Pentecost

Great Feast. Commemorates that event of the Descent of the Holy Spirit.
Down comes the Holy Spirit where the apostles were all gathered in one place.

We experience the coming of the Holy Spirit in our Baptism and Confirmation: We receive the Holy Spirit.

I remember being unimpressed by the Holy Spirit. I remember approaching the altar, and waiting for the amazing thing—but nothing. But just because we don't experience the outward sign, doesn't mean He has not transformed us in a very real way.

It make take a while for us to experience the fruits of the Holy Spirit, but he's there.

A gift, a fruit, an agent.

A gift: piety. Disposes us to have the right understanding of God as Father. God's not a distant bearded man poised to smite. He's a loving father. Our dad's reflect the Love of God as our real Father.

A fruit: Modesty. As a fruit of the Holy Spirit. Summertime is here. We've put away our long winter clothes. Let us not reveal too much. Ladies, you're beautiful. Modesty helps us to esteem the true beauty in another with all purity and all integrity. Dressing modestly accentuates your beauty. Clearly a fruit of the holy spirit. It's not just "wow, she's looking great today" but it draws us into and shows us a reflection of the beauty of God. For guys, too. Look sharp. But also, guard the eyes. He's made us for a tremendous love, and Modesty helps us to love.

A help to get close to the Holy Spirit: The Blessed Mother. The spouse of the Holy Spirit. Because the Holy Spirit overshadowed her, Jesus was conceived in her womb. She will help us, because she wants us closer to her Son. Go to her devoutly, the Holy Rosary, her image, in prayer.

Jesus' Last Words

Well, these are Jesus' last words, sort of. We celebrate the Ascension of the Lord.
He ascends right before their very eyes. It's a unique event in the history of the world.
Right before he ascends, he speaks to them for the last time. Final words are very important.
I remember the last conversation I had with my grandfather. I was with him as his grandson, but also in the capacity of a priest. The last words I heard him say were within the context of the last rites.
Jesus' last words are important. He says three things:
He says make disciples of all the nations; baptize them; teach them to observe all I have commanded you.
First, make disciples of all the nations. A huge responsibility. He authorizes them to make disciples of all the world, not just part, or some of the world. But all the world.
Second, He tells them to baptize them. The Sacramental life of the Church is important. We Baptize, Anoint, god to Confession, participate in the Most Holy Communion, marriage, etc.
Thirdly, he tells them what they need to teach to the people: to observe all Jesus commanded us.

Jesus gives us his Father

Last Sunday it was memorial day weekend.
Jesus gives us encouraging words.
Jesus sounds like my Dad—as he was preparing for James’ graduation.
He expects our love, he expects us to do what he says, he expects to welcome us into his family.
Our Lord shows us how to love. He calls us to a high standard of love.
You love you obey my commands. This plan will be the way. Fulfill my commandments. It’s so worth fulfilling this plan.
“If you love me, my father will loves.”
Our Lord says something very encouraging, he says “I will not leave you orphans.” If you love me my father will love you.
God becomes Our Father.
Divine filiation.
This is the great plan. We become God’s children.
A shout-out to our fallen heroes. They show us how to love with great devotion.

No one comes to the Father except through me.

Does no one mean no one?

What about people who didn't know Jesus?

Baptism is the only ordinary way. If there is another, extraordinary way, God alone knows it.
Is God bound by his Sacraments? God has bound salvation to his Sacraments, but he himself is not bound.

Jesus' Mission Statement

"I came that they might have life and have it more abundantly."

This mission is serious, worthy, vital.

It's serious because it meant the Lord shedding his own blood. It's worthy, because God himself endorsed it. It's vital because it reminds us to keep our hopes set on the life that only God can give us.

Enhanced Interrogation Techniques on the way to Emmaus

He permits the prevention of their recognizing him.
He feigns not to know what happened in Jerusalem.
He pretends to be going on farther down the road.

All of this only to reveal himself in the breaking of the bread.

So, just because we may be having a hard time coming to terms with the resurrection, doesn't mean he didn't rise.
Just because we're having a hard time understanding that the scriptures reveal God's masterpiece-of-a-plan for our peace and happiness, doesn't mean they don't make sense.
Just because there are times when God looks to be abandoning us, doesn't mean that all he's waiting for is for us to urge him to "stay with us."

And in the Eucharist, he does just that.

The Resurrection

The Joy of the Resurrection Renews the Whole World.

It changes how we celebrate, how we face adversity, and how we live our daily lives.

We celebrate not just a day, not just an octave, not just a season, not just every Sunday—but forever. For now, let's start with the Octave.

Facing adversity becomes a chance to reflect joy. JP II is a great example, especially how he discovered his own vocation amidst the trials of Nazism and Communism.

Everyday life is filled with new meaning. The ordinary pursuit of normal tasks takes on a new dimension in the face of the risen Christ.

The resurrection is the ultimate game-changer.

The Joy of the Resurrection Renews the Whole World.

