Upward and Forward Movement Towards Heaven

The great thing about living with other priests, serving with deacons, and in our case having the blessing of a seminarian living with us who is in the thick of his theological studies opens the door for many interesting and challenging discussions, ranging from hot button issues such as reforming the annulment-divorce process to asking, “Who is God?”  I love these types of discussions, I always have.  I can remember hanging out with the boys from Fairview when we were teenagers and sometimes “religious” stuff would be discussed and I always took the lead, I guess it was in me, to be a priest though not realizing it at the time.  My friends would come to me with Bible questions, religious questions, philosophical ones, etc.  The whole time I was thinking about marriage and making coaching my career.  Interesting how God has different plans. Anyway, back to some of the challenging “stuff” in our day.

Just the other day we had a discussion about heaven and hell, how hell is a backwards movement from God and heaven a forward movement towards God.  More importantly, for our discussion we asked, “Why do some preach and or teach from “hell’s” point of view.  For instance there are those who preach about black and white when it comes to morality, i.e. every moral dilemma can be answered and either you choose virtue or vice.  Moral dilemmas have all been defined by St. Thomas Aquinas and now we know beyond a shadow of a doubt if you committed a mortal sin or not.  Trust me, I am a big fan of St. Thomas and you don’t get much better than him except for a couple of others.  However, that kind of thinking is not from the Gospel nor is it based on anything the Church Fathers taught.  St. Thomas himself never taught anything like that.  It is true that I may know if I committed a mortal sin and mortal sins there are, but you can never know if I did or not, unless I tell you and you take me at my word.  It is the job of the priest to help a person discern what is venial and mortal, but even in that discernment the person was not sure therefore the sin was not mortal but may be so afterwards since the person now has knowledge.  Nevertheless that kind of teaching is not meant to be “fear based” i.e. you better get to mass otherwise you are under the pain of mortal sin.  That kind of teaching is fear driven, not based on relationship, one that starts with rules instead of persons.

Fear tactics never work people naturally rebel.  Tell a child you can’t have a twinkie and what will they do they will take one behind your back.  Tell a young person you can’t drink until your twenty-one and 99% of them will drink.   However, when a person is invited into relationship and knows they are loved they respond differently.  I am not saying we are not to have rules, there has to be regulation in all aspects of life, but that is only to keep us in check, it’s not the beginning point or the end point, that is a person and His name is Jesus Christ.

Telling people about sins, rules, hell, etc. must be done in its proper context and done with pastoral wisdom.  Why not begin with the man from Nazareth who only had TWO rules, “Love the Lord Your God with your whole heart, with all your strength, and all your mind, and the second is like it, Love your neighbor as yourself, everything else flows from these two commandments.”  We know have over 2,000 rules in Canon Law.  Rules and laws have their purpose, to teach us when we are within the boundaries of right and wrong, if those rules are used for any other purpose then the rules have become harmful.  “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” Jesus is referring to the Spirit of the Law, taking into account all the circumstances involved in a person’s life.

Are we not supposed to preach about a Gospel that invites people to relationship with Jesus?  Or are we supposed to be catechizing about rules and making sure we tell people “make sure you do this and don’t do that otherwise you are under the pain of mortal sin and you can lose your soul!”

I often hear Catholics say, “If I just make it to Purgatory I will be happy.”  Really!  Would you continue playing for a coach who says at the beginning of the season, “boys we are shooting for 2^nd place?”  Would you remain in a class where the teacher says, “Students we are aiming for B’s this semester!”  No, of course you wouldn’t, you would get the “hell out of there” (no pun intended).  We are supposed to aim for the prize, heaven, you want to aim for Purgatory; you go right head I’ll be waiting for you on the other side.  Am I being a little over confident, maybe, but it’s better than living in shackles and fear if I am going to make it or not.  I’m smart enough to know I will make it on God’s good grace and if I wind up in Purgatory then so be it.  “God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.  In this is love brought to perfection among us, that we have confidence on the day of judgment because as he is, so are we in this world.  There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment, and so one who fears is not yet perfect in love.  We love because he first loved us.” 1 Jn. 4:16-19

Jesus died in order to win us, to take us to Himself.   Either you think He loses more than He wins because you believe more people go to hell than heaven, that is also against Scripture since, God “… wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 1 Tim 2:4.  I know it is still undetermined, but our desire should be God’s desire? Shouldn’t we as Christians lift one another up, remind each other of the promises Jesus has made to us, how God has forgiven even the worst of sinners, murderers, adulterers, fornicators, perjurers, liars, cheaters, tyrants, addicts of all kinds, even people who left the Church?  Shouldn't we begin with heaven and relationship with Christ our Lord?  I think we should because then and only then do the rules make sense and we preach rules as a barometer between virtue and vice not whether one is saved or not, nor if it is the barometer in our relationship with Jesus.  Do parents stop loving their children when they make awful mistakes and commit terrible sins?  Let me be clear, a person can choose hell by not wanting repentance or refusal to bend the knee, if you will, to God, that possibility exists and even then God still loves them but respects their own choice, but we are spending too much time there and way too much time on the rules.

