After blogging here for just over seven years, I've decided it's time for a change.
You can now find me at www.frmichaelg.com.
Monday, June 23, 2014
Saturday, May 31, 2014
4 Things We Can Learn From The Ascension
The Ascension of Jesus matters.
The story that we heard today is not just the end of Jesus' time on earth. It's not just him saying goodbye to his disciples and then heading home to Heaven.
The Ascension, this story and this feast, sets the tone for the Church's identity and mission until the end of time. From then until now - and until the Lord returns again - we know who we are and what we are supposed to do, and we hear it in today's readings.
There are four important lessons that we should learn from the Acension:
First, we learn about where Jesus goes and what he takes with him.
The very basic story of the Ascension is that Jesus returns to heaven, but that is more significant than it sounds. Jesus returns to heaven in his glorified humanity. He came and lived among us, as one of us, for over thirty years; now he takes that humanity with him back to the Father.
On our own, humanity cannot get to Heaven, we can't reach the Father; but now, one of us - our Head and our Source - has gone before us. Now, we who are members of his Body, the Church, can have confidence that where he has gone, we will go too. (CCC 661) The Son has gone back to the Father so that we, the adopted sons and daughters, can one day go there with him.
Second lesson: Jesus tells us about who he will send to us.
After the Ascension, Jesus is no longer on earth in the same way that he was before. The apostles don't have that physical, human presence of Jesus with them any longer; but, before he left, Jesus made a promise: he told them to wait for “the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
Jesus' promise to the disciples when he ascends into Heaven is that he will not leave them alone - the last words of the Gospel of Matthew are "behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age."
Jesus sends the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, the very Spirit of God, into our hearts so that we are never alone.
God lives within us.
It's through this Spirit that we are baptized and confirmed; the Spirit makes Jesus present in the Eucharist at every Mass; and it's in the Spirit that we are able to pray to God. It's also the Holy Spirit that drives us in our mission as Christians.
That brings us to our third lesson: what does Jesus tell us to do?
If you look at the ends of all the gospels, as well as the first chapter of Acts that we heard today, you'll notice that Jesus' final words are almost always about a mission: "you will be my witnesses."
Jesus has gone before us to the Father, and he's sent the Holy Spirit down on his Church - now he calls his Church to go into the world and tell people about it. The Church is a missionary one by it's very nature - it's meant to be shared; so, if we are not sharing our faith, then we're not fulfilling the mission given to us by Jesus Christ.
It doesn't matter where you live, what you do, or who you are - if you are a follower of Jesus, you are responsible for proclaiming the Gospel in your life. None of us can do that on our own, so we must rely on the Holy Spirit to give us the wisdom and courage we need to be good witnesses.
It's the Church's job to love and praise God, and to welcome the whole world into that relationship until …
… and here's our final lesson: Jesus will come again.
What do the two angels say to the apostles after Jesus has ascended into Heaven? “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven.”
Our lives will not go on forever. This world will not go on forever. In the end, whenever it comes, we will meet Jesus face to face.
For a disciple, that should not be a frightening idea.
We have our orders - to grow in holiness and love, to worship, to share the Good News - and that's what we should concern ourselves with for the rest of our lives.
Let us live our lives for Christ - and live with the knowledge and hope that Jesus is in Heaven interceding for us to the Father; he's sent the Holy Spirit to be with us; he's given us a mission; and, in the end, we will be with him.
That's our faith, and when we remember and celebrate the Ascension of Jesus, we should be encouraged to go out and truly live it.
The story that we heard today is not just the end of Jesus' time on earth. It's not just him saying goodbye to his disciples and then heading home to Heaven.
The Ascension, this story and this feast, sets the tone for the Church's identity and mission until the end of time. From then until now - and until the Lord returns again - we know who we are and what we are supposed to do, and we hear it in today's readings.
There are four important lessons that we should learn from the Acension:
First, we learn about where Jesus goes and what he takes with him.
The very basic story of the Ascension is that Jesus returns to heaven, but that is more significant than it sounds. Jesus returns to heaven in his glorified humanity. He came and lived among us, as one of us, for over thirty years; now he takes that humanity with him back to the Father.
On our own, humanity cannot get to Heaven, we can't reach the Father; but now, one of us - our Head and our Source - has gone before us. Now, we who are members of his Body, the Church, can have confidence that where he has gone, we will go too. (CCC 661) The Son has gone back to the Father so that we, the adopted sons and daughters, can one day go there with him.
Second lesson: Jesus tells us about who he will send to us.
After the Ascension, Jesus is no longer on earth in the same way that he was before. The apostles don't have that physical, human presence of Jesus with them any longer; but, before he left, Jesus made a promise: he told them to wait for “the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
Jesus' promise to the disciples when he ascends into Heaven is that he will not leave them alone - the last words of the Gospel of Matthew are "behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age."
