4th Sunday of Easter 2025 - Pope Leo XIV and St. Ignatius of Antioch

 

Just last Sunday, in light of the passing of dear Pope Francis we considered the words of our Lord to St. Peter, “Peter, if you love me, feed my sheep”. Those words rang true for a Pope who no doubt loved the Lord and the flock he had been chosen to watch over. And now, a week later, Habemus Papam, we have a new Pope.

Late Thursday morning, we saw images of the white smoke billowing from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel where the Cardinals gathered to vote. And within about an hour and a half, we saw the new Pope emerge , the first Pope born in this great nation—Robert Francis Cardinal Prevost had been elected as Supreme Pontiff and took the name, Leo, as had thirteen popes before him, the most recent being Pope Leo XIII , the fourth longest reigning Pope who was elected in 1878.

What a delightful surprise to see the American Pope emerge onto the loggia of St. Peter’s and repeat the same words our blessed Lord spoke when entering the upper room after his resurrection: “Peace be with you”.

“Dearest brothers and sisters, this is the first greeting of the risen Christ, the good shepherd who laid down his life for the flock of God. I too would like this greeting of peace to enter your hearts, to reach your families, to all people, wherever they may be, to all nations, to the whole earth. Peace be with you!”

Back here in West Blvd, about 10 minutes after the Pope concluded his blessing, we had the school children coming over to church to light candles as part of our Light for Love program. They must have been one of the first catholic schools on the planet to gather together in church to pray following the election of the Pope. And pray we did, lighting candles for family and for the world and for the church.

And then the next day, Friday, came another surprise. Friday morning, Holy Father Pope Leo gathered with the cardinals in the Sistine chapel to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. And when it came time for his homily, he began to speak, not in Italian, but in english. He had given his opening address in Italian of course, he then spoke in Spanish, a special word particularly for the faithful in the diocese of Chiclayo in Peru, where he served as bishop. Apparently, he is fluent in Spanish, Italian, French, german, and Portuguese. He can read latin, of course. But, to hear him speaking in unbroken english, was another delightful surprise.

But then came another surprise. In the course of his homily, he expounded upon the question the Lord poses to the apostles in the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 16: “who do you say the son of man is”. We know how Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”. The holy Father reflected upon how that is a question posed to every single person, and there are really only two ways you can answer it. There is the way of the world: finding the presence of the Lord irksome and challenging the world does not hesitate to reject Christ, to silence him, to eliminate him. That’s one answer: to oppose Him.

But the other way, the answer of Peter—is that of discipleship—to recognize Jesus as the Christ—the one worth listening to, heeding, and following, as challenging as that might be—to trust that he has the words of everlasting life.

And if that’s how we answer, the Holy Father explained then our commitment to Jesus  is not a once in a lifetime commitment we make at baptism, but a commitment we must make every day.

And then here comes the surprise. The Pope, claiming that discipleship is a commitment we must make every day, then said, “I say this first of all to myself, as the Successor of Peter, as I begin my mission as Bishop of Rome and, according to the well-known expression of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, am called to preside in charity over the universal Church.”

What a delightful surprise to find the words of our patron saint on the lips of the newly elected Holy Father, on his first full day on the job. Of all the saints he could have quoted, he drew the world’s attention to St. Ignatius of Antioch.

“Saint Ignatius” the Pope said, “who was led in chains to this city (meaning Rome), the place of his impending sacrifice, wrote to the Christians there: “Then I will truly be a disciple of Jesus Christ, when the world no longer sees my body”. Ignatius was speaking about being devoured by wild beasts in the arena (traditionally the wild beasts are depicted as Lions, and what does the name Leo mean?) — and so it happened — but his words apply more generally to an indispensable commitment for all those in the Church who exercise a ministry of authority. It is to move aside so that Christ may remain, to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified (cf. John 3:30), to spend oneself to the utmost so that all may have the opportunity to know and love him.

What a powerful reflection for all of us to consider: how even the Pope recognizes the importance of decreasing so that Christ may increase in us, of learning to push aside our own will that the will of God might take priority, so that God may be known and loved by others.

In the Gospel today, Jesus says, my sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me. And here is Pope Leo saying, I’m one of the sheep too. I need to listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd, so that I may follow him faithfully. And we look to the saints, like St. Ignatius of Antioch, to see marvelous examples of ordinary men and women like us, following Christ in heroic ways.

How are you, how am I, called to listen to the voice of the Lord and follow Him faithfully every day? No doubt this involves prayer. We cannot hear his voice unless we incline our ear in his direction. Prayerfully read some scripture every day—listen to God’s Word which pierces the heart. Consider how God’s word applies in the concrete details of your life: in your challenges, in your sorrows, in your joys, in your loneliness, in the confusing details. What does it mean to follow Jesus more faithfully in all of the chaos? Not just faithfully, but more faithfully. We can always be more faithful, more patient, more gentle, more joyful, more self-controlled, more forgiving.

In the first reading, “The Gentiles were delighted when they heard the Word of the Lord preached to them, and they glorified the word of the Lord.” Having heard the Word of God speaking to you in your daily prayer, thank God, glorify God by allowing God’s word to transform your mind and your heart and your attitudes and behaviors. Bring that word into your decisions, your conversations, how you treat people, and when you, like Ignatius, are called to suffer—patiently, trustingly, and with faith, that You may decrease so that Christ may increase, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

October 17 2024 - St. Ignatius of Antioch - Our Patron Saint (School Mass)

 Today is the Feast Day of the Patron Saint of our Parish and school, St. Ignatius of Antioch. Happy Feast Day to you all.

What does it mean that St. Ignatius of Antioch is our Patron Saint?

That St. Ignatius is our patron Saint means that St. Ignatius of Antioch, who lived almost 2000 years ago, prays for us in a special way from his place in heaven. We have a special heavenly helper—to help us become the people God made us to be—to help us overcome our trials—to help us grow in faith, hope, and love and to follow Jesus as his disciples. 

Because he is our patron, we look to his holy example and ask for his prayers and intercession 

His statue stands along Lorain Ave, at the parking lot entrance as a reminder that St. Ignatius of Antioch guards us, and prays for us, and loves us, and welcomes all those who want to grow in their faith. 

And that reminder is important, because, I bet, most of us spend very little time thinking about St. Ignatius of Antioch, the person. Even though you probably hear or say his name every day. 

The story of St. Ignatius of Antioch is a great one. He was a Catholic bishop who lived very close to the time of Jesus. After Jesus ascended into heaven, Jesus’ apostles were tasked with making disciples to continue the work of spreading the Christian faith. And St. Ignatius was one of those disciples. He was baptized and for a time learned about Jesus under St. John the Apostle, the very same apostle who laid his head on the chest of Jesus at the last supper and stood at the foot of the cross when Jesus was crucified, who ran to the tomb at the resurrection, and witnessed Jesus ascending into heaven.

So, Ignatius had one of the best teachers you could ever ask for. When he was ready, Ignatius was sent by John to continue the work of the Church in the gigantic city of Antioch, which even 2000 years ago, had a million people, meaning, it had more people than Cleveland. 

Being such an important city, the Roman Emperor came to visit Antioch, but the emperor was not a Christian, in fact, he wanted to destroy the Christian Church. So he summoned Bishop Ignatius, and demanded that he give up his faith and renounce Jesus. 

