From Death Into Life

As I attended the funeral of a very close cousin of mine who unexpectedly died from complications stemming from leukemia, I thought how Providential it was to occur during Holy Week.

How lovely it is that our God has given us the opposite road of Our Divine Saviour. Jesus was welcomed with palms into Jerusalem and THEN endured his Sorrowful Passion. We sometimes have to endure our own "passions" here on earth before WE are welcomed into the heavenly Jerusalem.

I think of my cousin in his final days, beaten and mocked with health problems, struggling to carry his cross to his own Golgotha - only to see it through on his own Palm Sunday welcoming into eternal life. I pray for his soul that by God's grace and mercy he can forgive him his transgressions and allow him to partake in the Eternal Mass.

Life is precious and so fragile. Endure your passions and know they only exist because God so wills it to purify you like gold.
Our Palm Sunday awaits, but not before our Passion.

"Jesus without the cross is a man without a mission and the cross without Jesus is a burden without a reliever."
- Archbishop Fulton Sheen

HE IS RISEN.

HE IS RISEN INDEED!

40 Days to a New You

Found a great site a year or so ago for a Daily Lenten Guide to grow in holiness. Join me these next 40 days and may God bless you...


http://uscatholic.claretians.org/site/News2?abbr=usc_&page=NewsArticle&id=6153

Armed vs. the un-Armed

As I prepare to walk with thousands of my brothers and sisters next week in Washington D.C., I am reminded of Christ's passion: the unstained handed over to the stained.

I've been reading and meditating on Saint Thomas More's The Sadness of Christ, written as a commentary on the Passion while More was awaiting his own execution by the stain of King Henry VIII. More commentary than exegesis, More presents profound insight into that cataclysmic event that re-opened the doors to heaven for all of us lowly beings.

More offers the following comments on the "darkness" that handed Jesus over to the guards by all who were threatened by him:

This is the mad and ungovernable power which brings you armed to take an unarmed man, which brings the fierce against the gentle, criminals against an innocent man, a traitor against his lord, puny mortals against God.

The irony of all innocent blood participating and united in Christ's passion. The unborn, the sick, the dying- all of the unarmed. The abortionist (and the legislators and commonfolk that support him) murdering the child by unspeakable means and weaponry. He who is to defend and heal the sick as doctor, is now the aggressor. Under the natural law, written by God, this criminal who sins against the natural law.

The safest and most intimate place for any human being, has become a battleground.

Remembering

On the Anniversary of the attacks of 9/11 - remembring the Holy Father's 2008 visit to the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan and his prayer for the victims:

"O God of love, compassion, and healing,

look on us, people of many different faiths and traditions,

who gather today at this site,

the scene of incredible violence and pain.

"We ask you in your goodness

to give eternal light and peace

to all who died here -

the heroic first-responders:

our fire fighters, police officers,

emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel,

along with all the innocent men and women

who were victims of this tragedy

simply because their work or service

brought them here on 11 September 2001.

"We ask you, in your compassion

to bring healing to those

who, because of their presence here that day,

suffer from injuries and illness.

Heal, too, the pain of still-grieving families

and all who lost loved ones in this tragedy.

Give them strength to continue their lives with courage and hope.

"We are mindful as well

of those who suffered death, injury, and loss

on the same day at the Pentagon and in Shanksville , Pennsylvania.

Our hearts are one with theirs

as our prayer embraces their pain and suffering.

"God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world:

peace in the hearts of all men and women

and peace among the nations of the earth.

Turn to your way of love

those whose hearts and minds

are consumed with hatred.

"God of understanding,

overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy,

we seek your light and guidance

as we confront such terrible events.

Grant that those whose lives were spared

may live so that the lives lost here

may not have been lost in vain.

Comfort and console us,

strengthen us in hope,

and give us the wisdom and courage

to work tirelessly for a world

where true peace and love reign

among nations and in the hearts of all".

Boticelli's Pieta

I could stare at this for hours...

Reflection on Matthew 8:5-11

Jesus expresses amazement at the faith of the centurion - a faith that came from his understanding of the relationship between authority and obedience. His soldiers obeyed him because he was obedient to Caesar and therefore he had the entire weight of the Roman Empire behind his commands. The centurion saw that Jesus had supernatural authority. It came from his obedience to God the Father. For the centurion, the link between obedience and authority was obvious.

