The Third Sunday of Lent - Year A 2011

Reading 1
Responsorial Psalm
Reading 2
Gospel

Jesus was tired and hot and hungry
He had traveled a long way

All he wanted to do was sit down and rest a moment
But there she was confidently carrying her bucket to the well.

As soon as he saw her He knew her.
He knew her story.
He knew her fears.
He knew that her confidence was a façade to cover and protect her.
He knew everything about her and he loved her
He loved her because he was God




Tired or not
Samaritan or not
Woman or not
Stranger or not
He reached out to her
That’s what God does.

But he knew that if he approached her too quickly it would be another wound another hurt.
He knew that if he approached her too quickly she would run and hide that was her normal “modus operandi” when she was afraid

She would simply move on find someone else.

He knew that if he held up the mirror and showed her clearly who she had become it would be too painful
So even though he was tired and thirsty and just wanted to sit
He approached her
He took the first step

He broke all the rules…
don’t talk to Samaritans
don’t talk to women.
Don’t take water from someone who is unclean
He approached her humbly asking a favor
He began to establish a simple relationship with her
He bantered with her

And she began to trust him
She began to trust him so much that she
even challenged him.
“How are you going to give me water you don’t even have a bucket”
She said with a little swagger
She started to let her guard down

And when the moment was right
with a few simple words he showed her who she had become
“You’re right saying you don’t have a husband you have had 5”
There was no anger or self righteousness in his voice
There was no tone of disappointment
He didn’t say “Look how you let me down”
He simply listed her sins
He showed her all of the desperate compromises she had made
And she did not run away
She began to hope

Maybe she could start anew
Maybe she could be forgiven
Maybe she could offer sacrifice for her sins

That’s probably why she wanted a clarification.
Where should she go to make amends to offer sacrifice
in Jerusalem or on Mount Horeb?
She asks him what her next step should be
He doesn’t get pulled into the polemic between the Jews and the Samaritians

His answer is simple
“Believe me, woman, the hour is coming
when you will worship the Father
neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
You can find God where ever you want
He tells her
Where you are there God is.

The conversation continues and she tells him that she hopes for the Messiah
She longs to understand “He will tell us everything”
And only now after all of that preparation
He reveals himself to her
“I am he the one who is speaking to you”
Jesus gently shows her who she has become and reveals himself to her.

When the disciples returned they begged him to eat something
And he responded I have food about which you do not know
What was this food
When did he eat..
His food was loving that woman at the well
His food was building up a relationship with her
His food was restoring her to hope

So moved by his compassion and his interest in her
she does not just go back to her daily life or keep thinking of her own needs

She goes back to her village, her people and she brings them to him
How did she get them there to walk all the way out to the well ?
She must have begged them
She must have pleaded with them
She must have cajoled them,

Somehow she shook them out of their daily routine
Like he had done for her
They all came
And after a few days they also believed
No longer because of what she had said but
Because they too had met him.


You know it seems like a simple story at first glance
It seems like normal moment in a normal day
A thirsty tired man asks for some water
Yet it is so much more
God is always looking for a way in.
Every single soul is precious in his sight
He is never scandalized by our wrongs
He really does long for us to have life, life to the full in Him

The characters in this Gospel are simple
· Our God who loves
· Broken humanity who dares to hope in that love again

And once healed brings others to hope and faith and relaitionship with God.
All of us go to the well
All of us go through life doing the things we have to do
Some are tedious and monotonous like drawing water


At different times in our lives
All of need to be forgiven
Actually almost all of us need to be forgiven constantly


All of us have to look at who we have become
Or What compromises we have made
Sometimes Hope needs restored


No matter what our sins might be.
Will we, do we, dare we to hope again
Do we dare to believe in God loves


When God revealed himself to the woman
She was so much in awe that she brought others to him


Who have we brought to God?
Who have we helped accept the mercy and forgiveness that God so longs to give?


Where should we pray on this mountain or in Jerusalem?
“You can find God anywhere”
Jesus said in other words

Where you are there he is….


Or maybe like the woman at the well
He will find you first

9th Sunday of Ordinary Time Cycle A - 2011

May the Peace of Christ reign in our hearts.



Sometimes a priest hears very very sad things like…


“He says he loves me but he won’t talk to me.”

“She says she loves me but she is never satisfied.”

“My parents say they love me but they are always so busy.”


“He says he loves me but he is always angry at me and I am afraid.”

“I love God but I never go to Church

“I  only think of God when I need or want something but I do love him.”

How often do we used the phrase I love it when we talk about things?

I love that car,I love your dress, I love the new Ipad 2I love I love
How can you love a thing and how can a thing love you back.
We throw the words around so often and in so many ways.
We say love love love and sadly, quite frankly sometimes we don’t love at all.

That’s the message of the Gospel today words are not enough.
Saying “Lord Lord,” is not enough.
Saying "I love you" is not enough.
Saying anything is not enough.


If I were to sum up this Gospel I could probably use the phrases like..

"if you’re going to talk the talk, you’ve got to walk the walk"

or “talk is cheap”

or “actions speak louder than words”

or “practice what you preach”

Benjamin Franklin is reputed to have coined the proverbial saying "Well done is better than well said".

Shakespeare said...
Talkers are no good doers: be assured
We come to use our hands and not our tongues.

St. Francis said
“Preach the Gospel always use words only when necessary…”

Think about it.. when we went astray, when we needed Him,
God did not just say “I love you”…
rather his love became incarnate… it took on flesh.

As St Paul wrote to the Philippians
“he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and  he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.

In other words Love didn’t just remain words… It became flesh

I am convinced the saddest human beings are those who have never really loved or those who have simply talked about it. and let me tell you they are out there.

May our love go beyond words everyday.

May we imitate our Lord whose love became flesh.

That’s what God wants from us.

That’s what God wants for us.
AMEN

7th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year – A - 2011

Reading 1
Responsorial Psalm
Reading 2
Gospel

May the peace of Christ reign in our hearts.

Sometimes moments in our lives find a special place in our memory.

For example I still remember where I was when President Kennedy was shot.

I was in the third grade at Maryvale Elementary School.

When the PA System went on we could barely understand what was going on.

Some of the kids started to cry.

Then the Principal came on and told us we could pray like our families prayed at home.

As I looked around almost every kid made the sign of the cross.

Cheektowaga NY a suburb of Buffalo was a very Catholic town.

When 9/11 happened I was in the Campus Ministry Office in Washington DC.

