June 24 2025 - The Nativity of St. John the Baptist - The breaking of divine silence

 When the Church celebrates the feast day of a saint, we are usually celebrating the day of the saint’s death. For example the feast of the martyr St. Charles Lwanga earlier this month was on June 3, because St. Charles was martyred on June 3, 1886.

Only three times during the year does the Church celebrate a birthday: for Jesus, for His mother…and for John the Baptist. So, the Baptist is certainly in illustrious company. That we celebrate his birthday serves to remind us just how important John is to our salvation history. Scripture doesn’t tell us of the birth of Mary or Joseph or any of the evangelists. But it records the events surrounding the birth of John.

And why? Because John’s birth marks the beginning of a great turning point in salvation history. John’s birth signals that God is on the move—that His promises, long awaited, are now being fulfilled. For roughly 400 years—since the last of the Old Testament prophets, Malachi—no new prophetic word had come to Israel. The voice of God seemed silent. The people clung to the promises of old, but many wondered if the Lord still spoke to His people.

The silence of God’s voice among His people is symbolized by the muteness of Zechariah in today’s Gospel. But with the birth of John, Zechariah’s tongue is loosened. 

John’s birth represents the breaking of the divine silence, and John’s voice will be the first prophetic voice heard in centuries: “Prepare the way of the Lord.” He will stand in the desert the last and greatest of the prophets, and the one who will point out the Messiah Himself: “Behold the Lamb of God.” John heralds the coming of God’s Word made flesh: the definitive Word of God, the perfect fulfillment of all of God’s promises—Jesus Christ. 

Today, we fittingly herald that there are 183 days until Christmas. And the best way to prepare for Christmas, and for the coming of the Lord at the end of time, is to spend our days like John, whose entire life was aimed at pointing to Christ, to the Lamb. 

May we, like John, be heralds of the Gospel every day—in our words, our activities, our moral decisions, in our prayer. May we decrease, so that Christ may increase in us, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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As we celebrate the birth of St. John the Baptist, the great forerunner of Christ, let us turn to God in prayer, asking for the grace to follow John's example and prepare the way for the Lord in our hearts and in the world.

For the holy Church of God: That she may, like St. John the Baptist, boldly proclaim the coming of Christ and prepare the hearts of all people to receive Him.

For the leaders of nations and all in authority: That they may listen for the voice of truth, seek justice and peace, and govern with integrity for the common good.

For all who feel as though God is silent in their lives: That the example of Zechariah and the birth of John may increase their faith.

5. For the sick, the poor, and the suffering: That the light of Christ may shine through the darkness of their afflictions, and that they may be comforted by the love of God and the care of others.

For the faithful departed: That, having prepared the way for Christ in this life, they may be welcomed into the joy of His eternal Kingdom.

Heavenly Father, You sent St. John the Baptist to prepare the way for Your Son. Hear the prayers we offer on this joyful feast, and grant that we, too, may prepare Your way with faith, courage, and love. 

December 23 2024 - Silence and Acclamation

  

Two days before Christmas, today, we hear in our Gospel, Zechariah breaking his silence at the birth of his son, John. “Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God.”

The Christian life oscillates between silence and acclamation. On one hand, Christians do not dread silence, we welcome it. Our Lord himself had many moments of quiet prayerful solitude in which he conversed with his Heavenly Father. God is met in silence. Each day, we need periods of silent prayer. Psalm 46 commands, “be still, and know that I am God.” Our culture doesn’t understand silence, and consequently misunderstands the meaning of Christmas. 

But we know, that we must quiet down our lives in order to make room for Christ.

On the other hand, Christmas marks an end of the silent night of Advent, leading the Church to jubilant and joyful acclamation that a Savior is born for us, Christ the Lord. Like God loosening the tongue of Zechariah, Christmas loosens our tongues to sing carols and joyful songs and to proclaim that Christ is born.

With the hours of Advent we have left, we do well to enter into the silence, to quiet ourselves, in order to prepare a place in our heart to celebrate with new enthusiasm and joy, the birth of Christ the Savior. Be generous with the silent time you give to God, you will not regret it.

In our noisy and frantic world, cultivating silence may feel unnatural, putting down the technology and noise that is so omnipresent these days. Yet, turning this stuff off and entering into quiet, allows us to perceive God’s gentle whisper which we long to hear. Consider carving out a time each day to sit quietly, even if only for a few minutes, focusing solely on the presence of our Creator. Silence is not a void, but a sacred room of encounter. It grants us the clarity to hear God’s guidance, the peace to surrender our troubles, and the courage to live more authentically our Christian calling. As we move from waiting to rejoicing, let holy silence shape our hearts, opening us to the true gift of Emmanuel—God with us—for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

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Let us bring our prayers before the Lord who hears us in every stillness and in every song.

For the Church: That the People of God may find moments of holy silence in prayer and contemplation, preparing our hearts for the proclamation of the Good News. 

For leaders of government: may they work to protect and promote the common good, especially for the marginalized and vulnerable, with humility and reverence for the dignity of every human life.

For families and communities burdened by secular noise, stress, materialism or conflict.

For those struggling to believe in God’s presence or who feel distant from Him:

That, like Zechariah, they may experience God’s power breaking into their lives and freeing them to speak and live the truth of the Gospel.

For the sick, the lonely, and the grieving: That in contemplation of Christ’s coming, they may find comfort and the strength to trust in God’s loving plan and to receive the healing only God can give.

