Hop on the boat!

"So whoever is in Christ is a new creation:
the old things have passed away;
behold, new things have come." (2 Cor. 5:17.)

From the days when Christians began first erecting houses of worship, architects and builders have intentionally made churches to look like up side down boats. Well before the cross and the crucifix were symbols of Christianity in art, the boat was our symbol. While the fish was a code word/symbol for us, the boat is depicted on the walls in ancient catacombs as a Christian symbol.The symbol of the boat as a significant Christian identity comes from the story this weekend of Jesus calming the storm while He was on the Sea of Galilee with His disciples. The reason that this was such a significant event for the early Church honor with artwork and churches is that the early Church was a persecuted Church and needed to know that the storms that they were facing were being calmed by Christ as well. With Christ at the helm of the Church and their lives, that even martyrdom could be faced with the hope of believing that the Lord would never abandon them.

This week in Charleston, South Carolina a racist with a gun murdered nine people while they were studying God's Holy Word in their church. It makes us grieve. It saddens me that there are more families that are fractured deeply. It saddens me that the Emanuel AME Church members, the people of Charleston, African Americans all around the US and the world, and people of every race who care are more injured and divided today than they were before Wednesday evening. "That they may be one" was Jesus' prayer to His Father at the Last Supper in the Gospel of John. and it seems that we are becoming less "one" and more separated.

Yet we are called to hope, trust, believe, forgive and care. Jesus was and is the proof that with God all things are possible. God becomes a human being in Christ. God cures, heals and forgives in Christ. God feeds us makes us Christ's Body. God defeats sin, division and death in Christ. Christ is the only real solution to any storm we face.

If you are ready to go live in a cave and give up, please wait. The actions of one hate filled man are not enough to negate the love and care of God. The hateful words, actions and mindsets of the racists who live in our United States or the terrorists of ISIS are nothing compared to God's forgiveness and peace. There are many reasons that we are divided. But there is only one BEST reason to hang in there. God creates us anew. He didn't create us and leave us alone. God is still creating us and His Kingdom. We are called to stay on the boat and trust our Lord.

peace,
Fr. Chuck

"Take this, all of you, and eat ...."

I just read an interesting tidbit about the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ that we celebrate this weekend.

"One person can make a difference—perhaps even change the liturgical calendar the Catholic Church follows in celebrating important traditions. The feast of Corpus Christi (literally, the body of Christ) was added to the calendar largely due to a 40-year campaign by a 13th-century religious woman, Juliana of Liège, who had a special devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and worked to see a feast day devoted to it. Little by little the idea gained popularity and acceptance and is now celebrated worldwide." From Take Five for Faith on their Prepare the Word web page.

Of course we know that one person can make a difference in the Church and in the World. Mary's "Yes!" made a difference. Certainly Jesus made a huge difference. Abraham Lincoln, FDR, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and many others have made differences in our country and around the world. Mother Theresa, Pope John XXIII, and Pope John Paul II have made holy and dignifying differences to billions of people. 

But, do you ever think that the one person who can change the world is possibly YOU? Do you think that you can make a difference in the world other than the sphere in which you live? Or, do you believe that you are making a difference in the world outside of your family, work place, neighborhood or local church?

I believe that this Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ can help us to dream bigger, think bigger and be bigger in our world. To celebrate that we are fed by Christ Himself with Christ Himself gives us endless potential and endless capabilities. To be fed with the Flesh and Blood of the Messiah and Son of God makes us more powerful than we can ever imagine. 

Pope Francis has asked us to "Wake up the World!" As members of the Body of Christ who are nourished by the Body and Blood of Christ, we have the strength needed to be all that the world needs to make sure that every person is provided dignity and that God is seen as the Love that God is.

peace,
me

God is God, and there is no other!

Sometimes we get too immersed in details to appreciate the beauty and wonder of things. It reminds me of the story of several blinded folded people who inspected an elephant by only touching the part they were closest to. The one who grabbed the tail told the others he had found a rope. The one felt the ear said he was touching a leaf on a banana tree. One person closest to a leg said he had found a huge tree. One of them felt the elephant's side and believed he was touching a massive wall. And, the one who grasped the trunk thought he was holding a python. Only when we're able to step back and open our eyes, are we able to see the whole picture.

I believe the same is true of God. While we may never be able to completely understand and view God, we do get a better grasp of who God is by attempting to know God from many angles. Our belief in the Trinity is part of that trying to know God from at least three different angles.

It is obvious that the more we learn from scientific exploration of the universe, the Earth, and even the human person, the more mysterious and wonderful God's creation becomes. I am really looking forward to reading Pope Francis' upcoming encyclical on being better stewards of the the world that God has given us. It's all about respecting human life, you know. Sometimes we limit our minds to thinking that "respect life" refers solely to protecting the unborn. That is extremely important, but all human life is given a Divine dignity. And, all that adds to and benefits human life (like clean air, water and safe healthy food) is also precious. The more we treat all folks like they are made in God's image and likeness, the better we and God's universe will be.

It is humbling still to realize that God shared our human life in the person of Jesus. God had aches and pains. He laughed with friends, family and children. He cried when He lost people He loved. Jesus got angry at people abusing other people. He was passionate about loving in accepting and self giving ways. He is the prototype for our humanity. By getting to know Jesus through Scripture, prayer and the Eucharist we learn to live our lives in Godly ways. He also shows us in His Sacrifice on the Cross that there is no mistake, no sin, nothing that will keep God from loving us. God goes to the most unimaginable extremes to save us and draw us into His love.

The Holy Spirit inspires us still. Every time we get an urge to think about God or anything beyond our selves, that is the Holy Spirit loving us. The Spirit moves us to reach out a hand in friendship or aid. The Spirit bids us to commit our lives to another (or a whole world or Church full of others) for life. The Holy Spirit is depicted as wind and fire often because the Spirit is the wind in our sails to propel toward God and others, and gets us fired up in order to live helpfully, lovingly, and boldly for God.