The University Emergency Council was called to the President's office.

We tried to understand what was going on.

A campus Policeman kept poking his head in giving us updates,

like “the Pentagon has been hit, the Capital Building has been evacuated.”

I remember him saying “The State Department has been hit, Confirmed”

There was so much confusion no one really knew what was going on.

Finally the President of Catholic University cancelled all the classes and the whole university 5000 students and 1000 faculty and staff meet in the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception for Mass.

As we walked up the steps to the Shrine I remember seeing the smoke from the Pentagon.

There a girl talking on her cell phone crying hysterically saying “but I don't know where Gettysburg is how can I find you in Gettysburg?”

Her mother on the other end was also hysterical was trying to set up a meeting spot 80 miles away if disaster struck Washington.

There was a young Muslim woman with her head covered crying on the steps of the Basilica as we went in, several students were comforting her...

I heard her say “now everyone will hate us even more.”

One of the kids responded ”We are not going to let hate win love is more powerful.”

“We are not going to let them change our hearts”

His words really struck me.

That's what Jesus is trying to tell us today.

In this portion of the Sermon on the Mount from Matthew’s Gospel

Jesus is exhorting his followers to never let evil or hate win.

Hate, evil, anger, bitterness, are terrible things.

They are very powerful and very destructive.

When someone experiences hate or anger in their lives they are so much more likely to pass it on to others.

The only way to overcome anger and hate and rage and evil is to have the extraordinary courage not to respond in kind.

Jesus said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who who persecute you.”

Some might think that responding to hate or evil with love is the coward’s way out or the easy way out.

I assure you it isn’t

No, it is not easy to love someone who hurts you or hates you but that’s exactly what Jesus did and that’s what he wants us to do.

Surrounded by hate and rage he responded with love and forgiveness.

“Father forgive them they know not what they are doing.”

The “them” he is talking about is us.

What does this all have to do with us, normal everyday people who live in Berlin CT?

Unless you have been living on your very own planet you have experienced anger and rage, and evil and maybe even hate.

All of us have experienced resentments, all of us have been hurt, and all of have a choice.

We can hold on to these past hurts and let them fester and grow.

We can let them take root in us more and more or we can have the courage not to respond in kind.

It takes courage a lot of courage and character, a lot of character, to break the cycle of hate and bitterness.

Its so hard to break the cycle of evil which seems so interwoven into the fabric of our world.

Think about it when we allow bitterness to make us bitter,

ar anger to make us angry,

or hate to make us hateful then evil does really win

and all that is good looses.

This week the challenge of the Gospel is clear.

We know what God is asking… the question is can we or will we do it.

I know that there are some of us here who have a few telephone calls to make, a fewRelationships to mend.

I know that to some of us forgiveness to be given or received or both.

If you find it easy being a Catholic maybe your are living on your own planet.

Have a great week everyone.

Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A – 2011

May the peace of Christ Reign in our hearts,

In today’s Gospel Jesus speaks to us about the Law and the Prophets, and he calls us all to a more heartfelt observance of God’s Law.

Our observance of the Law has to be more than rote.

It has to be more than going through the motions.

Our observance of the Law has to be more than giving the bare minimum or simply following of letter of the law.

That’s what the scribes and the Pharisees did.

God wants more from us.

God want our lives and our moral conduct to be motivated by a love which goes way beyond the simple letter of the law.

When you love someone you want the best for them.

When you love someone you want to give them the best you have.

A mom who loves her children would never just put a bowl of cheerios on the table for her kids day in and day out and then make herself a warm meal.

Yes, she would be following the letter of the law by “feeding” her children but love would never permit her to do such a thing.

I’ve known lots of Moms and Dad’s including my own who have taken food off their plates because their children were hungry.

They make this sacrifice because that what love demands.

The law, the Ten Commandments are from God they are given to us because God loves us and they show us the way home.

He didn’t give them to us to take away our fun or cramp our style.

He gave them to us because observing them with love is the best possible choice we can ever make.

Jesus uses three examples he reminds us that…

It’s not enough to avoid murdering someone, love calls us to love our enemies and do good to those who persecute us.

It’s not enough to simple be physically faithful to our spouse, love calls us to treat everyone with respect and reverence.

One kid told me that he felt that looking at women and allowing his imagination to go into overdrive was like cheating in his head.

He felt this way because of his love for his girlfriend.
He understood that love called him to more and he understood what Jesus was talking about in the Gospel today.

Every human relationship is based on truthfulness

Telling the truth..

If you can’t trust someone to tell the truth then you can’t really be in a relationship with them.

Sometimes we are inclined to take the easy way out and tell a little lie or a little fib.

Both love and the law demand that we tell the truth… They also demand that we find charitable ways to do so.

Jesus reminds us in the Gospel
“Say yes when you mean yes and no when you mean no.”

Sadly the scribes and the Pharisees believed that the blind dry observance of the law was enough to be justified.

Jesus wants more from his followers.

Love calls us to more.

When we choose to follow God’s law in a loving way we choose the path of righteousness and holiness.

Let’s return to the first reading for just a moment because it sums everything up beautifully.

“If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you; if you trust in God, you too shall live”

Before man are life and death, good and evil,
whichever he chooses shall be given him.

We Chose

Amen

My Thoughts in the Bulletin this Week

 I think Mother Nature is pushing us all to the limit. Last week there were several people upset about parking. One of our parishioners said to me, “Fr. Robert you have to do something. There is no room in the parking lot and I had to park so far away it was like I was walking from New Britain to get to Church. This has to change or I won't contribute anymore.” She was noticeably upset. Gratefully, I did not respond in kind. Who knows what was going on in her mind and in her heart. Maybe having to park a longer distance from the church was the straw that broke the camel's back in her life. I assure you we are doing the best we can with the parking lot. I am writing this on Monday before the next big storm comes our way, and I have to say I am writing with a kind of dread, worrying to myself, “Where will we put the new snow when we don't even have a place for the old snow?”
Here are some ideas... that might help us all..

·          Why not check with neighbors and car pool to Mass? A few less cars would go a long way to help alleviate our congestion.

·          Don't forget that we have Mass at 5:00 PM on Sunday. There is always plenty of room in the parking lot during that Mass.

·          The 4:00 PM on Saturday, the 9:00 and 10:30 AM Masses are the most attended. If you normally attend one of those Masses, you might consider switching to a Mass with a smaller attendance.

Finally, when things start pushing you to the edge, take a deep breath, blow it out slowly and remember that perfect is in heaven.

