Easter: The Spirit and the Fruit - Homily for May 20

Readings for Sunday, May 20 / Pentecost: Acts 2:1-11  |  Psalm 104  |  Galatians 5:16-25  |  John 20:19-23

The Spirit dwells in us and seeks to produce fruits within the soil of our soul. Are they there?

Easter: The Head and the Body - Homily for May 13

Readings for May 13 / Ascension of Our Lord:  Acts 1:1-11  |  Psalm 47  |  Ephesians 1:17-23  |  Mark 16:15-20

The feast of the Ascension of Our Lord tells us much about Christ the Head and about our mission as the Body. Let's get to work!

Easter: Really Listen (Homily for May 6)

Readings for Sunday, May 6 / 6th Sunday of Easter: Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48  |  Psalm 98  |  1 John 4:7-10  |  John 15:9-17

Today we hear much about the of God and loving one another. These messages from the Scriptures can become so familiar to us that they lose their power. Today the Lord invites us to really listen to them, as if for the first time.

Easter: Pruning Needed (Homily for April 29)

Readings for Sunday, April 29 / 5th Sunday of Easter: Acts 9:26-31  |  Psalm 22  |  1 John 3:18-24  |  John 15:1-8

The Lord calls us to be people of integrity - to walk the walk and talk the talk, as they say. When we fail to do that is shows that there is some pruning that needs to happen in our heart. What joy it is to know that the Father is the vinedresser who knows exactly how to help us become fruitful.

Easter: The Good Shepherd - Homily for April 22

Readings for Sunday, April 22 / 4th Sunday of Easter: Acts 4:8-12  |  Psalm 118  |  1 John 3:1-2  |  John 10:11-18

Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for us. Are we willing to lay ours down to follow Him? 

Easter: Peace - Homily for April 15

Readings for Sunday, April 15 / 3rd Sunday of Easter: Acts 3:13-15, 17-19  |  Psalm 4  |  1 John 2:1-5 |  Luke 24:35-48

Christ comes to bring us the fruits of the Resurrection: peace. May His presence and grace fill us with this gift always. 

Easter: The Sin and the Savior - Homily for April 8

Readings for Sunday, April 8 / Divine Mercy Sunday: Acts 4:32-35  |  Psalm 118  |  1 John 5:1-6  |  John 20:19-31

The key to salvation is accepting the message of Mercy: turn from sin and live the Life of Grace.

Life! - Homilies for the Sacred Paschal Triduum

Readings for Thursday, March 29 / Holy Thursday: Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14  |  Psalm 116  |  1 Corinthians 11:23-26  |  John 13:1-15


Readings for Friday, March 30 / Good Friday: Isaiah 52:13-53:12  |  Psalm 31  |  Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9  |  John 18:1-19:42


Readings for Sunday, April 1 / Easter Sunday: Acts 10:34, 37-43  |  Pslam 118  |  Colossians 3:1-4  |  John 20:1-9

Ascension: Divine Spitballs and the Church - Homily for May 28

Readings for Sunday, May 28 / Ascension of the Lord: Acts 1:1-11  |  Psalm 47  |  Ephesians 1:17-23  |  Matthew 28:16-20

The Ascension of the Lord is not a time when Christ leaves the Church, rather it is a time when He takes full authority and is able to grant grace and power on a large scale to the Church. May we be docile instruments in the hand of so great a King!

Easter: If you love Me... - Homily for May 21

Readings for Sunday, May 21 / 6th Sunday of Easter: Acts 8:5-8, 14-17  |  Psalm 66  |  1 Peter 3:15-18  |  John 14:15-21

The Lord tells us today, "If you love Me, you will keep My Commandments." The keeping of the Commandments of God is, then, not so much a matter of checking boxes off as it is a measure of our love for the Lord Himself. Lord Jesus, we love You. Help us to love You more!

Triduum & Easter Homilies

Here are the recordings of the Triduum and Easter liturgies as celebrated here at St. Ann Church & St. Vincent Mission.


Readings for Holy Thursday


Readings for Good Friday

Readings for the Paschal Vigil

Readings for Easter Sunday

Black and Tan, He and I

Readings for Sunday, May 24/ Pentecost:
Acts 2:1-11
Psalm 104
1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13
John 20:19-23

As I was preparing for this homily the image that came to mind seemed a bit odd to me, but wouldn’t go away. The image was the drink known as a ‘Black and Tan.’ You begin with a good pint glass and fill it about halfway with Bass Pale Ale. Then you take a bent spoon and with the bottom of the cupped part facing up, very slowly pour Guinness on top of the spoon and allow it to settle in the glass. The density of the beers being different and the gentle pour aided by the spoon results in the beers not mixing but layering, giving it the description ‘Black and Tan’.