But remember, Ignatius knew that Jesus is truly the Son of God, that Jesus was crucified, died, and rose from the dead. 

So, courageously, Bishop Ignatius stood up to the Emperor, and told him that there was no way he could deny Jesus, because he knew the Gospel to be true—he knew that Jesus said and did the things the Church claimed. After all, it had only happened 60 years ago. There was no denying it. Even when the emperor threatened to kill Ignatius if he did not deny Jesus, Ignatius held fast to the truth and would gladly die to prove this point, that Jesus Christ is truly God and savior of the world.  

For courageously standing up to the emperor, Ignatius was sentenced to death—to be devoured by lions in Rome, which is why our school mascot is the lion—a reminder of the courageous death of our patron—that we might have the same courage in professing Jesus.

Friends, even if you don’t think of him every day, at least think of him well today, Ask St. Ignatius today to help you become the person God made you to be—holy and righteous in the sight of God, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

October 17 2022 (school mass) - St. Ignatius of Antioch - Powerful Prayers of the Righteous

 Today is the Feast Day of the Patron Saint of our Parish, St. Ignatius of Antioch. Happy Feast Day.

What does it mean that St. Ignatius of Antioch is the Patron Saint of our parish?

That St. Ignatius is the patron Saint of our parish, means that we venerate and honor him in a special way, we look to his holy example and ask for his prayers intercession in a special way.

Every day, when I cele
brate Mass, before I ring the bell and process into the sanctuary, I look up at the crucifix, and I ask for the prayers of four very important saints. I say, “Holy Mary, Mother of God: pray for us; St. Joseph: pray for us. St. John the Evangelist: pray for us. St. Ignatius of Antioch: Pray for us.”

I ask for Mary’s prayers, because she is our heavenly queen and mother, and Jesus told us to take her as our mother. I ask St. Joseph for his prayers because he is the patron of the whole church. I ask St. John the Evangelist for his prayers, because he is the patron saint of Cleveland. And I ask St. Ignatius of Antioch for his prayers, because he is the patron saint of our parish.

I ask for their prayers every day, for one, because the bible says that the prayer of a righteous person has great power. It is very advantageous and beneficial for us to make good friends with holy people. They help us to be better followers of Jesus. And their prayers are very helpful to us.

As you grow older and wiser you come to realize how much we need God’s help. We need God’s help in order to follow Jesus as we should. We need God’s help in order to be as patient as we should, loving, kind, courageous, and strong against the devil’s attacks, strong against temptation. It is a very foolish person who thinks that they can get to heaven on their own, that they can make it in life on their own. We need help.

And God loves giving help to us, especially through other people, and most especially through his heavenly saints.

The fact that you are students at St. Ignatius of Antioch school means that God has arranged your lives to be here. And he has given you a powerful intercessor, a powerful helper to assist you in growing in . faith and holiness. Why should you ask St. Ignatius for his help and his prayers every day? Because God wants you to. And God has help that he wants to give you through him, if you would but ask for help.

St. Ignatius, help us to love the Church and to be devoted to the building up of the Church as you were, as bishop of Antioch. And help us to willingly accept hardships and sufferings like you, in order to help others know and love Jesus. St. Ignatius, help us to be faithful when our faith is under attack. St. Ignatius of Antioch, help us to be courageous like you in spreading the Gospel. St. Ignatius of Antioch, your righteousness makes you a powerful intercessor for this parish, obtain for us the graces we need to be faithful in our mission to make disciples of all nations. St. Ignatius of Antioch, pray for us, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

 

October 15-16, 2022 (Sunday Masses) - Patronal Feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch

 On this feast of our parish Patron, the bishop and martyr St. Ignatius of Antioch, our first reading and Gospel are taken not from the normal Sunday lectionary readings, but from the readings proper to the feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch. And these readings are chosen by the Church because they have some relevance to the life and lessons of St. Ignatius. And so, I’d like to reflect on these readings a bit.

“Be imitators of me” says St. Paul. A command that certainly sounds a bit strange to our modern ears, but in the ancient Greco-Roman world, it was a common and acceptable practice for teachers to point to themselves as examples. And if anyone could say this, it was Paul, for he had so taken the Gospel to heart, had so centered his life on Christ. Christianity wasn't just part of his life; Christianity was his life. And, remember, Paul wasn’t just giving God lip service: he is writing this letter from prison. We do well to imitate Paul in taking the Gospel so seriously that the world wants to lock us up for it. And like Paul to seek such a seek to imitate Jesus Christ to such a degree that our identity and personality is merged with His so much so that people detect and see Christ in us. 

Paul then says, don’t just imitate me but “observe those who conduct themselves according to this model.” Paul humbly recognizes that he is not the only model, and instructs all Christians to look to the sains.

Protestants are sometimes perturbed, as they often are by us Catholics, because of our great devotion to studying the lives of the saints. Why go to the saints, they say, when you can just go to Jesus. But we do so because the Word of God, Sacred Scripture, tells us to. “Observe those who conduct themselves according to this model”. 

From the earliest centuries, Christians have looked to the saints—to learn from them and also simply to glorify God who shines his light through them. God transforms ordinary people, like you and me, to become powerful instruments of His goodness. And we’re to study them; study their prayer lives, study how they put the gifts of the Spirit into use; how they use their time, how they turn away from the world in order to turn to Christ.

But, remember, the saints weren’t just born super Christians. Sometimes we are tempted to think, “Oh, I’m too insignificant to do much for God”, “I don’t have what it takes to convert non-believers, I can barely balance my checkbook and remain patient with my kids”. But, over and over throughout history, God chooses the weak and insignificant to accomplish mighty deeds. 

With so many of the saints, we know nothing about where they were born, who their parents were, what their education looked like. And that’s fitting because most of them were nobodies. No one was chronicling their lives because they were unimportant in the eyes of the world. And it’s not until maybe even their final days do we have the details of their heroic works of charity or martyrdoms or words of preaching.

Such is the case for our patron, St. Ignatius of Antioch. We don’t really know where he was born. We don’t know the names of his parents or if he had siblings. There is a legend that he was the young boy who Jesus called over to sit on his lap in the Gospels, but that is just a legend. He may or may not have been Jewish prior to his conversion to Christ. We just don’t know these details…he kind of emerges out of the mist of history when he is ordained a bishop by St. John the Apostle in the year 66. 

We can surmise that Ignatius was pretty trustworthy—as he was placed by one of the original twelve apostles as bishop of Antioch—which was the largest city in the empire outside of Rome. Antioch had a population of a million people two thousand years ago—that’s three times the size of modern day Cleveland.  Ignatius not only trustworthy, but he was deeply orthodox—meaning—he took very seriously a bishop’s duty to teach the Gospel without error--the duty of “guarding the deposit of faith—as St. Paul describes it to the bishop St. Timothy. 

Like St. Paul, bishop Ignatius was arrested; he was marched to his death in Rome. But while he made his death march to Rome, Ignatius, like Paul, wrote letters exhorting and instructing the Church. Seven of those letters have survived the centuries. We have Ignatius’ letter to the Ephesians and Romans, to whom Paul also wrote, and also Ignatius’ letters to the Magnesians, Trallians Philadelphians and Smyrnaeans. And he wrote a letter to his brother bishop St. Polycarp, who was also consecrated bishop by St. John the Apostle. In fact, both Ignatius and Polycarp are depicted together in the stained glass window in the east nave, depicted at the feet of the Apostle John. Under that window, Ignatius is depicted in his pastoral care for his flock at Antioch, his arrest by the emperor, and finally, his martyrdom.