When we step back and see how God is working in all of the world and in our lives we begin to get a glimpse of the immensity of God. This week, maybe today, take a look at big our God is and how much our God loves you.

peace,
Fr. Chuck

Come Holy Spirit!

Hi folks!

Sorry but I took a few weeks away from blogging. But on this feast of the Pentecost, it's time to get back in the saddle.

A Seminary professor asked his class,  "Are you Pentecostal?" His students gave him a blank stare. He asked his question again. This time one student raised his hand and said, "No sir! You know we're Catholic!" "Yes, I know you're Catholic.  But are you Pentecostal? " Then the students got the intent of his question.  All of us are called to let our lives be open and to be led by the Holy Spirit. In that sense we are all called to be Pentecostal.

Being formed, filled and led by the Holy Spirit does not mean that we have to speak in tongues, sing praise music, dance at church, or always have a smile on our faces. Being a Pentecostal Christian does mean loving God and others with passion. And it especially means allowing yourself to be loved by God.

Yes, I know that we are all loved by God. But the more aware we are of God's intimate and total love for us,  the more able we are to accept His forgiveness and live for His purposes in our lives. A Baptist pastor and friend of mine says that being a Pentecostal Christian means knowing that "the task ahead of us is never as great as the Power behind us." He's a Pentecostal and wise man.

Prayer, the Sacraments, knowing, loving, and living the Gospel are the time proven ways that we become and stay Holy Spirit filled, formed and led. Let us each live the love that God puts in us and over us.

Peace,
Fr. Chuck

Can I see some I.D.?

I got on my Walker's Wandering's page yesterday and I saw that someone had posted a blog for me. It was just a few words with a link to a web site. I looked at what the link was trying to advertise and I was appalled to see that it was to some sort of porn page. I deleted it as soon as I saw it, so that none of you would get sucked in by the hacker's web site. This is the second time this has happened in the last couple of months. I've reported it to Blog Spot, but I don't know what to do to keep creeps from pirating my identity in order that they may try to scam you.

Coincidentally though, "identity" is what this weekend's readings are all about.

In the Acts of the Apostles reading today, St. Peter is on trial for healing a crippled man soon after the Pentecost. He defends himself by identifying the crucified and risen Jesus of Nazareth as the one who healed the crippled beggar. The God made man, whom the religious leaders had killed, was still healing people by the mere invocation of His name by the brave Apostles. These first disciples were showing the world that Jesus had changed from dead man to Risen Lord, and thus their identity as His followers had changed. They went from admirers and observers of their rabbi and master Jesus to folks who prayed, preached, taught, healed, and loved with His authority and power.

In John's Gospel (chapter 10) Jesus calls Himself the Good Shepherd. While we might think that the name is appropriate for who Jesus is, the folks of Jesus' time would have been thinking that "Good" and "Shepherd" were contradictory labels. Shepherds in the ancient world of Jesus were not allowed to testify in court because they were notorious liars and not to be trusted. They were the wandering gypsies of their time. "Hide your wives, children, money and valuables! Here come the shepherds!" Yet Jesus identifies Himself as the Good Shepherd who lives and gives His life for His sheep. Thanks be to God for His willingness to break stereotypes. He helped us to see Him and His Father  as so in love with us that they will stop at nothing to love us. Jesus' willingness to be the Good Shepherd for us is also a call for us to look through our stereotypes of others whom we've judged to see them with the loving eyes of our God.

Finally, the second reading is from the First letter of John. He tells us that God loves us enough to give us His own special identity. We are now God's children. Just as Jesus is the Son of God, we are son's and daughters of the same God. We are loved with the same love. We are given the same intimate relationship and access. We are promised the same hopeful promises. We are destined for the same high destiny. BUT, we are also called to live up to the same holy and sometime painful unselfishness, AND look at ALL others as God's children too.

Any time we are tempted to have an identity crisis we only need to remember who we are and whose we are.

peace,
Fr. Chuck

You are what you eat!

The 1987 Danish film Babette’s Feast tells the story of two sisters in a remote 19th-century Danish village who never marry and live a rigid life dominated by their father, the pleasure-denying pastor of their austere church. Both sisters had opportunities to leave the village. But their father objected and they instead spent their lives caring for him.

Many years later—their father is now deceased—they take in French refugee Babette Hersant, who agrees to work as their servant and cook. After winning the lottery, Babette wants to repay the sisters for their kindness and offers to cook a sumptuous French meal for them and their cold and barren congregation. The lavish feast proves to be an eye-opening, heartwarming experience. Meals can have that kind of power. Think of a meal where you sat down with strangers and departed with new friends. Perhaps that is why a meal—the Eucharist—is at the center of our worship and why meals figure so prominently in the gospels. (from Dan Grippo, as written in "Prepare the Word")

One of the criticisms of Jesus while He lived and moved about Judea and Galilee was that "he ate and drank with sinners". The miracle that is reported by all four of the Gospels is the Feeding of the Multitudes with a few fish and loaves. His first miracle in the Gospel of John is at the Wedding Feast in Cana. The Last Supper is also reported by all four Evangelists. After the Resurrection Jesus makes Himself known to the two disciples on the Road to Emaus at a meal. He fixes a meal for all of the disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Today's Gospel has Him sharing a meal in the Upper Room again after the Resurrection. Meals were occasions for Jesus to reveal Himself and His Father's intentions to His disciples both before and after His Passion, Death and Resurrection.

The Eucharist is our meal where He still feeds us with His Presence. Just as meals were important to Him 2000 years ago, this lasting meal is important to Him. In the meal of the Eucharist He feeds us with Himself. He gives us Himself to help us be His Flesh and Blood in the world. He gives us Himself to imitate His forgiveness and compassion for the world so desperately in need of both. He gives us Himself to draw us closer (in Communion) to Him, His Father, His Spirit and His Body (Church). 