For all who have died, for our deceased family members, friends, fellow parishioners and benefactors, that they may rejoice forever in the heavenly kingdom, especially…

Heavenly Father, You speak to us in the quiet of our hearts and invite us to echo Your goodness with words of praise. Hear the prayers we have voiced today. Guide us from the silence of Advent into the joyful song of Christmas. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Feast of the Holy Family (EF) 2023 - BXVI and the School of the House of Nazareth

 

Happy Feast of the Holy Family. "The house of Nazareth", Pope Benedict wrote, "is a school of prayer where one learns to listen, meditate on and penetrate the profound meaning of the manifestation of the Son of God." And so In light of Pope Emeritus Benedict’s recent passing, let us allow the great Pope Benedict to take us to school. 

He writes, at the school of the Holy Family, we learn that we must develop “spiritual discipline if we wish to follow the teaching of the Gospel and become disciples of Christ”.  Notice, how the holy father connects discipline and discipleship. We cannot have discipleship without discipline. In our prayer lives, that means developing and sticking to a routine, a habit of prayer, no matter how we feel, marking the hours of the day, the household duties, the meals, rising and waking, with prayer, praying perhaps before speaking when a conflict arises, praying in times of great joy—turning as a family, to the holy family for blessings and graces and guidance.

Pope Benedict writes, that we must learn also from the Holy Family’s practice of silence. “Silence”, he says, “is the wonderful and indispensable spiritual atmosphere, in which the Word can be reborn within us! Whereas we are deafened by the noise and discordant voices in the frenetic, turbulent life of our time. O silence of Nazareth! He prays, teach us to be steadfast in good thoughts, attentive to our inner life, ready to hear God’s hidden inspiration clearly and the exhortations of true teachers” 

Our day, like the day of the holy family, should be infused with silence.

It’s in silence, that we like Our Lady are able to cherish and ponder Christ. He writes, “Mary was a peerless model of the contemplation of Christ. The face of the Son belonged to her in a special way because he had been knit together in her womb and had taken a human likeness from her. No one has contemplated Jesus as diligently as Mary. The gaze of her heart was already focused on him at the moment of the Annunciation, when she conceived him through the action of the Holy Spirit; in the following months she gradually became [more deeply] aware of his presence, until, on the day of his birth, her eyes could look with motherly tenderness upon the face of her son as she wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in the manger.

Memories of Jesus, imprinted on her mind and on her heart, marked every instant of Mary’s existence. She lived with her eyes fixed on Christ and cherished his every word. St Luke says: “Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart” (as we heard in the Gospel today) and thus describes Mary’s approach to the Mystery of the Incarnation which was to extend throughout her life: keeping these things, pondering on them in her heart. 

St. Joseph too, teaches us. Pope Benedict wrote: Joseph fulfilled every aspect of his paternal role. He must certainly have taught Jesus to pray, together with Mary. In particular Joseph himself must have taken Jesus to the Synagogue for the rites of the Sabbath, as well as to Jerusalem for the great feasts of the people of Israel. Joseph, in accordance with the Jewish tradition, would have led the prayers at home both every day — in the morning, in the evening, at meals — and on the principal religious feasts. In the rhythm of the days he spent at Nazareth, in the simple home and in Joseph’s workshop, Jesus learned to alternate prayer and work, as well as to offer God his labour in earning the bread the family needed.

Pope Benedict draws several lessons in particular from today’s Gospel. He writes, “Jewish families, like Christian families, pray in the intimacy of the home but they also pray together with the community, recognizing that they belong to the People of God, journeying on; and the pilgrimage expresses exactly this state of the People of God on the move (journeying to God together).” So vibrant personal prayer lives, contemplating the face of Christ, cherishing christ in our hearts like our Lady, is important. Ordering our family life, our professional life in a godly way, and infusing them with prayer, like St. Joseph is indispensable. But also the Holy Family models communal prayer. Our corporate worship together as the family of God, the Church, is so powerful and essential to who we are. We join together in prayer at holy Mass, a foretaste of the saint’s communal worship of God in heaven. 

But then, the Holy Father draws our attention to the words of Jesus in the Gospel. They are first words of Our Lord recorded in the Gospels, and Benedict writes, After three days spent looking for him his parents found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions (cf. 2:46). His answer to the question of why he had done this to mary and joseph was that he had only done what the Son should do, that is, to be with his Father. “Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

Benedict says, “note the resonance that hearing this word “Father” on Jesus’ lips must have had in the hearts of Mary and Joseph…We may imagine that from this time the life of the Holy Family must have been even fuller of prayer since from the heart of Jesus the boy — then an adolescent and a young man — this deep meaning of the relationship with God the Father would not cease to spread and to be echoed in the hearts of Mary and Joseph…The Family of Nazareth became the first model of the Church in which, around the presence of Jesus and through his mediation, everyone experiences the filial relationship with God the Father which also transforms interpersonal, human relationships.”

The dear departed Pope Benedict knew the important of Christians families looking to and modeling their family life after the Holy Family. He wrote, “the Holy Family is the icon of the domestic Church, called to pray together. The family is the domestic Church and must be the first school of prayer. It is in the family that children, from the tenderest age, can learn to perceive the meaning of God, also thanks to the teaching and example of their parents: to live in an atmosphere marked by God’s presence.”

May the Holy Family guide and protect us always, and may the soul of God’s servant, Pope Benedict XVI, through the mercy of God rest in peace, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

A reading from the epistle of St. Paul to the Colossians

Brethren: Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another,  if one has a grievance against another;  as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection. And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

A continuation of the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke

Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover, and when he was twelve years old, they went up according to festival custom. After they had completed its days, as they were returning, the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Thinking that he was in the caravan, they journeyed for a day and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances, but not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple,  sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions, and all who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them. He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor before God and man.

