10.31.14 - 30th Friday of Ordinary Time - Fear of Skeletons

Dropsy is the affliction of excess fluid buildup in the body – usually in the extremities.  In the extreme cases, a person may be grotesque in appearance – and so people feel uncomfortable in their presence.  Jesus takes this opportunity to present the man to the leading Pharisee and guests – and asks whether it is permissible to heal him on the Sabbath.  The Pharisee, instead of saying anything, is quiet – probably avoiding even making eye contact with the man.

            Jesus has to remind him that the man is someone’s son – he is not a monster – he is loved by his family and friends, and he loves them back.  Most importantly, Jesus loves him because he was created in the image of God.

            GK Chesterton, in one of his famous essays – made a case for the defense of skeletons.  He says people are afraid of skeletons, but they ought not be – each of us has one very close to us – without it, we would be a formless pile of flesh.

            It is not death, that the skeleton reminds us of, but rather indignity and ugliness – we fear this grotesque creatures that lies hidden beneath our skin, hidden beneath our vanity.

            He criticizes those who say that the value and fascination of what we call Nature lie in her beauty.  This he says, is only one of her charms – and almost accidental.  “The highest and most valuable quality in Nature is not her beauty, but her generous and defiant ugliness.  Has the poet, for whom Nature means only roses and lilies ever heard a pig grunting?”  And in a brilliant line, he says: beneath my vanity “the bones of my skull beneath it are laughing forever.”

            Having a good sense of our interior ugliness – both physically and spiritually is a good lesson in humility – perhaps a redeeming quality for those who will don monster masks tonight.  It was vanity and pride which silenced the Pharisee in the presence of the malformed.  If we are humble, we know our ugliness, then no ugliness will scare us – not dropsy or skeletons.  We will even see the face of God in the grotesque.

The Skeleton, by G.K. Chesterton

Chattering finch and water-fly
Are not merrier than I;
Here among the flowers I lie
Laughing everlastingly.
No; I may not tell the best;
Surely, friends, I might have guessed
Death was but the good King's jest,
It was hid so carefully. 

November 11, 2013 - 32nd Monday of Ordinary Time - The cross of forgiveness

Forgiveness is like martyrdom - except that we can forgive as many times as we’ve been offended.  Like martyrdom, when we forgive, we surrender what is good though temporary for what is greater and eternal.  Our ultimate sign of forgiveness is Jesus on the cross where he says: “Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing.”  And we still enjoy the benefit of that act of forgiveness every time we approach Jesus in the confessional.  The combination of Jesus’ suffering and his forgiving us, gives us insight as to what true forgiveness is and what it feels like.

Many who want to forgive merely want to forget – but that is forgiveness without the cross.  The memory of the offense against us is where forgiveness gains its power – because through forgiveness, charity compels us to not hold this memory against another.  Through forgiveness, we take the memory as our cross – we add it to the cross we are already carrying.  And thus forgiveness does not make us feel better about the injustice against us – rather it increases our suffering.

Forgiveness, then, does not look very attractive – except of course when we are the one who is being forgiven.  But to dish it out seems to be asking too much of us.  But this is exactly what Christ wants us to do – and we discover that while our suffering increases – so does our charity – our love – and so we more willingly carry our cross – not because it is easier, but because love compels us.  While scandal tends to alienate souls from God, charity inspires souls to seek the gates of heaven.  May we always take every opportunity in which we are unjustly treated as a moment of dry martyrdom – an opportunity to show love despite the cost.

Open our eyes to truth of abortion

I am not a vegetarian – I happen to be a big fan of steak and burgers – however, at the same time, I’ve never been to a slaughter house.  They say that when some people visit a slaughter house and see with their own eyes where the meat comes from, they have a change of heart and reconsider their love of meat.  There is only one way to do it – an impressive looking cow must be killed – with all the violence that comes with it, and then sent through various processes before it ends up in the grocery store – or even further removed – sizzling on your plate before you.  If it was our ancestors in the old country, they would not have been fazed by this even a little.  But in our modern culture, we have been able to isolate ourselves from it.  The slaughter takes place in the background – and we receive a nice and neat package.

