The importance of our speech

 

The importance of speech – Homily for February 26^th and 27^th, 2022

Sirach says in our first reading that one’s speech disclose the bent of one’s mind.  Jesus also references the importance of our speech in our Gospel.  And the importance of our speech is mentioned in the letters of Saint Paul, Saint James, Saint John and others.

 

One of the things that the Bible and the Catholic Church make absolutely clear – one of the quickest ways to Hell is our tongue, usually words that we say, but also we can sin by not speaking when we should.  Some examples of ways to sin through our speech:

It is a serious sin to spread gossip, something that we don’t know to be true

It is a serious sin to say something we know to be true about another person but sheds a bad light on that person

It is a serious sin with our words to in anyway approve of another’s sin

boasting and bragging are also sins we commit through our speech

Swearing and taking the Lord’s name in vain is a serious sin against the second commandment.

And of course lying is something we should never do either.

 

We can also sin by NOT speaking when we should, particularly when we see another committing a sin, but do not say anything to point that out.

 

On the positive side, we can use our speech to praise another person directly.  We can all recall someone who spoke something to us, a positive word of encouragement that turned our day around for the better.  Why don’t we do that more often? 

 

Looking back on my life when I was younger, I can’t remember any time where I use my speech to affirm another person, but I can remember lots of times where I committed all of the above sins of speech or lack of speech.

With Lent starting this coming Wednesday, as we think about what we can give up, let us add to that list a resolve to not commit any sins with our speech, not spread gossip, not say anything negative about anyone, let us not boast nor brag, let us commit to never swearing and never taking the Lord’s name in vain...

 

Let us instead commit to using our speech to affirm at least person per day in person.  Not electronically, not on snapchat, not via text but in person as Jesus always did.

"Love Our Enemies" - Homily for the 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

 In today’s Gospel, Jesus twice says we are to “love our enemies” 

 

We have all heard this phrase so often, it likely flows over us without much notice.  While watching a video this week on loving our enemies with our teens, some unique insights to this phrase were mentioned.

 

First of all, this loving our enemies is a unique teaching of Catholicism.  It is not found in Islam nor Hinduism nor Budhism nor atheism.  Indeed, Love as an action, as working for the good of the other, even our enemies, is not present in any other religious tradition other than Christianity, although there are certain people already in the Old Testament who loved their enemies, including the story from our first reading today where David has the opportunity to kill king Saul (Identified by David's companion as David's enemy) but David instead chooses to take Saul’s spear to a hill and call out to Saul’s camp letting Saul know he had the opportunity to kill him, but that chose not to.  This action of David sparing his enemy leads to his enemy, King Saul’s repentance.

Along those same lines, If the early Catholics, when suffering persecution in Rome under Nero and other emperors, had resorted to terrorism or fighting against the Roman Empire, it is likely that Rome would have never been converted.

An adviser to Emperor Nero, the Emperor who had Rome burned and blamed it on the Christians, that adviser related the following “Tyranny has at its disposal steel and fire, chains and wild animals to set upon prisoners.  I can recall those prisons, the tortures of the cross, the iron hooks, and that pale driven into a man’s midriff and forced out his mouth.  I can still see how limbs were torn from bodies attached to wagons driven in opposite directions, and all the rest of the inventions of diabolical fury…in the midst of all these tortures, there was one who did not moan, no he did not beg for his life, no, rather he smiled as though there was happiness in his heart.”

 

A willingness to suffer persecution even unto death has always led to a rapid flourishing of the Church.  As the saying goes, the blood of the martyrs is the seedbed for the flourishing of the Church.

 

Let us love not just those who love us back but also love even those who hate us, even up to the point of laying down our lives if that what is asked of us.

Homily on wrapping up year 2 of our pandemic

 

“In the Year of drought, it shows no distress” – homily for Feb 12^th and 13^th, 2022

 

We have in our first reading today: “Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, He is like a tree planted beside the waters…in the year of drought it shows no distress, but still bears fruit.”  And we have a very similar passage in our Psalm today: “Blessed is he who delights in the law of the LORD and meditates on his law day and night.  He is like a tree planted near running water, that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade.”