October 6 2020 - St. Bruno - Athletes of the soul

 

The Christian Philosopher Svoren Kierkegaard said if he were a doctor he would prescribe as a remedy for all the world’s disorders, “silence”. St. Bruno, who we honor today would certainly agree. As the founder of the Carthusians, Bruno desired to provide a place for those who felt a call to withdraw from the chaos of the world in order to seek a deep, lively, joyful relationship with Jesus Christ.

St. Bruno said, “In the solitude and silence...God gives his athletes the reward they desire: a peace that the world does not know and joy in the Holy Spirit."  Interesting, isn’t it, that he called his monks athletes? Though the Carthusians withdraw from the chaos of the world, they are anything but inactive, they are training—like football players and cross country runners, who practice and train and build their endurance and fight against the limitations of the body, the monks take up the call to train their souls and fight against the spiritual evils that beset us. 

And something happens when you become serious about this spiritual training. Bruno says, you gain the peace and joy of the Holy Spirit, a peace and joy that nothing in the world can give.

Not all of us are called to join the monastery, but those of us, still in the world, can certainly attest to the fact, that when we have prayed as we should, and engaged in the works of mercy as we should, there is a deepening of peace and joy, isn’t there?

St. Bruno prescribed silence for his monks, for he knew that silence is that most excellent means for growing in deep union with God. Again, we know this to be true. When we turn off the distractions, and seek God in silence, there is an encounter with the whom who was waiting for us there, in the silence. For in silence, In silent contemplation, God is waiting to speak important, life-giving words to us. But that means we need to incline our ear to Him, by turning away from noise.

St. Paul, says he considers all as loss that takes him away from that supreme good. The Lord too, in the Gospel, tries to show the foolishness of the excuses we make for not praying, for not following him.

Just as the athlete needs to practice discipline in doing what is good and avoiding what is bad for his physical training, the Christian needs to practice greater spiritual discipline in seeking what is good for our souls and avoiding what is bad, that we may grow in the peace and joy of the spirit. 

May St. Bruno help us through his example and heavenly intercession to race into the silence to meet God, to practice the discipline we need to grow more deeply in sanctity, that we may become instruments to bring souls to Christ and Christ to souls for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the contemplative religious orders of the Church may inspire all Christians to seek God in moments of prayer, silence, and solitude. 

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

That our young people may take seriously the missionary call of Christ, that they will turn away from the evils of our culture to spread the good news of Christ’s eternal kingdom.

For all whose lives are marked by suffering may come to know the healing and peace of Christ.

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.

1st Week in OT 2020 - Wednesday - Prayerful listening that we might hear

Prayer is an integral dimension of the Christian life. We profess our faith in our Creed, we celebrate our faith in the liturgy, we conform our lives to Christ through the moral life, but prayer cultivates the vital, personal relationship with the living God.

Prayer, certainly is as St. John Damascene explains, “the raising of one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God." We speak to God in prayer using the words of the Psalms, or memorized prayers composed by the saints, or from words that spontaneously arise from the depths of our hearts and minds.

While speaking to God is certainly part of Christian prayer, listening to God is just as necessary.

In the first reading, Samuel is in the temple, but he was not accustomed to listening and identifying the voice of God. It takes an elder, Eli, to help Samuel discern whose voice he was hearing. And that’s wonderful—our prayer veterans should assist the young in developing an ear for God.  But it takes Samuel a few attempts to finally hear God clearly.

Prayer involves listening, developing an ear for God. We cannot hear if we do not listen.
Our daily prayer should consist of speaking and listening, just like our breathing entails exhaling and inhaling. Ah, and when we do--when we listen to God, we begin to hear the sound of living water rushing into our souls. The more we listen for God, the more we will hear. So let us cultivate that often neglected dimension of prayer: simple listening.

And when we develop that habit of prayer, we will also begin to hear God’s voice more clearly directing our moral choices, speaking in our liturgical celebrations, even ringing in our profession of faith. We might even hear him speaking using our own voice, when we comfort someone in pain, or explain the Gospel to those of weak faith. We might even hear Him calling us by name to endeavors we once thought impossible.

St. Paul says, “we do not know how to pray as we ought.” So let us become silent in prayer, with our ears turned toward God, that the Holy Spirit may teach us to pray and fill us with the wisdom and life of God for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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To God the Father Almighty we direct the prayers of our heart for the needs and salvation of humanity and the good of His faithful ones.

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

For the peoples of the world, that the Lord may graciously preserve harmony among them.

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

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

For our beloved dead, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for X, for whom this Mass is offered.

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

4th Sunday of Advent 2019 - 3 Lessons from St. Joseph

During the season of Advent, we contemplate some of the great biblical figures: the Blessed Mother, John the Baptist, Elizabeth & Zechariah and their role in God’s plan for our salvation. And on this year, on the final Sunday of the Advent season we are given to contemplate St. Joseph in our Gospel reading. So, let us consider three lessons from St. Joseph to help us prepare for the celebration of Christmas.

First, St. Joseph teaches us the importance of silence. How many words from the lips of St. Joseph can we find in Scripture?  None!  Not a word.  He doesn’t say anything.  He is a man of silence. 

