A Concord Pastor Comments

Homily for the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Scriptures for today's Mass

Audio for homily

Sometimes when I visit people at the hospital,
I find a sign on a patient’s door which says, PRECAUTIONS!
That means I need to don a face mask, protective gloves
and a paper gown over my clothing before entering the room.
Sometimes the PRECAUTIONS are meant
to protect me from the sick person
and sometimes to protect the sick person from me and others
and the germs we might bring into the room.

The first scripture today gives us a set of ancient PRECAUTIONS.

In Moses’ time, in addition to concern about physical infection,
there was also the threat of spiritual contagion.
Even exposure to disease could render people “spiritually” unclean
and restrict them from sharing in the community’s life and worship.

And so there are the prescribed PRECAUTIONS
that the diseased go around announcing themselves as UNCLEAN
and make their home outside the camp --
banished and cut off from the community and its prayer.

Such exclusion was a burden even heavier for Israelites
than the disease they suffered.

Nowadays we may have face masks and gloves and paper gowns today,
but we don’t banish the physically ill on account of their disease.

But we might still have a way to go
when it comes to our sense of spiritual contagion.

• How many people feel excluded
from our Catholic community of prayer
on account of who they are and how they live?

• How many have felt themselves excluded as unclean
by the way we preach the gospel and teach the faith?

• How many have seen the ads on TV “Catholics come home!”
but fear finding a PRECAUTIONS sign on the church doors?

• How many might be with us this morning if you and I reached out
to invite and welcome them back to join us?

Every faith has its teachings and should, of course, proclaim them.

As we are witnessing in the news right now,
the Church does not change its teaching to accommodate others.

Last week our bulletin included a letter from Cardinal Sean
on the recent Health and Human Services decision.
This week you’ll find material on physician-assisted suicide
which may be a referendum on the ballot in November.

The Church has more than two millennia of wisdom to bring to bear
on matters of love and life and death
and at the heart of that wisdom is the person of Jesus.

As we saw in the gospel today, Jesus took NO PRECAUTIONS
when approached by the man with leprosy.
Rather, moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
and touched the man and healed him.

In the eyes of those around him,
that touch made Jesus made himself unclean,
all for sake of the man who had been declared unclean.
For Jesus, there was no face mask, no gloves, no protective gown:
nothing between Jesus and the man
except the man’s faith and prayer.

Nor did the leper take PRECAUTIONS.
He who bore the sores of leprosy wasn’t crying out, “Unclean, unclean!”
He was calling out, “Jesus! Jesus!”
And no one stood in his way.

Something about Jesus led the man to trust he would be accepted.
And he was.

An honest reading of the scriptures shows Jesus continually rejecting
the exclusionary practices of religious hypocrites
and opening wide his arms to any and all
who would follow his path and live by his word.

It’s been said that every time we draw a line in the sand,
separating “us” from “them,”
we can be fairly certain that in each instance
we will find Jesus over there, with “them.”

As lepers were banished from the community
and ordered to make their abode “outside the camp,”
so was Jesus expelled from Jerusalem,
to be crucified on a hill, outside the city limits.

There he gave his life for us, taking no PRECAUTIONS for himself.

As we come to the altar, then,
let us pray, as Christ prayed at table at the last supper,
that all might be one:
as Christ is one with the Father who sent him
and one with us,
in the bread and cup of the Eucharist
we are about to share.

Can't afford handbells in your parish?

2012-02-11T19:27:00.003-05:00

This is amazing! (H/T to CBM)

Unfortunately, we already have a problem in my parish making space for our handbell choir to play during the liturgy - this group would require much more room!

(If you have to let this load, take the time - it's worth it!)

(Pop the lower right hand corner of the video for full screen!)

This clip is from the May 3, 2009 performance of the St. Luke's Bottle Band. Visit http://www.bottleband.org for more information.

If you're in the Chicago area, come visit St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Park Ridge, Illinois: http://www.stlukespr.org

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Healing...

2012-02-11T00:41:00.000-05:00

In this Sunday's gospel Jesus meets a man with leprosy and, reaching out to touch him, he heals him and restores the man to his community of faith.

Even a little study of the background of this weekend's scriptures will help you have a better understanding of the Word you'll hear proclaimed at Mass.

For the readings and some brief commentary on them, see this previous post.

Got 10-15 minutes this weekend to prepare for Mass?

I'll bet you do!

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An early Valentine, of sorts...

2012-02-10T00:05:00.001-05:00

Take My Heart by Gwen Meharg

Is there anyone among us who does not long and pray
for peaceful days and restful nights?

Do you know anyone who does not hope
for a day free from worry and fear,
an evening brimming with contentment?

Has anyone a heart that does not ache
to be known, loved and accepted
without conditions or strings attached?

Who among us knows another
whose desires are any different than our own?

We are much more all the same than we are different.
In our souls, similarities far outnumber disparities.

From the same place within
every one of us wants, needs and hungers for the same food.
And only one who knows that hunger
can feed and nourish another's heart.

Good God,
help us to see, to know and to nourish
the hearts of those around us.

And open our hearts to all who would,
with love, feed and nourish us.

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Word for the Weekend: February 12

2012-02-09T00:42:00.000-05:00

Image source

The first scripture on Sunday brings us face to face with scabs, pustules, blotches and leprosy! Even the vocabulary tempts us to shrink back in fear and, as you'll see in the reading, that's just how those afflicted with such problems were treated in biblical times - as unclean.

Just the opposite is found in the gospel! A leper approaches Jesus who does not turn him away, much less flee from him. Jesus welcomes, accepts, touches and heals the man.

Whom do we avoid in our lives? Who are the unclean in our own times? Who are the ones we don't want to touch? Who needs the healing of our touch? our presence? our acceptance?

Writing to the Corinthians, Paul advises us to give no offense to anyone. It might serve us well to think of those who are distanced from us by our own words, deeds and silence and to ponder how we have offended them..

For the Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time: the readings and brief commentary on them are here.

Bringing children to Mass with you? Hints for helping young ones to prepare to hear the Word can be found here.

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Wisdom's insight

2012-02-08T22:32:00.000-05:00

Image source

Jim Martin, SJ offers for our consideration the Five Best Pieces of Jesuit Wisdom he's ever heard. Each of them is annotated and worth the read at The Jesuit Post.

There's great consoling truth in these five simple statements.

I’d like to boil down the most helpful things that I’ve heard from my elders: those who have trained me, who have been my spiritual directors, who have been my superiors, and who have been my colleagues and friends.

1.) Allow yourself to be human.
2.) You don’t have to be someone else to be holy.
3.) You’re not married to everyone.
4.) Don’t let anyone prevent you from becoming the person you want to be.
5.) You’re not Jesus.

If you find yourself in need of a great sigh of relief (or 4 or 5 such sighs), be sure to follow the link and read the annotations on these five simple statements.

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The lesser light to govern the night...

2012-02-07T17:03:00.003-05:00

Photo by Mark Penta

Then God said: Let there be lights in the dome of the sky, to separate day from night. Let them mark the seasons, the days and the years,and serve as lights in the dome of the sky, to illuminate the earth. And so it happened: God made the two great lights, the greater one to govern the day, and the lesser one to govern the night, and the stars. God set them in the dome of the sky, to illuminate the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:14-18)

There's nothing "lesser" about the moon's beauty in this image and nature's background couldn't be more gently soothing for the soul at day's end...

The photo was taken by Mark Penta at 5:15 p.m. on February 5 from Nobska Light in Woods Hole, MA. (Mark's the artist who created the caricature on my sidebar.)

Note: the photo has not been shopped!
Click on the image for a larger version.

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Six things everyone should know about the HHS mandate

2012-02-06T23:42:00.000-05:00

Sister Mary Ann Walsh, RSM, Director of Media Relations for the USCCB, offers the following on the USCCBlog, in reference to the recent U.S. Health and Human Services mandate.

Six Things Everyone Should Know About the HHS Mandate

1. The mandate does not exempt Catholic charities, schools, universities, or hospitals. These institutions are vital to the mission of the Church, but HHS does not deem them "religious employers" worthy of conscience protection, because they do not "serve primarily persons who share the[ir] religious tenets." HHS denies these organizations religious freedom precisely because their purpose is to serve the common good of society—a purpose that government should encourage, not punish.

2. The mandate forces these institutions and others, against their conscience, to pay for things they consider immoral. Under the mandate, the government forces religious insurers to write policies that violate their beliefs; forces religious employers and schools to sponsor and subsidize coverage that violates their beliefs; and forces religious employees and students to purchase coverage that violates their beliefs.

3. The mandate forces coverage of sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs and devices as well as contraception. Though commonly called the "contraceptive mandate," HHS's mandate also forces employers to sponsor and subsidize coverage of sterilization. And, by including all drugs approved by the FDA for use as contraceptives, the HHS mandate includes drugs that can induce abortion, such as "Ella," a close cousin of the abortion pill RU-486.

