word

Each year, we celebrate the feast of St. Jerome, the great doctor of the Church. Doctors of the Church are so-called because the word doctor comes from the latin word “docere” which means “to teach”, and the doctors of the Church have something important to teach all Christians, of all places, of all times.

St. Jerome, the great translator of the Hebrew and Greek bible into the latin Vulgate, teaches us that “ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ” And that is true for all Christians—Christians must know the scriptures so that they may know Christ as he wishes to be known.

“Blessed indeed is the man…whose delight is the law of the lord, who ponders it day and night”. The Christian recognizes, as the psalm says, that the scriptures are more valuable than gold or silver. 

Reading and pondering the scriptures is as important for our souls as food is for our bodies, for as the Lord himself said, we shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”

The Scriptures deepen our understanding of the things of God, as Psalm 119 says, “the unfolding of God’s word gives light, it imparts wisdom and understanding to the simple.” The light of the scriptures helps to purify our minds from our worldly ways of thinking, it detaches us from loving the things of the world, and teaches us to value the love and wisdom of God. When we study the scriptures and ponder them and internalize them, we become like the wise head of the household extolled by the Lord in the Gospel, who “brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.” We become like the blessed mother who “ponders in her heart” the words and actions of Jesus her Son. 

Paul gives us even more reasons to be versed in the Scriptures, as we heard in his letter to Timothy this morning, “Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” And it gives us hope in chaotic times, as Paul says, what is written is written for our encouragement…that we might have encouragement through the Scriptures (Romans 15:4).” So in chaotic times, we need more scripture study, not less.

Often, too,  we are afraid of sharing our faith and teaching our faith to the ignorant, but Paul says, if you read and study the scriptures you will be equipped for these things.

But most importantly, as St. Jerome would say, knowledge of scripture gives us knowledge of Jesus himself. We become accustomed to the way he thinks, to the divine logic, to his humility, and his love for humanity. Through the Scriptures we get a glimpse of his heart, and hear his heart speaking to ours.

Daily, the scriptures need to be held in our hands, uttered by our lips, and pondered in our hearts. May May we cherish God’s word today and all days, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That all Christians may be equipped for every good work by the word of God, that through our love of the scriptures we may grow in wisdom and courage to share the good news.

For the success of our parish RCIA programs, that the uninitiated may seek God and answer his call to holiness. 

For our young people, that they may be raised in homes where the Word of God is studied, cherished, and practiced. Let us pray to the Lord.

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 families, friends, and parish, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, and for N., 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.

September 29 2020 - St. Michael, Gabriel, Raphael - Invoking the Archangels

When we recite the Creed at every Sunday Mass, we profess God as the Creator of “all things visible and invisible.” The “invisible” refers to the nonmaterial, the creatures of pure spirit, known as angels. The Catechism says, “The existence of the spiritual, non-corporeal beings that Sacred Scriptures usually calls ‘angels’ is a truth of faith.” The angels are called in the letter to the Hebrews “ministering spirits” because “With their whole being the angels are servants of God”

Today we celebrate the feast of the Archangels, Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael.  

All Angels are ministering servants of God, but the Archangels are entrusted with very special missions. 

It was an angel that brought the message of the birth of Samson, but it was the Archangel Gabriel who announced the incarnation of the Son of God. Every angel works to drive back the darkness of evil, but it as the Archangel Michael who was placed by God as Prince of the Heavenly army who drove the Lucifer and the rebellious angels out of heaven. The angels bring healing, and cheer, and inspiration, and protection; but it was the Archangel Raphael who brought healing to the blind Tobit and accompanied Tobias on his special journey.

Since we returned to public masses after Pentecost, we have been praying after mass on Tuesdays and Fridays the so-called Leonine prayers which include the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel. This prayer was composed by Pope Leo XIII after the holy Pope had a terrifying vision of the gathering demonic forces which spurned such great hatred for Catholicism during the 20th century. Pope Leo XIII lived in a time when Masonic, godless, anti-clerical, anti-church forces were congregating in Europe, spreading not only error, but physical violence toward Catholics.

And so he composed the St. Michael prayer, which was to be invoked for the protection of the Church, as Michael is truly the great angelic protector and our defender against the powers of evil—the powers of temptation which afflict all of us, and the powers of evil which seek the ruin of the Church.

Now more than ever we need to invoke these heavenly helpers. For, out of all the angels of heaven, God made the names and work of these archangels known to us because God wants us to call upon their help. For just as Michael was successful at driving the devil and the rebellious angels out of heaven, as we heard in our first reading, God will continue to use Michael to drive back the powers of hell which afflict us, He’ll continue to use Gabriel to help us deliver clearly the Gospel message, and He’ll continue to use Raphael to bring the healing the world so desperately needs.

We should invoke these three archangels every day: for healing, for the ability to communicate the Gospel well, and to drive back the powers of hell for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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Through the intercession of St. Raphael may all who suffer from loneliness or sickness know the healing graces of our loving God.  We pray to the Lord.

Through the intercession of St. Gabriel, may God’s strength be with all those who work for the Spread of the Gospel.  We pray to the Lord.

Through the intercession of St. Michael, may all who are persecuted for the faith be protected against the wickedness and snares of the devil.  We pray to the Lord.

For safety in our city this evening as the presidential candidates gather for debate, that St. Michael patron of police officers will protect those who are tasked with protecting us, that Gabriel may help them communicate well, and Raphael may bring healing to our divided nation.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased clergy  and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray.

Heavenly Father, may our prayers rise like a pleasant fragrance before you and be brought to your altar on high through the hands of your holy angels. Through Christ Our Lord.

September 28 2020 - Good King Wenceslaus - Setting holy example despite resistance

Today we celebrate the feast of Good King Wenceslaus, the very same King Wenceslaus about whom the Christmas Carol is written: “Good King Wenceslas looked out On the feast of Stephen” and so on. The Christmas carol tells the story of the King and his page on a journey as they brave the harsh winter weather, when they observe a poor man collecting wood. Wenceslaus asks his page to find out where the poor man lives and to gather meat, drink, and firewood so that they can bring it to the poor man's home. Although there is no mention of Christmas in this traditional Christmas carol, its message of kindness and generosity to the less fortunate certainly embodies the Christmas spirit and the virtues of this good king who lived in the beginning of the 8th century.

Wenceslaus was the son of the Christian Duke of Bohemia whose own father had been converted to Christianity by Saints Cyril and Methodius. So, Christianity did not yet have deep roots in his country. His mother in fact, was a pagan and a very cruel woman, hostile to the new faith. 

So Wenceslaus was educated in the true faith by his holy grandmother, and from a young age developed a very strong devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. Never underestimate the importance of holy grandmothers!

When his father died, Wenceslaus was still a minor, so his mother assumed the government, and she passed a series of anti-Christian laws, persecuting Christianity.  In the interest of the faith, and at the encouragement of his grandmother, Wenceslaus claimed and obtained the support of a large portion of his countrymen, and had his mother exiled.  

His mother allied herself with another son, Boteslaus, a Pagan, and plotted to one day kill Wenceslaus. 

But under the good Christian King, the faith began to flourish, especially due to the good king’s example. On the feasts of the dedication of the churches in various cities, the king would visit those cities to attend mass and give alms to the poor.

Well, one Sunday, on the Feast of Saints Cosmas and Damian, Wenceslaus entered a city sill loyal to his brother Botelsaus.  And after hearing Mass, Boteslaus struck Wenceslaus with a sword, while two of his counselors stabbed Wenceslaus to death, murdering him at the entrance to the church.