The reason that image came to mind is that the Holy Spirit is given to us at baptism and desires to transform our entire life, making His way into each and every moment of our day. The problem is that sometimes when we encounter God we take various types of spoons and put them in the way such that God is still part of the pint glass that is our life, but it doesn’t mess with everything. We try to make our life a Black and Tan in that we can have our nice time where God is welcome to do all sorts of things, but we can also have those places where God isn’t really part of the equation and can keep to Himself and we can keep things as we like them.

One of my favorites depictions of Pentecost is one in which Our Lady is standing joyfully in the center ready to receive the Holy Spirit but the rest of the Apostles and disciples are all falling down, fleeing the scene, many with their hands moving as if to shield themselves. It seems right because Our Lady was perfectly open to the Holy Spirit from the start but the others, like us, had to be purified and prepared for His arrival in their hearts. This is a difficult process – hence, our reluctance to begin it, instead turning to sin, grasping for control, or simply keeping ourselves to busy we don’t have time to hear the voice of God speak.

In response to any of these fears or the tendency to busy-ness, I want to invite each of you to join me in doing a ten-minute challenge for the week. Cardinal Mercier, of happy memory, was once asked about the secret of sanctity and he had this to say:

I am going to reveal to you the secret of sanctity and happiness. Every day for five minutes control your imagination and close your eyes to all the noises of the world in order to enter into yourself. Then, in the sanctuary of your baptized soul, which is the temple of the Holy Spirit, speak to that Divine Spirit, saying to Him:
 O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore You. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I should do; give me Your orders. I promise to submit myself to all that You desire of me and to accept all that You permit to happen to me. Let me only know Your Will. If you do this, your life will flow along happily, serenely, and full of consolation, even in the midst of trials. Grace will be proportioned to the trial, giving you the strength to carry it and you will arrive at the Gate of Paradise, laden with merit. This submission to the Holy Spirit is the secret of sanctity.

So I invite you to join with me this week in putting this secret into action. Take five minutes away from all the things of the world and rest with the Holy Spirit, pray the prayer above and then rest for a few minutes with the Holy Spirit once more, as He may desire to speak. Then, go about your day. As Cardinal Mercier noted, you’ll soon notice that  there is a peace that has come to all the other things of the day. The craziness of the world around you will still be there as before, but the peace of soul we desire will have increased and that is the desire of the Lord as today He seeks to give us peace as He gave it to His disciples. Come, Holy Spirit. Come and bring us your joy. Come and bring us your grace. Come and bring us your peace.

Birds, Beads and Hope

Readings for Sunday, May 17/ Ascension Sunday:
Acts 1:1-11
Psalm 47
Ephesians 1:17-23
Mark 16:15-20

A couple of years ago it became clear to me that I needed to get in a shape other than round and so I decided to get on a health and wellness plan. I was suggested one by a brother priest, who had found it to be effective and spiritually enriching, and decided to go with it. It even came with a couple of books, which made me excited, of course. As I read through the first book the doctor who devised the system encouraged that the motivation for weight loss and optimal health be not a negative one but rather positive, as the negatives tend to lead us to a cycle of ups and downs as the fear and negative feelings fade over time. He suggested that I begin with a list of positive motivating factors to keep me going. So I started my list with serious things: want to see my nieces, nephews, and godchildren grow up, wanting to outlive my parents, wanting to serve God as a priest as long as He desires. Then I added in some that were less noble: wanting to wear my awesome t-shirts that didn’t look so awesome with me in them, wanting to get rid of my ‘bishop belly’ (the bishops photos as the seminary all featured a prominent stomach on which to rest their hands), and that my vestments would fit like they’re supposed to. These and others gave me a positive motivation to work toward my goal of good health. In short, they encompassed what the Scriptures speak to us: perfect love casts out fear.

The martyrs of the faith, following Jesus’ lead, certainly experienced some fear at their trials and during their sufferings and death – but their love for God was even stronger than their fears and made them willing to continue the course.

