1st Sunday of Advent: Be a Good Sentinel, Keep Your Watch

The readings for this Sunday, the first Sunday of Advent have to do with being prepared, with being vigilant, on guard, waiting for the Lord’s return.  Advent is a penitential season, one which is supposed to be something like Lent, i.e. we pray, we fast, we give to the poor, etc.  We do this in order to make ourselves ready to see the Christ child, as did the Shepherds on that faithful night and like the three Wise men when they brought their gifts.  It is also a time of renewal, for as you know today marks the New Year in the Church and it is a time for new beginnings.  Often we wait for the secular New Year to make all kinds of resolutions, but we can do so now, for today is the day of salvation.

Often times when we make resolutions they often sound like this, “I will start tomorrow morning fresh,” or, “I will wait until New Years Day,” or some other such promise.  We make these resolutions and promises over many different things.  We promise to quit smoking, to drink less, to eat healthy, to exercise, and to avoid bad habits, weaknesses, sins, and life’s little addictions.  However, many times for us it will begin tomorrow and then tomorrow arrives and it doesn’t begin.

The weaknesses of human beings, all of us are plagued by those weaknesses, some more some less.  And yet, here stands Advent, a New Year in the Church, a day in which the Lord calls us again to start fresh, with a clean slate and to be resolved in our promises that are made to help build virtue and holiness.  With the Year of Mercy fast approaching what better means do we have then to make our dreams to be holy a full reality in our lives?  We have the opportunity to go to Confession, to humble ourselves before the Lord and ask Him to make us good servants, or better, good sentinels for sentinels keep a vigilant watch.  We are to keep a vigilant watch over ourselves in our lives of faith, not out of trying to win favor, but out of love for the Lord and all that is good.  This is done through penance and hard work, no easy way around it for old habits die hard, but it can be done with God’s grace.  Remember our weapons are eternal, prayer, fasting and almsgiving.  Let us this year bring those precious gifts to Jesus on Christmas morning, gifts worth more than gold and silver, gifts built on love.

How Long O' Lord

This past Sunday I preached on the tragic events which took place in Paris just a few days ago.  I decided not to use any notes except for the official statement released by the Vatican later that day\morning.

It is not always easy to preach on such a sensitive topic and when you do so you are bound not to please everyone and homilies are not meant to please you but rather to invoke emotion and elicit a personal reflection that is what the Truth is supposed to do.  Anyway, here it is to the best of my recollection.

Good morning everyone.  I remember as a young child me and my dad had a deal worked out when it came to going to the movies.  We would go twice a month, one week it would be to see an Italian or some European film and then the next time an American film.  The theater we went to in Astoria Queens showed European films many of which I fell asleep at.  I remember one of those great directors, Franco Ziffirelli who directed Jesus of Nazareth, which he did in English, not Italian, a great movie which I really enjoyed.

There was a great scene in it in which Roman soldiers had come to Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth and began to plunder and take the people’s food, money, and other resources just because they felt they could.  Israel was under Roman occupation at that time.  In the scene Jesus is about twelve years.  Ziffirelli took liberties with the scene, it’s nowhere in the Bible, yet I am glad he did it because it was powerful.  After the soldiers leave two young Jewish men fall to their knees and cry out, “Lord, how long before you come to help us, how long until you save us, have you abandoned us.”  The Jewish people were waiting a long time for their Messiah and in that waiting you could hear their plea and cry for help.  Not just a cry from these two men in the scene but all of humanity crying out to the Lord, “help us.”

Today we also await our Messiah, not like in the first coming, which we celebrate at Christmas but rather for His second coming in which we wait for Him to restore all things.  We live in a time in which we are asking the same thing, “Lord how long, have you abandoned us?”  In light of what happened in Paris and what has taken place in the last thirty years with terrorist attacks growing in number and other violent attacks growing in number we ask the same questions as those young Jewish men.