 

We are living in absolutely unprecedented times…in a lot of ways spiritually and physically not just a 1-year drought but the metaphorical drought is wrapping up its second year.

 

We are exhausted, our patience with each other has worn thin or broken, some of us are battling suicidal thoughts, depression, anxiety…the whole range of things that are being reported throughout this pandemic…Psalm 32 describes it this way: “Indeed my strength was dried up, as by the summer’s heat”

 

That is a great description of most of us: “Dried up as by the summer’s heat”… But psalm 32 goes on “But now I have acknowledged my sins; my guilt I did not hide.  I said “I will confess my offense to the Lord.” And you, Lord, have forgiven the guilt of my sin.”

 

In the Old Testament, there was a year of Jubilee every 50 years, which was essentially a great big reset button.  Our culture needs just such a jubilee year, and I think it starts with each of us individually acknowledging our sins in confession and starting over fresh.  We cannot impact the culture around us if we have nothing to give.

 

Confession is the last place the Devil wants you to go, because he knows as long as you feel buried under your sins, you will despair.  But if you have not been to confession in a while, I promise that you will feel immediately better, and you will literally feel that a physical weight has been lifted off of you.

 

If you find your strength “dried up as by the summer’s heat” I invite you to confess your sins, and then, as we hear in our first reading, be “like a tree planted beside the waters…in the year of drought it shows no distress, but still bears fruit.”

When were you saved?

 

Homily for the 5^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, February 5^th and 6^th

“Through the gospel I preached you are also being saved”

 

A lot of non-Catholics ask “when were you saved?”  The correct answer is “I am in the process of being saved.”  That is why Saint Paul uses that phrase here, and why Matthew 25 shows that God’s judgment rests on the works that we do that flow from our Faith, and not simply because at some date I decided to accept Jesus into my heart and make Jesus my personal Lord and Savior.

 

Jesus even warns “not all who call me Lord will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but only the one who DOES the Will of My Father.”

 

This “potentially being saved” is not God holding a sword over us ready to pounce – it simply is the Truth….because of free will, I am always able to walk away from God at any point up to the moment of death. 

 

To believe at any point in my life my salvation is guaranteed, is simply wrong.

 

There are two opposite temptations, depending on our personality and temperament.  One temptation is to think our salvation is guaranteed.  The opposite temptation for others, given their personality and temperament is to fall into despair that they are not saveable.

 

Neither of those is correct for a Catholic.  Hope is the belief that God can and wants to save me through the Catholic Church and Her Sacraments…that if I commit some huge sin, God’s mercy is always waiting in the confessional, that the Body and Blood Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist changes me more and more into God’s likeness each time I receive him.

 

Saint Paul tells the Philippians to “work out their salvation”…this is a regular them of Saint Paul, and again we have it in our 2^nd reading today…”through the Gospel I preached to you, you are being saved”  Let us get to work on cooperating with God’s Grace and God’s Will, so that we may one day enter the eternal bliss of Heaven.

Speaking of "Truth" and "Love"

 

4th Sunday in Ordinary Time - TRUE Love

 

Love – Homily for January 29^th

 

Saint Paul in our 2^nd reading today gives us an examination of conscience about whether we have true love in our heart for God and also our neighbor

 

1) “Love is patient” – are you patient?  We live in a world that is going faster and faster each day, which is a temptation to be inpatient.  Do I drive patiently?  Do I wait in line patiently?  Am I patient with my children?  With my spouse?

 

2) “love is kind” – Am I kind?  There is a sign I’ve seen over the years that says “Just be kind”  But saint Paul teaches that there is more to it than JUST being kind, but kindness is an aspect of Love.  Are you kind to those you meet for the first time… but also are you kind to your children, your family, and those that you have known for a long time?  So often it is easy to take for granted those whom we have known for a long time.