In the Gospel for this feast, we hear of the Lord’s own prophecy of how He will be a source of division even in families. This was certainly true in the family of today’s Saint. He sought to unify his countrymen under the banner of the Christian faith. And even though he knew that some conspired against him, that did not keep him from deep faith: deep devotion to the Eucharist and commitment to the works of mercy. Emboldened by his example and assisted by his heavenly intercession, May we do the same, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That religious indifference in our country and around the world may be transformed to radical commitment to the Gospel of Christ.

For the transformation of all attitudes which lead to war, violence, racial hatred, and religious persecution.

For the conversion of Atheists, hardened sinners, lapsed Catholics, and the conversion of all hearts.

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, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased clergy and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, you 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.

26th Sunday in OT 2020 - The Humble Self-Emptying of the Son of God

Our second reading is one of my favorite passages in the entire New Testament and one of the most precious texts in our Christian Tradition: the second chapter of St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians. It’s not exactly clear from the English translation, but this passage contains one of the earliest Christian hymns in existence: a song about Christ—his incarnation, death, and exaltation.

The hymn starts with the Son of God in heaven prior to his incarnation. For remember, the three persons of the Trinity existed from all ages. And so the hymn begins with explaining how God the Son was humble before the Father from all ages. And then it speaks of the Son’s incarnation—his self-emptying, taking on our frail humanity, taking the form of a slave: Jesus’ humble, obedient death on the cross. Then it speaks of the Son’s Exaltation: the son, who humbled himself unto death, is exalted by God the Father. So that his name—the name of Jesus— is made known throughout all the earth, at which every knee shall bend.

Scholars believe that Paul didn’t actually compose this hymn himself. Rather, scholars believe that the hymn predated Paul’s letter. At that’s pretty profound, since Paul’s letter to the Philippians was written about the year 55 AD, just about 20 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. So, the earliest Christians, before even any of the Gospels were written, were already singing about how Jesus’ humility led to his exaltation. 

Humility appears, over and over, to be the Lord’s favorite virtue. The Son willingly humbles himself to the will of his father and takes human flesh to save us from our sins. He is born not in a palace, but in a humble stable. He lived in the obscure village of Nazareth. He had the menial job of a carpenter. During His public ministry, he did not lord the fact that he was God over his disciples, rather, he slept on the same desert ground as they, the Son of Man had nowhere to lay His head.  He took his meals with the outcasts, laid hands on the lepers.  And He allowed himself to be scourged, and mocked, and put to death as a criminal. Jesus’ humility is beyond comprehension.

Why does Paul include this profound early Christian hymn in his letter? Well, he explains why. In the Church is going to be built up and preserved from sinful division, if the Gospel mission is going to be successful, Christians, must possess the same attitude that is also in Christ Jesus. What attitude? Well, the attitude that is on display in the hymn. Humility. Practice, practice, practice, toward one another and toward non-believers, humility.

“Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves.” Humbly regard others as more important than yourselves. Well, that’s a different way of going about life than our culture proposes, isn’t it? Treat the waitress as if she’s more important than you. Treat your neighbor as if he’s more important than you. Treat the janitor, the trashman, the homeless beggar, as if they are more important than you. Serve them. Wash their feet. Feed them. Visit the prisoner.

Humble service is to be the hallmark of the Christian, and that is in great contrast to the way of the world. Treat the slave the same as a king? Serve both as if you were serving Christ himself. Quite different from the athlete worship, the politician worship, the Hollywood actor worship, the wealthy elite worship, of our culture.

One of the famous lines of John Milton’s Paradise lost has Satan, the devil, standing before God and saying, “non serviam”, the latin for, “I will not serve”. Satan is like the son in the gospel today, who initially gives the impression that he will serve, but in the end, refuses.  Jesus, on the other hand, says I have come not to be served, but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many.  

Jesus’ humility is in striking contrast, to the pride of Lucifer.  Lucifer, created as an angel of great intellect and beauty desired to be higher in heaven, he wanted to take God’s place, he did grasp at godliness.  Satan wanted to Lord power over the other angels and over creation, so he led a rebellion against God and God’s faithful angels.  Of course there was really no contest, Satan was cast out of heaven, he fell like lightning.  But, in his malice, Satan tempted Adam and Even in the garden with that same sin.  He told them that they could not be happy unless they grasp at the fruit, they couldn’t be happy unless they grasp at godliness for themselves, instead of humbly submitting to God’s plan. And he tempts each one of us with that same sin: grasp at happiness, even if it means ignoring the commandments of God.

Rather, Jesus shows us another way. Instead of grasping at godliness from a tree, just humbly submits to the Divine Will on a tree. Happiness comes not in sitting in the seat of power, but taking the place of the humble servant. There can be no exaltation, no resurrection, no eternal life, without humility.

So, practically, how is God calling you to practice humility, to imitate the humility of Jesus? Well, that’s something you need to personally pray about, isn’t it? Each of us needs to allow the holy spirit to illuminate those parts of our life which are governed by pride. For pride is often a blind spot until someone points it out. And the Holy Spirit is ready to help us identify: where have I been prideful? In what relationships, in what interactions, in what pursuits am I refusing to serve God? Am I seeking to only serve myself, am I seeking to be served instead of serving?

These week, the Church celebrates the feast of one of the great saints of humility, St. Therese the Little Flower. Here is a young religious, born in obscurity, like Jesus, who dedicated her life to doing small things with great love. For sharing with us her spirituality of humble service, she is now honored as a doctor of the Church—meaning she has something to teach all Christians, of all places, of all times—and offers us an important remedy for our sins.

In her autobiography, St. Therese wrote, “I applied myself above all to practice quiet hidden little acts of virtue; thus I liked to fold the mantles forgotten by the Sisters, and sought a thousand opportunities of rendering them service.” She does something, a lot of somethings, with great love, knowing that they are pleasing to God. She knew she would likely not get any earthly credit for what she was doing. No one would like be able to trace the hidden acts of love back to her, and yet, she knew God saw them, and that is the way to holiness.

God smiles upon those small acts of love, which puts the needs of others before our own. And through those acts of charity, God can enflame our hearts with a burning love and heavenly joy that nothing else in the world can provide.

What a wonderful week to practice a thousand little acts of kindness. And if not a thousand. How about a dozen? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could return to mass next week, knowing that you did a dozen hidden acts of love, that only God could see. Try it.

As we come forward today to the receive the Eucharist, we recognize Jesus who has emptied himself—who has so humbled himself to become food that is gnawed and digested.  But he does so, that we may be strengthened in holiness, that we may emulate his own self-emptying and humble service to the Father. May we become what we receive, to quote St. Augustine: Eucharist, humbly broken and poured out for others, humbly offered to the Father, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

25th Week in OT 2020 - Friday - A time for everything (School Mass)

 I’ve been able to say hello to some of you in the parking lot in the mornings before school, but I’m very happy to greet you all for the first time, albeit virtually, and to wish you all a very blessed new school year.

This is a year unlike any other years, isn’t it? Virtual classrooms, social distancing. And I don’t think we could have a more relevant first reading than we did this morning. So, relevant to the strange circumstances in which education must occur this year. 

Ecclesiastes says, there is an appointed time for everything, a time for everything under the heavens.  

“A time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.” Most schools years fall into that first category, don’t they? A time for embrace—of being close to each other. The word embrace literally means, being able to throw your arms around a friend or a loved one. And now, about half of our students are not able to join us in person, quite yet. And, sadly, we have to avoid the physical contact we are used to.

It is a time to be far from embraces. Most of our families even are forced to be far from embraces. We can’t just go and throw our arms around our cousins or aunts and uncles or grandparents. And that’s terribly sad.

But, this reading from ecclesiastes reminds us that through all these different changing times and seasons of life and human history, even very strange times like the one we live in now, God is working in our lives. God is bigger, God is stronger, than even our worst problems. 