In his letter to the Romans, Ignatius writes: “I am writing to all the churches to let it be known that I will gladly die for God…Let me be food for the wild beasts, for they are my way to God. I am God’s wheat and shall be ground by their teeth so that I may become Christ’s pure bread.”

And that is why, dear brethren, we hear the Gospel today--St John’s Gospel, of Our Lord’s teaching about the grain of wheat: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” St. Ignatius, took this teaching to heart, imparted to him by the Apostle who ordained him. 

St. Ignatius died a martyrs death, devoured by lions in the Roman coliseum. But Ignatius, like Paul, believed that imprisonment and martyrdom is not a failure for a Christian, but a victory. Martyrdom is the ultimate witness. The martyrs embrace suffering and death for Christ, and their witness helps us believe with greater faith that the Gospel is the Good News. Witnessing that Christ has died, Christ is Risen, Christ will come again, is more important than anything else. 

“Come fire and cross, gashes and rending, breaking of bones and mangling of limbs, the shattering in pieces of my whole body; come all the wicked torments of the Devil upon me,” writes Ignatius, “if I may but attain unto Jesus Christ.”

If the grain of wheat dies it produces much fruit. Well, St. Ignatius of Antioch, and the saints and martyrs, continue to bear fruit in our lives when we allow ourselves to become like the grain of wheat: imitate him in courageously putting to death worldly pleasures in order to attain Christian perfection, embracing hardship and suffering to help others know and love Jesus.

Upon the small table in the middle of the sanctuary, is a relic of St. Ignatius of Antioch, a piece of bone. And I invite you to direct your prayers to St. Ignatius today, asking him to help you to love Jesus today, to obtain blessings for your family and for this parish, to assist you in bearing witness, despite all of your weaknesses, to become wheat for Christ—for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

December 27 2021 - St. John the Apostle & Evangelist (and his student Ignatius of Antioch)

 In the eastern narthex here at St. Ignatius of Antioch, the middle set of stained glass windows depict the life of our parishes patron St. Ignatius. And the very top stained glass window contains three figures. St. Ignatius, St. Polycarp, and the saint we honor on this third day of the Christmas Octave, the principal patron of the Diocese of Cleveland, St. John the Apostle and Evangelist.

These three saints are depicted together, for it is said that Polycarp and Ignatius were both students of the beloved disciple (and this is how they are depicted, as if sitting at the foot of the master). They were also both consecrated bishops by St. John around the year 66 A.D. Polycarp was made bishop of Smyrna, and Ignatius, of course, was made the third bishop of Antioch, where he remained for about 40 years, at which point he was arrested and marched to his martyrdom in Rome.

On his way to martyrdom, Ignatius wrote his famous epistles, and you can really tell he had spent time with the Apostle John, for John’s influence runs through the epistles of dear Ignatius.

Ignatius writes of “the timeless, eternal, invisible Word made visible” drawn, concepts we find in beloved John’s prologue. Ignatius presents the Lord many times as the Divine Physician, the Son of God, True God, the Divine Word, the Logos, as does John. 

St. John impacted St. Ignatius deeply, and he is meant to impact all of us, deeply. No doubt, the love, the knowledge, the understanding that Ignatius derived from John, enabled him to teach and guide the flock at Antioch, and gave him conviction and courage when facing the Emperor, and provided him bravery and resolution as he faced his martyrdom.

So we do well to meditate on the writings of John often. For John, laid his head on the breast of our Savior, and helps us to do the same. When we meditate on John’s gospel, we can hear the Lord’s own heartbeat. 

We can hear his love for the Father and the Lord’s love for his blessed Mother, his love for his apostles, his deeper mercy for sinners, and his love for us. 

The collect for today’s Mass speaks of how, God, through the apostle John has unlocked for us the secrets of the Word, and asks God to help us grasp with proper understanding what he has brought to our ears. What a powerful prayer! 

And what a fitting saint to celebrate so near to the feast of the Lord’s birth, for St. John unlocks for us the secret hidden to many. That the Christ child is not an ordinary child, he is the Word Made Flesh come to save us from our sins.

Like St. Ignatius of Antioch, may we all become students of St. John the Apostle and Evangelist, to learn ever more deeply the love and knowledge of Christ, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

- - - - - - -  

We bring forth now our prayers of petitions.

For the Church of Cleveland under the patronage of St. John, apostle and evangelist, and particularly for Bishop Malesic, that together we may witness faithfully and tirelessly to the truth of the Gospel

For Christians who are persecuted throughout the world, especially those who face martyrdom, that they may have a faith that is constant and pure.

For those oppressed by hunger, sickness or loneliness, that through the mystery of the Nativity of Christ, they may find relief in both mind and body. 

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

30th Week in Ordinary Time 2021 - Friday - The Lord feeds, heals, and quenches

 All four Gospels contain accounts of the Lord eating and dining. All four record the last supper, for example. But Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record the Lord’s supper in the house of the tax collector Levi and St. John is the only to record the Lord’s attendance at the wedding feast at Cana.

St. Luke is the only evangelist to record the meal in today’s Gospel passage in which the Lord heals the man with dropsy in the house of a pharisee on the sabbath.

This story is not the first time that the Lord has healed someone on the sabbath, but it is the first time he heals someone at a meal. He combines healing and eating. It’s also interesting who he heals. He heals a man with dropsy. Dropsy is a condition in which there is a build-up of fluid in a persons tissues, and so because of this imbalance with fluid, the person with dropsy is always thirsty—they are perpetually thirsty. And so here the Lord combines healing and eating and satisfying unending thirst.

What does that makes you think of? I don’t know about you, but this certainly makes me think of what we’re doing right now. In the celebration of Mass, the Lord feeds, the Lord quenches thirst, and the Lord heals

In the Eucharist, the Lord feeds us with his body and blood, giving us spiritual nourishment for the work of the Gospel and the pilgrimage to heaven. In the Eucharist, the Lord heals us of sinfulness, pride, grief, loneliness, division, and estrangement from God. And in the Eucharist the Lord quenches our thirst for the infinite God—like a dry weary desert our souls thirst for Him, and here that thirst is quenched.

Commenting particularly on the healing properties of the Eucharist, Pope Francis, said a few years ago, that the Eucharist is “powerful medicine for the weak”. We have many weaknesses: fear in preaching the Gospel, timidity in doing the work of the Lord, weaknesses of the flesh, the lack of willingness to suffer for Christ, temptations to sin, concupiscence. And the Eucharist is medicine for these weaknesses. And those who deprive themselves of the Eucharist, refusing to go to mass, deprive themselves of real medicine the Lord wishes to apply to their souls.

The Eucharist is also medicine for the greatest of our weaknesses: mortality. 

St. Ignatius of Antioch, writing to the Ephesians said that the Eucharist is the “medicine of immortality…and the antidote  which  wards  off  death.” It “yields continuous life  in union with Jesus Christ.”

May we dispose our souls as often as possible to this food from heaven, the food that heals, the food that quenches for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

- - - - - - -  

For those who are deprived of the Eucharist, for lapsed Catholics, for the unbelieving, for those who doubt the Lord’s real presence, for those who have hardened their hearts toward God, and for a deeper appreciation of the great gift of the Eucharist among all God’s people. Let us pray to the Lord.