3) “Love is not jealous” – are you jealous of anyone?  Jealousy is one of the seven deadly sins

4) “Love is not pompous, and it is not inflated” – pomposity is the deadly sin of pride

5) “Love is not rude” – are we rude to each other?  Social media and the anonymity have caused a seemingly 2,000 percent increase in rudeness – are we part of that?

6) “Love does not seek its own interests” – Do you put your needs first, or do you put your neighbors needs above your needs?

7) “Love is not quick-tempered” – do we blow up at others, either out loud or in the silence of our heart? 

 

8) “Love does not brood over injury” – do we do that?  Do we sulk and meditate on the wrongs that have been done to us?

9) “Love does not rejoice over wrongdoing” – what is wrongdoing?  We have to first understand and know what wrongdoing is.  There is a moral code that Christ gives us which is why Saint Paul ends this examination of conscience with…

10) “Love rejoices with the truth.”  Love rejoices in the Truth, and Love does not rejoice in lies.  There are a lot of lies being uttered these days…do we spread these lies…do we believe these lies…or do we rejoice in the Truth?

Promised Land by Toby Mac

I was always anti-praise and worship but given the absolute plummeting of my interest in secular music, I have turned more to praise and worship.

I still am leery of some of the lyrics, but most of it is solid.

This is my current favorite:

3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, January 22nd and 23rd

 "Adoptionism" and other Heresies

Adoptionism is a heresy that says Jesus Christ was adopted by God the Father at His Baptism.  But this cannot be true for many reasons. 

 

1) We have the Christmas story and the Angel says to the shepherds “Today a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord.”

 

2) and the Magi visiting asking where the newborn King of the Jews can be found. 

 

3) We have the story of Jesus’ presentation in the temple where Simeon sees the newborn Christ and the Bible says “Simeon took him into his arms and said “my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples”

 

4) We have the story of a teenage Jesus teaching the Scribes and Scholars, and Jesus’ response to His parents, “did you not know that I would be in my Father’s house?”

So even though most heresies are defeated by Scripture, most heresies are designed to spread among those who do not know the Scriptures. 

At His Baptism, we do have the Spirit descending upon Jesus, but the Church Fathers all saw that as a sign for other people, not that Jesus was, at the moment, being adopted into the Trinity.

So when we hear in our Gospel today that “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit” it does not mean that at Jesus’ baptism in the previous chapter that Jesus received, for the first time, the Holy Spirit, but instead Saint Cyril points out that Christ did not perform miracles as did the saints, but Jesus Christ, being by nature the Son of God, Jesus exercises by His own power that grace which is of the Holy Spirit. 

And this is one of the many reasons Jesus gave us the Catholic Church – to sort out what is true and false teaching.  It isn’t just “me and Jesus”… “me and Jesus” has resulted in about 60,000 different denominations of Christians…we need to always be checking what we are hearing in our hearts and consciences with what the Catholic Church teaches about Jesus.

Lots of heresies have found temporary footholds in the hearts of Catholics throughout 2,000 years, but the Catholic Church has never ceased to point them out and, ultimately, defeat them.  When there are genuine disagreements on how to interpret a particular passage of Scripture, the Church is Christ’s appointed referee in the dispute.

May we always be seeking to grow in our relationship with Jesus Christ in accord with the teachings of the Catholic Church and Her saints.

Homily on Evangelization, January 16th 2022

 

Our Psalm today is “Proclaim his marvelous deeds to all the nations” and “Announce His salvation day after day”

I want to ask us all to think about a question: “Are we proclaiming God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations?”  and are you announcing His salvation day after day?

 

If we are not yet announcing God’s salvation day after day, what might that look like?  I think a good place to start might be a line that we pray at every Mass, and that line is when we ask God to “order our days in His peace.”

 

I have found that to be the case, over time, as I have turned my life over to Christ, slowly and with fits and starts, He has ordered my life in His peace

 

What do I mean by ordered?  I mean that whereas when I was younger, I felt a lot of times like my life and the world around me were chaotic and I didn’t know which way was up, Christ has, over time, grounded my feet, because it is a sickening feeling to not know where the ground is.  As a priest, I have found an order in the rhythm of the day, daily Mass, a daily rosary, the Liturgy of the Hours that all priests promise to pray several times throughout each day, there is a comfort to that order which also still allows us also to be open to the new things, the intrusions of the spiritually poor and or physically poor.

