Praying with Scripture - Formation Talk

Building Blocks: Where did the Bible come from? - Homily for January 22

Readings for Sunday, January 22: Isaiah 8:23-9:3  |  Psalm 27  |  1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17  |  Matthew 4:12-23

I'm heading out to the March for Life in Washington, D.C. in a few minutes, so this week is only the audio for the homily. Please pray for safety for all those attending the March and for the growth of a culture of life in our world. Our prayers will be with you too.

What Would Jesus Do?

Readings for Sunday, August 31/22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time:
Jeremiah 20:7-9
Psalm 63:2-6, 8-9
Romans 12:1-3
Matthew 16:21-27

What Would Jesus Do?

I’m sure you’ve all heard the question and maybe have or had the catchy little WWJD wristband, t-shirt, or bookmark. What Would Jesus Do? It seems like a perfectly good question and it caught on quickly as a way of focusing in the moment on the idea that if Jesus were here, what would He do in the situation and then to do that for ourselves. But I’ll be honest with you, I have a couple of bones to pick with ‘What Would Jesus Do?’

First, it presupposed that Jesus ISN’T present. A priest at the seminary one time pointed out that it might be more appropriate to say ‘What Is Jesus Doing?’ because in every situation we find ourselves, God is there at work and wants of us some particular response. It’s just phrasing, but I think it’s important.

My second bone is much more significant and that bone is the fact that sometimes what we THINK Jesus would do is exactly the opposite of what Jesus actually WOULD do. Our imperfect humanity makes it easy to imperceptibly move from knowing what God wants to thinking to saying what we want as if God wants it. Case in point: Simon Peter.

Last week we heard Jesus asking the Twelve who the people thought He was and their responses of ‘Jeremiah, John the Baptist, or one of the prophets’ and Peter’s answer, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!” When Peter gives his response the Lord praised him, “Blessed are you Simon, son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my heavenly Father.” I’m sure Peter was rather pleased with himself, allowing that pride-monster to well up in his heart and bring him to think he was better and brighter than the others because the Gospel passage we hear today is the very next line. It’s not a new chapter, not a new conversation. The reality of Jesus as the Son of God is directly connected with the mission of the Cross, which we just heard. And so Peter, who just a moment ago was highly praised by the Lord, asserts himself in his supposed authority and rebukes the Son of God Himself and says “God forbid! It shall never happen to you.” And just like that the rollercoaster of Peter’s journey went from an incredible high to a disastrous low – “Get behind me, Satan! You are thinking not as God does but as men do!” Imagine the heart of Peter at that point. Imagine the shock at the rebuke of Jesus. He thought he knew ‘What would Jesus do?’ and if it happened to Peter in his journey, it surely happens to us in ours.

This reality is why the words of St. Paul to the Romans are so important for us to hear and heed today: “Do not be conformed to this present age, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may know what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.”

The reality is that all of us are born sinners and part of the consequence of original sin is that our minds struggle to see things as God sees them. We get focused on the things around us, this earthly life, and fail to see the bigger picture at work. This is what God wants to renew and transform within us; He wants to stretch our minds to be more inclusive, to be more receptive to the eternal instead of just the small world around us. Ultimately, He wants us to be transformed so that over time our mind comes to resemble more and more that of Christ.

How do transform our minds? Or rather, how do we let God transform them for us? The same two ways when we wants our physical bodies to get in better shape: diet & exercise. Fortunately, I talked about the exercise portion last week; that in order to keep our souls in good shape we need to have time for prayer daily, Holy Communion weekly, and confession monthly and that if we want to grow stronger, quicker, then we need only increase the frequency of those three things. Today I want to hit on the other aspect: diet.

We know that everything we put into our bodies affects us in some way: it either makes us healthier or unhealthier. In much the same way, everything we put into our minds – every movie, song, tv show, book or online article – affects our souls. They either make our minds more like that of Christ or less. We must choose wisely, so I want to suggest to you three concrete things to help in the diet for your soul that are basically the same: read good books.

Catholic author Matthew Kelly once said, “Read great books. Books change our lives. Why? Because we become the books we read.... I'd like to come to your house sometime. I'd like to see your books. You show me your books and I'll tell you what sort of person you are. You tell me the ten books you're going to read in the next twelve months and I'll tell you how your life is going to change in the next twelve months.” And it’s absolutely true. Books have power not because they are magical, but because they plant seeds in our souls. This past Thursday we celebrate the feast of St. Augustine. You know how he was converted? He read a book. Recently we also celebrated St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. You know how he was converted? He read a book. I could go down a whole list, but the simple fact is that books can change our lives for the better.

