Men in Black 3-what is a priest?

This weekend Men in Black 3 topped the charts as the nations #1 movie. Today is the 13th anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood. I wear black. I may not take on aliens as they do in the movie but black is my color. Yesterday I wish I could have worn white-the sun was hot at East Hampton's Memorial Day parade. A friend of mine has a t-shirt that says "real men wear black." Who is the man who wears black? What is a priest? The catechism of the catholic church notes that (1536) "Holy Orders is the sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time: thus it is the sacrament of apostolic ministry. It includes three degrees: episcopate, presbyterate, and diaconate." The Catechism then asks:"Why is this sacrament called Orders?"...."The word order in Roman antiquity designated an established civil body, especially a governing body. Ordinatio means incorporation into an ordo. In the Church there are established bodies which Tradition, not without a basis in Sacred Scripture, has since ancient times called taxeis (Greek) or ordines. And so the liturgy speaks of the ordo episcoporum, the ordo presbyterorum, the ordo diaonorum. Other groups also receive the name of ordo: catechumens, virgins, spouses, widows...Integration into one of these bodies in the Church was accomplished by a rite called ordinatio, a religious and liturgical act which was a consecration, a blessing or a sacrament. Today the word ordination is reserved for the sacramental act which integrates a man into the order of bishops, presbyters, or deacons, and goes beyond a simple election, designation, delegation, or institution by the community, for it confers a gift of the Holy spirit that permits the exercise of a 'sacred power' which can only come from Christ himself through his Church. Ordination is also called consecratio, for it is a setting apart and an investiture by Christ himself for his church. They laying on of hands by the bishop, with the consecratory prayer, constitutes the visible sign of this ordination." A lot of heavy language. I like the simple words of Vatican II: "The ministerial priesthood has the task not only of representing Christ-Head of the Church-before the assembly of the faithful, bu also of acting in the name of the whole Church when presenting to God the prayer of the Church, and above all when offering the Eucharistic sacrifice." (Lumen Gentium 10)Indeed, I feel most priestly when celebrating the Eucharist-mass. It is the highlight of my day. Whether it is just the Lord and myself, or there is a full church, or I am standing on the infield of Yankee Stadium before 60,000 (as I did at the mass with Pope Benedict XVI)-it is one and the same mystery. It is calvary. Do I understand it? No Do I believe it with all my heart, mind, and soul? yes. I will never forget a Mass I was celebrating at St. Joseph in Willimantic CT. I was not particularly recollected and I felt myself racing through the prayers. All of a sudden, as if someone else were taking over, I felt a complete change. The tone of my voice changed, I began to read more slowly and reverently, it was then that I realized someone else was in charge. We believe that someone else to be Christ. It is fairly common when concelebrating with other priests to feel a surge like an electric current, run through my heart and hands as I say the words of consecration. To be present at the death of someone is a special grace. I will never forget another moment in Willimantic where I was called to St. Joseph Living Center to annoint someone. I did not go willingly or with a smile. In fact I was grumbling that it wasn't even a parishoner. I had been called out late the night before and was feeling sorry for myself. Little did I know that one of the greatest graces of my priesthood was awaiting me. I went in, anointed the woman and said the prayers for the anointing of the sick. I was preparing to leave when a little voice inside said, "stay". I stayed and prayed the prayers of commendation for the dying. We Went through the Litany of the Saints. I read scripture and as I said the final prayer something very special happened. Just as I finished saying "may you meet the living Lord Jesus, your savior, face to face in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit," she took her last breath. She was waiting! I felt that all the angels and saints were there. It was very touching. I went into the chapel and all I could do was weep. Christ was using me, a useless instrument, to do His work. I still marvel at how God works. People today say "what is wrong with the priesthood?" There is nothing wrong with the priesthood. God is still working in His Church. Pray that I may be a worthy servant and that I will always treasure the awesome gift of the priesthood. I remember each and everyone of you when I daily approach the altar. Peace!