 

In fact, I would say ordering our days according to God’s plan LEADS PRECISELY to our ability to spot the needs of our neighbors better.

 

And secondly, there is that word at the end – peace.  Christ, through His Church, offers each person peace…and in a world that seems to be attacking that Peace that Christ offers, a world that is attacking that Peace more and more each day…woe to us if we do not share what we have found in the Catholic Church, woe to us if we sit on this Good News and keep it for ourselves.

 

May each of us proclaim Christ’s marvelous deeds to all the nations and announce His salvation day after day.

The Chosen

 I cannot recommend "The Chosen" enough.  Click HERE to watch the first episode

https://watch.angelstudios.com/thechosen/watch?vid=S1:E1&ap=true

The Baptism of the Lord 2022

"He shall bring forth Justice to the nations, not crying out, not shouting, not making his voice heard in the street”

 

We are all here because we desire, on some level, to Hear Christ speak to us.  And the main way that we reach out to God is through prayer.

 

But if you are like me, you want to see and hear from Jesus Himself

 

And so I think it is important to remind ourselves of several things

1) When we hear the words of the Mass and participate in the Mass with a full, active, and conscious participation, Christ IS speaking to us!

 

Secondly, when we enter into private prayer, know that Christ, as the Prophet Isaiah reminds us in the first reading, Jesus Christ does not cry out, He does not shout, He does not make his voice heard in the street.”

The implication of that fact for us is that Jesus, at least 99.99999% of the time, refuses to shout above the noise of our world, but rather he speaks softly to us.

That puts the onus on us to remove ourselves from the Dictatorship of Noise and find silence in our lives and I think we need to do that at least 30 minutes a day.

Christ does not make himself heard above the buzz of Instagram/Facebook/Twitter/Youtube/Netflix/Disney+/smartphones/emails etc. Christ IS calling us away to a quiet place to be alone with Him so that we can increase our chances of hearing His voice.

 

He Himself also sought out quiet places away from the crowd, often early in the morning, to be alone in prayer with the Father and the Holy Spirit

 

May we follow His lead and seek Him where He promised to be found, notably in the words and actions of the Mass, and in the silence, away from the noise of the world.

Epiphany 2022

 I had been trying all week to come up with a homily for the Epiphany, but for some reason, nothing came to mind.  And then, on New Year’s Eve, I caught the last 5 minutes of the Foo Fighters front man being interviewed on NPR.  He said some really fascinating things, and although he probably didn’t realize it, some of the things he said speak to our celebration of the appearance of the Magi.  Immediately when I got back home, I searched for the interview and found some fascinating excerpts from his interview:

 

1) “When I went to my first punk rock show, there was this real sense of community and that tribe of those like-minded kids that maybe all felt the same.

That was one of the things I loved so much was the people coming together.”

And 2) “This was where everyone could come; these were the misfits; these were the weirdos these were the freaks; but this is where they found their tribe and their community, and I felt like them, and when we get together there’s some comfort and some reassurance in that.  “Oh, this is where we belong.”

 

What Dave Grohl, the lead singer of Foo Fighters was getting it is there was a comfort in belonging to a tribe, and I think we all know what he means.  Even the Jews had 12 TRIBES, and those 12 tribes didn’t always get along.

But what we celebrate today with the arrival of the non-Jews from the East is the end of tribal divisions… or at least the possibility that now exists to end tribalism. 

All have the option of joining the one tribe of the Catholic Church.  And that is good news, particularly for the poor, the misfits, the freaks, the drug addicts, the abused, the broken, all are now invited to join the ultimate tribe of the Catholic Church.

