10th Week in Ordinary Time 2024 - Wednesday - The Choice between God and Baal

 

“If the LORD is God, follow him; if Baal, follow him.”

In the first reading, Elijah challenges the people of Israel to choose between the Lord and Baal—between the one true God and the pagan idol. The subsequent dramatic demonstration of God's power through the prophet Elijah compared to the impotence of the false god Baal and his prophets is a powerful illustration of the need to make the right choice. Choosing God over the false idols of the world is the most important choice we can make in this life. 

False gods abound in our modern day. They might not have names like Baal, but we know that false gods—like prestige, pleasure, and prosperity—are promoted by internet celebrities and worshipped by the masses. 

Consider how Baal worship became prominent in the northern kingdom of Israel. It was promoted by the King, who should have known better. King Ahab, influenced by his pagan wife Jezebel, actively promoted the worship of Baal in Israel, building pagan altars and temples in direct violation of the command to have no other gods before Yahweh, not to mention his duties as king spelled out in the Scriptures. 

And Israel’s descent into error was quick. They had gone from a united kingdom a hundred fifty years earlier, with David dancing before the ark of God, and Solomon building God a temple, to a divided kingdom and the erection of pagan altars and human sacrifices. And how did this fall into idolatry occur? Rejection of God’s commands, the failure of parents to drill into their children the need to love God with their whole hearts, minds, souls, and strength, rejection of right religion on the national and individual levels. The Lord has strong words in the Gospel today for those who “whoever break the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so.”

This passage certainly serves as a reminder to the Church, of the need to hold fast to the Lord and His Word, to make no allowances for pagan idols in our lives, to guard our children from the errors of the culture, to ensure that we are choosing God over those pagan idols in every decision we make.

And again, in a world with so many false Gods, we do well to pray assiduously for deliverance of those who fall sway to the many forms of modern paganism, that they can come to acknowledge the exhaustion, unhappiness, and futility of worshipping false gods, and the truth, goodness, and life of worshipping the One True God, Father Son and Holy Spirit, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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That during this month of June, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, all Christians may witness to the tender love of Christ through our prayer, fasting, and works of charity. 

For our young people beginning summer vacation, that they may be kept safe from the errors of our culture and kept in close friendship with Jesus through prayer and acts of mercy.

For all married couples, that they may be faithful to the Gospel in every dimension of their married life—and that single and celibate Christians may witness to the sacrificial, all-embracing love of Christ for all.

For the sick, the impoverished, the lonely, those suffering from mental illness, those most in need, and those near death: may God, through the mercy of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, be close to them in their trials

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

Trinity Sunday 2024 - Deliverance from false gods and empty promises

 Last week, we had a strange occurrence here at St. Ignatius. On Friday morning, as we were opening up for school, we found a three and a half foot painting leaning up against the statue of St. Ignatius at the parking lot entrance. It took us a while to figure out what it was a painting of. But after some internet research, it turned out that the painting was undeniably an image of a Sumerian deity--the pagan goddess known as Ishtar—or Ashtaroth--inthe old testament. I’ve seen a lot of interesting things in this neighborhood, but this was a new one for me. 

We couldn’t help speculating where this strange painting came from. Perhaps it was used in some of the witchcraft prevalent in our neighborhood. But in the end, who knows. For whatever reason, someone wanted to get rid of this thing. I’d like to hope that may it was someone’s way of giving up belief in a false god in exchange for faith in the one true God, whom we celebrate today—the Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

That’s our hope, isn’t it? That’s what we labor for. That’s why the Church exists, right? To witness to the one true God. To help souls come to know Him, love Him, and serve Him. From the lips of Jesus in the Gospel this weekend, we heard our marching orders: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” 

And I’d like to think that this pagan image being left on church property is a sign that we’re doing our job. That our labors are having an effect. That our parish—all of us, brothers and sisters in the Lord, are bringing about some good. That God is working in us and through us, to deliver souls from their false gods. 

So let’s keep it up: the prayers for the conversion of the pagans and non-believers of this neighborhood—the works of mercy-the witness of our striving to conform our lives to Jesus Christ. Let’s keep it up. It works. 

In the first reading today from the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy, Moses is giving a sort of catechetical lesson—a doctrinal instruction to the Israelites on the One True God. And what does he say? That the God of Israel is the only God in the heavens above and on the earth below. We say the same thing in our Creed, every week: I believe in one God, Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

And remember, these people, whom Moses is teaching, had been in a culture that worshipped a whole pantheon of gods—the gods of Egypt. And they were about to enter the promised land, which was still filled with a bunch of different peoples who worshipped a whole other pantheon—the gods of Canaan. 

And he instructs the Israelites so that they’ll cling to the One True God by obeying his statutes and commandments and loving Him with their whole hearts minds, souls, and strength.

We, too, show our fidelity and our belief in God by following his commandments. Our obedience to the commands of God marks us as believers. Whether in private or public, Catholics are to act differently and speak differently than the rest of the world. We are to show to the world the freedom that comes from our relationship with God.