So my first suggestion is to find good Catholic books and read them. There is something for everyone: lives of the saints, theology, history, spirituality, prayer, personal conversions, living daily life, and the list goes on. Read good Catholic books. I’m not talking about these people whose gospel message is the power of positive thinking. I’m talking solid Catholic literature that feeds your soul and challenges you in the process. If you want suggestions, just ask me.

Second, but more importantly, read the Bible! If we want to have our minds become more like that of Christ, we need to read the Word of God where the Lord reveals His thoughts and shows us how His plans unfold. We need to familiarize ourselves with the Divine Word and the story of salvation, which helps us to make sense of this life and find encouragement in the figures of faith from years past. Not only that, the Word of God is living and just as it was written to speak to people’s hearts 2000 years ago, God intended it to be able to do the same for us today.

 

Lastly, read the Catechism of the Catholic Church. If you want to know anything about what the Church teaches on a specific topic, it’s there. It is admittedly thick and I want to speak to that real quick. A lot of time we Catholics get a bad rap for being a ‘religion of rules’ that people have to follow (usually from Catholics who have been enlightened and left the Church). The simple truth is this: there are lots of rules because the road to heaven is narrow and the road to hell is wide. It is easy to get lost on the way and think we’re on the right track, when we’ve strayed far away, just like Peter. And rules aren’t bad things. If I want to take a road trip to Washington state, I would plug it into my GPS and get a list of directions I have to follow in order to get there. Never have I met a person who got upset at the GPS for all of it’s rules that they had to follow in order to get to their destination. But when it comes to rules to get us to Heaven, the tables turn quickly – all these rules! The rules aren’t there to make life difficult. The rules are there to show us how to love God, neighbor, and self. The rules are there to mold our minds to resemble that of Christ and the process of molding is sometimes painful. This is where we have to listen to Christ and deny ourselves, pick up our cross, and keep following Jesus.

If you want to know how to get to Heaven, read the Bible and read that handy instruction manual given to us by the Church. Because the simple reality is this: we will all be judged. We don’t like to think about it and we don’t often hear about it, but the reality is that Jesus will come to judge us on our life’s deeds. The good news, if you read the rest of the books, is that He wants to show us mercy and He can if we but open our hearts and minds to be transformed. Peter struggled to grasp the mystery of the Cross, but with God's grace he came to understand it in a profound way. He himself died by crucifixion just like Our Lord, but Peter then knew how important the Cross was and asked to be crucified upside-down on his because He wasn't worthy to die in the same way as the Lord Jesus did. May God grant us the grace today to experience the conversion of mind that Peter did as we come to receive the Lord Jesus once again in the gift that is the Eucharist. 

____________

If you don't have one already, you can purchase the Catechism from Amazon.com (Kindle available) or BN.com (NOOK available) or view it free online HERE!

How's Your Prayer Life?

Readings for Sunday, March 23/ Third Sunday of Lent:
Exodus 17:3-7
Psalm 95:1-2, 6-9
Romans 5:1-2, 5-8
John 4:5-42

A couple of weeks ago a friend sent me a book. I opened it up and started looking through the first few pages and found a fill-in the blank self-test with questions such as: Who is the first person you turn to for advice when you’re having problems with a spouse or significant other? Who is the first person you turn to for advice when you have tough financial decisions to make? Who is the first person you turn to when you’re not feeling well? At the conclusion of the little test there was an answer key of sorts and what it basically said was ‘If your answer to each of those questions was not ‘Jesus Christ’ then you have some work to do. Keep reading the book.’

As a priest I often have people come to me to discuss things that are going on in their life where they are looking for answers. Things such as those above, as well as major life decisions, struggles in faith, problems with sin, and a whole host of other things. And one of the questions that I often ask in response is simply, “How’s your prayer life?” The normal response is, “Well, it’s pretty good. But, Father, this what's really bothering me is…” and they revert back to their point. To which I respond again, “I know. But how is your prayer life really? What is the Lord doing in your life right now?” My question about prayer is not just a nice little thing that the priest is supposed to ask. It’s actually at the core of everything. If we believe Jesus is who He claims to be, if He is the one who created us, loves us, forgives us, and wants to heal, restore, and sustain us, then our life must necessarily revolve around Him. And we meet Him in prayer. Prayer is everything.