           In the same light, after the 9:00 PM Mass, a concerned parishioner told me that he had worked on the roof of our school gym and he was concerned about the weight of the snow. “Who isn't worried,” I thought to myself. Then he told me he had noticed some cracks in the gym wall on both corners near the Parish Center. I went right over and sure enough there were some cracks up there. I couldn't tell if they were new cracks in the wall or had been there for awhile. I immediately called Ed Janik, who is on our building committee, and we both looked at the cracks.

           To err on the side of safety, we decided that we would cancel any activities that were scheduled in the gym and call in some structural engineers to look at the gym and the cracks. Thankfully, both of the gentlemen who looked inside and outside of the gym came to the same conclusion. The cracks in the brick veneer of the gym wall were not affecting the structure at all. There was no indication of a structural problem according to both of the engineers. Only when we got the green light from the experts did we let people back in the gym. Right now Bill Diciccio and Jack Burns, our maintenance staff, are  shoveling off the gym roof to make room for the ice and snow which is forecast for tomorrow.

  As you can see from the insert, we have hired a new Director of Music and Liturgy. I am very excited to begin working with Jeff. Several people made positive comments after his audition. As you can see from the comments on the insert, he is held in high esteem by many. Welcome to St. Paul's Jeff.!

  Fr. Robert

 

Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C - 2011

You know I have been so very very blessed in my life.

Over and over I have found myself in circumstances and faced challenges which have called me to be more…

…more faithful,
…more generous,
…more committed,
…more the man that God wanted me to be.

As I look back over my life one of the biggest challenges I’ve ever faced was taking kids from Catholic University to live and work in the third world.

I have made 10 of those trips to countries like,
Guatemala, Panama, Honduras, and Tanzania.

They were never easy trips.
I can honestly say that sometimes I faced them with dread.

I was always afraid that something would happen to one of the kids and I was very protective.

Once I got so sick with amebic dysentery that the kids literally had to carry me to the truck in a thunderstorm.

Then we rode for 50 minutes to the nearest doctor as they covered me with their ponchos. It was very dramatic.

But I’ve always come back from those trips or challenges,
a better person,
or at least I’ve come back knowing that I needed to be a better person.

One evening in Guatemala when I was walking over to church for Night Prayer
I noticed there were two young men standing on the corner down the street and one was waving a machete.

It concerned me and I was going to take the long way to Church when all of the lights went out.

The whole town went dark.

It was so dark in fact, that when you put your hand in front of your face you could not see it.

I was afraid to take another step.

I became disoriented.
I didn’t know which way I was facing.
I didn’t know where those men were.
It was scary.

It was probably the first time in my life when I  had experienced complete darkness,
and it was even more disconcerting because it came completely unexpected.

I stood there frozen and then someone down the street to the Church turned on a little flashlight I was finally able to orient myself a little.

And then I felt a hand on my shoulder and it was the young man with the machete.
I jumped..
Then he said “ven conmigo padre ven conmigo.”

He was gently telling me to follow him.

With the help of a tiny pen light which he had in his pocket he led me back to church.

The people in Jesus’ time knew what darkness was.
They understood how drastically it could change their lives.

They knew that with darkness came danger and confusion,
and they understood how powerful even a little light could be.

As Jesus spoke they knew how much they needed  light, or rather His light, the light of faith.

When Jesus called them the light of the world,

It was very meaningful for them because every last one of them had experienced darkness.

Holy Ones
Without Light of Christ our world is scary and disoriented and even dangerous.

When we were baptized our godfather was given a candle and he lit it from the paschal candle or Christ Candle.

When he did this it reminded us that we were being given the light of Christ.

Like that young man who I had most certainly misjudged we are called to hold on to the light of faith given to us at baptism, to nurture it in our own lives, and to share the light of our baptism candle with others.

We are called to help people orient themselves in a world so filled with confusion, and fear, and darkness.

We are called to bring others to the light of faith.

You know we are the biggest Church in this town and if Berlin isn’t a better place because of our presence here at Peck and Alling then we failed.

If we only come to church so that we will feel better,
or because we are afraid not to,
or If we only come to church because we are simply in the habit of doing so,
then we really can’t really say we understand what being the light of the world really means.

There are so many people in our families,
at our places of work, in our church and in the community that need the light faith we have so generously been given.

Without it the world is a dark and scary and dangerous place indeed.

There is so much to think about in those few simple words,

“You are the light of the world.”

The second metaphor that Jesus uses is salt.
The only thing that comes to mind when we hear the word salt these days is the stuff they put on the road or the parking lot.

Let me tell you salt is not cheap.

A couple of months ago my Doctor looked me in the eye and said
Fr. Robert, lay of the salt shaker.

Your blood pressure is too high.
I didn’t have the heart to tell him the name of the real source of my high blood pressure that day.

During Jesus’ time salt was an essential part of life.
There was no refrigeration so meats and fish were dried and preserved in salt.

Without salt you couldn’t eat.
Salt was also used to enhance flavor.

When Jesus said to his disciples “you are the salt of the earth”,

He didn’t mean go out and raise people’s blood pressure.

Rather He  was probably asking them to preserve the truth. like people used salt to preserve the food for another day.

It is not our task,
it is not the task of the Church,
it is not the task of the Pope even to create the faith,

Our only task is to be true to it to be true to the profound truths that God has given us.

I know I am not supposed to say this but we all know that food tastes better with salt.

There is nothing better than a pile of mashed potatoes, covered in butter and finished off with a good dose of salt.

May our faith flavor the world
may our faith enhance our lives day in and day out like salt makes things taste better.

By saying you are the salt of the earth
Your are the light of the world

Jesus is calling us,
challenging us,
begging us to  preserve the truths,
that he has shared with us
to share it with others.

You are the salt of the earth
You are the light of the world.

Amen

4th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year – A - 2011

When I was a child my family always went on summer vacation to Florida.

My father loved Florida and we would drive three days from Buffalo to get there.

The scene was always the same.
My Mom would sit in the front with a little book called the trip-tick.

She held that trip-tick the all the way from Buffalo to Sarasota trying to figure out where we were.

Believe it or not 95 was not completed back then so we used to take US 1 or Route 301.

There was no little box that sat on the dash board saying
turn right, turn left, or recalculating when you made a wrong turn.

Sometimes we got very lost.

Roads are pretty important
If you choose the right one it gets you were you want to go.

If you are on the wrong one you end up in a completely different place then you intended.