            We know it in theory – as an abstraction.  I ask my nieces and nephews: “what sound does your burger make?” and they giggle and say moo.  But we don’t have the experience of it – we are detached from the reality.

            It is interesting that much of our modern culture is about detaching us from the harsher realities.  Our homes are heated in the winter & cooled in the summer.  We accept paper money, which really just represents a promise, in exchange for our work.  All of these things have made life easier, more convenient, and in some cases, even safer.  And yet this detachment has a dark underbelly.  By staying detached, we are able to live with ourselves while a grave evil is taking place.  An “out of sight, out of mind” mentality leads to complacency, and sometimes even cooperation with evil.

            The evil, of course, which is most grave and most hidden in our society is that of abortion.  Those in favor of it have been very successful in hiding what is going on with veiled language and neat offices they call clinics.  The truth is: abortion kills children, an abortionist is a baby killer.  That is the reality – the frightening truth that continues because not enough voices speak out against it.  And the reason not enough voices are speaking is that it doesn’t affect them.  They say they are personally opposed but don’t want to get too controversial.

            Sometimes we need to be wakened from slumber to save ourselves from destruction.  The basic example is if a building is on fire and the children are sleeping.  So do we let them sleep so as not to disturb them?  No, we scream to wake them.  Some parents have children who have gotten involved in drugs and other similar problems.  They know that being a good parent sometimes requires tough love – they don’t just permit the behavior – they lay down rules, and refuse to give them money.  They do this, not to be mean, but because they love them, to arouse them from their slumber so they realize what they are doing.

            Our society needs to be awakened from our slumber about the truth of abortion – just like it finally did awake 160 years ago about the evil of slavery and changed that evil institution.  What woke the people up 160 years ago?  Well among many things, Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin.  In it, she opened up the eyes of millions to the brutalities of slavery.  What was originally tolerated as an evil most were personally opposed to, was finally seen for the true evil that it was.  Something had to be done about it.  Abortion and slavery are similar in that they require a transformation of society in order to overcome.

            Animal rights groups hold very effective campaigns to open up people’s eyes to the cruel treatment of animals.  They show pictures of poorly fed pets, or farm animals that have no room to roam.  Through these effective techniques they have made progress in legislation and people’s hearts.  There is no moral equivalence between abortion and animal cruelty, but there is actually a similar sentiment among animal rights groups as there is among pro-life groups.  We all want people to open up their eyes to cruelty and evil.  Sometimes we see pro-lifers hold up frightening pictures – they are hard to look and must be age appropriate – but they are often far more powerful than words.

            The Catholic Church is eminently pro-life today because she always has been so.  When the Church was in her infancy during the first several centuries – the Roman Empire was the dominant society at the time.  One horrible practice was the abandonment of newborn babies outside the city walls – particularly of unwed mothers.  The Catholic Church would not allow these babies to die – and so they took them in, protected them, and watched them grow in the families who adopted them.  The only difference between now and then, is that the Church is not given the opportunity to protect these babies anymore.  But we still have a mission to carry out and our ways.  We call this Sunday – Respect Life Sunday – as the Church continues strongly to defend life – especially the most vulnerable in the womb.  Because we cannot pick the children up at the city gates anymore – we must speak out and open up eyes and hearts.  We also go down to Washington DC every year on or around January 22, the anniversary of the unjust court decision – Roe versus Wade.  Not only does the March for Life consistently have the greatest number of marchers – but also the youngest crowd – tens of thousands of teenagers every year – a good sign of things to come.

Today’s Gospel, particularly the second half should speak directly to our hearts about this issue.  Jesus says: “Let the children come to me and do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.”  I often use this Gospel when I celebrate baptism – it stirs up a simple image in our imagination of Jesus welcoming the children with open arms and blessing them.

Back in the 60s, there was a message against war that you still see today: “Give peace a chance.”  It had a powerful impact on a whole generation.  We need to have similar impact to change our society to reject abortion.  So we can change the message a little and say: “Give life a chance.”

