Pray for the Poor Souls

Readings for Tuesday, November 2/Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls Day):
Wisdom 3:1-9
Psalm 23:1-6
Romans 5:5-11
John 6:37-40

Yesterday we celebrated the Feast of All Saints, honoring those who have finished the race and won the heavenly crown, the gift of eternal life. On this the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed - also known as All Souls Day - we remember all those who have gone before us but have not yet gained eternal life. These are the many souls who died in a state of God's grace but are not yet totally purified so as to be ready to enter into the presence of God. This is where the doctrine of purgatory comes into play. These souls are being purged or cleansed in preparation for entry into Heaven and so we pray that their purging may be sped along and they might enter into glory more quickly. The beautiful thing about praying for the poor souls in purgatory is that when they finally attain the gift of eternal life, they will surely pray for us as we too journey along the way to salvation, both in this life and while we ourselves are in purgatory (assuming we find ourselves there after our own death).

It is a good and holy practice to pray for the dead. In fact it is one of the seven spiritual works of mercy and today on All Souls Day there is a plenary indulgence granted to the souls of the faithful depart when you "devoutly visit a church or an oratory and recite an Our Father and the Creed" (Manual of Indulgences, 99.1.2). Also, there is a plenary indulgence granted to them if "on any day and each day from November 1 to 8, devoutly visit a cemetery and pray, if only mentally, for the departed" (Manual, 99.1.1). If you have the ability, I would strongly encourage you to do these things because, with God's grace, we'll eventually find ourselves in purgatory too seeking the prayers of others to speed along the path the Heaven.

For all the saints...

Russian Icon of All Saints 

Readings for Monday, November 1/ Feast of All Saints:
Revelation 7:2-4,9-14
Psalm 24:1-6
1 John 3:1-3
Matthew 5:1-12

Throughout the liturgical year Mother Church celebrates the lives of a great number of men and women whose heroic virtue and example of holiness stand as a witness to us all of the power of God's grace in the soul of even a single person. We honor these men and women as saints of God, affirming that they are in fact in Heaven with the Lord interceding on our behalf. In addition to the many who are canonized saints, that is officially recognized by the Church, there are surely thousands upon thousands whose names are not known to us but are nonetheless inscribed in the Book of Life. Today, as we honor all of the saints in heaven, we are given the opportunity to ask once again for the prayers of all the saints and angels, as well as to reflect on their lives.

It is important to reflect on the lives of the saints because by doing so a number of things occur. First we are given the beautiful witness of those who lived the Christian life well. By this witness we are able to look at our own life and be encouraged to continue to strive for holiness and model our lives after these saints who endured many of the same trials as we endure and were triumphant. More than this, we are reminded that this life is not the end but that much more and much greater things lie in store for those who are faithful to the ways of the Lord. For all eternity, the saints stand before God in praise and adoration. When we reflect on the gift that they have won in their salvation, we are inflamed with a great desire to attain that same gift and share with them in the joy of beholding the face of God. Who would not desire this?

Another great gift, mentioned above, is to be reminded that the saints in heaven are not just the several thousand who have been canonized by the Church but consists of many thousands - probably millions or even billions - of holy souls who successfully ran the race and receive the heavenly crown. The vast majority were common men and women like you and I, souls who simply went about their daily work and sought to grow in holiness and glorify the Lord by our lives and in our prayer. This, for me, is the greatest encouragement. That so many humble, unknown souls have crossed into the heavenly banquet and are praying that you and I would soon join them at the feast. God grant that we may we be open to that transforming grace that will bring us all to be saints of God. And may all the saints of heaven pray for us today and always!

Because he loved me...

Readings for Friday, October 29:
Philippians 1:1-11
Psalm 111:1-6
Luke 14:1-6

He saved me because he loved me.

These words from Psalm 18 could well be the title of our readings for the day. Our gospel recounts another of those scenes wherein Jesus is shown challenging the teachings of the scholars and Pharissees. This time the Lord shows them - and us - that their strict observance of the law cast aside charity in the name of senseless obedience. This is a concrete example of what we hear elsewhere - that the great law is to love God, the second to love our neighbor. This act of love, says the Lord, ought to take precedence over the laws of men. As the Lord reaches out to the man with dropsy, He shows His love for him and cures all of his ailments. He saved him because he loved him. And the same can be said of us. Jesus had each of us in mind, consciously aware of each of one of us, as he lived His life and especially at His passion and death. That death was His ultimate sign of love and we too are called to die to ourselves and reach out in love to others who are need, to the suffering, the ill, and the poor. Surely we do these things to a degree already, but the Lord challenges us today to not be content where we are, but to grow in love. As we hear on the lips of St. Paul, "this is my prayer: that your love may ever more and more", so the Lord asks that we open our hearts even more to Him and to those that He puts into our lives.

Be Submissive?!

Stained Glass of St. Lambert
Saint Meinrad Archabbey Church

Readings for Wednesday, October 27:

Ephesians 6:1-9

Psalm 145:10-14

Luke 13:22-30

Today's first readings shows us the continuation of Saint Paul's challenging message yesterday - be submissive to others, make yourself a servant. Here applied to children and slaves, the message takes on a different feel when we begin to look at what it is asking. Often when we think about obedience and submission, there is something in us that can naturally rebel against the idea. During my time in seminary, I have heard on several occasions from priests that we at first think that celibacy is the hardest part of the priestly life, but then you make your promise of obedience and realize that celibacy is easy in comparison. This is so because we often think that we are right or we know the better way to do things, and sometimes we do! But the thing is that ultimately, we ought to submit to those in authority over us as if they were the Lord. 