Meals do more than feed us nutrition for our bones and organs. Meals make us whole and holy. Appreciate the meal that Christ calls you to.

peace,

Fr. Chuck

No Doubt!

"The story is told about Albert Einstein, the brilliant physicist of Princeton University in the early 20th century. Einstein was traveling from Princeton on a train, and when the conductor came down the aisle to punch the passengers’ tickets, Einstein couldn’t find his. He looked in his vest pocket, he looked in his pants pocket, he looked in his briefcase, but there was no ticket. The conductor was gracious; “Not to worry, Dr. Einstein, I know who you are, we all know who you are, and I’m sure you bought a ticket.”

As the conductor moved down the aisle, he looked back and noticed Einstein on his hands and knees, searching under the seat for his ticket. The conductor returned to Einstein; “Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don’t worry. I know who you are. You don’t need a ticket, I’m sure you bought one.” Einstein arose and said “Young man, I too know who I am; what I don’t know is where I am going.”

And that is the good news of Easter; that we know where we are going. We have been told by the Savior that his life and death has promised us life eternal. And Low Sundays don’t change that promise. And unemployment doesn’t change that promise. Neither does divorce, or bankruptcy, or cancer, or depression, or felony, or failure. Through elation and deflation and every emotion in between, this truth remains; we know whose we are and we know where we are going, because the Son of God has promised. And this, my friends, is faith."
(from Steven Molin, Elated....Deflated)

In this weekend's Gospel from St. John's 20th chapter we hear the story of the Doubting Thomas. After Jesus appears to the other disciples on Easter evening, Thomas doubts. He tells them that he won't believe that Jesus is risen until he sees and touches the Risen Christ. On the following first day of the week Thomas is present when Jesus comes to visit again. When faced with the reality of Christ, Thomas gives the witness that no one before him had ever given. Thomas calls Christ, "My Lord and my God!"

Thomas had every reason to doubt. Dead meant dead. There was no reason to believe otherwise. Jesus is and was the firstborn from the dead. And even given Jesus' promises that in three days he would rise again, the disciples had no reason to believe Him, since it had never happened before in the human experience. I'm sure he thought like many others that death had won another victim. Christ, His life, His ministry, His message, His hope, His truth, His love, everything about Him was defeated. His goofy band of brothers and sisters were full pie eyed visions for thinking and saying anything else. Dead was dead.

Yet Jesus came again! Thomas was invited to see and touch. His hope and Jesus' life was reborn. Faith happened! Thomas is able to call Jesus Christ the names that He wants all of us to confess. "MY Lord and MY God!!" Then Jesus talks to Thomas and US. "You have to believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

Every time we allow forgiveness to be bigger than our sin or the sins of others, we say loud and clear, "My Lord and my God!" Every time someone rejects us or when we fail in a relationship, and we keep attempting to love we profess, "My Lord and my God!" When people in our lives that we love die, or when we find out that we are mortally ill, and we can still laugh and pray we witness, "My Lord and my God!" When jobs are lost, money gets tight or non-existent, or life disappoints in its myriad ways, and we still trust God's promise, "I am with you until the end of the ages", we will continue to prophecy, "My Lord and my God!"

He lives! Be courageous enough to be His witness today.

peace,
me 

Easter! Thanks be to God!

We can not imagine the surprise, or even the shock, of the first witnesses of Christ's Resurrection as they visited His tomb and found a sight similar to this one. In every cell in their bodies, every brain cell, every emotion in their hearts, Jesus was completely and utterly dead. They hadn't grasped His words of foresight. He had told them many times that he would suffer, die and then RISE from the dead. No comprendo! They started to get "it"  only when they found the tomb empty.

In fact the empty tomb is what all of the New Testament is about. The Gospel writers, St. Paul, and all of the other New Testament writers were so effected by their experience of the Risen Christ that they were inspired to write the life of Christ and the other letters, etc. because of that profoundly life changing event. The same thing with the early martyrs (and eventually every saint since then); how the Risen Christ impacted them is why they lived and gave their lives as they did. The Church and the millions of believers in the world today are a result of the impact of the Resurrection of Christ.

This gift of God that we call the Resurrection is a life altering event. Hopefully we can see that, just like Mary Magdalene, the first evangelists, the early Church martyrs and countless Christians since then, our lives and how we live them is because Christ rose from the grave. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is a current event. His Resurrection means that we live knowing that we can be forgiven for any sin. It means that every human life is redeemable and of value to God. It means that no disaster or disease can conquer us; that our God is bigger than every obstacle, mistake, and problem. It means that we can live hoping in promises of a fulfilled and eternal life to come. It means that even death can't hold us hostage.

Christ is risen indeed! Let's look at this gift from God with new eyes this weekend!

Alleluia!
Fr. Chuck

Palm Sunday: The WEEK begins!

Hi Friends!

We begin Holy Week this Sunday. Sometimes it's easy to go through this week with a limited vision. We hear about Jesus' thanksgiving day parade into Jerusalem. We imagine Jesus and His disciples preparing for and then eating the Last Supper. We retell His arrest, trial, torture, Way of the Cross and Crucifixion. Then, next Sunday, we learn of His first Resurrection appearances to Mary, Peter, John, the Apostles, and the two on the way to Emaus. 

I think that seeing and hearing of all of these events as what happened some 2000 years ago limits their impact on us now. Yes, they did happen in a historical time and place. BUT, with all things with God, the things that happened with Jesus in that Holy Week  two millennia ago are way beyond any time and locale. Jesus is the Christ and God's Son and therefore is still walking the Way of the Cross. He is always living, suffering, dying and rising for all of us who still need Him to be our Messiah and the Son of God for us in our time. 