4. Catholics of all political persuasions are unified in their opposition to the mandate. Catholics who have long supported this Administration and its healthcare policies have publicly criticized HHS's decision, including columnists E.J. Dionne, Mark Shields, and Michael Sean Winters; college presidents Father John Jenkins and Arturo Chavez; and Daughter of Charity Sister Carol Keehan, president and chief executive officer of the Catholic Health Association of the United States.

5. Many other religious and secular people and groups have spoken out strongly against the mandate. Many recognize this as an assault on the broader principle of religious liberty, even if they disagree with the Church on the underlying moral question. For example, Protestant Christian, Orthodox Christian, and Orthodox Jewish groups--none of which oppose contraception--have issued statements against the decision. The Washington Post, USA Today, N.Y. Daily News, Detroit News, and other secular outlets, columnists, and bloggers have editorialized against it.

6. The federal mandate is much stricter than existing state mandates. HHS chose the narrowest state-level religious exemption as the model for its own. That exemption was drafted by the ACLU and exists in only 3 states (New York, California, Oregon). Even without a religious exemption, religious employers can already avoid the contraceptive mandates in 28 states by self-insuring their prescription drug coverage, dropping that coverage altogether, or opting for regulation under a federal law (ERISA) that pre-empts state law. The HHS mandate closes off all these avenues of relief.

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Too much preaching?

2012-02-06T17:50:00.001-05:00

A reader has written to tell me that when he checks into my blog my homily from Sunday begins to play automatically and he can't make it stop!

I post my homilies with the hope you'll find them helpful but it's not my intention to force them down your throats (or into your ears!).

Please let me know if you're experiencing this problem.

If you're NOT experiencing this, there's no need to tell me there's no problem.

Thanks!

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Monday Morning Offering - 179

2012-02-06T00:05:00.001-05:00

Image: George Mendoza

Quite a week behind me, Lord,

but you know all about that

so details aren’t important here…

How easily I can be thrown off balance, Lord!

Sometimes,

just when things seem so steady and secure,

I’m knocked off my pins,

weaving between surety and doubt,

wondering if what I’m sure is true is true…

Do I trust what should be trusted?

Is my faithfulness real or imagined?

Are my judgments right or wrong?

An unsettling time it was, Lord,

with worry renting space

in my head and heart and gut…

But clouds give way to light, Lord,

and troubled waters calmed

as I turned to you for peace

when peace was hard to find…

For your grace over the past week,

I thank you, Lord…

For friends who listen and support,

who understand and counsel,

who coach and challenge,

I thank you, Lord…

For your breath upon my soul,

reminding me of your presence,

refreshing joyful memories

and opening me to new blessings,

I thank you, Lord…

For your love that roots me

in you and in my ministry,

I thank you, Lord…

For making steady my faltering steps,

for lifting me up when I fall,

for showing me the path to walk,

I thank you, Lord…

Shine the light of your truth

upon the whole of my life, Lord:

show me the weaknesses I hide from

and reveal the strength I’m slow to claim…

Strengthen me in my faith

and open me to all the ways

I need to grow and change…

I offer you the week past, Lord,

with the hope and prayer I’ve learned from it

and grown in the gifts of your Spirit…

Keep me mindful of those who cross my path

having their own difficult days and weeks

and if I might comfort or challenge them,

give me the words to speak and love to share…

Such is my prayer this morning, Lord:

keep me faithful to you through this day

and through the week ahead…

Amen.

(Click here for an archive of Monday Morning Offerings)

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Parsing Job and Jesus

2012-02-05T14:50:00.014-05:00

Homily for the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Scriptures for today's liturgy

Audio for homily

It’s all in the verbs!
The verbs in these scriptures paint the scene and tell the story.

Listen to the verbs we heard in Job:
longs, waits, drags on, troubled, end without hope, shall not see…
Certainly all of us,
at one time or another, or many times, or even this morning,
have known these verbs in our own lives
and felt their weight upon our shoulders,
heavy on our minds and in our hearts.
In Job’s soul he longed and waited for an end to his suffering
and for the hand of God to reach out and rescue and heal him.

In the gospel, we’re presented with a very different set of verbs.
In the town of Capernaum Jesus
entered, approached, grasped, helped and cured;
the people gathered and pursued
and Jesus
rose early, went off, prayed, left, preached and drove out demons.
Here there’s action, movement, interaction and results,
healing and restoration: good news!

What are the verbs in our lives, yours and mine?

Do I find myself troubled like Job, longing and waiting,
life dragging on through endless days and nights?

Or do I find myself moving from place to place with Jesus?
knowing his presence, his touch his help, his healing?

What are the verbs in our lives this morning?

If I’m filled with restlessness,
wondering if I’ll ever see happiness again,
do I, like Job, persevere in my prayer,
reaching out, trusting in the Lord,
even when he seems distant or even absent?

Do I remember the Cross?
Or do I forget that the Lord is there for me
not just at the end of my suffering
but with me in my suffering,
that he’s with me in the drudgery life sometimes assigns me?

And when I do find myself in the company of Jesus,
in his presence and peace,
do I welcome to my door, as Jesus did,
others who are seeking him, who need him;
others in my family, my neighborhood, at work and at school
who might find him in my approach? in my touch?
who might find healing in my words and in my deeds
- and yours?

And whether I feel like Job
or like Peter’s mother-in-law just cured by Jesus,
do I sometimes, like the Lord himself,
get up early (or stay up late)
and sneak off to a quiet place, apart from others,
to pray?
Do I seek God’s strength in difficult times
and praise and thank him when my heart’s at peace?

In both these scriptures
we encounter the mystery of how God moves in our lives.

Why did Job, a good and faithful man, suffer so much,
so much more than others?

Why did Jesus move on to another town
when there were people in Capernaum
still waiting to meet him and see him and hear him,
to be healed by him?

Why are there times when the Lord seems so close
and other times when he seems to have walked away,
forgotten us, left us alone?

Does the Lord every leave my side?
No, he does not.
Does he sometimes show his face more clearly than at other times?
Yes, he does.

Why is this?
I don’t know.

How much we need, then, to be faithful in prayer
lest we miss his presence when it is clear.

How important for us to find the time to be alone with him
to strengthen our faith for those times
when it seems we cannot find him.

Perhaps the three most important verbs in today’s scriptures are these:
he rose early, he went off and he prayed:
he, Jesus, who was faithful to his Father
even when, on the Cross, he feared
his Father had abandoned him.

Jesus got up, went apart from all the others, and prayed.
And this morning
we got up, left our homes and came here to pray.

In the scriptures and in the sacrament of this altar,
the Lord never fails to show us his face
and to nourish us with his life, with his Body and Blood
in the Eucharist.

As the people of Capernaum gathered at Jesus’ door,
everyone looking for him,
let us gather here this morning
to seek the Lord while he may be found.

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Word for the Weekend: February 5

2012-02-04T10:48:00.000-05:00

"Everyone is looking for you!" That's what the disciples told Jesus after he escaped the crowds and went off to pray for a while. "Everyone is looking for you!"

How about you and me? Are we looking for Jesus?

Well, if we're looking for him, we can be sure we'll find him in Word and Sacrament, in the midst of "everyone" at Mass this weekend.

And if we want to be prepared to meet him, it would be a good idea to read and ponder the scriptures we'll hear in our worship on Sunday.

This Sunday's readings and brief commentary on them can be found here. Bringing children to church? Here are some hints to help them prepare to hear the Word.

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HHS Mandate

2012-02-04T10:23:00.001-05:00

White House Misrepresents Its Own Contraceptive Mandate

February 3, 2012

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued the following response to the February 2 post on the White House blog.

The Obama administration, to justify its widely criticized mandate for contraception and sterilization coverage in private health plans, has posted a set of false and misleading claims on the White House blog. In what follows, each White House claim is quoted with a response.

(Text of USCCB press release)

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First Friday Prayer for February

2012-02-03T17:39:00.000-05:00

(I regret that this appears so late in the day! On the first Friday of each month, you'll find here a Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.)

February finds the stores overflowing with cards, gifts and boxes of chocolates all heart-shaped. The Heart we celebrate here on the First Friday of February is deeper than the heart of romance, stronger than the heart of courage, truer than any heart we might offer one another: this is the Heart of Wisdom who offers and gives us his Heart every minute of every hour of every day...

As Valentines' Day approaches, whose heart do you hold in your heart of prayer? For the healing, the strengthening, comforting of whose heart do you pray? What do you pray for your own heart?

Let us pray...

Litany of the Sacred Heart

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

So loving
So humble
So gentle
So compassionate
So faithful
So wise
So patient
So steadfast
So tender
So spacious

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

God’s joy
God’s shalom
Harp of the Trinity
Wingbeat of the Spirit
Breath of God
Five-petaled rose

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Womb of justice
Birthplace of peace
Our dearest hope
Longing of our lives

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Freely flowing fountain
Spring of grace
Freshet of forgiveness
Merciful river
Mystical dew

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Warmth of our hearts
Transforming fire
Cosmic furnace
Enflamer of hearts

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Heart of evolution
Beginning and ending
Center of all

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Garden of virtues
Mystical dew
Table and food

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Our refuge
Our shelter
Our comfort
Our rest
Our welcoming breast

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Wounded by love
Pierced by our cruelty
Broken by our hardness
Mystic winepress
Poured out as gift

Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer!