This is why Paul writes in our second reading, that Christians are not given a spirit of slavery to fall back into our old pagan ways, but a spirit of adoption, which enables us to cry out to God as Father. Unlike the pagans who are still enslaved to their emotions and bodily passions and worldly influences, Christians experience that freedom that Our Father wants for us—freedom from patterns of sin and selfishness and resentment and violence. 

Our Faith is truly salvific and healing and liberating, which is why we are excited about sharing it with others. Because the freedom from error and sin and selfishness that we come to experience, we want others to experience, don’t we? We know that the one true God of the universe loves us and calls us to holiness, and we want others to know that as well. So that they can know the goodness of God, the peace of God, the strength and power of God, that animates our lives.

St. Paul goes on to say,  that “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit.” In other words, God uses the Christians whose lives are changed and filled with God’s presence to to witness to the freedom and salvation offered to humanity through Jesus Christ. God wants to use me and you to draw souls to himself. 

And when the presence of God can be detected in us, when we’ve cultivated those gifts of the Spirit, well that’s very attractive to those who are wandering around in the darkness of the world, who continue to be unfilled by the false gods of the world.  Our task is to witness to God through the Christian way of life.

In his great 20th century document on evangelizing the modern world, Pope Paul VI wrote, “It is by her conduct and by her life that the Church will evangelize the world, in other words, by her living witness of fidelity to the Lord Jesus—the witness of poverty and detachment, of freedom in the face of the powers of this world, in short, the witness of sanctity.”

So again, God uses our witness of being detached from the things of the world and the powers of the world and the false gods of the world, to bring souls to himself.

But then Pope Paul wrote, “it is not superfluous to emphasize the importance and necessity of preaching… Preaching, the verbal proclamation of a message, is indeed always indispensable.”

Pope Paul, that first Pope of the modern world, echoes the timeless instruction of Jesus—that we must teach and preach by our conduct and by our words, in order to bring souls to faith—faith which includes a living relationship with God through Christ and His Church.

What a powerful message for us to consider: how and in what ways, by my conduct and my words and my manner of life, does God wish to use me to set souls free. 

And that’s a profound calling. God involves us in his work of salvation. And consider that any one of us might be the only mass going Christian, the only believer that some people out there (or maybe even in our own families) might encounter. And so we have a responsibility to that people that we encounter out there, to cultivate that holiness of life that makes us effective witnesses. 

May we take seriously the call to holiness. Your sanctity is the instrument God wishes to use. So ensure you are praying as you should, confessing your sins, adhering to right doctrine, and engaging in those works of charity, that you might  be ready, willing, and effective, in the work God has for you, for the glory of glory of God and the salvation of souls.

7th Week of Easter 2023 - Tuesday - Eternal life consists in knowing the One True God

 For two weeks now, our Gospels readings for weekday mass have been taken from St. John’s account of the Last Supper beginning in John chapter 14. And now we’ve come to the final chapter of that account: John chapter 17. To conclude the last supper, his final evening with his disciples, the Lord offers a prayer. It is a very profound prayer, times called the High Priestly Prayer, in which the Lord does what all priests do, they pray on behalf of others to God, they pray that God's children and God might be one, priests pray that they may be joined to God, that they may share the life of God, that they might know God. 

Always the teacher though, the Lord offers a prayer that teaches, as well. He leads us deep into the truth about his relationship with the Father. He reveals—he teaches, expanding on themes that he has only hinted at in preceding chapters and discourses. 

The Lord prays and teaches at the same time. We had a professor in seminary, Fr. Larry Tosco, our best scripture professor, may he rest in peace who would do the same thing. Seminarians would take notes during his prayer at the beginning of class because of their profundity. 

Prayer to God and learning about God are closely related endeavors. In fact, what does the Lord say in his High Priestly Prayer, “eternal life consists of knowing God”. The Lord uses that word a lot in his prayer, “to know”. The Greek word is ginosko. 

Ginosko is the same word that Mary utters at the annunciation, when she says, how can I be pregnant, for I have not known relations with a man. That word ginosko can mean both knowing an idea or a fact, and also having intimate relationship that is open to new life. 

And the Lord seems to equate those two connotations: heaven, eternal life consists of knowing God, believing in Him, encountering Him as real—the source and foundation of reality in fact—and also knowing Him in intimate relationship. 

And that heavenly relationship can begin in this earthly life—as we are open to God’s revelation of Himself to us—through Christ. To know Christ is to know God is to begin new and eternal life.

May we continually seek to know God, this day, with minds and hearts open to his truth and his life, who is Jesus Christ, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

For an increase in the gifts of the Holy Spirit among all Christians, and for all who are persecuted for the faith. For those who do not believe in God and for those who have fallen away from the Church.

For those priests of the diocese who celebrate their jubilees today with the Bishop, in gratitude for their service, and for continued blessings on their ministry. For the sanctification of all priests and an increase in vocations to the ordained priesthood.

For the sick, the suffering, those in nursing homes, hospitals, and hospice care, for the underemployed and unemployed, for the imprisoned, those with addictions, for those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, that the Spirit of Consolation may comfort them.

