FIGHTING TEMPTATION...IS IT EVEN RELEVANT ANYMORE? (2/14/16)

Once again, on this First Sunday of Lent, we hear the story of Jesus being tempted in the desert. Of course, we know He knows that He won a dramatic victory over Satan and that His victory is meant to inspire our own victory over temptation. However, I can’t help wondering: does anyone ever fight temptation anymore?  I mean, really, does anyone see any value in such an arcane struggle in the present day?  Perhaps I am seeing the glass as half empty, but I do think I have valid reasons to be concerned. We are so affected by the modern culture that I even wonder if we recognize sin any more or the value of trying to stay away from sin – and that is the very reason that Jesus died on the cross! Have we actually gotten to the point where we no longer value trying to stay away from the very thing (sin) from which Jesus came to save us?  Honestly, I am very worried. It would take many books to analyze the negative effects that modern culture has on us, but I can at least mention what I call “the four big lies” by which we are tremendously affected, whether we can admit it or not.  The first lie, or fallacy, is that any action is perfectly acceptable as long as no one gets hurt. This is the old “victimless crime” theory. The problem with this is that there is no such thing. If we commit sin, no matter how “private” someone always gets hurt. It is not okay to hurt ourselves, or God, or anyone else and sin always hurts all three. The second lie is that it is psychologically harmful to deny ourselves of anything that we want-and really, if we want something, we need it; don’t we? Therefore, if I want something, I am hurting myself if I don’t act to get it. This kind of thinking is so pervasive that I actually know of multiple cases in which professional counselors tried to explain to the wives of their unfaithful clients, that they had to be unfaithful, or else they would be unhappy! The third lie is that human beings cannot overcome temptation. Therefore parents should supply their teen children with means of birth control, and provide them with “safe havens” to abuse alcohol because they would not be able to refrain from sex or beer, etc.  This kind of thinking denies young people of the human dignity to which they, believe it or not, want to be held. Last, but certainly not least is the lie that because we are living in modern times we need a whole new set of moral guidelines. Because things have changed so much and because we are have learned so much and have become “enlightened,” we simply can no longer abide by the antiquated values of the past. Therefore, no one can be expected to refrain from sex before marriage, and certainly we now realize that same sex marriage is to be regarded in the same way as traditional marriage.  What is amazing about this one is that, while we think we are so enlightened, we are not quite enlightened enough to realize that countless cultures bought this lie before us. And guess where they are now?  Well they are exactly where we will be if we also buy it-on the ash heap of history just like the Romans at the hands of the barbarians. You see, the bottom line is this:  there is good, there is evil, there is right there is wrong, and they are here to stay. And human beings are always tempted to sin. But Jesus gives us the means to victory. His lesson is that we don’t have to be slaves to sin. All that we have to do is struggle to resist temptation, and when we fall we turn to Him and keep on striving-and the victory is ours. The only question is does any of this matter to us anymore?

"Here I am Lord, Send Me" (2/07/16)

Those words from Isaiah haunt me till this very day.  I remember when I first felt the call to the priesthood.  I could not get the words of the hymn, “Here I am, Lord” out of my mind.  What I remember so clearly during that time was the sobering realization that I/we only have one shot at life.  We only get one life.  We need to make the very best of it– we need to get our vocation right.  We need to serve God in every aspect of our lives.  Some of you might be asking yourselves, as I often ask myself, “Am I good enough to serve God in the way that He wants me to serve Him?”  All three readings this week answer that question.  Isaiah was not good enough at first.  Then an angel touched Isaiah’s mouth with the ember from the fire.  He was made clean.  In the second reading, Paul reminds us that he started off by persecuting Christians.  He would round up men, women and children and bring them to the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem.  He watched and approved as an innocent and meek Stephen was stoned to death by a mob.  Paul was a spectator at the lynching, but he cheered on the mob and left excited to find the mob’s next victims.  But despite all this Jesus transformed Paul into an apostle.  “I am who I am,” St. Paul says, “through the Grace of God.”  In the Gospel, Peter wants Jesus to leave him because he is so aware of his own sin.  Jesus basically says, “No way.  I have work for you.  You will be catching men.”  And Jesus says to you and to me, “Stop hiding behind your human failures.  How dare you say that I cannot send you?  I am God. I have work for you to do.  I will cleanse you.  I will send you.”  I remember when I left home to go to the seminary, my pastor; the priest who inspired me said to me that the priesthood is the life.  I do believe that over the years I have come to a deeper understanding of what he meant when he spoke those words but I have also learned something else: when it comes right down to it the only life worth living is the life into which the Lord sends us.  Therefore, our response to Him should always be, “Here I am Lord, send me.”

Louie Knew (1/31/16)

Although it is very hard for me to believe this, it has been over 25 years ago now that I while as a seminarian on break can remember visiting with parishioners one Sunday after Mass at my home parish, Sacred Heart in Oxford PA.  As I was greeting many people whom I had not seen for a while, a young man of about 13 or 14 who I knew from the parish CYO came up to me to say “Hi”; I said “Louie, it’s great to see you, how are you?” He said “OK” in a less than an enthusiastic manner to which I responded, “Are you sure; is there something wrong?” “No,” he said, “it’s just that I have to go to CCD class.” (CCD is what we in Oxford used to call religious education classes for children who did not attend Catholic School). “That’s not so bad is it?” I asked. “I guess not,” he said,” except for the fact that they keep on talking about the same old things, things I already know all about.” “Oh,” I said, “can you give me an example of something that they keep on talking about of which you already know? “Love,” He said “you know, “Love.” Now, it is very true that I am not so sure that young Louie’s understanding of love would match that which is displayed in the words of St. Paul in our second reading which are as follows: “Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, it is not pompous, it is 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.  Love never fails.” However, it did show me that there was something very valuable that he did understand; there was a connection that he had made. He knew that Catholic education was all about, he at least had a sense that Catholic education always pointed to love.  As we celebrate the opening of Catholic Schools Week that is indeed a connection of which we need to be aware. All the wonderful learning that we experience in all of the different grade levels and all of the different subjects and activities is always about helping us to know, to understand, to experience and to share the love of God. That is what it always about. We learn about the truths of God’s universe so that we can better receive and share His love.  And this education does not stop. We never ever get to the point, even though Louie thought he done so, where we can say that we know all about love. And that is what makes our lives so adventurous and exciting. So, my young friend Louie does have a lesson that remains valid and valuable to each and every one of us to the present day and throughout eternity: Catholic Education is indeed always meant to be all about love. That’s what Louie knew.

