Twenty-first Sunday of the Year - 2023

Of all the questions, you may ever be asked – this question is the most important – “Who do you say I am?” It is THE question that runs throughout the gospels. It begins with the boy Jesus sitting among the teachers in the temple. Luke tells us that they were amazed at Jesus, at how much he knew and understood – Lk. 2:46 In John, when John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him he said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." Jo.1:29 In Mark, when Jesus calms the storm at sea, his disciples question – “Overwhelmed with fear, they asked one another, “Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?” Mk. 4:41 When Jesus comes to Nazareth, his home, again the questioning - “Where did this man get these ideas?” they asked. “What is this wisdom He has been given? And how can He perform such miracles? Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren’t His sisters here with us as well?” Mk. 6:2 So when Jesus asks his disciples in today's gospel passage – “But you, who do you say I am?”, their answer will determine the whole of the rest of their lives. When Peter responds with the only true answer, Jesus points out that coming to this understanding is a work of grace, a deep personal gift of faith. Christianity has had a long history now, of dealing with this question, and yet we find that there are as many conflicting answers given today as there was when Jesus first asked the question. We in the church have the distinct advantage of our Church’s long history of dealing with the question; its doctrines and traditions. But for each generation, doctrine and tradition only serve to intensify the question. The answer to the question still comes down to me, one-on-one; what do I say – say in my heart? The integrity of what I say will shape my life, revealing who I really believe Jesus truly is? The great St. Paul, who’s epistles do so much to shape our faith, began at "ground zero" with the question, “… who are you Lord?” Later he shows the integrity of his answer, "I have been crucified with Christ, and the life I live now is not my own; Christ is living in me. I still live my human life, but it is a life of faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:19b-20 I think one of the best examples of the encounter with this question, is that of the apostle Thomas. He starts with the mentality similar to so many in this “scientific” age. “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands, and put my finger where the nails have been, and put my hand into His side, I will never believe.” "Eight days later, His disciples were once again inside with the doors locked, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then Jesus said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas replied, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen, and yet have believed.” Jo. 20:26 Don’t ask science to answer the question for you – ask the Holy Spirit.  "Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven. Mtt. 16:17 Praying For the GRACE of RENEWAL - Link

Twentieth Sunday of the Year - 2023

Not feeding the dog at table may be a rule at your home. Lucky for dogs there are a few young folks who aren’t getting the message. Lucky too for the Canaanite Woman in today's gospel text. Here we find that Jesus has moved into the northern regions, predominately occupied by the pagan Canaanite people. (Today Lebanon and Syria). The Jews despised these people, they considered them as cursed by God with no hope of redemption. Both Matthew (15:21) and Mark (7:24) have this account. Mark says that Jesus did not want people to know he was in the region. Matthew recounts Jesus asserting that his mission is only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Jesus may have withdrawn to this region for a time to avoid the growing hostility toward him by the Jewish leaders.  There appears a Canaanite woman who has a daughter possessed by a demon. She has heard of Jesus' reputation in such matters and has discovered where he is staying.  She came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." And he answered, "It is not fair to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." Mtt: She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. And he said to her, "Let the children first be fed, for it is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." But she answered him, "Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." Mk: Jesus enters into a little role playing with the woman. He plays the part of his antagonists with their misconception of God's plan of Mercy. She is given the role of true faith - faith that Jesus is revealing by his gospel.  Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly. The subject of God's mercy has been once again brought into focus for us by Pope Francis and the Year of Mercy he established. Once again we see there is a right and a left side to the way it is approached. On the right, like the Pharisees of old, God's mercy is seen as something earned, a reward for the righteous efforts made by one who judges themselves as righteous. On the left are those influenced by a secular humanist view, dominant in our day, that mercy is an automatic. Since any fault must lie within the limits of human nature and not the person, God does not hold anything against us. The woman in today's gospel becomes a model for us to contemplate. The direction and remedy for our lives is not found in the solutions we create, whether by our designing or our doing. It is found in the TRUTH we discover when we come to Jesus in humble faith, in person-on-person encounter. Only God's Truth can make us free. Mercy releases us from the folly of our lives and opens a path to a truly holy life.  Mercy resides in in the heart. The Divine Mercy of God is found in the heart of Jesus. The heart of Jesus is found only in the communion of deep and personal prayer. It is there that we too will hear these words,  "O my child, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire."