The story we just heard from St. John’s gospel is actually a synopsis of the Christian life of prayer. It starts with Jesus coming to the well to find rest and then a Samaritan woman comes to draw water. This simple intro would be raising red flags all over the place of any Jewish listener. First, the event happening at a well evokes marital imagery, as every time a well is found in the Old Testament it is in connection with a man seeking a spouse. Except the Lord comes to wait not for an earthly bride, but for one to bring with Him to the heavenly marriage feast of Heaven. He’s looking to save her soul, thirsting for it. And so he says, “Give me a drink.” The fact that Jesus was there was bad enough, but for Him to speak, that it too much! Think about it for a second. Who here goes out and cuts their yard at noon? Nobody. Why? It’s hot! Nobody in their right mind is going to go out to labor at midday unless there’s some specific reason. And we know her reason – she was sinner. She was an outcast; someone that the other ladies of the village wouldn’t have associated with, someone the others would have whispered about and treated cruelly. So to save herself the trouble, she goes at noon when nobody else is there because that what she thinks she deserves. She can’t live a normal life anymore. And there’s Jesus at the well. She thinks, ‘Oh, well He’s a Jew so it won’t matter.’ But then He speaks and with that she is in shock. First, she is a woman and he is a man. The two weren’t supposed to interact in public. Secondly, Jews and Samaritans don’t mingle or even use the same buckets. And yet He comes and asks for a drink. He tears down every wall that could be between the two of them, and many of us have more than just two. We separate ourselves from God because we’re ashamed of our past, we're afraid of our future, we’re not convinced we can do what He calls us to do today and so we set up walls. And Jesus comes over and again to tear them down to meet us. Rather than flee, she decides to stay. There’s something about this Jesus that settles her despite all of the social rules she’s breaking right in public. She is open to the encounter of prayer.

What follows is a dialogue that includes many things we’ve likely experienced personally. The opening point is that it is a dialogue. All of us are guilty, I’m sure, of giving monologues to God where we tell Him everything and then politely dismiss ourselves before God can get a word in edgewise. We’re called to speak and to listen. The first thing that the woman experiences after deciding to stay in this encounter of prayer is misunderstanding and confusion. She’s at a well and Jesus is talking about living water and she wants it but has no clue how He’s gonna get it because He doesn’t even have a bucket (maybe the heat got to His head?). And she asks for the living water He gives thinking that she’ll never thirst again and won’t have to come to the physical well anymore, but she is missing the whole point. Jesus is speaking and she can’t make sense of it. How many of us have decided in good faith to pick up the Bible and we do so only to find that we can’t understand a single thing happening? So we get frustrated because now we need to go find another book to explain the first book. Or how many times have we gone to pray about something – we need to know which choice to make in a tough decision, or we are looking for some guidance, peace or consolation from God – and we go pray only to realize that nothing is any clearer when we walk away? Misunderstanding. Confusion. If you’ve ever been in that place, it’s okay. But don’t let it be the reason you quit prayer. The woman, too, decides to continue the conversation despite not knowing really what is happening and so she comes to a new experience. Jesus says to her, “Go get your husband and bring him back with you.” She quietly replies, “I don’t have a husband.” You can imagine the knowing-look as he says, ‘I know’ and proceeds to tell her about her whole life. Here Christ comes to the deepest place of shame and sin in her heart and wants to address that. And what does she do? What do all of us do? Change the topic. He comes close to that painful place and she becomes a great theologian and starts debating Jesus on which religion is the true and other such things. We too like to change course to some other aspect that’s easier to discuss, to some theological idea or something we’ve heard before that we want to reflect on further. But Jesus wants to heal that place where we need Him most. The woman again perseveres in prayer and the Lord continues to guide her on the path. Finally, she starts to come down again and speaks of this messiah that is to come and will tell everything. Here her life changes as the Lord looks her in the eyes and says, “I Am He.” I Am He. The Messiah, the one to reveal everything, the one who created you, will save you, and wants to fill you with peace. I Am He.

We arrive at this most powerful moment of the whole passage and what happens next? We now interrupt your program for this commercial break! This scene cuts away to Jesus talking about reaping the harvest, speaking of the souls to be won for eternal life. Meanwhile we’re on the edge of our seat waiting to hear the conclusion of things. And we return to the story to find that the woman has gone to the town, told everyone about the Messiah and brought a slew of people back with her. They came trusting in her word and then came to believe on their own because the Lord stayed two days talking with them. Jesus, the Jesus man, spends two whole days talking, eating, and praying with these people He isn’t even supposed to go near.