This weekend we celebrate the feast of the Ascension, marking that glorious day when the Lord Jesus ascended into Heaven to claim His throne at the right hand of the Father and to prepare the way for us to follow. While seeing Jesus ascend must surely have been a bit of a saddening experience, the reality is that this feast is one meant to increase in our hearts the theological virtue of hope. There is much darkness in the world with wars, violence, illness, death, and numerous others sufferings mixed in, but the reality is that there is something greater that awaits the righteous. The prayers of the Mass this weekend beautifully remind us that Christ ascended to Heaven not to separate Himself from us, but to prepare the way for us to join Him forever in Heaven: where the Head has gone, the Body is called to follow! He does not abandon us, but is a sign of hope to remind us that we are not to dwell forever in the valley of tears but are called to the place where every tear will be wiped away. What’s more, the Good Lord even gives us the Eucharist to sustain us with His Presence until we are able to be joined forever in the next life.

To aid us in this increase of the virtue of hope, I invite you to join with me in offering a decade of the rosary, meditating on the mystery of the Ascension. Growing in God’s grace need not be accompanied by great acts of piety – the little one done with love are quite effective! Walking to church to hear confessions this weekend I saw a big crow in the yard steadily hoping along the walkway as a little mocking bird swooped down over and over trying to scare him off. And slowly but surely the crow was moving where the mocking bird wanted. Then came a couple more little birds and pretty soon there were three or four little ones and the crow took off. The devil, sin, and despair is much the same. It looks big and difficult to get rid of, but we have a mighty little mocking bird in the Hail Mary and as we string a few of them together incredible things can happen right before our eyes. So let us pray…

God Speaks

Readings for Sunday, May 10/ 5th Sunday of Easter:
Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48
Psalm 98:1-4
1 John 4:7-10
John 15:9-17

How does God speak to you? How does He reveal Himself to you?

For myself, I have come to know God and hear His voice speaking powerfully through Sacred Scripture, in the liturgy, in creation, in theological writings, and many other ways. But if I’m honest with myself, the place that God has revealed Himself to me is through other people.

It was the words of a priest that helped me discern my call to the diocesan priesthood. It was the voice of my girlfriend breaking up with me to open my path to the seminary in the first place. It was the remarks of one of my youth group kids at my first parish that shaped the way that I’ve lived my priesthood in the parish. These are just a few of the many ways that God has shown Himself to me and spoken to me through others. But the love of God for me? That came through my parents.

For years the mother who gave me the gift of life and bore me in her womb for nine months was a subject not of my appreciate but of resentment. I couldn’t understand how she could ‘give me away’ and it was a source of much anger in my heart. But thankfully the Lord has shown me such was not the case. In a particular way this week I was struck by the intense realization that she laid down her life with me for me. When I hear “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” I often think of literally laying down one’s life, like Christ on the Cross or the many martyrs of the faith, but the Lord reminded me of the ‘white martyrs’ who die to themselves and their desires. It really hit me this week just how much my birth mother gave up of her own joys – first words, first steps, first day of school and many more events – in order for me to have an upbringing she couldn’t have otherwise provided for me.

And my adoptive mother, shows me another side of this Divine Love. The simple fact is that she had no obligation to me; I’m not her flesh and blood and she could just as easily have let me go elsewhere, and yet she didn’t. She welcome this infant child into her family and has never treated me differently than her other children. This, too, showed me something of the love of God for me in that God, Who has no obligation to me, gave His Son up to death in order that I might be able to be welcomed into the Most Blessed Trinity. In this is love!

Both of these show me in some way the Love of God for me because they, like every action of charity, are reflections of Divine Love itself. This is the beautiful thing: that charitable actions are simply the life and love of God being made manifest in and through people. And if God has shown Himself and His love to me so many times through other people, how much does He also want to do it through me? This is the point of the Gospel this weekend: “It was not you who chose me but I who chose you to go and bear fruit that will remain.” Fruit that will remain.

Those many times that people have spoken something, done something that was a reflection of the life and love of God for me are that fruits that remain. The words of a priest have had a lasting effect on me. The words of my youth have had a lasting effect. And surely the love of my parents has had a lasting effect on me. They are fruits that remain because they are points when the individuals have tried to ‘remain in God’. When we remain in the Lord and try to be people of faith, true disciples of Jesus Christ, the simple fact is that He will work in and through us to speak to other people and bear fruit in their lives that will remain as He has done the same in us.

So ultimately the question isn’t really ‘How does God speak to you?’ so much as it should be leaving from here today ‘How does God speak through you?’ May the Lord grant us the grace to remain in Him today and every day that indeed we might bear fruit that will remain.  