Let me end this with St. Paul’s understanding of the promise that Jesus has made to all who come to know and love Him.  “For I am already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at hand.  I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.  From now on the crown of righteousness awaits me, which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance.” 2 Tim 4:6-8  This longing for his appearance is not just in the 2^nd coming but Jesus’ appearance to us each every day, an appearance in the heart that transforms and that elevates towards God, which is an upward and forward movement towards heaven and not backwards like those who still live behind the law and the rules.  FJ 

Always be Ready to Explain Your Faith

“Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.  Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who defame your good conduct in Christ may themselves be put to shame.  For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that be the will of God, than for doing evil.”

This week’s 2^nd reading from St. Peter’s first letter is an exhortation to us to explain our faith when called to do so and to do it with grace, gentleness, and reverence.  We live in a world that is constantly challenging us to explain our beliefs, especially those the world deems outdated. 

As believers we are challenged on many fronts, ranging from simple belief in God, practicing and following a religion, holding to certain beliefs on the dignity and sanctity of life, marriage, helping the poor and down trodden, to public practice of our religion.  We cannot cover all of those here in the next 5 minutes so maybe looking at just one of those challenges will suffice.

Why don’t we start with the first one, the simple belief in God.  Most people do believe in some type of God, over 90% of the world’s population believes in some form of deity and or after life, be it heaven or some state of nirvana.  Yet, Atheists make a lot of noise, they make sure that they are heard, in some ways I do not blame them, everyone tries to defend their own position, that makes sense regardless if the position itself makes sense, at least they think it does.  It is our responsibility as believers to reasonably explain why we believe in God.  We do this as St. Peter said, “Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear.”   

Atheists usually look for some type of scientific proof for belief in anything, they need to prove that something exists or through the means of scientific experimentation and deduction.  A problem already presents itself, since the Atheist makes a claim, “God does not exist.”  If he does make that claim we can respond and ask, “Please show me proof that God does not exist.”  His way out of this will be to say the burden of proof rests on the believer.  But, why, as children will often ask.  If I make a decision to believe in something am I not obligated to use my reason and all the means available to me to come to my conclusion or do I just accept things blindly?  No, the Atheist if he or she adheres to their position they are obligated to provide “proof” for it.

Another approach is to focus on love.  St. Augustine does not provide the same “proofs” as St. Thomas Aquinas.  St. Augustine’s approach is based more on relation, especially love and the idea of God whereas St. Thomas follows Aristotle’s proofs which are based on reason; the ability to use logic to prove that there is a God.

We can ask the Atheist, “What is the difference between a rock on the ground to that of your child or your spouse or your parent or sibling?”  The reason I ask this question is because it is obvious, a parent loves their child, spouses love each other, etc.  However, if no God exists, the rock and the child, or spouse, or parent wind up in the same place, a non-existence, eventually since we may have to wait longer for the rock to dwindle away.  Regardless the rock and the person have the same end, which is nothing.  The Atheist may respond and say, “My child is an extension of me and the rock is not.”  That is true, but it still does not explain love.  The Atheist will respond that love is an emotion which is a byproduct of evolution, I always thought that is such a cold response.  I would argue that love is much more than just an emotion but something present in the very core of our being.  Why do police, fire fighters, and first responders run into burning buildings, burning forests, raging rivers and floods to save another human being, especially if there is no God?  What drives people to do this, to risk their very lives for strangers?  They are no more valuable than a rock on the ground, if there is no God.  But there is, for “God is love.”  That love is imprinted in each and every human being.  It does not come from just simple evolution or by chance, but there is intention there, an intention of the will, i.e. to jump into a raging river to save a drowning child.  It is love that makes that happen.  What caused St. Francis of Assisi to give everything away and live like the poorest of the poor, or St. Paul to give up his own life, or for Mother Teresa to pick up a dying person out of the gutters?  It was love, and not just chance or evolution.