"Rejoicing in the Lord Must Be Your Strength" (1/24/16)

What is your strength?  We all have strengths; they have been given to us by God. Do we know what they are?  I bet if you were asked what your weaknesses were, you would have an easier time identifying and listing them then you have identifying your strengths. But really folks, we should know our strengths at least as much as we know our weaknesses. Why?  Well not so that we can become proud and brag about them but so that we know that we have them at our disposal to help us overcome our weaknesses and so that we can put them at the Lord’s disposal in building up His Kingdom. And there is another reason, which we will come back to after looking at our scripture readings for a bit.  Our first reading gives us a snapshot of the story of Ezrah and Nehemiah. Their story in the scripture captures that part of the Jewish history from the end of the Babylonian Captivity to the restoration of Jerusalem, including the rebuilding of its walls.  Today’s reading describes the historic scene of the priest Ezra reading the sacred Law to the people for the first time in generations. Imagine the emotions that must have been present in the hearts of the faithful that were present there.  Now fast forward to the Gospel scene in which Jesus, still very much at the beginning of His public ministry unrolls the scroll of Isaiah and reads these words: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” My guess is that the emotions of the people hearing these words of Jesus were very similar to those who heard Ezra reading the words of the Law hundreds of years before. Both were occasions that were marked by feelings of freedom, joy, heeling and restoration. Yet we are told that many were brought to tears as they heard the words of the Law being read Why- were they tears of joy? Perhaps, but maybe as people heard the words of the Law, they realized how much they feel short from it in living their lives. I bet there were the same kinds of tears in the synagogue when Jesus read those words from Isaiah as well. Those words reminded them that in their lives they experienced many imperfections, many weaknesses. They were enslaved, they were oppressed, they were afflicted. They needed to be healed, to be freed, to be restored. But Nehemiah and Jesus reminded them that despite their many weaknesses they were strong. And the same is true with us. We need to be able to see our strengths up against our weaknesses as we said before. But even more than that, we need to see our strengths, so that we can begin to see our greatest strength-who is the Lord Himself. And rejoicing in the Lord, must be our greatest strength.

Do Whatever He Tells You (1/17/16)

For me that has always been the primary lesson that we can learn from the story of the Wedding Feast of Cana, but there indeed many others. Today, I will focus on this one and four or maybe five or six others.  First, Jesus needs to be invited into our lives just like He was invited to the wedding feast. He would not have gone if He were not invited. He will not come into our lives, our minds, our hearts, or souls if we don’t invite Him in. He simply does not force Himself upon us. So, do we want Him in our lives? Do we invite Him in? How so? If we want to be open to miracles in our lives, it would be best if we do our best to clearly let Him know that we want Him to be part of them. Second, we should be sensitive to the needs of others. Mary’s sensitivity to the needs of others is the reason why this miracle happened. If she was oblivious Jesus would never have been called upon.  Our sensitivity to the needs of others creates the possibility for miracles to happen. Third, we need to bring our needs to Jesus. I bet there are a lot of needs that we have that perhaps we either aren’t aware of, or that we simply haven’t brought them to Him. Jesus is especially open to prayers that place the needs of others ahead of ourselves and, yes, He is particularly moved when His mother intercedes for us. Fourth, it is indeed when we obey His commands that miracles happen. I actually wonder if it isn’t our obedience to Him that is in fact the greatest miracle of all. Remember, scripture continually reminds us that the Lord looks for obedience much more than He looks for sacrifice. Fifth, we need to give Him something or do something that shows Him that we are cooperating with Him if we hope that He will provide a miracle for us. Remember the five loaves and two fish that the young boy brought to Jesus that fed over 5,000 people?  In this story, the people brought Him the six water jars that He transformed into approximately 900 bottles of wine! We must be active participants in the miracles we seek. We need to bring Him something, we need to act, we need to do something so that Jesus has “stuff” from us to perform the miracle. We can’t simply be a bystander, nor can we throw up our hands and say we don’t have anything to offer, we need to give Him what we have and show that we have a stake in what we are asking for. Jesus can do amazing things with just a little bit of faith but we have to show it to Him. Lastly, the wedding feast of Cana reminds us that our whole faith journey is about a union, indeed a wedding, between God and us that begins with us inviting Him into our lives, being sensitive to the needs of others, bringing our needs to Him, doing whatever He tells us and ends with us actively demonstrating our faith in Him.