Our spiritual work this Holy Week is to prayerfully discern how He is still walking the Way for you, me and the World. How have my sins and selfishness (and yours) put Him on trial and crucified Him now? How do we reject the violence, grudge holding, hatred and selfishness that keeps us from a full relationship with Him? How do we accept the forgiveness, love, and new life that only He can give us? What is holding me back from being fully alive?

The events of Jesus' life, death and resurrection are current events. The more we let Him be our only Savior and God, the more precious and fruitful this life and His life becomes.

Have a Holy Week!

paz,
me 

Laetare = Rejoice!

This Fourth Sunday of Lent is also called Laetare or Rejoice Sunday.

Are we rejoicing because Lent is half way finished? Because, in a mere three weeks, I can eat chocolate again? Because, at Easter I can stop feeding my Rice Bowl for every word of foul language I use again? Because, why?

Both, today's sections of Paul's letter to the Ephesians and from the Gospel of John we have great reason to rejoice. Here is what they say:

"For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and this is not from you; it is the gift of God;
it is not from works, so no one may boast.
For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works
that God has prepared in advance,
that we should live in them." (Ephesians 2:8-10.)

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life." (John 3:16.)

On this weekend we are shown, in the words of Jesus and St. Paul, God's design for us and all of humanity. God's plan is that we all be saved from eternal death by the gift of His Son's life. The reason that Jesus was born, the reason that He lived, taught and healed, the reason that He endured death by the Cross, the reason He was resurrected was all for our benefit. He lived and He lives so that we may have abundant life now and eternally because of Him.

Lent is our time try to grasp how much God is offering us by our prayer, fasting and works of charity. In our prayerful relationship with God we become intimately aware how much God dearly loves us. By our fasting and denying ourselves stuff, we hopefully learn that only the stuff that God gives us is worth craving for (even White Castle!). It is also the only stuff that is worth living and dying for. Finally, we do deeds of generosity and service to imitate God's all-giving ways. We do none of these activities to EARN God's saving gifts. We do them to get in touch with how generous God must be to give to us so freely. By our mere knowing that we need them, God's gifts of Mercy, Love, and Abundant Eternal Life our ours. Our Lenten practices (and even our failure in our Lenten practices) help us to be aware of how much we need God for all things in life and for Life itself.

We can REJOICE (or LAETARE if you really need to be Latin) because our God loves us enough  to want for us a better life now and a completely blissful life in eternity. I encourage you to meditate or contemplate about what part of that gift from God are you missing from your life. Where is it that you need God's saving graces?

peace,
Fr. Chuck

PS. I have a favor to ask. I have some friends who lost their twenty-four year old son this past week. Please lift them up to God in prayer. Embrace them, their daughter and their son's fiance in God's tender love. I ask for your prayers as well for twenty-five of us who will be leaving UofL on Sunday morning for a week of mission to the Habitat for Humanity Camp in Birmingham, Alabama. Pray for those who are making this service mission and for those whom we'll meet and serve. Thanks! cdw

The Buyers and the Sellers....

I read something recently from a Rabbi who was commenting on sports in our culture. He started out by writing that when historians or sociologists look back at the the buildings that may remain from our era, the most impressive structures will be our sports arenas. The ruins of ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome are either government buildings or temples to various gods or rulers whom they thought were gods. The middle ages had huge and glorious churches, basilicas, monasteries and temples like Chartres, St. Peter's and Hagia Sophia. We have Olympic stadiums, AT&T Stadium in Dallas, and our own Yum Center, Keeneland and (co)Rupp(t) Arena.

Sports have become like a religion to many in our time, both in good ways and bad. The good is that sports can teach some very important spiritual and religious values. Team work, how to win and lose gracefully and humbly, how to channel one's enthusiasm and talent toward a goal, the importance of practice and training, and how to treat with respect both those who are team mates and those who are opponents are just a few of some very good ideals that religious folks could learn from the sports world and vice versa. Where sports and athletics get a bad rap are the actions of some fanatics and some losing focus that at the end of the day "it's only a game". In both sports and religion we always are encouraged to remember why we do what we do. "What is the priority?", is the question that all players and prayers; coaches and priests; fans and faithful have to constantly answer.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus comes to the Temple this weekend to show folks that that the focus of their religion has changed in the person of HIM. He chases out money changers and turns over tables of coins and doves. Jesus gets angry (yes, it's okay to get angry, even in Church)! He yells at the folks, accusing them of turning God's house into a din of thieves. Then He tells them the new priority. "Destroy this Temple, and I will rebuild it in three days!" He claims. Few got it then. Maybe none got it then. Two thousand years of hindsight and interpretation have helped us see that Jesus was putting the Temple worshipers on notice. Jesus is the new focus for their (and our) faith and life. Doves, coins, sheep, and bulls have no comparison to the sacrifice of the Son of God of Himself. Nor do our sacrifices of time, talent and treasure. Prayers of praise, thanksgiving, supplication, and forgiveness have only one new direction because of Him. All of the Gospel writers, but especially John, show us that Jesus is the only Lord worth living for and praying to.

So, we need to ask ourselves what our priorities are. Do we give to get a tax right off? Do we use our time, talent and treasure like a vote? Am I more generous with my stuff when I like music, the homilies, the ministries, or if I'm getting some other benefit? If the answer is "Yes!" to any of these, then who are we trying to serve here? AND this goes beyond churchy stuff. Is Christ the focus of everything in our lives? Is He the reason we work, play, live and love? If the answer is "No!" then it's time to upset a few tables in our own temples.

Lent is the time to clean house and fall in love again with the HIM again.