Bonus Points

Readings for Sunday, May 3/ 5th Sunday of Easter:

Acts 9:26-31

Psalm 22

1 John 3:18-24

John 15:1-8

You may recall that I didn’t go to seminary directly out of high school, but did a couple of years at LSU and then transferred. I see that time as filled with the handiwork of God in many ways, one of those being my experience of math courses. When I took the placement test they said I should be able to start with intro level calculus, so I signed up for it. My first day in class made it abundantly clear to me that I was in over my head, so I withdrew and signed up for a lower level course. The next year I signed up for calculus again, this time a bit more prepared. Looking back, I believe it rather providential that I took the course that semester because on the first day of class the teacher announced that we’d all get bonus points each time the Tigers won a football game – that was the year we won the national championship. God is good! When it came time for grades to come out I looked as found that I passed with a D. Barely. It turns out those bonus points came in quite handy and helped me get exactly the number of credit hours needed to enter the seminary as a junior instead of a freshman. Admittedly, I should have studied a lot more and worked a bit harder, but the bonus points still helped me to get somewhere that I wouldn’t have been without them.

In the reading we heard from Acts, we find the story of Saul trying to join up with the newly-formed Church, but not making much headway. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, though, considering that not long before he was moving from place to place in search of Christians in order to kill them and extinguish ‘the Way’ as the Church was known. It is understandable that the Christian community was reluctant to welcome him, knowing that his conversion might be a hoax and only a means of adding more names to his long list of victims. In the midst of this situation we find the person of Barnabas, who acts as an intermediary to bring Saul into the community. Saul could certainly have spent a good while trying to prove himself a Christian and convince the community that his conversion was a genuine one, but the presence of Barnabas was of great assistance in speeding the process along. And Saul’s entry brought forth a leader and apostle whose works are still read and whose evangelical efforts are still bearing fruit.

As we begin this month of May, the Church has traditionally seen it as a time to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary and to encourage devotion to her. She does so because sees in the Blessed Virgin a sure means of growing closer to Jesus Christ with great speed and ease. This, after all, is the entire purpose of Mary’s life: making Christ present. When she said yes to the Archangel Gabriel at the Annunciation, it wasn’t just to the Incarnation of the Son of God in her womb, it was to the entire plan of God. Bearing the Son first in her womb, she now seeks to bear Him into our hearts and bring us to Heaven that we might adore Him alongside her for all eternity. She is constantly at work carrying out the will of God and pouring His grace upon us, though we may remain unaware. And this I would like to work on myself: awareness of Mary’s care.

Again, the Church offers this month as a time to encourage devotion to Mary, so I want to invite/encourage/challenge you to join me in doing so. Each evening in front of the Church we will be praying the Rosary. Come join us! If you can’t make it then, pray it another time in the day – pray it as a family, get a group together and pray it, pray it on the way to work. You can also do a novena to Our Lady for some specific intention and see the how powerfully she works. Get a book and read about her life, about devotion to Mary, about the rosary, about Marian apparitions over the centuries. And if none of those seem do-able to you, then at least take a statue of Mary and place it in a prominent place in your home where you’ll remember daily the spiritual care she is exercising over you. Think about it – what if you put a statue of Our Lady in your kitchen sink? You’d certainly notice her a lot more often and would cause you to reflect that much more on her. Regardless, the key is to grow in devotion to Mary because as St. Louis de Montfort said, the surest, quickest, and easiest way to Jesus is through Mary. We can spend many hours working on growth in virtue, rooting up vice, and practicing Christian charity toward others, but the simple fact is that what takes us years to accomplish, Mary can bring about in mere minutes. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to grow close to our heavenly mother this month because, just like bonus points, she is incredibly helpful in making things happen that we might never expect otherwise.

Just Trust Us

Readings for Sunday, April 26/ 4th Sunday of Easter:
Acts 4:8-12
Psalm 118
1 John 3:1-2
John 10:11-18

Growing up, I was a bit of a picky eater. Generally it was poptarts, meats, cheese, bread, ketchup, and french fries. So basically, poptarts, cheeseburgers, french fries. Thankfully as I’ve grown in age, I’ve also grown in my tastes and willingness to branch out. In recent years I’ve gotten into the habit that if I’m looking over a menu and find an item with the description including the phrase ‘just trust us.’ I usually get that thing. Saturday morning I went to Denham Springs to celebrate my nephew’s baptism. Afterward we went to a local restaurant, Big Mike’s, for a bit to eat. Looking through the menu there were several things that sounded good when I came across the Peanut Butter Bacon Cheeseburger. “8oz black angus hamburger topped with peanut butter and bacon. Served on a sweet sourdough bun with a side of french fries. Just trust us.” So... I got. And it was delicious!

The thing about it is that most of the items that have the ‘just trust us’ statement are either too good to be true or too weird to be good. Either way, customers might need that extra encouragement to be willing to take the plunge.