Jesus sends the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, the very Spirit of God, into our hearts so that we are never alone.
God lives within us.
It's through this Spirit that we are baptized and confirmed; the Spirit makes Jesus present in the Eucharist at every Mass; and it's in the Spirit that we are able to pray to God. It's also the Holy Spirit that drives us in our mission as Christians.
That brings us to our third lesson: what does Jesus tell us to do?
If you look at the ends of all the gospels, as well as the first chapter of Acts that we heard today, you'll notice that Jesus' final words are almost always about a mission: "you will be my witnesses."
Jesus has gone before us to the Father, and he's sent the Holy Spirit down on his Church - now he calls his Church to go into the world and tell people about it. The Church is a missionary one by it's very nature - it's meant to be shared; so, if we are not sharing our faith, then we're not fulfilling the mission given to us by Jesus Christ.
It doesn't matter where you live, what you do, or who you are - if you are a follower of Jesus, you are responsible for proclaiming the Gospel in your life. None of us can do that on our own, so we must rely on the Holy Spirit to give us the wisdom and courage we need to be good witnesses.
It's the Church's job to love and praise God, and to welcome the whole world into that relationship until …
… and here's our final lesson: Jesus will come again.
What do the two angels say to the apostles after Jesus has ascended into Heaven? “Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven.”
Our lives will not go on forever. This world will not go on forever. In the end, whenever it comes, we will meet Jesus face to face.
For a disciple, that should not be a frightening idea.
We have our orders - to grow in holiness and love, to worship, to share the Good News - and that's what we should concern ourselves with for the rest of our lives.
Let us live our lives for Christ - and live with the knowledge and hope that Jesus is in Heaven interceding for us to the Father; he's sent the Holy Spirit to be with us; he's given us a mission; and, in the end, we will be with him.
That's our faith, and when we remember and celebrate the Ascension of Jesus, we should be encouraged to go out and truly live it.
Saturday, May 03, 2014
Third Sunday of Easter: He Stays With Us
This weekend is a special one.
Some of the young people of our parish will receive, for the very first time, our Lord Jesus in the Eucharist.
That's a big deal.
For those of us who have been receiving Communion for even a few years, it's easy to lose sight of that. It becomes just something you always do when you go to Mass.
Today, I'd like for all of us to imagine that we are in their seats - let's try to remember the excitement, the anticipation, and the nervousness of receiving Communion for the first time. Let's participate in this Mass as if it is our First Communion, with all the meaning behind that And our gospel story will help us.
The story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus takes place in the afternoon on that very first Easter Sunday. After experiencing everything that happened to Jesus in the past few days, these disciples were leaving the city - and they are hurt. They feel confused and disappointed that the hope they had because of Jesus seems to have come to nothing. Even though some of the women of their group are saying that Jesus is alive, they don't believe it and can't makes sense of what has happened to them.
Sometimes, that is how we come to Mass. We're tired from a week of work or school; maybe we're a little beat up from everything that's happened to us. Things might not have gone the way we wanted them to - and so we come to Mass thinking, "Where were you, God? Why didn't you help me?"
Then, like He did with the two disciples, Jesus walks with us.
On the road to Emmaus, He came and explained to them that the Scriptures, what we would call the Old Testament, foretold that all of this would happen. Jesus shows them that God had promised to send a savior and that that savior would die to save them from their sins. He shows that, only now, in Jesus, does all of history make sense.
St. Peter does the same thing in our first reading. In his sermon, he explains how the true meaning of Psalm 16 is only revealed in Jesus, the descendant of David who God did preserve from death and corruption.
All of this is the first part of the Mass, the liturgy of the Word. In the readings, we hear God speak to us. Then, in the homily, hopefully, the priest ties those readings together and that what we've heard isn't just a bunch of readings from an old book, but the voice of God speaking to us today.
It's only in communication with God that our lives will make sense, so, when we listen to the readings, we must listen with an open heart, asking God to send His Holy Spirit on us so that we can hear what He wants to say. In the readings, encounter God, but that encounter doesn't end there.
When the two disciples reach their destination, they don't want their conversation to end. Even though they don't recognize the Lord, as they say later, their "hearts were burning." They are receiving the truth through this mysterious stranger.
They beg Him: "Stay with us …" And He does, but not in the way that they expect.
When they sit down to eat, Jesus does something familiar: he takes bread, says the blessing, breaks it, and gives it to them. And in that moment, they recognize Him.
These are the same actions that Jesus performs at the Last Supper, when He instituted the Eucharist. Now, as He breaks bread with His disciples once again, they finally see Him for who He is.
This is significant for us.