And what is God doing? What is God doing even now in this time of sickness, this time where we must be far from embraces?. God is at work, the book of ecclesiastes says, to put the timeless into our hearts.

What does that mean? That means when we are living through good times, God is at work to make us holy. And when we are going through bad times or difficult times or terrible times, God is at work to make us holy. God wants to make us holy whether we are in peace times or at war, whether we are rejoicing over the wonderful things happening to us, or we are mourning over the very sad things.

Ecclesiastes says that God is at work, often, without us discovering what he is doing. Often, and especially when we are going through difficult times, like we are right now, it is hard to know what God is doing. It’s hard to fathom that anything good can come out of evil. It is hard to see the hand of God. It is hard to imagine just what good God can bring out of social distancing, distance learning, quarantine.

There is an old saying that absence makes the heart grow fonder. In other words, being far from embraces, as ecclesiastes puts it, helps us to value and be grateful for the times that we are able to be together and share embraces. God wants to help us see goodness everywhere and in all people. God wants us to work to bring goodness out of every evil and to love and cherish every person—every human life. Ecclesiastes reminds us to make the best use of the time that we’ve been given, and that always means, looking for God, praying to God, and valuing the things of God. 

I’d rather that all of you would be able to join me in church today, but, perhaps, God is teaching all of us to value being in Church more than we did, when we could come here freely.

The theme for this school year is “go out to all the world and tell the good news”, with the help of the Holy Spirit, may we continue to look for creative ways to do that, even with the constraints upon us, to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the time that we’ve been given, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That we may use the time, talent, and treasure with which they’ve been blessed, to grow in the timeless virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Let us pray to the Lord.

For blessings upon the teachers and staff of St. Ignatius of Antioch Elementary, that they may strive to share their knowledge with gentle patience and endeavor always to bring the truth to eager minds. Let us pray to the Lord.

For parents, the first teachers of their children, that their faith and love may be an example to their children always. Let us pray to the Lord Let us pray to the Lord.

For students: that they may use their God given gifts and talents to apply themselves diligently to their studies, for peace and harmony among them, and the flowering of the Gifts of every spiritual gift. Let us pray to the Lord.

That all of our homes may be places where the timeless word of God is studied, cherished, and practiced Let us pray to the Lord.

For an end to oppression, racism, hatred, addiction and injustice. For those most profoundly impacted by the coronavirus, for first responders, the underemployed and unemployed, and the healing of all the sick Let us pray to the Lord.

For the deceased members of our family, friends, and parish, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, and for N. …for whom this Mass is offered. Let us pray to the Lord.

O God, you know that present life 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.

September 23 2020 (Ember Day) - St. Padre Pio - Mystical Phenomena (Padre Pio Academy EF Mass)

I like to wish you all a very happy feast day of the patron of your school, St. Padre Pio. I have to be honest, I do not know why, in fact, your school is under the patronage of St. Pio, and you all have probably studied his life, and know that he did have a truly remarkable life filled with many amazing mystical phenomena.

He could bilocate, that is, he could appear at two places at once, hundreds of miles apart, in order to deliver a message, or a word of comfort or challenge to someone. He could heal people like Our Lord, in the Gospels. Laying his hands on the sick, they would be immediately healed. He could even heal with his prayers. He would get a letter, and pray for that person, and they would be healed, even if they were on the other side of the globe.

Padre Pio, like St. John Vianney, often heard confessions for ten or twelve hours a day. He could read the hearts of the penitents, knowing their sins before they confessed them, or if they had forgotten a particular sin, or was too ashamed to confess a particular sin. Sometimes when he absolved the sins of a great sinner, he would experience great agony, the pains of Jesus’ crucifixion very deeply, a reminder that we are only able to be absolved because of what Jesus suffered for us.

And of course, Padre Pio had the mystical stigmata, the wounds of the Lord’s crucifixion in his hands. And he suffered greatly from them. When asked if the stigmata were painful, Padre Pio replied, "Do you think that the Lord gave them to me for a decoration?"

Why did God give Padre Pio these strange and marvelous mystical phenomena? One reason was for Padre Pio’s own sanctification. God chose him to bear a share of the cross in a unique way, to merit grace for his own soul and the souls of others.

This is certainly a reminder that every Christian is to embrace the suffering given to him from God, as a share in the cross of Jesus for the salvation of the world.

Also, those amazing mystical phenemona—the bilocation, reading of hearts, and miraculous healing—are a reminder of the amazing things God can do in our lives when we love God with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength. The Lord Jesus even said that not only would we do the miraculous works he did in his ministry, but even other things, greater things, he said. We need to be open to God doing amazing things through us, by surrendering to God and uniting our lives with God to the best of our ability.

Thirdly, Padre Pio’s mystical phenomena are to help the world know that God is real and that God loves us and invites us to a share in his own life through faith and communion with His Son.

And really, that’s the mission of Padre Pio Academy isn’t it? To form disciples to share in the sufferings and mission of Christ, to help you young people to love God with your whole hearts, so that you can help the world know that God is real and calls humanity to believe in His Son.

In the old liturgical calendar today is an Ember Day. One of the special days of penance that occur four times a year around the changing of the seasons. Ember days are penitential in character: the priest wears penitential purple, the gloria is omitted, there is an extra scripture reading, which are all a little longer than a normal ferial day, there was no alleluia. We are kneeling for a little longer throughout the mass. What a fitting day to share with Padre Pio. For on this ember day we get to engage that activity that made him holy, a little extra penance, a little extra prayer.

Growth in holiness, making God’s goodness and love known to the world involves real effort. To quote Padre Pio himself, "The life of a Christian is nothing but a perpetual struggle against self; there is no flowering of the soul to the beauty of its perfection except at the price of pain". 

The flowering in Padre Pio’s soul which blossomed into such tremendous holiness, came because he willingly accepted those sufferings which came from God, he turned away from all selfishness, and embraced God’s Divine Will. May we do the same, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

25th Week in OT 2020 - Psychology of mental change & Evangelization

 Last week, I spoke a bit about the sin of rash judgment, how it is very easy for us to form judgments about people without the necessary facts, and to dismiss them or discredit them due to that rash judgment. The Pharisees, I mentioned, discredited Jesus—he couldn’t possibly be a prophet or teacher—because he ate sinners, his disciples appeared to break the sabbath. There are very few people in the Gospels, for example, who initially dismissed Jesus and then changed their minds about him. The only person who comes to mind is Paul, and he only changes his mind when he is struck down on the road to Damascus and the Resurrected Lord appears to him personally.

Changing our minds after a rash judgment is terribly difficult--admitting we were wrong about something or someone is difficult. For something happens in our brains when we decide something is true. Our brains give us a little psychological reward, when we decide that something is true. Our brain really likes being right about things. And it’s psychologically difficult to reverse a judgment—you literally need to change the structure of your brain—and the brain resists that. In fact, the brain will look for more and more proof to support its original judgment than to reverse it.

Where am I going with this? In the first reading, the book of proverbs differentiates between the wicked man and the righteous man. And remarkably proverbs here says something about the psychology of the wicked,  “All the ways of a man may be right in his own eyes, but it is the LORD who proves hearts.” What proverbs is saying here, is that it is quite possible for a person to believe they are right about everything, and still be wrong about everything. They might think they know the best way to fix a car, and still be wrong. They might think they know the best way to raise children, and still be wrong. They might think they know all about God or the Church and still be wrong. They might think they know the right way to live, and still be wrong.