Venerable Conchita on priests

Concepcion Cabrera de Armida is a saint for our time. She was declared venerable by Pope John Paul II in the Jubilee year 2000. It is said that her writings are almost as voluminous as those of St. Thomas Aquinas, the great doctor of the Church. She died on March 3, 1937 at the age of 75. As a mother she has a special role in the lives of priests and I do feel is very active in interceeding for them in heaven. Here are some difficult words that she shares from Our Lord regarding priests and priestly spirituality: " If souls lag along the road and their interior life is extinguished, it's the priest's fault. The gates of divine communication opened up for the mystical life, are closed. Why? Through apathy in My service, through dissipation of their lives, through their lack of mortification, through their lack of study in this domain, through absence of close and consciencious rapport with souls, through want of the spirit of sacrifice, because they do not love enough. Here are the motives, here the cause or rather the many causes which bring about and maintain these results: lack of prayer, of the interior life, or purity of soul, of intimate relations with Me; absence of love and devotion to the Holy Spirit, of union with God. The world opens at this moment a large breach in the hearts of priests and you know the number of vices which accompany this redoubtable enemy: an excessive contact with creatures chills their fervor, the neglect of external and interior recollection brings tepidity. Thence, where the world enters, thence the Holy Spirit departs. When the Holy Spirit leaves the heart of a priest, he is ruined, for if anyone has not only the need but the most imperious obligation to live and breathe the Holy Spirit, it is the priest. To the measure he departs, materialism penetrates. Woe to the priest who founders himself in matter, he can consider himself lost. This is so easy in a dissipated soul, in a heart which does not pray and is not mortified. Out of his infernal hatred for My Church, in a matter of such capital importance for so many souls and for the priest himself, Satan aims at her, his most poisonous arrows. He makes every effort to find the opening through which the world will enter into the priest's heart under any form whatsoever. After that, this unfortunate sould smoothly glides down the slopes toward sin." (Diary, Feb. 14, 1907) Conchita later shares some more challenging words for priests. They are words that should challenge the lay faithful as well: challenge them to pray and make sacrifices for priests and challenge them to promote priestly vocations by themselves living lives of holiness. Here Conchita shares the words of Jesus: " I want love in My priests. I want interior life. I want these consecrated souls to live most closely to Me. I want to banish apathy from their hearts and make them burn with zeal for My glory. I want to activate the divine life of so many souls who belong to me and who are failing. I want to destroy the indifference which paralyzes God's action and which deprives priests of My graces. The fire must be rekindled and this will be done only by the Holy Spirit, bu the divine medium of the Word, offering Him to the Father and asking for mercy." (Diary Sept 23, 1927). She continues the words of Our Lord: " I want a living, palpitating, clear and powerful reaction of the clergy through the Holy Spirit. A priest no longer belongs to himself. He is another Me and he must be all to all, but first of all by sanctifying himself, for no one can give what he does not have and only the Sanctifier can sanctify. So then, if he wants to be holy-as it is imperious he must-he must be possessed, impregnated by the Holy Spirit, since if the Holy Spirit is indispensible for the life of any soul whatsoever, for the soul of priests He must be their breath and very life. If priests are Jesus, should they not have the spirit of Jesus? And this Spirit, is He not the Holy Spirit? (Diary Oct 9, 1927) The Lord challenges priests to remember the words of the Bishop on the day of their ordination: "Let your life be modelled on the Lord's cross." The cross is the way of holiness for all...lay, consecrated religious, or priests. Here Jesus speaks to His priests through Conchita: "What is wanting to many of My priests is the spirit of mortification, love of the Cross, knowledge of the riches found in suffering. Many preach the cross but do not practice it (ouch-my words, Fr Nagle). They advise abnegation and self-renunciation and they do not even dream of practicing these virtues so necessary for priests, for sacrifice is one of the culminating points and is the base for transformation into Me who was a Victim from the very moment of My Incarnation to My death. To be acceptable to My Father, a victim must be pure and sacrificed. My entire life is reduced to this beautiful work which synthesizes the essence of the Christian and even more that of the priest....immolation! I was voluntarily immolated on earth and I continue this life of immolation on the altars. I came into the world to sanctify suffering and to take away its bitterness. I came to bring about the love of the Cross, and the most perfect transformation into Me must be brought about by loveing suffering, by painful love. Thus then, a priest who wants to assimilate himself to Me as is his obligation, must love sacrifice, must aspire to voluntary immolation, bu devoting himself, by renouncing his own self and sacrificing himself constantly on behalf of souls. Priest means one who offers himself and offers, who immolates himself and immolates. Priests must love the cross and be in love with Me crucified. I am their model." ( Diary, Jan 1, 1928) On this Pentecost Sunday 2012, we will leave with the words of Jesus to Conchita. Words for all priests to live by: " The Holy Spirit alone sanctifies priests. This divine Spirit alone raises them from the terretrial to the divine. He alone is capable of urging on, by His breath, priestly souls toward heroism, toward the sublimity of their vocation. He is the delicate and most pure link which eternally unites the Trinity. He is also the link, the sweet and loving chain, which must sweetly unite as all this His, priests with Me, to carry out the desire of My Father, Unity in Trinity, by the Holy Spirit. How much I desire the perfect reign of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of those who are Mine! This interior reign in the soul of My priests, must be His throne and nest. If they are other Christs, My priests must have My same Spirit, the Holy Spirit." Conchita, pray for all priests! Pray for this priest, and pray to the Mother of Priests!