We were not present when Jesus was walking around Palestine, preaching and ministering to the people. We don't see His face, we don't hear His voice.
But, in this story, Jesus tells us that He is still present to us.
He is with us in the Eucharist.
That is the way that He stays with His Church until the end of time: in the form of bread and wine that we receive and make part of ourselves.
At every Mass, we encounter the living God. And the Eucharist is not a nice symbol or a sort of weak replacement for what those first Christians experienced.
The Eucharist is Jesus giving Himself to us.
Today, at this Mass and at every Mass, let us thank God for that gift; and let us keep our minds and hearts open, so that we may recognize our Lord who comes to stay with us.
Some of the young people of our parish will receive, for the very first time, our Lord Jesus in the Eucharist.
That's a big deal.
For those of us who have been receiving Communion for even a few years, it's easy to lose sight of that. It becomes just something you always do when you go to Mass.
Today, I'd like for all of us to imagine that we are in their seats - let's try to remember the excitement, the anticipation, and the nervousness of receiving Communion for the first time. Let's participate in this Mass as if it is our First Communion, with all the meaning behind that And our gospel story will help us.
The story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus takes place in the afternoon on that very first Easter Sunday. After experiencing everything that happened to Jesus in the past few days, these disciples were leaving the city - and they are hurt. They feel confused and disappointed that the hope they had because of Jesus seems to have come to nothing. Even though some of the women of their group are saying that Jesus is alive, they don't believe it and can't makes sense of what has happened to them.
Sometimes, that is how we come to Mass. We're tired from a week of work or school; maybe we're a little beat up from everything that's happened to us. Things might not have gone the way we wanted them to - and so we come to Mass thinking, "Where were you, God? Why didn't you help me?"
Then, like He did with the two disciples, Jesus walks with us.
On the road to Emmaus, He came and explained to them that the Scriptures, what we would call the Old Testament, foretold that all of this would happen. Jesus shows them that God had promised to send a savior and that that savior would die to save them from their sins. He shows that, only now, in Jesus, does all of history make sense.
St. Peter does the same thing in our first reading. In his sermon, he explains how the true meaning of Psalm 16 is only revealed in Jesus, the descendant of David who God did preserve from death and corruption.
All of this is the first part of the Mass, the liturgy of the Word. In the readings, we hear God speak to us. Then, in the homily, hopefully, the priest ties those readings together and that what we've heard isn't just a bunch of readings from an old book, but the voice of God speaking to us today.
It's only in communication with God that our lives will make sense, so, when we listen to the readings, we must listen with an open heart, asking God to send His Holy Spirit on us so that we can hear what He wants to say. In the readings, encounter God, but that encounter doesn't end there.
When the two disciples reach their destination, they don't want their conversation to end. Even though they don't recognize the Lord, as they say later, their "hearts were burning." They are receiving the truth through this mysterious stranger.
They beg Him: "Stay with us …" And He does, but not in the way that they expect.
When they sit down to eat, Jesus does something familiar: he takes bread, says the blessing, breaks it, and gives it to them. And in that moment, they recognize Him.
These are the same actions that Jesus performs at the Last Supper, when He instituted the Eucharist. Now, as He breaks bread with His disciples once again, they finally see Him for who He is.
This is significant for us.
We were not present when Jesus was walking around Palestine, preaching and ministering to the people. We don't see His face, we don't hear His voice.
But, in this story, Jesus tells us that He is still present to us.
He is with us in the Eucharist.
That is the way that He stays with His Church until the end of time: in the form of bread and wine that we receive and make part of ourselves.
At every Mass, we encounter the living God. And the Eucharist is not a nice symbol or a sort of weak replacement for what those first Christians experienced.
The Eucharist is Jesus giving Himself to us.
Today, at this Mass and at every Mass, let us thank God for that gift; and let us keep our minds and hearts open, so that we may recognize our Lord who comes to stay with us.
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Easter Sunday
Throughout our celebration of Holy Week, we've listened to stories.
On Palm Sunday, we heard the story of Jesus entering into Jerusalem - how the crowds hailed him as the "Son of David," the king they'd been waiting for.
Then on Thursday, we heard the story of the Last Supper - how Jesus showed his disciples how they were called to be servants, like him, and he gave them the memorial of his sacrifice on the cross, the Eucharist.
On Friday, we walked with Jesus on the way of the cross - from his betrayal in the garden to his trial to calvary, where the Son of God died on the cross.
Today, we hear a new story: the story that was proclaimed by Peter, Paul, John, Mary Magdalene, and disciples throughout history - that Jesus is alive. John's account includes lots of details: who reached the tomb first, what they saw, how the burial cloths were arranged - details that tell us it was an eyewitness who wrote these words. He was there, and he wants us to know that all this really happened.