Have mercy, gracious heart,
Give us gratefulness
Teach us tenderness
Let us learn to love.

Hear our prayer!

- Wendy Wright

Let us pray...

Lord of all our hearts,
open wide your Heart of mercy
and refresh us with the peace that flows
from the font of your love.
Gracious Lord,
hear and answer our prayer.
Amen.

Image: Sacred Heart of Jesus by Salvador Dali

yearofgrace20

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A psalm of hope in February

2012-02-03T00:05:00.001-05:00

Image: NewHope

January is behind us but February, shorter than most months, seems to lengthen the winter and delay the coming of spring...

For many, this is a difficult time of the year and I thought that Psalm 12 might lift our spirits.

Here's my favorite setting of Psalm 23, by John Rutter and the Cambridge Singers...

Let us pray...

The Lord Is My Shepherd by John Rutter on Grooveshark

The Lord is my shepherd,
Therefore can I lack nothing,
He shall feed me in a green pasture
And lead me forth beside the waters of comfort,
He shall convert my soul,
And bring me forth in the paths of righteousness,
For his name's sake,
Yea, though I walk through the
Valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
For thou art with me,
Thy rod and thy staff comfort me,
Thou shalt prepare a table before me
Against them that trouble me,
Thou hast anointed my head with oil,
And my cup shall be full,
But thy loving kindness and mercy
Shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell
In the house of the Lord,
Forever.

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Candlemas Day

2012-02-02T00:05:00.001-05:00

The Presentation in the Temple: Simeon (holding Jesus) and Anna (on the right); Mary with the two turtle doves and Joseph. (I've been unable to locate the source of the image.)

February 2, is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. On the pre-Conciliar liturgical calendar it was the Feast of the Presentation that ended the Christmas season and in the Archdiocese of Boston this date was, years ago, often the date of ordination to the priesthood. (Ad multos annos to those celebrating anniversaries!)

Luke is the gospel source for this event in the life of the Holy Family.

When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord just as it is written in the law of the Lord... and to offer the sacrifice of "a pair of turtledoves..." Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: "Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel." ...There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

This feast is sometimes called Candlemas Day because on this day there may be a blessing of candles and a procession. There's a tie between the candles and the phrase, a light for revelation to the Gentiles in Simeon's canticle in Luke's gospel.

The image above includes Mary and Joseph with Simeon, the holy man, and Anna, the prophet. Here's a quilted image of Anna where she seems ready to run from the temple to invite others to Come, Listen and Rejoice for salvation has come for all!

Anna the Prophetess by Larkin Jean Van Horn

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Card-carrying Catholics!

2012-02-01T17:06:00.001-05:00

Image source

The Catholic Herald reports:

A card communicating that its carrier is a baptised Catholic will be distributed nationally on behalf of the bishops of England and Wales.

The Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales is distributing one million cards to 24 dioceses including the Bishopric of the Forces and the ordinariate in order to cultivate evangelisation among Catholics.

The credit-card-size resource features on one side a clear statement that the carrier is a Catholic and a list of six things that Catholics are called to do.

There is also a sentence that reads: “In the event of an emergency, please contact a Catholic priest.”

The other side of the card has a quote from Blessed John Henry Newman, focusing on the call to serve and affirming that everyone has a mission.

Bishop Kieran Conry of Arundel and Brighton, chairman of the bishops’ Department for Evangelisation and Catechesis, said: “We all carry a variety of cards in our purses and wallets which reflect something of our identity and the things that are important to us. The faith card for Catholics aims to offer a daily reminder of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. We can’t summarise the whole of our faith in bullet points, but we hope that the card simply inspires people to do, read and learn more.”

The bishop added: “The card is also designed to give Catholics confidence to share their faith – often people need help knowing what to say. Faith is a not a private matter... We hope that Catholics will use it to witness to their faith. If someone asks a question about Catholicism, a starting point could be to show the card and to take it from there.”

The front of the card is above, the reverse side below.

What do you think?

I know that every Lent my parish offers all its members a small token (a button, Cross, key chain) with a similar purpose: that bearers remember their faith and that others who see the token might be reminded as well. The card to be distributed in the UK is a perennial, not a seasonal effort.

Would you carry such a card?

Comments?

Catholic response to HHS policy

2012-02-01T13:47:00.001-05:00

Many U.S. bishops have spoken out and written about the recent Health and Human Services decision regarding policies affecting Catholic colleges, service providers and health care institutions. Below is a letter released yesterday by Cardinal Seán O’Malley, OFM Cap. I'd also recommend this statement from Sr. Carol Keehan, DC, president of the Catholic Health Association and two posts at dotCommonweal, one by E.J. Dionne and one by Matthew Boudway.

Here is Cardinal O'Malley's letter:

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Allow me this opportunity to share with you important information concerning an alarming and serious matter that negatively impacts the Church in the United States directly, and that strikes at the fundamental right to religious liberty for all citizens of any faith. The federal government, which claims to be “of, by, and for the people,” has just dealt a heavy blow to almost a quarter of those people—the Catholic population—and to the millions more who are served by the Catholic faithful.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced last week that almost all employers, including Catholic employers, will be forced to offer their employees’ health coverage that includes sterilization, abortion-inducing drugs, and contraception. Almost all health insurers will be forced to include those “services” in the health policies they write. And almost all individuals will be forced to buy that coverage as a part of their policies. The Church has had to struggle against regulations like those now proposed by HHS in several states. This HHS ruling would expand and intensify a situation which is already very harmful.

In its ruling, the Administration has cast aside the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, denying to Catholics our Nation’s first and most fundamental freedom, that of religious liberty. And as a result, unless the rule is overturned, we Catholics will be compelled and must be prepared either to violate our consciences, or to drop health coverage for our employees (and suffer the penalties for doing so). The administration’s sole concession was to give our institutions one year to comply.

We cannot simply accept this unjust law now proposed at the federal level. People of faith cannot be made second class citizens. We are already joined by our brothers and sisters of all faiths and many others of good will in this important effort to regain our religious freedom. Our parents and grandparents did not come to these shores to help build America’s cities and towns, its infrastructure and institutions, its enterprise and culture, only to have their posterity stripped of their God given rights. In generations past, the Church has always been able to count on the faithful to stand up and protect her sacred rights and duties. I trust she can count on this generation of Catholics to do the same. Our children and grandchildren deserve nothing less.

In order that we make every effort to respond to this proposed restriction on religious liberty I would ask of you two things. First, as a community of faith we must commit ourselves to prayer and fasting that wisdom and justice may prevail, and religious liberty may be restored. Without God, we can do nothing; with God, nothing is impossible. Second, I recommend that you visit the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops website, www.usccb.org/conscience, to learn more about this assault on religious liberty, and how to contact Congress in support of legislation that would reverse the Administration’s decision.

With the assurance of my prayers for you and all your loved ones, I am,

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Cardinal Seán O’Malley, OFM Cap.
Archbishop of Boston

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Hard Drive: R.I.P.

2012-01-31T14:59:00.000-05:00

Well, it happened.

A first time for me.

My hard drive crashed and I lost a lot of files I hadn't backed up.

Part of the bad news is that among those lost files were my retreat notes from last November. I'd planned to offer some more posts on my retreat experience but without the notes, it's much more difficult to put together.

The good news is that the grace of that week in Gloucester wasn't on my laptop! The grace is alive and well and showing up in other posts here and in my ministry and prayer.

Going out to get a new laptop this week and yes, I've learned a big lesson!

(Yes, my IT guy has worked on my broken hard drive; and yes he was able to recover some files; but no, my retreat notes didn't show up.)

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Your whispered prayer is heard...

2012-01-31T14:13:00.000-05:00

This meditation is a reminder that the voice of prayer resounds in the heavens. It ends with a classic chatimah, a closing asserting that God hears our prayers.

Whispered Prayer

Your whispered prayer
Your secret hope
Your quiet yearning
Have holiness and power.
They resound in the heavens
And echo on high.
They are drum and cymbal,
Trumpet and horn,
Proclaiming your faith,
Music of generations,
Proclaiming your hope,
Hymns of the heart,
Proclaiming your dedication
To the God of all Being,
Source and Shelter,
Rock and Redeemer,
Light and Truth.

Your whispered prayer
Is the song of the ages.
Your secret hope
Is the light of tomorrow.
Your quiet yearning
Is the voice of eternity.

Blessed are You,
Adonai our God,
Who hears prayer.

ברוך אתה ה שומע חפלה.

© 2012 Alden Solovy and To Bend Light. All rights reserved.