Peace,
me

Highway 61 Re(re)visited

The first reading for this weekend comes from the disturbing story of Abraham taking his only, and long awaited, son to Mount Moriah to sacrifice him to God. This disturbs us because we can't imagine that God would ever ask for something so extreme from anyone, especially a man who had already sacrificed homeland and kin  in order to obey God's call. We remember the story. Abram and Sara pick up tents and livestock to follow a promise from God; a land flowing with milk and honey. God promises them, also, that there descendents will be as numerous as the stars in the heavens. They move to the present day Holy Land, yet after many years and much faith they are still childless, with the exception of the servant girl's son. Both in their eighties, God sends them three messengers, telling them that they will indeed have a son in their old age. Isaac comes as a fulfillment to God's promise. Maybe countless heirs is still in the stars. Then comes today's story. Sacrifice the only hope that you'll ever have for progeny to prove that you trust God.

Why would God test Abraham and Sarah in this way?

In most of our minds and hearts God doesn't work that way. My God is not some adolescent, looking for proof of love or trust. Our God is a God that loves us and forgives us unconditionally, even when we don't reciprocate. Of course, He wants us to love and trusts Him. Yet, He doesn't hold back His mercy when we err and make half-hearted pledges to Him. But still, we have to deal with this story.

One thing I remember from  Old Testament classes long ago, and from cultural anthropology classes even longer ago, is that animal sacrifices were common in almost all religions in ancient times. And, human sacrifices were not all that uncommon in some religions then. So, for Abraham and Sarah to be asked to sacrifice their firstborn son to God, may have been an unwanted request from God, BUT it would not have been a foreign idea to them. It is something that other gods would have asked for. So, why not our God? Sometimes the gods ask unwanted things. Being a man of honor, of course Abraham would oblige.

Also, as mentioned before, Abraham had trusted God in every request that he'd been given. He was never disappointed. Even with the most valuable gift that God had ever given him, Isaac, Abraham trusted with faith in the God who had given him this precious gift.

Scripture scholars also say that this reading is an evidence that our God is not like those other gods. He doesn't require human sacrifice like the neighboring tribes' gods do. When they reach the top of the mountain, it is God who does the sacrificing, not Abraham. Abraham trusted. And God promises again that He will make Abraham's offspring as numerous as the sands on the seashore. The results of that promise that God made to Abraham are the reason that Jews, Christians and Muslims can all call Abraham their spiritual and real father.

(FYI: On another mountain(hill), near the legendary location of Mt. Moriah, a human was sacrificed on trumped up charges. He was also the Son of God. Again, God makes the bigger sacrifice for our sakes.)

My encouragement to you is to figure out for yourself, what your Isaac is. What is more precious than God to you? Remembering that God is outdone in generosity, are you willing to offer your "Isaac" to God? Are you also prepared for the miracles that God will then do in your life?

peace,
me

What a Bargain!!!!

For married couples it is their wedding bands. For religious it is their scapular, habit, tonsure, rosary or three knots. For priests it is when we put our folded hands in the bishop's hands promising to pray, preach, serve the people of the Church, and obey our bishop. For Moses it was those two tablets of stone. For Noah it was a rainbow. For all Christians it is always the Cross. These are all signs and symbols of our covenant with God. We are and will always be a people in a covenant with one another and with God.These holy covenants are promises between us and God, and God and us.

In the first reading this weekend from the Book of Genesis, God makes Noah and his family a promise in their covenant. "I will be your God." "I will be with you always." (and) "I will never destroy the earth, again." The sign for this promise from God was the rainbow he showed them.

The thing about these Godly covenants that strikes me is that God always makes the bigger commitment. "Always" is a long time. Yet God is true to His Word. He promises to love, support and even give us life ALWAYS. Nothing we do can match that commitment. In Jesus Christ he shows an even larger commitment to us. On the Cross, the Son of God gives us the gift of forgiveness and redemption from our sins forever. Our small part of that bargain is only to admit that we do indeed need God's forgiveness. Following His Death is of course His Resurrection. We receive freedom from the fear of death, hope that God is bigger than every sin and obstacle in life, and a Godly purpose for which to live. God receives us calling Christ our Lord and letting God be the God of us. Again, God does the big stuff. We just have to trust more.

On this First Sunday of Lent I invite you to spend some time thanking God for His generous commitments to us. And, I invite you to also pray prayers that lead you to trusting Him more.

Happy Lent!
Fr. Chuck

"Going to the Carwash, yeah!"

A nice hot shower feels great! When I'm at the lake, and I've been weed eating, mowing, or anything else sweaty, the shower is a blessing. Not only does it cleanse your body but it does something for your attitude and mood too.

In the same way forgiveness is more than just a way to get rid of a grudge or a sin. Forgiveness lightens us and refreshes us. Not long ago a boy, about ten, and his mom were at a Communal Reconciliation service at a local parish. He was definitely the youngest one in church that evening. In fact, in comparison to the rest of us, he looked out of place. I thought that Mom had dragged him there because it was Advent or that she thought he really "needed to go to Confession". No. She told me that her son loved going to the Sacrament of Reconciliation because it made him feel clean!

Jesus cleanses a man in the Gospel today. Not just any man, but He cleanses a man with the oldest and dirtiest disease in our history; leprosy. We have heard how contagious leprosy (or Hansen's disease) is. In Jesus' day there were religious and social rules regarding the awful disease. The leper had to live banished from society and family until they were declared clean or until they were dead. No exceptions! And the word was always "cleansed" not "healed". The leper had to yell, "UNCLEAN!" to any passerby's so as not to infect them. They didn't yell, "SICK!" They yelled, "UNCLEAN!"

The man in the Gospel asks Jesus to make him "clean". Jesus tells him, "I do will it. Be made Clean!" In making the leper clean again Jesus shows God's power over disease, sin, religious and social norms, and our attitudes about our own selves that make us dirty. That's what the ten year old at the Communal Reconciliation Service was asking for and what he received in the Sacrament. As do we. God's forgiveness cleanses us wholly; body, mind and soul.