Christianity hangs on that claim.
If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then none of this matters. We shouldn't be here, we shouldn't pray, and we shouldn't call ourselves Christians.
It's only if Jesus lives that we have any hope.
These stories that we've heard matter for us because they're not just events that happened a long time ago - they are our stories. As the philosopher Soren Kierkegaard once said, "Either we are contemporaries of Jesus, or we can have nothing at all to do with it."
We hear these stories year after year because they are vitally important for us now. What Jesus did in Jerusalem so many years ago matters for all time.
With the resurrection of Jesus, the world has entered into it's final stage. God spent years revealing himself, forming a chosen people, and preparing the way for his Son to come into the world. Then Jesus came and showed us the love of the Father - a love so strong, so complete, that it led him to give up his life for us. And that love raised Jesus up from the dead.
God has spoken his final Word to the world and that Word says that he loves us so much, that he gave us his only son and if we believe in him, we can live forever with him.
That's the heart of our Faith.
And it puts a choice before us: either all of this is just a story, or it's the most important thing you've ever heard.
For the apostles, their lives were never the same. They all faced death because of this claim. Christian martyrs over the centuries have done the same - freely accepted death rather than deny that Jesus, the living Jesus, is their savior and their Lord.
That's our faith.
And it presents a question to us: what will we do about it?
Will we live our lives constantly in the light of the resurrection of Christ? Will we do everything in the knowledge that God loves us to the point of death?
How will you respond to the resurrection of Jesus?
That's the question I want you to answer before you leave this church today.
Our celebration of Easter should not be just a one day event. The true meaning of Easter extends to every moment of our existence all the way until we're face to face with our Lord.
On Palm Sunday, we heard the story of Jesus entering into Jerusalem - how the crowds hailed him as the "Son of David," the king they'd been waiting for.
Then on Thursday, we heard the story of the Last Supper - how Jesus showed his disciples how they were called to be servants, like him, and he gave them the memorial of his sacrifice on the cross, the Eucharist.
On Friday, we walked with Jesus on the way of the cross - from his betrayal in the garden to his trial to calvary, where the Son of God died on the cross.
Today, we hear a new story: the story that was proclaimed by Peter, Paul, John, Mary Magdalene, and disciples throughout history - that Jesus is alive. John's account includes lots of details: who reached the tomb first, what they saw, how the burial cloths were arranged - details that tell us it was an eyewitness who wrote these words. He was there, and he wants us to know that all this really happened.
Christianity hangs on that claim.
If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then none of this matters. We shouldn't be here, we shouldn't pray, and we shouldn't call ourselves Christians.
It's only if Jesus lives that we have any hope.
These stories that we've heard matter for us because they're not just events that happened a long time ago - they are our stories. As the philosopher Soren Kierkegaard once said, "Either we are contemporaries of Jesus, or we can have nothing at all to do with it."
We hear these stories year after year because they are vitally important for us now. What Jesus did in Jerusalem so many years ago matters for all time.
With the resurrection of Jesus, the world has entered into it's final stage. God spent years revealing himself, forming a chosen people, and preparing the way for his Son to come into the world. Then Jesus came and showed us the love of the Father - a love so strong, so complete, that it led him to give up his life for us. And that love raised Jesus up from the dead.
God has spoken his final Word to the world and that Word says that he loves us so much, that he gave us his only son and if we believe in him, we can live forever with him.
That's the heart of our Faith.
And it puts a choice before us: either all of this is just a story, or it's the most important thing you've ever heard.
For the apostles, their lives were never the same. They all faced death because of this claim. Christian martyrs over the centuries have done the same - freely accepted death rather than deny that Jesus, the living Jesus, is their savior and their Lord.
That's our faith.
And it presents a question to us: what will we do about it?
Will we live our lives constantly in the light of the resurrection of Christ? Will we do everything in the knowledge that God loves us to the point of death?
How will you respond to the resurrection of Jesus?
That's the question I want you to answer before you leave this church today.
Our celebration of Easter should not be just a one day event. The true meaning of Easter extends to every moment of our existence all the way until we're face to face with our Lord.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Holy Thursday: Sacrifice & Service
There are two words I want you to remember tonight - two words that I think are a good summary of everything we have heard in tonight's readings and everything we celebrate in this Mass of the Lord's Supper.
Those two words are: sacrifice and service.
We start out, with our first reading, in the land of Egypt. The people of Israel are living as slaves and Moses has gone to Pharoah over and over again to deliver the Lord's message: "Let my people go ..."
Now God will send his final warning - the death of all the firstborn of Egypt. But to his people, God gives a different commandment: to gather together in their homes and offer a sacrifice of a lamb. Before they eat the meal together, they are to spread some of the blood of the Lamb around the outside of their doors. That blood will mark them as God's people and when the Lord punishes Egypt, he will pass over them.