The times have changed indeed.  Talking about movies, thirty years ago when I was a kid, one guy would pay to get in and then go and open the emergency door to let in my other 10 buddies.  I do not condone this now, but I guess the Lord gave me a pass since I was quite young, but the time have changed, it’s no longer opening emergency doors to let in your buddies, but rather gunmen who come through those emergency doors gunning down innocent movie goers.

It’s not just these maddening violent crimes in movie theaters and schools, but also terrorists who go into concert halls, stadiums, restaurants, malls and other public places killing innocent people.  We cry out to the Lord, “How long!

The Vatican issued the following statement in regards to the terrorist attacks in Paris.

“Here in the Vatican we are following the terrible news from Paris. We are shocked by this new manifestation of maddening, terrorist violence and hatred which we condemn in the most radical way together with the Pope and all those who love peace. We pray for the victims and the wounded, and for all the French people. This is an attack on peace for all humanity, and it requires a decisive, supportive response on the part of all of us as we counter the spread the homicidal hatred in all of its forms.”

This is strong language.  The Vatican is saying that a response needs to be given by all of us, one that counters the terrorists.  It is not the job of a priest, bishop or even the Pope to declare war or to condone strikes; we simply look at the moral possibilities.  The decision to counter with military action is up to the governments of those nations that will or will not decide such.  This, however, brings another question to mind.  Is there an official Church teaching about self defense or war?

There is a teaching that goes back to the Church fathers who throughout the centuries have taught that self-defense is permissible, even war.  St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas and many who came after expounded on a just war theory.  There are three basic elements involved, one) all forms of communication with the unjust aggressor (nation) have been exhausted, two) the war must be defensive in nature even if it’s a first strike against the enemy so long as it is not preventive, i.e. we will bomb them first because we think in ten years they will bomb us, and three) we must use and maintain appropriate means throughout the duration of the campaign, i.e. if someone throws a rock at you cannot retaliate with a nuclear weapon.  Would this theory apply to the terrorists, it very well could.

Please remember, however, that Jesus was not or ever was or will be in the war business.  Jesus is in the business of saving souls.  Again, the declaration of defense or war is made by politicians and leaders not the Church or its ministers; our number one goal is saving souls.  With that being said, even if war is declared Jesus still asks what seems like the impossible from us and that is that we pray for our enemies.

I must admit as a fellow human being that I have very mixed emotions, on the one hand I can picture in my mind the destruction and the eradication of the terrorists and to use any means possible, those were my first thoughts when watching the news that night along with my prayers for those killed and injured.  It was hard to fall asleep.  I had feelings of anger, sadness, even asking myself the same two questions the two young Jewish men asked, “How long O’ Lord, have you abandoned us?”

Then when I was able to calm down I began to reflect on Jesus’ life most notable His passion.  I wondered and was amazed again as I have been so many times before, how did this man remain silent when He was arrested, stripped, mocked, beaten and even tortured and then made to carry a cross and be nailed to it with not one bad word or condemnation coming from His lips.  Rather, He forgave them, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do?”

Please do not misunderstand me or I would imagine even the Lord for that matter, we are talking about people’s forgiveness not about punishment that they may deserve for their crimes.  Jesus does not say to eliminate punishment, i.e. prison or such, but rather that even the worst of sinners can be converted, forgiven.  Some may not like that since some have drawn a line in the sand on what and what cannot be forgiven.  Jesus has no such line because if He did then you and I my friend would be on the wrong side.

It does feel impossible, to sit and pray for someone who does such evil atrocities, but I think no matter what we must leave eternal judgments to God and God alone, earthly punishments we carry out in justice and even mercy but we cannot judge the eternal outcome of one’s salvation or damnation.

People will also ask, "where Jesus in all of this is?"  I answer, "He is always present, especially in the faces of the first responders, the military, the police the firemen who come to aid of those in trouble."  At 911 I saw Jesus in the face of the firemen who climbed up the stairs of a burning building, in the face of Father Mychal Judge who was administered anointing and last rites to his fallen brother firemen and who himself died doing his priestly duty.