Someone once asked St. Padre Pio, “What language does God speak?” And Padre Pio said, “God speaks silence”.  The person then asked, well, what language should I pray in, what language does God understand best, and Padre Pio said, “silence”.  Pope Francis celebrated Mass with a group of American Priests a few years ago. And in his homily he said, “May the Lord give us all the grace to love silence.” “Silence,” he said, “helps us to discover our mystery: our mystery of encountering the Lord, our mystery of walking through life with the Lord.”

The song ‘Silent Night’ still remains one of the popular Christmas hymns, which reminds us the need to become silent as we contemplate the Christmas mysteries. What a powerful irony: a beautiful song about quiet, calm, and silence. Certainly, one of my favorite moment each year is on Christmas Eve, in those quiet hours before midnight Mass. I like to sit in a dark room, and listen to the quiet.

It was his quiet of soul that enabled St. Joseph to be attuned to that important heavenly message. Joseph, we read was facing a terrible decision. His betrothed had been found with child through the Holy Spirit. In his humility, Joseph assumed that he was not part of this strange and mysterious plan. The Holy Torah, the Mosaic Law, directed him to divorce his betrothed who had become pregnant outside of marriage, and so Joseph quietly decided to end their betrothal.

And in this state of obedience, humility, and quiet, heaven pierced his mind. The angel of the Lord to appeared to him, and gave direction, gave him courage, and gave him insight into the identity and mission of the child—he is the savior.

So too, with us. In the messiness of our lives, when we are facing difficult decisions, we must commit to obeying God and becoming quiet and open before Him. And when we do, we will, like Joseph be granted direction, courage, and insight.

In these final Advent days, do not be afraid to make excuses for silence. To turn off the noise, to sit by the tree or the nativity scene, and to become silent in order to attune your minds and hearts to heaven. May our souls in silent stillness wait for the coming of Christ.

So that’s lesson number one, to imitate St. Joseph’s Advent Silence. Lesson number two.  St. Joseph teaches us that actions speak louder than words.

In the Gospel, Joseph wakes from his dream of the angel, and immediately did as God had commanded him: he took Mary into his home.  St. Joseph reminds us that the Christian life isn’t about giving God lip-service.  That when the Lord calls upon us to reach out to someone in need, we need to respond generously.

This often requires great effort on our part. For so often, we expect God to fit our lives. We minimize the demands of faith, when they get in the way of our plans. But Joseph shows us that the opposite is necessary. We must be willing to change for God. We must willing to alter our plans for God, to make God the first priority, to put everything in God’s service, holding nothing back.

For Joseph, taking Mary into this home, and becoming her chaste spouse was likely not according to the plan of his life. And even if she hadn’t conceived through the Holy Spirit, the wedding, was likely months or even a few years off. His home was not ready for her. The home was not ready for the raising of a child. But when God gives him a command, Joseph gets to work, intensely preparing for the birth of the Messiah, rearranging his life around the priorities of God.

So lesson number two, St. Joseph teaches us the priority of acting according to the commands of God, of rearranging our lives, reorienting our lives for God, working intensely for God’s will, especially in acting upon holy inspirations.

And finally, lesson number three, because Joseph made his heart quiet and open for God, because he was willing to reorient his life to Christ, God gave Joseph the ability, the energy, the courage, and the gifts to accomplish monumentally difficult tasks.

Joseph, taking Mary into this home meant opening himself to the shame of his community. His community would have soon realized that Mary was pregnant, and would have assumed that he was the father. They would assume Joseph had not practiced chastity prior to marriage as God’s law demanded, opening him to much greater social stigma than in our own day, stigma that would certainly affect his ability to provide for his family.

Additionally, Joseph would be called upon by God to guard and protect his family in many ways: he would protect Mary as they journeyed to Bethlehem for the census, he would find shelter in a stable when no inn would admit them, and he would be called upon by God to protect his family as they fled Israel when King Herod sent his soldiers to slaughter the Christ-child.

God gave Joseph monumentally difficult tasks, but also the grace to do them. Again, Joseph’s faith, his life of prayer, his righteousness opened him to the guidance, courage, and fortitude he needed.

So too with us. When facing grave difficulties, God provides grace, not necessarily to accomplish our own will, but God’s. God gives us grace to resist temptation, he gives us grace to speak hard truths to loved ones who are making poor choices, he gives us strength to work against true injustice, or to cope and carry on in the face of overwhelming grief, he gives us patience to endure difficulties gracefully.

St. Joseph reminds us that through trial and difficulty, when entrust ourselves to God, when we practice virtue and righteousness particularly when it is difficult, we are refined like gold in a furnace, we become the people God made us to be, and role models for those of weaker faith.

May St. Joseph helps us to prepare for Christ at Christmas and to break-in to our lives ever anew, by teaching us to enter into God’s silence, challenging our complacencies, urging us to trust God in our challenges, and to have courage for the spreading of our faith for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

23rd Sunday of OT 2019 - Silence and rest

Since my first year in seminary, my seminary classmates and I, who are now priests, take a week or two vacation at the end of August up in the Algonquin Highlands in Ontario, about three hours north of Toronto.  We canoe a little bit, we swim, we don’t really fish much, we really just enjoy the quiet of the wilderness, good food, and good fellowship.  Two weeks in the wilderness in order to spiritually and mentally prepare for the busy-ness of the school year, when parish life really begins to kick into high-gear. 

And it usually takes a day or two to adjust from the busy, loud world to the quiet of nature.  But then things begin to settle, we settle into the quiet, and then you really begin to notice the beautiful surroundings: the lapping of the lake, the gentle breeze, the occasional cry of the Canadian loon.  It’s a wonderful atmosphere for good prayer and reflection and spiritual reading.