Birth Control is poison

I heard something novel this week - if it wasn't so serious I would laugh.  Someone in congress made the statement: "birth control is medicine".  I heard it and I immediately detected all the lies surrounding that statement.  Medicine?  Medicine is what we take to cure us of a disease, or help us on the road to recovery.  Medicine combats sickness, it can strengthen our immune system and fight bacteria.  Some medicine can even help those with mental disorders to cope with imbalances in the brain.
Birth Control, on the other hand, is given to a healthy person - it inhibits healthy body activities - in a way - making a person sick - making a body not function as it is supposed to.  It damages a body - at least temporarily, but perhaps worse.  It is a poison - it is a poison for our bodies, it is a poison for our souls - it is a poison to young teens who are told its safe.
Those in the administration call it preventative care - comparing it to a flu shot.  That comparison makes pregnancy morally equivalent to the flu.  Archbishop Dolan immediately responded to that suggestion, he simply said: "pregnancy is not a disease."  How true is that?  Pregnancy is much more like a miracle than it is like a disease.
Some try to make the case that increased access to birth control will reduce the number of abortions: saying it is better to prevent the pregnancy in the first place, than to have to kill the baby.  Those numbers have not panned out, in fact a whole spectrum of numbers tells a far different story.  Since the widespread use of birth control in our society - the number of abortions has increased, divorce rates have increased, infidelity has increased, un-wed pregnancies have increased.  The Utopia envisioned by groups promoting this in the 60s and 70s has not occurred but rather has backfired.  But the devil has gotten exactly what he wants.  The famous Rockefeller Commission in the 1970s said it envisioned a society where every baby born was wanted.  It may sound right, but its a lie to cover up why a baby would be born un-wanted.  That is the problem we need to address - not increasing the occasion for unwanted pregnancies, but rather teaching our children abstinence and for us to learn love and self-sacrifice.
This homily is not preached to tell the gov't what to do - I don't think they listen to me - and they shouldn't.  It is because of another argument that is almost always brought up when debating this issue.  A statistic that 95% of Catholics use birth control.  That I can address - that is my responsibility - to preach on and offer truth so that hearts may be converted, families strengthened, and souls made holier.
We hear in the Gospel today of one of Jesus' miracles where he cures a leper of his horrible disease.  Like on many occasions, Jesus brings life and health to those who need it and call upon him in faith.  Christ passed onto the Church this mission of healing - both in her sacramental ministry and in the services to the sick.  Today priests offer the sacrament of the sick - called annointing of the sick, and Catholic hospitals care for the sick throughout the world.  Our mission is Christ's mission - is to bring life and health into the world - not to inhibit or repress it in any way.
One of the most profound moments in the Gospel is what the leper says to Jesus: "If you will it, I can be made clean."  He wants to be healed but what is more important is the will of Jesus.  In this he imitates Jesus himself in the Garden of Gethsemane before his Passion who says: "Father let this cup pass from me- but not as I will it but as you do."  We are called to have this same attitude of acceptance of God's will.  It is the petition we make every time we say the Our Father: "Thy will be done."
This disposition of seeking and accepting what God wants - is at the heart of why birth control is morally wrong.  In marriage, husband and wife are made co-workers with God in his creative will - of the flower of God's creation - the human being.  Contracepting couples make themselves liars when they say 'thy will be done' and are instead saying 'my will be done' - which of course is the attitude of all sin - but because of the dignity of procreation - is serious sin.
Are bigger families better?  Yes - the more children you have, the more you will have to make sacrifices - imitating Christ.  Plus you might be lucky to get a priest or nun.  But most important is that your family seeks and accepts the will of God.  The Catechism says: "we are radically incapable of this, but united to Jesus and with the power of his Holy Spirit, we can surrender our will to him and decide to choose what his Son has always chosen: to do what is pleasing to the Father."  On this World Day of Marriage, let us commit ourselves to Spousal Prayer and Family Prayer to discern the will of God, understand it, and accept it.

