Easter 2016

"He is not here; he has risen, just as he said."

An Easter Homily During this Holy Week that we have just celebrated together, two words stood out for me - NIGHT and TRUTH. In John’s gospel account of the Supper of the Lord, he presents that chilling picture of Judas, sitting at table with Jesus, all the while conspiring to betray Jesus to those seeking to kill Jesus. Finally, Judas gets up from the table, and leaves. Here John adds these words; “… and it was NIGHT.” John is not talking about the time of day only, but of something of much greater magnitude. He is talking about darkness - the black of night - the absence of light – all meant to describe the condition of a human soul – stripped of the LIGHT of truth. Inside Judas’s heart it is NIGHT. He no longer believes in Jesus and his teaching. He is selling out for thirty pieces of silver. Now, Jesus stands before the judgement seat of Pilate, the spokesman for the secular world, to pass judgement on Jesus. The HOUR has begun – the HOUR of judgement, judgement on Jesus and his purpose for coming into the world – to bring the LIGHT of TRUTH to a world in darkness; that is in ignorance of the truth. Pilate, the spokesman for the secular world, and all the secular worlds to come, speaks. “Truth he says, what is truth?” Now it is our turn. We of this generation now stand in judgement about Jesus, whether or not his word, his gospel is truth. How many have left this table, this table of the Word, this table of the Eucharist, and no longer walk with Jesus; no longer accept that his gospel is truth. What is truth, once again echoes all around us. Increasingly, our society is dominated by a secular world view, where people are the authors of truth. In the liturgy of Easter Sunday, reciting the creed is replaced with the renewal of the baptismal profession of faith. Here and now, we will proclaim, in a visible, audible and public way where we stand on the question of truth. It is now our hour. Our world is now asking us, where do you stand on Jesus and the gospel? If we say I do believe, then everything we say and do must be shaped by this truth we embrace. For if we fail to live up to our profession of faith, will not the world rightly judge us as hypocrites.

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The Renewal of Baptismal Promises  Dear brothers and sisters, through the Paschal Mystery we have been buried with Christ in Baptism, so that we may walk with him in newness of life. And so, now that our Lenten observance is concluded, let us renew the promises of Holy Baptism, by which we once renounced Satan and his works and promised to serve God in the holy Catholic Church. And so I ask you: Priest: Do you renounce Satan? All: I do. Priest: And all his works? All: I do. Priest: And all his empty show? All: I do. Priest: Do you believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth? All: I do. Priest: Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered death and was buried, rose again from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father? All: I do. Priest: Do you believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting? All: I do. And the Priest concludes: And may almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has given us new birth by water and the Holy Spirit and bestowed on us forgiveness of our sins, keep us by his grace, in Christ Jesus our Lord, for eternal life. All: Amen.

Good Friday

"It is Finished."

As we saw in the Holy Week Post, this is the "Hour", Jesus' destiny, the reason for his coming into the world, now fulfilled. Satan is defeated, his weapons of lies are rendered mute by the Truth revealed in Jesus - God is love. By mercy, God's plan is to bring all who will accept, into his presence, sharing his very life with them eternally. Satan has lied about God's plan for people, calling it eternal death. He has tried to convince everyone to live as they will, and to join him in his exile, which he calls freedom from the demands of truth. With the blackest of all darkness, he shrouded Jesus' heart, crying aloud, "your God has forsaken and abandoned you." "You are no son of his, only I, Satan, can help you now." Jesus denounced this lie of lies with these words: "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." At that very moment, Jesus' spirit ascended, while Satan was thrown into the abyss of his emptiness.

Here are some scriptures that speak of the hidden mystery following Jesus death on the cross. Ephesians 4:8-10 Therefore, it says: “He ascended on high and took prisoners captive; he gave gifts to men.” What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended into the lower [regions] of the earth? The one who descended is also the one who ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things. Acts 2:23-24 "This man, delivered up by the set plan and foreknowledge of God, you killed, using lawless men to crucify him. But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death, because it was impossible for him to be held by it." 1 Peter 3:18-20 "For Christ also suffered* for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the spirit. In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison, who had once been disobedient while God patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a few persons, eight in all, were saved through water." The prophet Hosea foretold the descent of Christ into Hell in Hosea 13:14 by placing these words into the mouth of the Messiah: “O death, I will be our death; O hell, I will be your bite.” Zechariah foretells the redemption of those in the Limbo of the Fathers in Zech 9:11: “You also by the blood of your Testament have sent forth your prisoners out of the pit.” What could this mean except that the Messiah would free people from the underworld? Colossians 2:15: “Despoiling the principalities and powers, He has exposed them confidently.” This refers to Christ’s victory over the condemned angels who are the demons of Hell. Psalm 23:7: “Lift up your gates, O you princes,” which the medieval Gloss interprets: “that is–You princes of hell, take away your power, whereby hitherto you held men fast in hell”. In Ecclesiasticus 24:45, Siracides prophecied: “I will penetrate to all the lower parts of the earth.”