What does my summer vacation have to do with the readings this weekend?  Well, from our first reading we hear how the concerns of the mind, our earthly plans, and the burdens of the body can distract us from the plans of God.

Sometimes we are just physically and emotionally warn out, aren’t we? And we know all too well how our many earthly concerns can weigh down upon us. Our health, our jobs, our family obligations.  And our materialistic culture certainly doesn’t help things when it drums into us over and over that we cannot be happy until we have the next-new thing, the perfect house, the perfect car, the perfect job, that we watch the next new series on Netflix. No wonder why the practice of the faith and Sunday worship  takes second, or third, or last place for so many Catholics who are busy about their worldly business.

Honestly, I considered skipping my Canadian vacation this year, not quite a whole year into my pastorate, with all of the fall parish programs starting up. First Friday Holy Hour. Second Friday Faith Formation. The rockiness of the beginning of the school year. Getting ready for RCIA. Fall weddings. Head start contract renewal. Repair projects. But rest and respite, offers the opportunity to ready ourselves for the challenges ahead. Quiet and prayer is needed to prepare for busyness.

The Catholic Philosopher Svoren Kierkegaard went so far as to say that the constant busyness of the modern world is a sort of disease. The inability to be quiet and unstimulated, is a sort of disease. And If he were a doctor he would prescribe as a remedy for this disease, “silence”.

We had about 30 people Friday night, we came to spend time in prayer with the Lord in silence. That is reason number 72 for us to have a scheduled Holy Hour, where we can spend a long period of silence with Jesus. One parishioner said that Holy Hour, that period of silence with Jesus, allowed the stresses that build up throughout the week to melt away, silence with the Lord allows her to focus on what was most important.

And really, Christians need those moments of quiet every day, don’t we? To stop from the busyness, to recollect ourselves, to seek strength and peace that only God can bring, to remember that our first loyalty is not the earth, but to heaven, not to the things and riches and pleasures of this world, but to God.

This of course does not mean that we lay down our crosses, or take a vacation from our vocations. While on vacation in Canada, every day we celebrated Mass for our parishes, we prayed the Liturgy of the Hours, we engaged in personal prayer. But even our rest from work serves a purpose; holy rest is not selfish, but rather, it serves the purpose of seeking refreshment and union with God. And like the king in this weekend’s Gospel, who sits down and takes time to strategize for battle, our rest from work can give us perspective in how to prioritize our life wisely, and to ready ourselves for the spiritual battle of being out in the world fraught with temptation and trial.

Many find silence disagreeable, even abhorrent, because in silence we are also confronted by our personal demons, guilt from past sins, uncomfortable truths we do not want to face, grief from departed loved ones. But for that very reason, how blessed silence is, for in silence we encounter the Lord who can exorcize those demons, who can bring those sins to light that they may be confessed and forgiven, who can help us face those uncomfortable truths, who can heal our greatest griefs.

The remedy for so many of our ills, so much of our anxiety, so much of our dis-ease, can be found, as Kierkegaard said, in silence and holy rest, where we can encounter the Lord in prayer, and seek his will, and fall in love with Him above all else.  How much of the violence and anger and tension in the world would dissipate if we put down the cell-phones, turned off the internet, and television, and video games for an extra half-hour every day, and read the bible, prayed the rosary, reflected on our life in light of scripture and the teaching of the Church. Would not the paths of the earth be straightened, as our first reading describes?

I hope you can all join us for our parish picnic (tomorrow/today) to rest from busyness in the company of your brothers and sisters in Christ. For our crosses our heavy and we need each other, strong relationships with fellow Christians, to help keep us strong and focused on our Christian mission, the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

July 24 2019 - St. Charbel Mahkluf - Seeds grow in silence

One of the characteristics of the Parables of Jesus, is that they are not always immediately comprehensible. They take a little figuring out. Though Jesus uses symbolism and images that regular folks were familiar with, the meaning of the parable still needed to be pondered.

Our Lord puts the responsibility on the listener to take the time to understand, to take the lesson to heart. We do well to take the Scriptures, sit down with them, to ponder the message and applicability to our own life. Bible study, both individual and with others, should be undertaken often.

Today’s parable is one of the few that Our Lord takes the time to explain in detail, and we will hear do that in Friday’s Gospel. So, I won’t belabor that too much today, especially since I’d like to say a word about the saint we honor today.

The saints, like St. Charbel Makhluf who we honor today, are a lot like those parables. From a distance, we hear the lives of the saints, and respond, “oh that’s nice.” But they have so much to teach us, when we study their lives. Pope Benedict would say that the saints are a “school of prayer”, they instruct us how to nurture that deeper intimacy with God, to not settle for a superficial prayer life, like seed that fails to take root.

St. Charbel was a Maronite Catholic, born in a small mountain village in north Lebanon in 1828. Charbel spent his early years as a shepherd, and spent much time in quiet reflection and prayer.  At age 23, he joined the monastery of St. Maron, was ordained a priest, and lived as a hermit until his death in 1898.  His deepest desire was to live a life of prayer and solitude where he could focus his attention on Christ. 

We are not all called to be hermits, but the hermits remind us that each of us does need a great love of quiet and solitude in which we can seek the heart of Christ and the face of God.  Jesus himself would often go to quiet deserted places in order to seek His Father’s Will.

The hermits are witnesses that the kingdom of noise and distraction of our digital age is not the true kingdom.  The graces of the true kingdom—prudence, temperance, fortitude, justice, faith, hope, and love— are found when we withdraw from distraction in prayer. Seeds after all, grow in silence.