And it is difficult to convert people like this. People who are convinced they are right about everything, are often wrong about so much. Again, the Pharisees, they thought they were the religious authorities, that their interpretation of Scripture was superior and authentic. And yet, the Lord exposes their blind spots, “you blind guides” he calls them, “you fools”. They thought they were the experts on God, but did not recognize God when he was standing in front of them performing miracles. 

Rather, the Christian, must always be open to correction by the Word of God. To be a disciple is to always be learning from Jesus—learning how we are to not only be hearers of the word, but doers of the word. 

But when we are doers of the word, we are able to reach those souls who have hardened their hearts toward Jesus and the Church. 

We strive be to show them Jesus—like Paul seeing the Lord on the road to Damascus—in our words and our deeds, not just as hearers of the word, but doers of the word, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the members of the Church may seek to be not just hearers of the word but doers of the word Let us pray to the Lord.

For the conversion of those who have hardened their hearts toward Jesus and his bride the Church, and for the conversion of all hearts.

During this month of September, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for all those who grieve, and that we may grieve sufficiently for our sins.

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

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

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.

September 21 2020 - St. Matthew - Becoming Vessels of Mercy

Matthew was a rather unlikely character to be called by Jesus as an apostle, but then again, one could say that about the group of unremarkable fishermen.  Matthew was a Jew who collected taxes from his fellow Jews on behalf of the occupying Roman forces.  

The Jews considered the occupation of a tax-collector an outrageous disgrace, as they were known cheating their own kind and working for the enemy; tax collectors were named in one breath along with murderers, assassins, thieves, robbers, criminals, and prostitutes. People were shocked to hear Jesus call such a man into his band of intimate followers.   Shocking, too would have been the Lord’s teaching that tax-collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God” before the Sadducees and Pharisees, those who considered themselves to be good pious Jews.

The Call of Matthew, the tax-collector, is a reminder that all people, from all walks of life, no matter your sinful past, are called to follow Jesus in the ways of righteousness. Tax-collectors and prostitutes were entering the kingdom of God before the Sadducees and Pharisees precisely because they were willing to give up their former lives, their preconceived

notions about God, and their sins and follow Jesus. 

As the Lord entered the house of the tax collector in order to invite Matthew to conversion and discipleship, the Lord sends us into the houses and lives of our neighbors and fallen-away family members who do not follow Christ, to invite them to new life of Christ. 

This certainly requires great humility on our part, that we may never appear self-righteous. Our effectiveness in calling others to Christ, is proportional to our identification with Him and union with Him in grace and mercy. “I require mercy, not sacrifice” is the call for each one of us to embody mercy. 

The Sadducees and Pharisees did not understand Jesus and recognize him as God because they did not understand mercy. They were unwilling to become vessels of mercy.

But when we cultivate mercy, through works of charity animated by faith, “with all humility and gentleness, with patience,” as St. Paul writes we become effective instruments of the Lord in calling sinners to righteousness, in building up the Church, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the members of the Church may seek every deeper union with the Lord through the works of mercy, humility, gentleness, and peace. Let us pray to the Lord.

For all those trapped in cycles of sin or addiction, that they may heed the Lord’s invitation to forgiveness and freedom.

For an end to indifference to God and human dignity in our government and educational institutions, businesses, and personal attitudes.

During this month of September, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for all those who grieve, and that we may grieve sufficiently for our sins.

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

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

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.

25th Sunday in OT 2020 - Deathbed Repentance and the Invitation to Grace

One of my favorite books and one I have read on multiple occasions is the epic novel by Catholic Author Evelyn Waugh’s titled Brideshead Revisited, the Sacred and Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder. The book begins with the titular character, Charles Ryder, a Captain in the British Army during World War II encamped on a large estate in the British countryside called Brideshead. He had been here before, for years prior, while a young student at Oxford, Charles had befriended, Sebastian, the son of a wealthy English Lord and owner of Brideshead, Lord Marchmain. So now, Captain Ryder looks back upon the happiness, and loss, and drama, and grace he encountered there—he revisits his memories, hence the title, “Brideshead Revisited”

In the course of the novel we discover that Lord Marchmain was a real scoundrel. He estranged himself from his devout Catholic family and was living in Venice, sharing a roof with his Italian mistress, and living a truly profane lifestyle, devoid of all religion, focused on the pursuit of carnal pleasure, almost as if he were intentionally trying to flee from God.

Well, near the end of the book, Lord Marchmain, having reached the end of his life, returns home to Brideshead and to his family, in order to die in the place and with the people he once cherished. Marchmain’s devout family sends for a priest to absolve the dying Lord of his sins and to administer the last rites, but Marchmain, still running away from God sends the priest away. This grieves the family, of course, deeply, as this rejection of the priest and absolution, is akin to rejection of God, and so they worry for Marchmain’s eternal soul, whose eternal soul now hangs in the balance. So the family fasts and prays assiduously, as Lord Marchmain quickly approached his final hour. Marchmain grows so weak, he cannot open his eyes. Hoping for a miracle, the family summons the priest once again. And then the miracle occurs. Marchmain, who had been too weak to even open his eyes, lifts his arm to make the sign of the cross as the priest absolved him, and he died in God’s grace.

Captain Ryder, who had been an atheist, mocked the idea of faith and a God who would forgive a man who betrayed his family and spent decades pursuing carnal pleasure, who could be forgiven with a simple sign of the cross in his dying moment. And yet, now, at the end of the book, looking at the strange tapestry of his life, Ryder identified that moment, that sign of the cross from a dying man, as the moment where he began to believe. And he enters the chapel of the mostly dilapidated Brideshead mansion, and genuflects before the tabernacle.

I always think of that scene in relation to the Gospel passage for this weekend. For, in the parable of the workers in the vineyard, the Lord conveyed a number of very important lessons about accepting the grace of God before the day runs out.

The first lesson is that that grace is available to everyone. This would be a difficult lesson for Jesus’ Jewish audience. For the Jews possessed a very special relationship with God throughout human history, they were like those workers who had been working in the vineyard since the beginning of the work day. And they would have to come to accept that God’s grace and the invitation to membership in God’s kingdom through Jesus, was now being offered to the Gentiles, all the races of the earth. So, they should not complain, demanding a higher wage or special status. Rather, they should welcome the latecomers into the fellowship of God’s kingdom with open arms. 

Secondly, the parable teaches us that sometimes souls accept God’s invitation at different times in their lives. Infants and babies and young children, who are baptized early in life, they are put to work in the vineyard of the Lord quite early—they have the benefit of learning the family business, so to speak, quite early. Some souls accept the invitation only after some rebellious teenage years. For some people, it takes hitting rock bottom due to an addiction, where they realize that God is calling them to something more. For some souls it is after a major crisis, like a death of a loved one, that they realize they need to accept God’s invitation before it is too late. And for some, like Lord Marchmain, it is on the death bed, where God, the fisherman, makes that final tug of the line, gives that final opportunity to accept his grace. We should never stop inviting souls to join in the Lord’s work, for the Lord uses us to make the invitation.

But, thirdly, this parable also hints at the urgency to accept the invitation to grace. For the work day does in fact come to a close. The sun finally does set. Human life and human history will come to an end when no more will be hired. And for those souls who do not accept the invitation to work for God by life’s end, there will be eternal consequences. There would have been eternal consequences for Lord Marchmain if he had refused to repent and believe in the Gospel. There is no chance for repentance once the sun of life sets. One of the great pains of those in hell is that they know they rejected the invitation of God, they know things could have been different, and they know it’s all their fault. For, there is not a soul in hell to whom God did not give ample opportunity for salvation. So we should urge souls not to put off conversion, lest death take them by surprise and find them unrepentant. And each of us must seek to grow in holiness with the time that we’ve been given.

