June 9 2021 - St. Ephrem the Syrian - "Blessed are the Pure of Heart"

 

In popular devotion, the deacon St. Ephrem is not as well-known as St. Francis or St. Anthony or St. Patrick, yet Ephrem is a wonderful saint for us.  He was so steeped in God’s word, so in love with God.  Earlier this week, we heard the beatitudes from the Lord’s Sermon on the Mount. Well, St. Ephrem embodied that beatitude “Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God”. He was enraptured with God. He composed poetry and hymns to God and to the Blessed Mother. 

His poetry and hymns also served another purpose. He used them to catechize and defend the faith against the false doctrines and heresies rampant in his time, particularly the Arian heresy which denied the full divinity of Jesus.

Love of God impelled him to defend the faith, and lead others sweetly to the faith. When your love for God is great, you want others to know that love.  It is said that St. Ephrem had such an acute vision of the goodness of God and man’s need for God, that he was often “dissolved in tears.”  He is was in this constant state of weeping because of his insight into God’s love for us.  

He is known as St. Ephrem the Deacon because he was ordained a deacon by St. Basil the Great, but never a priest.  In fact, the people wanted him to be a bishop, but he is said to have avoided episcopal consecration by pretending to be insane. Smart man! He died in 373 while caring for those infected by the plague.  

There are many people today who do not know that Jesus is God. They do not know God’s love for them, nor will they acknowledge their need for God. Saints like Ephrem point us to the one true God by the goodness of their life, by their labors, by their concern for souls. They remind us to be wary of the glamours and errors of the world, and call us to that purity of heart in which we contemplate the truth, goodness, and beauty of the one, true, God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

May St. Ephrem help us in remaining free from all that keeps us from contemplating God’s goodness, truth, and beauty this day for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the whole Christian people, that the beatitudes of Christ may animate our lives. Let us pray to the Lord. 

For our President and all elected government representatives, may the Holy Spirit grant them wisdom and guide them to promote authentic and lasting peace in the world, an end to terrorism, respect for religious freedom, and a greater reverence for the sanctity of Human Life. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our young people beginning summer vacation, that they may be kept close to the truth and heart of Jesus, that young people may live in faith-filled homes where the Gospel is cherished, studied, and lived-out. Let us pray to the lord.

For all of the sick and suffering, for the grace to unite their sufferings with Christ and to know His consolation and peace.

For our departed loved ones and all of the souls in purgatory, and for N. for whom this Mass is offered. We pray to the Lord.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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