Imagine whatever you think is the worst sin – anyone who has committed that sin is still welcome here in the Catholic Church. Of course, for the non-Catholic and the fallen-away Catholic, there are some simple rites of initiation or reconciliation if you want to participate fully and take advantage of all that the Church offers, but we need to let everyone in our community know that they are welcome to come in, and even to attend Mass.

We have signs in front of our Church saying that all welcome to come inside, and yet still I got a call a few months ago from a person who said he sat out in the parking lot at Annunciation for a half hour trying to work up the courage to come in, and he finally did and he was so glad, and he just called to thank us for leaving our Church open.

How many people out there are in that exact same position?  How many people don’t think they’re welcome in our Churches?  The Devil of course desires to sift us all like sand, each our own individual grain, each ultimately our own tribe, but God desires to draw everyone together into the one tribe of the Catholic Church.

Let us go out and invite people to just come in.  Because only here will they find the end of tribalism.

January 1st: Mary the Mother of God 2022

 

“Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”

 

I want to issue a challenge to all men: pray the rosary every day

 

And if you have a family, LEAD them in the rosary every night

 

Pray the rosary and also bring your family to Mass.

 

A study found that if a father does not go to church, only one child in 50 will become a regular worshipper. If a father does go regularly, three-quarters of their children will become churchgoers.

 

Fathers need to take their family to Church every Sunday and Holy Day (unless you are sick or caring for someone who is sick), but also, as a way to make the transition easier, I also want to challenge in a particular way families, but everyone, to pray the Rosary daily.

 

Mass can seem unintelligible to both young and old, and so, in addition to the Mass, the rosary can provide a wonderful supplement for a couple of reasons.

 

1) While at Mass it is true that everyone is participating, the priest is the presider, while at the family rosary, the Father can take the lead.

 

Secondly, what we hear in our Gospel today, about how Mary kept all these things and ponder them in Her heart, Mary was an eyewitness to Jesus’ ministry, and so the rosary is a great way to tap into those fruits of Mary’s ponderings!

 

I challenge all men in the parish to make Catholicism their top priority, and if you have a family, to bring your family to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day (unless sick or caring for someone who is sick), and to lead your family in a nightly rosary.  It will transform your family and our parish!

Christmas 2021

 

“She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger”

 

Saint John Chrysostom said about Christ’s birth, that Christ could have come forth moving the Heavens and making the Earth shake, and shooting forth His thunderbolts – but his goal was to trample human pride from the very beginning of his birth, choosing to be born poor, settling for a manger where there could have been a cradle.

 

And in being placed in the manger, lots of early saints saw this as a reference to Christ’s desire to nourish us with his flesh and blood, we who so often refuse to capitalize on the gift of our intellect, and instead prefer lawlessness which makes us into little better than the animals in Nativity scenes, Christ comes forth not with thunderbolts but as food for us that slowly, over time, turns us more and more into Himself, as Saint Augustine famously notes in his conversion story.  The Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Jesus, over time make us more and more into Jesus, while still maintaining our own identity.

 

And we know from our human experience, the birth of a child changes everything.  I am the firstborn in my family, and My Mom tells the story about how my Dad, when I was born, ran out and got new tires on the car and how he had forgotten to change his contact lenses and so his eyes were totally red but he didn’t even realize it!

 

How often we see children being born and totally changing the course of a family!  I have seen it in my brothers’ and sisters’ lives and in my friends’ lives, and I have seen it in my life as well.  I have shared before, but on my drive out to Brazil, when I was first made a pastor, I almost threw up from nervousness.  There is no course in the seminary you can take to prepare you to become a Father of souls.  Annunciation was my first born child, and it totally rocked my world in a good way!

 

The Catholic Church says I am a father to all my parishioners, and indeed to all those living in my parish boundaries.  People have said, “Father, I hope you get to spend some time with your family over the holidays.”  I know what they mean, but I do get to spend time with my family – I am doing that right now at this Mass!”  You all are my family and you call me “Father”…it is not a metaphor!

 

So if the birth of a child can change the course of an entire family, how much more the birth of God as a human person, how much more does that change the course of our entire human family!