That young people will be blessed with good Christian example from their parents and fellow Christians, and that the word of God might be cherished, studied, and practiced in every Christian home. 

During and following this month of October, dedicated to the Most Holy Rosary, Catholics may take up this devotion with renewed vigor and trust in Our Lady’s never-failing intercession. 

For the healing of all those afflicted with physical, mental, emotional illness, for those in hospitals, nursing homes, hospice care, those struggling with addictions, for those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today.

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

October 17 2021 - Feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch - Wheat and the Cross

 
Over a month ago already, we heard in the Gospel the Lord offered an invitation to anyone who wished to be his disciple. A stark invitation. “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” To follow Jesus we must take up the cross. 

The cross is the common denominator for all modes of Christian life. Whether you are married, single, a priest, a consecrated religious, a widow, a teenager, a grandparent, or a stranger in a strange land, you are called to embrace the cross. All walks of Christian life take the shape of the cross.

If you are single, you are called to die to self-centeredness and live a life of love and obedience to God and service to others. If you are married, you are to sacrifice your life for your spouse and for your children. Priests are to pour out their lives in loving service to the Church through the duties entailed by their ordination: teaching, governing, sanctifying the Church. Consecrated religious carry the cross through their vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience and the particular works of their religious orders. 

In the Gospel, the Lord did not specifically mention the cross. But in teaching his disciples he did employ the image of the grain of wheat which is a veiled image for the cross. The grain of wheat that must fall to the ground and die is a symbol for the Christian life. The grain of wheat must fall to the ground and die, just like our Lord had to go to the cross to die on Good Friday, just like we his disciples must go to the cross and die, and in a sense live out Good Friday, every day.

We hear this Gospel passage on the fifth Sunday of Lent, the Sunday before Holy Week. During Lent this Gospel helps us to understand why the Lord must suffer and die. This Gospel passage is also used for the liturgies for the Ordination of Priests and for the profession of Vows for consecrated religious. Consider, as the priest lays down on the cold marble of the cathedral this image of the dying grain of wheat is presented to him. And also, as the religious novices kneel before the bishop or abbot and make those promises of poverty, chastity, and obedience, they hear the Lord telling them, that they must become a grain of wheat and die.

And yet, this image doesn’t just end in death, it contains a promise: if it dies, it will produce much fruit. Here is the complete image of the Paschal Mystery. Good Friday is not the end. The Lord’s death on the cross is not a victory for the powers of death, but for the goodness of heaven. Jesus dies on the cross and is buried in the tomb, in order to be raised by the Father on Easter, destroying death. He is lifted up from the earth, in order to draw everyone who believe in Him to God—to eternal life.

So too in the life of the Christian, when our life bears the shape of the cross, when we put pride and lust and disobedience and envy and selfishness to death, the grain of wheat produces much fruit. Good Friday is to be lived out every day, but so is Easter, and so is the Fruit Bearing Feast of Pentecost.

A single person, whose life is devoted to self-sacrificial service enriches the church with spiritual fruits. A married couple who loves each other with Christ-like sacrificial love, draws each other to God, they become blessings to each other, their children, the church, and the world. Priests, though celibate, become instruments of new life in the church. Religious by living out the evangelical counsels infuse the Church with learning and healing and compassion and joy.

Why is this Gospel passage proclaimed particularly on the Feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch? Listen to the words our patron, the holy bishop Ignatius wrote to the Romans as he was being marched to his death in the Roman Circus, “I am writing to all the churches to let it be known that I will gladly die for God… Permit me to imitate my suffering God…Let me be food for the wild beasts, for they are my way to God. I am God’s wheat.” This Gospel, this teaching of the Lord Jesus, echoed in the mind, and heart, and soul of this holy bishop. He willingly embraced becoming wheat, crushed in martyrdom, so that he may obtain the promises of the Lord. In willingly going to his martyrdom, Ignatius sought to imitate the suffering and death of Jesus. 

Now many Christians, most of us, are scared to death of death. Most of us run away from suffering. We seek to avoid any conversations or posturing or activity that might result in our martyrdoms. We hide our faith.

But not Ignatius. Ignatius demonstrates the freedom from fear that belongs to those who have grown mature in faith, hope, and love. Faith that Christ is God. Hope in His Promises. Love that impels us to Imitate Him even in suffering and death, that the Christian faith might be spread. 

And that’s a freedom—freedom from fear—the Lord wants for all of us because that’s a freedom we need to fulfill our Gospel mission. We need freedom from fear in order to stand up for our Catholic faith when it is being attacked in the public sphere and to teach that faith amidst so many cultural errors. We need freedom so that the sinful tendencies of our flesh do not control our lives. We need freedom from fear in order to bring the light of the Gospel into the dark places of the world.

“Do not have Jesus Christ on your lips, and the world in your hearts” St. Ignatius writes. On this feast of St. Ignatius our patron, we celebrate his witness, his faith, his freedom, his conviction, that those holy fruits may be produced in us for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

Holy Week 2021 - Good Friday - "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do"

 

“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”

While we did not read those words from St. Luke’s Gospel either on Palm Sunday or Good Friday this year, this plea for mercy for others uttered by our Lord from the cross have been echoing in my heart today.

To whom was the Lord addressing that prayer for mercy? In Luke’s Passion narrative, the Lord’s petition for forgiveness immediately follow’s the description of his crucifixion: When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left. Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

Jesus no doubt offered this prayer on behalf of the Roman soldiers who literally nailed him to the cross. They knew not what they did, they were just following orders. They hadn’t heard him preach, they didn’t know his identity. They were treating Jesus just like they would any criminal, though maybe a bit more severely, due to his reputation as King of the Jews. They certainly did not know that he truly was a King, though his Kingdom was not of this world. If they would have known his true identity, writes St. Paul to the Corinthians, “they would not have crucified the Lord of glory” (I Cor 2:8).

So certainly Jesus’s plea was for his actual executioners, who though they treated him with cruelty and harshness, did not know they were committing deicide—putting to death the innocent lamb of God. And yet, did Jesus not also offer that merciful plea to his Father on behalf of the Jews who conspired to put him on the cross? The scribes, pharisees, Sadducees, annas and Caiaphas: those who interpreted his teachings as blasphemy—those who saw him as a threat to their own religious authority—those who he threw out of the temple for turning God’s house into a den of thievery. Those who called for the release of Barabbas. Those who literally called for his crucifixion. They showed that they misunderstood his teachings and actions at every step, so wasn’t he also praying for them? Not just for his executioners, but those who conspired against him? 

But the Lord’s prayer was not simply just for his executions, or the Jewish conspirators, was it? We know who that prayer was for. It was for us. It was for me. It was for you. It was for Moses. It was for Adam and Eve. It was for us all. All people of all time. As St. Peter writes in his first epistle: “Christ suffered for sins, the Righteous One for the sake of the Unrighteous Ones (that’s us), that he might lead us to God. (I Peter 3:18)

Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. None of us can really understand the gravity of our sins. Human sin, after all, is an afront to the infinite God. And can we really ever truly grasp God’s infinite goodness and love, which sin offends. We can’t even really comprehend how our sins wound and hurt our neighbor, or our family members, let alone the infinite God. “Those who do not know what they do” that’s us. 