If I get on 91 north and don’t get off I know I will get to Springfield
If I get on 91 south and don’t get off I know I will end up in New Haven

The gospel today presents us with some roadmaps to heaven.
Jesus desperately wants us all to find our way home.

With the Beatitudes he shows which roads to take.

The first road is called “being poor in spirit.”
The poor of spirit those who know that they are indeed dependent on God or know they need God.

If we don’t know that we need God,
if we travel through life doing whatever we please,
if we don’t recognize that only God can show us the way to Him,
It is so easy to get lost.

The world is filled with people who have lost their way or taken the wrong road because they don’t know God.

Blessed are the poor in spirit who know they must and can depend on God.

Those who mourn are those who realize that they have made poor choices in life.
Many people go through life never figuring that out.

They are angry and upset and hurt when they never really get where they want to go.

They don’t realize that they have continually taken wrong turns and made bad choices.

Knowing that you have made a mistake and being sorry is very important.

A person who isn’t sorry is very likely to make the same wrong turns over and over again frequently these sad people take others with them.

Sorrow and guilt in the proper context are not bad things..
Sometimes people joke about Catholic guilt.

To be honest I am grateful for the gift of Catholic guilt in my life
It has helped me repent of my sins and find my way to the right road.

In the proper proportion guilt and shame are not always bad things.
Blessed are those who mourn indeed.

When Jesus speaks about the meek many people fail to really understand what he is talking about.

Somehow we have come to understand a meek person as a person who just puts up with things or someone who is long suffering a wimp if you will.

When Jesus spoke of the meek the scholars tell us that he was really talking about those who never give up, who simply persevere no matter what.

People who are meek
don’t give up on a problem child, they don’t give up on their marriage, they don’t give up on a difficult job, and they don’t give up on God.

The meek are willing to look a challenge in the eye.
Blest are the meek for the will inherit the land.

Have you ever been hungry, I mean really hungry?
Have you ever been thirsty, really thirsty?

In our country and in our times many people have never really experienced hunger or thirst.

When someone is really hungry or thirsty the desire to eat or to drink kind of overwhelms you, it’s all you can think about.

When we really hunger for righteousness,
when we really thirst for holiness,
when the desire for both consumes like hunger and thirst,
only then us can we really make progress on the road home to God.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

Let’s look at one more…

The last beatitude is perhaps the most powerful and the most challenging.

Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven.

Finally, for some or maybe for most of us there will be a moment in our lives when our faith calls us to stand up and suffer insults or persecution.

If we truly live our faith sometimes we make ourselves to be a sign of contradiction and people notice.

Sadly, a loving,
compassionate, merciful,
faithful, holy man or woman
can stick out in a world which values other things.
When this happens persecution can follow.
Why does that surprise us?

Jesus himself suffered persecution because he loved.
Why would we expect anything else.

And when we accept our suffering, when we offer it up… our powerful witness can help bring others to faith.

Want to get to heaven ?
Blest are those who know they need God

Blest are those who are sorry for their sins

Blest are those who never give up trying to be holy.

Blest are those who hunger and thirst for goodness and God.

Blest are those who are blest to carry the cross of persecution like Jesus

Holy Ones…

If we follow these roads God’s roads faithfully one day we will find ourselves home.

If we don’t we won’t

AMEN

3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time - Year C – 2010

May the peace of Christ Reign in our hearts,

The Word of God speaks to every age.
And today’s second reading speaks directly to some of the challenges we face today.

In his first Letter to the Church in Corinth
Paul writes to a divided community a community with many factions.

While some members of the community are sincere,
Sadly its seems that pride and ego were at the root of many of the division in the community in Corinth.

There were leaders in the Church and  each leader was vying for followers and importance.

The divisions were so deeply rooted that sadly the members of the community began to identify themselves with “their leader” rather than Christ.

“I follow Peter, I follow Apollo” they said.

Something is wrong when personal preference, and personal loyalties supersede fidelity to Christ and fidelity to the Gospel.

Today these words ring so true. While we know longer identify ourselves with different leaders many of us choose to identify themselves with different theologies and liturgical preferences.

Today we hear things like…
I don’t like it when people hold up the line and kneel for communion
Or we hear…
I like to pray in Latin
Or we hear…
I want women priests
Or we hear…
I only like contemporary music
Or we hear
I only like the organ played in church
Or we hear…
I am conservative
Or we hear…
I am a liberal Catholic
Or we hear…
I and I and I and I

In so many respects we are like the Corinthians in the time of St. Paul

We the body Christ have divided ourselves into little factions or cliques each so sadly prone to begin our sentences with I.

Happily I have not found too much of this here at St. Paul.

It is my hope that in our parish we will strive for unity rather than division, communion rather than factions.

Unity and communion can only find their source in faithfulness.

When we strive to be faithful to the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
when we strive to be faithful to the teaching of the Church given to us by Jesus Christ disunity and divisions will cease.

In the Gospel, Jesus said
“You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church.”

Today the unity of the Church is still protected and nurtured by the ministry of St. Peter in the person of our Holy Father.

St. Ambrose in the 4th Century so proudly proclaimed
“Where there is Peter there is the Church.”

Obviously he was not speaking only of St. Peter but everyone who would follow him as Bishop of Rome.

Our unity, the unity of the Church is rooted in fidelity.
Faithfulness,
faithfulness to the Word of God, present in the Scriptures,
faithfulness to Sacred Tradition, protected and nurtured in the magisterium or teaching authority of the Church.

Holy Ones,
It’s a big Church
Some may kneel, and some may stand
Some may like Latin and some may run and hide from it
Some may like guitars and others will prefer Gregorian chant.
I could go on and on and so could you.

We can’t let these things divide us.
We can’t let them pull us apart.

Love is self giving.
Pridefulness and egos are self seeking>

Let us strive with all of our hearts to avoid the weaknesses of the Corinthians

The weaknesses which concerned St. Paul so much that love compelled him to write them a letter.

If we are faithful to the Teaching of Christ
and if we remain faithful to His Church

We will always be in communion

Amen

2nd Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C - 2010

May the Peace of Christ Reign in our hearts.

Tradition has it that John the Baptist and Jesus were somehow related.

So in today’s Gospel it seems strange when John the Baptist says that he did not know Jesus.

Maybe what he meant to say was that  he wasn’t sure what role Jesus had in God’s plan.
He wasn’t sure if Jesus was the Messiah.

But when he saw the descent of the Holy Spirit on Jesus in the Jordan, and when he heard the voice of the Father,
John began a process of discipleship which every follower of Christ, and every human being is called to follow.