Some thoughts on "Conchita" and the spirituality of the Work of the Cross

Concepcion Cabrera de Armida ("Conchita") was a housewife, mother of nine, and a mystic. Although she lived from 1862-1937 in Mexico, her spirituality speaks to us today. God is outside of space and time and so are his saints. The information I will share with you below can be found in a book published by Alba House titled Conchita: A Mother's spiritual Diary. It is edited by M.M. Philipon, O.P. and was published in 1978. Conchita has a very special connection to priests. Her life was dedicated to praying for them and making sacrifices for them. She even had the great joy of seeing one of her own sons become a Jesuit priest. What was the stirring of this unique vocation? This is how she describes it. The year was 1889 and Conchita was twenty-seven, married, the mother of a family, a house mistress with an exacting and somewhat jealous husband. Nevertheless she made a retreat with Father Antonio Plancarte y Labastida. She says: "One day when I was getting ready with all my soul for all the Lord would ask of me, at a certain moment I clearly heard in the depths of my soul, without any doubt at all, these words which astonished me. He told me 'Your mission will be to save souls.' I did not understand how I would do this. It seemed strange and impossible. I thought there was question simply of sacrificing myselg for my husband an, my children and our servants. I made very practical resolutions, filled with fervor, redoubling my desire to love Him who is my love beyond measure. My heart had found its refuge and peace in solitude and prayer. But now I had to return to the world and my duties, having to pass through fire without burning myself, while at the same time this flame glowed more and more in my heart. The zeal to share with others the joy of what I had learned, devoured me and ardently increased." Saints do not always have the prudence that you and I may have. St. Francis of Assisi was known to throw himself in a thornbush when experiencing temptations against purity. Conchita received permission from her spiritual director to engrave the initials J.H.S. on her bosom on Jan 14, 1894. In her words:" No sooner had I done this than I felt a supernatural force which threw me, face down, on the floor, my eyes filled with tears and a burning flame within my heart. Vehemently and zealously I then asked the Lord for the salvation of souls: Jesus, saviour of souls, save them! save them! I remember nothing more: souls, souls for Jesus! That was all I desired...the ardor of my soul far surpassed the burning sensation of my body and I experienced an ineffable joy on feeling I belonged wholly to Jesus, just as a branded animal to its owner. Yes indeed, I belonged wholly to Jesus; to my Jesus who will save so many poor souls called to bring Him glory. Enraptured, I spent the rest of the day with an ardent desire of solitude and prayer but awaiting a visit I was to receive." What an expression of love. Jesus still needs people to work with Him in the work of saving souls. Are you willing to be His Apostle? Are you willing to unite yourself to the cross, surrender your will and let Him use you as He wishes? By virtue of our baptism all Catholic Christians are called to be saints. So many hear the call but out of fear or lack of encouragement come to the threshold of holiness and then draw back. Conchita did not draw back. What she shares next is extraordinary: Some time after the monogram, while Conchita was praying in the Jesuit church at San Luis Potosi, her native town, there suddenly appeared to her the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Love, illumining and enkindling from on high all the Works of the Cross. " I was meditating devoutly on God, when all of a sudden I saw a vast tableau of very vivid light, growing brighter and brighter at its center. A white light! And most surprising, above this ocean, this abyss of light with its thousand rays of gold and fire, I saw a dove, an all white dove, its wings spread, covering, I know not how, this whole torrent of light. I understood that there was here a vision most elevated and impenetrable, profound and divine. It left me with an impression of suavity, of peace, of love, of purity and of humility. How can the unexpressible be expressed? Two or three days after this vision-an inexplicable thing-I saw, one afternoon, in the same Jesuit church-a happy afternoon-I saw again a white dove in a large hearth whence flared brilliang and sparkling rays of light. The Dove, once again with its wings outspread, was perched at the center, and beneath it, at the bottom of this immensity of light was a large Cross, a very large one with a heart at the center (Aut 1, 211-213). The Cross seemed to float in a twilight of clouds of fire from within. From below the Cross there flared myriads of rays of light, which could be clearly distinguished from the white light of the Dove, and the fire of the clouds. They were like three different grades of light, how beautiful! The heart was alive, beating, human, but glorified, surrounded by a material fire which seemed to glow, and sparkle as in a hearth. Above it there flared other different flames, like tongues of fire of a higher quality or grade, I shall say. The heart was surrounded by luminous rays, longer at first and then becoming smaller, distinguishable from the flames which were below, and from the dim light and the most brilliant disc which encircled it. The flames which blazed up from the hearth ascended rapidly as if dispatched with great force, covering and revealing the tiny crosses fastened within the heart. The thorns which encircled the heart hurt us on seeing them as if they pressed against this so delicate and tender heart. I was able to describe all this because, many a time, day and night, this bery beautiful Cross was presented to me, though without the Dove. What does this mean? This is what I asked myself. What does the Lord wish? I rendered an account to my director. At first he told me to disregard this, then, inspired by God, I think he wrote me a letter for my soul in which he said: 'You will save many a soul through the apostolate of the Cross.' He never thought that this formula could designate the name of the Works of the Cross. As far as I was concerned, on reading this, I only know what I felt: this name must characterize the Work which the Lord began and of which I was now speaking." The Lord chose this young woman, married and the mother of a family, a simple lay person, to make us be mindful of the mystery of the salvation of the world by the Cross. "The Lord told me: 'The world is buried in sensuality, no longer is sacrifice loved and no longer is its sweetness known. I wish the Cross to reign. Today it is presented to the world with my heart, so that it may bring souls to make sacrifices. No true love is without sacrifice. It is only in My crucified Heart, that the ineffable sweetness of my Heart can be tasted. Seen from the outside, the Cross is bitter and harsh, but as soon as tasted, penetrating and savoring it, there is no greater pleasure. Therein is the repose of the soul, the soul inebriated by love, there its delights, its life.'"