Easter

Jesus is risen.
It's important.
Celebrate it.

(why did this homily take me 11 minutes to preach?)

Palm Sunday

We rightly honor those who go above and beyond the call of duty.
Whether on the battlefield, or in close family dealings, heroic service merits our respect.
We do this every year when we read the passion of Our Lord on Palm Sunday.
But his heroic sacrifice not only inspires us, it frees us from sin.
It's good for us, then, to relive it, as we do we every year on Palm Sunday.

Lazarus

Lazarus really came back to life.
In confession, we really come back to life.
Go to confession.

Haste makes waste

Haste makes waste. Friday morning was busy. We had several events in the parish this weekend and sneaking away for a quick swim was tricky. I had my goggles, my towel, my flippers, my wallet. So I jumped in the car and just as I was arriving at the Aquatic Center, I realized I forgot my swimsuit. Haste makes waste.

Easter Sunday is only three weeks away and Lent is more than half-way over. The Church encourages us to hasten toward that wonderful celebration which is filled with so much joy and hope and is the source of our strength, even in the toughest of times. But, as we remember, haste can make waste. And if we're not careful, sometimes we can neglect even the most important things.

The Gospel story is a great example of this. A man, blind from the day he was born, miraculously receives his sight and how to the Pharisees respond? Do they celebrate? Do they throw a big party for him and his family? Do they initiate prayers of praise and thanksgiving in the synagogue? No. Instead they throw him out. How could they be so neglectful of such an important thing as delighting in the glory of God? It's hard to say. But we can do the same thing if we're not careful. As lent moves quickly toward Easter, and as the Church encourages us to hasten toward that celebration, let's not overlook the key portion of our Lenten preparation. What are our key defects that need correction? What virtues should we strive to acquire? What vices should we uproot?

The vehicle for our hastening to Easter is the fulfillment of our Lenten preparation. Like the blind man who went directly to the pool of Siloam and washed, may we too hasten complete our lenten observance and so arrive at the joy of the resurrection.

nothing

The Redemptorist Missionary preached all the Masses.

let the sunshine in

There's more than meets the eye in this whole suffering thing.
The prospect of suffering has always been among the most confounding questions man has had to confront in his lifetime. From time to time it helps to put the whole question in the context of the eternal bliss God has planned for us from the beginning. God didn't make us to be miserable, he made us to be happy. And as long as he has anything to do with it, he's going to get his way.
Jesus just drops the bomb on Peter, James, John and the gang, that he will be taken out and killed and rise on the third day. They fail to grasp the meaning—how could they—of rising on the third day. So all they hear is that he's going to be killed. Naturally they're saddened and revolt. But Jesus nails them for their lack of perspective. "You're thinking not as God does, but as men do."
It's still all too much for them so six days later he takes three of them and proceeds to blow their mind with his Transfiguration on the mountain. Saying, effectively, "Next time I tell you that they're going to kill me and I'm going to rise, remember the mountain." Or, "I've got everything under control."
We've got to remember this when we encounter the confounding challenge of suffering in our life. Yes, "life's tough and then you die." But why has that cliche always ended there? There's more. Life's tough, then you die, then you rise from the dead never to die again, forever having conquered sin and death, free from what ails our poor, weak flesh this side of the grave.
Jesus wants his guys to be strong in the face of suffering so he gives them the vision of the Transfiguration.
He wants us to get strong, too. So, during our observance of Lent, our lenten penances draw us closer to that glory which will never end.

[image by Irish artist, Jim Gola]

Jesus' victory over the devil.

The temptation in the desert.
His victory helps us.
Jesus exposes the devil for who he really is.
Jesus reveals that we're in a spiritual combat.
Jesus strengthens our freedom.

"Get me to heaven"

I took the theme from the Gospel, viz. "Not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of heaven."

So how do we enter heaven?

First of all we've got to want it. Second of all, we've got to ditch the superficiality and prove our desire with action. Third of all, we've got to prepare for the winds that will blow and floods that will come by imitating the love of Christ.

We fail to desire heaven sometimes because we're too contented with the things of this world. We forget we're not made for this world. We're made for something infinitely better.
First Illustration: imagine stumbling upon a Bald Eagle picking at trash and crumbs in the park with a bunch of pigeons. But that's how we are when we fail to consider own sovereign dignity as sons of God and instead think that this life is all there is to it.

Our Lord doesn't want to hear us all 'Lord, Lord' out of one side of our mouths, and see us spitting on our neighbor out of the other.
Second Illustration: Eliza Doolittle to Freddy Einsford Hill: "Never do I ever want to hear another word/There isn't one I haven't heard/Here we are together in what ought to be a dream/Say one more word and I'll scream. Don't talk of 'stars burning above'/If you're in love show me..."

Sure the going's gonna get tough, but if we're imitating the one who's love never fails, we'll be just fine.
Third Illustration: The Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of the Lord.

Nothing. The Cardinal preached.