As you know from previous posts of Alden's prayers, he follows the Jewish custom of writing "G-d" out respect for the Name of the Holy One. I'm grateful to Alden for his permission to use "God" when posting his beautiful prayers on this page.

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End of January review: Do the Next Right Thing!

2012-01-31T13:38:00.000-05:00

UPDATE: I posted on DTNRT at the beginning of the year and now that the first month of 2012 is coming to a close, I thought it might be helpful to repost some of the same!

A friend recently reminded me of one of the 12 Step slogans, Do The Next Right Thing (DTNRT) and I've found it helpful to keep the DTNRT refrain in mind as a new year begins.

When facing options that involve keeping or abandoning a New Year's resolution(s), DTNRT pops into my consciousness and immediately I'm confronted with what I know is the right thing to do - even it it's the more difficult, seemingly impossible thing to do. And it helps to have that light shine on the path that leads where I know I truly want to go and need to go.

Making changes in our lives is sometimes difficult to do precisely because we're so practiced, so good at ignoring or avoiding or just plain failing to see what's the better, healthier, desired choice - which is sometimes, even often, just the choice the Lord calls us to make.

So I pass on this bit of advice to any who are working on resolutions, trying to make changes, or simply at a loss for knowing what to do next: Do the Next Right Thing!

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Highlights of a great weekend!

2012-01-30T17:44:00.002-05:00

Image source

- On Saturday afternoon we had the fourth and last of our small group celebrations of First Reconciliation for 85 children preparing for First Communion this spring. The service begins with prayer and Jesus' story of the shepherd searching for the one of his 99 sheep who's lost. I use an arm puppet (above) to tell the story and after each child has been to the sacrament, we give them a miniature sheep (below) around whose neck is this prayer:

Dear Jesus, my Good Shepherd,
   I believe that you love me
   and watch over me always.
You know then that I am sometimes
   not the best child I can be,
   and so, I need your forgiveness.
I am like a little lamb who is lost
   and I need you, my Good Shepherd,
   to bring me back to your loving arms.
Jesus, my Good Shepherd, I do love you
   and I am sorry for all my sins.
Thank you for loving me so much.
Amen.

Child's Lamb

These celebrations are beautiful for the children and for their moms and dads as well. It's a joy to see parents so pleased with how the Church is relating to their children!

- Saturday evening I stopped into a favorite restaurant to grab a bite to eat. Sitting at the bar I met a delightful man and then his wife, daughter and her boyfriend who joined him. Jeff and I enjoyed an interfaith exchange that was both instructive and humorous. A good day capped with a great conversation.

- At the 11:30 Mass on Sunday morning two middle school youngsters, a boy and a girl, received First Communion. They wanted their First Communion to be a simple part of the liturgy and asked me not to draw too much attention to them. Simple, yes - but joyful for all who had gathered with them for this occasion! It was also the Mass for our bell choir's monthly ministry in our prayer. I love the sound and it always amazes me how each ringer knows just when to ring! Also at this Mass we had 20 seventh graders and their chaperons visiting from the local Unitarian Church. Each year the 7th grade class there makes the rounds of other houses of worship in town. I met with them before and after Mass, first to welcome them and then to respond to their questions. The chaperons had as many good questions and comments as the young people with them. They were taken by the spirit of our faith community gathered for prayer and the very joyful atmosphere. I'm not sure what they might have expected but I know they were pleased to experience what they found in our celebration.

- In the afternoon I posted my homily here on my blog. I've received some good feedback on it and from a range of responders, younger and older. If you haven't taken a look, you'll find it here. After writing, delivering and posting it, I've been wondering what others might add to my list of the names of the demons in our lives...

- In the evening I did my annual "Ask Fr. Fleming Anything You Want" session with our high school candidates for Confirmation. Submitting questions on index cards seems to free up the students to ask what they want. It was an hour's opportunity to speak about ministry, celibacy, why and how I became a priest, sexuality and marriage, alcohol and drug use and how to grow closer to God. Lots of territory to cover! I was especially appreciative of this class's good questions and their attentiveness to my responses.

Highlights from a great weekend: praise God from whom all blessings flow!

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Monday Morning Offering - 178

2012-01-30T00:05:00.003-05:00

Image: George Mendoza

Good morning, good God!

This Monday morning I'm wondering, Lord,
What if... ?

What if I accepted all the love you offer me?
How would I, how would my relationships,
change and grow?

What if I surrendered to the truth of your Word?
How would my thinking change,
and my decisions and choices?

What if I stopped, listened and heard what you ask of me?
What would I do differently?
What new turns might my path take?

What if I saw you in every face I meet?
How would my day change? my plans?
With whom would I my spend time?

What if I named my sins and prayed for your mercy?
How would I see others' faults in light of my own?
How would your forgiveness mend my heart?

What if I put others' needs ahead of my own all day long?
How would my priorities readjust?
How would you call me to serve my neighbor?

What if I bared my soul to your healing touch?
What joy would fill my heart?
And how would I share my joy with others?

What if I walked only the path you map out for me?
Where would you lead me? Where would I go?
Who and what would I leave behind?

What if I offered you all I have, all I want, all I need?
What would you do with me, Lord?

What if I asked to be recreated in your Spirit?
What would you do with me, Lord?

What if I truly opened my mind and heart and welcomed you in:
what would you do with me, Lord?

That I might come to know what you would do,
I offer myself into your hands:
do with me this day as you will...

For whatever you do, Lord, I thank you:
make me ready for whatever you ask
and open me to receive all you give me
this morning, this day and through the week ahead...

Amen.

(Click here for an archive of Monday Morning Offerings)

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To be free of my own demons...

2012-01-29T15:50:00.011-05:00

Image source

Homily for the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Scriptures for today's liturgy)

Audio for homily

I’m not asking for a show of hands here,
but I’m wondering if anyone here
is possessed by an unclean spirit…

The notion of “unclean spirits” might put us off
from this gospel’s message and if it does, that’s regrettable
because there’s something of value for us here that we shouldn’t miss.

We might not often hear anyone speak of having an unclean spirit
but we do talk about struggling with own demons:
not little devils, not demonic possession, but rather
those habits, those inclinations, those anxieties
that take hold of our better selves,
shape our behavior and choices in unhealthy ways,
and trap us in patterns of living we’d love to be free from.

• I’m speaking of the habits that keep me less a person
than the person I know God made and calls me to be.

• I’m speaking of those inclinations that lead me off the path,
off the road I know God maps out for me as a priest,
or for you in your own way of life.

• I’m speaking of those anxieties
that can imprison me in worry and fear,
robbing me of the richness of life God wants for me.

• I know my demons when I see what dulls my spirit
and leads me to make unhealthy and unproductive choices,
contrary to my own good.

• When I see the contrast between the life my heart truly longs for
and the lesser life I so easily settle for,
I can see the influence of the spirits
that keep me from the happiness I desire.

Our demons go by many names:
fear, envy, anxiety, pride, porn, greed, alcohol, selfishness,
the past, work, lust, power, infidelity, food, prestige, laziness…

And the most subtle demon of all,
is the one who tempts me to think, to believe, "I have no demons!"

Most of all, my demons keep me from knowing God
and from knowing my true self,
the good person God made me to be.

And that’s how my demons are the source of my anxiety.

I am made in God’s image, created to know God who made me,
and to be grateful for the person God made me to be.

My demons frustrate the relationship I’m meant to have with God
and the relationship I’m meant to have with myself
-- and that frustration leads to anxiety.

It’s just what St. Paul is getting at in his letter this morning.
Paul writes that he wants us to be “free from our anxieties”
precisely because they distract us from and interfere with
our intimacy with God - and with others.

The Lord wants to free us from our anxieties and fears,
wants to free us from anything that keeps us from him,
and from our true selves.

In the first scripture this morning the people of Israel asked God
to give them a prophet to speak the Lord’s Word to them.

We have just such a prophet in Jesus
who enters our temple this morning
as surely as he entered the synagogue in Capernaum.
And just as Jesus met the man with an unclean spirit there,
so he meets us here with our demons:
spirits from whom the Lord wants to set us free.

But often, we’re afraid and slow to let go of our demons,
so accustomed to their presence have we become.
They're often difficult to dismiss
because we’ve become dependent upon them,
so deeply have they shaped our lives.

The good news is that Jesus desires to free us
from any spirit, any worry, any fear
that keep us from God.

It might take great trust on our part
but the Lord never ceases to hold out his hand,
inviting us to take it and leave our demons behind.

To the Lord belongs the Spirit who belongs in our hearts:
the Spirit whose desire for us is always pure,
always good, always healthy;
the Spirit who waits and wants to shape our lives
so that we might know God and God’s love for us,
that we might know our true selves,
the persons we are, persons beloved by the Lord.

Even while we struggle with this,
and many of us are struggling with this, this morning,
Jesus, the prophet who gave his life for us
to make good his Word that he loves us,
Jesus invites us to the heart of the temple, to the altar,
to share in the sacrifice he offered on the Cross,
that we might have his joy and have it to the full.