And so John made a bold profession of faith when he called Jesus the Lamb of God.

• By calling Jesus the Lamb of God John the Baptist proclaimed Jesus to the Passover Lamb,
  whose blood sprinkled on the door posts, saved Israel from death.
  
• By calling Jesus the Lamb of God
  John the Baptist professed that it would be Jesus to reconcile humanity with God.
  
• By calling Jesus the Lamb of God he identified Jesus with the suffering servant of whom the prophet Isaiah had spoken of.

And in doing so he professed that Jesus would not be a triumphant Messianic King but rather a suffering servant who would save the world with His love and sacrifice.

When John understood who Jesus really was,
when John was sure that Jesus was indeed the Lamb of God he began surrender himself to Jesus.

He surrendered his will.
He surrendered his plan, and even his friends and his disciples.
He surrendered everything he had and everything he was to God’s will.

Remember John’s famous words…

“I must decrease he must increase.”

John’s example shows us that when a person meets Christ and falls in love with Jesus Christ their life will never be the same.

Everything is seen in a new and very different light.

You know its amazing that we priests aren’t holier.

We meet holy, very holy, people almost every day I wish some would rub off.

One day I was walking in the hospital and there were a bunch of people sitting in the area of New Britain General where the families wait when new babies are coming.

So you know me.
You’ll always hear me before you see me.

When I saw them I yelled out look at this beautiful family waiting for their new born baby.

The people responded that they were not waiting for a baby but that they had a family member was down critical care.

As I was trying to figure how I could get my foot out of my mouth a woman came up to me and said,

‘‘Father go down and pray with her. Please go down and say some prayers we are  not Catholic but we believe in prayer.”

I went down into critical care and found the room.

When I stood in the door
I saw a woman on a ventilator and a man sitting next to her holding her hand.

When I knocked on the door and  explained how I had been sent.
The man gladly received me and we prayed for his wife.

As I was leaving the man stopped me and said

Sir I’m sure you’ll agree when you are a Christian you can’t lose.

• If my wife gets better I will have some more time with her and that will make me happy.
• If God calls her home to Himself and she goes to her heavenly reward that will also make me happy.

I know Jesus Christ and so does my wife.
The way I see it we just can’t lose.

There was a man,
there was a couple,
there was a family,
who like John the Baptist came to know Jesus as the Lamb of God and their lives would never be the same

Holy Ones….
Everyday God reveals himself to us,
and once we understand,
once we are sure that  Jesus is indeed
the Lamb of God,
our life will never be the same.

And so the questions of the week must be
Do we know Jesus Christ?
Do we know the Lamb of God?
Do we believe he takes away the sins of the world,
or are we still afraid that we can loose?

Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world have mercy on us
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world have mercy on us
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world Grant us peace.
Amen

The Baptism of the Lord Year A–2011

May the Peace of Christ reign in our Hearts,

For many years Jesus lived a normal life.
He learned a trade.
He loved and supported his Mom.

The scriptures tell us that in those 30 years before his baptism He grew in wisdom and understanding.

Slowly but surely, He grew to understand who he was and what he was called to do.

Then one day God moved in His heart and He presented Himself to John to be baptized,
from that moment his life was changed forever.
The years of preparation were over.
The quiet years of family life in Nazareth were gone.

Sometimes in the three years which followed Jesus would not even have time to see his mother and relatives. (Mt 12:46-50)

His task was urgent and all consuming.
There were souls to save.
The kingdom had to be proclaimed.
The sick had to cured,
the hungry fed.
and the cross carried.

By his life he taught us how to live, by his death he taught us how to love and freed us from our sins.

If you read Gospel carefully
Three things happened after Jesus was baptized

•    The heavens were ripped open and God and mankind were no longer separated.

•    Holy Spirit in the form of a dove gave Jesus the gifts he needed to complete the Father’s will.

•    After the baptism of Jesus scholars tell us that His unique relationship with God became crystal clear to Him and to others.

After His baptism Jesus understood His mission.
He knew that he was called to be the Suffering Servant that Isaiah spoke about in the first reading.

God made clear to Jesus not only that his mission to redeem the world,
but also that he would accomplish this task with suffering love.

This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.
 
All of us in this Church have been baptized,
and with our baptism we became Sons and Daughters of God.

Our identity, indeed who we are, is rooted in our Baptism.
When we were baptized three things also happened to us.

•    The heavens were open and the sin of Adam was washed away.

•    With our baptism we are given the seven gifts Holy Spirit and at confirmation they are strengthened.
Wisdom
Understanding
Counsel
Fortitude
Knowledge
Piety
Fear of the Lord

( I was asked the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit on my Priesthood exam and I could only remember 6 lucky I was ordained !)

Finally with our baptism we became the sons and daughters of God.

We must never forget…
we are sons and daughters of God.

And the fact that we are all indeed Sons and Daughters of God means that we are in relationship with each other.

You are my brother and sister because we share the same father in heaven.

A few years ago one of my spiritual directors handed me a small stack of papers.

He told me to put little signs all over my room saying.

They said…
Don’t forget You are God’s Son !

When people came in my room they thought it was weird but those little signs were very effective in reminding me who I was and how I was called to live and love especially after a bad day.

Holy Ones today’s feast reminds us that.

•    God is close to us

•    We have everything we need to live good and holy and loving lives.

•    From our baptism we share a special relationship with God and each other.

No matter what comes our way.

May we never forget who we are and how we are called to live.

Amen

 

A letter to some very important parents

Dear Friends,

It's early in the morning, still dark out, and I just finished praying through the January's parish calendar in our little friary chapel. Frequently, I simply take the calendar of our parish and look through it day by day, placing this event or that meeting in the hands of the Lord.
 
As you well know, in about two weeks your child will meet the Lord in the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time. As I tried to point out in my little conversation with you, knowing right from wrong, learning how to say I'm sorry, and being able to accept  forgiveness are essential if one is to live a happy, holy and fulfilling life. The ability to ask for forgiveness and give forgiveness is essential in any good relationship and that includes our relationship with God.

Please do everything you can to help dispel any fear that your children might have about going to confession. The Sacrament of Reconciliation can be and should be a beautiful moment of grace and peace. You can gently and lovingly prepare them for this sacrament by helping them examine their consciences and learn their prayers. Do everything you can to help them come to the Sacrament of Reconciliation confident and without fear.