Brothers and sisters, Jesus is at the well in this very moment waiting for us to go to Him and to encounter Him again. There’s absolutely nothing that can keep us from Jesus Christ. It doesn’t matter where we’ve been, where we are right now, or where we’re going in the future - He’s already there waiting for us. Waiting to have the chance to ask us for a drink, to ask us to give Him our whole life to Him for eternity.

All of us start Lent with our penances and we have great aspirations of what is going to happen and hopes to have a good Lent. I doubt that I’m the only one who has given myself a free pass from time to time on these things. When Fr. Ed brought home a bunch of sweet the other day I reasoned myself into it. I mean, after all, it really was an act of charity since he had two whole cakes that I eat part of both of them so He wouldn’t have to have it go to waste. And a couple of the cookies too. And the brownies. And the fudge… So there I stood licking my fingers of the last few crumbs, frustrated that Lent wasn’t going as well as I had hoped. If you’re in a similar place, the good news is that we’re not even halfway through the season. We still have four full weeks before Easter comes and that is more than enough time for God to do incredible things in our lives.

So, I want to make a challenge to everyone in the Church today to encounter Jesus in these next four weeks and to do so in a specific way. Hopefully you all know about the Eucharistic Adoration Chapel at the Lutcher Chapel. In that chapel 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year except the three days before Easter, the Lord Jesus is present in the Eucharist, exposed so that you can look upon His Body and Blood and in a sense speak to Him face to face about whatever is happening in your life. He is truly waiting for you to go visit. So that’s my challenge: for each of you here to spend at least 30 minutes in Adoration twice a week for the next four weeks. That’s only four hours out of a month. But here is a promise I can make: there is not a single person here today that can go and spend 30 minutes twice a week in Adoration and really seek the Lord in prayer who would be able to look me in the eye on Easter Sunday and say that nothing has changed in their life. If we spend time with Christ in prayer, we’ll be confused sometimes, we’ll be challenged to repent of sins, we’ll sidestep the Lord here and there, but in the end we will encounter the God who was waiting for us the whole time. So I ask you, How’s your prayer life?

Photo by Jeff Geerling

Social Costs of Pornography

Available at Amazon.com

Readings for Sunday, October 28/ 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time:
Jeremiah 31:7-9
Psalm 126:1-6
Hebrews 5:1-6
Mark 10:46-52

“Every priest is taken from among men and made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people.”

This passage has always stuck out to me, especially as I discerned and pursued a vocation to the priesthood, because it clearly reminds me of who I am. I am a sinner, beset by weakness. I’m not better than anyone because I’m a priest. I’m not holier than anyone because I’m a priest. I have a past, parts of which I’m not particularly proud of, but I am not confined or defined by it. Rather, I am defined by the life I choose to live as my life moves forward and the same goes for all of us. We have all done things in our lives that were sinful, but the reality is that God’s grace is bigger than anything in the past and the Mercy of God is so generous that even the most grievous offenses are forgiven instantly when we simply come to open our hearts to the One who died to ransom us for Heaven. There is always hope.

For the past several weeks we’ve all been hearing the presidential and vice-presidential debates, the ads on TV, the news, webpages and other media sources talk about all of the things going on in the world today, particularly the problems that must be addressed. We’ve heard endless discussions on things such as the economy, foreign policy, energy, and a list of other things. But one thing that I haven’t heard a word spoken about is actually one of the most destructive forces in our world today, and that destructive force is the reason you received those white ribbons when you came into Mass today: pornography.

I came across a book a while back that really interested me because it was a book entitled The Social Costs of Pornography, but which wasn’t written from a religious perspective. For the Catholic Church or a group of religious people to write a book against it would be for the world to chalk it up as religious belief trying to justify itself by coming up with facts to back up beliefs. Instead, this book is written by regular people who have to deal with the effects of pornography in our world: lawyers, psychologists, sociologists, computer techs, and other professionals who see it every day in the people they serve. This book comes together to give us some disturbing information.

 A few facts to show the scope of its reach:

-$100 billion dollars is spent on pornography each year.
-45% of teens view it regularly; not occasionally – regularly!
-90% of children between 8 and 16 years of age have viewed online pornography.

Some might see those numbers and be unconcerned because they think pornography isn’t really a problem. It is simply a private thing that doesn’t affect anyone and those who act it out are doing so freely, so what’s the big deal, right? Well, the big deal is that it is destroying the culture around us by destroying the way that we interact with other people.