This is the beginning of the great feast of Passover. The Israelites are set free and begin their journey to the promised land. But this sacrificial meal is not a one time event - God commands his people to celebrate this feast forever and every time they celebrate the Passover, they will remember what God did for them.
Hundreds of years later, St. Paul is writing to the Corinthians, telling them of what was handed on to him: the story of the Last Supper. At his last Passover celebration with his disciples, Jesus took the bread and said, "This is my body ..." and then took the cup and said, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood ..." And then he told his disicples: "Do this ... in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes."
It's no coincidence that our Lord chose the night of the Passover to institute the sacrament of the Eucharist. Just as God gave the people of Israel the feast of the Passover so that they would forever call to mind their liberation in the Exodus, Jesus gave the Church the Eucharist so that throughout the rest of time, his sacrifice that frees us from sin and death would be present for his people.
That is what the Eucharist is: we don't just gather together to eat a meal; we gather together to receive Jesus. This celebration doesn't happen because we're all here; we are here because when we receive Jesus' body and blood, we are made one in him.
This great sacrament has been passed on in the Church since that sacred night, so that every time we gather for Mass, we are present to Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.
That is amazing in itself; but what may be even more amazing is that our Lord chose to give this great gift to the Church through the imperfect men who were gathered in that room and all their imperfect successors.
The story of Jesus washing the feet of his apostles is a powerful one. That act of humble service showed them and us what a follower of Christ should look like; but this wasn't something new for Jesus.
Jesus' whole life was one of self-emptying, self-sacrificing love. In coming to live as a man, he emptied himself. In living an ordinary human life for 30 years, he humbled himself. He slept outside, he associated with outcasts, he forgave sinners, and finally, he let himself be nailed to a cross out of love for you and me.
In washing their feet, Jesus wasn't just giving them a good example. Jesus was ordaining them into his new priesthood. The priests of the Temple washed their hands and feet before entering to offer sacrifice; these priests of the New Covenant were washed by the Lord so that they could go out and offer the sacrifice that Jesus would leave behind.
The priests of the Old Covenant had no hereditary land like the rest of the Israelites; these new priests would have Jesus as their sole inheritance and dedicate their lives completely to him.
It's at the Last Supper, through the institution of the Eucharist and the priesthood, that our Lord gave the Church it's perpetual celebration - the feast where Jesus gives us himself and we become part of him.
Sacrifice and service.
Jesus is the sacrifice. He gave his life to set us free from our slavery to sin.
He humbled himself and served us, washing us clean and welcoming us into the family of God.
Now, through the Catholic priesthood, the Church continues to offer the sacrifice of Jesus and follow his example of humble service.
All of us are called to that life of sacrifice and service by participating in the sacramental life of the Church, especially the Eucharist, and serving our brothers and sisters, even the ones we don't know or don't like, just like Jesus.
But I don't want to water this down: Jesus is calling men to follow him as his priests. Yes, even men in this parish at this Mass.
If you are a young, unmarried man, I want you to listen very closely: be open to God's call. Be willing to give your life completely to the service of Jesus and his Church.
No, it's not the norm. It's not what our world expects young men to do. Do it anyway. Ask the Lord if he is calling you to live that life of sacrifice and service as a Catholic priest. And if you hear that call, or even think you might be hearing that call, have the courage to say yes.
I've known many fine priests in my life. The pastors I grew up with, including Fr. Chillog back in the day, have all, through the way they lived their priesthood, encouraged me to follow the Lord.
The pastor of my home parish of St. Peter's in Steubenville for the years before I was ordained a priest was Msgr. George Yontz. He had a brother who was also a priest, Msgr. Bill Yontz. It's his chalice that I'll be using tonight, and it's a good reminder to me of the great heritage that I get to share in.
Jesus established the priesthood of the New Covenant to make present, for all time, his sacrifice of love. Tonight, as we remember and celebrate that gift, let us all strive to imitate his life of loving sacrifice and humble service.
Those two words are: sacrifice and service.
We start out, with our first reading, in the land of Egypt. The people of Israel are living as slaves and Moses has gone to Pharoah over and over again to deliver the Lord's message: "Let my people go ..."
Now God will send his final warning - the death of all the firstborn of Egypt. But to his people, God gives a different commandment: to gather together in their homes and offer a sacrifice of a lamb. Before they eat the meal together, they are to spread some of the blood of the Lamb around the outside of their doors. That blood will mark them as God's people and when the Lord punishes Egypt, he will pass over them.