 

As we prepare to celebrate the Eucharistic prayer where my words will change bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ, who once was resting in a manger, we will sing, along with the Angels in Heaven “Holy Holy Holy, Lord God of Hosts!  Heaven and earth are full of your glory, Hosanna in the highest!”

The Metaverse: 4th Sunday of Advent 2021

 

4^th Sunday of Advent December 18^th and 19^th 2021

 

Mark Zuckerberg recently announced plans to merge Facebook, Instagram and all other Facebook properties into what he is calling the metaverse, or meta.  Metaverse means a more comprehensive universe and an improvement on the universe.

Universe, on the other hand, means the unity of all created things – a oneness if you will.

So God created the universe   

And Mark Zuckerburg has created the metaverse, a supposed improvement on God’s creation

We ought to pay REAL close attention when someone claims to have an improvement on God’s creation.

 

In our Gospel today, we read that Mary set out and traveled to the hill country to visit her relative Elizabeth, a hike of more than 80 miles.

 

And here is the thing, it had to be a difficult journey – you can’t walk 80 miles without struggle and dust and pain, but at least it is reality.  As a person who has spent his life hiking I can relate that hiking is both painful but also tremendously refreshing!

 

What we celebrate next weekend is our Lord entering into the universe from beyond the universe – his taking on human flesh, and Jesus did not offer a world free of pain… He took the road precisely that led to pain…Jesus chose reality.  And Jesus taught that in some mysterious way, known only to those who choose suffering as He did, that suffering leads to our happiness both now and also in the life to come in Heaven.

Hell is for those who choose comfort as their top priority and choose to run from the suffering. The atheist John Paul Sartre wrote a play in which one of the characters said that Hell is other people.  The metaverse offers a way out of interacting with other real people in reality.  Last week took me to 4 different airports as I was traveling for my retreat.  Everyone was either scrolling on the phone or eating or both.  The Metaverse did not just spring up, we have been slowly moving closer to it; death by 1,000 cuts if you will.

I, for my part, choose to live in the real world of reality, with all of its death and pain and harshness and suffering, awaiting the Return of the King at the end of time.

There is an improvement coming to the universe, but it will only be accomplished by God the Father.  The book of Revelations says “I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth coming down out of the clouds for the first earth and the first Heaven had passed away.”  We who strive to be followers of Jesus await that improvement of the universe, and will not settle for any false upgrades.

2021 Gaudete Sunday Homily

 Gaudete Sunday, December 11^th and 12^th, 2021

 

Saint Paul urges the Philippians in our 2^nd reading today to “Rejoice in the Lord always.  I shall say it again:  rejoice!”

 

Saint Paul, in this passage, is not asking us to have joy.  We are told, (and even to some extent commanded) to rejoice, which of course is a verb.  It is an action to rejoice.  

 

As Saint Paul continues in his letter to the Philippians, “Have no anxiety at all”  Anxiety and Rejoicing are mutually exclusive – as in you cannot be rejoicing while being anxious.

 

At this point, I would like to introduce a powerful saintly intercessor for people suffering from anxiety or any other mental illness.  Of course I am not saying that if you ask for this saint’s intercession, you do not need any other medical intervention nor counseling, but if I could share my own testimony briefly, over the last year and a half, I had 2 awful bouts of anxiety, both side effects of different drugs I was taking related to surgeries and chemo.  Panic attacks were the most common manifestation, particularly at night when trying to fall asleep, and I would almost always sweat so much that I would soak my clothes.

And it is at this point I turned to the intercession of St. Dymphna, an Irish saint from the 600’s who is the patron saint of people afflicted with mental illnesses.  Every time I reached out to her asking her intercession, whether it was to help me fall asleep, or to calm down, I almost instantly felt better.  Not cured but better.

We live in the most anxious time in the history of humanity.  Social media, normal media, fears about the coronavirus, fear and anxiety are almost inevitable…but we are commanded to rejoice…and I think in some ways that is the best way to evangelize our community…to be people who rejoice IN THE MIDST of fear!