Please consider teaching by example. I know that some of you have been away from the Sacrament of Reconciliation for a long time. I know in my own life, that when I have been away from confession for a while, it has been harder to return. If this is the situation you find yourself in - don't be afraid. Take the step and use this beautiful occasion of your Child's first encounter with our Lord's forgiveness to reestablish in your own life the regular practice of the Sacrament Reconciliation. As I told you during our little talk, I personally receive great consolation and encouragement from the Sacrament of Reconciliation and it is a regular part of my life. Sometimes I try to go to confession on a weekly basis and I always have enough to say.

Now for some practical matters: If you don't remember how to go to confession the priests will help you. As you teach your child how to go to the sacrament it will also serve as a great reminder for you. If you have been away for a while please know that no one will yell at you or keep you in line for a long time. We have several guest priests coming and our only purpose will be to offer you the Lord's forgiveness and encouragement. If you have been away a while please consider coming back.

I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for bringing your child to religious education and helping to prepare them for the sacraments. God has so much faith in you that He has placed these beautiful little souls in your loving care what an honor and what a daunting task to be sure!

Please be assured of my prayers for you and your child. If you might want to go to confession before the 15th feel free to call the Office and one of us will be happy to talk with you.  

If you have any questions please feel free to click here or call the Religious Education Office at 860-828-1934.

Thinking of you and praying for you
Fr. Robert
Your pastor

PS. - I'm sorry I never got that tape on the web like I promised. I simply couldn't figure out how to edit it.

Christmas 2010

One of my earliest memories of Christmas, besides waiting as the top of the stairs to hear Grandma Susie say goodbye to Santa, was of our family Manger Scene.
I remember it vividly
It was made up of 16 plaster statues
There were Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,
3 Shepherds two of whom were kneeling,
3 kings one was kneeling and one led a camel,
There was an angel who we called Gloria.
She was dressed in blue and held a sash with her name.
There was a cow without a tail,
and a donkey without an ear.
Finally there were three little sheep who used to ride with baby Jesus in coal car of my train which was under the tree.
The figures were pretty bumped up from 2 boys and 4 grandchildren.
And it is still in my mom’s house
We’ve had it for 61 years.
I can remember as a little boy laying on the floor of the living room and peering into the stable and rearranging the figures and telling myself the story over and over again.
As banged up as that little Manger scene was it taught me many important lessons.
Here is some of what I learned.

Jesus Our Lord and
Jesus our Savior and Jesus our Brother was born in a stable…
He was born in a stable that
we might understand that a simple life can be a good life.
He was born in the stable that
We might understand that we don’t need every new gadget.
We don’t need every modern convenience.
We don’t need huge houses impossible to clean and pay for.
The stable reminds us all that
sometimes we work so hard for things that rust and rot away that
and we miss the things and the moments which really are important.
As we look into the stable and gaze upon the manger…
let us remember that a simple life can be a good life indeed.
Jesus was…
Wrapped in swaddling clothes and
laid in a Manger on a bed of straw.
The manger held the food for the animals
It shape also made a perfect bed for Jesus.
But as I grew up I came to understand that there was a special symbolism here.
For Jesus and Jesus alone is indeed our Heavenly food only he can satisfy our hunger.
Every time we gaze on the manger
it is important to remember that
we will only ever be satisfied
when we eat the Bread of Life and drink the cup of salvation.
Only God
God’s will and purpose
Only God’s Love can  fill us up and satisfy us

Every other “satisfaction” is an illusion…
Our souls will not rest until they rest in God both on earth and in heaven.
The manger also taught me that
Upon Him a star shown bright
For God wanted to make sure that everyone could find him
and that everyone knew that they were loved.
The star was a indeed a beacon of hope to a world quite frequently lonely and broken.
It is impossible to hide a bright light in the sky.
It is impossible not to notice a bright shining star.
Why the Star
The message of the star and the message of the Gospel are clear
The star shown in the sky so that all of humanity in every age might find God’s Son and be saved.
And
Indeed they came
They came from the east bearing gifts
They came from the neighboring fields
They came from the heavens themselves
The Son of God was greeted by both shepherds and kings
The rich and the poor
The powerful and the weak
The famous and the not so famous
The healthy and the sick
The loud and the shy
The lowly and the great
And all of creation was filled with joy at the sight of a God who became a baby
In these frenetic days of family and friends
In these days of gifts food, and drink
Pray God that we learn the lessons of the Manger well
•    A Simple life is a good life
•    Only God can satisfy our deepest hungers
•    The star shines on everyone as does God’s Love
•    All are welcome
Best wishes for a most blessed Christmas and a happy and holy new Year
Amen

The 4th Sunday of Advent - Year C – 2010

May the Peace of Christ Reign in our Hearts
As we get closer to Christmas there is so much to do…
If you are organized you've probably gotten a lot of it done

But then there are the rest of us.
I’m sure I’m forgetting something but here goes..
Christmas lists
Christmas baking
Christmas cards
Christmas trees
buying or climbing into the attic to get is.

One Friary keeps all of their trees in the bell tower with a big bag over it.
Christmas decorating no offence but I think we have the best looking house on the block… oops were the only house on the block (Fr. Michael’s Handiwork)
Wrapping and delivering Christmas present
Christmas shopping
Christmas meal planning
Christmas food runs to Stop and Shop or Stews

If you need to work on patience in your life… go and try to keep from screaming when the lady in front of you picked a ham with no price label at Stews ?
Getting your hair done Christmas
Christmas packing (if you are traveling)
Christmas house cleaning
I’m sure there’s more
Preparation Preparation Preparation
There is so much to do
Sad to say I have one more thing to add to our list.
When Fr. Raymond and I came here the Attic in the friary was filled stuff there was so much stuff up there.
There was even stuff up there from friars long gone home to God and other places…

I got a good pair of shoes from the attic who know who they belonged to.
I even found Fr. Herbert’s High School Yearbook. 
Finally one day with the help of our volunteers we got a construction dumpster and loaded it up with junk...
It had to be done.
The stuff would not go away by itself.
Just like we cleaned the attic
Before Christmas each of us has to clean out the stable of our heart hence the signs on the doors.
We have to remove any trace of anger or resentment especially towards family member that we will see over the break.
We have to forgive them that’s what God does for us.
We have to remove our gossip and our laziness
We have to get rid of our greed and our lack of fidelity.
We have to remove from our hearts the selfishness that keeps us from giving God His rightful place in our lives.
We have to get rid of all of the lies and exaggerations we have told.
We have to remove everything which keeps us from being the Men and Women that God would have us be.
And it's not enough for us to say
I'm gonna do better....
we’ve all done that before… I know I do that everyday
Part of the healing process is to force ourselves to say I'm sorry.
Saying I'm sorry if very very important indeed.
So important that God even gives us

A special sacrament where we can express our sorrow and know that we are forgiven.
Yep there’s one more thing to do before Christmas
One more thing to add to the list.
Our Parish Christmas Confessions will be held on Tuesday starting at 7:00 PM.