For as Isaiah says in our first reading, “seek the Lord when he can be found, Let the scoundrel forsake his way, let him turn to the LORD for mercy”. Accepting the invitation to know God, to love him, and to serve him with the time we have available is the most important thing in life. So we must fast and pray and invite, like the members of the Marchmain household for their initially unrepentant father.

Perhaps, this is also a good reminder, to make sure your family knows your desire to send for a priest when the Lord calls you home. And you never know, as you lay dying, the Lord may wish to use your faith, to touch the hearts of unbelieving family members, like Charles Ryder in the story. 

There are many dear Catholics who have been deprived a Catholic funeral because their non-practicing family members don’t want to go to all that trouble. So make sure your end-of-life requests are clearly made known to your family.

At the 11 am Mass, I will be administering the Sacrament of Confirmation upon eight of our parishioners, eight people, eight very different people, who recognized at this time an invitation from the Lord to grow in Sacramental Grace. Through the Sacrament of Confirmation, the bond they share with the Church is strengthened, their openness to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit’s gifts is deepened. The Lord made the invitation to grace, and they responded. They are a wonderful example to all of us, that no matter where we are in life, God is calling us to holiness, and God wants to put us to work.

Our prayers are with Matthew, Andrew, Tarryn, Serenity, Samantha, Deanna, Danica, and Destiny, that the manifest gifts of the Holy Spirit may flourish in their lives, and that they may be a reminder to all of us, to respond to the Lord’s invitation, to seek the Lord when he may be found, and be generous in offering our time, talent, and treasure in service of the Lord’s work, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

24th Week of OT 2020 - Friday - Jesus' unconventional followers and benefactors

 

We often speak of the ways that Jesus shattered the social convention and religious expectation of his day. The pious Jews of Jesus’ day greatly anticipated and deeply longed-for the arrival of the Messiah. But the Messiah turned out to look and talk and act a lot different than what they expected. He was born in a barn to unknown parents without anyone knowing. He grew up, not in a palace, but in a home of a carpenter. He dressed not in fine linens and jewels, but in the ordinary garb of the working class. His retinue, too, were not the powerful and the well-connected, but as St. Luke tells us this morning, they were comprised of a group of fishermen, tax collectors, and women—poor, socially marginal, and unschooled in their religion.

St. Luke mentions Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna, and many other women as among those who accompanied Jesus. The presence of women—single and married—accompanying an itinerant teacher and his male disciples would have been extraordinary and even scandalous in first-century Palestine. This would be especially true in the case of Joanna because of her public role as wife of Herod’s chief steward. Despite the social pressures and conventions, they followed Him anyway.

These were women who recognized Jesus as the Messiah. Many, if not all of them, had been miraculously healed or delivered by Jesus—like Mary Magdalene—out of whom the Lord had cast out seven demons. Their response to Jesus is certainly contrasted to hard-heartedness of the Scribes and Pharisees—who while witnessing signs of Jesus’ divinity—conspired against him to put him to death.

Notice, too, these remarkable women financially supported the Lord’s work out of their resources, for his ministry. They recognized not only Jesus’ divinity, but his humanity. He still needed to eat. He and his disciples still had temporal needs--just like the Church today still has temporal needs--we need to pay the electric bill.

And it is often through women—like the good women who make up the majority of many parish congregations--who recognize the needs of the Church and contribute from their resources in many and often hidden ways. Thank God for these women!

When I think of this strange and unconventional retinue of the Lord those two thousand years ago, I can’t but help think of how the Lord wishes to use us, in the midst of this changing neighborhood, with its many challenges and hardships, to continue his saving work. 

For, the work of the Church only continues when men and women, rich and poor, the well-connected, the simple,  and the gifted and uneducated utilize their resources, their time, talent, and treasure—to further the mission of the Gospel. May neither social convention, nor fear of failure or ridicule, keep us from doing the Lord’s good work .May each of us consider-well how each of us can generously respond and contribute to the work of the Gospel for the glory of God and salvation of souls. 

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In great gratitude for the benefactors of this parish, and for those who generously provide for the needs of the Church. 

For an end to indifference to God and human dignity in our government and educational institutions, businesses, and personal attitudes.

During this month of September, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for all those who grieve, and that we may grieve sufficiently for our sins.

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, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray.

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.

September 16 2020 - Memorial of Cornelius and Cyprian - The sin of rash judgment

 A teacher sent a note to a pupil’s mother: “Take your son out of school. He is too stupid to learn anything.” The pupil was Thomas Edison, one of America’s greatest inventor.

The Lord Jesus, very early on in his ministry, following a dinner in the house of a tax collector, was labeled, as we heard in the reading today, a drunkard and a glutton. 

This sort of labeling someone without all the facts, or making a claim about a person’s inner intentions, is known as the sin of rash judgment, a sin against the eighth commandment which forbids bearing false witness. The eighth commandment demands that we avoid  misrepresenting the truth in our relations with others.

The teacher misrepresented Thomas Edison. Jesus’ critics misrepresented his presence in the house of the tax collector, seeking to ruin his reputation because they disagreed with his teachings and actions.

I’ve known very good and holy priests who became victims of rash judgment by parishioners who’ve sent letters to the bishop mischaracterizing the priest and his pastoral leadership.

There’s something particularly demonic about this sin, which opposes the truth. We see Satan in the garden twisting the words of God, mischaracterizing God as someone who doesn’t truly care about the welfare of Adam and Eve, “Did he really say this? God just doesn’t want you to become as knowledgeable as He is”. 

Eve was guilty of rash judgment, as she assumed a moral fault about God without sufficient foundation. She took the word of a talking snake. The devil works on us at the same level, working on our imaginations, leading us to assume the worst about people, to label them as inferior so that we can discredit them, close our ears, minds, and hearts toward them, or justify coldness toward them.

Rather, we are called to be bearers of the truth, giving people the benefit of the doubt, being extremely cautious about people’s good names, to respect the reputation of persons, and to avoid every attitude or remark that might cause unjust injury to a person’s reputation. 

What if we are the victim of rash judgment? Well, we bear our wrongs patiently, we trust in the Lord, over and over again the Lord reveals liars for what they are. The resurrection of Jesus is the divine stamp of justice against those who formed rash judgment against the Lord. All will be revealed, all will be righted.

Until then, may we avoid this sin, guarding our lips and tongues and minds from forming rash judgment toward our neighbor, and working to build the kingdom of God’s goodness and peace for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That members of the Church, laity and ordained, will treat each other with the charity, honesty, and respect that the Gospel demands. 

For an end to indifference to God and human dignity in our government and educational institutions, businesses, and personal attitudes.

During this month of September, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for all those who grieve, and that we may grieve sufficiently for our sins.

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, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray.

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.

September 15 2020 - Our Lady of Sorrows - Consolation for the Grieving and Grieving Sufficiently our Sins

Throughout the month of September so far, I have been using as part of our general intercessions a petition to Our Lady of Sorrows, whose feast we celebrate today: that through her intercession the grieving may know the consolation of God, and that all of us might grieve sufficiently for our sins.

From her unique place in the economy of grace and the plan of God, Our Lady uniquely intercedes for the grieving. Seven times in her life, her heart was pierced with sorrow—we speak of the seven sorrows of Mary. And so she has a special compassion for the grieving. Those who grieve never make a mistake in seeking her intercession—like children running to their mother after enduring physical harm or an emotional fright. We bring to her the wounds endured—the wounds of loss—the broken heartedness and shattered earthly hopes that we experience in this valley of tears—this mortal life.

And yet, she also prays constantly for us, who do not grieve sufficiently, that is, for our sins. Her son was born to die for us, he sufferings were on account of our sins. It pains her when we do not weep sufficiently for the sins which led to our separation from God, which led to Christ’s brutal crucifixion.