As we come this weekend to celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday, we recall the fact that God is ever-watchful of us, the flock. As members of the flock, it is our role to follow the shepherd which means first and foremost being able to trust the shepherd; and this is the hard part for most of us. I don’t know about you, but if I were to look at the Lord Jesus’ life as a menu, nearly every item on it would require that extra push to ‘just trust us’. Think about it: God became a human person, bearing our own flesh and enduring every trial and temptation we do. Eh…that sounds weird. “Just trust us.” A virgin gave birth to a baby boy? That doesn’t sound right. “Just trust us.” The same baby boy, who is also God, grew up and walked around almost unnoticed for 30 years. Really? “Just trust us.” After 30 years He up and becomes one of the most famous people of his day? That just sounds made up. “Just trust us.” At the end of His 33 years, He willing climbed a hill with His cross in order to be killed? Whoa. That’s just crazy. “Just trust us.” Then the dead man came back to life three days later. Seriously. That’s just not even possible. “Just trust us.” Then that dead man who came back to life ascended up to Heaven and opened Heaven for us follow after Him and be united to God forever. This madness has to stop! “Just trust us.” Over an over again the life of Jesus Christ challenges us trust in God that things are what He says they are, despite the fact that those things just don’t happen…and yet they did.

This past week we celebrated the feast of St. Anselm, who was a great philosopher and theologian. One of the great axioms he gave to the Church was his little phrase ‘credo ut intelligam’ – I believe so that I might understand. Often times in our world today we have to seek to make sense of something before we place our trust in it. And if you’re waiting to fully understand the life of Jesus Christ before you put your trust in Him, then good luck with that! St. Anselm shows us that in the ways of faith, the first step isn’t understanding but rather the step of faith. We take a step out in faith first and trust that God will help to unveil things and bring us to a deeper understanding as time goes on.

Celebrating First Holy Communion this weekend, it strikes me that one of the best places to start with this ‘credo ut intelligam’ approach of faith is right here in the Eucharist. We can seek to understand all sorts of things, but the life of God only comes alive when we first make that act of faith and let the Lord Jesus and His grace come alive within us. And so I want to reflect for a brief moment on how we are able to act in faith first and let the Lord open up the gift of the Eucharist to us in the time that follows.

The first question that came to mind was ‘How do I show my belief that the Eucharist is really Jesus Christ?’ The little actions we do – genuflecting, praying on our knees, visiting the church when it’s open, making the sign of the Cross as we drive past – are all ways that our body speaks something to our soul. By actually going through the motions, we help to inform our soul that something special is happening.

The second question is ‘How often do I receive Jesus in the Eucharist?’ If we don’t come often, it tends to lessen the value we place on the Most Blessed Sacrament. But if we came each weekend and made it a point to come each weekend, or even during the week, our actions show that what we’re here for is more important than all the other things on our schedule. How often do we receive Jesus?

And lastly, ‘How do I prepare to receive Holy Communion?’ It’s easy to get caught up in so many concerns and worries that when we get to Mass we’re not even there. Or to listen t

o music on the way and the only thing that’s in your head after Communion is that catchy beat (guilty!). Or are we even spiritually ready to receive the Lord at all? Maybe I have things on my heart that I really need to seek forgiveness for first before going up to the altar. How do I prepare?

In all the times I’ve gotten the ‘Just trust us’ special at a restaurant, not once have I been disappointed. And if it’s true of burgers and strange foods, it is even more so about our God. Today He comes once more and invites us to come and follow more closely. It’s a strange invitation and sometimes we shrink back from giving Him everything. But there’s no need to fear. Just trust me.

Valuing Easter

Readings for Sunday, April 19/ 3rd Sunday of Easter:
Acts 3:13-15, 17-19
Psalm 4:2, 4, 7-9
1 John 2:1-5
Luke 24:35-48

The other day I sat down and watched the movie Matchstick Men, which is about conmen and their work. One of the conmen goes in to speak with a therapist and tells him he’s an antique furniture salesman. At one point the therapist asks if it’s okay that he prop his feet up on a footstool on account of his back trouble. The supposed antique furniture salesman agrees without batting an eye. This goes on for a couple of visits when the therapist finally says, ‘This footstool is an antique of great and for weeks you don’t even seem to mind me propping my feet up, when normal people usually balk at such an idea. So what do you really do?’