3rd Sunday of Advent 2010 - Year A

John the Baptism was a real person.
He is not a myth or a story.
He lived and breathed and laughed and cried like you and me.

He was a holy man, a passionate man,
There is no doubt that he knew of his miraculous birth,
and from when he was a little boy knew that he that God had a special plan for him.

When we hear of John again years later
He has become an itinerant preacher calling people to repentance.

If you read the accounts in the Gospels it becomes clear that he was not calm or gentle in his ministry.
He was driven a desperate man.
He was hard on the people and he was hard on himself.
He lived in the dessert in the poorest of poor conditions because
material things and comforts did not mean anything to him.

He was a man on a mission.
John was all these things because he was sure without a shadow of a doubt that when the Messiah came so would God's judgment.

The Gospel today is difficult to understand
The scholars I've read look at it in two different ways.

The first one is simply this.

To many it appears that John is having doubts in prison.

Maybe, just maybe prison was taking its toll.
John had expected that the Messiah would come in a triumphant manner and judge the world.

That's why John was so desperate to get people to change their lives
He was convinced time was short.
And when all of these thing didn’t happen as he expected maybe he just wasn’t sure anymore about Jesus.

Maybe he had doubts,
and so it follows that he sent ijs trusted friends to talk to Jesus and find out what was going on.

“Are you the one who is to come or should we wait for someone?” he asked

Another interpretation of this passage goes like this.

John really had no doubts at all.
He knew the answer to his question before he asked it.

John sent his disciples to Jesus so that they would get to know him
and follow him.

Remember John's famous saying.
“I must decrease he must increase.”

Sending his disciples to Jesus was just another way for him to decrease.

Scholars who follow this line of thought see John’s sending of his disciples as his last act of love and surrender to Jesus the Messiah.

So we have one passage but two really different interpretations.
Both of teach us something.

The first is simply this...

We should not be afraid of doubt.

Doubt will come to our marriages and relationships.
Doubt will come to our jobs.
Sometimes we will doubt our children or our ability as parents.
Most of us at some point in our lives will doubt ourselves.
Doubt is part of our human condition.

Maybe John was doubting… so what.
Maybe we have our doubts... so what.

If John’s questions was indeed and expression of doubt,
then it is important for us see how he handled it
and to listen to Jesus’ response.

Jesus did not get angry or upset that John was doubting.
He did not send his disciples back with a correction or rebuke

Rather he tried to use his good deeds to help John find consolation.
Jesus wanted John to find consolation as he suffered in prison.

When we have doubts God does not get angry with us but rather he wants to find a way to help us understand.

He wants us to find consolation.

The lesson for us is simple…
It’s ok to doubt.

Doubt may be the next step to a deeper faith

What’s important is that we follow John’s example and seek to understand.

If John was really not doubting at all but rather surrendering his dearest friends and followers to Jesus.
Then there is also a very important lesson for us indeed.

Love and sacrifice go hand in hand.

If John was sending his disciples to Jesus he did so because he loved them,
if John was sending his disciples to Jesus he did so because knew it would be best for them
John also knew that without them he would be more alone

He knew that he would be more at the mercy of his jailers and King Herod.

Yet love called John to sacrifice even his last remaining followers and that is what he did.
The Lesson here is simple Love and sacrifice often go hand in hand.

Holy Ones...

Let us imitate John the Baptist
When doubt is a part of our lives let's not wallow in it but
rather let's do everything we can to find the answers we need.

When love calls let us not be afraid to answer no matter what the cost

God Bless You All !!!

1st Sunday of Advents–Year 2010

May the peace of Christ reign in our hearts.

Today once more, we begin the season of Advent.
The first candle is lit on the Advent Wreath
There are 4 weeks until Christmas.

With Black Friday
The secular preparations have begun in earnest and yes there is lots to get done.

On the first Sunday of Advent
It is fitting that all of us ask ourselves…
Are we ready?
Are we ready to be the people God wants us to be
Are we ready to make room for the Lord Jesus in our lives and in our hearts.
Are we more ready today than we were last year on the first Sunday of Advent?

You know when I was a kid on St. Paul Court… in Cheektowaga NY
when we were playing hide and seek… we used to yell
Ready of not here I come.
Today the Church says ready or not here He comes…

Have we made a place for God in our lives?
Have we let go of the vices that hold us back from giving our lives to Christ and sharing our lives with each other?
Are we ready to love like God loves?

For the little ones here in this Church this may be their 5th or 6th or 18th Advent.
For me its number 55
Some of you even have more Advents under your belt.
As we look back over the years and all the opportunities we’ve had to prepare a place in our heart for Christ…

How much progress have we made?
Or
Has our resolution to become a better person, a holy person
been as flimsy as our resolution to try and lose weight.

Today’s readings.. give us a lot of options to help us prepare a better place in our lives and in our heart for God.

The first readings speaks of turning from violence

Have we turned our swords into plowshares and our spears into pruning hook ?
I don’t think many people here in this church are physically violent
at least I hope not….
However,
this is still an area where we may need to improve.
Even angry thoughts, and bitter words cannot be a part of a Christians’ life.

In the second reading
St. Paul gives us a veritable list of things which we may have to change
drunkenness,
lust,
rivalry
jealousy
just to name a few..

All of these things get in the way of allowing Christ into our hearts.

When our heart is filled with lust or jealousy there is simply no room for others and no room for Christ.
All of these things hold us back and make it harder for us to love our neighbor.

When the people during Noah’s time saw him build the ark and thought he was crazy. They simply dismissed him.
As he and his sons labored on the ark they did not see a clear sign for them to change their hearts.

They lulled themselves into a kind of spiritual haze or complacency as they lived their lives “business as usual”
By the time Noah got into the ark it was too late for them to build an ark of their own or make the necessary changes in their lives.

Advent is here…

Let’s us not take this wonderful opportunity for conversion for granted

Ready or not here he comes…

Amen

The Feast of Christ the King (Revised) 2010

May the peace of Christ reign in our hearts

Today the last Sunday of the year the Church celebrates we celebrate the feast of Christ the King…

Christ the King who laid down his life for each one of us.