But just because we don’t understand the gravity of our sins, doesn’t mean they aren’t sins and an abomination to God, just the same. Just because we don’t understand the impact, the severity, the wounds that we cause, doesn’t mean we’re in the clear. 

The reason today is called Good Friday, is as St. Paul writes: “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8). “Father forgive them” for we needed forgiveness.

Throughout the ages the martyrs have echoed the Lord’s prayer for mercy. St. James, the first of the apostles to be martyred, knelt and prayed as he was being stoned by the scribes and Pharisees: “Lord, God, Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.” St. Stephen, too, condemned to death by Paul, prayed, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

Even our own patron, Ignatius to the Church of Ephesus, recommended that as they underwent persecution, they too should pray. Ignatius writes, “Offer prayers in response to their blasphemies…be gentle in response to their cruelty and do not be eager to imitate them in return…Let us eagerly be imitators of the Lord.” This, coming from a man who was being marched in chains to be torn apart by lions.

As each of us comes forward to adore the holy cross today, let us come with the same prayer upon our lips. We pray for the world. We pray for those who do not believe in Christ. We pray for members of the Church who love and believe imperfectly. Pray for those who have hurt you or who might hurt you in the future. Pray for those who bring ruin to our nation, to our diocese.  Pray for your pastor, as he prays for you. “Father, forgive them for they no not what they do. Father, forgive me, for I, so often know not what I do.” For the glory of God and salvation of souls.

February 1 2021 - St. Ignatius of Antioch (EF) - Crowned with Many Crowns of glory

About 300 years after the death of St. Ignatius of Antioch, the archbishop of Constantinople, the golden-tongued St. John Chrysostom gave a stirring homily about the martyred bishop, which can be accessed for free on the internet, if you have the means, I highly recommend reading it.

St. John begins his homily with a funny even surprising little analogy. He says, Entertainers—theater producers and hosts of athletic competitions and the like—put on frequent and constant entertainments to show off their wealth and to show good will to their acquaintances. In the martyrs, God has done something similar. In the martyrs, God shows the power of his love and grace, in transforming weak and ordinary people, into powerful witnesses of the Gospel. And unlike the theater and athletic competitions of his day, which were limited to just men, Chrysostom says, “both maidens and women, and men, both young and old, and slaves, and freemen, and every rank, and every age, and each sex” are called forth by God for the noble purpose---the contest, he calls it—of the Christian life.

Then, St. John goes on to say that Ignatius of Antioch was so successful in this contest, he won so many crowns he doesn’t know where to begin. He says, “just like when you go into a field and there are roses and violets and lilies and spring flowers, you don’t know where to look, “coming to this spiritual meadow of the mighty works of Ignatius” he doesn’t know where to begin. 

He begins, though, with Ignatius’ selection as bishop of Antioch. Ignatius was crowned by he was crowned by the Apostles, selected as bishop of Antioch by one of the original twelve apostles. The top stained glass window of the eastern transept, shows Ignatius and Polycarp kneeling before St. John the Apostle, as they are being made the bishops of Antioch and Ephesus respectively. 

To be chosen as a Bishop is a great honor, but Chrysostom notes that being chosen as Bishop by the Apostles was an honor greater still. The Apostles knew what the job demanded. Ignatius fulfilled some very specific Apostolic qualifications, like those set forth by St. Paul in his letter to Titus, when he writes “A bishop as God’s steward must be blameless, not arrogant, not irritable, not a drunkard, not aggressive, not greedy for sordid gain, but hospitable, a lover of goodness, temperate, just, holy, and self-controlled, holding fast to the true message as taught so that he will be able both to exhort with sound doctrine and to refute opponents.”

And this leads to the second and third crowns. Ignatius won the crowns of being a competent bishop of a humungous diocese, boasting a population of about a million people. And not only a humungous diocese, but the see that was once presided over by the Prince of the Apostles, St. Peter himself.

Another crown, won by Ignatius is evidenced in his writings. In his letters, written to the various Churches visited on the way to his martyrdom in Rome, Ignatius exhorts Christians over and over to hold fast to the Apostolic faith taught by the faithful bishops.

And, finally,  while each of the other crowns and accomplishments of Ignatius were blessings to the Church, it is in the crown of martyrdom, that truly echoes through the ages. 

For anyone who might ever doubt that the Lord truly rose from the dead: the martyrdom of Christians like Peter, Paul, and Ignatius is proof that the Lord is truly risen. “For in reality, writes Chrysostom, “ [martyrdom] is the greatest proof of the resurrection that the slain Christ should show forth so great power after death, as to persuade living men to despise both country and home and friends, and acquaintance and life itself, for the sake of confessing him, and to choose in place of present pleasures, both stripes and dangers and death. For these are not the achievements of any dead man, nor of one remaining in the tomb but of one risen and living.

Martyrdom is therefore encouragement to every Christian, and proof for every non-believer, to forsake the world and to live for Christ who is truly risen. 

Not only today, therefore, but every day, writes John Chrysostom, let us go forth to blessed Ignatius, plucking spiritual fruits from him. His holy example is a perpetual treasure, a spring that fills us with blessings, with boldness, nobleness of spirit, and much courage, in witnessing to Christ in our own lives for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

November 12 2019 - St. Josaphat - What we were obliged to do

When I think of the apostles and martyrs willingly going to their death for Christ, martyrs like our parish patron, St. Ignatius of Antioch, and St. Josaphat whom the Church honors today, I wonder if they shared the sentiment found at the end of our Gospel reading today: “When you have done all you have been commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.'

The martyrs, men and women, up and down the centuries, so loved Christ that they were compelled when given the choice to abandon the faith or to die for Him, they chose to die. These are the ones who did what they were commanded to do. They took up their cross and followed the Lord all the way to Calvary because they loved Him and believed in Him and trusted in his promises.

“All the pleasures of the world, and all the kingdoms of this earth, shall profit me nothing” writes Ignatius of Antioch. “It is better for me to die on behalf of Jesus Christ, than to reign over all the ends of the earth”

St. Josaphat was born into an orthodox family in 1580, but as an adult he joined one of the eastern churches that had recently returned to full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. He was ordained a priest and eventually a bishop. And through the education of his flock, the reform of his clergy, and his personal example of holiness, Josaphat succeeded in winning the majority of the Orthodox in his diocese to full communion with Rome. Those who opposed him plotted his death. With furies cries of “Kill the Papist” he was killed and thrown into a river.

And yet, knowing his end, would have chosen to water down his teaching? Would he have put off the work of Christian unity for someone else. Would he have given the excuse that it was too dangerous, or not politically correct? Likely, he would have said, “I have done what I was obliged to do.”

And for this, at the time of his judgment, he appeared before the throne of God who welcomed him, “well done my good and faithful servant…Come and share your master’s joy.”

May each of us cultivate that intense love of the Lord and the Truth of his Gospel, that we may willing to serve Him in all things despite the cost for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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For the healing of the wounds of all Christian division and for success in the work of evangelization.

For perseverance in carrying our crosses in fidelity to the Lord Jesus.

For safety for travelers and for the homeless and destitute affected by cold and inclement weather.

That we may be attentive to the needs of the sick, the poor, and the despairing in our midst.

We pray in a special way during this month of November for all the faithful departed, for those whose names are written in our parish book of the names of the dead, all deceased members of St. Ignatius of Antioch Parish, and our deceased family members and friends, deceased clergy and religious, for those who fought and died for our freedom and for N. 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.

