Pastor's Columns

Jesus Sneaks Out to Pray

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 08:00:00 GMT

Pastor’s Column

5^th Sunday Ordinary Time

February 5, 2012

“Rising early before dawn, he left and went off to a deserted place,
where he prayed. Simon and those who were with him pursued him and on finding him said, "Everyone is looking for you!"

-- from Mark 1:29-39

In this Sunday's gospel Jesus has spent the entire evening with an overwhelming number of people who came to Peter’s family home for healing. Finally, everyone is sent home to bed. Jesus must have been exhausted, just like the rest of them. But Jesus has a deep need to pray, and is willing to go to great lengths to get it, even if it means forgoing sleep and sneaking out to find it. Even though he seems to be surrounded by people, Jesus makes time for personal prayer whenever he can. Do you?

These stories are not in the gospels for our entertainment! In them, we learn how Jesus acts in our lives as well. Look at how this gospel reflects our own experience of God! Jesus spends all day with the people of Capernaum; it would seem that the whole town was at the door. But then, while everyone is asleep, Jesus rises early and goes off to a deserted place in order to pray. In the same way, at times in our lives God can seem very close to us, our faith easy. At other times in our lives God can seem distant, far away. We wonder if it's something that we have done? Where has he gone? Why does he not answer?

See how he hides from us, so that we must seek him again, after manifesting himself so clearly! When God is distant from us, then the soul has a choice: it will either go off in search of God once again, or will give up in despair. If the soul gives up, the Lord will turn and seek the soul again! God regularly takes these risks in his relationship with us, because it is the only way in which we can grow in faith, growing desire for him. These periodic absences are a part of God's normal plan for our lives.

Notice in the gospel that our Lord does not go so far away; he does not hide himself so well that he cannot be found. He knows that the other disciples are going to go looking for him. We see this same behavior when Jesus is lost at the age of 12, making Mary and Joseph look for him for three days. One does begin to sense a pattern here – a pattern that should sound familiar to anyone who is striving to have a relationship with Jesus, for Jesus is a real person with a real personality. When we realize that Jesus made his disciples go through the same thing when Jesus walked the earth, we will not be so easily discouraged when he treats us the same way.

Father Gary

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A Confrontation with Demons

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT

A Confrontation with Demons

Pastor’s Column

4^th Sunday Ordinary Time

January 29, 2012

“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?

Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”

from Mark 1:21-28

This Sunday we hear a most curious exchange taking place. Jesus is confronted with a man who has "an unclean spirit.” But this is no ordinary conversation that Jesus is having with this unfortunate man, for the man speaks in the plural. He does this because he is filled with many demons. Jesus takes both angels and demons very seriously, and we would do well to do so too. Although the possessed man had never seen Jesus, the demons inside him had met Jesus on another occasion. The bible tells us that the angels were created, like human beings, to be good. They had perfect knowledge of God and could see him. At that time, there were no demons, only good spirits.

But God subjected these angels to some form of a test, and since they had perfect knowledge and by nature were created with a clear vision of God, being pure spirits and not needing faith, they only had one chance to say yes to God. We don't know exactly what their test was, but many of the church fathers thought that God showed the angels the creation of the earth and human beings; of how we would fall into sin, and how the Lord who created the angels would become a human being to save us, and that the angels would have to worship the Lord in human form, an order of being by nature lower than themselves. Whatever the test was, according to the Book of Revelation, about 1/3 of the angels rebelled and were expelled from heaven. Their disobedience meant that they preferred their own way, their own company, to God's way. And that place is called hell.

What is the chief characteristic of this “unclean spirit?” Disobedience. The unclean spirits will witness to Christ just so long as they are not supposed to. However, if Christ had wanted the unclean spirits to witness to him, they would have remained silent. The unclean spirits are afraid of Jesus' authority. They cannot withstand the power of the Lord. He has total command and they know it.

This then brings the story back to us. The angels have had their time of testing, but we are still in the middle of our test. We are not visibly aware, as a general rule, of the good and evil spirits around us, but the Lord assures us that they are here. So then we are in the midst of a test where we can be tempted by evil spirits and encouraged by good ones; we can be corrupted by our inner choices of disobedience and purified by being obedient to the voice of Christ. A good confession helps purify us from evil choices.

If the angels had only one chance to say yes or no to God because of their more perfect knowledge, we have a lifetime to make our choices. Lord, help us to always be obedient to your voice and please expel any unclean spirits that we have allowed in by the choices we have made. Amen.