I am not sure if I answered anything today maybe I left us with more questions than with which we started, it just maybe that I don’t have all the answers to such complexities and tragedy, but I think together in prayer, hope, and a crying out to Jesus we will find the answers together, God bless you.

Picture is from Jesus of Nazareth, young Jesus in the Temple, I will also post the video from the movie depicting the scene I spoke of.

The Patience of the Lord

The readings this week and next center around the end of the days and Jesus’ 2^nd coming, this is so in order to prepare us for Jesus’ first coming in the Incarnation and His birth.  It also a reminder that Jesus did come once, which was promised but He will also come again which is also promised and the Lord makes good on His promises.

When we reflect on apocalyptic readings, those which refer to a 2^nd coming we are naturally interested.  Everyone wants to know, when will Jesus return, when will the world end?  The world will end as we know it but in reality the world will never end as we pray each time we say the Glory Be, “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be world without end. Amen.”

I do not want to necessarily discuss the end times but rather the patience of the Lord as is clearly understood from today’s Gospel from Mark.  Jesus uses the example of a fig tree.  He asks us to read the sign of the times, He does not give us exact days or hours of His return but He gives us signs allowing us to know that it is near.  But more importantly than that is that Jesus is patient.

The Apostles first thought that Jesus would return and restore all things immediately after His Resurrection, when that did not happen they then thought surely within their lifetimes, and when then that did not happen they realized that Jesus would come later when they time of fulfillment would be reached.

The question is, “Why all this waiting?”  The world is pretty messed up.  Terror, war, famine, poverty, hunger, morality turned upside down, we allow the abortion of babies but will arrest you if you hunt a bald eagle, don’t get me wrong, I love animals and if you hunt a bald eagle you should be punished, but I think you get my point, we have become backwards in our thinking.  One would assume the Lord is going to come back now for how much worse can it get?

I often wonder that same thing, how much worse can it get?  Well, the Lord is very patient.  He often uses examples of trees, vines, the harvest, because when they grow it takes a long time to reach its maturity – to be ready – to become ripe.  Even though weeds will grow up along with the wheat the Lord holds back the sickle waiting for the right time.  The Lord is patient with us.

Think of how long it takes for a person to mature.  Aristotle said a man reaches maturity and wisdom usually around 50.  That’s more than half a life time.  This patience of the Lord leaves me in awe.  With all my faults, weaknesses, sins, with all my immaturity and yet He deals with me slowly and with compassion.

Yes, the Lord could end it all now and be done with it.  But I personally think He is still waiting, continuing to give 2^nd chance after 2^nd chance so that we will turn towards His mercy.  This coming Dec. 8^th, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception will usher in the Year of Mercy.  What a great way for us to reflect on the mercy the Lord has shown us and them mercy and patience we should show to others.  Remember, it’s always easier to hit the reset button but then you would never learn, you would never become mature in the faith.  Trails, tribulations and even our sins if we are sorry for them are all life’s lessons, a part of the growing processes.  If we were to hit reset or stop short the harvest would never become ripe and ready and that is why the Lord waits for us both in our individual lives and for His return for all of us.  What patience, what Love!

Vocations Awareness Week: Some of My Journey

This Sunday ends our Vocations Awareness Week, but it no way ends Vocations Awareness, that is something that must go on each day.  Fr. Michael Romano, our Vocations Director has been doing a wonderful job in the recruitment and development of 18 young men who are now active seminarians moving towards ordination.  I remind him over and over again that Coach K did not make Duke what it was overnight, but slowly and steadily built it into a juggernaut and that he could do the same for priesthood in our Diocese.  However, Fr. Romano is not alone in this, we too must help.  We can help by simply offering to a young man, “Have you ever considered the priesthood,” or “I think you would make a wonderful priest.”  Praying for vocations is also needed, but along with those prayers active recruitment as I just mentioned.