This scene struck me because it showed that the conman was exposed because he failed to recognize something that was of great importance, and which he should have known about. Looking around the world today, I see a world full of people – including many Christians – who celebrate Easter but who have no idea of the inherent value of the Resurrection of Christ from the dead. Easter is the day (and season) when we focus especially on the fact that Christ died and rose again, that He conquered death, that He is victorious over sin, that He has opened the gates of Heaven and all humanity is able to enter into the Eternal Heavenly Banquet. But does the value of that really touch our hearts?

In the world today there are two major issues that tend to veil the importance of Easter and make it difficult for us to see the necessity of it in our individual lives. The first is presumption of salvation. I have been to funerals and heard ‘they’re in a better place’ and I wondered in my heart if those speaking actually knew the deceased. The fact is that most of the world today presumes that the nature course of things is that we die and then we immediately go to Heaven. But the Gospel tells us another story. It tells us, instead, that the natural course is that we die and go to Hell if we don’t at least try to follow the commands of the Lord. And yet, every person who dies, whether they’ve ever said a prayer in their life is automatically canonized as a saint in heaven. When we think in such a way, we first rob the individual of prayers that might be helpful for them to get to Heaven if they are in purgatory. And secondly, it harms us because if I know for myself that I don’t have to do anything special to get to Heaven, I very likely wont. I’ll settle for what’s comfortable and coast in. But again, this is not compatible with the Gospel invitation to enter the narrow gate and walk the way of the cross to find glory in eternity.

Connected to this is a loss of a sense of sin. Things that we do routinely today would have been thought unimaginable 75 years ago. And things that are sinful but not ‘major sins’ aren’t even concerns for the majority of the world. ‘It’s just who I am’ is the common response. And yet, if we fail to see the impact that sin has upon our lives – disconnecting us from God, grace, and salvation – then we fail to recognize the gift that Jesus Christ has given us in conquering sin. I find it interesting that so much of the Easter season talks about sin. St. Peter today said, “Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away.”  St. John told us, “I am writing this to you that you may not commit sin.” And Jesus trumps them both, describing how the Christ was to come, suffer, die, and be raised so that repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached. Sin is at the foundation of the Resurrection. If sin didn’t exist, Christ wouldn’t have had to take on our flesh, suffer His Passion, die and rise from the dead. But sin does exist and so we need a savior.

 This is the Good News of the Easter season: that although all of humanity is undeserving of eternal life, but rather deserving of eternal death on account of our sins, the Lord Jesus has come among us and died in our place and opened the gates of Heaven for us to be able to enter in with Him and reign forever with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  St. Augustine once beautifully noted, “God created us without us, but He cannot save us without us.” He invites us to take part in the plan He has made. Basically, it’s like hitting jackpot at the casino. If you just kept the printout saying how much you won it won’t do you any good; you have to cash it in. In much the same way, the Lord has purchased our souls for eternal life. We simply have to walk the way with Him and because of the Resurrection we can do so. May God grant us the grace this day to cast out sin from our lives and rejoice in the gift of freedom that Christ has won for us.

1931

Readings for Sunday, April 12/ Divine Mercy Sunday:

Acts 4:32-35

Psalm 118

1 John 5:1-6

John 20:19-31

In 1931, entertainers: James Dean and Leonard Nemoy were born. So too were Raul Castor, Mickey Mantle, and Willie Mays. The Star-Spangled Banner was adopted as the National Anthem, Alka Seltzer was introduced and began to be distributed. Spain’s monarchy was overthrown and a republic put in place. Austria’s largest bank failed, signaling the financial collapse of central Europe during the Great Depression. The 1^st cartoon of Donald Duck was show and rear-projected movies began to be shown. The Scottsboro Case in Alabama exposed the injustices present in the American legal system and Jane Addams won the Nobel Peace Prize, the first American woman to do so. Also that year, Al Capone was indicted on 5000 counts of perjury and prohibition. 5000; that’s just impressive.

In the midst of those and many other events in 1931 there is one that has probably an even greater effect upon the world as we know it today, though many are unaware of the fact. That event took place on February 22 in Poland, when a simple religious sister, Sr. Faustina, was spending her regular time before the Blessed Sacrament in the convent chapel. Though the time in prayer was a well-established part of her routine, this day was unique in that during her time of prayer the Lord Jesus appeared to her in a vision. He stood before her with a hand raised in blessing, the other pointing to His heart, which was not hidden but plainly visible. From his heart shown forth two rays, one red and one white. Seeing this vision, the Lord Jesus then spoke to Sr. Faustina, saying: “Paint an image according to the model you see, with the motto below: Jesus I trust in You. I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel, and then throughout the world. I promise that the soul that venerates this image will not perish.”