3.10.11 - Thur after Ash - Voluntary Penance

It is most appropriate to hear Jesus’ call to take up our cross today.  Our Lenten season, if anything, is an exaggerated time of doing so.  Jesus tells us to take up our cross daily – every day of the year.  But we find ourselves refusing the many crosses that come our way.  These forty days we can look for crosses – we voluntarily take on suffering and hardship – perhaps to make up for the crosses we have refused.  We also, in forty days, can develop the virtue of penance – that is, a disposition which helps us to accept our crosses in the future.

But most importantly – it places us in the company of Jesus.  Unlike many of our ordinary hardships, Jesus could have avoided his cross.  If he willed, he could have brought about our salvation in a most comfortable way.  But no, he voluntarily took on the most severe suffering – knowing that it was the Father’s will – and would be most beneficial for his beloved human race.

As we take on our voluntary penances – we grow closer to Jesus because we learn the power of his love.  Every penance we do – no matter how small is of great value to us.  It does not deny life – rather it gives us life.  It is the same life that we see in Jesus, Mary, and all the saints.

3.7.11 - 9th Monday - Logic of sin/virtue

I always thought that the most ridiculous line in this particular parable is when the tenants say among themselves: “This is the heir.  Come let us kill him and the inheritance will be ours.”  Why in the world would they think they could get anything if they killed the landlord’s son.

But that is the self-deception of all sin.  It is why we call Satan the master of all lies.  The desire for sin – the experience of powerful temptation tends to distort our logic.  As they say we lose the sense with which we were born with and make stupid decisions.

On the other hand, Tobit’s selfless act of burying the dead was perceived as reckless and stupid by his neighbors.  But their assessment was unfounded.  They feared the unjust authority of the Ninevah over and above their duty toward God.

Sin only makes sense amongst sinners – those who are self-absorbed.  Virtuous acts are often perceived as senseless among the same crowd yet indeed they transcend ordinary, even non-sinful action.  When our reverence for God becomes the primary motivation for our actions – we will do only those things whose logic is the same as God’s will.  This may include self-sacrifice and martyrdom just as we remember Sts. Felicity and Perpetua – wasteful in the eyes of the world – but blessed in the eyes of God.

3.6.11 - 9th Sunday - Blessing and Curse - outline

Anyone who has had a child baptized will remember

Questions at Baptism:

What name? What do you ask of God’s Church for?  Responsibility of training him in faith – do you accept this responsibility?  One more time: Is it your will?

-         slows it down a little – are you listening

-         Moses says: “Take these words of mine into your heart and soul.  Bind them at your wrist as a sign, and let them be a pendant on your forehead.”

-         Some took these literally – but wearing them does you nothing unless you follow them

-         Take these words seriously – let them penetrate our innermost being.

Again Moses says: “I set before you a blessing and a curse – a blessing for obeying the commandments of the Lord; a curse if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord.”

On my vacation this past week – I passed through Reno – none of us were gamblers but I jokingly said: “If you want to win big, you have to bet big” – There is a gamble in our faith.

The blessings that God promises are countless – but most especially the reward of eternal life in heaven – the curse is the possibility of hell – especially for those who receive God’s full assistance.

Responsibility as parents: You’ve probably heard that parents who do not teach the faith …

But the reverse is also true – if we pass the faith on, even if not apparent – great blessing for us.

Of course – Moses what Moses is saying is more than just about responsibilities as parents.

Also ourselves – particularly by our own baptism we possess this blessing and curse.

Jesus says: not everyone who says: Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven – lip service.

Goes on to say: “Many will say … Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?  Then I will declare to them solemnly ‘I never knew you, depart from me, you evil doers.’” 

We can do things in the name of the Lord – yet somehow be a stranger to him.

A person could go to Mass every Sunday, but in some Christ is missing in his heart.

A mere confession on one’s lips in the name of Jesus is insufficient.

Jesus says the one must listen to my words and act on them:

Sounds simple, we come to Mass and have the three readings read to us.

Danger of presumption

Blaise Pascal – “The person who is searching for God has already found him.”

Not just hear the word of God – but we listen to it and let it transform us.

That is how we continually search for God throughout our lives

If we stop searching, we are merely pay lip service, but if we constantly search, as Jesus says we build a strong foundation that will last against the storms that come.