All of us know someone who does not believe in God and like the Apostles before us we are to engage people in dialogue and show them the reasons for our hope and that our hope is not unreasonable, but rather quite reasonable.  The proof for God is just one such example of how to share with others our faith, there are many ways in which we can share what we believe.  In the end we must never shy away from doing so, but when we do that we do so with, “gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear.”   

Trust in Jesus' Promise

Today’s Gospel is often used at funerals.  There are two reasons for that.  Jesus tells us, “Do not let your hearts be troubled” and “I will come back again and take you to myself.”  These are words of comfort for those of us who are left behind, but they are also more than just words to help us grieve, I would say they are actually words to help us not to fear death, either for ourselves or in any one else.

We know that Jesus has conquered the second death, the death that would have left us separated from God unless He underwent His passion and resurrection.  The first death, however still remains (except for a very select few, i.e. Enoch, Elijah, and possibly Mary).

As a person and as a priest I have witnessed many funerals, of people I did not know, others whom I knew somewhat, others who were very close to me.  The one common thread that runs through all of them is the pain of loss.  This pain is natural and it’s due to love.  Our hearts ache when a loved one passes on.  Jesus’ words, however, should help us even when in deep pain over the death of a loved one.  The simple question that arises, is Jesus’ promise a good one, or put in a different way, do I trust His promise? 

The promise to us is, “I have prepared many dwelling places for you.”  Jesus has prepared a place in heaven for us.  The promise is solidified when He says, “I will come back again and take you to myself so that where I am you also may be.”  I believe that Jesus’ promise is credible, for anyone who would spread out his arms on a cross for me, a sinner, is a person who is selfless and a person who loves unconditionally, always!

Yet, we still fear death, both of the ones we love and even our own death.  In some ways that is a natural fear, since God has given us both the will and instinct to live, less we give up to easily.  However, that fear and even the pain of loss should never overwhelm us, because as Scripture says, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” (1 Jn. 4:18)

You may think that is impossible, to have perfect love, it is impossible for man, but not for God to work that in us according to our cooperation in His grace.  The saints did not fear death, either of their loved ones or even their own.  St. Francis we are told welcomed death as a sister.  Many of the early Christian martyrs went into the coliseum with heads held high, the story of St. Ignatius of Antioch tells us he wrote in his letter, “do not hold me back from my crown, I will be food for the lions.”  In today’s reading we hear of our first deacons, St. Stephen in particular, who also gave up his life and echoed the words of our Lord, “Into your hands I commend my spirit” at his martyrdom.

I want to have faith like that, it is difficult at times because I too fear death, both of my loved ones and my own, part of me wants to live forever, then I realize as St. Augustine said, “death is our way out, our relief from this world which is filled with more pain than joy, who could bear it for an eternity.”  I also realize that the prize that awaits me is to see my Lord face to face, the Lord whom I have been serving to the best of my ability and also to be reunited with those who have gone before me.  All I need to do really is to trust the promise fully, to trust with an open heart that Jesus’ words are true and they are meant for me, “Do not let your hearts be troubled, have faith in God, have faith in me.  I have prepared many dwelling places for you and I will come back again and take you to myself so that where I am you also may be.”  Amen!

The Gift of two Mothers

If you permit me I need to stray off topic a little or actually a lot today from our readings.  As you know today is a secular holiday in our country, we celebrate all of those who are mothers, be they mothers, grandmothers, great grandmothers, some even great-great or even if a woman who has been like a mother to a young person.  It is a day that means so much to us.  There is a very special connection we have with our moms.  Obviously we love our dads as well, no question but mama has that special place in our hearts.

When I think of mothers I usually think of two women.   I think of my own mother as I am sure you do as well.  There were two thoughts from today’s readings that reminded me of my own mother’s goodness; the first is when St. Peter spoke about patient suffering and when Jesus spoke about hearing his voice.

It is not just my mother I am sure, but all mothers who have suffered patiently.  I do not mean persecution or someone doing them harm.  Rather I mean the everyday grind and patience of a mother.  There are so many days when mothers sacrifice their own time, pleasure, and happiness for their children.  When I was young I did not understand this or even recognize it so much until the Lord finally starting breaking through this thick skull and I could begin to see and understand the sacrifices my mom made for me and my brothers.  She even bore our pains in her own body if I could borrow a phrase from St. Peter’s first letter.

When Jesus speaks about knowing his voice, think of how true this is also for mothers.  Since the time we are infants we have cried out “mommy,” “ma,” or “mama” when we were in need.  No matter what fear came upon us as soon as we heard her voice a sense of peace and calm would come over of us, knowing everything would be ok.  But it is not just when we were infants, this knowing our mother’s voice we recognize even as adults, it is a connection and bond that never goes away.