Psalm 23 encourages us telling us even though we walk through the valley of death we shall fear no evil, and the Bible mentions 365 times, including our first reading tonight, to not be afraid.

 

As Christmas approaches, let us be people who make the decision to rejoice, and may that rejoicing transform both us and the culture around us.  St. Dymphna, patron Saint of all those suffering from mental distress, anxiety, depression, mental illness, etc. please intercede and pray for us!

Immaculate Conception 2021

 Immaculate Conception 2021

 

6 chapters of the book of Exodus are dedicated to the details of the construction of the tent of worship, including the minutest details about how to build and construct the Tabernacle, the inner sanctuary where the high priest would enter once a year.  Instructions for the Tabernacle included the use of gold and precious metals, exact measurements, and only the best of the material was to be used.  Here is just one excerpt from the 26^th chapter of Exodus:

“The tabernacle itself you shall make out of ten sheets woven of fine linen twined and of violet, purple, and scarlet yarn, with cherubim embroidered on them. The length of each shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width four cubits;  Then make fifty clasps of gold and join the two sets of sheets, so that the tabernacle forms one whole.”

Another chapter says in part “These are the contributions you shall accept from them: gold, silver, and bronze; violet, purple, and scarlet yarn; fine linen, acacia wood; oil for the light; spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense; onyx stones and other gems for mounting on the ephod and the breast plate for the high priest.  They are to make a sanctuary for me, that I may dwell in their midst.”

Any engineer or construction people – you need to read these chapters and see that your mind and God’s mind function in a similar way!  Literally every detail is specified and it is almost 20% of the book of Exodus!

 

When the Israelites finally make it to the Promised Land, there are particular instructions very similar to the tent that are handed on from David to his son Solomon of the same detail, precious metals, exact measurements, gold, the Tabernacle has a very specific veil…

 

So when we see how much care God asks for the Tent and Temple Tabernacles, we should not be surprised that God would prepare a pure vessel for his Son!

 

Today we celebrate the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Mary’s being conceived without the stain of original sin. 

 

In today’s Gospel where the Archangel Gabriel visits Mary, when He promises that she will conceive through the Holy Spirit, the same word “Overshadow” is the word that is also used for the tent Tabernacle and later the Temple Tabernacle.  What we celebrate today, then, is God giving the same care and attention to the crafting of Mary who would be a Tabernacle of her pre-born Son.  Nothing but the best of Human material – and so that is why she was conceived without the stain of original sin.

 

In conclusion, all of us are imperfect, but through our reception of the Eucharist, we become walking living breathing Tabernacles for the Lord as well.

 

May we see the care and devotion God required in crafting His Tabernacle in the desert, His Tabernacle in the Temple and His Perfect Tabernacle the Blessed Virgin Mary, and thus seek to make ourselves the best Tabernacle we can be, cooperating fully with the Grace of God.

Homily for the 2nd Sunday of Advent

 

Homily for the 2^nd Sunday of Advent, December 4^th and 5^th, 2021

 

Our first reading today is from the Prophet Baruch, and he notes that “God has commanded that every lofty mountain be made low, and that the age-old depths and gorges be filled to level ground”

 

Saint John the Baptist, the last of the prophets, mentions in today’s Gospel quoting the Prophet Isaiah that “Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low”

 

The Catholic Church teaches that every biblical passage has both a literal sense – an application to the current situation.  The literal sense of both the prophets Baruch and Isaiah prophesying that every mountain will be knocked down and every valley filled in are trying to encourage both those who remained in Jerusalem and those who were in exile.

 

But the Catholic Church also says that every passage in the Bible has a spiritual sense in addition to the literal sense.  And so what about the spiritual sense of this passage predicting that every mountain will be knocked down and every valley filled in? 

There are lots of Church Fathers that interpret the mountains being knocked down and valleys filled in as being a positive thing, and there are also lots of Church Fathers who see mountains being knocked down and valleys filled in as being a negative thing, spiritually, and they are both right!