This is the beginning of the great feast of Passover. The Israelites are set free and begin their journey to the promised land. But this sacrificial meal is not a one time event - God commands his people to celebrate this feast forever and every time they celebrate the Passover, they will remember what God did for them.
Hundreds of years later, St. Paul is writing to the Corinthians, telling them of what was handed on to him: the story of the Last Supper. At his last Passover celebration with his disciples, Jesus took the bread and said, "This is my body ..." and then took the cup and said, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood ..." And then he told his disicples: "Do this ... in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes."
It's no coincidence that our Lord chose the night of the Passover to institute the sacrament of the Eucharist. Just as God gave the people of Israel the feast of the Passover so that they would forever call to mind their liberation in the Exodus, Jesus gave the Church the Eucharist so that throughout the rest of time, his sacrifice that frees us from sin and death would be present for his people.
That is what the Eucharist is: we don't just gather together to eat a meal; we gather together to receive Jesus. This celebration doesn't happen because we're all here; we are here because when we receive Jesus' body and blood, we are made one in him.
This great sacrament has been passed on in the Church since that sacred night, so that every time we gather for Mass, we are present to Jesus' sacrifice on the cross.
That is amazing in itself; but what may be even more amazing is that our Lord chose to give this great gift to the Church through the imperfect men who were gathered in that room and all their imperfect successors.
The story of Jesus washing the feet of his apostles is a powerful one. That act of humble service showed them and us what a follower of Christ should look like; but this wasn't something new for Jesus.
Jesus' whole life was one of self-emptying, self-sacrificing love. In coming to live as a man, he emptied himself. In living an ordinary human life for 30 years, he humbled himself. He slept outside, he associated with outcasts, he forgave sinners, and finally, he let himself be nailed to a cross out of love for you and me.
In washing their feet, Jesus wasn't just giving them a good example. Jesus was ordaining them into his new priesthood. The priests of the Temple washed their hands and feet before entering to offer sacrifice; these priests of the New Covenant were washed by the Lord so that they could go out and offer the sacrifice that Jesus would leave behind.
The priests of the Old Covenant had no hereditary land like the rest of the Israelites; these new priests would have Jesus as their sole inheritance and dedicate their lives completely to him.
It's at the Last Supper, through the institution of the Eucharist and the priesthood, that our Lord gave the Church it's perpetual celebration - the feast where Jesus gives us himself and we become part of him.
Sacrifice and service.
Jesus is the sacrifice. He gave his life to set us free from our slavery to sin.
He humbled himself and served us, washing us clean and welcoming us into the family of God.
Now, through the Catholic priesthood, the Church continues to offer the sacrifice of Jesus and follow his example of humble service.
All of us are called to that life of sacrifice and service by participating in the sacramental life of the Church, especially the Eucharist, and serving our brothers and sisters, even the ones we don't know or don't like, just like Jesus.
But I don't want to water this down: Jesus is calling men to follow him as his priests. Yes, even men in this parish at this Mass.
If you are a young, unmarried man, I want you to listen very closely: be open to God's call. Be willing to give your life completely to the service of Jesus and his Church.
No, it's not the norm. It's not what our world expects young men to do. Do it anyway. Ask the Lord if he is calling you to live that life of sacrifice and service as a Catholic priest. And if you hear that call, or even think you might be hearing that call, have the courage to say yes.
I've known many fine priests in my life. The pastors I grew up with, including Fr. Chillog back in the day, have all, through the way they lived their priesthood, encouraged me to follow the Lord.
The pastor of my home parish of St. Peter's in Steubenville for the years before I was ordained a priest was Msgr. George Yontz. He had a brother who was also a priest, Msgr. Bill Yontz. It's his chalice that I'll be using tonight, and it's a good reminder to me of the great heritage that I get to share in.
Jesus established the priesthood of the New Covenant to make present, for all time, his sacrifice of love. Tonight, as we remember and celebrate that gift, let us all strive to imitate his life of loving sacrifice and humble service.
Tuesday, April 08, 2014
Rule #1: Always Go To The Luncheon
This is the first in (God-willing) a series of posts on my personal "Rules for the Priesthood." They are not immutable commandments for anyone else - just some guidelines that I try to follow in my own priestly life.
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Rule #1: Always go to the luncheon.
You've just celebrated a funeral Mass.
You've preached a homily attempting to bring the light of Christ into a time of darkness. You've offered the Eucharist, prayed the final commendation, and traveled to the cemetery where you prayed with the family over their loved one's grave. You've tried your best to help grieving people see the hope that exists because of Christ.
And you're tired.
At this point, there is the temptation to just go home and relax - I know because I've given into it. But, after praying for the deceased and their family, a priest should never underestimate the power of just spending time with the people. Our job does not end when we take off our vestments.