I believe the same two notions of patient suffering and knowing her voice also applies to our Blessed Mother Mary.  Reflecting on her life we can see that she pondered many things in her heart even when God asked or warned her of difficult moments ahead.  Think of the anxiety and or fear that she may have gone through when they couldn’t find a place for Jesus to be born.  Think of when the three kings arrive bearing gifts and one of those gifts representing burial, already pointing to the cross.  Think of when they bring Jesus to be presented in the Temple and Simeon says to Mary, “and a sword shall pierce your heart.”  Think of when they lost him for three days and find him in the Temple and he points to doing his Father’s will.  Finally think of the Cross as Mary walked every step with her son and watched the entire crucifixion, finally holding him in her arms.  These are great moments for our reflection on such a beautiful mother.

When it comes to knowing her voice we recognize her voice just as we recognize the voice of our own mothers and I dare to say even more so, because she is a mother to us in the order of grace, as Vatican II would say.  From the Cross she is given to us, “Son, behold your mother, mother, behold your son.”  As Catholics it is instinctual to us to call on Mary.  Think of how when we are in trouble the first words we say are, “Hail Mary full of Grace.”  They come naturally to us.  As Catholics we understand the familial relationships we have with all the saints, especially with that of the Blessed Virgin.

I leave you with this, remember your own mothers today, the one God gave you to raise you, but also remember the one who protects from above with her prayers and her guidance.  We know their voices, we know their patient suffering, so we simply say to them thank you and we love you.  Amen. FJ

A Story of Two Popes

This Sunday we have so much going in the Church.  We have the celebration of the 2^nd Sunday of Easter, we also celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday and this year the Church has added a third celebration, the canonization of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II.  What a blessing for those of us who get to experience this day.  Some of us remember John XXIII and many of us remember John Paul II, both men were the kind of people who are not simply just a part of history, rather they were the kind of people who make and shape history.

Pope John XXIII also known as Papa Giovanni or Papa Bouno (the Good Pope) was elected as an elderly man, at the age of 78.  Since Pius XII had a long reign the College of Cardinals were looking for a transitional pope, one who would not change too many things.  Upon being elected and shortly after the “Good Pope” decided that he would change things and change them quite a bit so that the Church would be “with the times.”  He officially opened the 2^nd Vatican Council, one of the most attended, publicized, and influential councils in the Church since Trent or even as far back as Ephesus or Nicea.  Beyond the changes in the Church, the Good Pope was known for his smile, having fun, and having that grandfatherly image, one in which people felt very comfortable when in his presence, feeling his sense of holiness and genuine goodness.

Pope John Paul the Great was elected much younger than was Pope John XXIII.  Pope John Paul II was elected on April 16, 1978.  As a bishop he was at the second Vatican Council, along with Pope Benedict XVI.  Pope John XXIII and Pope Paul VI both had a great influence on JP II, hence continuing the name of John Paul.  JP II was the first non-Italian pope in over five centuries and he was a Slavic Pope, a son of Poland.  I remember many things about JP II and he had great influence in my life, I choose my confirmation name, Paul so that my full name would be John Paul since I never had a middle name.  More importantly than that however is that this man truly was great, like Leo the Great or Gregory the Great.  World leaders upon meeting him would say that the rest of us were small compared to this man of great stature and goodness.  We know much about JP II but there are some things we may never know officially, such as the great influence he had with President Regan in bringing down communism in Poland, Germany, and Russia without ever firing one bullet.  The two men were good friends and shared a lot in common.  The most endearing thing I will remember from JP II was when he visited NYC and he had a cane at the time.  When the crowd began to cheer his name he started twirling his cane.  I thought to myself, “what a cool pope!”

As we reflect on these two saints, their lives, their work, how they affected us and the world, let us try to emulate their faith and to continue to ask them to watch over our family here at Holy Family.  Pope Saint John XXIII, pray for us, Pope Saint John Paul II, pray for us.

Pope Francis: A Teacher of the Gospel

When it comes to figuring people out some are easier to figure, others less so.  All of us measure people up and all of us try to figure others out.  We do this for clarity, understanding, and to basically know the person we are engaging with.  I would imagine that all of us both individually and collectively have been trying to figure out Pope Francis.  Some Catholics are having difficulty with him, others embrace him, and still others are putting words in his mouth.