The Letter to the Ephesians says, "but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, willingly serving the Lord and not men, knowing that each will be requited from the Lord". The RSV translation is a bit more clear: "not in the way of eye-service, as men-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to men..." The slaves were told by Saint Paul to work not for men but for God. Their labor and sufferings were to be endured out of love for the Lord. And this is what we are each called to do - to submit ourselves to others out of love for God, not the pleasure of men. Whether it comes in the form of relatives or friends, co-workers or even strangers, it is beneficial to our soul to submit. And if it is a real struggle, simply remind yourself of the One for Whom you are doing it with the little prayer "All for the love of Jesus Christ."

As I was reflecting on this passage, I couldn't help but recall this image of St. Lambert kneeling before the crucifix. This image is in the Archabbey Church in St. Meinrad, Indiana, where I spent six weeks discerning monastic life. I was always struck by this image because of the story that accompanies it. Saint Lambert was a bishop and was traveling at one point and came along this Benedictine monastery. One of the leaders of the community told him to kneel before the crucifix until the monk came back, unaware that he was the bishop of the diocese and had authority over the monks of the abbey. Hours later he returned and there knelt Lambert, kneeling as he had been told, despite the fact that he was actually the superior; so great was his love for Jesus Christ and desire to be obedient to Him. How beautiful the world would be if we all had such great humility!

Face-Melting Quote of the Day

"We know certainly that our God calls us to a holy life. We know that He gives us every grace, every abundant grace; and though we are so weak of ourselves, this grace is able to carry us through every obstacle and difficulty."
-St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

This passage has really been speaking to me for the past couple of days because my classmates and I are beginning an intense six weeks of classwork here at the seminary and I find comfort in being reminded that the grace is always there to persevere in doing His will and seeking after Him in all things and at all times. How blessed we are to have the grace of God at work in us!

On Children and Chant and Latin and Things...

The main altar and high altar of St. Gertrude Parish

For those of you who come to this little blog regularly, you have probably noticed the abrupt halt in posts. One reason that this has been the case for the past week is that I am currently in Cincinnati, Ohio visiting my dad our family up here. Getting on the internet has been a bit of a task, and this is multiplied by the joyous fact of my 18-month old little sister's curiosity with this strange bearded fellow who has suddenly shown up at the house (me). Needless to say, I have spent a great deal of time watching her run here, there and everywhere and that takes precedence (I'm sure you understand). 

Anywho, I have had the blessed opportunity to again visit St. Gertrude parish and Old St. Mary's parish here in Cincinnati during my week or so here. St. Gertrude is a formation house for the Dominican brothers in the area and so they continually have a dozen or more men my age in formation (how blessed they are!) that are present in the parish. It also adds a beautiful element to the liturgical celebrations, as they are often there to lead the congregation in the proper chants for each day and the Mass responses. Too, they chant the Divine Office (Liturgy of the Hours) with the lay community as well. Needless to say, I'm taking notes :) This morning I went again to Old St. Mary's church, a gorgeous old German church that is the home to the Novus Ordo in Latin, the Novus Ordo in German, and the Novus Ordo in English (Novus Ordo being the Mass of Vatican II). The Latin celebration really makes me appreciate the beauty that is possible in celebrating the Novus Ordo well. The small army of altar boys that were there are sure to produce a couple of good holy priests in the future for the archdiocese. In all, it has been a refreshing few days here with the family and those two communities. Now, I prepare to head back to Baton Rouge tomorrow morning to resume the more active aspects of diaconal ministry and to begin the final stages of preparation for priesthood...now just 7 months and 11 days away. I assure you that regular posting of reflections and homilies - as they occur - will resume this week. My prayers are with you. Please pray for me.

A Special Kind of Happiness

I've been reading the book The Edge of Sadness by Edwin O'Connor. It's about a priest who is a recovering alcoholic and his dealings with a family with which he has intimate ties from childhood. It is written from the priest's own point of view and he reflects often on his life in a very beautiful way. I found the following paragraph particularly striking; maybe you will as well.

"So then, I was happy in the way that young priests so often are. This is, I think, a special kind of happiness, one perhaps peculiar to the priest, and, moreover, to the priest when he is just beginning, when he's in the very morning of his new life. Which is not to say that happiness must fade as the priest grows old: it can change its quality, it can deepen, ripen, become richer. But this kind of happiness will fade, because it belongs to the young: a mixture of innocence and awe, of freshness and wonder, of reverence and excitement, of joy and of a disbelief, almost, that, for example, it is really you who, in this church and on this altar and before these people, are now at last to have the great privilege of consecrating the Body and Blood of our Blessed Lord. Here the miracle and mystery of God's grace strikes home overwhelmingly, with such freshness and clarity, that it stuns your heart and fills your whole being and nothing else matters at all. And these moments, once known, no matter how long ago, can never be really forgotten. Never, never, never..."