May St. Charbel and the holy consecrated hermits continue to enrich the Church by their, meditation, silence and penance, and teach us to seek first the kingdom of God, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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That every member of the Church may cultivate minds, hearts, and souls to receive the Word of God more deeply and fruitfully.

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

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

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

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

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

October 6 2017 - St. Bruno - Silence: A simple and joyful rest, full of God

The Christian Philosopher Svoren Kierkegaard said if he were a doctor he would prescribe as a remedy for all the world’s disorders, “silence”. St. Bruno, who we honor today would certainly agree.
St. Bruno said, “In the solitude and silence...God gives his athletes the reward they desire: a peace that the world does not know and joy in the Holy Spirit." Saint Bruno was the founder of the Carthusians.  Since its founding by St. Bruno, the Carthusian way of life has gone unchanged, following Bruno’s ideal of penance and prayer for almost 950 years.

950 years ago, St. Bruno was urging Christians to withdraw from the noise of the world. What would he say about the noise of our age? He would certainly see it as a danger spiritual growth, as we all know well…it is!

The contemplative seeks out silence, because silence is the excellent means to deep union with God. About 400 years before Bruno, St. John Climacus wrote that “the lover of silence draws close to God. He talks to him in secret and God enlightens him.” “Intelligent silence is the mother of prayer, freedom from bondage, custodian of zeal, a guard on our thoughts, a watch on our enemies, a prison of mourning, a friend of tears, a sure recollection of death, a painter of penance, a concern with judgment, a servant of anguish, a foe of license, a companion of stillness, the opponent of dogmatism, a growth of knowledge, a hand to shape contemplation, hidden progress, the secret journey upward.”

Each of us would do well to discern what we could do to carve out more space for silence in our lives. Through silence the Lord wishes to bring us a peace that the world does not know and joy in the Holy Spirit.

In silent contemplation, God wishes to speak important, life-giving words to us. But that means we need to incline our ear to Him, by turning away from the noise makers.

Bruno said “the ambience of solitude, the absence of any disturbing noise and of worldly desires and images, the quiet and calm attention of the mind to God, helped by prayer and leisurely reading, flow into that rest of the soul in God. A simple and joyful rest, full of God, that leads the monk to feel, in some way, the beauty of eternal life.”

May we cultivate the prayer, the spiritual reading, the solitude, the silence, which helps our souls rest in God for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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That the contemplative religious orders of the Church may inspire all Christians to seek God in moments of prayer, silence, and solitude.

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

That our young people may take seriously the missionary call of Christ, that they will turn away from the evils of our culture to spread the good news of Christ’s eternal kingdom.

For all whose lives are marked by suffering may come to know the healing and peace of Christ.
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.

15th Sunday in OT 2017 - Making the soul fertile ground for encountering Christ

You’ve probably heard the news that Holy Father Pope Francis has appointed a new bishop, His Excellency Bishop Nelson Perez to the diocese of Cleveland. I was able to meet Bishop Perez on Tuesday. A number of the clergy were able to concelebrate with him at the Cathedral, and then had lunch with him at the Cathedral rectory.

My first impression is that Bishop Perez is an extremely relatable, congenial man. If you have the means, you should check out on the internet the interview he did on Fox 8. Very relatable. I think he will be refreshing to our diocese, surprising, and also challenging.

At the Mass on Tuesday, Bishop Perez preached on an idea that has come up often in the preaching of Pope Francis over the last few years, that of “encounter”, or “encuentro” in Pope Francis’ native-tongue. Bishop Perez explained how as Christ is filled with compassion and mercy, so too must mercy and compassion be at the heart of the Church, and in the heart of every Christian. And whether we are trapped in sin or steadily progressing in sanctity, we are able to encounter the Lord. In his mercy, the Lord meets us where we are, and calls us to holiness and deeper faith.

The Gospel on Tuesday was all about how the Lord sends his disciples out into the world to preach the Gospel and to perform the works of mercy. Through preaching and living the Gospel, each one of us is called to go out and help others encounter Christ.

Parents are to help their children encounter Christ, spouses are to help their mates encounter Christ. A good neighbor helps us encounter Christ through their kindness and charity.

Tuesday was also the feast of St. Benedict, a very fitting day to preach about “encounter”. St. Benedict is truly one of the most important saints in Church history.  Benedict was born into a rich Italian family in the year 480 and went to complete his studies in Rome.  Around the age of 20, became a hermit; he went to live in a cave for three years in Subiaco, Italy.

Why would a wealthy, academically gifted young man go to live in a cave? For one, he sought what we all seek: happiness! He believed that he could be happy seeking Jesus Christ in the silence and solitude of a cave. He was right. He encountered Christ in a place that very few people choose to look.

Because of his sanctity, Benedict quickly attracted many followers, who like him wished to withdraw from the world in order to strive after holiness through a life of work and prayer.  To house his company, Benedict built twelve monasteries, and around the year 550, he left Subiaco to start the monastery at Montecassino.  It is there that he wrote his famous Rule, “The Rule of St. Benedict”
 Benedict lived in a time when the classical world was breaking apart—bloody wars were tearing down the civilization of the Greco-Roman world.  Barbarians were sweeping through Europe. These were the dark ages. European culture was crumbling. Yet within the Benedictine Monastery a different culture of work and prayer and learning and love of God and encounter with Christ prevailed.  The monasteries became beacons of hope for the people of Europe.