That image, as you may recognize, hangs prominently in our church – as it does in many churches these days – a sign that the desire of the Lord Jesus has been fulfilled to some extent. The image that began in the little chapel has made itself known in churches all across the world, but this is not the main point. The message of Jesus to Sr. Faustina was not simply for people to come honor an image, but ultimately to receive what the image shows: Divine Mercy. The two rays, Jesus later explained, symbolized the complete washing away of sin (white ray) and the life of Christ that comes to live in us (red ray). The simple invitation that Jesus desired was that Sr. Faustina spread the good news of the immensity of the Mercy of God and the desire of God to pour it out upon us.

In a later vision, as they lasted in all for 7 years, Jesus would also express a desire for a feast of Mercy. He told her: “I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and a shelter for all souls, especially poor sinners. On that day, the very depths of My tender mercy will be opened. I will pour out an entire ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the Fount of My Mercy. The soul that goes to Confession and receives Holy Communion will obtain complete forgiveness of sins and a remission of all punishment. (...) Let no soul fear to approach Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. (...) Humanity will not enjoy peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy.”

Humanity will not enjoy peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy. In the Gospel we just heard, the Lord shows us where the Fount of Mercy is: His glorious wounds. When He appears to the Apostles they are filled with fear, anxiety, and surely many other things in their hearts. And coming to them, He shows them His hands and feet and says, “Peace be with you.” The wounds themselves bring peace because they are the sure signs that Christ, who had been crucified, has been raised up. They are signs to the Apostles that the most terrible thing that life brings at us is trampled underfoot by their Lord. They need not worry about sin or death, but simply trust in the Lord. Thomas misses this first appearance and, upon seeing and touching the wounds of Jesus, is also granted the gift of peace and the certainty of knowing Christ’s victory. In witnessing the wounds of Christ, the disciples are then sent out to proclaim the Good News, they go out to proclaim the Mercy of God for humanity, calling all to seek forgiveness of sins and be baptized in Christ Jesus. They are even given the gift of forgiving sins themselves when the Lord breathed upon them the gift of the Spirit. Peace begins with the encounter with the Resurrected Lord, but then it must necessarily go out to others, that they too might experience peace.

So we stand here on this Divine Mercy Sunday, the feast desired by the Lord, and hear the invitation to come seek peace in Him. Come to confession. Come experience the peace that the wounds of Jesus won for us. And receiving that peace, show it to others.

Here, I think, is an important point. Mercy doesn’t just come to me and stop. It requires that I show it to others. Two instances this week really gave me pause about how I do that. We all know that the Boston Marathon Bomber was found guilty on all 30 charges this past week. What struck me was looking at facebook later only to find that many people who are ‘strong, traditional Catholics’ were calling for his death, posting how he needs to get what’s coming to him, and all sorts of mean-spirited reactions. And the first thought in my mind was ‘What about mercy?’ In no way am I defending his actions, but what in us causes the occasional joy of seeing someone else suffer? Why not pray for conversion of heart and a powerful witness to the Gospel, much like St. Paul and many others? Another thing, much more practical and of lesser importance, was as I was walking into the market. I overheard someone saying ‘why are you putting the buggy behind that person’s car?’ to which the other person said, ‘It’s not my car. I’m not gonna hit it.’ This little thing also spoke to me of the need to show mercy to others, as I had bad thoughts come to mind myself, but also the question of how are we showing mercy and love to others? How are we manifesting God’s concern for us by showing concern for others? They are necessarily connected, as Jesus reminds us in the scriptures.

To these events we can also add the events last night in Rome, as Pope Francis officially announced a Jubilee Year of Mercy for the Church starting in December on the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Mercy, he says, is what the world needs most right now and we must spend a special time to focus upon it. Let’s not wait until December, though. Let it begin today in our hearts as we come to honor this feast of Divine Mercy. Let us turn to the Lord and find peace.

Jesus, I Trust In You.

Easter Sunday

Readings for the Easter Vigil
Readings for Easter Sunday

If you’ve never been to the Easter Vigil before, do yourself a favor and attend it next year. It’s the single most beautiful liturgy of the entire Church Year and with good reason.

It begins in darkness, the crowd of people arriving and making their way to their places. It begins with a simple spark and a small flame. The flame builds into a fire. The people gather around the fire and from the fire comes forth a single flame to light the Paschal Candle, a symbol of Christ the Light of the World. The candle moves to the door and a word is proclaimed: the Light of Christ! All respond: Thanks be to God! And the light spreads to a few, the servers of the Mass. The Candle proceeds into the midpoint of the church and the people fall in behind. Again the proclamation: the Light of Christ! Thanks be to God! The servers share the light with those around them and it begins to spread. The candle proceeds once more, now to the sanctuary and all file into the seats and again the proclamation: the Light of Christ! Thanks be to God! Now the light has spread to the candle of every person in the church and the light has begun to cast out the darkness.