Come to the Lord’s Table and share in the Body and Blood
of him who reaches out his hand to each of us,
inviting us to be one with him
and to be free of anything
that keeps us from tasting and drinking in
the love of God for us.

A word on anxities and personal demons

2012-01-27T23:38:00.002-05:00

Healing the Sick by Ulrich Henn

In a previous post I noted that this coming Sunday's readings raise some significant questions for us:

- To whose prophetic word do I listen?

What words, whose words touch and shape my life?
turn me this way or that?
change me, change the path I'm following?
What words, whose words help and heal me?
comfort and challenge me?

- What anxieties come between me and my faith in the Lord?

What anxieties, what fears and problems, what worries
come between me and my faith in the Lord?
What distracts me from the Lord's presence?
leads me to think God has abandoned me?
makes me wonder if God is truly with me?

- From what "unclean spirits" might I want Jesus to free me?
The phrase "unclean spirits" might put us off
but many of us do have our own personal demons,
haunting us and drawing us away from the Spirit
who wants only our peace and serenity.
What personal demons distract me
from the Lord's Word and my faith?
From what "spirits" might I pray for Jesus to free me?

In every age, the Lord's Word stirs and moves in the souls of those who want to follow him, those who seek his counsel and peace.

Now's a good time to look over the scriptures we'll hear at Mass this weekend. You'll find those texts and some background notes on them right here.

Image: Henn, Ulrich. Healing the Sick, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN.

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A first Mass reminds me of my own...

2012-01-27T22:28:00.001-05:00

Photo by CP

A FaceBook friend who's being ordained this spring just posted the date of his first Mass.

His announcement stirred some memories...

It's nearly 39 years since I was thinking of and preparing for the first time I would celebrate Mass after ordination. I was filled with excitement, joy, anticipation, nervousness and gratitude. I remember planning the invitations, the music, the worship aid and the reception. I remember choosing my vestments and chalice.

And of course I remember the liturgy! It was May 20, 1973 and the weather was perfect. I could tell you even now who were the concelebrants, the servers, the deacon, the lectors and the music ministers. I can see my parents and sister in the front row; my grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins just behind them. My brother was the cross bearer that day and I don't think either he or I suspected then that one day he'd celebrate his own first Mass!

It was a day of fulfillment, happiness and great joy. What began that weekend has filled my weekends and my life for nearly four decades.

It's a grace to remember the joys we've known and my ordination/first Mass weekend is one of the greatest joys of my life. (What joys, large and small, have been blessings in your life?)

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Please pray for those who will be ordained this spring and preside at the Eucharist for the first time (and especially for FB friend, Tom Gibbons, C.S.P.) May their celebrations and their ministries be filled with the Lord's peace and joy.

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Snowflakes and hearts

2012-01-26T15:31:00.003-05:00

The complexities of the human heart are so many and multifaceted.

As it's said is true of snowflakes, I doubt there are in all of human history two identical human hearts.

Each heart has its own story and each story has been shaped and molded by different people, unique circumstances and the mystery of God's individual and singular touch upon every heart he's created.

Consider this: God relates to me in ways significantly different from the way he relates to any other man or woman because God knows me as I am and I am a unique creation of his hand.

With what great care, then, must we approach, accept and appreciate one another!

With what great openness must we honor how we are unlike, recognizing that God loves us in our differences as much as or more than in our similarities.

With what great patience, then, must we wait on how others grow, change and respond to us and to the life and world around us.

In the Christian life we often speak as if "one size fits all." And in the most important ways, that is true but in less important ways it is false. What does fit all of us is the command:

to love and forgive one another

as God loves and forgives us;

to do what is just, to love what is good

and to walk humbly with God...

Give us care, openness and patience with one another, Lord, that we might do what you ask of us...

Image source

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Word for the Weekend: January 29

2012-01-25T21:59:00.004-05:00

Remains of synagogue built in Capernaum (4th century)
over the remains of synagogue of Jesus' time.
Image by πρώρα (Prora)

Time to make some time for the Word of the Lord for the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The scriptures for this Sunday's liturgy along with background on them can be found right here. Will you be taking children to Mass with you? Take a look here to help them prepare to hear the readings.

The first reading for the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time is from Deuteronomy and finds the Israelites begging Moses for a prophet and the Lord responding favorably. There's a stern warning for the prophet, however, lest the prophet speak in the Lord's name anything the Lord had not given him to speak. Exorcising a man with an unclean spirit, Jesus is hailed as a prophet in the gospel - one who teaches and heals with the authority of God.

In the day's second scripture, St. Paul writes the Corinthians that he wants them to be free from anxieties. Who wouldn't want to be free from anxieties? But Paul has a particular take on this...

The gospel finds Jesus teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum (see photo above) where he frees a man there of an unclean spirit.

- To whose prophetic word do we listen?

- What anxieties come between us and our faith in the Lord?

- From what "unclean spirits" might we want Jesus to free us?

Serious questions to ponder... Why not click on the link in the first paragraph now and read over and prepare to hear the Lord's Word this weekend...

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A front row seat for God's grandeur

2012-01-24T17:07:00.000-05:00

Photo by Mark Penta

Mark Penta, the caricaturist who did my profile pic on the sidebar, posted another great photo on FaceBook this afternoon. (Click on the photo for a larger version)

Powerful image, Mark!

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Lift me up, Lord!

2012-01-24T11:56:00.002-05:00

LIft Me Up by Amy S Turner

Why is it, Lord,
that I so quickly perceive the problem,
remember the hurt,
rehearse the pain,
dwell on the negative,
fret in my fear
and nourish my anxieties?

Why, Lord,
am I so slow to see your grace,
treasure past joys,
celebrate every healing,
ponder your truth,
lean on your strength,
and place my troubled heart
in your open, loving hands?

Lift me up, Lord,
out of all that keeps me down.
Open my eyes to see
the beauty of your face.
Lift my hands and heart
to you in prayer.
Open my ears
to the voice of your Spirit within.
Touch my mind and heart
where I most need your healing.
Open my mouth
to sing your praise.
Remind me, every day,
of my joys and blessings,
old and new.
Give me strength to live
one day, one hour at a time.

Lift me up, Lord,
out of all that keeps me down
and let my spirit find its joy
in you and in your love.

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Yes!

2012-01-24T00:05:00.000-05:00

Image source

Two weeks ago I encountered some problems with posting podcasts of my homilies. It took a lot of googling, a lot of time and countless failed efforts before I finally figured out a fix for the problem!

One happy blogger here!

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Monday Morning Offering- 177

2012-01-23T00:05:00.003-05:00

Image: George Mendoza

Good morning, good God!

The last few days on my calendar, Lord,
were filled to overflowing
and this week is shaping up to be just about the same.

I went into the weekend with some foreboding,
hoping just to make it to Monday,
and have the rest behind me -
but something changed...

It wasn't the weather:
it snowed - and that was the last thing I wanted!

It wasn't me:
I wasn't even trying
to have a brighter outlook...

It wasn't a cancellation:
in fact, things got even busier
than I'd expected!

It was you, Lord,
and your powerful grace
seeping into my mind and heart,
bringing me peace when I needed it most,
softening the edges of my self-concern,
giving me patience with how things came to pass,
opening my eyes and ears to those around me
and to the grace of their presence...

It was you, Lord,
making of these full days
a weekend filled with acceptance,
with trust that all was proceeding as you desired,
along a path you had traced for my steps...

It was you, Lord,
and the light of your presence
disclosing what I would have missed
had I not given way to your hand's touch
upon my days and the gift of all those
whose paths crossed mine...

How often, Lord, have you reached out to me
and have I failed to welcome
your hand upon my shoulder,
leading, guiding, comforting me
when a troubled spirit fills my heart?

How often has my self-concern kept me
from seeing you right beside me,
from hearing your words of comfort,
from accepting the strength you offer?

How often, Lord, have fear and anger
hardened my heart and
shut me in, alone, refusing to believe
that you or any other might love,
might care, might be there for me?

How often have I hid in my own darkness
and missed the light of your face,
the goodness you've disclosed,
and the peace you've reached to offer me?

I offer my thanks for the weekend past
and pray when next you slip into my day
I'll have the grace to see and welcome you,
to find in you the strength I need,
the peace that's yours to give...

And when you find me stewing in my own dismay,
dismiss whatever keeps my heart
from opening up to all you have to give me, Lord...

Shake, nudge, stir, move, push, rouse me, Lord,
from my complacency, my fears and my anxiety
and wake me to your presence, your grace
and to your face...

Accept my prayer this morning, Lord,
and be with me this day, tonight
and every day this week...

Amen.

(Click here for an archive of Monday Morning Offerings)

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Gone fishin' - with the Lord!