For starters, the people who are in the videos or images are often there not because they enjoy it but because they’ve been coerced. Many who have been able to get away from this industry describe how drugs were offered to the actors and eventually they became dependent upon them, such that they were willing to do anything for the camera in order to get another high. Also, human trafficking is a major problem, as there are an estimated 13,000-15,000 people who are bought and sold into this market of sexual exploitation each year; slavery is still going on in our world today.

The part that is more notably affecting the world outside of those actors and producers is not much brighter. The statistics and findings of the report in that book on the social costs of pornography indicate a number of very serious problems – and below is just a small portion of the findings. The fact that internet pornography is so readily accessible on phones, notepads, computers, and every other electronic device means that it is there at our fingertips 24-hours a day, which encourages addictive behavior. Divorce lawyers indicated that nearly 25% of divorce cases indicated pornography use as a major factor in the separation.

But more fundamentally, it distorts the view of the human person. It has been noted that the problem with pornography not that it shows too much of the human person but that it shows too little. A picture or video cannot capture the soul of a person, it cannot show the whole person who is there but rather reduces them to their body parts. Pornography essentially makes people who are meant to be loved into objects that are used instead and this transfers into normal social interaction. Thus, users of pornography find it more difficult to enter into actual intimate relationships because they are unable to truly love but rather are gratifying themselves at the expense of the other. This means that faithfulness in marriage and relationships in general is drastically decreased. Also, users are constantly fed lies that distort the reality of true intimacy, hide the negative effects of unfaithfulness and extra-marital sexual encounters, and fail to provide any accurate depiction of what it means to be a man or woman and how to interact with the opposite sex. In general, pornography takes everything that can build up the human person and strengthen family life and does the exact opposite. Is it any wonder that as the dignity of the human person is denied in our world we see an increase in violence, promiscuity, and addictive behavior? This evil silently destroying our country and unless we personally and communally take a stand against it, we will continue to see the family and human person become less and less honored in our world.

So I end with this – pornography affects each and every single one of us. If it is affecting you or has in the past because of your use of it, there is always hope. As I said at the beginning of the homily, there is no sin that Christ won’t forgive and for that reason we don’t have to be bound up by the sins of the past. In fact, Christ longs to free us from these sins and to bring us to wholeness because we weren’t created for slavery and sin but for freedom and life eternal. We simply need to come to Him with open hearts, recognizing that Christ has the power to do anything. Like Bartimaeus in the Gospel today, we must cry out for the Lord and know that we are heard and He desires to effect the healing the same as He did for Bartimaeus.

For those not affect by it personally, thank God and pray for those who are. Pray for our youth who are being bombarded with it. Pray for families being broken apart by it. Pray for those still caught up in the industry themselves. God’s love is being our understanding and His grace works in powerful ways if we call upon Him and Our Blessed Mother is a perfect reflection of that love and all grace passes through her hands, so let us also pray through the intercession of Mary, Undoer of Knots, that the bonds of sin might be broken and true freedom would be known by all.

 

*****

For more information on pornography and getting help:

Website - Resources from IntegrityRestored.com

Book - The Pornography Epidemic: A Catholic Approach

Online Accountability Program

Social Justice Right in Your Hands!

What does the Church say about Social Justice issues? A LOT! One of the best texts that includes references and quotes galor from Vatican II, John Paul II and other more recent documents, is the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church. It was required reading for both of my social justice classes at the seminary and ought to be required for all Catholics period. To help with that endeavor, The Curt Jester has kindly made it available for free in e-reader format (iPad/Nook/Kindle/etc.) HERE. Check it out!

Seek the Lord

Readings for Sunday, September 18:
Isaiah 55:6-9
Psalm 145:2-3, 8-9, 17-18
Philippians 1:20-24, 27
Matthew 20:1-16

This past week I had the pleasure of visiting with each of our seventh grade classes here at the school and we got on the topic of the Mass. When asked how many of the class thought the Mass was boring, a large majority immediately raised their hands. And the main reason? They didn’t understand what was going on. My brothers and sisters, if we truly understood what took place in the celebration of the Mass we would not be bored; we would be speechless at the miracle that takes place before us.