MR. ROSE'S EPIPHANY (1-10-16)

Over 24 years ago I met a man named Mr. Rose who was a parishioner in the first parish to which I was assigned as a priest.  My guess was that he was about 45 years old but I never really knew for sure. I don’t think I ever learned his name until my second year in the parish but I had become familiar with his face almost as soon as I had arrived in the parish.  He came to Mass every Sunday and attended almost every parish activity by himself.  He sat in the middle of the center pew of the church, he wore one of two very similar looking suits every time I saw him, and although he was very polite I don’t know that I ever saw him engage any one in an actual conversation.  If I ever encountered him personally it was after Mass while I was greeting parishioners.  He would simply nod as he went by.  He was intriguing because of his almost complete silence, his persistent presence and the sadness that always seemed to emanate from him. I wondered if I was ever going to get to know him and his story; and then one day he called the parish office for an appointment and wanted to see me.  We met several times over the next few months.  He was a single man who worked at a grocery store. He explained that he had been feeling sad ever since his mother died and he did not know how to shake it. At first I told him that it was very normal to feel sad after losing a parent and that at the very least it would probably take a full year before things would begin to feel somewhat normal again.  But he explained that it had been several years and he still felt pretty much the same way.  I asked him how long it was since his mother had passed and he said that it was now well over 10 years ago.  I have to say that this was very surprising to me. Here was a middle aged man who had been talking to me as if his mother had died in the very recent past but now I realized that he had been in this state of malaise for over a decade and saw no way to ever change his life situation. It was as if the life he had lived had simply been dealt to him and that he had no control or even influence over it. He was an only child who had lived in the same house from the time he was born and was now living there by himself since his mother’s death. I saw, however, that he did want to rise above his sadness, and although, I did not know the answer, I hoped very much that I could help him. Then finally at one of our meetings I asked him the following question: “Mr. Rose,” I said, “have you ever done anything for any-one?’  He kind of looked a bit puzzled at first, as if he wondered what my question had to do with his situation, but after a bit of a pause he said that he really could not remember any time that he extended himself to anyone.  I explained to him that helping other people always tended to lift my spirits and I thought maybe it would help him as well. The rest, as they say is history.  Mr. Rose agreed to help out at a local soup kitchen and became a regular there. Eventually he became very involved in the parish, and especially in any service activities. He became much more socially outgoing and his spirits rose almost exponentially. He wrote to me a couple years after I had been transferred and thanked me for the time I had shared with him and that he had come to see my question as an “epiphany,” that literally brought him to new life.  You know what, folks?  I think Mr. Rose’s epiphany can be an epiphany for each of us.  If we ever feel like we are in a rut that we can’t get out of, there is nothing like asking ourselves what we can do for others to pick ourselves up.  Isn’t that what the three wise men did?  You know what else, folks? I think this principle works on a parish level as well.  I have decided that this year I am going to challenge us as a parish to be on the lookout for how we can extend ourselves beyond ourselves, beyond our neighborhood and beyond our parish. Over the next several weeks I will be presenting you with opportunities to help our parish to reach out to people across the globe, across the country, across the archdiocese and also in our parish and in our neighborhood.  In doing so, not only will we be impacting the lives of many others; we will be not only be lifting our spirits, we will, like Mr. Rose, be bringing ourselves to new life.  Please stay tuned.

THE MAGI RETURN TO THEIR COUNTRY BY ANOTHER WAY

1-03-16

I once heard a homily on the radio that was given by a Baptist preacher.  He was very enthusiastically speaking about the story of Jacob wrestling with the angel.  He was focusing on the verse in which it says that the angel knocked Jacob’s hip socket out of joint and because of that he would walk with a limp for the rest of his life.  His point was that, because of His encounter with the Lord, Jacob literally walked differently than he did before. He said that if anyone truly had an encounter with the Lord, than pretty much necessarily, they would walk in a different way after their encounter with the Lord than they did before.  He also said that this is something that could not be feigned or pretended.  He challenged his congregation to go ahead and try to change the way the walked. His point was that it was nearly impossible to do, unless we have truly been changed by the Lord. And so on this Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord we celebrate the fact that the Magi visited the infant Jesus as a sign that His birth was a gift to all people and not just the Israelites.  Indeed this is a wonderful message for all of us. But what strikes me is that they returned to their home country “by another way.”  They did not return home the same way that they came.  Their encounter with Jesus changed them. So what about us? We also bring ourselves to visit the infant Jesus. Perhaps like the Magi, we even bring Him gifts rather than simply looking for something for ourselves.  But are we going to leave Church the same way we came? Are we going to walk out in exactly the same way that we came in or are we going to return home “by another way.”  If we do not leave somehow differently, somehow changed, than when we came, than I think it is fair to question whether we had a true encounter with Christ. Of course, it does take to two to have an encounter-but you can count on this; Jesus is truly here. The only question is are we?

HOLY FAMILY SUNDAY (12-27-15)