Last Supper

"This is my body ... this is my blood."

The Liturgical text for these sacred days are a rich source to focus our thoughts and direct our prayer. See below. Additional sources can be found on these links: [... Holy Thursday ...]

THURSDAY OF THE LORD'S SUPPER At the Evening Mass ENTRANCE ANTIPHON          Cf. Gal 6: 14 We should glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is our salvation, life and resurrection, through whom we are saved and delivered. COLLECT O God, who have called us to participate in this most sacred Supper, in which your Only Begotten Son, when about to hand himself over to death, entrusted to the Church a sacrifice new for all eternity, the banquet of his love, grant, we pray, that we may draw from so great a mystery, the fullness of charity and of life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. FIRST READING: RESPONSORIAL PSALM: SECOND READING: VERSE BEFORE THE GOSPEL: GOSPEL: Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14 Psalms 116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 I give you a new commandment, says the Lord: love one another as I have loved you. John 13:34 John 13:1-15 The Washing of Feet Meanwhile some of the following antiphons or other appropriate chants are sung. ANTIPHON 1           Cf. Jn 13: 4,5,15 After the Lord had risen from supper, he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of his disciples: he left them this example. ANTIPHON 2           Cf. Jn 13: 12,13,15 The Lord Jesus, after eating supper with his disciples, washed their feet and said to them: Do you know what I, your Lord and Master, have done for you? I have given you an example, that you should do likewise. ANTIPHON 3           Jn 13: 6,7,8 Lord, are you to wash my feet? Jesus said to him in answer: If I do not wash your feet, you will have no share with me. V. So he came to Simon Peter and Peter said to him: - Lord. V. What I am doing, you do not know for now, but later you will come to know. - Lord. ANTIPHON 4           Cf. Jn 13: 14 If I, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, how much more should you wash each other's feet? ANTIPHON 5           Jn 13: 35 This is how all will know that you are my disciples: if you have love for one another. V. Jesus said to his disciples: - This is how. ANTIPHON 6           Jn 13: 34 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you, says the Lord. ANTIPHON 7           1 Cor 13:13 Let faith, hope and charity, these three, remain among you, but the greatest of these is charity. V. Now faith, hope and charity, these three, remain; but the greatest of these is charity. - Let. The Liturgy of the Eucharist Meanwhile the following, or another appropriate chant, is sung.<BR> Ant. Where true charity is dwelling, God is present there. V. By the love of Christ we have been brought together: V. let us find in him our gladness and our pleasure; V. may we love him and revere him, God the living, V. and in love respect each other with sincere hearts. Ant. Where true charity is dwelling, God is present there. V. So when we are gathered all together, V. let us strive to keep our minds free of division; V. may there be an end to malice, strife and quarrels, V. and let Christ our God be dwelling here among us. Ant. Where true charity is dwelling, God is present there. V. May your face thus be our vision, bright in glory, V. Christ our God, with all the blessed Saints in heaven: V. such delight is pure and faultless, joy unbounded, V. which endures through countless ages world without end. Amen. PRAYER OVER THE OFFERINGS Grant us, O Lord, we pray, that we may participate worthily in these mysteries, for whenever the memorial of this sacrifice is celebrated the work of our redemption is accomplished. Through Christ our Lord. PREFACE: V. The Lord be with you. R. And with your spirit. V. Lift up your hearts. R. We lift them up to the Lord. V. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. R. It is right and just. It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation, always and everywhere to give you thanks, Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God, through Christ our Lord. For he is the true and eternal Priest, who instituted the pattern of an everlasting sacrifice and was the first to offer himself as the saving Victim, commanding us to make this offering as his memorial. As we eat his flesh that was sacrificed for us, we are made strong, and, as we drink his Blood that was poured out for us, we are washed clean. And so, with Angels and Archangels, with Thrones and Dominions, and with all the hosts and Powers of heaven, we sing the hymn of your glory, as without end we acclaim: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts . . . PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION Grant, almighty God, that, just as we are renewed by the Supper of your Son in this present age, so we may enjoy his banquet for all eternity. Who lives and reigns for ever and ever. The Transfer of the Most Blessed Sacrament

Holy Week

..... and it was "night"