32nd Sunday in OT 2019 - Courage in the face of suffering

I attended a prayer group recently, and the group began with an icebreaker question: what is your favorite inspirational movie? A fun, yet poignant question! The first person his favorite inspirational movie is Mel Gibson’s “The Passion of the Christ,” though he had to admit that some of the graphic violence is hard to watch. The second person mentioned a movie I had never heard of, called “Glory” about the U.S. Civil War’s first all-black volunteer company, the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, detailing the prejudices they faced from both their own Union Army and the Confederates, and the sacrifice they made for the cause of freedom and national unity. The third member of our group mentioned the movie “Unplanned”, the story of Abby Johnson, a former director for planned parenthood, who is confronted with the grizzly evil of abortion, joins the ranks of the pro-life movement and the ensuing backlash she experienced.

I have a hard time with the topic of “favorite movies” because I really do enjoy a good film, but I immediately thought of the movie “A Man for All Seasons” the story of St. Thomas More who stood up to King Henry VII when the King rejected the authority of the Catholic Church’s teaching on divorce. Sir Thomas More, as you might know, was Chancellor of England and a good friend of the Kings. The movie wonderfully depicts St. Thomas More’s jovial personality, his cunning mind, strong family life and devout faith. But when the King demanded that Catholics, clergy and laity alike, bow to his claim that he was the head of the Church in England and therefore able to refashion Church doctrine, Thomas More refused to acknowledge the king’s claim. For this he was stripped of his office, arrested, separated from his family, imprisoned in the tower of London, and eventually beheaded. Here’s a man who refused to compromise his faith when faced with the pressures of family, friends, and political authorities. He is certainly an inspiration to Christians of every age.

And reflecting on the four movies shared by members of our prayer group, I don’t think it is a coincidence that all four movies share a common theme: “self-sacrifice”. The self-sacrifice of Christ of course in the passion movie, the self-sacrifice of the black infantrymen willing to fight against prejudice and even to die for those who hated them in “Glory”. The self-sacrifice of Abby Johnson, having her name dragged through the mud, receiving death-threats for exposing the evils of planned parenthood and the abortion industry. Movie Theater owners in fact have received death threats for showing her movie. And the self-sacrifice of Thomas More, a martyr for the truth of the Christian Gospel. Stories of self-sacrifice are most inspirational.

Our first reading from Second Maccabees certainly recounts an inspiring tale of self-sacrifice. Around two-hundred years before the birth of Christ, Greek culture had spread to Israel. Many of Israel’s leaders had allowed Greek cultural values and the promise of political power to replace their faith. The Greek King ruling over the Jews had tried to eradicate Judaism. If you were caught practicing the tenets of Judaism, you would be put to death. And in our reading today, seven brothers with their dear mother were arrested and tortured with whips and scourges because they refused an order of the Greek King inducing the Jews to eat pork in violation of Jewish law.

This family courageously refused to betray their faith even to the point of physical maiming and death. Why? Why didn’t they just give in?

Well, listen again to what one of the sons says to his executioner: “you accursed fiend,” he says, “you are depriving us of this present life, but the king of the world will raise us up to live again forever.” Yes, you are killing us, but the Lord will raise us up! 

They understood that the choices we make in this life affect our eternity. Our faith matters. The practice of our faith matters. Faith leads to eternal life, disobedience to death.

The next son, holds out his hands to his executioner who is going to cut them off.  He says, “it was from heaven that I received these…from God I hope to receive them again.”  This cruel executioner is going to cut off his hands, and the son says, fine, God gave them to me, and one day, God will give them back to me.  He believes that that even this present body is less important than eternal life.

The last brother, as he dies, says, “it is my choice to die at the hands of men, that God who gives life will raise me up.”

This family of faithful Jews foreshadow the self-sacrifice of Christ; they are certainly proto-martyrs, embodying what the Lord taught a few Sundays ago, “Those who lose their life for my sake, will gain it.” To be faithful to Christ is to do what these young men did, to keep our minds and hearts fixed on God and on his promises especially in the face of trial.

There are moments when our relationship with God will cost us. Depriving ourselves of some bodily pleasure because pursuing it would be sinful costs us something. Depriving ourselves of material gain because pursuing it would be to cheat or to steal costs us something. Deprive ourselves of some position of power because pursuing it would involve lying or exaggerating the faults of others costs us something. Refraining from sinful gossip when it would bolster our social status costs us something.  Going to mass every week, even when my family or my hobbies make demands on my time costs us something. Contributing to your financial needs of the parish, the needs of our neighborhood poor, committing time to prayer, all costs us something. And don’t we gain so much more, when we are generous with God and trust his plan?

When we speak of inspiring movies or inspiring scripture passages or inspiring stories from the lives of the saints, what are they inspiring us for? The inspire us for those moments when we have to make the choice. Will we do what is right, even when it brings us suffering, or not? Will we witness to our belief that God’s promises are real, that there is something beyond this earthly life, or not? The veterans our nation honors on Monday, veterans day, are so inspiring to us because they were willing to put their lives on the line for us, they we might enjoy freedom and peace.

There are many people who dismiss God as a distant cosmic force that has little bearing on every day life. But Christians, by living out our faith when it is costly to us, shows that God is more real than anything else.

Our own parish patron Saint, Ignatius of Antioch, realized this truth. When Bishop Ignatius had to choose between faith and escaping suffering and death, he chose faith. Ignatius wrote: “All the pleasures of the world, and all the kingdoms of this earth, shall profit me nothing. It is better for me to die on behalf of Jesus Christ, than to reign over all the ends of the earth. ‘For what shall a man be profited, if he gain the whole world, but lose his own soul?’ Him I seek, who died for us: Him I desire, who rose again for our sake.”

Ignatius understood, as has every martyr, that if we are only concerned with this prospering in this world something in us is already dead. Rather, the Christian is to witness that the life to come is to be obtained by those who love God more than this present life.

May we witness to that faith in everything we say and do today and all days, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

October 17 2019 - St. Ignatius of Antioch - Parish Patron Saint (School Mass)

Today is the Feast Day of the Patron Saint of our Parish, St. Ignatius of Antioch. Happy Feast Day to all of our parishioners present.

What does it mean that St. Ignatius of Antioch is the Patron Saint of our parish and school?

That St. Ignatius is the patron Saint of our parish, means that we venerate and honor him in a special way, we look to his holy example and ask for his prayers intercession in a special way. His statue stands along Lorain Ave, as if guarding us from evil, and also welcoming those who want to know Jesus.

Each of us should be able to tell the story of St. Ignatius of Antioch. He was a Catholic bishop who lived almost 2000 years ago. He was arrested when it was against the law to be a Christian. He was sentenced to death, and was marched from Syria to Rome where he was thrown to the lions. Yet, while he made his way to Rome, he did not fear death, nor did he try to escape. Rather, he wrote letters to encourage the Christians to keep the faith, to believe in the promises of Jesus.

Upon the small table in the middle of the sanctuary, is a relic of St. Ignatius, a piece of his bone. And I invite you to direct your prayers to St. Ignatius today, asking him to help you to love Jesus today, to obtain blessings for your family and for this parish.