Good morning everyone!  I ask that you allow me a moment to scan the congregation to make sure that none of my family members are here in church. I have been doing this for the last 20 years or so because of an incident that happened on Holy Family Sunday that to this day gives me pause.  On that day, as I stepped to the center aisle to begin preaching, this cute as a button two year old young lady came running down the aisle from her pew and stopped just about two pews short ofwhere I was standing and gave me kind of an “in your face but happy to see you kind of stare.”  Of course, I quickly realized that she was my niece Katie, who had brought herwhole family with her for a surprise visit.  I introduced her to the congregation, and I told her that I was very happy to see her and her dad (who is my brother) and her mom and her two brothers, but that now I was in a bit of a dilemma. You see my homily that day, the Feast of the Holy Family was largely based on talking about them!  Oh, what to do, what to do?  That’s why ever since then, I really don’t talk about my family that much on this day. Ever since then, I talk about your families-so here goes.  First of all, I must say that I do think it is fitting that the Church celebrates this feast on the first Sunday after Christmas, because undoubtedly we have been visiting with family members and by this time have probably just about had our fill of them.  Or in other words, this time of year does put our families, warts and all, in the spotlight, does it not?  For us Catholic Christians the starting point is that God the Father sent His own Son into the world to be part of a family. This, of course, has so many implications for us, but the starting point is that our family is our family and the family we are in is not just some random coincidence-it is part of God’s plan.  That is the simple truth. And as far as striving to have a simple Christmas goes: I’ll bet a lot of what you have been trying to do or simplify has to do with your families. I am sure that so much of what God wants us to accomplish this Christmas and throughout the year is about making progress and growing in our family relationships.  What He wants for all families is very simple, but it is not easy. But first of all, I think I can identify something that all of us want and hope for and not just for Christmas but for all year round. All of us want to be accepted for who we are; at some level all of us just want to get along.  Parents want their children to get along, employers want their staffs to get along, pastors want their parishioners to get along, etc. etc. No one wants to live in a war zone.  Actually, I think this might be why some of us are having trouble living simply, which actually means to live in hope.  Our expectations might be low or even non-existent because we know that our wives are going to annoy us, or that our husbands are going to let us down, or that our siblings are going to drive us crazy, or that our in-laws are going to do what they always do, and we won’t feel accepted because we can’t get along and our hope is smothered out.  Believe me, I get it. Well, if that’s you, I think St. Paul has something to say to you, and to all of us. In the first verse of the 15th chapter of Romans, St. Paul says that we who are strong should put up with the failings of the weak, not for the purpose of pleasing ourselves, but rather to build them up.  In other words he is saying that we need to accommodate the very people who are getting on our last nerve and let them have things their way.  Not only should we not insist on having things our way but we should even look for ways to allow them to have things their way. We should focus on ways to build them up, to accept them as Christ has accepted us. And we should do all this, why?  In verse 4 he says, so that we may have hope.  That’s right; when we accept other people as Christ accepts us, when we let them get their way, when we accommodate them, we receive hope. That is how it works.  That’s what Christ does with us; that’s how He wants it to be with us. We give acceptance; we receive hope. Try it; you just might like it.  Christ accepts us totally as we are, with all of our flaws, and then He says “Follow me.” Acceptance comes first, discipleship comes later.  We are all accepted by Christ as we are. We all have unconditional acceptance from Him and He expects us to give to others what He gives to us. And you know what, folks,  it’s a better way to live, it’s an easier way to live, it’s a more successful way to live, and it’s all about simply living in the hope God wants us to have.  So instead of trying to change all those crazy people God put around you; accept them, and you will have hope. By the way, I think I can say that I have learned something else. Acceptance not only leads to hope, it also paves the way to influence. We can influence others if we first accept them. So now let’s go back to Joseph who is at center stage as the simple miracle of Christmas continues to unfold. Here I would like to suggest that the crucial point of this passage goes along exactly with what we have been saying and we find it in the last line of last week’s Gospel: “When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.”  Joseph accepted Mary as she was, including her incredibly unbelievable story.  His simple obedience helped to change the course of history. What if he did not receive her into his home? And this week he continues to accept the plan that God has for him and to do what it takes to protect his family. Because of his acceptance, he became the one who taught the Son of God to walk like a man. Talk about living simply!  Joseph did what he was supposed to do. So, maybe you find yourselves living in what you think is a very complex and dysfunctional family situation and believe there is no simple solution for you or your family. Well, here’s some advice for you, straight from St. Paul and St. Joseph: try simply accepting and forgiving the faults of those who Christ has given to you as He has accepted and forgiven you and maybe, just maybe you will see the path to the simplicity of the Lord, which is hope once again. Remember, the simplicity of Christmas is meant for all of us all year round and it comes to those who accept those who God has given them as they are.

A BABY CHANGES EVERYTHING! (12-25-15)

A baby does change everything, doesn’t it?  I have seen it many times. Being the 2nd of nine children I remember some of my younger brothers and sisters coming home as newborns. The house, the home, the family was never the same after the arrival of the newest little one. Not ever. From the moment they came on the scene they became the center of attention and affection, etc.  I’ve seen it several times with my brothers and sisters as they over the years have welcomed my 15 nieces and nephews into their homes. Indeed each of those new little ones immediately transformed their lives in the most dramatic fashion. All mothers and fathers can testify and witness to the radical changes they experienced in their lives and their very character as a result of the appearance of that new little human being, who cannot do anything for him or herself.  And that’s what we celebrate at Christmas- the coming of a new born baby.  But this baby is different than all other babies that we’ve been talking about so far. When a baby breaks into the world of a family, real change is inevitable; it can’t help but happen. The baby demands it. But what’s different about the Baby Jesus is that He doesn’t demand it. He invites us to enter in. He invites us to let Him in-to our hearts, our lives, our minds, our souls. That’s what Advent was about, preparing our lives to make room for the coming of the Lord.

We have brought ourselves to Church to celebrate the birth of this new baby, and that is indeed a wonderful thing.  The challenge for us is to take the baby with us and invite Him into our lives as if He is our own, or actually as if we are His, because we are. I think that many parents will agree that once our children came into our lives we developed into people that we would have never imagined that we could have become. Just imagine for a moment the people we might become if we truly invite the Christ child into our lives as we did with our own flesh and blood. Allowing Christ in our lives, through His invitation, will transform us in ways we cannot imagine. Let’s take the baby home with us. Merry Christmas to all of you!

Fourth Sunday of Advent: From Mary To Jesus (12-20-15)