2012-01-22T13:27:00.019-05:00

Image source

Homily for the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Scriptures for today's liturgy)

Audio for homily

Just as Jesus interrupted these four fishermen
in the middle of their day,
I need to interrupt you this morning,
and ask you to look up from your nets
and even to put them aside for a while.

In the gospel here,
Jesus begins his preaching at a difficult time in his own family:
his cousin, John the baptizer, has just been arrested,
arrested for doing just what Jesus is beginning to do:
preaching repentance and the mercy of God.

Times aren’t good, and the future is very uncertain,
but this doesn’t keep Jesus from his mission.
And straight away he begins to enlist others to join him.
His words were simple (Come… follow me)
so there must have been something very powerful in his voice,
powerful enough to draw these men away from their work,
their livelihood - even away from their father, Zebedee,
who depended on them for their muscle in the boats.

I doubt these men could have imagined that some 2,000 years later
their story might be told around the world on a Sunday morning
and a preacher might interrupt the lives of others, like you,
calling them from their nets, their work and their families,
to follow Jesus and go on a fishing trip with him.

Actually, there are two fishing stories for us to attend to this morning.

First, I’m going to ask you take very seriously
the Lord’s call for you to be “fishers of men and women,”
casting your own nets of faith
to catch those who have slipped through the many holes left unmended
in the Church’s nets in these very difficult times.

We can’t wait until all the troubles are over
before drawing back to our company those who have left us.

I ask you to take the nets of your own faith that brought you here today
and cast those nets among those you know who,
for any number of reasons, are no longer with us in prayer.

In the weeks ahead, I’ll be writing to you in the bulletin
with some ideas and suggestions for doing just that.

And although “fishing for others” is the most important thing
I’ll ask of you this morning, I need to ask you for more than that.
And here’s the second fishing story.

I need to ask, for the sake of our parish life,
for a greater share in the “catch” you bring home each week,
for a greater share in your household’s resources.

If you’re registered in the parish,
you received a letter from me this week
outlining the financial troubles our parish is facing.
In the past four years our weekly offertory collection has dropped
by more than 20%.

We are not alone in this: our situation is not unusual --
it mirrors that of most parishes in the Archdiocese of Boston.

If I believed that we were already receiving all you have to give,
I’d be forced to consider cutting staff and programming.
But that’s not the case.

I believe that many among us can be more generous
and I’m calling on you to give as sacrificially generously as you can.

Many parishioners might assume Holy Family has no financial concerns
and have been contributing accordingly.
As you can see, the drop in our offertory collection tells a different story.

And I also know that some households in the parish
face serious financial difficulties of their own
and I know that when times are better
you’ll respond as you might wish you could right now.

What I ask is for every household to consider my message carefully:
to prayerfully and seriously review your support of Holy Family
and, as you are able, to increase that support.

Only you and those I pray will come home to us through your nets
can help bring our active parish life
to the financial stability and spiritual vitality
I believe we can achieve.

My letter to you in this week’s mail
included information on a number of ways
for you to pledge and manage your parish support.

Annual pledging is vitally important
in that it helps you make a firm decision
and helps the parish to prepare and execute an informed budget.

Making and fulfilling a pledge
also guards against the “gaps in giving” we experience
when you are away for weekends on vacation or for business.
Your using our pledge form is the first step you can take
to help Holy Family secure a stronger, more stable financial base.

So, I have interrupted your prayer with some nitty-gritty parish business.

I hope there's no one here this morning who's been away for 20 years,
sitting here thinking, "They're still looking for money!"

This is the first time I’ve done something like this
in my 17 years as a pastor
and I wouldn’t be doing this were I not convinced of the need for it.

I do this out of the conviction that you love our parish
and want to see it grow and thrive, especially in difficult times.
Holy Family is your parish.
It’s the place where you worship, your house of prayer
where you hear the Lord’s Word and celebrate the sacraments.

When times are confusing and confounding, difficult and demanding
for us and for those who have left us,
I pray you find Christ’s peace and strength in our parish life --
enough to help you cast wide your own nets of faith
to invite back those who drifted away.

At the heart of our lives as Christians, as members of Holy Family,
we come to this Table, in the shadow of the Cross,
to remember, to celebrate and to receive that gift offered for us by Christ
who never counted the cost of giving all he had for us.

Pray that the love of Jesus will open our hearts generously
in our love and support for Holy Family Parish.

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US Bishops on HHS decision on health plans

2012-01-20T23:01:00.002-05:00

"Let's honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion, and draft a sensible conscience clause, and make sure that all of our health care policies are grounded in clear ethics and sound science, as well as respect for the equality of women."

- Commencement address by Barack Obama given May 17, 2009 at the University of Notre Dame.

U.S. Bishops Vow to Fight HHS Edict

January 20, 2012
Unconscionable to force citizens to buy contraceptives against their will

No change in limited exemption, only delay in enforcement
Matter of freedom of conscience, freedom of religion

WASHINGTON—The Catholic bishops of the United States called “literally unconscionable” a decision by the Obama Administration to continue to demand that sterilization, abortifacients and contraception be included in virtually all health plans. Today's announcement means that this mandate and its very narrow exemption will not change at all; instead there will only be a delay in enforcement against some employers.

“In effect, the president is saying we have a year to figure out how to violate our consciences,” said Cardinal-designate Timothy M. Dolan, archbishop of New York and president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The cardinal-designate continued, “To force American citizens to choose between violating their consciences and forgoing their healthcare is literally unconscionable.It is as much an attack on access to health care as on religious freedom. Historically this represents a challenge and a compromise of our religious liberty."

The HHS rule requires that sterilization and contraception – including controversial abortifacients – be included among “preventive services” coverage in almost every healthcare plan available to Americans. “The government should not force Americans to act as if pregnancy is a disease to be prevented at all costs,” added Cardinal-designate Dolan.

At issue, the U.S. bishops and other religious leaders insist, is the survival of a cornerstone constitutionally protected freedom that ensures respect for the conscience of Catholics and all other Americans.

“This is nothing less than a direct attack on religion and First Amendment rights,” said Franciscan Sister Jane Marie Klein, chairperson of the board at Franciscan Alliance, Inc., a system of 13 Catholic hospitals. “I have hundreds of employees who will be upset and confused by this edict. I cannot understand it at all.”

Daughter of Charity Sister Carol Keehan, president and chief executive officer of the Catholic Health Association of the United States, voiced disappointment with the decision. Catholic hospitals serve one out of six people who seek hospital care annually.

“This was a missed opportunity to be clear on appropriate conscience protection,” Sister Keehan said.

Cardinal-designate Dolan urged that the HHS mandate be overturned.

“The Obama administration has now drawn an unprecedented line in the sand,” he said. “The Catholic bishops are committed to working with our fellow Americans to reform the law and change this unjust regulation. We will continue to study all the implications of this troubling decision.”

(You'll find the video response of New York's Archbishop Dolan, President of the USCCB, here.)

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So much simple beauty...

2012-01-20T16:03:00.001-05:00

Photo by Winslow Pettingell

Not every pastor has a place as beautiful as Walden Pond in his parish -- or a FB friend (Winslow Pettingell) who takes such beautiful photographs of Thoreau's famous venue. This is Walden at 6:51 this morning, January 20, with a beautiful moon still hanging in the sky...

(Click on the photo for a larger image!)

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A blogging Bishop from Boston

2012-01-20T11:58:00.002-05:00

Bishop Coyne with Jim Nabors at the Indy 500

Bishop Christopher Coyne, ordained in 1986 for the Archdiocese of Boston, now serves the Church as Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. Bishop Coyne is a former Professor of Sacred Liturgy and Preaching at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, MA, having received his doctorate from the Pontifical Institute of Liturgy at St. Anselmo in Rome. He is also a former director of the Office for Worship for the Archdiocese of Boston and, later, media spokesperson and Cabinet Secretary for Communications of the Archdiocese of Boston.

AND, he blogs at Let Us Walk Together: thoughts of a Catholic bishop.

And, yes! He gave the invocation at the Indy 500

Recently, Bishop Coyne posted his 10 daily internet reads here and here, with a third installment yet to be published. Take a look: I'll bet you'll find a link or two you'll want to add to your own list.

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Just keeps getting better!

2012-01-19T20:21:00.000-05:00

Image source

Great Tweet from GlobeKPD:

''Walking to rink in NJ this morn, saw guy having video chat adjacent to busy food court. Smartphone for screen. Entire chat in sign language.''

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A prayer for beginning to pray...

2012-01-19T19:22:00.000-05:00

Image source

A prayer to begin my prayer...

Lord Jesus:

you are here now,

always

and only

because you want me

and want to be with me...

Lord Jesus:

I am here now,

again

and only

because I want you

and want to be with you...

Lord Jesus,

help me surrender

to your love,

your mercy

and your arms...

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Brothers and sisters in the human family

2012-01-18T15:38:00.000-05:00

When I sit in the presider's chair on Sunday mornings and look out on God's people at prayer, I often wonder at all the individual and personal stories, the joys and sorrows (known and visible, secret and hidden) that each brings to the foot of the Cross and the table of the Sacrament.