..." I was praying, when, all at once, there was presented to my interior view, a lengthy procession of nuns, bearing a great red cross...They passed along two by two, looking at me often on going by. Some days later the Lord told me: 'There will also be a Congregation of Men, after this foundation for women, but I will speak to you of this laterr, at a more opportune time.'" There are now (as of 1978) some four hundred nuns in Mexico, in Guatemala and in Spain. In a letter to Father Jose Alzoa, Jesuit provincial, Conchita has some amazing revelations: " The Apostolate of the Cross is the work which continues and completes that of My Heart which was revealed to Blessed Margaret Mary. I tell you that this does not mean only My external Cross as a divine instrument of Redemption. This Cross is presented to the world to bring souls toward My Heart, pierced on that Cross. The essence of this Work consists in making known the interior sufferings of My Heart which are ignored, and which constitute for Me a more painful Passion than that which My Body underwent on Calvary, on account of its intensity and its duration, mystically perpetuated in the Eucharist. I tell you, up to this day, the world has known the love of My heart manifested to Margaret Mary, but it was reserved for present times to make known its suffering, the symbols of which I had shown simply and in an external way. I say again, there must be a penetration into the Interior of this boundless ocean of bitterness and an extension of knowledge of it throughout the world for bringing about the union of the suffering of the faithful with the immensity of the sufferings of My Heart, for their suffering is mostly wasted. I wish for them to profit from it by way of the Apostolate of the Cross for the benefit of souls and for the consolation of My Heart." This Pentecost, let the Holy Spirit remind us of the sufferings of Christ. The sufferings of the heart who could only love. The Lord's own words to Conchita regarding the Holy Spirit should inspire one and all: "It is time that the Holy Spirit reign....and not a remote reign as something very sublime, even though it be so and there is nothing greater than He since He is God united and consubtantial with the Father and the Word. But it is necessary that he reign, here, right close, in each soul and in each heart, in all the structures of My Church. The day on which there will flow in each pastor, in each priest, like an inner blood, the Holy Spirit, then will be renewed the theological virtues, now languishing, even in the ministers of My Church, due to the absence of the Holy Spirit. Then the world will change, for all the evils deplored today have their cause in the remoteness of the Holy Spirit, the sole remedy. Let the ministers of My Church react, through the medium of the Holy Spirit, and the whole world of souls will be divinized." A big Amen to that! Happy Pentecost!

Conchita, Pentecost, and the Mexican Martyrs

The United States awaits the opening of For Greater Glory next Friday, June 1. It promises to be a very informative movie and a timely one as well. The story revolves around the persecution of the Catholic Church in Mexico and has a top notch crew of actors and actresses. Did you ever wonder what sort of a person runs into a burning building? Remember the firefighters and emergency personnel who were running up the stairs of the Word Trade Center on 9/11? Remember the soldiers who went into enemy territory to capture and kill Osama Bin Laden? What type of a person does such a thing? A person of great heroism and a person of great passion. This is what the church needs from Catholics right now. It is time to live the life of faith of the martyrs. Listen to the story of one priest who arrived in Vera Cruz Mexico on August 14, 1914. Father Felix Rigiuer was the confessor and spiritual director of a mystic named Concepcion Cabrera de Armida ("Conchita"). Conchita was the eneducated mother of nine who would go on to write some incredible doctrinal works-all dictated to her by Our Lord. The preface to the book Conchita by M.M. Philipon, O.P. notes: " The laity in particular is called today to witness before the whole world to an outstanding holiness. Does not God give us an example of this in this mother of nine children on her way to the altars? Conchita lived on earth, simple and joyous among her own, wholly given over to God in the secret recesses of her soul in which dwelt the Holy Spirit, living in an intense apostolic splendor radiating from the horizons of the church, creatrix of a new style of holiness accessible to all." Which brings us back to Fr Felix. Conchita had shared with him her dreams of four new religious communities in 1904. Fr Felix was sent back to France and now, in the midst of a terrible persecution of the church, he is returning. Listen to Fr. Philllipon's, O.P, words: "God had placed close to Conchita a saint. When not having seen her for ten years, Father Felix was to see her again, his first words were simply: 'I have not changed my opinion about the works of the Cross.' On his return to Mexico, at the very moment of his disembarking at Vera Cruz August 14, 1914, he met some Mexican bishops who (driven out by the persecution) were going to leave on the same ship. They knew him and loved him. They did not hide their amazement upon seeing him disembark, but Father courageously responded: 'The Lord wants me to found His work during the agony of the nation.'" Listen to the heroic first hand accounts of this saintly woman. They serve as a historical backdrop for the movie For Greater Glory: "August 15. A day of anguish. They intend to requisition la Casa de la Cruz (the convent of the contemplatives), to be used as general quarters and as a lodging for