Because of Mary’s eternal “yes” to God, all His love is poured out and made available to us. The great wonder of it all is that in Jesus Christ, who is at once both God and Mary’s son, each one of us can be another Mary. Each one of us is now a temple not only of God’s love but God’s very life living within us. Each one of us is a sacred space. In each one of us others can sense the presence of the Living God. Like Mary, the living presence of God the Son abides within us, not just for our own sakes, but so that we, like Mary, can give Him to the world around us.  Each one of you, and I along with you, can make an infinitely significant response to God’s offer of love. When we are told that we are loved, and we respond with a “yes”, our lives are changed. Something is placed within our hearts that never goes away.  This Christmas give God a most precious gift – some of your time. Give Him your undivided attention, a period of time in which you do nothing but open yourself up to His presence. Even if you think that nothing happens, something will happen. We are all so concerned about what we must do, particularly at a time when we’re so caught up in doing things. The best thing we can do is to do nothing – do nothing but simply be in God’s presence.  Think of three good things about you, three really good things. Then thank God individually and specifically for those three good things. They are God’s gifts of love to you. Wouldn’t it be a nice gift to give Him your gratitude? Wouldn’t that be a nice gift to give Him for this Christmas? There’s a hidden benefit for you in doing that. If you have an attitude of gratitude you cannot at the same time have a sour or negative disposition. Also you could ask God what He wants for you. Ask God to reveal what He wants to say to you, what He wants to show you or give you. That’s another wonderful, precious gift to give God.  He so very much is longing for you to simply give Him your undivided, loving attention.  When you’re with a friend, what do you want? Isn’t it simply to be with your friend? We all know that being is more important than doing; that it’s who we are that’s more important to those who care for us than what we accomplish. Well, that’s true with God, as well.  God has gone to great lengths, unreasonable lengths, to be our Friend. This Christmas, why not let Him?

John, the Disturber (12/13/15)

No, I did not make a mistake, at least not with this title; it was not a victim of autocorrect.  The Baptist certainly was and is one whose intent is to disturb us, to jar us out of our “comfortability” this time of year and all year. John rather abruptly reminds us that our Gospel is one with a social conscience. For him and for Jesus it is not merely a question of God and me but rather God, me, and others. This is especially so when the others are in need.  John is indeed very explicit about the way he answers the three questions put to him in today’s Gospel passage. In answer to the question of his audience, he says: "If anyone has two overcoats, he must share with the man who has none, and the one with an extra loaf of bread must do the same." John the Disturber commands them and us to give out of our surplus to those who do not have.  To the tax collectors he says that they must not take more than the fair share from anyone and he commands the soldiers against practicing, extortion, falsely accusing anyone and grumbling about their wages.  John basically gives us the flip side of the same coin that St. Paul gives to the Philippians when he said, “Let your generosity be manifest to all.”  Both of these men, spoke on behalf of our social consciousness and they are determined to not let us become complacent in the service of justice or extending a hand to those in need- and without judging why that is the case. John reminds us that the message of Advent is designed to give a bit of a jolt to our spiritual nervous system. It is true that Jesus cannot be born again, but we can be. And that really is what Advent is all about. It is actually a very demanding season in which John the Disturber helps us to see that we give birth to our best selves once again.

Up, Pottstown! (12-6-15)

It was still the first few days of a new school year and I was still in the process to getting fully adjusted to the new schedule. I was a faculty member of a high school and often my day began with the celebration of morning Mass for the Sisters in one of the convents serving the school. Well on this particular day, it did not quite happen. When I awoke I looked at the clock and it read 6:11 AM. As I lived 6 miles away from school, I pretty much immediately realized that I would not make it to the convent in time for Mass. Now, mind you, this is the only time this has ever happened in 24 1/2 years of priesthood, so don’t get any ideas that I have a history of this kind of thing, but that day, happen it did.  The next item on my agenda was to call the convent to let the Sisters know that I would not be there. Oh, how I dreaded having to make that call, but at least there was no time to fret over it so in no time at all I was on the phone with the Mother Superior.  I was super apologetic and embarrassed, and she was very compassionate and understanding-at first. However, something told me that she would have her moment, and she did.  She thanked me for calling, she said that she understood, that the Sisters would understand, and that a number of them could rework their schedules to attend the 7:20 AM Mass in the school chapel which I was already scheduled to celebrate and yes, she made sure that I would be there for that one.  I thought I was off the phone but then she said this:  “Father, just remember one thing: If you want to make your dreams come true the first step you have to take is to wake up.” And, of course, my response was. “Thank you, Sister.” And it never happened again. She did indeed have her moment. I since have come to call that her “Baruch moment.”  In the first reading today the prophet Baruch cries out, “Up, Jerusalem!” so that they might experience the wonders that the Lord had in store for them. The monotony, anxiety, pettiness, hardships and sheer exhaustion of their daily lives had gotten the best of them to the point where they had lost sight of the Lord. Doesn’t that sound like us-at least a little bit?  I always think about Sister’s “Baruch moment” at the beginning of every school year, and during this season of Advent when Baruch issues his much needed wake-up call and when John the Baptist enters the scene. I always, remember Sister’s moment very well; actually by now it has become my moment-my guess is that she doesn’t remember it all that well. But what if we finally heard our wake up call, what if we finally realized that the only way to make our eternal dreams come true is to wake to the mystery that is all around us-the mystery that is so much more real than our daily anxieties; the mystery that gives meaning to our day?

What if many years from now we could look back at the present time and, not unlike St. Luke, say “In the 2015th, year of our Lord, when Frances was Pope and came to our city, when Barack Obama was president, when Thomas Wolfe was governor, and when Charles was Archbishop, the Word of God came to me in Pottstown?” The truth is that there is no reason why it cannot be so.  The first step to make it a reality, like Sister, and Baruch say is to “Wake up!”