Father Gary

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Silent Prayers of the Priest at Mass

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT

Silent Prayers of the Priest

at Mass

Pastor’s Column

3^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

January 22, 2012

There are a number of places in the Mass where the priest prays silently. This is because the mass is both a personal and a communal prayer. When we come to Mass, we pray both as individuals and as the body of Christ. For priest as well as lay person, the Mass has elements of both private and public prayer. How we pray the Mass depends on whether or not we pray individually outside of Mass. Here are the silent prayers proscribed for the priest to pray quietly during various parts of the Mass. They are quite beautiful! You may wish to keep this column so that you can learn them too and make them your own as well.

Father Gary

Before proclaiming the gospel, the priest bows before the altar and prays this quietly:

Cleanse my heart and my lips, almighty God,

that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel.

At the conclusion of the gospel, the priest kisses the book of the gospels (if used) and quietly prays:

Through the words of the Gospel

may our sins be wiped away.

When the priest pours a bit of water into the unconsecrated wine during the Offertory, he prays silently:

By the mystery of this water and wine

may we come to share in the divinity of Christ,

who humbled himself to share in our humanity.

Following this, the priest will wash his hands symbolically with water (called the “lavabo”) and prays this silently:

Wash me, O Lord from my iniquity,

and cleanse me from my sin.

Following the Our Father, during the “Lamb of God,” the priest places a small piece of consecrated host into the chalice (called the co-mingling) and prays quietly:

May this mingling of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ

bring eternal life to us who receive it.

Then, at the conclusion of the Lamb of God, the priest has a choice of one of two beautiful prayers (these are great prayers for us all!) that he prays to God quietly:

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God,

who, by the will of the Father

and the work of the Holy Spirit,

through your death gave life to the world,

free me by this, your most holy Body and Blood

from all my sins and from every evil; keep me always faithful to your commandments,

and never let me be parted from you.

---or----

May the receiving of your Body and Blood,

Lord Jesus Christ,

not bring me to judgment and condemnation,

but through your loving mercy

be for me protection in mind and body

and a healing remedy.

Finally, after communion, when all have received the Body and Blood of Christ, the priest purifies the sacred vessels with water while praying silently:

What has passed our lips as food O Lord,

may we possess in purity of heart,

that what has been given to us in time

may be our healing for eternity.

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Behold, the Lamb of God

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT

Behold, the Lamb of God

Pastor’s Column

2^nd Sunday Ordinary Time

January 15, 2012

If you have ever watched the old Cecile B DeMille film King of Kings, you might notice that this silent movie, which was created in black and white, always has Jesus wearing a garment that is whiter than everyone else has on; in fact, Jesus even seems to have a kind of “glow” around him. Of course, in reality, Jesus usually looked like anyone else (no glow). If he looked like “God”, he would never have been crucified!

In this Sunday's gospel (John 1:35-42), Jesus, having been baptized, is mingling among the crowd of people who have come to hear and be baptized by John. John happens to catch sight of Jesus, stops what he is doing and says out loud, “Behold the Lamb of God!” John needed a special grace from the Holy Spirit in order to see that this normal-looking Jewish man from Galilee was in fact the Savior of the World. We too need the grace of the Holy Spirit to recognize Jesus at work in our lives, for he frequently makes himself known – but usually with his true appearance hidden from view.

For instance, when we look at the host suspended over the chalice during the communion rite at Mass, the priest echoes these words of John, inviting the community of believers to behold the Lamb of God. What we see with our eyes is bread and wine; what we see in faith is in reality the Body and Blood of the Lord. It really does take an act of faith to see him, just as it did 2000 years ago.

If you look carefully, you will find many behold moments in your own life. What is a behold moment? It is any circumstance where Jesus has come to you in disguise. We often recognize these special times of grace only in retrospect. For example, the other day I was working unexpectedly late in the office. I thought this was my idea until, as I was leaving, I ran into someone at the office door who needed communion to bring to a sick parishioner and I happened to be there at the right moment. This was not a coincidence: no, it was a behold moment, for Christ had arranged everything for the sake of this one sick person! Behold, Christ had made an appearance.