Amidst the barbarian armies and the crumbling culture, Benedict’s monasteries became potent force in rebuilding Europe.  The very first universities sprung up from the monastic schools.  So, if you went to college, or benefited in some way by someone that did, you can thank St. Benedict.
Fast forward 1400 years to the 1950s.  The Bishops of the Second Vatican Council saw danger looming on the horizon again: a new modern barbarism spreading throughout the world, a godlessness threatening the very foundations of civilization.

And, in the documents of Vatican II, the holy bishops stressed that not only monks and priests and nuns and bishops are called to strive for holiness, but all Christians should develop vibrant prayers lives and to generosity in charitable service.

In the monasteries, Benedict’s lived out a rhythm, a harmony of work and prayer; yet the ultimate aim of the monk’s was to seek God. Benedict wrote: Nihil amori Christi praeponere—Prefer nothing to the love of Christ.  Holiness consists of this: preferring nothing to the love of Christ.

So many of our worldly pursuits keep us from real happiness because they keep us from encountering Christ. Sadly, so often, we prefer our cell phones to Christ, our credit cards to Christ, our vices to Christ. We prefer gossip over prayer, lust over purity, and greed over self-giving.

St. Benedict is often depicted in art with a finger pressed to his lips because he so valued silence.  Silence was such an important part of his rule because in silence we learn how to listen to the quiet voice of God. Silence is often indispensable in encounter the love God has for us.

The Christian Philosopher Svoren Kierkegaard said if he were a doctor he would prescribe as a remedy for all the world’s disorders, “silence”.  St. Benedict would no doubt agree.

Our culture abhors silence; it is addicted to stimulation.  We have to constantly have the television or internet going.   The constant stimulation and busyness bring not cheerfulness, but exhaustion and emptiness.  One of the spiritual dangers of having cell phones that can access the internet anywhere, anytime, is that one never learns how to sit in silence.

The cell phones and televisions in every room of the house is a great threat to health and holiness of the family.  I know of many families who therefore have a very healthy rule, that between certain times, all electronics are turned off.  Perhaps between 5:30 and 8pm: no tv, no video games, no cell phones, especially at the dinner table.  Study and conversation build up the family in ways that all of the electronic gadgets cannot possibly.  Perhaps a family rosary must be prayed before the television is even allowed to be turned on.

Through silence, simplicity, and prayer, we make our souls rich soul for the word of God to be planted, as we heard in today’s Gospel.

Parents, if you want your children to be happy, make your family as fertile in faith as possible; don’t teach or pressure our children to have empty lives, to be successful according to the values of our culture, but above all to seek to put their gifts and talents in the service of God. Entering a monastery, where one learns to encounter Christ in simplicity, is not failure. Entering the priesthood, consecrated life, these are not vocations for those who can’t do anything else.

Our seminary here in Cleveland has over 80 young men studying for the priesthood, we’ve seen an increase in young women entering convents, why? Likely because many of our young people, like Benedict, see the emptiness the world offers, and they want something more. And for that they should be encouraged!

But whatever our vocation, each of us, should make time for silence, to make an effort each day to encounter Christ through prayer, to push away the non-essential objects of the world, to prefer nothing to the love of Christ, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Holy Saturday 2017 - Morning Prayer Reflection - "He descended into hell"

The ancient homily on Holy Saturday states: “there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear.”

In the Apostle’s Creed we profess that after Christ was crucified, died and buried, “He descended into Hell” He was not condemned to Hell, like the rest of humanity. Rather he descended, he went willingly and with purpose.

From the time of Adam, all who died, whether evil or righteous were deprived of the vision of God. And Christ went to those who souls who awaited their Savior. Jesus did not descend into hell to deliver the damned, nor to destroy the hell of damnation, but to free the souls who awaited his coming.

The Catechism says, “Christ went down into the depths of death so that "the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live."

The ancient homily says, “he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve…the Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory.”

We do well to observe the silence today, we who have quieted our willful souls by Lenten and Holy Week penances. If we grow silent enough, and listen well, we will hear hell trembling, and the voice of the Lord, victorious through the cross, proclaiming a word of life, as we await his Easter resurrection for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Homily: Friday - 4th Week of Lent 2017 - The hour is near

The "hour" of Jesus is a noticeably prominent theme in John’s Gospel. The word "hour" sometimes refers simply to a short period of chronological time (a 60-minute period during the day). More often and more importantly, however, "Jesus' hour" refers to the climactic event of his death and resurrection, which the Fourth Gospel also refers to as his "glorification".

Jesus says to his mother at Cana: “My hour has not yet come”. As Good Friday approaches, he rhetorically asks Andrew and Philip: “Should I ask my ‘Father to save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour.”. And at the Last supper, Jesus lifts his eyes to heaven and prays, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you.”
In John’s Gospel, it is clear that Jesus is utterly aware of who he is and what he is about: he is the Son of the Father come to do the Father’s will. He prepares—he measures his time—for his hour, and he proceeds to this hour with confidence, trust in God, undistracted.

What about us? As we make this Lenten journey? Do we do so recollectedly, measuredly, cautiously, reverently of the hour. As we go through our day. are we conscious that “this is Lent”, this is the hour for me to glorify the Father through my Lenten penances? This is the hour for me to seek God’s mercy, the transformation of my heart, to become more like Christ who embraces suffering for the salvation of the world?

Or do continue to allow ourselves to be distracted by the noise around us and within us? The quiet of Lent, the silence that should mark our days, the putting away of non-essentials, these practices should help us quiet down, to focus on the hour.

One of the Saints even cautions us to “Beware of much speaking, for it banishes from the soul the holy thoughts and recollection with God.”