officers. Today some twenty thousand Carranzistas arrived. Some three or four times more are to come. I felt in my soul a mortal sadness, as if Satan had entered Mexico. It was a terrible oppression. It is the scourge of God. The war unleashed against the Church , is accentuated. My spiritual director had to go into hiding. A persecution, a frightful one, draws near. God has put nearby us some neighbors, members of the government, who love the sisters and offer to save them....August 17 Things get worse every day. Horrible blasphemies, outrages, deaths, rapes and pillaging of homes occur. Gunfire is heard throughout the day. We are afraid to go out. A holocaust of priests exists. Religious have been expelled. The goods of the church are going to be confiscated. There are forced loans and a thousand other pitiful things.'" Needless to say, these are pretty dramatic accounts. Here are more of her words: "Today we begin another month of a thousand anxieties. Puebla has been overtaken by the anti-clericals. They have profaned this Cathedral so dear to my heart! They expelled the canons and burned the confessionals. They have taken over the Episcopal palace and committed thousands of vexations against the priests. Outrages and horrors are everywhere! When I complained to the Lord about what was happening to Peubla, He told me: 'The trial will pass.'" On May 26, 1927 Conchita wrote to a friend: "We already have a great number of martyrs in Mexico who are granting us favors. God be blessed! He knows how many there are. We must adore his designs. For God, everyone is a means which he uses and how often it pleases Him to accomplish things counter to all human means in order to make His glory shine out all the more. It is the hour of suffering and of prayer but we must also adore His delays, accept with love his designs, and hope against all hope for the triumph and peace that He, without any doubt at all, will bring us. Mexico will not lose the faith as long as it remains devoted to Mary." In the midst of these trials the Lord spoke to her firmly: "Offer yourself as a victim for my priests. Unite yourself to My sacrifice for gaining them graces. It is necessary that in union with the Eternal Father, you accomplish your priestly role, offering Me to My Father for obtaining from Him grace and mercy for the Church and her members. Recall how often I have asked you to offer yourself as a victim, in union with the Victim, for my beloved Church? Do you not see that you are all Hers? Precisely on account of this special union which binds you to my church, you have the right to share in Her anguish and the sacred duty to console her be sacrificing yourself for Her priests." What an immense gift! In the midst of tremendous persecution of the Church God sends a woman who offers shelter and protection for priests. Even more amazingly, her priest confessor, Fr. Felix returns to start the Work of the Cross and the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit! His life always in danger, Fr. Felix celebrates mass in the home and offers spiritual conferences and guidance to people who are suffering. What a model for priests today! I will conclude with the words of Our Lord to Conchita regarding the Holy Spirit. This Pentecost, let His words penetrate our hearts for an outpouring on the Spirit in the United States: "It is time that the Holy Spirit reign. And not a remote reign as something very sublime, even though it be so and there is nothing greater than he since He is God united and consubstantial with the Father and the Word. But it is necessary that He reign, here, right close, in each soul and in each heart, in all the structures of My church. The day on which there will flow in each pastor, in each priest, like an inner blood, the Holy Spirit, then will be renewed the theological virtues,now languishing, even in the ministers of My church, due to the absence of the Holy Spirit. Then the world will change, for all the evils deplored today have their cause in the remoteness of the Holy Spirit, the sole remedy. Let the ministers of My Church react, through the medium of the Holy Spirit, and the whole world of souls will be divinized. he is the axis around which revolve the virtues. There is no virtue without the Holy Spirit. The decisive impulse for raising up My church from the state of prostration in which she lies, consists in reviving the cult of the Holy Spirit. Let His place be given Him, that is, the first in intellects and wills! No one will be lacking anything with this heavenly wealth. The Father and I, the Wor, We desire an ardent and vitalizing renewal of His reign in the Church." Amen Conchita is now a Servant of God and her cause for beatification is proceeding. Fr Felix is not venerable and passed away on January 10, 1938. Conchita died in 1937. Although war and terror waged around them both, the cross proved to be the fertile soil for a new pentecost. M. M. Philipon, O.P. concludes his book Conchita with these words: " Yes, Conchita's prophetic mission is that of recalling to the modern and materialistic world, avid for liberty, that it will be saved only by a NEW PENTECOST and by the GOSPEL OF THE CROSS. This new pentecost, this sanctifying action of the Spirit, must begin with the priests and extend itself to the entire People of God, as on the first Pentecost the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles and on the whole community assembled in the Cenacle. 'I want to come back to the world in my Priests. I want to renew the world of souls on manifesting Myself in My priests. I want a powerful impulse in My Church on infusing upon Her the Holy Spirit as on a new pentecost.' (Diary, Jan 5, 1928)But the Holy Spirit cannot descend on the world save by Christ's Cross since both missions, that of the Spirit and of the Son, are inseparable. 'The Holy Spirit will reign the day when My sacrifice of suffering will also reign; the Cross in hearts. In so far as the Cross will not reign in souls, the Holy Spirit, He too will not reign.' (Diary, May 26, 1901) May Mary, the Mother of Jesus and Mother of the Church, intercede that this progidy of Pentecost be renewed, and that the Church, this 'people brought together by virtue of the unity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit' carry out the design of love which springs from the Father: may She truly be the Holy Church!" Conchita, pray for us! All you Mexican martyrs, pray for us! May the Holy Spirit reign in every heart that reads these words!