Those moments when a priest makes himself available just to talk are important. It's then that a Catholic who hasn't gone to confession in years might realize, "Priests aren't so scary. I could talk to this guy." It's in those informal moments when someone might ask a question about the faith that they've never had the chance to ask before.
They people a priest interacts with in those very normal settings may have never sat across the table from a priest in their lives. Why deny them that opportunity.
I use the example of a funeral luncheon because it's one of the most common occurrences, but I think, for me, this whole idea gets into a priest's responsibility to be present.
We must be a part of the lives of our people, and that doesn't only happen at Mass. It happens when they invite us to a party, when they talk to us in the grocery store, heck, even on Facebook.
I can't say that I always follow this rule - sometimes I'm tired, sometimes I'm in a hurry, or I'm busy - but I always remind myself when that temptation appears: the temptation to hold back, to not give myself fully.
That's not the priesthood. Ours is a life of self-gift, and that gift has to be given everyday.
---
Rule #1: Always go to the luncheon.
You've just celebrated a funeral Mass.
You've preached a homily attempting to bring the light of Christ into a time of darkness. You've offered the Eucharist, prayed the final commendation, and traveled to the cemetery where you prayed with the family over their loved one's grave. You've tried your best to help grieving people see the hope that exists because of Christ.
And you're tired.
At this point, there is the temptation to just go home and relax - I know because I've given into it. But, after praying for the deceased and their family, a priest should never underestimate the power of just spending time with the people. Our job does not end when we take off our vestments.
Those moments when a priest makes himself available just to talk are important. It's then that a Catholic who hasn't gone to confession in years might realize, "Priests aren't so scary. I could talk to this guy." It's in those informal moments when someone might ask a question about the faith that they've never had the chance to ask before.
They people a priest interacts with in those very normal settings may have never sat across the table from a priest in their lives. Why deny them that opportunity.
I use the example of a funeral luncheon because it's one of the most common occurrences, but I think, for me, this whole idea gets into a priest's responsibility to be present.
We must be a part of the lives of our people, and that doesn't only happen at Mass. It happens when they invite us to a party, when they talk to us in the grocery store, heck, even on Facebook.
I can't say that I always follow this rule - sometimes I'm tired, sometimes I'm in a hurry, or I'm busy - but I always remind myself when that temptation appears: the temptation to hold back, to not give myself fully.
That's not the priesthood. Ours is a life of self-gift, and that gift has to be given everyday.
Saturday, April 05, 2014
Fifth Sunday of Lent
What does God want to give to us?
That's a question that comes to my mind after hearing the incredibly rich readings the Church has given us as we continue into the last part of Lent.
All three of our readings are about death and life - and they are summed up and put on display in a concrete way in the story of Lazarus from the gospel of St. John.
This miracle (or sign, as St. John calls it) is the pinnacle of the amazing things that Jesus did throughout his ministry. In fact, the only miracle that's left in this gospel is Jesus' own resurrection.
That makes the raising of Lazarus important. It was this miracle that solidified the plan of Jesus' enemies to have him arrested and killed.
Jesus also treats this moment as something significant. When he hears that his friend Lazarus is sick, he deliberately waits. He doesn't go running to Bethany. It's almost as if he wants his friend to die. Explaining it to his disciples, he says, "This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God."
When Jesus finally goes to Bethany, he meets his friends Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus. They both show a great deal of faith in Jesus - they knew that he could have saved their brother. However, they don't fully expect Jesus to be able to do anything now. He's been dead for four days.
That brings us to the dialogue Jesus has with Martha:
Jesus said to her,
“Your brother will rise.”
Martha said to him,
“I know he will rise,
in the resurrection on the last day.”
Jesus told her,
“I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.
Do you believe this?”
She said to him, “Yes, Lord.
I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,
the one who is coming into the world.”
Jesus is saying something that is pivotal for Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, but also for us. With Jesus, death is no longer an obstacle.
All of us have had or will have an experience with death. We lose loved ones, we see it in the media, and, eventually, all of us will have to face it. But this isn't the way the world is supposed to be.
In his interactions in this story, twice John writes that Jesus was "perturbed" or "deeply troubled." When they are about to take Jesus to the place where Lazarus was buried, he even weeps.
In the face of death, Jesus, God living as a man, is disturbed. He weeps for his suffering friends - and we could say that he weeps for all of humanity who, because of sin, suffer in this life.
Death is a result of the break that happened between God and humanity. Sin cut us off from the source of life and the world has been broken ever since, plagued by this enemy that we could not defeat.
Then Jesus came. And he says to all of us, "I am the resurrection and the life …"
What Jesus offer us is nothing less than life itself.
All of us are Lazarus. All of us were dead in our sin, wrapped up, imprisoned. But Jesus came and, in our baptism, freed us from the death of sin. He gave us the new life of grace that can only come from God, so that even in the face of death, we know that there is more to the story. In the end, there is life.