Saint John Paul II referred many times to our culture’s “loss of the sense of sin”.  When we slough off sin, pretend that it doesn’t matter, claiming that “everyone does it, so it must be okay.”  But no, sin is abhorrent to the goodness of God. And rarely do we sufficiently grieve over the great loss of grace which our sins bring. Mary mourns for those who refuse to look upon the crucifix with contrite hearts.  Mary mourns for the baptized who so often continue to choose the empty promises of the Evil One rather than the life-filled promises of Christ. 

Mourning over sin is the road to beatitudes—blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. For only when we mourn our sins sufficiently, can we really appreciate what Jesus did for us. Psalm 30 speaks of God’s promise to turn our mourning into joyful dancing.

Here at St. Ignatius, Our Legion of Mary is dedicated especially to Our Lady of Sorrows, so this is a special feast for our parish. Members of the Legion and all of us have a special duty to pray for the grieving and to go to their side: to go the grieving, to bedside of the dying, to attend wakes and funerals with those who grieve their deceased relatives and friends. And also the special duty to pray for those who do not grieve their sins—and to go to their side—to approach families members and members of our parish who have stopped going to Church, who do not go to the Sacrament of Confession, to invite them home.

May we never hesitate to turn to our Lady in times of grief, and to ask her intercession to help us grieve and repent rightly, that with her, who participated in the Passion of her Son, may merit with her a share in the resurrection, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

For our newly installed Bishop, that Our Lady’s intercession might bring him great assistance in the great responsibility and challenge of shepherding the diocese of Cleveland.

That our young people may be blessed to be raised in homes where the Gospel is shared, cherished, and practiced.

During this month of September dedicated especially to Our Lady of Sorrows, we pray for those who grieve, and that we might grieve sufficiently for our sins.

For the sick and afflicted, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, for victims of natural disaster and inclement weather, those who suffer from war, violence, and terrorism, for the mentally ill, those with addictions, the imprisoned, the unchaste, for the comfort of the dying and the consolation of their families.

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

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.

 

 

September 14, 2020 - Exaltation of the Holy Cross - Holy Stigmata of St. Francis of Assisi

IN 1224, St. Francis of Assisi traveled with about a dozen of his fellow friars, a hundred or so miles from Rome to an isolated mountaintop called La Verna to make a spiritual retreat. Eating little and praying constantly, it is said that at La Verna Francis did great spiritual battle with the powers of evil, encountering great hostility from the devil, as did the old desert fathers like St. Anthony. But Francis also experienced intense moments of communion with God, even levitating far above the ground in raptured prayer. 

On September 14, 1224, just before sunrise, Francis was kneeling in prayer pleaded, “O Lord, I beg of you two graces before I die: to experience in myself in all possible fullness the pains of your cruel passion and to feel for you the same love that made you sacrifice yourself for us.” Suddenly, from the heights of heaven came a seraph with six wings bearing the likeness of the Crucified One. Staring at Francis, he imprinted on the saint’s flesh the marks of crucifixion, the holy Stigmata.

In this powerful story, St. Francis teaches us something quite profound about today’s liturgical feast and really for the Christian life. On this feast, we pray that the cross may be exalted, literally meaning, brought out into the light, that it may be seen and adored and glorified. The Church exalts the cross, that others may come to know, believe in, and love, the one whom upon the cross brought forth our salvation. 

It is said that when St. Francis contemplated the Crucifixion he used to weep, lamenting that, “Love is not loved.” That the love of Jesus Christ shown forth for us on the cross, is ignored by so many. And so he sought, didn’t he, to conform his life as much as possible—through radical poverty, obedience, chastity, preaching, and fasting, and embracing the sufferings of the cross. St. Francis saw in the Cross the humble, self-emptying love of God for us, and so his one great desire was that in everything, he would be conformed to the cross.

The holy stigmata was certainly a sign that Francis conformed himself to the cross: in experiencing the suffering of the cross, and also experiencing the love Christ showed upon the cross. And here is the lesson: we are called to do the same.

This Feast is to remind us that by our lives, we are meant to do the same: to willingly accept the sufferings that come from God, our share in the cross of Christ, in order to make Christ known, and to be animated by the love that Jesus showed on the cross for all, and to hate everything that keeps us from this purpose.

May we strive to live with this depth of faith, hope, and love in the cross and in the crucified one, that we may make him known in all we do, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

Let us pray with confidence to Christ who endured the cross to redeem us.

That Pope Francis and all of the ordained may seek to conform themselves to Christ Crucified in all of their ministerial efforts, especially Bishop Edward Malesic, who will be installed as the Bishop of Cleveland today.

That politicians and government officials will protect religious freedom, promote virtue, and look to the to the example of our Crucified Lord to guide their work for the good of nations and the human race.

That as Our Lord emptied himself upon the cross, we may follow his example of humility in concrete acts of Christian service.

Through the cross, may God grant fortitude and patience to all who through sickness or hardship have a share in Christ’s passion.

That we may all be led through the Lord’s Passion and Cross to the Glory of the Resurrection, especially N. for whom this Mass is offered.

Graciously hear, O God, the prayers of your Church and turn with compassion to the hearts that bow before you, that those you make sharers in the cross of Christ may never be left without your assistance. Through the same Christ Our Lord.

24th Sunday in OT 2020 - Anger and Forgiveness

What a remarkable coincidence that the readings for this 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time, dealing with Jesus’ teaching on forgiveness, occurs every three years near the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, one of the darkest days of our nation’s history.

Forgiveness was hard that day. Many of us remember, not only where we were, those 19 years ago, but the very strong emotions of sadness and anger. 

I was a first year seminarian in 2001.  And on that overcast autumn day here in Cleveland, a few of us seminarians were on our way to a Philosophy class entitled Philosophy of the Human Person taught by a Capuchin Franciscan Priest, Father Don Lippert who is now the bishop of Papua New Guinea.  In his brown Franciscan robes and brown beard and his peaceful demeanor, he reminded so many of us of Jesus himself.  So we were on our way to class, and another seminarian ran up to us and told us that a plane had just flown into one of the world trade center towers.  We ran to the classroom, and Fr. Lippert told us that class was canceled and we should go watch the news.  So, we went up to the student lounge to watch those terrible events unfold. And, at first, none of us new what was going on, right? None of us thought there would be a second plane. Or news of a crash in Pennsylvania, so close to here. Or an explosion at the Pentagon. We sat glued to the television, watching, and saw that horrific sight of the towers crumbling down, thinking, what just happened?  

When, I had enough, I remember going to my room, thinking of all of the tensions in the middle east at the time, all of the violence, and worry,  that things were just about to get  a lot worse.  And I remember also, the anger inside me.  Here, I lived with 70 men studying for the priesthood, seeking to bring Christ’s peace to human hearts through the Holy Gospel. And compare that with these men who sought to bring terror and death, who had not only disregard for their own souls, but the lives of innocent human beings.  About 3000 people were killed that day at the hand of human wickedness.  Those terrorist attacks continue to haunt us, too, every time we are forced to remove our shoes and belts at the airport.  It is hard not to look at people of middle eastern decent without some modicum of suspicion.  

And for a few weeks, back in 2001, Churches were packed, weren’t they, as people struggled to understand their anger and their hurt?

St. Thomas Aquinas said, “Anger is the natural response to injustice”.  Think of Dr. Martin Luther King , Jr.’s ’s “Anger” at racial inequality in the U.S., or Mahatma Ghandi’s anger over British imperialism, or Pope John Paul II’s anger at communist oppression.    Think of Jesus’ own anger at casting out the money changers. Or the anger over Bishops covering-up the abuse of minors. There was anger over September 11, 2001 because those attacks, the death and destruction was a massive injustice.  