would Jesus cheer for I'll have another?

This weekend coming out of mass a woman said "I hope your horse wins!" I wasn't sure if I liked the phrase but I got a good laugh. We both got a good laugh. So, would Jesus cheer for "I'll have another" in a race against "Rousing sermon?" Apparently the two are supposed to meet in the Belmont Stakes June 9th. My guees is that Jesus would cheer for both. The Catholic approach to faith is not either/or it is both/and. This unnerves some people who can't live with the diversity of worship and traditions. We are not saved by faith or works we are saved by both. We don't view scripture as opposed to tradition we view them both as a harmonious whole. In contrast to the joy-less Christianity that St Teresa of Avila bemoaned we must boldly put forward the true face of Jesus. A Jesus that is fully human and fully God. And, I might add, a God that is playful. Playful? Isn't that sacreligious? Nope. Psalm 2:4 says: "The one enthroned in heaven laughs." Laughs? yep. Friends have told me wonderful stories about the outdoors. One friend was in a tree stand when he saw three young raccoons climb a small tree (it was more like a shoot). As the first one got to the top of the shoot the tree began to droop. Eventually it arced over until the first one got off, leaving the other two stranded. The tree then stood up and flung the other two yards away. Another friend tells the story about sitting in a tree stand when he saw a group of turkeys approaching. The turkeys didn't know he was there. They flew up into the trees nearby and one was apparently a little heavy and broke the branch. There was quite a commotion. Things then quieted down and my friend slowly began to descend. All of a sudden, as if they were speaking to one another, the turkeys started gobbling. "Heh, who picked this place", "I didn't pick it did you?" "How come you didn't notice that human?" He said it was like something out of a Far Side cartoon. Where did this playfulness come from? I used to see ducks try to land on the pond only to find that the top layer was frozen....you should have seen them skidding across the top! They would often get close to the waterfall and sometimes would slide over and have to fly back up. Then there were the otters joyfully jumping in and off of the ice flows and back into the water. Here are the words of John Eldredge author of Outlaw who asks the question: "Is Jesus really playful?": "I was sitting out back yesterday morning sipping coffee, watching the young chipmunks chase one another at breakneck speeds across the deck. One clever daredevil, hoping to get the advantage, jumped up on the fence rail and continued the chase from above, leaping at the last moment upon his littermate like a Hollywood stuntman. This morning one of them adopted a new strategy. The little rascal found an ambush spot, clinging from the side of the house, where he waited for his playmate to wander by unawares; he then pounced, and the two somersaulted off the deck and into the grass, squealing. Only to dash off and do it again. And again. Now-what does this tell us about the personality of Jesus, created these little dynamos with striped masks and boundless enthusiasm? What do they say about his heart? Polar-bear cubs will hurl themselves down snowy hillsides headfirst and upside-down, just for fun. Spinner dolphins love to romp in the bow-wake of a boat, cavorting, leaping into the air and, well, spinning. Otters play tag. Our horses play tug of war with a stick-which is really quite funny when you think of how nobly a horse likes to carry himself. Who gave your puppy his impishness, as he snatches your slipper and races around the house with you in tow? God is more playful than we are." Jesus' first miracle was to change water into wine. Six stone water jars each containing 20-30 gallons of water suddenly became wine. And I am sure not just any wine. Apparently Jesus served the best wine last! Here is another great excerpt from Eldredge's book: "Last Christmas a friend sent me a gift; it was a coffee mug with a classic picture of Jesus on it, and below the famous line 'Jesus saves.' When you pour hot drinks into the mug, the imagery changes-Christ no longer has a beard, and the expression says, 'Jesus shaves.' My son Luke asked me hesitantly, 'what do you think Jesus thinks about that?' Let me ask you, my reader-what do you think? Remove Jesus from the equation for the moment-how do you feel about people who must always be serious, who deemand that everyone around them always be serious? And what about sour types who can never, ever tolerate a playful tease? Can Jesus enjoy a joke at his own expense? If not, what kind of person is he? I told Luke, 'I think he thinks it's hysterical. But we have to hide the mug when certain members of our church stop by. Laughter is from God. This one quality alone might save us from the religious veil that forever tries to come in and cloud our perception of Jesus. Keep in mind now-Isaac means laughter. And who was it that gave him this unforgettable name? It was the Lord." Meister Eckhardt says that you and I were created out of the laughter of the Trinity. I think it is pretty fair to say Jesus would love the story of "I'll have another." When no one else wanted him as a 1 yr old he was purchased at auction for $11,000. He has now won the first two crowns of the Triple Crown. In fact his story and the way in which he has come from behind in both wins is truly, I believe, "a rousing sermon." Many people reject the Lord and reject the faith because of the religiosity of believers. Times haven't changed. It was the professional religious, the Scribes and Pharisees, who persecuted Jesus and put him on a cross. Even the strictest religious order, the Carthusians, know the importance of relaxation, fellowship and laughter. The great silence in their monastery