By nurturing this Lenten recollection, we unite ourselves to Christ in this hour, and prepare for the hour when we will be called upon by God to witness, to suffer, to endure the trial, to persevere in faith, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For greater devotion in our Lenten prayer, greater self-restraint in our Lenten fasting, and greater selflessness in our Lenten almsgiving.

That civil leaders will use their authority to protect the dignity of human life and the well-being of the poor, especially the unborn.  We pray to the Lord.

For young people, that they may be kept safe from the evil distractions of the world, and be brought up in faith-filled homes, that they may believe in the importance of loving and serving the Lord with their whole hearts.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter, that these weeks of Lent may bring them purification and enlightenment in the ways of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.

For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation or illness: that the tenderness of the Father’s love will comfort them.  We pray to the Lord.

Homily: Friday - 3rd Week of Lent 2017 - The Lenten Desert

The Christian Philosopher Svoren Kierkegaard said if he were a doctor he would prescribe as a remedy for all the world’s disorders, “silence”.

Our culture abhors silence; it is addicted to stimulation.  It has to have the television or internet going all the time; one of the spiritual dangers of having cell phones that can access the internet anywhere, anytime, is that one never learns how to sit in silence.

Last night at Confirmation, the bishop challenged our 8th graders, to consider a Lenten fast of only using their cell phones for emergencies only on 2 or 3 days a week. His suggestion was met with laughter, as if he were joking…he was not.

Noise, distraction, stimulation are great obstacles to knowing ourselves and listening to God. The constant stimulation and busyness bring not cheerfulness, but exhaustion and emptiness.

Through his prophet Hosea, God says, “I will lead Israel into the desert, and speak to her heart.”  It is in the silence where God wishes to refresh us, renew us, deepen our love for Him.

The desert is a place of divine encounter and spiritual battle. At the beginning of Lent we read about Jesus going out into the desert; in fact, the Scripture says he was led by the Holy Spirit into the desert.

We have many accounts of early Christians going off to live in the desert.  The first Christian monks were those who went into the desert like our Lord for a life of solitude and prayer.

The desert is a place of testing; we are likely to encounter our inner demons there.  It is also a place of purification; where we strip ourselves from what is unnecessary, particularly for our spiritual lives.  Yet, the desert is also a place of profound encounter with God.

In Hosea, what does God promise to those who follow his lead into the desert? “I will espouse you to me forever: I will espouse you in right and in justice, in love and in mercy; I will espouse you in fidelity, and you shall know the LORD.”  Espousal, can there be anything more profound?

To be faithful to the Lord’s command to love the Lord with our whole minds, strength, and heart, we at times need to allow the Spirit to lead us into the desert, to teach our hearts how to love again, to reignite hearts grown cold through attachment to worldly passions, to unclog our hearts..

May the Lenten desert help us to be stripped away of everything harmful to our minds and souls, that we may experience the intimate union God desires for us, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For greater devotion in our Lenten prayer, greater self-restraint in our Lenten fasting, and greater selflessness in our Lenten almsgiving.

That civil leaders will use their authority to protect the dignity of human life and the well-being of the poor, especially the unborn.  We pray to the Lord.

For young people, that they may be kept safe from the evil distractions of the world, and be brought up in faith-filled homes, that they may believe in the importance of loving and serving the Lord with their whole hearts.

For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter, that these weeks of Lent may bring them purification and enlightenment in the ways of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.

For those experiencing any kind of hardship or sorrow, isolation or illness: that the tenderness of the Father’s love will comfort them.  We pray to the Lord.

Homily: Thursday - 2nd Week in OT 2017 - God's silence in the face of suffering

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of watching the new Martin Scorsese movie, called “Silence” based on the book of the same name, by Catholic Japanese author Shūsaku Endō . In the story, two Jesuit priests travel to 17th century Japan to discover the fate of another priest, who had been spreading the Gospel there in Japan, who had disappeared. Christian lay faithful and priests were being arrested and put to some of the most severe tortures in Church history. Knowing that the Japanese government was seeking to wipe out Christianity from the land, the two Jesuits courageously journey to Japan to find him.

I don’t want to give too much of the plot away, but the priests are not in Japan long before they begin to witness these terrible persecutions first-hand. One of the priests prays to God, trying to understand why these good people must suffer so terribly; he calls out to God seeking answers, but he begins to despair when he doesn’t hear God answering him back, hence the title of the movie, “Silence”: God’s silence in the face of our ardent prayers and suffering.

The letter to the Hebrews, which we’ve been reading for over a week now, presents the image of Jesus as the High Priest. Today we read how the High Priest, “lives forever to make intercession for us”.  He who bore all of humanity’s suffering and sin, now sits at God’s right hand. So, we can trust that God does hear our prayers.

But, sometimes we doubt that he hears us because God doesn’t answer the way we think he should. We pray for someone to be cured of cancer, the cancer doesn’t go away, so we conclude God didn’t hear our prayer.

Sometimes it seems God is silent, but the fact is, he’s already spoken. He has heard and answered every prayer, through Jesus Christ. You might not understand what that means, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

In a very real sense, more than we often understand, God has already “cured” cancer and every disease, by making them opportunities to grow in sanctity through Jesus Christ. He has transformed every trial, every moment of suffering, into a conduit of grace.

The journey of faith involves growing in confidence that Jesus Christ is our strength, he is the answer to our prayers for deliverance, he is the way that leads to eternal peace and joy. No matter what we suffer, God is there inviting us to trust Him, to bear our sufferings in union with Christ, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.