Nice to have a day off again. I'll have to remember this for next year's appeal. The Saturday evening of the Cardinal's Appeal weekend is a good one to try and get guys together. There isn't any stress from having to preach and everyone can just relax. For the most part.

Cardinal's appeal & perfection

It was a two-part homily. The first part previewed next weeks Cardinal's appeal. The second part dealt with forgiveness as the fulfillment of the perfection mandate.

Marriage, civil divorce, annulments, and gay marriage.

It was a tad long at 13:00 minutes. But content was good and it moved along.
The constant theme and the take-away/thesis: Marriage is noble; Our Lord's high regard for marriage enables us to look at these things, i.e. civil divorce, annulments, and gay marriage and understand them properly.
I also emphasized how this is a very personal issue, effecting those who are close to us in challenging ways.
Another point of emphasis was how important it is for us to have a proper understanding of these issues given how much misinformation is out there. It's good to help people, for instance get passed the not-to-uncommon misunderstanding that "I'm divorced, I guess I'm going to hell."

Anyhow. I'm gaining confidence with the touchy topics. And sure enough the comments after Mass were nothing but positive. There were many deliberate expressions of gratitude for talking about this.

"I don't think I know anybody who goes to Mass every Sunday."

This was from our mid-week religious ed class the other night. The confirmation-prep children were asking about potential sponsors. The questions were honest, innocent, and telling.

A question and a comment stood out as rather alarming. "Do they have to be Catholic?" was one. When I responded 'yes' there were a couple disappointed sighs. But it was when I added that they also should be practicing Catholics who attend Mass every Sunday, there was a collective, exasperated disbelief. In the midst of the disruption I heard the comment, "I don't think I know anybody who goes to Mass every Sunday."

As much as the comment confirmed the suspicion, it was the candor and frankness with which it was delivered that was the heartbreaker.

We've got our work cut out for us.

The 'Shine' Imperative

"Your light must shine for others."
If Jesus is telling us that we must shine the light of faith through our good deeds, then it must be important. Furthermore how wonderful is it that we have a responsibility to God? We had better give it highest priority.
This is especially true when the going has gotten tough.
This pleases God.

The Beatitudes

The Beatitudes teach us when the going gets tough, they remind us of the eternal happiness that awaits us, and they force us to look Jesus square in the face.
Jesus announces the promises in the Beatitudes to those who are suffering: the poor; the persecuted; those who mourn, etc. This encourages us who find ourselves and others frequently in challenging circumstances.
Jesus promises wonderful things: comfort; mercy; consolation; the kingdom of heaven, etc. It's natural to allow this to motivate us.
The Beatitudes are not shallow, meaningless cliches handed down from who-knows where. They are spoken to us from Jesus' own mouth. They carry his authority.
Pick a beatitude and work on it.

The homily went well. The place was packed with families from the School as we emphasized Catholic Schools Week. That gave a nice context for Jesus' 'teaching.'
I mentioned JFK's 50th anniversary of his inaugural address and compared it with the Sermon on the Mount in terms of both coming at the beginning of the public ministry.
I mentioned "Blessed are those who mourn" in the context of being at the March for Life and there learning about Billy Mitchell's senseless murder from a few days prior.

Gospel of Life

It was on the dignity of human life.

It's important to understand that human life is sacred and has great dignity because it has a eternal destiny. Taking innocent human life, as in abortion, is gravely disordered. Human life should be protected.

Conversion is key. Asking God to free us from our hesitancy or reluctance to accept the good news of the dignity of the human person helps. This is especially true for women who have had abortions. They are in our prayers. (cf. Evang.Vit. 99) Circumstances influence decisions, and they may still have the wound. What they did was wrong, but giving over to repentance and entrusting their child to the Father of mercies will help them a ton. They can be the strongest of proponents of the dignity of life.

Witnessing is an imperative. First by having children, a natural way to witness. By appreciating adoption. By speaking up in public. Going to the March which is a source solidarity and encouragement.

Baptism

It was an elementary catechesis on Baptism. It worked out because that theme was dominant in the Gospel. Also, there were twins to be baptized during the Mass right after the homily. So there was a nice Audio-visual.
I started with the image of Goofy immersed in Jello. If we plunged into jello we'd turn red, end up really sticky, and smell like cherry for a few weeks. When we're plunged into the Holy Spirit in baptism, that never goes away.
I told them that they can baptize in emergency situations. That baptism makes us children of God. That it wipes away original sin. That it makes us part of a priestly people.

Nothing. I was out of town.

Vacation was nice. But I can also say that I have never preached on the feast of the Baptism of the Lord—that I can remember. I've always been out of town.
That's the way the cookie crumbles.

Epiphany

The universal, worthy and compelling nature of The Epiphany of the Lord.
"Universal" in that he was made manifest to the whole world. Our Lord's coming is not a 'private revelation.'
It's "Worthiness" is reflected in the gifts: Gold for his royalty, incense for his divinity, and myrrh for his saving death.
"Compelling" in that it beckons us to come to worship, no matter how far away we are. At the same time Herod rejected him.