Back in 1978, the cardinals were gathered in Rome to elect a new pope after John Paul I had suddenly died. The votes were starting to turn towards a Polish cardinal named Karol Wojtyla. Another cardinal who knew him and knew that the future pope loved the gospel of John turned to him and said: "Deus adest et vocat te?" This is a paraphrase of what was said to Mary when they told her that Jesus had arrived - "God is here and is calling you?"*
For Blessed John Paul II, it was a message that he was being called to a new ministry as the bishop of Rome, but it is true for us as well.
God is here and he is calling you and me. He is calling us to life. He is calling us to reject the ways of sin, the life of selfishness and pride that leads to nothing but death. He is calling us to live in the grace that was given to us in our baptism. He is calling us to accept the gift of Jesus Christ that we receive today in the Eucharist.
That's a question that comes to my mind after hearing the incredibly rich readings the Church has given us as we continue into the last part of Lent.
All three of our readings are about death and life - and they are summed up and put on display in a concrete way in the story of Lazarus from the gospel of St. John.
This miracle (or sign, as St. John calls it) is the pinnacle of the amazing things that Jesus did throughout his ministry. In fact, the only miracle that's left in this gospel is Jesus' own resurrection.
That makes the raising of Lazarus important. It was this miracle that solidified the plan of Jesus' enemies to have him arrested and killed.
Jesus also treats this moment as something significant. When he hears that his friend Lazarus is sick, he deliberately waits. He doesn't go running to Bethany. It's almost as if he wants his friend to die. Explaining it to his disciples, he says, "This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God."
When Jesus finally goes to Bethany, he meets his friends Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus. They both show a great deal of faith in Jesus - they knew that he could have saved their brother. However, they don't fully expect Jesus to be able to do anything now. He's been dead for four days.
That brings us to the dialogue Jesus has with Martha:
Jesus said to her,
“Your brother will rise.”
Martha said to him,
“I know he will rise,
in the resurrection on the last day.”
Jesus told her,
“I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.
Do you believe this?”
She said to him, “Yes, Lord.
I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,
the one who is coming into the world.”
Jesus is saying something that is pivotal for Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, but also for us. With Jesus, death is no longer an obstacle.
All of us have had or will have an experience with death. We lose loved ones, we see it in the media, and, eventually, all of us will have to face it. But this isn't the way the world is supposed to be.
In his interactions in this story, twice John writes that Jesus was "perturbed" or "deeply troubled." When they are about to take Jesus to the place where Lazarus was buried, he even weeps.
In the face of death, Jesus, God living as a man, is disturbed. He weeps for his suffering friends - and we could say that he weeps for all of humanity who, because of sin, suffer in this life.
Death is a result of the break that happened between God and humanity. Sin cut us off from the source of life and the world has been broken ever since, plagued by this enemy that we could not defeat.
Then Jesus came. And he says to all of us, "I am the resurrection and the life …"
What Jesus offer us is nothing less than life itself.
All of us are Lazarus. All of us were dead in our sin, wrapped up, imprisoned. But Jesus came and, in our baptism, freed us from the death of sin. He gave us the new life of grace that can only come from God, so that even in the face of death, we know that there is more to the story. In the end, there is life.
Back in 1978, the cardinals were gathered in Rome to elect a new pope after John Paul I had suddenly died. The votes were starting to turn towards a Polish cardinal named Karol Wojtyla. Another cardinal who knew him and knew that the future pope loved the gospel of John turned to him and said: "Deus adest et vocat te?" This is a paraphrase of what was said to Mary when they told her that Jesus had arrived - "God is here and is calling you?"*
For Blessed John Paul II, it was a message that he was being called to a new ministry as the bishop of Rome, but it is true for us as well.
God is here and he is calling you and me. He is calling us to life. He is calling us to reject the ways of sin, the life of selfishness and pride that leads to nothing but death. He is calling us to live in the grace that was given to us in our baptism. He is calling us to accept the gift of Jesus Christ that we receive today in the Eucharist.
To use Jesus' own words: "Do you believe this?"
God is here and he gives us himself. What more could we possibly want?
The life he gives us allows us to live our lives and, even in the face of suffering and death, know that there is more. God is here and he is calling us to live with, in, and for him.
*This story is found in the excellent Lenten read, Roman Pilgrimage: The Station Churches by George Weigel.
God is here and he gives us himself. What more could we possibly want?
The life he gives us allows us to live our lives and, even in the face of suffering and death, know that there is more. God is here and he is calling us to live with, in, and for him.
*This story is found in the excellent Lenten read, Roman Pilgrimage: The Station Churches by George Weigel.
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