The theme song for the school year is “Go Make a Difference” right? “Go make a difference” well St. Ignatius lived 2000 years ago. He made a difference in the life of the Church through his courage, he made a difference by encouraging others, he made a difference by teaching others to follow Jesus and to love Jesus. And over those 2000 years he continues to make a difference, now in 2019, not because he made a lot of money, not because he was the best athlete, not because of his popularity, but because of his holiness.

The sort of difference God needs us to make in the world always, always has to do with us growing in holiness, becoming like Jesus in our love for God the Father and our willingness like Jesus to embrace hardship for the sake of the Gospel.

Ask St. Ignatius today to help you make the difference God wants you to make, through faith in Jesus, through patience, love, self-control, and service of those in need, for the glory of God and salvation of souls. St. Ignatius of Antioch. Pray for us.

September 13 2019 - St. John Chrysostom - Preach in and out of season

St. John Chrysostom was born in Antioch, about 250 years after our parish patron, the bishop St. Ignatius of Antioch went to his martyrdom. Perhaps the seed of our patron’s martyrdom yielded the fruit of St. John’s great faith.

The Gospel reading for his feast day is the parable of the sower of the seeds, for St. John sewed the seeds of the Gospel through his eloquent preaching and teaching. His name “Chrysostom” means golden tongued, about 600 hundred of his sermons and commentaries on scripture have been preserved, as well as many treatises on the moral and spiritual life, and a very famous book on the priesthood.

He explains that priests, as preachers must never simply preach what people want to hear, but preach the fullness of the Word of God. “A preacher must have a noble disposition to be able to check the inordinate and useless passion of the people, and to direct their attention to what is more profitable, and so to lead and direct them without being himself the slave of their fancies.”

Our Lord, we know from the Gospels, faced much hostility for the content of his preaching. He did not compromise the truth in order to appease the fancies of his audience.

In an age of moral relativism, when even many Christians turn away from authentic doctrine and sound moral teaching, each of us has the duty to remaining faithful to the truth of Christ despite pressures from the world and the worldly. Priests and bishops are under great pressure to compromise, to deviate from the truth, to preach to appease those "itching ears that turn away from sound doctrine" as Paul say, just as faithful Christians are labeled as “intolerant” by those who reject Church teaching, even by members of our family.

Rather, we seek to develop our skill in preaching, in sharing the truth of the Gospel clearly and eloquently, like St. John the Golden-Tongued, “to preach the word; in season and out of season; to reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction” as St. Paul writes to Timothy; for we were not made Christian to win the adulation of men, but for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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That the bishops and priests may be men of sound doctrine, and courageously preach the Gospel in its fullness. We pray to the Lord.
That government leaders around the world may carry out their duties with justice, honesty, and respect for freedom and the dignity of human life.  We pray to the Lord.
For the grace to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, to love our neighbors and enemies and those who persecute us, and to share the truth of the Gospel with all.  We pray to the Lord.
For all those who share in the sufferings of Christ—the sick, the sorrowful, and those who are afflicted or burdened in any way, especially those effected by hurricanes and storms.  We pray to the Lord.
For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased clergy and religious of the diocese of Cleveland, for the poor souls in purgatory, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom. We pray to the Lord.
O God, who know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

3rd Sunday of Easter 2019 - For the sake of the name

Each Sunday of the Easter season, our first reading is taken from the Acts of the Apostles, while our second reading is taken from the Book of Revelation. There is a beautiful connection between these two books of the New Testament, if you think about it. The Acts of the Apostles describes the first days of the Church in time and history, Revelation describes the Church that will last forever. Acts of the Apostles takes place in the earthly Jerusalem, Revelation takes place in the new and eternal Jerusalem. Acts of the Apostles describes the Church’s pilgrimage, with all of its difficulties and trials, Revelation reveals the Church having reached her destination—the reward for her faithful perseverance.

In Acts we read how the Apostles, having witnessed the Resurrection of Christ, and having been filled with the power of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, go out into the streets of Jerusalem, the very town where Jesus was arrested and crucified, and preach his Resurrection.  “Jesus, whom you killed, has been raised, just as he promised” Peter preached on that first Pentecost Sunday. For their preaching of Jesus’ Gospel, the Apostles quickly gain the attention of the Sanhedrin and other Jewish leaders, the same men who conspired against Jesus, to put the Savior to death.

Today’s passage from Acts sees Peter and the gang, having been imprisoned and brought before the Jewish high court. The Sanhedrin demand that Peter and the Apostles immediately cease and desist preaching about Jesus.  Peter says, you don’t understand, this task has been given to us by God himself, and “we must obey God rather than man.” 

Here stands Peter before these corrupt Jewish leaders, knowing that they have the power to totally ruin his lie, even to have him put to death, as they did to Jesus.  Peter had already been arrested and thrown into jail, and he knew there could be dire consequences for resisting their threats. No doubt, Peter would have thought about the scene from our Gospel today. Sitting before the Risen Lord on the seashore. Do you love me Peter? Feed my lambs, tend my sheep, preach the Gospel, build my Church. You will go where I have gone, you will do what I have done.

Peter then looks int Sanhedrin in the eye: and says, “Jesus, who you crucified, has been risen.” But after courageously proclaiming Christ, Peter and the Apostles, “left the presence of the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been found worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name.” Bleeding and wounded after having been whipped and humiliated, they left rejoicing. Would you or I be rejoicing after that? We find it hard enough to put up with morning traffic! To rejoice in suffering for the sake of Christ is a sign of Christian maturity.

When I was thinking of a modern day example of this form of mature Christian faith, I thought of the parents of Pope Benedict XVI.  Pope Benedict, Joseph Ratzinger, grew up in Germany as the National Socialist party was coming to power.  Joseph Ratzinger, Sr. the Pope’s father was a police officer in Bavaria.  The Ratzinger family experienced great hardships because they would not support the Nazis.  The pope's brother Georg said: "Our father was a bitter enemy of Nazism because he believed it was in conflict with our faith." The family knew first-hand how dangerous the Nazi philosophy was. In the late 1930s, the Nazis had implemented a euthanasia program for the handicapped. Pope Benedict had a cousin with Down’s Syndrome, and in 1941, the Pope’s cousin was taken by Nazi authorities for “therapy” as they called it.  Not long afterwards, the family received word that the cousin was dead, labeled as an “undesirable” by the Nazi party. Mr. Ratzinger spoke out publicly against the evils of Nazism, and for this, he faced demotions and the family had to move several times.

The example of Joseph Ratzinger’s parents, their willingness to suffer for the sake of the name, no doubt left a lasting imprint upon the young man, who would later become one of the greatest theologians of the last hundred years, not to mention, a good and holy Pope.

One of the goals of the Easter season is helping us to develop mature Christian faith. Where Immature faith flees from hardship, shirks demands for commitment, self-sacrifice, and selflessness and runs away from preaching the Gospel in fear, mature faith embraces hardship, accepts commitment, places the good of others before the good of the self, and preaches the truth with courage. Immature love seeks only the fulfillment of its selfish desires, mature Love, as St. Paul describes, is patient, kind, not jealous, not pompous, not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

In the second reading we are given a vision of heaven, the reward for those who are willing to suffer for the sake of the name.  On the throne of heaven is not some earthly king who never suffered a day in his life.  On the throne of heaven is a lamb who was brutally slain by his enemies.  And surrounding the lamb are those who suffer for him.  This is the fulfillment of Jesus promise in the beatitudes: “Blessed are those who are persecuted for my name, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

The Lord was very clear in his earthly ministry, that those who follow him faithfully will likely suffer on his account. We might suffer for reaching out to our fallen away family members, to speak to them of the importance of weekly Mass attendance.  We might suffer for standing up for the right to life, campaign to enact laws for the protection of the innocent unborn and the vulnerable.  We might suffer for refusing to engage in immoral business practices. We might suffer simply for holding fast to the moral teachings enunciated in the catechism.