Now the Exsultet is sung, an ancient hymn of blessing upon the candle. At its conclusion, a little light is added to the church as the Old Testament readings are read and responses sung. These tell us the ancient stories of our faith and the ways that God worked to bring about our salvation. At the end of the readings the Gloria is sung and the light come up in the church and the altar candles are lit; more light. After a New Testament reading we sing the Alleluia and the lights are all turned on full strength; more light. After the Gospel and homily, baptisms are celebrated and baptismal candles are lit. But there still remains one light that is dimmed: the sanctuary lamp. After the Consecration of the Blessed Sacrament, the lamp is lit indicating the Eucharistic Presence in the tabernacle. 

The beauty of the Easter Vigil is that while it is primarily the triumph of Jesus Christ over the darkness of death by virtue of His Resurrection to Life, it also is a recounting of the whole story of salvation history, as well as the story of God working in each individual soul.

The world was created in darkness, as we heard in Genesis, and light was created. This can be viewed as God revealing things that otherwise would be unknown to us and it happens continually over the centuries. It begins with a man. Then a couple. Then a family. Pretty soon the family turns into a tribe of people and then into a whole nation. This nation is blessed by God with a leader to become a Kingdom. That Kingdom endured much for a thousand years until the Lord took flesh and came among us to build His Church. Generation after generation came to know the Lord a little bit more than those before them. The light continued to grow and increase until the Light itself came.

The same can be said of the unfolding of the Resurrection story. Mary goes first and witnesses it, then she tells Peter and John, they tell the other disciples, and the flame spreads and grows through the earth and throughout the centuries down to us, to you and me. And should we expect it to be any different after us?

The little flame of faith, symbolized by the baptismal candle we each received, took root in our hearts and began to grow and spread and the Lord Jesus wants to make that little light into a raging fire filled with the Holy Spirit. But we have to be willing to help Him! We have to be willing to share the Light with others and let them know the good news. At St. Joseph Abbey there was an venerable tradition that followed the Easter Vigil. The seminarians had all been fasting and praying while on retreat during the Triduum and were free to go home after the Vigil ended, so inevitably it would let out and a whole slew of famished young seminarians would immediately head home. But before hitting the interstate we would stop at the Wendy’s, which was right at the end of the road to the seminary. Sinking our teeth into a greasy cheeseburger and fries never tasted so good as on that night! Well, confession time: I like to keep that tradition alive. So after the Vigil I went out to McDonalds and got a big cheeseburger and feasted. As I was leaving with my food I thanked the young lady at the window and said, “Happy Easter!” She just looked at me dumbfounded and probably though ‘this poor pastor doesn’t even know it’s only Saturday’.

That’s my invitation to each of you – to share the good news that Jesus Christ has Risen from the dead with everyone you meet this week. It can be by telling everyone “Happy Easter”, which might confused the mess out of people come Thursday or Friday. It can be by acts of kindness, gift of prayers, or any number of things. But the simple point is that we have to share the light. Jesus Christ has conquered the darkness of sin, death, despair, and everything else that this world tries to use to quench our hope. Some people don’t yet know that, and sometimes we still struggle to accept it ourselves. Let the light spread. Help the Lord cast out the darkness. Christ is Risen! Alleluia, alleluia! He is truly Risen! Alleluia, alleluia!

HWP: Easter Wednesday

Today we find ourselves midway into the Easter Octave, that 8-day festival honoring the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead. I was intrigued to find a page (here) with a series of prayers for each day of the octave, so in celebration of Christ's Resurrection, we offer our HWP for the week:

A Prayer for Easter Wednesday 

Let us commend ourselves and all people

to the love and protection of the Mother of God. 

Holy Mother of God, Mary ever Virgin,

intercede for us with the Lord our God. 

God who is mighty has done great things for us.

And holy is His name. 

Let us pray:

Mary,

In the brilliant light of Easter,

Teach us, too, that nothing is impossible with God.

All our struggles with self and others,

All our disappointments and shames,

All our failures and sinfulness

Are as nothing in this healing, life-giving light.

Accept, then, our all.

May God look upon it,

As once did the Mighty One upon your lowliness,

So that we might be gifted with that blessedness

Promised to all sons and daughters of the Resurrection.