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Nineteenth Sunday of the Year - 2023

We know that among ancient peoples, they believed the gods lived in the high heavens. So, to communicate with the gods one must climb a high mountain to get close to them in hopes of getting a hearing. Throughout the scriptures mountains and high places became the favored places to hear God’s voice. Moses received the Ten Commandments on mount Sinai, and it was a fearsome, awesome experience. On the morning of the third day there were peals of thunder and lightning, and a heavy cloud over the mountain, and a very loud blast of the trumpet, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Ex. 19:16 No doubt this sight got the people’s attention. They must understand, the commandments are not just a bunch of nice suggestion. Clearly, God means business – these commandments must be obeyed. But the people eventually fell back into worshiping false gods. In today’s reading, the prophet Elijah ascends a mountain to tell God the bad news. “I have been most zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts, but the Israelites have forsaken your covenant. They have destroyed your altars and murdered your prophets by the sword. I alone remain, and they seek to take my life.” 1 Kings 19:10 But now a different manifestation of God is experienced. Not in wind and fire and earthquake, but in a sheer whisper – a gentle breeze – a foretelling of a voice of mercy to come.    This past Thursday, August 6th. we saw the God of Mercy revealed in the transfigured Jesus, with Peter, James and John – an image of the Church, gathered in worship on the mountain of the Lord.  In today’s gospel the merciful Redeemer Jesus, after feeding the multitudes, returns to the mountain and to union with the Father in prayer. His prayer is a prayer for the world in peril, represented by the disciple caught up in the stormy sea. For us the mountain is a metaphor, not only for this sanctuary of worship, but also that place where we go in private, in personal prayer. We are surrounded every day by a world caught up in a stormy sea of confusion and loss of faith, and at times, in our own lives, we find ourselves floundering. Today, Jesus shows us where to begin. We too must have the practice of prayer, daily prayer, person-to-person prayer with the Father, on our mountain place of prayer. It should be like this: o   Appoint a time and place for this encounter in prayer. If you are willing to meet, the Lord will be there. It is His desire that we grow in the knowledge of His love for us and the plans He has for our life. o  Have a scripture passage chosen. There are many approaches to choosing scripture for prayer. A scripture passage from the liturgy is a good place to start. The gospels, especially those passages that tell of Jesus encounter with others, are especially good for beginning this approach to prayer. When a particular passage stands out for you, returning to it several times gives more time for its message to unfold. Sometimes we come across a passage in an unexpected way. We might say such spontaneity is the Lord's way of leading us to a text. o   In John Ch. 14:23 Jesus promises, "If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him". We can be certain that if we sincerely make this appointment for prayer the Lord will be present. He is surely there with you. Look, listen and respond, be yourself. The Lord will take care of His part. Link to the Page: Praying On a Passage of Scripture

Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord Jesus

Each year August the sixth is set aside as the day the church celebrates the Transfiguration of the Lord Jesus. This year the 6th falls on Sunday, so the liturgy of the 18th Sunday is replaced by the liturgy of the feast of the Transfiguration. It is not uncommon to hear the expression, "glorious", used to describe something one beholds with their eyes, i.e. a theatrical production, a celebration, such as a wedding or an Easter liturgy, sunset and sunrise, the vista of a natural landscape. By glorious we mean something of breathtaking beauty, fulfilled to perfection, eclipsing all our superlatives. Jesus' disciples beheld such a vision in the transfiguration of Jesus. ( He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Mtt. 17:2) St. Paul beheld the glorious risen Jesus, which began his conversion. In Acts he describes it in his own words:  “But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me, and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ ... “And those who were with me saw the light, to be sure, but did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me. Acts 22:6 Paul says that the glorious brightness of the light caused him to be temporally blinded so that he had to led by the hand into Damascus. What we may not understand is that this glorification, seen in Jesus, is the glorification God has planned for every soul that He will raise up into His presence. It is natural humanity transfigured into a new state, the state of grace. St. Catherine of Siena was given a vision of such a soul glorified. The Soul in the State of Grace- Catherine of Siena was permitted by God to see the beauty of a soul in the state of grace. It was so beautiful that she could not look on it; the brightness of that soul dazzled her. Blessed Raymond, her confessor, asked her to describe to him, as far as she was able, the beauty of the soul she had seen. St. Catherine thought of the sweet light of that morning, and of the beautiful colours of the rainbow, but that soul was far more beautiful. She remembered the dazzling beams of the noonday sun, but the light which beamed from that soul was far brighter. She thought of the pure whiteness of the lily and of the fresh snow, but that is only an earthly whiteness. The soul she had seen was bright with the whiteness of Heaven, such as there is not to be found on earth. ” My father,” she answered. “I cannot find anything in this world that can give you the smallest idea of what I have seen. Oh, if you could but see the beauty of a soul in the state of grace, you would sacrifice your life a thousand times for its salvation. I asked the angel who was with me what had made that soul so beautiful, and he answered me, “It is the image and likeness of God in that soul, and the Divine Grace which made it so beautiful.” (Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena ) The goal of the prayer of meditation/contemplation is to connect us consciously with the process of glorification that has begun in us, through our state of grace. This way of prayer opens a vista for us to see into our souls. We experience on a human level what is happening to us on a mystical level. The ways we perceive this experience can vary, from a sense of peace coming over our heart, to visions and revelations, such as describe by the saints and the spiritual writers, (like Catherine of Siena). It is important that we realize our glorification has already begun in us by the state of grace of our souls. People may not be blinded by our outward appearance as we walk around, but there is evidence that is perceptible to everyone. It is the fruit of our lives, the works of holiness and charity that we display by our actions. All the trees may look alike. You can tell the good ones by their fruit. (Mtt. 7:16)