On this Ash Wednesday we begin the Holy Season of Lent. Lent is more than about ashes, fish fries, Rice Bowls, and giving up Facebook for six and one half weeks (even though I highly endorse all of those practices). Lent can be about taking a good look into our lives and finding out where we need to do some "cleaning". We all have areas in our lives that make us seem dirty. Or, we treat others like they are "dirt" to us. Lent is a good time to ask God to intervene, make us clean and extend God's cleansing to those whom need to know that they, too, are made in God's image and likeness.

Let's invite God to do a little cleaning for Lent!

peace,
Fr. Chuck

Whose Life Is It Anyway?

People of faith know or learn that life is more than this life.

In this weekend's first reading Job, the man of faith and misery, keeps his faith in spite of the torments of his life. If anyone ever told you to endure your hardships with a stoic stiff upper lip, you may want to point to Job and say, "no way!" Job berated God, was angry with God, cried to God, whined to God, brought his gloom to God, but always believed in God. His family and false friends gave up on Job and his God. Job did not. At the end of his story Job states, "I know that my Redeemer lives." After having everything earthly that matters taken away from him, Job still yells at God seeking relief. And Peace finally came to Job's life.

In St. Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians he states the purpose for which he witnesses and writes. "All this I do for the sake of the Gospel, so that I may have a share in it." His hardships too were manifold. Arrests, torture, rejection, distrust (even by the other Apostles), constantly uprooting and heading to new lands and cities to spread the Good News were his way of life. Eventually he even died a martyr's death. He did this because he too was aware that, "it is not I who live, but Christ lives in me." After getting knocked off of his horse and blinded, his life was never his own any more. He became bigger than he could have ever imagined.

Jesus just keeps on moving, proclaiming, and healing. Especially in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus seems to be in an urgent rush. Get baptized. Hear God say, "This is My Beloved Son!" Deal with the Devil. Call disciples. Start preaching, dealing with other demons, and healing. Go. Go. Go. Stop for a prayer with Dad. Go some more. His life was definitely not His own. He lived every moment to do the will of His Father and nothing more.

Because of this way that He lived out being the Son of God we have a template on how we are all called to live. We too are God's beloved sons and daughters. We were made in His image and thus share much in similarity to His Son. He shared our life and now asks us to share His life of trust, reconciliation, true freedom, healing, helping and living to the full.

It is said that imitation is the highest form of flattery. In regards to trying to be more like Christ, imitation is also our best way to peace, union with the will of God, and our path to eternal life with God. The key for us is to daily let God take control of a little bit more of our lives and anything else we call our own. Jesus, Paul, Job and every saint since them has let God be the focus of their lives. Our path to full and free life starts with us letting God guide us.

peace,
Fr. Chuck

Running with the Devil or walking by faith?

Comedian, Flip Wilson, played a character by the name of Geraldine as part of his routine. One of his/her tag lines was, "The Devil made me do it!" While Flip Wilson was a funny comedian, and Geraldine's tag line got plenty of laughs, the Devil actually wants us not to take him seriously.

In the Gospel from the first chapter of Mark this weekend, we hear that the demons, in the possessed man in the synagogue in Caperaum, were the ones in the crowd who identified Jesus as God's Son and the Christ. This is a big theme in Mark's Gospel. Throughout the Gospel only the demons and people who are thinking wrongly identify Jesus for who He is. Even St. Peter is called "Satan" by Jesus, after Jesus tells His Apostles that He has to suffer, die, and rise for Him to be the Messiah. Only when Jesus is dead on the Cross does a Roman Centurion get away with saying, "Surely, this man was the the Son of God!" and not being rebuked by Jesus. Jesus did not refuse the title because He was not God's Son. He merely resisted the common notion that the Messiah was going to be identified as a wonder worker and worldly ruler. In the Gospel of Mark we are introduced to the Messiah of God who would save us by His self sacrifice. Completely emptying Himself is the trademark of God's Son and our Lord and Savior. (Total abandonment is also the call for us, Jesus' disciples.)

Pope Francis is being quoted and sound bit a lot in all of the media. Most of what he is doing, that shows a new openness and a gentle mercy from our Church, is what is being broadcast. And that is very good. It is hugely encouraging, and a great example to us, to see the Vicar of Christ being compassionate and merciful like Christ. However, if you get the chance to read the entire transcripts of his sermons, talks or letters, please do. Pope Francis definitely talks a lot about the Devil in his speaking and writing. And he takes Satan seriously. Part of this might be from his Jesuit upbringing. Some of the focus of Ignatian spirituality is to see how the power of evil is trying to keep one from being the person that God needs one to be. Those who follow the daily Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius examine how Satan is trying to overpower and infiltrate one's life. With God's help, in prayer, we are called to continually re-examine ourselves so that God may increase and the Devil (and we) may decrease. In this sort of prayer we are to ask for God's help to see find out how we are being lied to by the Devil.

The Prince of Lies is one of Satan's titles. He wants us to believe that little lies and improprieties are no problem; that taking care of ourselves is always the first priority; that it is all okay if it makes us happy; that power, wealth, and stuff can satisfy us; that human life is dispensable if it gets in our way, and much much more. The Devil is real and wants us to listen to his lies more than we listen to the Way, the Truth and the Life. Satan wants our lives and our souls for eternity. So he lies to us in order to convince us that God's Way is the lie and his way is the truth. He is insidious and persistent.

Only by intimate relationship with God by and continually seeking God's help and mercy, do we identify the liar and give God power over him. Jesus constantly resisted the Satan's temptations to perform selfishly and devilishly. He did so because of His intimate union with His God and Father. Jesus was able to recognize the lies of the demons around Him and point them out. With a deepening relationship with our God and Father, and regular honest inspection of how the the Devil is trying to convince us of his lies, will we be able to laugh at Satan, because our God is bigger and more powerful than his nonsense.