Pope John Paul II calling to mind the teachings of the Second Vatican Council said, “The truth about ourselves and the world, revealed in the Gospel, is not always what the world wants to hear. Gospel truth often contradicts commonly accepted thinking, as we see so clearly today with regard to evils such as racism, contraception, abortion, and euthanasia - to name just a few.”

To proclaim Gospel truth, to teach Gospel truth, to live Gospel truth, this is the call of the mature Christian in 2019 and of every generation. This is a task that may bring persecution from the world, but faithfulness to the task, is to identify with the ever-faithful Son of God, Our Lord, and to receive the rewards he promised to the faithful.

Our own parish’s patron saint, Ignatius of Antioch, exemplified this truth. As bishop, Ignatius was arrested during the Roman persecution of Antioch. He was put in chains and marched to his martyrdom in Rome where he would be thrown to the wild beasts. En route to martyrdom he wrote to several congregations of Christians including those in Rome. In his letter to the Romans we find the same sentiment as Peter and the Apostles in the first reading. Ignatius writes, “I look forward with joy to the wild animals held in readiness for me… I am God’s wheat, and I am ground by the wild beasts that I may be the pure bread of Christ… come fire and cross and grapplings with wild beasts, wrenching of bones, hacking of limbs, crushings of my whole body; only be it mine to attain Jesus Christ.”

To attain Jesus Christ. This is the point of our faith. This is the point of enduring suffering for the sake of his name, persevering in faith amidst worldly pressures and satanic temptations. To attain Jesus Christ and to be counted among his blessed ones. For the glory of God and salvation of souls.

5th Week of Lent 2019 - Wednesday - Imitators of the Passion

When told they must worship an idol or be put to death, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, chose to remain faithful to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  They exhibited tremendous and courageous faith in the face of suffering and death.

The early Christians often faced this same trial.  “Offer sacrifice to the roman emperor and live, refuse, and die.”  Great martyrs like Perpetua and Felicity, Popes like Sixtus and Cornelius, apologists like Justin, refused to offer the pagan sacrifice and were put to death.

The Saints do not compromise their faith for the sake of worldly success.  Jesus asks, “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul?” The saints show us that authentic faith means remaining true to Jesus Christ in the face of temptation, difficulty and trial.  Our own parish patron St. Ignatius of Antioch on his way to martyrdom wrote to the Romans: “It is better for me to die on behalf of Jesus Christ than to reign over all the ends of the earth…Him I seek, who died for us: him I desire, who rose again for our sake…Permit me to be an imitator of the Passion of my God!”

The prospect of suffering for the Gospel terrifies us. Most of us don’t want to be bothered or distracted from pursuing or own goals, what we think will make us happy. Prayer is considered a waste of time, charity a waste of money, fasting a waste of pleasure. And aren’t those the idols of our own day: my time, my money, my pursuit of pleasure?

Many people reject Catholic Christianity not because they have a distaste for ornate churches, beautiful vestments, or they reject the hierarchical constitution of the Church. It’s that they detect that Catholicism calls them away from the worship of idols to the worship and imitation of Christ, who embraces the cross, who reveals the cross as the royal road to heaven.

The account of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace foreshadows a powerful truth of our Christian faith. In the furnace, the three faith boys were not alone, they were joined by one with the “appearance of a son of God.” So too in our suffering we are never alone. Christ is with us, transforming the fire of our suffering into the light of glory.

As Holy Week draws near, let us draw near to Jesus as he suffers for us, let us draw near to Him to console Him who consoles us. May these final days of Lent help us to have courage in the face of suffering and temptation, to know Jesus’ presence with us as we imitate Him in his Passion for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
That the Church will experience the graces of profound renewal during this season of Lent.  That we may grow in our eagerness in spreading the Gospel of Christ.
That all Christian families will recommit themselves to putting Christ at the center of their family life, so as to grow in faith, hope, and love.  We pray to the Lord.
For an end to abortion and for the reverence and protection of human life.  We pray to the Lord.
For the young people of our Church. May they be strengthened to be witnesses to the Gospel of mercy and work for a future that embodies a genuine culture of life.
For those preparing to enter the Church at Easter: that they will be profoundly blessed in their preparation for full initiation into the Body of Christ.  We pray to the Lord.
For the needs of the poor, the hungry, the homeless, those who are sick, unemployed, or suffering from addiction, mental, or physical illness, imprisoned, and those most in need: that the Lord in his goodness will be close to them in their trials.  We pray to the Lord.
For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.
Mercifully hear, O Lord, the prayers of your Church and turn with compassion to the hearts that bow before you, that those you make sharers in your divine mystery may always benefit from your assistance.

January 26 2018 - Sts. Timothy and Titus - Apostolic Succession in Scripture and Tradition

If you were a Christian in the 1st century or are a Christian in the 21st century, how can you be sure that you belong to the True Church of Jesus Christ?

The first Christians had no doubts about how to determine which was the true Church and which doctrines were the true teachings of Christ. The test was simple: can the community or the teaching be traced back to the Apostles or not?

In founding the Church, Our Lord Himself marked her with four characteristics, which reflect her essential features and mission. The four marks of the Church are listed in the Nicene Creed: the Church is One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic.

The doctrine of Apostolic Succession—the belief that the apostles handed on to others their authority to teach and govern the church in the name of Christ—is clearly biblical and also unanimously defended by the writings of the early Church Fathers.

Timothy and Titus were both appointed bishops by the apostle Paul. In their respective New Testament epistles, Paul directs Titus as bishop of Crete to go from town to town appointing presbyters, one of the tasks of bishops which continues to this day. He was also to appoint other bishops who would practice what they preached. Paul wrote two letters to Timothy, Bishop of Ephesus. In the first letter, Paul writes to offer personal encouragement and advice on how to administer the great responsibility of being a bishop. In the second Paul tells, Timothy to be courageous in defending his flock from false teachers who were passing on doctrines which were not supported by the apostles.

The bishop is a visible sign that we remain connected to the true Church of Christ, and he helps us to grow in fidelity and sanctity through his teaching and governance. The bishop, St. Ignatius of Antioch, writing early in the 2nd century enjoined priests and lay faithful to be in harmony with their bishop as strings to a harp.

We here in Cleveland are grateful for having been sent a new bishop, Bishop Perez, and are greatly looking forward to his leadership and teaching. We pray for him at every Mass in the Eucharistic prayer, and we do well to remember our bishop in our personal prayers, that he may be a source of Christian unity and sanctification for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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That our bishops may be courageous in stirring up the flame of faith and defending the Church from error.We pray to the Lord.

That through the ministry of bishops, Our Lord will bring an end to division in his Church. We pray to the Lord.

That through our bishops and priests, Christ, the doctor of souls, may bring healing and mercy to sinners and to the brokenhearted. We pray to the Lord.

For all of the sick and suffering, especially victims of natural disaster, poverty, and addiction, may they be comforted and supported by God’s healing love. We pray to the Lord.

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