Other times you may reach a critical insight, or someone may come to you in need, or you may be moved to help someone else. These and many other circumstances can become behold moments as we realize that we have found Jesus Christ in our everyday activities. Many of the spiritual masters, and Saint Paul himself advises us to pray always. What this means is that if we form the habit of allowing everything we do to become a kind of prayer, an offering to God, we will perceive Jesus working alongside us more and more. Actually, all of life can become a kind of behold experience, for it was the Lord himself who said in Matthew 28:20, “And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the world.”

Father Gary

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What Are You Seeking?

Sun, 08 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT

What Are You Seeking?

Pastor’s Column

Epiphany

January 8, 2012

It occurs to me that it is not just the wise men that are on a journey, a mission in search of a goal, a star they see in the east; no, we are all seeking something in life. There is an old expression that comes to mind: be careful what you wish for, because you may get it! Everyone on earth is actually a traveler and a seeker whether we realize it or not. We are all journeying through time, from birth to eternity. Some are seeking meaning in life, happiness, security, companionship, success. Others seek sin, selfishness, and their own best interests at the expense of others. Some seek to give their lives to make others happy, whether it be family, co-workers or strangers. What are you seeking?

The gospel for the Epiphany (Matthew 2:1-12) is full of seekers! Let’s see who they are. The wise men are seeking the newborn king of the Jews. They want to do him homage and bring him gifts. Herod is also seeking something – to kill Jesus – because he does not understand that Jesus is not a threat to him. Herod is in reality -- seeking himself.

As Our Lord once said, when we lose our lives for his sake we discover who we really are, but when we seek only ourselves we bring ourselves to ruin. While most of us are not seeking to kill anyone (although we may do so at times with our words), we are often quite selfish in our choices with God and others.

The wise men are true pilgrims: they can teach us how to live a life pleasing to God! When they find Jesus, what do they offer him? First, humility: they prostrate themselves in front of a small child in Bethlehem! Next, they offer him something very precious: gold. Gold represents that which costs us something; theirs is no cheap or unthinking gift to Jesus. Then, they offer frankincense: we do this when we offer sincere prayers to God at Mass, in adoration, at home, and on the go. Finally, myrrhis offered:this is for Christ’s burial, and it represents the times we sacrificed ourselves for someone we love, or for a stranger in need, or for God. Be careful for what you seek, for you may get it in the end.

Father Gary

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Our Lady of Czestochowa

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT

Pastor’s Column

Solemnity of Mary Mother of God

January 1, 2012

   One of the most powerful Marian Shrines in the world is that of Our Lady of Czestochowa at the Monastery of Jasna Gora. This shrine was a favorite of John Paul II when he was archbishop of nearby Krakow; he was often a pilgrim there. Unlike many other famous Marian churches throughout the world, no one seems to ever have had a vision there; her story is relatively unknown. Having grown up with the Polish side of the family, I had heard of her, but no doubt most of you don’t know the details. Why is she so popular?

   According to tradition, Our Lady was painted by St. John the apostle. By the 4th century, Constantine had already built a church in Rome for the image. After the fall of Rome, the image passed through various hands and places too detailed to mention in this column (but they are worth looking up!). In the 15th century, a Polish prince became the owner of this painting, installing it in his castle. This was later invaded and an arrow was shot through the image of Our Lady’s throat in an attempt to damage the painting!

The prince then entrusted the painting to some religious at a monastery at Jasna Gora. Later, the image was stolen again during an invasion, and according to the story, the horses of the conquerors only got so far and refused to move. The invaders then inflicted three large slashes on Our Lady’s face, which are quite visible today, even at a distance.

Many have attempted to restore the painting to its original condition over the years, trying to erase this vandalism, and yet despite this, no one has ever been able to cover over these slash marks. They always reappear, and in this miracle lies the secret to the deep attraction so many Poles and others throughout the world have to Our Lady of Czestochowa.

The image is a message from the Mother of God without words. What is she saying to the Polish people and to us? She is saying, “I am with you; I have suffered with you; when you were invaded and deported, I was deported with you. When your country and you yourselves were vandalized, I was vandalized with you. I am always with you and will never abandon you.” Her visible scars, like Christ’s own wounds, are signs of love for us!

The devotion that Our Lady has at this shrine is so remarkable. Young people from all over Poland flock to here because they too understand the message she sends: I love those who love me; I will be suffering with you in this valley of tears; and I will never ever stop praying for you!
                               Father Gary

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God's Secret Plan

Sun, 25 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT

God’s Secret Plan

Pastor’s Column

Christmas Day

December 25, 2011

Christmas is a time when we see lots of angels on Christmas cards, trees, stores, nativity sets, and many other places. God has a secret plan in everything we do in this life, but he generally reveals the truth only to the humble.