Christ the King whose simplicity of life teaches us what’s really important.

Christ the King who generously and wantonly gives mercy to anyone who asks it.

I never find it easy preaching on this feast day..

We have a hard time understanding Kings in the United States..

A King was the protector of his people.

A good King would even lay down his life for his People

A King ruled over his Kingdom his word was law and if he was a good king a fair king, a holy king, then everyone flourished in his kingdom.

A King was also the ultimate Judge the provider of Justice…

It was he who punished and he who granted mercy.

A King protects

A King rules

A King judges

It is indeed appropriate that we celebrate the feast of Christ our King.

If we read the Gospel carefully there were two types of people in the crowd at the crucifixion.

Those who attacked Jesus were mostly the religious leaders of his time

They taunted and ridiculed the Jesus mercilessly.

They looked on his crucifixion as a complete victory and they looked on Jesus as a fraud and a failure.

For a while it seemed like he would be a threat to them.
For a while they were concerned about the number of people following him.

Now as he hung on the cross their position of power and prestige were secure.

There were others in the crowd

They had the courage not to go along with the majority.

They stood at the foot of the cross in silence and in prayer.

What does the passage say to us?
What are we supposed to learn from it?

I propose to you three thoughts.

I believe the first lesson is this….

We should never try and fit the message of Christ into our culture or world view.

That was the tragedy of the religious leaders of his time.

Jesus didn’t fit their mold or expectations so they dismissed him.

As followers of Christ it is our job, rather our sacred mission, to bring our world to Christ

NOT water down or change the Gospel so that it is more acceptable to the world.

This is a mistake that many people make.

So often people say to me “come on father get with the times… nobody believes that anymore”

The times may change but the teaching of Christ doesn’t.

People who think this way seem to think that the truths of the Gospel are dependent on cultures and times and fads and even majority rule.

It’s as if they feel that we should vote on what we believe or not.

In season and out of season at any cost we must remain faithful to the Gospel of Christ the King.

Nations come and go, cultures change,
what people think changes like the wind,

but the Truths of the Gospel remain the same.

The second point which we need to consider is this.

This Gospel should cause us all to ask ourselves if Jesus were crucified today where would be in the crowd which side would we be on ?

Would we join with the vocal abusive majority or would we have the courage to stand in reverent silence.

Do we have the courage to stand up for the truth of the Gospel or do we follow the crowd?

Are we leaders or followers at work or in our communities.

Finally the Gospel today challenges us to hope

To hope in all circumstance

That is what the good thief did

There is no question that the men who hung on either side of Jesus were guilty as charged.

They were only facing justice.

They deserved what they got.

Yet one was saved and one was not.

Despite a life of horrendously wrong choices

Despite a life of hurting others

Despite a life of selfish self-seeking and arrogantly putting his wants and needs before others

The repentant thief had the courage to say I’m sorry

He admitted he was  guilty

then he said  I’m sorry…

And that’s exactly how we are supposed to ask for forgiveness.

Admit that we are wrong and say I’m sorry

If we do that God’s mercy can always be ours.

There is no limit to God’s Mercy

And because he dared to hope and ask forgiveness

The repentant their heard these words

“Today you will be with me in paradise”

Holy ones

Let us be faithful to the Gospel in season and out of season

Let us be willing to stand up for the truth as leaders not followers

Let us be men and women who seek God’s forgiveness and show mercy to others.

Amen

The Feast of Christ the King

The Feast of Christ the King

May the peace of Christ reign in our hearts

Today the last Sunday of the year the Church celebrates we celebrate the feast of Christ the King…

Christ the King who laid down his life for each one of us.

Christ the King whose simplicity of life teaches us what’s really important.

Christ the King who generously and wantonly gives mercy to anyone who asks it.

If we read the Gospel carefully there were two types of people in the crowd at the crucifixion.
 
There are those who are silent and those who were virulent in their attacks on Jesus.

The second group was mostly the religious leaders of his time  and they taunted and ridiculed the Jesus mercilessly.

They looked on his crucifixion as a complete victory and they looked on Jesus as a fraud and a failure.

For a while it seemed like he would be a threat to them.

For a while they were concerned about the number of people following him.

Now as he hung on the cross their position of power and prestige were secure.

There were others in the crowd

They had the courage not to go along with the majority
They stood at the foot of the cross in silence and in prayer.

What does the passage say to us?
What are we supposed to learn from it?
I propose to you three thoughts.

The first is this

We should never try and fit the message of Christ into our culture or world view.

That was the tragedy of the religious leaders of his time.

Jesus didn’t fit their mold or expectations so they dismissed him.

As followers of Christ it is our job, rather our sacred mission, to bring our world to Christ not water down or change the Gospel so that it is more acceptable to the world.

This is a mistake that many people make.

So often people say to me “come on father get with the times… nobody believes that anymore”

People who think this way seem to think that the truths of the Gospel are dependent on cultures and times and fads and even majority rule.

It’s as if they feel that we should vote on what we believe or not.

In season and out of season at any cost we must remain faithful to the Gospel of Christ the King.

Nations come and go, cultures change, what people think changes like the wind, but the Truths of the Gospel remain the same.

The second point which we need to consider is this.

This Gospel should cause us all to ask ourselves if Jesus were crucified today where would be in the crowd which side would we be on ?

Would we join with the vocal abusive majority or would we have the courage to stand in reverent silence.

Do we have the courage to stand up for the truth or do we follow the crowd?

Finally the Gospel today challenges us to hope
To hope in all circumstance
To hope without ever giving into despair

There could not be a more drastic circumstance than dying on a cross

There is no question that the both of the thieves were guilty as charged.
They were only facing justice.
They deserved what they got.

Yet one was saved and one was not.
 
One gave up on himself and the other took one last chance

Despite a life of horrendously wrong choices
Despite a life of hurting others
Despite a life of selfish self-seeking and arrogantly putting his wants and needs before others

The repentant thief found allowed himself to hope in God’s mercy
He allowed himself to be loved by God.

And because he dared to hope and ask forgiveness
The repentant their heard these words

“Today you will be with me in paradise”

Holy ones

Let us follow the example of Christ the King
Let us be faithful to the Gospel in season and out of season
Let us be willing to stand up for the truth
Let us be men and women who proclaim God’s loving mercy
And
Let us be merciful to each other….

Amen