We live in confusing times when many are losing their faith. They listen to the world and ask, "Why doesn't the Church change this or that teaching?" Some seem to think that the Church's teachings should be decided by a poll. But the Church is the Body of Christ and it is under authority. It must be obedient to God. It can't make up new teachings or change old ones. If it did, it would lose its authority and become one opinion among many.

Before we receive communion we remember the words of the centurion: "Lord, I am not worthy." We can receive this marvelous gift because the priest has the authority to change ordinary bread into the Blessed Sacrament. He has the authority because the Church has the authority to ordain priests. This authority comes from obedience.

Dale O'Leary

"The One Up Above"

What does that mean when we refer to the "one up above?" Conventional wisdom would say the person is talking about their God. Well, how can we know this God is up above and not below, behind, or in front? Why do we say this? I say it. When thanking God, I look up. When in doubt, I look up. I don't look down. I don't turn around and talk to the back of my chair - that's for certain. Rightfully, I could look at anything and thank God - for God is through, with, and in everything we see (all that is good and has come to be).

So, how did this come about?

I wondered about this during Adoration this afternoon. People say God is above them and the evil one below them. Is this absolutely true? I assume we say this because we look at the hierarchy of creation and so we think of the King of Creation as being above us. Are peasants ever above the King? Certainly not. So with God above us, satan must be beneath us, right? I beg to differ.

Satan can never be beneath us unless we make a concerted effort to keep him there. Walk around the city, notice him among our brothers and sisters - in false prophets, "adult" book stores, "planned" parenthoods, etc. Is he ever below us? Never. He is among us and in fact sometimes (and maybe a lot of times, and sadly) above us, replacing our Creator. When we put ourselves, money, fame, debauchery before God, satan takes His place above us - where he wants to reign forever.

So my brothers and sisters, be mindful of He who should be above you and he who should be beneath you. Our God only wants happiness for us. He has sent many a prophet to speak to us about getting closer to him and letting us know how much he loves us. The Bible is a Book of Love - intimate love. This God who created everything - even us - asks for our love so we can join him in paradise for eternity. We're far from him, but He gave us the Way back. There is absolute Truth and it came in the form of a man. God so loved the world...

He gives us the path and sheds his grace upon us to get closer to him to enthrone him on our heart's mantle. In our Exodus from Egypt, he gave us manna for the journey. Our new Exodus is from eternal damnation and our new manna is his only Son in the Most Holy Eucharist. We eat this new Bread and we're filled with so much grace. Why does God continually give us his love? How do we deserve any of it?

That is true love.

He wants us to return home. We're not destined for earthly residence, but the Heavenly Jerusalem. We know no better, but our Father continues to give us grace so we make it home. We are all Prodigal Sons, but we won't find true happiness and our heart's delight until we allow His love to penetrate our darkened souls.

We must never lose sight of the fact that we are either Saints or outcasts, that we must love for Heaven or for Hell; there is no middle path in this.

- St. John Vianney

Body and Blood

I previously examined the effects of "consuming" something. In coming to that conclusion, I reflected upon what occurs when we consume Christ in the Most Blessed Sacrament.

As human beings, we could say that we're 50% from our father and 50% from our mother - give or take some percent based on physical traits, etc.
We could also say the same for Christ, even though he was 100% human and 100% divine.

We know his biological mother was Mary and his biological father was the Holy Spirit.
Since the Spirit was not "flesh" - the flesh of the Holy Trinity being Christ - could we then say that Christ, for all intents and purposes, is biologically Mary; that his DNA, blood type, etc., is solely derived from his mother?

In these assumptions, when we receive the Body of Christ, are we not also receiving the Mother of God, Mary Most Holy?
If at some time we didn't exist, but needed our mother and father to become "one" so that we could come into existence, then we can establish that we in fact inherit the genetic make-up of our parents.

And is it not so with our Redeemer?
As if it's not enough to receive all the graces we do when receiving the Eucharist, we also receive Mary. The Son of God and the Mother of God literally dwell within us. How beautiful and most assuring that not only do we literally become the Son and Mother of Man, but as they are in the Father, we also become what we were destined for: divinity.


And so my inaudible prayer during the Consecration has been:

Flesh and Blood of Mary
Spirit of God
Come to me
Remain in me
Transform me.

Keeping the Hall Well Swept

…your soul is like a great hall, unfurnished or insufficiently furnished.