We are hardwired to get angry over injustice. We were designed by God to respond to injustice in this way. And in a sense, we share this quality with God. Scripture speaks over and over about God’s anger toward evil, human wickedness, and injustice. God burns with anger when the people he freed from Egyptian slavery turn to worshipping false gods.  

Anger incites us to work for justice, to prosecute criminals, to overturn unjust laws, such as the laws enabling the destruction of the unborn.  Anger justly motivates us to hold our government leaders accountable for their failure to protect and lead. This sort of anger is legitimate, and a rightly formed conscience experiences this sort of anger in the face of injustice. Rightly ordered anger should stir us out of complacency and fear—to work to set things right.

However, St. Thomas Aquinas also talks about the deadly sin of Anger.  Where legitimate anger is the desire to set things right and is the proper response to injustice, the Deadly sin of anger is the exaggerated or irrational desire for vengeance, to seek justice through irrational means—such as destruction of private property or innocent human life.

How thoroughly Sirach describes the deadly sin of sin of anger in the first reading: “Wrath and anger are hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them tight.”  The deadly sin of anger is addictive, like a drug. It’s like a demon that can possess a person and can consume us and lead us to do terrible things and justify terrible things. We see this sort of anger on full display in some of the destructive riots going on in our country. Yes, there is injustice, but justice cannot be obtained through irrational means. The ends do not justify the means.

Dr. King didn’t promote destruction-- he didn’t want to destroy white America, he wanted to redeem it.  He did not insight terrorism against white America, he sought its righteousness, its perfection.  This differentiates Dr. King from those whose legitimate concern for racial injustice leads to irrational violence.  Yes, King was angered by racial injustice, but it was an anger tethered by love, which wills the good of the other.

Same thing with Ghandi.  He did not want to destroy the British.  He was angry at their oppression of his people, but as he famously said, I want the British to leave as our friends.  And St. John Paul II, did he want to kill all of the communists?  No.  He was angry as anyone over communist oppression, but he wanted them redeemed, to become better people.

Our readings speak to us this Sunday about forgiveness.  Forgiveness doesn’t mean we ignore injustice or forget about injustice. Forgiveness doesn’t mean burying our head in the sand. Forgiveness is able to call an injustice for what it is.  That evil is evil.  Jesus, who forgave from the cross, still called sin for what it is.

Rather, forgiveness is an act of the will, a choice. It is means to choose, “I will not allow the unjust actions of others to keep me from love”  Forgiveness, is to choose, “I will not allow myself to be controlled by bitterness, anger, or resentment.” Yes, sometimes forgiveness means releasing someone from a financial debt. But the Lord shows us the true face of forgiveness, “Even though you crucify me, I still choose to die for you.” It means not returning evil for evil, but seeking the greatest good of the other, no matter how they treat you.

For Jesus, forgiveness is an absolute for the Christian life. We will not be forgiven by God unless we forgive others.  Peter in today’s Gospel asks, how many times should I forgive my brother? Jesus answers, I say to you, not seven times, but seventy times seven times.  The Christian is to practice forgiveness over and over and over and over again, just as God forgives us over and over and over again.

So, we should not go to bed angry, meaning, we should not go to bed with the smallest ounce of bitterness or hatred. If at the end of the day, I can think of a single person toward whom I am holding on to irrational hatred or ill-will toward, I need to release that, to bring that to God for healing. We must wish no ill-will toward anyone, ever.

Through rightly ordered anger—we are motivated to work for an end to injustices—through forgiveness hatred is replaced with peace. May our lives be rightly ordered, may our hearts be filled with peace, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

23rd Week in OT 2020 - Friday - Examining One's Conscience and September 11

It is part of our fallenness to notice the failings of other people but not our own. Some of us have even become experts in criticizing others whereas we seldom reflect on what needs to change in ourselves. We have 20/20 vision when it comes to seeing the mistakes of others, but how often do we honestly turn that critical gaze inward—to the parts of us that God wants to change, heal, or build up? 

The Lord commands us to remove the wooden planks from our eyes, so we can be effective in removing the splinters from others.  But, how do we come remove the planks blinding us?  The saints recommend the frequent practice of the examination of conscience.  On a daily basis, perhaps before getting into bed at night, to examine the events, choices, attitudes, interactions of the day, in light of the teachings of Jesus. 

To think of every person you saw that day, and to ask yourself, did I treat that person with the patience I should have? Did I attend to their needs or focus on my own? Someone once said, “you want to know the measure of a man? watch how he treats a waitress or a cashier.” So, how did I treat the cashiers, the waitresses, the janitors?  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 challenging me to pray?  Where was I selfish with my time today? What blessings was I ungrateful for today?

Having made the daily examination, we also do well to make a big weekly or at least monthly examination. If there’s a sin that I’ve been struggling with on a regular basis, that sin needs to be brought to the sacrament of Confession. Because, in a sense, we can’t remove those planks on our own, we need the Lord’s help. Once the splinter is pulled, we need his healing, we need his help, so that another splinter just doesn’t take its place.

On this anniversary of the September 11 attacks, how can best honor those who died in this senseless tragedy? Certainly by remembering their names, but also, perhaps, to turn the gaze inward, to make use of the time we’ve been given to become the people we are meant to be, to cultivate that inner life, that for them was cut short. If we wish to be a positive force in the world, a force which opposes the evil which led to these attacks, we must confess our sins and grow in virtue that we may be filled with God's grace.

Having examined our consciences and confessed our sins, may we become instruments of the Lord’s healing grace, mercy, and forgiveness to those we meet, that we may run the race well and win that imperishable crown for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Click Here for Examination of Conscience

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That through Our Lady, Queen of Peace, terrorism and war and the cheapening of human life may be brought to an end.

For all those who harden their hearts toward God, for those who have left the Church, for all those in serious sin, for their conversion, and that Catholics in need of the Sacrament of Penance may make use of the opportunities to confess their sins and receive God’s mercy.

That our civil representatives may use their authority to lead and build our nation in godly ways.

For the sick and afflicted, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, for victims of natural disaster and inclement weather, those who suffer from war, violence, and terrorism, for the mentally ill, those with addictions, the imprisoned, the unchaste, for the comfort of the dying and the consolation of their families. 

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, for the souls of those who died in the September 11 attacks, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray.

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.

September 9 2020 - St. Peter Claver - Meet people where they are with the truth of the Gospel

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. Matthew tells us that Jesus gave this sermon to those who already had come to believe in him, a group of Jewish disciples. This sermon would detail how Christians were to conduct themselves as members of the Church—the New Israel. So Matthew depicts Jesus as the New Moses delivering the New Law to the New Israel.

In Luke, as we heard today, 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, after a night of prayer, already having named his 12 apostles, and begins to teach a large crowd on a stretch of level ground, what is called, his Sermon on the Plain. Here Luke emphasizes that the Lord’s teachings are meant for all—not just those on top of the mountain, but all peoples, of all times, of all places are called to learn from Him and believe in Him.

He comes down the mountain into the lives of ordinary people. What a beautiful detail. For the Lord gives us here an example to follow. Our preaching is not meant just for inside the Church at Mass. That’s important of course. Good preaching at Mass from the ordained needs to shape and form and guide the people of God. But the Word of God, the Gospel, needs to be carried out into the world, down the mountain, on the same level as the ordinary folk.

Bishop Perez used to always say, we need to meet people where they are with the truth of the Gospel to invite them into the life of Christ. We meet people where they are, like Jesus, coming down from the mountain onto the plain. We need to share with them the truth of the Gospel. That doesn’t mean watering down or changing the Gospel, but it does mean using concepts they’ll understand, with attentiveness to the concrete details of their life, their struggles, challenges, worries, and hopes. And we need to invite them into the life of Christ. Yes we meet them where they are, but we are tasked with inviting them into something new—to conversion of mind, and heart, belief in Christ, and participation in the life of the Church.