The King. The Way. The Truth. The Life. Period. (11/22/15)

Today, as we come to the end of our Church’s year, we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King.  This is indeed the conclusion, the culmination of all that the Church teaches about Jesus and about what He teaches us about Himself.  He, Himself tells Pilate that He is king and He tells us in the Gospel that He is the way, the truth and the life.  But He doesn’t stop there. He goes on to say that, “No one gets to the Father except through me.”  He does not mince any words.  So, as we come to the end of one year and prepare for the beginning of another, how do we respond to the teachings that we are presented?  Actually, it doesn’t much matter.  Heis the way, the truth and the life and no one gets to the Father except through Him. It doesn’t matter what we do with Him, whether we crucify Him (and we do), or what we say or what we think.  As sure as a flying plane must at some point come down from the sky, as sure as our lives on this earth will one day come to an end, Jesus Christ is King of the Universe. His way is the way that will prevail. Not only that, our eternity will be determined by the manner in which we conform, to His way and His truth on this earth, on how we accept Christ as our King.  Jesus, although He is King, does not impose His will on us; His truth always sets us free. This means that in freedom we either choose to follow Him or not, but He is the only way to eternal salvation.  The sooner we truly accept that reality, the sooner we can take the steps to conform our lives to His way, His truth and His life. Of course the question will arise as to what happens with those who have other beliefs, or belong to other faiths, or who have never heard of Jesus-can they not be saved?   First of all, let’s be clear that it is God’s desire that all be saved. He does not want to lose anyone.  Therefore this means that anyone who is saved is saved in Christ. They don’t have to know it and they don’t have to believe it, but if they are to be saved, they will be saved in Christ. Another question that will arise is that if we maintain that Christ is the only way to the Father, the only way to salvation, aren’t we saying that we are better than everyone else?  Well, in all reality, that is not what we are saying at all.  What we are saying is that Jesus is superior to all of us. In conclusion, our challenge is that we, who are aspiring disciples-if we aren’t then why are we here, need to take those steps that clearly establish that Christ is our King- that is what disciples do. They follow Him step by step as the Way to the Father. Hopefully the following acronym  (STEPS)  will help us to do just that. Here is what each letter stands for: Serve.  Tithe. Engage.  Practice.  Share.  Christ is not, our King, we are not His disciples, if we do not serve Him actively, if we don’t use our brains, our brawn and our talents for Him in a way that costs something.  To be a disciple, for Christ to be our King we must be on the road to tithing. We must have a plan to figure out how we are going to get there. The gift of our treasure must be planned, it must have priority, and it must move progressively toward the tithe. If Christ does not have our treasure, He will not have our heart. He cannot be our King, we cannot be His disciple if our hearts are not His.  If Christ is to be our King we must be engaged in His Faith. It must matter to us, it must be what defines us.  Others must be able to readily identify us as a disciple.  If Christ is to be our King, we must participate in and we must practice our faith.  Disciples go where they are supposed to go and do what they are supposed to do and they don’t just go through the motions. Sitting in a pew is not enough.  Disciples share their faith, they share the good news. That’s what the King commanded His disciples to do.  If we were privy to knowledge of a singular cure for a disease from which a loved one is suffering, would we not immediately share it?  Christ teaches that He is the only way to the Father-this is news that must be shared!  Christ is our King.  He is the way the truth and the life. No one gets to the Father except through Him.  That is the bottom line; that is the Good News-that is our hope. Our challenge is to take the STEPS in our lives that we need to take in freedom to truly make Him the King of our lives.

Time to Get Ready to Get READY (11/15/15)

It is hard to believe, but we are just two weeks away from the end of the Church’s year and the beginning of Advent. At this time of year, although our Scriptural Readings are on the ending of life and the hope that the promised Messiah brings, the world around us celebrates with very little reflection, simply wanting to have a good time.  As the Christian tradition asks us to quietly ponder the mystery of our being visited by God, and to wait in wonder for the Christmas encounter, the world around us pops all the corks, lights up the trees, fills the streets with parades and the shops with fancy gift ideas and tells us to party long and loud. For the world around us, Christmas ends up being the day for exhausted partygoers to crash – and it’s not much different for Christians; we can’t easily escape the hype and the pressure, the revelry and consequently the exhaustion.  The world around us – and of which we’re a part - celebrates Christmas before it comes. So today’s readings calling for caution, reminding us of the ending of things; seems quite out of place. But it’s the world around us that misses the point. The Christian story begins, not with Christmas, but with a sense of expectation. Our story, like the story of life, is essentially one of waiting.  The Hebrew prophets pointed to a time when God would provide a way through the maze of problems, doubts and anxieties that confront humankind and we believe Jesus is that way. Year by year we celebrate that coming, but we also need to keep tuned in to why He came. Uncertainty and fear are still part of the human condition; we remain vulnerable to selfishness and the pain it can cause. We need to keep returning to the source of our peace and we need to keep trying to be worthy of the gift that is Jesus.  That is why the time before Christmas is important not for partying but for preparing. The party should come with Christmas itself. The ads announce there are less than 40 shopping days left till Christmas! While we can’t avoid that kind of pressure, we can take some of those days to shop in the spiritual market for moments of quiet to put our lives in order, to heal a relationship, to strengthen our awareness of just how much we are loved by God and how we might respond to that love.  We need to realize, however, that without adequate preparation we’ll never fully appreciate either the privilege or the gift that God gives to us every day of our lives.  If celebrations continue to cancel preparation, Christmas will be over before it arrives and we’ll be no wiser as to what it really means.

The Rich Widows (11/08/15)

Yes, that it is what I am calling them the “rich” widows, even though we know them as poor.  The reason that I am calling them “rich” is because I believe that they show us how to be rich.  These two widows, the one depicted in our Gospel passage-and the widow of Zarephath in the First Reading, show us how to be rich, but we will get to that a little bit later.  First of all let’s look at what St. Mark tells us about Jesus, at the beginning of this passage. He says that Jesus sat opposite the treasury and watched how the crowd put money into it.  Could you imagine that happening here?  I suppose Jesus did not get the memo saying that’s just simply not something He was supposed to do.  And then He said that this poor/rich widow gave more than everyone else. Why? Because she gave a much higher percentage of her wealth than the others did-and that is what makes her rich and the others not so much.  Her perspective and relationship to money and wealth is different than the others who put money into the treasury-as well as to the perspective that many of us still have today.  We think of money as something that we want to get, to acquire, and to pursue.  We hope to get money so that we can get rich.  These widows don’t see it that way at all. They see everything that they have as gifts that have been entrusted to them by God, which they are to use for His Kingdom.  The widow of Zarephath gave her last bit of bread to the man of God. The widow in the Gospel gave her last bit of money to the Lord. And therefore they became rich. Neither their bread nor their money ever ran out and we can be sure they are reaping eternal benefits to this day. Instead of serving money they served God. So what about us? This is one of those relationships we need to get right. Jesus talks about it all the time and He even watches how we work it out. Do we want ultimately to serve God or to serve money-we cannot serve both. Do we want to get rich, or do we want to be rich.  “Getting rich” may or may not ever happen for us, but it will never make us happy or solve this dilemma.  “Being rich” is something that can happen right now and the rewards are eternal.