One of the early Church Fathers sees the mountains and valleys being our sins.  So often we put obstacles in the way of Christ.  Sometimes we attempt to build mountains of pride, lust, gluttony and lots of other sins, and sometimes we sink into valleys of fear, sadness, loneliness, and 1,000 other things.

John the Baptist is encouraging us to make straight the path of the Lord

What should be clear is that Jesus desires a relationship with every single person today, right now, and that we should remove the obstacles that we are placing in His way.  He can overcome anything, but he will not come into our souls unless invited.

This Advent, as we focus on preparing the way of the Lord, let us roll out the red carpet for Jesus in our hearts, allow him in, make straight Jesus’ path, and continue to knock down the mountains and fill in the valleys through the Sacrament of Confession and Reconciliation.  We do not have an Advent Penance Service, but there are approximately 10 hours of confession offered between now and Christmas, in addition to my being available for appointments.  Do not hesitate to reach out if you have sins you want absolved so as to make straight the road of Christ into your soul.

Homily for the First Sunday of Advent, November 27th and 28th, 2021

 

Homily for the First Sunday of Advent, November 27^th/28^th 2021

 

I have a young nephew who has been really getting into the solar system.  Last week he asked my Dad “Grandpa, how hot is the core of the sun?” and was surprised that my Dad knew the answer – 27 million degrees!

 

Jesus says in today’s Gospel “Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.”

 

Sometimes and maybe, indeed, most of the time, we think we can hide from God – what Adam and Eve tried to do in the Garden when they had committed their first sin.  Mostly we believe we can hide from God because when we pray, we usually only experience darkness.

 

But St. John of the Cross described that darkness as being not a lack of God, but an inability on the part of humanity to comprehend the overwhelming nature of God’s presence – in a sense God is so bright that because the eyes of our souls are so weak, we are not able to perceive His presence – so most of the time prayer is akin to our groping in a dark cave for God.

 

But nonetheless, what we perceive as darkness and blindness is actually a reminder that God is everywhere and that God is existence itself, and we so often need to be content in the blindness and darkness of our prayers because prayer, although so often ineffectual from our vantage point in the moment, when we look back on our prayer, we realize that God was working beneath the surface, drawing us closer to himself, and we realize that although we perceived it as darkness, we were and are actually standing in the metaphorical center of the sun – like Gold tested in fire as Saint Peter and some of the old testament prophets put it so eloquently.

As our Nicene Creed puts the relationship of Father and Son, “I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages.  God from God, Light from Light”  So an all-consuming fire and a blinding light are two of the best ways for our human intellect to understand the Father and the Son’s relationship both to each other and to each of us.

Advent is a special season of preparation and prayer.  Let us trust that our prayer is never without effect, may we in fact “Be vigilant at all times and pray that we have the strength to stand, at our particular judgment, before the Son of Man.”

Homily for Christ the King 2021

 

Christ the King Homily, 2021

Jesus says “I came into the world to testify to the truth”

 

I typically have taken the approach in my preaching to try to list all the ways that Jesus and His Church are the Truth.  And a lot of times it seems, at least with young people, that I am trying to push a 1,000 boulder up hill.  I can typically see a lot of the young adults youth and so forth roll their eyes.

 

Instead, today I would like to take it from the other direction.  Instead of trying to point and say “There is the Truth!”  I would like to ask a question: “are there any lies anymore?”

 

Sure, I know that you can lie about your homework being done, but I am talking, as a society, are there any lies anymore?

 

I think it is an important question to ponder.  Because as I look around, I see lies everywhere.  Do you see them?  From my perspective, I see a culture that is soaked in lies – and I am more and more convinced that the only way to salvage the Truth is for us as small communities to announce the Kingship of Jesus Christ.  We have to do it boldly and with conviction. 

 

Again in today’s Gospel Jesus says he came into the world to testify to the Truth.  Are you trying to hear the voice of Jesus point you to the Truth, or are you too busy and too distracted to be concerned about what is true?

 

May our communities, our states, our country and our world miraculously forsake all the lies that we have been spreading, and return on bended knee to the King of kings and Lord of lords.