And that’s not something, of course, that only the ordained or tasked with. The ordained are tasked with preaching at Mass. But the entire Church needs to be that presence of Christ out in the world, sharing the Gospel with unbelieving friends, neighbors, and strangers.

Today’s saint, Peter Claver, was a young Jesuit, who left his native spain, to live among the slaves of the new world. He cared for them, brought them medicine, food, bread, and other items that would help them survive in this new land, and of course, the Good news of the Gospel. He became a slave among the slaves. Sharing the Gospel in the world always means humbling ourselves, coming down and meeting people where they are, with the truth of the Gospel.

May we be faithful to this task today and all days, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That all Christians may be diligent in bringing the truth of the Gospel into every sphere of society, and for all those who harden their hearts toward God, for those who have left the Church, for all those in serious sin, for their conversion and the conversion of all hearts.

For our young people on their first day of school today, that they may be blessed with openness to the goodness and truth of the Gospel, for harmony in their classrooms despite this year's many challenges, and for peace in their families.

For an end to slavery, human trafficking, and all forms of inhumane oppression, for the protection and respect of human life.

For those whose lives are marked by suffering, illness, or grief, that they may find hope in the promises of Christ.

For the repose of the souls of the dead, for all of the souls of purgatory, and for N. for whom this mass is offered.

Heavenly Father, hear the prayers of your pilgrimage Church, grant us what we truly need to remain faithful to your Son in all things. Through Christ Our Lord.

September 8 2020 - Nativity of Blessed Virgin Mary - God Constructs His Temple

There are many special feast days celebrated in honor of Mary: her Assumption, her Immaculate Conception, the Annunciation, and of course, today, the celebration of her birth.  The feasts of the Our Lady are dear to us because she is our mother.  

But, If you listen closely to all of the prayers of this Mass for Mary’s birthday, you’ll notice that Jesus is mentioned in every one of the prayers. Even the Gospel, wasn’t the story about her birth, but the birth of her Son.  On Mary’s birthday, shouldn’t we just be focusing on her? Can’t Mary just have a day to herself?

Well, what would she say, if you asked her that? Certainly, Mary would never want to be separated from her Son.  Her entire life points to Him.  Mary never is so selfish just to take a day to herself.  Her whole life is focused on giving Jesus to the world.

Saint Andrew of Crete explains how Mary’s birth is cause for joy because it is an important stage in our salvation. He says, “all creation sings with joy, exults, and participates in the joy of this day....for this is, in fact, the day on which the Creator of the world constructed His temple; today is the day on which by a stupendous project a creature becomes the preferred dwelling of the Creator"

She is a Temple, she is THE Temple, in which God comes to dwell. There is an ancient hymn which expresses this profound relationship between Mary and Christ. Listen to a few verses. 

1. Mary the dawn, Christ the Perfect Day; Mary the gate, Christ the Heavenly Way!

2. Mary the root, Christ the Mystic Vine; Mary the grape, Christ the Sacred Wine!

3. Mary the wheat, Christ the Living Bread; Mary the stem, Christ the Rose blood-red!

4. Mary the font, Christ the Cleansing Flood; Mary the cup, Christ the Saving Blood!

5. Mary the temple, Christ the temple’s Lord; Mary the shrine, Christ the God adored!

6. Mary the beacon, Christ the Haven’s Rest; Mary the mirror, Christ the Vision Blest!

7. Mary the mother, Christ the mother’s Son. Both ever blest while endless ages run. Amen.

Her whole life points to Jesus. Her whole life was focused on Him. She was born and made for this purpose, and we are so grateful, for she was faithful to this purpose every moment of her life. This is why Our Lady is the model on which each of us is to base our life, why she is the perfect disciple of Jesus. Everything about her, even her birth, points to him. May we do the same, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

To Our Lady’s most powerful intercession, we recommend ourselves and the entire Church.

That Our Lady may bring constant guidance and assistance to the Holy Father and the Bishops in their apostolic mission, and aid all who help them in their work. 

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, 

Labor Day 2020 - Labor and Human Fulfillment

For over a century, Americans have celebrated Labor Day on the first Monday in September. This national holiday was established in the 1880s for two reasons: to mark the irreplaceable role of the American worker in making this country prosperous and strong; and to have time to attend speeches and events on the spiritual and educational aspects of work, the worker and the good that comes from work.

Likely, not many of our contemporaries will be focusing on the spiritual meaning of work today, they simply see today’s civic holiday as a celebration of not having to work.  

In 1981, Pope John Paul II issued an encyclical titled “Laborem Exercens”—On Human Labor.  Laborem Exercens is just one encyclical in the long line of Catholic Social Teaching by our Popes in modern times—teaching that touches upon the Catholics involvement in society, and what makes a just society which reflects the values of heaven.

John Paul wrote that Human work is a fundamental dimension of man’s existence on earth.  In the very first words of the book of Genesis, our Creator tells man to “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it.”  Through work, we earn our daily bread, and are able to provide for ourselves and our loved ones.  

Work is not merely a necessary evil. St. John Paul said, “Work is a good thing for man-a good thing for his humanity-because through work man not only transforms nature, adapting it to his own needs, but he also achieves fulfilment as a human being and indeed, in a sense, becomes "more a human being".” So, not only does work transform the world out there…it transforms the soul in here. 

The saintly Pope recognizes though that that without God man loses his way, work becomes disordered. Without God we begin to misuse the things of earth, abuse his fellow man. This evil causes us to be less human, sin dehumanizes us.  But when our priorities are straight, when we are in right relationship with God, our work  glorifies God, and we regain and develop our authentic selves—we become more human.

Becoming more human requires work.  Being human, being good to each other, being virtuous, building a just society, fulfilling our religious obligations to God requires work.  

Eight years ago on Labor Day weekend I had the great honor of celebrating the Wedding of my little sister.  The day before the wedding, a parishioner came into the office and said,  “Father, you look happy,” she said.  “Well, I should be,” I said, “tomorrow I get to celebrate the wedding of my beautiful and dear sister Ashley.”

“That’s wonderful, Father,“ she said.  “My husband and I got married 46 years ago on Labor Day weekend, too!  And that’s what it’s been, Father.  46 years of Hard Labor!  But Father, I love him more today, than on the day I married him”

I told that little story at my sister’s wedding, and tried to emphasize that important lesson: that holy, healthy, happy marriage takes work—it’s a real effort—a labor of love. And so is society. And so is the Church. And so is our eternal soul. A labor of love that requires work, effort.

Perhaps, we do well today to recognize some areas in our life where we have grown slothful, where have I failed to labor for the good of my soul, the good of my fellow man, my family.

May this Labor Day be a time of rest for workers, but also a time of reflection, that workers can ensure that their priorities are in check, that they are serving God rather than themselves, that they are setting good Christian example to their fellow workers in their speech and in their deeds.  May all of our workers be strengthened in Spirit this day, for the Glory of God and Salvation of souls. +++

That all Christians will work together in harmony for the building up of the Church and the spread of the Gospel

That our young people, especially those at risk of disengaging from society, may come to discover the fulfillment found in work and self-sacrifice.

For the unemployed and underemployed, and that all who work may receive a just reward for their labors.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, those who have supported us by their work, those who fought and died for our freedom, for all of the souls in purgatory and for X, for whom this mass is offered.

Gracious Father, you created us in your divine image, hear our prayers, and grant us the help we need to work always for your Holy Will, through Christ Our Lord.