ALL SAINTS DAY (11/01/15)

Today's Holy Day, the Feast of All Saints, raises up before our eyes not just the famous canonized saints recognized in the Church’s yearly calendar, but all those other holy ones whose lives were dedicated to God and the establishment of His Kingdom here on earth. And who are among them? Well, our parents, our grandparents, as well as those members of our families who sacrificed their own comfort and resources in order that we might have our Catholic Faith. They are the nuns and teachers who taught us about Jesus, about God, and the Sacraments. They are our friends who helped us to make good choices. They are priests who inspired us, prayed for us, and prayed with us. They are people who lived down the street and dropped everything to come and help us, and to care for us when we were sick, or when we were in trouble.  When we think about holiness, many of us tend to think that only extraordinary people are holy people, those “other people.” Perhaps that's a way of defending against the idea that God is asking us to be holy, too. If only a few extraordinary people are saints, we then think we don't have to make the effort, or we can put it off until "later on, some time." We tell ourselves that maybe someday we'll think about praying more, going to Mass more often and later on clean up our act so we can be more holy.  But that is not how God sees it.  God sees the saints as being too numerous to count. The call to holiness is universal. Everyone is called to make His love real in the lives of those around them. Holiness isn't something that is distant and far removed from us; it is near, and close at hand. Holiness means living lives of integrity and truth, wholesome and integrated lives in which we are close to others while being close with God. It means forgiving others when they injure us; it means not holding grudges against them. To live a life of holiness means that one gives up clinging to one's prejudices, resentments, and the desire to get even with others. You've heard it said: "I don't get mad -- I just get even.” To be holy means that you give up being mad, AND you give up “getting even.”  Holiness means you don't play mind games with those around you, particularly with the members of your family, especially your mother and your father, your brothers and sisters. Holiness means that you reveal the truth of yourself to them, that you don't hide who you really are and what you are really doing. And holiness means that you are open to God. It means that you can listen to what God wants to say to you. God has a Word for you, He has something He wants to say to you. Holiness, living holistically with God means that you give God time in which you ask Him for things that you need, a time in which He can ask you for what He wants of you. Holiness involves what you're doing right now, namely joining together in Christ's family of faith to share His loving Presence here in a holistic common union that we share with Christ… our Holy Communion here when you and I, together as His loving friends and faithful disciples, share His sacred Body and His precious Blood.  This is All Saints Day, a special day each year when we place in our vision what God has in mind for us and recognize that we are called to be a part of that vast multitude of holy ones whose numbers are so great they cannot be counted. This is All Saints Day, your feast day and mine.  What remains is for us to break out of our ordinary patterns of living and try something fresh and new-let’s live the life of a saint. Happy Feast Day!

NB the above is largely taken from a homily by Fr. Charles Irvin

Similar, Yet Different ( 10/25/15)

I know I have said and written this many times before but I continue to be amazed by what I continue to see and learn from Sacred Scripture even after so many years of prayer and study.  What strikes me this week is that I never noticed how similar today’s Gospel passage is to the one we heard last week.  I also never noticed that today’s passage follows immediately after last week’s passage in Mark’s Gospel.  While they are so different, they begin with very similar words from Jesus.  To both James and John last week and to the blind Bartimaeus this week, Jesus says, “What do you want me to do for you?” To me this means that if Jesus is going to ask both His apostles and a blind beggar what they want Him to do for them then certainly He will ask the same of us.  So, do we know what we want Jesus to do for us?  We should because He is indeed asking.  But there are differences between the two passages as well.  Basically, what we find is that Jesus is the same, but that those who approach Him (i.e. all of us) are very different.  His own apostles, when they approach Him say, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.”  The blind Bartimaeus, in contrast, when he becomes aware that Jesus is near cries out, “Son of David, Jesus, have pity on me.”  Which of the two approaches would more closely represent that which we would, or rather we do, take with Him?  And how about when it comes to what it is that we ask of Jesus; is it more like the request of James and John (to sit on either side of Jesus in His Kingdom) or like that of the blind man (to ask Jesus for something that would help him to follow Jesus more closely)?  You see, I suppose it comes down to this: all the characters that Jesus meets are different, just like all of us and all the people we meet are unique but Jesus is always the same.  He always asks us what we want Him to do for us and then gives us exactly what we need.  Different stories.  Different people. Same Jesus.