is broken on Sundays and the monks are free to speak and take a walk outside. St Bruno commented that if too much pressure is put on a stick it will bend at first, but eventually it will snap. So it is with us. This weekend I shared the story of Frank Llod Wright at mass. One day he and his uncle were walking through a snow covered field. They were headed to a house. But along the way Frank veered off and stopped by a barn to see the animals. Then he went over to a pond and took a look at that. Then he saw a fort off in the distance. He went out of his way to see that. When he finally caught up to his uncle across the snow covered field,his uncle said, "Now Frank. I want to teach you a lesson. Look back at our footsteps in the snow. Mine came straight here. I never ventured off and I arrived here much quicker than you. But Frank, look at yours. You zig-zagged all over the place and wasted so much time stopping all along the way." Frank Llod Wright said that was one of the best lessons he ever learned. But he took it in just the opposite way from what his uncle intended. His philosophy was, " I still arrived at the same destination, but I enjoyed all the sights along the way." Take time to enjoy the "joy on the journey." Laugh. Play. We give God glory when we do so. Would he cheer for "I'll have another?" You betcha!

And Peter stood up....

A year ago on World Communications Sunday Pope Benedict XVI encouraged priests: "For God's sake....blog" His words of encouragement are words that inspired me to start writing back in January. On this day I would like to share the concluding paragraph of Carl Anderson's book A Civilization of Love. Carl Anderson is Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbs. These are his words: "On October 7, 1979, I stood on te grass of the Mall in Washington DC with humdreds of thousands of other Catholics to join John Paul II as he said Mass for the last time on his first visit to the United States. I still remember clearly the sky beginning to darken, the pope's green vestments blowing in the wind, his hand resting on his silver pilgrim's cross, the Capitol Dome behind him; and then the heavily accented Polish voice that would grow so familiar as the years went on:'All human beings ought to value every person for his or her uniqueness as a creature of God, called to be a brother or sister of Christ....And so, we will stand up every time that human life is threatened. When the sacredness of life before birth is attacked, we will stand up and proclaim that no one ever has the authority to destroy unborn life.' And then he went on, repeating his refrain, saying we would stand up to protect children, marriage, the family, the environment, the poor, and finally, 'When the sick, the aged or the dying are abandoned in loneliness, we will stand up and proclaim that they are worthy of love, care and respect.' Of course we were all standing." One of the unique traits about Pope John Paul II is that just as "Peter stood up" (Acts 1:15), Pope John Paul II also "stood up" for the rights and dignity of human persons. He stood until he could stand no more. The first Peter may have fled the cross but Pope John Paul stood for many years in the balcony at St Peter's and with the suffering masses at the world day for the sick. Friends of mine happened to be in Rome during the Jubilee year 2000 and they commented on how he individually greeted all the sick who were presented to him. This was not on human strength alone. He, too, was a very sick man at that point. Where did he get this strength? It came from prayer. I have a picture from a mass I was able to attend in his private chapel in January 2001. The Picture is taken from behind the altar and you see the pontiff deep in prayer with concelebrating priests and invited guests behind. At this mass I was handed a copy of the Apostolic Letter Novo Millennion Ineunte. In this letter Pope John Paul asserts that "our Christian communities must become genuine 'schools' of prayer, where the meeting with Christ is expressed not just in imploring help but also in thanksgiving, praise, adoration, contemplation, listening and ardent devotion, until the heart truly 'falls in love'". Because we live in such an active society we may think of something that needs to be done...a new program etc. The Pope says no. Here are his thoughts: "To make the church the home and the school of communion: that is the greatest challenge facing us in the millennium which is now beginning, if we wish to be faithful to God's plan and respond to the world's deepest yearnings. But what does this mean in practice? Here too, our thoughts could run immediately to the action to be undertaken, but that would not be the right impulse to follow. Before making practical plans, we need to promote a spirituality of commuion, making it the guiding principle of education wherever individuals and Christians are formed, wherever ministers of the altar, consecrated persons, and pastoral workers are trained, whereveer families and communities are being built up. A spirituality of communion indicates above all the heart's contemplation of the mystery of the Trinity dwelling in us, and whose light we must also be able to see shining on the face of the brothers and sisters around us. A spirituality of communion also means an ability to think of our brothers and sisters in faith within the profound unity of the Mystical Body, and therefore as 'those who are a part of me'. This makes us able to share their joys and sufferings, to sense their desires and meet their needs, to offer them deep and genuine friendship. A spirituality of communion implies also the ability to see what is positive in others, to welcome it and prize it as a gift from God: not only as a gift for the brother or sister who has received it directly, but also as a 'gift for me.' A spirituality of communion means, finally, to know how to 'make room' for our brothers and sisters, bearing 'each other's burdens' (Gal 6:2)." All of this comes from prayer. When we realize who we are in prayer we recconnect with God who never stops saying: "You are my beloved son, You are my beloved daughter." We recognize our own dignity and love ourselves in a Godly way which then enables us to see that same dignity in others. Want to stand up for justice, human rights, the unborn, the poor? To stand up you must first bow your head in prayer and kneel before the God of the universe and listen for the still small voice that the prophet Elijah heard on Mount Carmel