When I think back on my journey to priesthood I realize now there were so many signs and so many people, by God’s Divine Providence – and grace, that led me to enter Seminary.  Some I have shared with you already and to go over each one would be redundant.  My parents were a great influence, not because they ever asked me to be a priest, but through their prayer life, which was daily rosary, catechism, morning and evening prayers, and sharing bible stories, my local priests from Fairview whom I use to really wonder and be amazed at.  I use to think, “What made them become priests, why would they choose that life?”  That reflection on them was really an inner reflection of myself, i.e. what do you want.

As a young boy I loved Church and I was really in awe of the Mass, all the colors, sounds, smells, what the priest was wearing, his movements, the signing, the reading, all of it was incredible.  By the time I reached thirteen to fourteen years old Mass began to lose its luster for me, not that the Mass diminished, but I allowed myself to be pulled in different directions.  Two of those things were basketball and girls

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On Sunday mornings I couldn’t wait to get to the park to play pickup basketball with the older guys or go with them to 4^th Street in Greenwich Village to play against some of the best, I rarely got on the court there but love it I did.  When I would return home my mother would ask, “Did you go to Mass?”  I would say, “Yes” and hand her the bulletin.  What I would do is sneak into the back of the Church grab a bulletin and shoot out of there.  Eventually my mom caught up on this because she began asking me, “What did Father preach on?”

Then in my very early twenties I started going back to Church, not of my own volition, but rather due to the girl I was dating at the time.  I use to think, what a sacrifice I am making here, I hope she sees this sacrifice, anyway all kidding aside even in those moments, mostly bored out of my skull, God was still speaking to me because during Mass I would picture myself in the priest robes, walking around the altar, and most of all preaching and thinking I can do better than this guy (I am such a typical New Yorker-North Jersey guy, what can you do).  Without even knowing it those childhood memories of being in awe and beauty were breaking through.  God was working slowly but surely not just for me, that would be selfish, but also for my girlfriend at the time who has also been blessed by God with now a beautiful family.  What great love God has for us as He works in each of us to bring about the best for us.

And still, even after all of this I continued head long into what I thought what eventually be a college coaching career for me.  Again, Church became or rather went to the bottom of my priorities.  But, God did not give up on me.  After a powerful conversion experience in my mid twenties and about two years of discernment I eventually entered seminary, “Alleluia” the angels sang, he finally responded after 100,000 calls.

If you sat down with a priest I am sure each and every one of us has an incredible story of our journeys.  Today I only shared with you a very small part, there were other big moments and signs, and hopefully one day I will just give a vocation talk for about an hour and share it all in one sitting.  

When I think of all of those who have helped me towards a vocation whether they knew it or not, like my cousin Vinnie, my mom and dad, my high school English teacher Mr. PJ Shelley, my History Professor at Montclair State who was actually atheist, my former girlfriend who dragged me to Mass for purposes I would not fully understand until ten years later, Fr. Peter, Fr. Frank, Fr. Jim, Fr. Anthony, and finally my friends, the OLG gang the older crew and the younger crew.  We were more like brothers than friends and their support was amazing.  Each and every one of the folks I just mentioned was a Vocation Awareness person, simply by living the faith or by being direct. 

There is one other person I would like to thank and he has been gone from this world for about 1600 years and that is the man who was known as Augustine of Hippo.  He is my favorite Saint.  I gravitated towards him immediately upon reading about his life and recognized our paths shared many similarities.  In no way am I saying that I am like him, I have a very long way to go for that, but rather both of us were being called throughout our lives and either ignored the call or shook it off, however God did not give up on either one of us and I know that this great man prayed for me, that’s another story.  I will leave you with words that he wrote about himself that fit me perfectly, words that made us brothers, brothers as friends and brothers as priests.

Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you!  You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you.  In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created.  You were with me, but I was not with you.  Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all.  You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness.  You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness.  You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you.  I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more.  You touched me, and I burned for your peace.