This text, "...and it was night" is found in John's account of the Supper of the Lord ch. 13. It contains two important expressions John uses, "Hour" and "Night" “We have to do the works of the one who sent me while it is day. Night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 9:4  “I am troubled now. Yet what should I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But it was for this purpose that I came to this hour. 12:27 “Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father … The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over.” 13:1  “Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” ... “It is the one to whom I hand the morsel after I have dipped it.” So he dipped the morsel and handed it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot. After he took the morsel, Satan entered him. So Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” So he took the morsel and left at once. And it was night. 13:21 Because of the sin of Adam and Eve, the door to paradise was bolted shut, but not forever. One would come, sent to open the Door of Mercy and the very hour that this would happen is the ninth hour, Good Friday, on the Cross of Jesus. The absence of light is darkness. Darkness for John is the absence of the light of God's wisdom and truth, that is necessary to form and shape us into children of God, worthy to live in God's presence, eternally. Satan abandoned this light, and set about to cause mankind to suffer the same fate. When the time came for the Light to return and unlock the door of ignorance, transforming it into the Door of Mercy, the great, eternal conflict was engaged. Satan must stop the Chosen One, Jesus. From Herod's slaughter of the Innocence at Jesus birth, the testing of Jesus in the wilderness, and throughout his public ministry the battle raged. Having failed, Satan has but one last chance, the hour of the cross. The cruel suffering Jesus endured on the cross is very real. But this "Hour" is not completely understood in terms of physical pain, it is profoundly different. The term that best describes this suffering is desolation - abandonment - forsaken - despair - eternally lost - the blackness of death ever present.  In the book of Job, God sites Job's righteousness to Satan. Satan counters with, of course he is, look at how blessed you have made him. Take away from him your blessings and see if he remains righteous. And so God lets Satan put Job to the test.  Life is more than existing, it is living with the knowledge one is not alone and of no value; rather it is living in the security that comes from knowing you are loved. The highest form of that security comes from knowing you are loved by God. "My God, my God why have you abandon me?" As Jesus cries out these words from the Cross, he is engulfed in the desolation that is true death. St. Ignatius articulated so very well the nature and character of this experience. [... type the word desolation in - Search This Blog - on the side bar for further links to this subject].  Our true devotion in Holy Week is not to pity poor Jesus suffering such physical pain on the cross. It is to see our brother Jesus descend into the deepest darkness of the human soul and snatch the keys, the keys of Faith and Hope, out of Satan's hands, and unlock the door of eternal death, making it now the Holy Door of eternal life - setting free every soul to live in the secure knowledge of God's love. "Father, into your hands I entrust my spirit."

Palm Sunday

Now, as we approach the Holy Doors, they open to that sacred path that will take us through Holy Week. So many opportunities of grace await, foremost of these are the liturgies of Holy Week. There are the visible symbols, palms, the blessed oils, the dish and towel, the bread and cup, the wood of the cross, the empty tabernacle,  There are the spoken words of the liturgies, the prayers and responses, the renewal of the commitment of baptism, the deep devotion in the hymns of praise and lamentation, the silence that follows. There are the voices of scripture, making real again, the story for us to enter into, hearing is seeing, seeing is believing again.

In addition to the liturgies, there are many other resources that we access to enrich our Holy Week journey. The following are a few suggestions. The "Voices of Lent" series of posts found on the side bar here. Palm Sunday 2014, together with the following posts [... LINK... ] Posts for Holy Week 2015 [... LINK... ] click the label at the bottom of the Post, "Holy Week 2015" to show the complete collection. During these days of Holy Week and Easter, that element of prayer called "presence" stands out to us. We speak of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, but the document on the liturgy teaches that Real Presence is to be found throughout the whole liturgy. It reminds us that when the gospel is proclaimed, it is Christ who is speaking to us. We are transcend time and are made to be present to the mysteries we celebrate.