I had a very good friend named Jean who always, always talked about angels, especially her angels. It was almost as if she conversed with and saw them frequently. Who knows? At that time I belonged to the largest Catholic Charismatic Community in the nation at Loyola Marymount University in L.A. Later, after moving away, we kept in touch; she came to my first mass and always gave the hidden angels a plug!

She died shortly after my ordination and I celebrated one of the English Masses for her one Sunday shortly after her passing. Imagine my surprise when two (huge – 1 yard tall) identical angel pictures were waiting for me to bless them ….from two different families. I had talked about Jean and her angels and this particular picture during the homily, and somehow Jean (or God!) sent these pictures, a reminder of the unseen world around us all, and that God can arrange everything for us if we allow him to do so, and that my friend Jean knew the Mass was for her!

God really does have a secret plan for this world and your life! Part of it is not a secret at all – we find it written in the bible – but so many have not heard this good news or choose to reject or ignore it. Why does God hide himself so well?

Christmas, for example, is what you wish it to be. We can buy into the lie that Christmas is all about decorating and frantically buying things, or we can realize that it is all about family—yours—and Christ’s! We are being invited into his family. Those who made room for a good confession this last month – and we had many opportunities to do that here—found their hidden God waiting to forgive them sacramentally!

Jesus chose to be born to a poor couple in an obscure, out of the way place – a cave, but look at those who found him! Shepherds did (after being visited by angels), and pagan wise men did (they were humble enough to ask directions), but Herod, who was arrogant, did not. God has a hidden plan in your life, and he wants you to find him. He will be hidden in many places, many disguises: in the Eucharist, the scriptures, other people, strange coincidences the angels often have a role in, and especially, in a cave in your heart!

Father Gary

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An Encounter with the Will of God

Sun, 18 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT

An Encounter with the Will of God

Pastor’s Column

4^th Sunday of Advent

December 18, 2011

This morning was not exactly your typical day around the rectory. Can you top this? In the first three hours: something woke me up early, so the day started a “quart low” in the sleep department; then the furnace stopped working; then a bag of frozen raspberries leaked all through the refrigerator, top to bottom; the cell phone decided that it no longer wished to ring; and finally, I bought a new set of dishes (60% off!), only to find that one box has round dishes in them (the others are square). And how is your day going?

Don’t we all have days like this? Somehow, all of these seemingly chance occurrences are in a very real sense the “Will of God” for us on a daily basis. The scriptures for this Sunday give us an excellent insight into God’s will by looking at how Mary encountered the Archangel Gabriel at the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38).

The Virgin Mary is suddenly in the presence of an angel, who announces what God wishes for her life. Certainly Mary had other plans for her life! But now, she is being asked to set those plans aside. Yet the angel seems to have brought such good news! What does he say? “[Your child] will be great and be called Son of the Most High, and his reign will have no end.” You will notice that there is not even a hint of suffering to come from the angel.

How does Mary react to this “good news?” She is a bit suspicious. She asks questions: “How can this be?” She already realizes there will be more to the story. What is going through her mind? To begin with, “How will I tell Joseph that I am going to have a child and God is the father?” or “How can I possibly be the mother of the Messiah?”

The angel answers her questions only by repeating and further explaining the great promises of God; but at this time, Gabriel in no way reveals how much suffering and rejection she and her Son would go through. Mary must say yes without knowing everything in advance. And so it is with us as well.

When God typically asks us to do something, he usually doesn’t show us the whole path, but only the first few steps. If he showed us everything we would go through for him, most of us would probably say, “no way!” So the Lord is typically, though not always, very gentle at first. He knows what is best for us, even though it frequently involves suffering. Instead, he usually only reveals his will one step at a time.

Every trial has a purpose in our lives. Every challenge is an opportunity of grace. In fact, each moment of our lives is like the Archangel Gabriel coming to announce the will of God for us. God frequently does not show us how he will work our sufferings to good but when we look at the earthly life of his Son, Jesus, we know that he will work our daily crosses to good in the end as well, even if he doesn’t show us the reasons right away.

Father Gary

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Rejoice Always; Render Constant Thanks!