Peace and Prayers,
me

I want it all! I want it now!

My experience in buying new stuff is that stuff never really satisfies me as much as I anticipated that it would. Whether it comes on four wheels, in a bottle with amber colored liquor in it, with a picket fence around it, or it has a bunch of zeroes behind it, stuff is only stuff. We mistakenly believe that stuff is going to make us happy. We also falsely believe that we can make our self happier by procuring more stuff. It is also pretty clear that the same can be said about my plans for my life. My plans are just more stuff, actually. We think we know best what is best for us. Wrong!

All three readings this weekend are fun but serious reminders that our ways (and stuff) are not God's ways. The short peek into the life of Jonah in the first reading is just enough to encourage me to ask you to find your Bible and read the whole Book of Jonah. It is a very short story that you can probably read while that rerun of NCIS is on. Jonah thinks he knows better than God what he needs to do with his life and what the people of Nineveh need to get right with God. He is wrong on both accounts. And God is quick to correct him (in a comical sort of way). I think the Book of Jonah is the funniest book in the Sacred Scriptures. The whole story is about one episode after another of Jonah trying to prove he is right, while us readers understand pretty quickly that only God is the One in the know here. The story of Jonah is still a pertinent and wise parable for us in 2015.

Paul's first letter to the Corinthians sounds like something we may read as the Church year closes. Here it is only the third Sunday of Ordinary Time but we are already reminded that this world is temporary and passing away. That means our time and our lives here are also temporary and are also passing away. St. Paul asks us to not risk our lives on stuff and relationships that are not eternal.

In Mark's Gospel story of Jesus announcing God's Kingdom for the first time, and then His calling His first disciples, I am struck about the urgency of His call and the immediacy of the response of His first followers. "The time is NOW! Repent and believe NOW! Be my disciple NOW!" The humorous part of this story to me is how Peter, Andrew, James and John all said "Adios!" right NOW to their fishing businesses, their plans, and their families; and how they started following this new preacher right NOW.

These disciples gave up their stuff, their plans, and their relationships. And it turns out that God's Son knew best what stuff, plans and relationship was more important for them. Because of God's call and their response the Church is here after 2000 years. This call and response "roller coaster" has been the history of the Church and its Saints since Jesus' Resurrection. We are a history of people who have taken the words that we pray "Thy will be done" seriously and joyfully.

So, how attached are you to "your" stuff? Are you ready for the adventure of your life? The heck with God being your co-pilot! Are you ready to let God in complete control? Can You pray, "Teach me Your ways, O Lord!"

peace and blessings!
Fr. Chuck

Come and See!

I used to think that my Mom had superhuman powers. When I would come home from sneaking into a neighbor's pond from a forbidden swim; or when I had gotten reprimanded at school for talking, clowning or disobeying; or when I had stopped to play tag or baseball with friends while on an errand for her to the store; she would always know that I was lying to her when I told her that had not done those things. She would say, "Charles DeWayne Walker, I can tell when you're lying to me!" Now, she may have just been testing my veracity. But I thought that she knew that I had lied to her (which I usually had). I don't know if she could tell my untruth by the expression on my face, or the tone in my voice, or some other give away posture. But, the bad news was I always got caught (evidenced by "time out", grounding, or spanking). And the good news was that I always got caught. In retrospect, it is good news that I got caught by my "superhuman" Mom. If she didn't love me, she would not have cared that I had told the truth or a lie. If she didn't love me, she would not have seen the subtle difference between my honest voice tone and body language and my dishonest expressions. If she didn't love me, I probably would have tried to "lie" myself through life. If she didn't love me, I am definitely sure I would not be the man and the priest I am today.Today I thank God that Mom had "superhuman" listening skills.

Listening seems to be the theme of the Old Testament and Gospel readings for this weekend. Specifically listening to God's invitation to have a life changing relationship with God is the theme of the two Scripture stories. Eli tells Samuel how to listen for God calling to him in the 1st Book of Samuel. Jesus invites His first disciples to come and see where (and how) to live in the Gospel story from St. John. In the Gospel Jesus and John the Baptist's followers enter a conversation. The dialogue is short and seemingly tame:

"Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them,
“What are you looking for?”
They said to him, “Rabbi” — which translated means Teacher —,
“where are you staying?”
He said to them, “Come, and you will see.”
NAB, Revised Edition: John 1: 38-39a

It sounds like my friends and I discussing where we want to go eat supper tonight. ("I don't care. Where do you want to go?") Yet, this conversation is jammed with life changing words with eternal implications. "What do you seek?" "Where do you live?" "Come and See!" This is the conversation that God has with every prospective believer and is at the heart of every prayer with God.

He asks us. "What are you REALLY looking for in life? What is ultimately going to satisfy you?" He knows the answer. And, so do we.

We ask Him. "How do you want me to live? Where do I need to let You live in me? How can I follow You?" The words may be formed by us in as many ways as there are of us. But, that is the question behind every prayer we pray. "Where are you, God?" Again, Jesus tells us later, in the Fourteenth Chapter of the Gospel of John, that He, The Spirit and The Father wish to live in us and us to live in God. So, we have the answer to our prayers. That answer is, "Abide in God!"

The toughest one is the last one, I believe. Jesus invites us all to, "Come and see!" This where the rubber hits the road, so to speak. This part of the dialogue requires action on our part. "Come and see!" means that we have to change, at the very least, some direction we are heading. "Come and see." means going where God wants us to go in life rather than going where we want to go with our lives. "Come and see." means risking God's unknown adventure rather than what we think is safety. "Come and see." means REALLY trusting God.