The prophet Isaiah challenges us today in our first reading: “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call him while he is near.” And what better place to find that Lord than in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass? This mysterious celebration wherein God becomes really, truly and substantially present on this altar and we can truly point and say “This is the flesh and blood of God!” It is clear, then, that the challenge is not in knowing where the Lord may be found. Rather, the challenge is actually SEEKING the Lord in that place. To seek after something does not mean to simply sit there and wait for it to come to us; it does not mean to simply be aware of what is going on around us. It means to try to discover something; to explore; to ask questions. To seek after the Lord, especially in the liturgy, is to ask questions, to try to discover, and to be actively engaged in what is taking place before us.

In the Second Vatican Council document on the liturgy it is said that the reforms of the liturgy were primarily done to allow ‘participatio actuosa’ in the faithful. This term is often translated as ‘active participation,’ but the more proper translation is ‘actual participation,’ which emphasizes the reality of each person’s entering into the celebration. The bishops wanted everyone to actually participate in what takes place in the celebration of the Mass. But how can we participate when we don’t know what is happening and why?

The order of things, the precise wording, the different actions, every single thing that takes place in the Mass has a reason for it being there and often has several hundreds of years of history and theology behind it. But we can easily miss all of the richness if we don’t open ourselves to it. Again, if we understand it, we won’t be bored.

You may have heard already that at the beginning of Advent this year, on November 27, we will experience some changes in the Mass. The ritual and actions will remain the same, but the prayers will be slightly different, often just a few words changed here and there. This is because an updated edition of the Roman Missal – the book of prayers for the celebration of the Mass – was issued in 2002 and has finally been translated in English. We’ve already begun to hear some of those changes as we introduce the sung Mass parts this weekend and will continue to hear more about the spoken prayers through homilies, bulletin articles and other handouts in the weeks to come.

While it will take some time to get used to praying these new words, it is a graced time for the Church in America. The little changes here and there will force us all to pay more attention to what it is that we’re saying and praying in Mass. Also, it is a blessed time because there is so much out there available at our fingertips to help with this transition and to help us deepen our understanding of the Mass. Two books that I would particularly suggest are: The Magnificat Roman MissalCompanion, which goes through the whole Mass with the new prayers and explains why the wording is important, and Fr. Matthew Buettner’s Understanding the Mystery of the Mass, which explains the depth of the ritual actions themselves. These are both small books split into sections that can easily be read in a few minutes and serve as great introductory materials for further study if so desired. In these coming months of grace, do not miss this special opportunity to seek the Lord where he may be found.

Other books helpful in understanding the depths of the Mass (though not about the changes to come):

Cardinal Ratizinger (Pope Benedict XVI) - The Spirit of the Liturgy

Fr. Jeremy Driscoll, OSB - What Happens at Mass 

Fr. Robert Cabie' & A.G. Martimort - The Church at Prayer, Vol 2: The Eucharist

Fr. Adrian Fortescue - The Mass: A Study of the Roman Liturgy (about the Pre-Vatican II Mass, but helpful in learning history and theological significance since much remains the same as before)

More Prayers!

Last weekend in my homily I spoke about a large book of prayers and have since received several phone calls and emails asking for more information on it. The book is called the "Raccolta" and can be purchased from the publishers HERE. The book is from the 1950's and was the official book of indulgences - so for each prayer there is detailed the indulgence that was formerly attached to that prayer. With the revision of indulgences around the time of the Second Vatican Council, most of the indulgences noted are no longer in effect. However, the prayers are still beautiful and can certainly help to nourish our spiritual life. Tangentially, if you would like more information on the current 'Manual for Indulgences' which details how to attain indulgences and what prayers gain you indulgences, you can look HERE.

Face-Melting Quote of the Day

Since my last post I have run a half marathon (13.1 miles), gotten a stress fracture in my foot due to running said marathon, and spent the week working on various projects after falling behind due to the need to tend to said stress fracture. Thus, things have been a bit hectic lately, but I'm finally able to come back to the surface and breathe again - and the air is quite nice! The past few days have been spent preparing for a presentation due on Monday for my 'Theology of Holy Orders' course here at the seminary, so I've been reading a lot about the priesthood, which I've found really exciting. One quote of the many quotes that I thought were incredible came from Archbishop Charles Chaput, in the book Priests for a New Millennium: 

“’Maintenance-mode’ Christianity does not exist. Happiness for the priest depends on our bringing others to know Jesus Christ, and deepening the roots of the word in the hearts of those who already profess him. If priests do not live the ministry of the word ardently and actively, we cannot be happy, because we are made to be a model and sacrifice for others. We are made to witness.”