The Game-Changer (10/17-10/18/15)

Well folks, I feel like I must continue with my message from last week for a couple of reasons, but especially because I feel like I left you hanging out there on a limb.   Actually, I know I left you hanging and I did so purposely. You might remember that last week we heard of the story of the Rich Young Man- the man who came up to Jesus to ask Him what he had to do to gain eternal life.  We are told that in response to the man’s question, Jesus looked at Him, loved Him and said “There is one thing that you lack. Go sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor. Then come and follow Me.”  At Jesus’ words the rich young man “went away sad for He had many possessions.”  So what about us, we who also have many possessions?  Of course it is true that probably the large majority of us would not describe ourselves as rich, and perhaps we are not by today’s standards, but I am not so sure where we are by Jesus’ standards. I do feel pretty confident, however, that Jesus would consider many of us to be rich who do not consider ourselves to be. So, is that it for us; is the “game over?”  I think the Apostles must have feared so. “Then who can be saved?” they asked. Is there something else that we can do; is there another course that the rich young man could have taken, another course that we can take?  I think there is, and I am calling it the “game-changer.”  There is something that we can do that will point us in the direction of Jesus and eternal life that will help us to become a better person, a better follower of Jesus and a better disciple.  First of all, we need to be honest with ourselves and admit that for many of us there is something that at least gets in the way between us and being a better disciple and that is money and possessions. It can become the scorecard, how we measure ourselves and others and we allow it to compete with God for our hearts. Changing this dynamic is the game-changer.  Money and wealth are indeed blessings from God, but that’s just it-they are from God.  What we tend to do is emphasize the gift, and forget about the Giver. I am convinced that there is much about discipleship and life that we will not get right until we get this right.  We begin to trust the gift more than the Giver.  God is the giver and we need to trust Him more than the gift.  The only way to do that is to become true givers ourselves. That is how we build up our trust in Him rather than becoming slaves to the gift. Of course the biblical answer is tithing-giving away 10% of our income to God and to the poor. The problem with tithing is that it even seems so unattainable for us, so like the rich young man we give up. But we don’t have to-and there is no reason for us to do so. We can begin by changing our philosophy around giving and tithing by practicing the “four P’s of giving.”  First we make sure that our giving is planned-we don’t just give to God and the poor randomly and haphazardly, we incorporate it into our budget.  Second, we make giving to God and the poor a priority- we make sure that giving comes first not after everything else. Third, we make our giving a percentage of our income; we need to start somewhere, anywhere, even if we start at 1/2% or one percent or 2%, as long as it is more than what we are giving now. We don’t have to start out at 10% but we need to start somewhere and then promise that our giving will be progressive (our fourth) step until we get there.  Moving in this direction can and will indeed change our lives. It will open our hearts to more authentic worship and will build our faith. It will serve as an investment toward eternal life-it will build up treasure in heaven and all the while it will help us to become the people God wants us to be. Jesus offers the rich young man and James and John the path to true greatness. I am convinced that this where we start.

He Walked Away Sad, For He Had Many Possessions (10/10 - 10/11/15)

And so we come upon him in today’s Gospel, the Rich Young Man. And we find that the rich young man is us.  He asks the question that we all ask: “What do I have to do to gain eternal life?”  Don’t we all want to have that opportunity, to ask Jesus straight up and point blank what do we have to do to get to Heaven, because of course, if we only had a clear straight answer, we would do whatever we had to do to assure ourselves a spot there. Or would we?  Do we really want to know what it will take for us to get to Heaven?   Did the rich young man really want to know?  Did he really want Jesus to answer his question? Or would he have been happier if he did not get such a straight answer from Jesus? You see a part of me wonders that maybe he really did not want an answer.  Maybe he wanted to stay in the realm of the intellectual exercise. Maybe deep down there was a fear that Jesus was going to say exactly what He eventually did say but at the same time could not believe that Jesus was going to ask him to sell all His possessions and give them to the poor. Yet he needed to know. He had everything else that he wanted, what did he have to do to “attain” eternal life?  So when he had the chance, he could not stand it any longer and asked the question.  And Jesus looked at him, loved him and answered his question.  But the rich young man went away sad for he had many possessions. Would he have been happier if he hadn’t asked, or if Jesus gave him an answer that would only prolong his line of questioning as he went away? But now he knows what he has to do-sell all his possessions and give them to the poor- but he cannot do that.  So what about us?  If we ask Jesus the question, Jesus would give us the same response. He would look at us, love us and tell us to sell our possessions. And we would probably walk away sad too. So what should we do?  Only we can decide. But if we are not ready to follow Jesus’ answer, then we’d better be ready to live our lives knowing that it is only the love and mercy of God that will get us into heaven and that we cannot attain it for ourselves.

Jesus and Marriage (10/3 - 10/4/15)

I do not mean to shock anyone by writing this but speaking about marriage and divorce is not on any short list-or long list for that matter-of my favorite things to do. And I believe my sentiment is rather typical of other priests as well. But Jesus taught about marriage and divorce and what He teaches is the truth and His truth sets us free. So here we go.  First of all we can be sure that if Jesus is teaching us about anything, it is aimed at our own good and our freedom.  In the case of divorce, Jesus was looking out for the well being of the women and mothers of His day.  Did you notice that at the end of this Gospel St. Mark tells us that “people were bringing children to Him that He might touch them?” Who do you think those people were? Bet your bottom dollar they were the children’s mothers.  Jesus, in His teaching against divorce was standing up for them. In His time a husband could cast aside His wife on a whim-for virtually no reason at all. Jesus was saying that this practice was wrong because the “two are to become one flesh.”  The love that exists between a husband and wife is meant to mirror the love that exists between Christ and His Church. Marriage is not a relationship that is meant to be easily cast aside. You might say “Get real, Father, look around you. It’s just not working out that way.”  It is true that some studies document that nearly half of all marriages will end up in divorce-but that doesn’t mean that it is supposed to be that way or that we or our children are better off because of it. Actually that is why we so much need to hear Christ’s teaching on this subject.  Also we should know that if a couple goes to Church together every Sunday, there is less than a 2% chance that they will be divorced and that if they study scripture and pray together that chance drops to less than one in 500.  God’s teaching works because His teaching is true. I will close with some words of advice from an unknown author for husbands and wives as they strive to live out the vows of their marriage to the fullest degree: "I will do more than belong, I will participate. I will do more than care, I will help. I will do more than believe, I will practice. I will do more than be fair, I will be kind. I will do more than be friendly, I will be a friend. I will do more than forgive, I will love."