This video reminds us not to judge one another but to remember how much we all share in human family, the family of God.

(H/T to Aggie Catholics)

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Jesus' prayer for us: That they may be one...

2012-01-18T14:35:00.089-05:00

Today begins the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. For more information, scriptures, prayers and resources, see the Vatican page on this effort here and the Graymore Institute page here.

The theme for this year's Week of Prayer:

We Will All Be Changed

by the Victory of Our Lord Jesus Christ!

1 Cor 15:51-58

I pray not only for them,
but also for those who will believe in me through their word,
so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you,
that they also may be in us,
that the world may believe that you sent me.
And I have given them the glory you gave me,
so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me,
that they may be brought to perfection as one,
that the world may know that you sent me,
and that you loved them even as you loved me.
Father, they are your gift to me.
I wish that where I am they also may be with me,
that they may see my glory that you gave me,
because you loved me before the foundation of the world.
Righteous Father, the world also does not know you,
but I know you, and they know that you sent me.
I made known to them your name
and I will make it known,
that the love with which you loved me may be in them
and I in them.

-John 14:20-26

Mark Wahlberg on faith and prayer

2012-01-17T23:30:00.000-05:00

Now, here's the kind of interview you don't see often enough!

Wahlberg spends 15-20 minutes in prayer each morning to begin his day. He speaks about his daily prayer on this video. Sounds like a good way to get the day going!

How do I begin my day? Of the 1,440 minutes in every day - how many minutes do I give to the Lord in prayer? For what do I pray?

Thanks, Mark!

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Fishing in the waters of faith

2012-01-17T22:58:00.008-05:00

Go ahead!

Click your cursor a few times in the water and watch the fish come and gobble up their lunch!

There are fish in this weekend's gospel - and fishermen, too. But at just a word from Jesus they abandon ~~their cursors~~ their nets and begin to follow him.

Can you move your cursor down here and click on this link to the weekend's scriptures and some interesting commentary on them? And if some children are fishing with you, click here for some hints on helping them prepare to hear the Lord's Word when they come to Mass.

The first scripture tells part of Jonah's story - he of the really big fish who swallowed him whole! And in the second scripture for the day, St. Paul gives a very brief but important warning: "Time is running out!"

The fish swimming at the top of the post will be here when you get back from the two links and they'll be just as hungry. So take some time to read and ponder Sunday's readings - it's a great way to prepare now to worship on the Lord's Day.

And remember: whatever you do with your nets, the Lord has cast his line and hopes to catch you!

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Link of the Day

2012-01-17T00:19:00.003-05:00

I'm very pleased to share a link to a spirituality blog: Hearts on Fire. The author is Paul Wharton, a priest of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston WV, pastor of Sacred Heart Parishes in Princeton and Bluefield, WV, chaplain to the Newman Center at Concord University - and an old friend. Paul and I met years before anyone had a computer, when we were both studying at the University of Notre Dame: Paul was a seminarian pursuing an MDiv degree and I was working on my MA in liturgical studies.

It's a delight to connect with an old find, another pastor who blogs! We only recently discovered each other's pages and it's amazing that Paul's blog should feature Mystic Mondays while I've chosen Mondays for my Morning Offerings.

Be sure to visit Hearts on Fire!

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Shed A Little Light: James Taylor on MLK Day

2012-01-16T14:46:00.000-05:00

It's a little late in the day but FB friend DR just posted this and it's more than worth a listen.

Shed A Little Light

Let us turn our thoughts today

To Martin Luther King

And recognize that there are ties between us

All men and women

Living on the earth

Ties of hope and love

Sister and brotherhood

That we are bound together

In our desire to see the world become

A place in which our children

Can grow free and strong

We are bound together

By the task that stands before us

And the road that lies ahead

We are bound and we are bound

There is a feeling like the clenching of a fist

There is a hunger in the center of the chest

There is a passage through the darkness and the mist

And though the body sleeps the heart will never rest

(chorus)

Shed a little light, oh Lord

So that we can see

Just a little light, oh Lord

Wanna stand it on up

Stand it on up, oh Lord

Wanna walk it on down

Shed a little light, oh Lord

Can't get no light from the dollar bill

Don't give me no light from a tv screen

When I open my eyes

I wanna drink my fill

From the well on the hill

(do you know what I mean? )

(chorus)

There is a feeling like the clenching of a fist

There is a hunger in the center of the chest

There is a passage through the darkness and the mist

And though the body sleeps the heart will never rest

Oh, let us turn our thoughts today

To Martin Luther King

And recognize that there are ties between us

All men and women

Living on the earth

Ties of hope and love

Sister and brotherhood

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Monday Morning Offering - 176

2012-01-16T00:10:00.001-05:00

Image: George Mendoza

Good morning, good God!

Just now in my life, Lord,
there are more than the usual number
of loose ends, unanswered questions,
and forks in the road…

It’s a confusing, confounding in-between time
and I know there’s nothing I can do
to hasten a future
taking its own time
and making its own schedule…

These in-between days are too many
and too long for me to hold my breath;
and waiting for the other shoe to drop
only keeps me from all that’s mine to do
today…

So this morning, Lord,
I offer you all my anxious distraction
and pray you’ll free my mind of worries
and fill my heart with your peace…

Keep me in the moment, Lord,
in the day, in the hour at hand,
and free me for this day’s work
for this day’s joy, for this day’s grace…

Help me trust that in all times,
in joy and in sorrow,
in confusion and distraction,
in good times and in bad:
you are always with me
and you will never leave my side…

All time is yours, Lord,
and only in your time
is my past healed, my day fully lived
and my future met…

In this in-between time, Lord,
make me more patient with others
than I am with myself:
let none be burdened by my forgetting
that in days yet to come,
all shall be well;
than in your time, Lord,
all manner of things shall be well…

As I offer this prayer,
strengthen my trust in you, Lord,
and remind me
how faithfully you’ve been by my side,
behind and before me,
deep within my heart and soul,
every step along the way...

Help me worry not about tomorrow, Lord:
keep me faithful to your presence
in the moment at hand
and to whatever you might ask of me
this morning, this day, this week…

Amen.

(Click here for an archive of Monday Morning Offerings)

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Martin Luther King Day

2012-01-16T00:05:00.006-05:00

An excellent way to observe this day is to listen (above) to or read (below) Dr. King's most famous speech given on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC.

I Have a Dream!

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.

We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.

There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:

My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:

Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

Free At Last by austin fleming on Grooveshark

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Of interest to fans on both sides of the field...

2012-01-15T21:44:00.002-05:00

So a week from today the Patriots and Ravens will mix it up at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA.

Here's an interesting interview with Ravens' head coach, John Harbaugh.

If you'd like to check out the coach's favorite scripture verse, here's a link to it.

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Tebow, the Patriots and Jesus' words...

2012-01-15T00:34:00.029-05:00

(Note: I preached a post-game version of this homily this morning.)

Homily for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

(Scriptures for today's liturgy)

Audio for homily

I’m not a big fan of professional football
but as a New Englander born and bred,
my loyalty certainly lies with the Patriots.

I won’t, however, be praying tonight for a Pats victory.

I hope they win,
but I’m inclined to let that decision rest more on how well they play
than on urging God to run the scoreboard for our side.

Perhaps you saw the results of a poll taken this past week
in which 43% of those questioned said they believe
that the Bronco’s Tim Tebow’s achievements on the field
can be attributed to divine intervention.

And that, presumably, because Tebow
gives such public expression to his faith.

Now especially when his behavior is contrasted
with the shameful exploits of some other professional athletes,
I have no problem with Tim Tebow kneeling on the field
or praying in sound bytes on the news.

But neither do I believe his words and deeds help guarantee
the accuracy of his arm or a win for his team.

Of course that’s just my opinion.

But I wonder what might Jesus add to our conversation
about Tebow’s faith and the outcome of tonight’s game?

I’d bet that Jesus might say just what he says in today’s gospel:
“What are you looking for?”

What are we looking for?
What do we look for in following Jesus?
Where do we hope he’ll lead us?
What do we ask for in our prayer?
What do we hope God’s answer will be?

We’re all familiar with stories wherein someone is granted three wishes.
Suppose the Lord were to come to you this evening
to tell you he’d grant any three wishes you might make.

Would you squander one of your wishes on the Pats-Bronco game?

Might you wish for peace in the world?
for shelter and food for the homeless and hungry?
for freedom for the oppressed? for the healing of the sick?
for the mending of broken hearts?
for peace with God in your own heart?

In the gospel here, Jesus says something else.
The two disciples ask Jesus where he’s staying
and he replies, “Come, and you will see.”
And they followed him and stayed with him.

Where does the Lord stay today?

Well, you can be sure he’ll be in the Patriots’ locker room tonight --
and that might make you happy --
but you can also be sure he’ll be in the Visitors’ locker room, too --
because the Lord is everywhere and especially in any place
where a human heart is to be found.