Fifth Sunday of Lent

Once again, we have in this Sunday’s gospel another image of the face of mercy. “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.” Jesus has gathered people around himself and is teaching them. His teaching is having a deep and positive impression on people, and the scribes and Pharisees feel threatened and are jealous of Jesus popularity. As a teacher, Jesus is not changing the words of the written law; to do this would be an evil punishable by death. What he does is draw out of the “words” of the law a deeper understanding of the full truth of God’s revelation. In the case of this gospel’s text, it is written that the evil of adultery must be purged from their midst by killing the sinner. But can the “finger of God” compose an intervention that offers another solution, a higher solution - repentance and forgiveness? Deuteronomy 22:22 ..If a man is discovered lying with a woman who is married to another, they both shall die, the man who was lying with the woman as well as the woman. Thus shall you purge the evil from Israel. If there is a young woman, a virgin who is betrothed, and a man comes upon her in the city and lies with her, you shall bring them both out to the gate of the city and there stone them to death: the young woman because she did not cry out though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor’s wife. Thus shall you purge the evil from your midst. The scribes and Pharisees believe they have a foolproof plan to discredit Jesus in the eyes of his listeners. They bring forward witnesses to the very act of adultery and the woman involved. No mention of the man is given, (perhaps he fled or something else more contrived). They drag her out and stand her right in front of Jesus, for all to see. What will become of Jesus’ message of compassion now? At first Jesus says nothing but stoops down and writes with his finger in the dust of the ground. We are not told what he is writing, but it has intrigued readers ever since and many theories have been speculated. Jesus does not respond, so they press him for an answer. It is at this point that an extraordinary thing happens. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger. But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. One by one the accusers walk away, silenced. What just happened to them? The text only gives us the words of Jesus reply, nothing more. But something happened on a deep and hidden level. Their consciences were pierced, cut opened and convicted by the sword of Jesus voice. They hear the voice of God who knows each one’s heart. None of them is innocent before God. Now they know that only God, free of sin, can condemn. Now the woman stands alone before Jesus, and hears the voice of God incarnate, the VOICE of MERCY. Neither do I condemn you; I give you, not condemnation and death, but the opportunity of repentance. “Go, and from now on do not sin.”

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

•  The Day Misery and Mercy Met Fr. Thomas Rosica

•  WORD on Fire - Robert Barron's homily - Misery and Mercy

SECOND READING (Philippians 3.8-14) Brothers and sisters: I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

Fourth Sunday of Lent 2016

The Fourth Sunday of Lent, Year C, gives us the beautiful parable of the "Prodigal Son". Prodigality is a word that indicates over the top expressions of one's favour; extravagant and lavished. It is the father's prodigality of forgiving love that inspires the title of this parable. It might also be known as The parable of “The Wayward Son” or “The Prodigal Father” or the “Indignant Elder Brother”.

The following is a meditation on Luke's gospel text.

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”	When speaking about religion in those days, people thought of it in the concrete. Seeing is believing. Parables are mysteries made visible.
“A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.	This is an insult to the father. (Your taking too long to die. I'm missing out on MY fulfillment. It's all about me.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.	He leaves a world that is shaped around God's revealed truth and enters a world that is man made and man-centered.
When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need. So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any.	"Freely spent". It's mine, I will do with it as I choose. This son's truth and morality are subjective. Subjective truth is a chaotic whirl wind snatching up all in its path. You do not shape a tornado, it shapes you.
Coming to his senses he thought, ‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger. I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’	This son has learned the hard way what his father, no doubt, tried to teach him; that only truth can make you truly free. From the Garden until now, the deception has been that we are the ones who define what is truth that makes us happy. God alone defines truth. We must remain in communion with our Father who leads us to all truth.
So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.  His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.’ Then the celebration began.	Here we encounter "the Face of Mercy". The father knows that there is only one place that will give his son back his life - with him, in the father's house. One does not "deserve" to be called son or daughter, you are so, by God's design. Two dynamics are at play here, repentance and forgiveness. The son knows and desires the salvation of the father's house; all be it, a imperfect contrition. The compassionate mercy of the father, a love that never stopped loving, restores to the son everything that was lost. Mercy is salvation. You are either dead or alive. The Father alone can offer us life. Which will we choose?
Now the older son had been out in the field and, on his way back, as he neared the house, he heard the sound of music and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean. The servant said to him, ‘Your brother has returned and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’	The older son is no better than his brother when it comes to appreciating what it means to be in the fathers house. Each is motivated by self interest. The younger brother chooses to leave for a "better life". Wrong. The older brother chooses to remain but misses what makes life worth living, LOVE. The younger brother is the first to understand this truth. Now it is the older brother's turn to learn.
He became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and pleaded with him. He said to his father in reply, ‘Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’	The older son sees his brother, not as a brother, but as a worthless sinner, (this son of yours) deserving only the consequences of his sins.  Small "s" saints, the stay-at-home church goers, suffer the same problem - believing that obeying makes you deserving. Obeying helps you avoid the certainty of the death of sin, but it does not fill the undead life with peace and joy - the reason for being alive.
He said to him, ‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’”	In the end, we must come to understand that we have been formed into vessels capable of being filled up with love - a life-giving love that only the Father can give. It is given to overflowing, and when it overflows, it gives life to all that is empty around us.

The Face of Mercy
Only love understands mercy.