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

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

December 18 2020 - O Adonai (School Mass)

 

Yesterday, began that wonderful part of the church year called “late Advent” the seven days leading up to Christmas. And on each of the days of late Advent, as you heard just prior to the Gospel, was the ancient chant called the “O Antiphon”. Each day of late Advent uses one of the O Antiphons to call upon God, to bless us, and teach us, to lead us. It is typically sung in latin, because that was the language of the Church when the O Antiphons were composed. And that’s the great thing about Catholicism, we use latin, Greek, Hebrew, and our own native tongues to praise God, and for Christians in Cleveland that might be English, Spanish, Italian, german, Arabic, and others. All the people of the world are called to gather together to worship the One True God.

And that’s what today’s O Antiphon is all about. Today’s O Antiphon is one of the rare days where we call upon God with one of his Hebrew titles from the Old Testament, we called him, “O Adonai” . Adonai is one of the Hebrew titles for God which calls upon him as the Lord of all Creation. The whole O Antiphon said, “O Adonai, O Lord God and Leader of the House of Israel” who appeared to Moses in the burning bush and gave him the law of the covenant on mount Sinai, come with your outstretched arm to redeem us all. 

This O Antiphon calls to mind that the One True God and Lord of all creation, appeared to Moses in the burning bush and commissioned Moses to free the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. That same Lord of all Creation then gave Moses the 10 commandments, so that the people that he just freed from physical slavery could live free from slavery to the ways of evil and sin. The O Antiphon calls upon Adonai, the Lord of Creation to come and save us and redeem us.

I really love these O Antiphons and I sing them every day, because they really help us to prepare for and remember what Christmas is all about. It is about God, the one true God, and Lord of all Creation, who frees people from slavery and sin, taking on human flesh, becoming one of us, to save us and redeem us. And not just a particular people, who speak only one particular language, but rather, all the people of the earth. All the people of the earth are called to know him, believe in him, and love him. 

To all of our school families, I pray that your Christmas breaks may be blessed with a deep and abiding love for the Christ Child, our Adonai, our Emmanuel, our savior and redeemer, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the Pope Francis, all bishops and priests, religious and laity may shine with the Light of Christ’s love for the scattered peoples of the earth. 

That world leaders may look upon the Son of God, believe in him, and seek the peace and justice that only he can bring.

For those who have fallen away from the Church, who have become separated from God through error and sin, for those who reject the teachings of Christ, for their conversion and the conversion of all hearts.

That our young people will turn away from the evils of our culture to spread the good news of Christ’s eternal kingdom.

For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation, addiction, or illness: may they experience the healing graces of Christ. 

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

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.

2nd Week of Advent 2019 - Wednesday - Faith in the One True God

Over the last week and a half, we’ve heard a number of promises from Isaiah the prophet. Promises that God would send a Messiah to usher in an endless age of peace; how the messiah’s peaceful rule will put an end to war, how God’s people will be protected from the forces of evil and chaos, how God will feed his people with rich foods and choice wines, how tears of sadness and suffering and guilt will be wiped away.

So, over the last week and a half, we’ve heard promises of what God will do. But today, Isaiah justifies those promises. Why should we believe them?

Because God has no equal. He is the Creator of the Cosmos and commander of the heavenly hosts. He does not grow faint nor weary, but lends his own strength and power and life to his faithful ones.

To the Jews captive in Babylon this was an important call to faith. For, they had seen their own holy city and temple destroyed. And while in Babylon, the Jews were exposed to this strange pantheon of Babylonian gods and their strange mystic cults. These false gods seemed to be pretty effective, no?

Yet, Isaiah calls the captive Jews to remember and put their hope in the one true God of strength and power and creation, the God of New Life, whose existence is evident from the life that flows through their veins. . The Messiah will come not come from Babylon, not from these false gods, not from the political powers and armies that destroyed Jerusalem, but from the One True God.

During Advent, we recall the same thing. Our Savior comes not from the world, not from the false gods of the world, not from any political party, not from any human army, not from amassing wealth and material goods, not from technology, medical or environmental. Salvation comes from the One True God and his Son Jesus Christ.

“Come to me, you who are weary and find life burdensome, and I will give rest.” This invitation is extended to all people, of every place. Come to ME, all you who are burdened.  Any real healing and comfort and strength and security and peace comes from Him. 

Our secular culture offers a million and one alternatives to Jesus.  But Jesus says, come to ME.  Don’t turn to sin, don’t turn to selfishness, don’t run away from the Church, don’t turn to those million OTHER things, come to ME, Jesus says, and you will find refreshment and rest.

May we place our faith in Him, and lead others to that same faith, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the Holy Father, all bishops and priests, religious and laity may shine with the Light of Christ’s love for the lost and despairing.

That world leaders may look upon the Son of God, believe in him, and seek the peace and justice that only he can bring.

For those who have fallen away from the Church, who have become separated from God through error and sin, for those who reject the teachings of Christ, for their conversion and the conversion of all hearts.

That our young people will turn away from the evils of our culture to spread the good news of Christ’s eternal kingdom.

For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation, addiction, or illness: may they experience the healing graces of Christ.

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

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.