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT

Rejoice Always; Render Constant Thanks!

Pastor’s Column

3^rd Sunday of Advent

December 11, 2011

Rejoice always.

Pray without ceasing.

Render constant thanks.

Such is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Do not quench the Spirit!

1 Thessalonians 5:16

Like many of you, this past weekend was spent writing Christmas cards, which is a kind of joyous penance. At the end of this long and rather arduous day, I had them all addressed and stamped and piled up on the floor by the chair; and next to this was an old cup of decaf coffee I had foolishly placed near there to take to the kitchen. Well, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what happened next: the coffee ended up spilled all over the cards. I won’t put down in writing what I said next, but suffice it to say it wasn’t anything like “rejoice always….render constant thanks!” Later, I realized I had missed an opportunity to give thanks in difficult circumstances.

How many opportunities do you miss to give thanks in your life? These mini-disasters we have so often, so many of which are our own fault, are all opportunities to rejoice and give thanks to God. God is never more glorified than when we give thanks for something that is truly difficult for us.

Rejoice always; render constant thanks. Did you notice that Saint Paul makes a distinction between rejoicing and giving thanks? To be thankful is a choice, not an emotion. One can even be thankful while being down and depressed because thankfulness is not based on emotions at all. Rejoicing is an attitude that flows out of joy. It can’t be manufactured, because it is a gift of the Holy Spirit. We give thanks for specific things in our lives. We rejoice as a result of a gift of the Holy Spirit of joy. Giving thanks, then, is a decision to relentlessly pursue gratitude and thanksgiving in all things. To give constant thanks is not easy, but it really does open the gates of grace in our lives.

Do not quench the Spirit. Nothing kills the Spirit within us like complaining and ingratitude. If the Holy Spirit is not flowing in your life, maybe a commitment to using the language of praise would help. This is the best way to clean house.

This is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. If you are ever in doubt as to what God’s will for you is in a given situation, begin by praise, thanksgiving, and rejoicing, and don’t be surprised if the answers begin to appear.

Father Gary

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Have an Advent that Changes Your Life

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT

Have an Advent that Changes Your Life

Pastor’s Column

2^nd Sunday of Advent

December 4, 2011

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens

will pass away with a mighty roar, and the elements will be dissolved by fire,

and the earth and everything done on it will be found out. 2 Peter 3

It used to be said that Thanksgiving was the one national holiday that absolutely could not be commercialized (except for buying food), but that was until the “Black Friday” shopping phenomenon came along. It probably won’t be long until the stores will be open all day Thanksgiving for those who just can’t wait for Christmas (or can’t wait to get away from their relatives!).

If only people could get as excited about their faith as they apparently do about shopping. When archaeologists search through the ruins of our civilization 2000 years from now, we might well be thought of as the “shopping mall people” because it will appear that this was where we spent most of our time. The problem is that what Christ has to offer doesn’t seem as attractive as a new iPad to many people, or they think they have time to pursue their faith later. Yet, Christ may very well come sooner. Are you ready?

As another Christmas approaches, the world seems to be more troubled than ever, but peace can still reign within us. The world may indeed end in 2012 as some doomsday people insist, but we are a people who know the future, and it belongs to the Lord. What will that future be like? It will be a world in which everything done on the earth will be found out. Advent, then, is a time to pursue the Lord once again.

Peace and happiness simply cannot be found in a store. What our culture offers us are temporary pleasures, but it isn’t long before we are off looking for that next bargain or gadget or “must have” item. But what is Advent really all about? As I approach the end of another year, where is my life headed? What kind of person am I becoming? Is there enough room in my life for Christ, or do worries and cares take up all the space there? Our consumer culture can be lethal to our faith if we overemphasize it. What to do?

Advent is a time to make up our minds to pursue holiness in our lives once again. What project will you and the Lord be doing together to prepare for Christmas? Saint Faustina speaks to us from her diary: Oh my Jesus, how very easy it is to become holy; all that is needed is a bit of good will. If Jesus sees this little bit of good will in the soul--and nothing can stop him—neither shortcomings nor falls—absolutely nothing. Jesus is anxious to help that soul, and if it is faithful to that grace from God, it can very soon attain the highest holiness possible for a creature here on earth…. Faithfulness to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit: that is the shortest route. (Diary #291). If only we give Jesus our hearts this Advent instead of simply running around, what wonders he would do for us!

Father Gary

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