A Year of Faith-Vatican II 50 years later

On October 11, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI will initiate a "Year of Faith" which will conclude with the feast of Christ the King, Nov., 2013. Why a "year of faith?" First, it is an opportunity for the church to reflect on the gift of the opening of the Second Vatican Council (October 11, 1962). Second, in Pope Benedict's words: "what the world is in particular need of today is the credible witness of people enlightened in mind and heart by the Word of the Lord, and capable of opening the hearts and minds of many to the desire for God and for true life, life without end." The opening statement of Gaudium et Spes (The Church in the Modern World) still speaks to us today, fifty years later. It reads: " The joy and hope, the grief and anguish of the men of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted in any way, are the joy and hope, the grief and anguish of the followers of Christ as well. Nothing that is genuinely human fails to find an echo in their hearts. For theirs is a community composed of men, of men who, united in Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit, press onwards towards the kingdom of the Father and are bearers of a message of salvation intended for all men. That is why Christians cherish a feeling of deep solidarity with the human race and its history." Ever wonder why there are so many pronouncements of the church on matters of sexuality, bioethics or even the economy and the environment? It is because these are our concerns they are the concerns of Christ and the church as well. Pope John Paul II was Cardinal Wojtyla at the time of this publication but he was one of the key writers of the document. Solidarity is a word that should jump at us. Remember Lech Walesa and the Solidarity movement in Poland? Solidarity was a spark that lead to recognizing the rights of workers-a recognition that in large part led to the overthrow of the communist government. Jesus Christ is interested in our joys our hopes and our anguish, so is His Church on earth. The introduction reads as follows: " At all times the church carries the responsibility of reading the signs of the time and of interpreting them in the light of the Gospel, if it is to carry out its task. In language intelligible to every generation, she should be able to answer the ever recurring questions which men ask about the meaning of this present life and of the life to come, and how one is related to the other. We must be aware of and understand the aspirations, the yearnings, and the often dramatic features of the world in which we live." How do these words speak to us today? Think of the national discussion on healthcare, the concerns raised about religious liberty, the Defense of Marriage Act, the specter of terrorism. These are all social issues experienced by people like you and I every day. Does the Church have the answer? Some say no. They regard the Catholic Church as an obstacle to progress. They also believe the church's teaching on marriage and family are antiquated. Then there are the 8,000 people gathered in Rome who are on fire for the faith and who represent various church movement that are experiencing tremendous growth. What is the source of all conflict in the world? Is it just a question of a political philosophy? Lumen Gentium gives the answer at the end of the introduction. It states: "The dichotomy affecting the modern world is, in fact, a symptom of the deeper dichotomy that is in man himself. He is the meeting point of many conflicting forces. In his condition as a created being he is subject to a thousand shortcomings, but feels untrammeled in his inclinations and destined for a higher form of life. Torn by a welter of anxieties he is compelled to choose between them and repudiate some of them. Worse still, feeble and sinful as he is, he often does the very thing he hates and does not do what he wants. And so he feels himself divided, and the result is a host of discords in social life. Many, it is true, fail to see the dramatic nature of this state of affairs in all its clarity for their vision is in fact blurred by materialism, or they are prevented from even thinking about it by the wretchedness of their plight. Others delude themselves that they have found peace in a worldview now fashionable. There are still others whose hopes are set on a genuine and total emancipation of mankind through human effort alone and look forward to some earthly paradise where are the desires of their hearts will be fulfilled." There we have it. Man is divided. The living God speaks from the cross "I thirst." As Mother Teresa said, it is not a physical thirst, but a thirst for love, a thirst for souls. If "Jesus Christ fully reveals man to himself" how do we look when compared to Him in a mirror? Do we see a loving Savior who speaks to us through creation and through the world, or do we see the Almighty Judge who has come to condemn us? How we answer that question will determine what we see when we look into that mirror. As G K Chesterton once observed, Christianity hasn't been tried and found wanting. Christianity hasn't been tried. Jesus Christ is the answer. The Catholic Church has the answer.