Close to 69,000 people will go to the game tonight at Gillette.
Of that number about 60,000 will sit for hours in stadium seats
in the freezing cold.

You won’t find me there.

But I might be among the millions
who spend the evening watching this game.

And many of those watching, including you and me,
will have heard Jesus ask us, just now,
“What are you looking for?”

Now, don’t get me wrong!
Being a Pats fan and watching the game tonight are both great things
and I say, “Go for it!”

But win or lose, before we go to bed tonight -- or perhaps tomorrow,
we might do well to ask ourselves some questions:
What am I looking for?
What might be the three wishes I really pray for?
If we’re sure that God will be in the locker rooms at Gillette tonight,
where is he staying in my life? in my home? where I work?
where I go to school? where is he in my heart?

We look for the Lord at his table tonight,
and there we will find him
in the bread and cup of the Eucharist:
receiving him in Communion, he will come to rest in our hearts.

As we seek and find him tonight at this altar,
so may we look for and find him each day in the week ahead.

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What are you looking for?

2012-01-14T14:07:00.000-05:00

Image source

Jesus asks this probing question, "What are you looking for?" in this Sunday's gospel. To help you ponder your response, take a look at the readings before you hear them proclaimed at Mass.

The texts and some brief commentary on them, as well as hints for helping children understand the Word, are linked in this earlier post.

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Respect, compassion and sensitivity

2012-01-13T19:37:00.000-05:00

Image source

The Church teaches in its Catechism that gay and lesbian persons "must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity."

On America's blog, In All Things, James Martin, SJ asks the question, "What does that mean?" What does it mean to accept gay people with respect, compassion and sensitivity?

That's a very good question and Martin offers us a very good response.

Well worth your reading, right here.

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In God's time...

2012-01-13T11:37:00.002-05:00

Image source

My thanks to a faithful reader who sent this prayer in response to the post just below: perfect timing, CC!

Oh God, grant us a sense of your timing.
In this season of short days and long nights,
of grey and white and cold,
teach us the lessons of beginnings;
that such waitings and endings may be the starting place,
a planting of seeds which bring to birth
what is ready to be born--
something right and just and different,
a new song, a deeper relationship, a fuller love--
in the fullness of your time.

O God, grant us the sense of your timing.

by Ted Loder

Might this be a prayer you find helpful, too?

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290 parishes and 125 pastors

2012-01-12T23:47:00.000-05:00

The past week has been chock full. A number of things weigh on my mind but especially a pastoral planning initiative the archdiocese is presenting to parochial staffs and the people of our parishes. You can read about the plan here.

In a nutshell, the 290 parishes of the archdiocese will, within a couple years' time, be served by 125 Pastoral Service Teams:

A New Structure for Mission: The Pastoral Service Team
The proposal is to create a new structure called a Pastoral Service Team (PST) to provide pastoral services to our parishes. The Pastoral Service Team is a group of priests, deacons, pastoral associates, lay ecclesial ministers, parish pastoral and finance councils who provide pastoral services to multiple parishes, which partner with one another to exercise more fully the mission of Evangelization. As opposed to a plan for merging parishes and closing church buildings, this plan adopts an approach that strengthens and enlivens our current parishes. By creating these teams, improved pastoral services can be provided to parishes without altering the parishes themselves. The members of each PST work together under the leadership of one pastor, serving and ministering to multiple parishes in a particular area. The PSTs have two primary goals:
1) meeting the specific pastoral and spiritual needs of Catholics in each parish that the PST serves in order to strengthen their communion in Christ, and
2) drawing these parishes into a tighter and more effective bond for the work of the New Evangelization and the realization of the Archdiocese’s pastoral plan.
This proposed new structure does not involve changing the parishes themselves. Rather, it focuses on the means by which pastoral services are provided in and to our parishes.

I fully understand the situation that has led to this plan and I see much of value in what it offers. Still, anyone familiar with parish life and ministry can see that the years ahead are not going to be easy and that new and greater demands will be made on both the people of God and those who minister to them.

So, that's what's been on my mind and I admit to being somewhat preoccupied with all of this. Perhaps you've noticed that it has taken a toll on my time and creativity and that posting here has been light. I have some important parish assignments to complete over the next 10 days so please be patient with me and I hope I'll be back to regular posting after that.

And, if you would, please keep the people and pastoral ministers of the Archdiocese of Boston in your prayer!

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Word for the Weekend: January 15

2012-01-12T22:37:00.000-05:00

Image source

Remember Ordinary Time? We're back there again, this time with Second Sunday in Ordinary Time. (The first week in Ordinary Time began this past Monday, the day after our celebration of Epiphany so this is the second Sunday in this season.)

The day's gospel is a great text for these first weeks of a new year. Jesus asks John and two of his disciples, "What are you looking for?" He asks the same question of us. In reply, the trio asks Jesus, "Rabbi, where are you staying?" How many of us are searching for the place where Jesus stays in our hearts, in our lives, in the world around us? And Jesus answers, simple, "Come, and you will see." Any of these brief quotes from the gospel would be good prayer starters for us this coming week.

The first scripture, from 1 Samuel, tells the story of the Lord calling Samuel. At first, Samuel is confused and thinks the voice is Eli's -- but finally he understands and answers, "Speak, for your servant is listening. How is the Lord calling each of us? If we listen carefully, what might the Lord speak to us in the year ahead?

In the second lesson (1 Corinthians), Paul writes of how the body is a temple of the Holy Spirit - certainly a message for our own age to hear and ponder.

For the texts of these readings, look here and if you're bringing children to church with you, here are some hints for helping them understand the Word of the Lord.

It's a new year -- time to resolve to prepare for Mass each week by reading and praying with the scriptures before we get to church.

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Frost: Dust of Snow

2012-01-12T17:06:00.002-05:00

Image: Squirrel Basket

Dust of Snow

The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree

Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.

- Robert Frost

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When Christmas is done...

2012-01-11T18:52:00.001-05:00

Image by Kayla

"The holidays" are such a hurried, harried time. I'm usually grateful when the "season to be jolly" is in the rear view mirror. But rather than respite, this week has had its own share of burdens and my schedule for the next month or so doesn't look any less full than the month just past.

I was grateful, then, to come across this helpful, seasonal reminder. Perhaps it will put things in perspective for you, too.

Now the Work of Christmas Begins

When the song of the angels is stilled,
when the star in the sky is gone,
when the kings and princes are home,
when the shepherds are back with their flocks,
the work of Christmas begins:
to find the lost,
to heal the broken,
to feed the hungry,
to release the prisoner,
to rebuild the nations,
to bring peace among the people,
to make music in the heart.

- Howard Thurman

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Monday Morning Offering - 175

2012-01-09T00:05:00.007-05:00

Image: George Mendoza

Good morning, good God!

I’m fresh from Epiphany
with its star and magi and gifts...

You ‘ve revealed so much, to so many,
to all peoples everywhere!

You showed yourself as a child:
intimate and innocent,
vulnerably human, lovingly divine,
imminent and inviting…

Help me see in the child, Lord,
Christ who is my brother,
my savior, my redeemer,
my prince of peace, my merciful judge,
my healing and my hope…

I pray that in the year ahead
you’ll continue to reveal, to show,
to disclose, to unwrap
your presence in my life…

So, this morning I offer you my vision, Lord,
that I may indeed see what you reveal…

Help me see you
when you show yourself
in the people I don’t like,
in the people who aren’t like me,
and in the people who don’t like me…

Help me find you, Lord,
in the times when I can’t see you…

Show me where you are
when I think you’ve forgotten me,
when I fear you can’t find me,
when I wonder if you’ve abandoned me...

Help me see your compassion, Lord,
when you pour out your healing
on my sorrow, on my pain…

Reveal yourself as the source of my joy
and show me the depths of all you’ve given me:
may I always give you the glory and the praise…

Help me see you
in the moment at hand
and in my past:
show me where you are
and remind me of where you’ve been…

Show up in my life every day, Lord,
and show yourself
at every twist and turn
along the path I walk…

At least now and then, Lord,
dazzle me with your brightness and beauty –
I need the showstoppers
to carry me through my cloudy days…

Reveal yourself in my prayer, Lord:
bathe me in the light of your face
and let your radiance shine on mine…

Reveal yourself in the Church’s prayer, Lord,
and in the bread and cup of the Eucharist
feed me with the life of your presence…

Unfold your plan for me, Lord:
let me see where you lead me,
where you call me,
where you want me to be,
what you ask me to do…

Reveal yourself in your simplicity
as the child of Bethlehem
and in depths of your love
as the One who bore the Cross for me…

This morning I offer you my vision, Lord:
all that I see and all that I hope to see
with my eyes, my heart, my mind…

Show me who you are, Lord,
show me your face
and keep me as the apple of your eye…

Amen.

(Click here for an archive of Monday Morning Offerings)

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Epiphany and Easter

2012-01-08T18:24:00.002-05:00