Do you trust that God loves you and knows you better than Mom, Dad, spouse, sibling, or intimate friend? Are you ready to let go of your plans, ideals and dreams and follow God's dream for you?  After seeing what kind of life and death that His Son and most of His Saints endured (including Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., whom we honor this weekend), why would we want to trust our lives to God? Can we believe that God's reward is worth our risk?

If we believe in the witness of Christ's Resurrection; if we believe that God, Father, Son and Spirit are still actively loving and guiding us individually and in the Church, in the Sacraments, and in the Scriptures; if we believe in the witness and work of millions of saints in our past and present; we can believe that Christ's invitation is worth our risking all for Him.

He calls to us, "Come, and you will see!" The next step is yours!

peace and blessings,
Fr. Chuck

Dive In!

I've secretly hoped that the Church would change the wording of the Ritual for Baptism. The rite is okay the way it is, BUT I wish it included one other line before an adult or infant is baptized. Right after the questions about what we believe to be baptized Catholic Christians, and after the minister asks the parents or the person about to be baptized, "Is it your will to (or, that your child) be baptized in the Faith that you have just professed?"; I wish that the person to be baptized would yell, "CANNON BALL!" Then the person would be baptized "in the Name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit." Actually, I've tried to coach children and others to yell "CANNON BALL!" when they enter the Baptismal pool. In thirty-three and one half years, so far, I've gotten no takers. For you see Baptism is about making a splash!

Jesus had to be a learner prior to His Baptism in the Jordan. He learned the practices of His faith from Mary, Joseph and His extended family. He and His family attended synagogue and traveled to Jerusalem for the different High Holy Days throughout His years of growing up. He probably learned carpentry from Joseph as well as how to read the Torah and pray the Jewish rituals that He was taught. I'm also sure that He was aware of some growing knowledge that He was also the Son of God and what that meant. Some of the unused gospels of ancient times picture Jesus as performing miracles for His childhood friends, like making pigeons out of clay and sending them off alive and flying. But before His Baptism there is not a lot of real evidence that Jesus taught, healed or ministered in any other way. He had no disciples and even was probably was a disciple of His cousin John the Baptist.

His Baptism changed His life. After He was baptized He rapidly became immersed in a life of service to God. He was able to tell Satan who He was and who His Father was in the temptation scene following His Baptism. He then began gathering disciples, healing the sick, caring for God's people, expelling demons, speaking God's Good News and Kingdom, and confronting those whom opposed the Truth of His Divine purpose. After His Baptism He became the Messiah and Christ completely.

Pope Francis is asking all of us to "jump in" to living our Baptismal calling as well. The world is starving for compassion, healing and truth telling. We are God's only ministers capable of loving, forgiving, and speaking God's Good News in this time we are here. When we were baptized we were issued a Mission from God. Be God's Body on the Earth. Now is the time for us to love those in our world as Christ would love them.

Are you willing to live your faith in the ways that our world and our God needs you? Can you be bold enough to look into this needy pool called God's Earth and yell, "CANNON BALL!"?

Peace and Blessings!
Fr. Chuck

The Gift that Keeps Giving!

Happy New Year!

We begin this first weekend of 2015 by celebrating the Feast of the Epiphany. I loved this weekend at St. James Parish because of the multicultural celebration that the parish has on the Saturday evening of the Feast of the Epiphany. St. James is the most diverse multicultural parish that I know of. Thanks to its proximity to Ft. Knox, Hardin Memorial Hospital and the many businesses that have located near Elizabethtown, St. James parish has folks from all around the world that call the parish their home. At the Saturday evening Mass on the Feast of the Epiphany people come together to celebrate their diversity. The music and the readings are in various languages. People are dressed in their native garb from India, Southeast Asia, Africa, Europe, and Central and South America. The parish is united by its common faith and by their Communion with God and one another in the Church. After the Mass is a wonderful meal with great food from every cultural group in the parish. Home made spring rolls are served right next to fried chicken.  One can munch on sausage and kraut and then follow that up with an enchilada. Luscious apple pie makes the palate smile as does flan and strudel. It's enough to make one's taste buds explode from sheer excitement.

St. James does this because of what we celebrate this weekend with the Feast of the Epiphany. All of the readings and prayers celebrate gloriously that the Birth of our Savior, and the Salvation that He brought us, was not for just a select group of people in a tiny corner of the World. He came for all of us, no matter our skin tone or how we like our chicken prepared. He came for folks who with nothing (like the shepherds who tended other people's sheep) and for those who think they own it all (the wise men from the East). He came for doubters and believers. He came for Mary, His Mother, and for Herod, who wanted Him destroyed. He came for you, no matter how worthy or unworthy you think you are of Him and His great Love.

One of the things that struck me this week, as I looked over the Gospel reading from St. Matthew, was that the visitors from the East came to pay Him homage by bringing Him extravagant gifts. Gold, frankincense and myrrh may have been symbolic of the respect that these visitors had for Jesus. Or the gifts may have signified the treasure that Jesus was and is to us and the human race. But the truth is that, no matter their extreme value, the gifts that they brought were very humble compared to gift that Jesus is to us.

As disciples of Him, our lives are meant to be gifts back to Him who saves us and loves us. Whether we think we are worthy or worthless; whether we consider ourselves blessed or cursed; whether life stinks for us, or we consider ourselves fortunate to be alive; our lives are meant to be entrusted to the One Who gives us life, who is also the One Who accepts, loves and redeems the lives we have.

I challenge you at the beginning of this New Year to make an effort to give something of your life back to God. Whether it is by dedicating a few minutes of the day to be in a prayerful relationship with Him, or by volunteering some of your time, resources and skill to serve Him through others who were made in His image and likeness, please give a gift to God. You will soon find out that the gift you give is nothing in comparison to the Gift the He will be to you.

Peace and many blessings!
Fr. Chuck