I happen to like the Holy Father quite a bit, just as I like Pope Emeritus Benedict, and John Paul II before him.  Actually JP II is my favorite for many reasons, but that’s another reflection.  We have heard many snippets from Pope Francis.  He is an off the cuff kind of guy, half the times not having a written homily in front of him, just speaking right from the heart.  He is also very open in his interviews and not afraid to speak his mind.

Once such interview in which the Holy Father was quite open and frank was when an interviewer asked him about people with homosexual orientations.  The Pope responded, “Who am I to judge them.”  With this simple statement people went off the deep end.  Some automatically assumed that the Pope will now allow same sex marriages and that homosexual acts are no longer sinful.  The Catechism of the Catholic Church is clear, to have a homosexual orientation is not a sin, but to engage in those acts is, no different than when heterosexuals engage in premarital sex or when people commit adultery.  As moral persons we can judge an act objectively, decide between good and evil, but we are to never judge the state of a person’s relationship with God, i.e. their eternal salvation or state of grace.  We don’t have that kind of insight nor should we since we would judge incorrectly and this is the kind of judgment the Pope speaks of.  If we do judge in that manner we are committing a grave sin, because only Christ can judge us eternally.

Pope Francis is also for the poor, not that other Popes have not been, except that his thrust and concern if you will is for the unfairness in society that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.  In our country we blame the poor for being poor, it’s their fault.  We then justify not helping them because if they don’t work then my money will not go to help them.  Pope Francis is asking us not to place those kinds of conditions in our hearts but to be generous and giving.  If a poor person pulls a fast one on us then so be it, better to err on the side of compassion then miserliness.   Folks have even gone so far to label Pope Francis a socialist or Marxist.  I will say this, no one political-economical system is perfect and all of them have some truth and goodness.  Labeling people is dangerous.  People labeled Jesus, “breaker of the law,” “blasphemer,” “demon,” etc.

We don’t listen enough but as a society we are very reactionary, we have to respond right away.  So, if the Pope makes a statement instead of listening and taking it to prayer we make rash judgments without proper reflection.  We have to slow down and absorb what the Holy Father is saying and also to read him in context.  I have realized that even as priest when I say things that some will hear exactly what they want to hear and not allow the Holy Spirit to work.  The justification for our own position is usually made up of the following, i.e. that’s not what the book says, what the Church says, the way I would say it or the way that I would do it.  People who have judged the pope have already made up their minds, they have not accepted or better put interpreted correctly what he did say.  He has his own personality and approach, some don’t like it, but he is not here to make friends, he is here to preach the Gospel.  He also will never please everyone; it’s just the nature of the game.  He can’t get everyone to “like” him, but that’s not his job, his job is to teach and preach as is the job of all priests.

I think he is an amazing man and an extraordinary Pope.  During the last conclave some wonderful things happened during his election and I want to share them with you soon.  Some of things you may have heard, but even so it would be good to hear them again, they speak to the amazing faith this man has and his tremendous humility.  Please pray for Pope Francis may the Good Lord bless him with strength, hope, and courage as he leads us forward in our lives of faith and as good sons and daughters of the Church.  FJ

PARISH MISSION at HOLY FAMILY

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

This weekend and running through Wednesday we will have Fr. Lee Havey, C.P., giving us our annual mission talk.  I encourage you to come out each day if you can as Fr. Lee’s talks will center on, “Awareness of God’s Presence,” “Lord, I Want to See,” “Personal Call to Holiness,” and finally ending with a Reconciliation Service.

All of us need that reaffirmation that God is with us, that we can sense Him, feel Him, and know in our hearts that we are loved.  Being aware of God’s presence in us, in others and all around us should give us great hope and a great desire to love God and neighbor.

The blind man told Jesus, “I want to see.”  He asked for his physical sight.  You cannot blame the man for such a request.  However, even those of us who can see (physically) ask Jesus, “I want to see.”  It is a statement of faith.

The personal call to holiness is nothing new; it has been our mantra since Adam and Eve.  The personal call to holiness is to build up virtue, especially the virtues of faith, hope and charity.

We will close with a Reconciliation Service; I cannot stress enough the importance of Confession.  As Pope Francis recently tweeted, “Do not be afraid of confession.”  It is that place and moment when we do become aware of God’s presence, when we can see Him clearly and it is a means of building up holiness.

I will leave the rest to Fr. Lee.  Looking forward to seeing you all

over the next few days and I pray we will all be blessed with many

graces as we journey along in our Parish Mission. 

  

     God bless you,

   Father John