That it will never be fit for the reception of our sovereign Lord unless He Himself furnishes it and arranges in it the precious furniture suitable for such a guest.

That the only way in which He will do this and enrich your soul with His gifts will be during the silence and peace of prayer.

Your duty is, therefore, to keep the hall well swept and clean with the help of grace, and then, give place to Him who will make it His own business to supply the beautiful furniture with which it is to be enriched, and who wishes to arrange it according to his own taste.

Do not go and upset yourself for nothing is a matter in which you would spoil everything by interference. Let him do as he likes; consider yourself as a picture which a great master is proposing to paint; but take courage, for I foresee that it will take some time to grind and powder the colors, and then to lay them on, combine them and shade them. All you have to do is to keep the canvas ready, well-cleaned, and fastened on its two motionless pivots, the one being self-humiliation pushed to the point of self-annihilation, the other a complete self-abandonment pushed to the point of losing your will altogether in the will of God.

Father Jean-Pierre de Caussade, S.J.

9/11 - A Bible lesson.

I cannot believe it has been 6 years since that horrible morning that found me heading to a meeting in Lower Manhattan on an otherwise, normal September 11th. That was definitely one of the most horrible days I've ever experienced and today I find myself reflecting on the events.

What I find most interesting is the dynamic of fundamentalism - notably Islamic - and the path God Incarnate took when conquering sin and death.

Deus Caritas Est.

"God is love" and we know this because how often the Creator of the Universe humbled Himself as equal to man, His creation. Unlike Adam who sought equality with God, [Christ]:

Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.

Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance,

he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. (Philippians 2:6-8)

God sent His only son into the world to be born of a virgin. He didn't order it, he awaited Mary's reply (His gift of free will). Her "yes" has changed the world. Her "yes" brought Christ the King.

Christ the King, not born into royal garments within a castle, but in swaddling clothes in a manger.

Christ the King, who modeled his "righteous" earthen father and became a carpenter.

Christ the King, who was mocked.

Christ the King, who was scourged.

Christ the King, who was crowned with thorns.

Christ the King, who embraced the Cross that he would later be nailed to.

Christ the King, who at anytime could have shown his awesome wonder on Calvary and come down from the Cross. (Mark 15:32)

Christ the King, who prayed, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." (Psalm 31:5, Luke 23:46)

This King, who created the world and who created man, died for the sins of many.

For you.

For me.

The Creator of the Universe could have destroyed evil with the sword, but He chose to show us that only by humility can you defeat the Evil One.

So as I think of those planes diving into the World Trade Center, an image that none of us can soon forget, do remember my brothers and sisters that we are called to conquer by love.

"All who take the sword will perish by the sword." (Matthew 26:52)

We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.

Because by Your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world.

Christ Jesus: Hero

A great meditation by Rev. Gerard Manley Hopkins, S.J. (1844-1889)...

[Christ] is the true-love and the bridegroom of men's souls; the virgins follow him whithersoever he goes; the martyrs follow him through a sea of blood, through great tribulation; all his servants take up their cross and follow him. And those even that do not follow him, yet they look wistfully after him, own him a hero, and wish they dared answer to his call. Children as soon as they can understand ought to be told about him, that they may make him the hero of their young hearts.

From all that might be said of Christ's character I single out one point and beg you to notice that. He loved to praise, he loved to reward. He knew what was in man, he best knew men's faults and yet he was the warmest in their praise. When he worked a miracle he would grace it with "Thy faith hath saved thee," that it might almost seem the receiver's work, not his. He said of Nathaniel that he was an Israelite without guile; he that searches hearts said this, and yet what praise that was to give! He called the two sons of Zebedee Sons of Thunder, kind and stately and honorable name! We read of nothing thunderlike that they did except, what was sinful, to wish fire down from heaven on some sinners but they deserved the name or he would not have given it, and he has given it them for all time. Of John the Baptist he said that his greater was not born of women. He said to Peter, "Thou art Rock," and rewarded a moment's acknowledgement of him with the lasting headship of his Church. He defended Magdalen and took means that the story of her generosity should be told for ever. And though he bids us say we are unprofitable servants, yet he himself will say to each of us "Good and faithful servant, well done."

And this man whose picture I have tried to draw for you, brethren, is your God. He was your maker in time past; hereafter he will be your judge. Make him your hero now.

Amen.