29th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A - 2014

After hearing passage from the Gospel all of us have to ask ourselves

what in our lives belongs to God and what belongs to Caesar?

Yes everything we have comes from God.

In God we find our origin, our reason to live, and our ultimate goal.

In everything we do we should try to live our lives as God would have us live them.

God obviously comes first … and God’s will comes first.

And when we put God’s Word and God’s will first in our lives,  then we will be the best husband or wife, the best dad or mom, the best person, and the best citizen we can, be no matter what our calling in life.

But the parable clearly teaches that we also owe something to our Brothers and Sisters and to our society… “give to Ceasar what is Caesar's”

Because we benefit from many things in our country we are obligated to contribute to the common Good.

We share the benefit of the roads and the infrastructure and we are obligated to share in their expense. Obviously Giving to Caesar means being willing to pay our fair share of taxes.

But being a responsible Catholic citizen demands more.

The Gospel teaches us that we are all brothers and sisters.

Therefore we need to live lives of service.

We should be involved in our communities.

We should go beyond the bare minimum in helping those in need.

We should coach little league teams,

and camp out with scouts.

We should wash cars for the next band trip and donate food to the food bank.

We should share with those in need and those who go without.

For followers of Christ living lives of service and sharing with those in need are are not a pious extras.

They are part and parcel of the Gospel’s call to love one another has God has loved us.

Very Sadly we all fall short on this and our Holy Father Pope Francis is challenging us to change this.

If we all did a little more the world would be such a better place.

Our country and our culture

needs our participation in our common life.

We do this in several ways:

The first is obviously by voting.

When we go to vote it is our right and our duty to take with us all of our values and ideas.

We have a right and an obligation to vote according to our conscience

weighing carefully what every candidate clearly stands for and comparing them to the gospel values which should mold and shape our lives.

But our call to participate goes beyond simply voting in elections.

All of us are also called to participate in our culture by helping to form it.  This is really important.

We are called to contribute to the discussion which shapes our culture and its values.

Our culture needs our values,

Our culture needs our ideas our hopes and our dreams

Our culture needs our witness.

Our culture needs us.

And don’t let anyone tell you that our values can’t be part of the public discussion because they are rooted in our religious faith.

That’s not what the constitution meant by separation of church and state.

When our forefathers wrote about the separation of Church and State they were wisely forbidding a formal state religion not the exclusion of religious values from public life.

The constitution itself was formed in part by the religious beliefs and values of those who wrote it.

We have a right to share our beliefs no matter where they come from.

Let’s participate, let’s discuss, let’s debate let’s listen to the ideas of others and engage them.

So How do we give to Caesar what is Caesar's then?

By living lives of service and sharing with those less fortunate.

By voting with our conscience and our values.

By participating in the formation of our culture.

And doing all these things with a gentle and loving heart.

This is what giving to Caesar what is Caesar's is all about.

Today’s second collection is for World Mission Sunday… a perfect chance to share with those who are less fortunate in the world.

It’s a perfect chance to give to God what is God’s and give to Caesar what is Caesar's.

Amen

Twenty Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A - 2014

All of humanity, every single person who ever was and ever will be,

is called to the heavenly banquet.

The Heavenly Banquet, also so known as, eternal communion with God.

God calls or invites us in so many ways.

He calls in the quiet of a star filled night.

He calls in the glance of two people in love.

God calls when you hold your child with wonder and awe for the first time.

He calls at the glance of a majestic mountain range or the gentle sound of a stream making its way to the sea.

He calls in prayer and the quiet prompting of our conscience.

The clearest way that God calls is through His Word Jesus.

Jesus God’s son reveals so much about God and about us.

God also calls us through His words in the sacred scriptures and the living tradition of the Church.

God doesn’t call us once to the banquet. He calls us over and over and over again, day in our day out, whether we listen or not.

God just keeps calling.

Sadly as the Gospel explained today many who are called or invited simply refuse to come.

They refuse or we refuse for lots of reasons:

Some think they have a better offer here and now.

Many are so preoccupied, so worried, about the now of their lives, that they can’t even think about forever.

And so the first lesson of this Gospel is that simply that everyone is called over and over again to the banquet but sadly tragically many can’t seem to say yes to God’s invitation.

When many refuse the invitation the master sends out his servants to invite those who at first glance wouldn’t seem to fit into a heavenly banquet or any banquet for that matter.

The servants go out and invite sinners, the poor, the addicted, the angry, the lonely, you know people who never seem to fit in or those we are quick to judge.

They accept the invitation because through all their hard knocks they have come to understand that the path they are on and the world in which we live just can’t seem satisfy.

Sometimes when a person hits their head hard enough they can figure out that they are on the wrong road and change the path they are they are on and the choices that they make.

The second lesson of the Gospel is just as important as the first.

For some reason there was a man who accepted the invitation  was thrown out because he was not properly attired.

You see It is simply not enough to say yes to God’s invitation without changing our heart.

That’s what the man who was not properly attired tried to do.

In order to attend the heavenly banquet we have to clothe ourselves in a wedding garment made of acts of kindness and charity and virtue.

Accepting God’s call necessitates a change of heart and a change in what we value and how we live.

The man said yes to the invitation but did not change.

Let us listen to God’s Call.

Let us accept the invitation to the heavenly banquet.

Let us change our hearts and minds.

Let us cloth ourselves with acts of kindness and generosity, mercy, and forgiveness

And one day may we be welcomed wholeheartedly into the heavenly banquet which God so desperately wants us to attend.

Amen

27th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A- 2014

Brothers and sisters:

In the second reading today we heard…

Have no anxiety at all,

but in everything,

by prayer and petition, and with thanksgiving,

make your requests known to God.

Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding

will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

These are words that all of us have to take to heart. They are very important words

This has been a long week.

There have been meetings every day, morning noon and night, our parish is a big family with lots of needs someone is sick someone has a problem, not to mention the administrative tasks that consume a lot of my time and the parish staff time.

Perhaps the most challenging moment this week was Linda Compochiaro’s funeral.

She was a young Mom with two beautiful kids and a loving husband.

We all know that we prayed for Linda’s complete recovery.

We prayed over and over again.

There were hundreds of people concerned and praying for Linda’s recovery and her family.

We prayed with confidence and trust like the second reading encouraged us to do.

We know that God loves Linda and her family very much because God loves all of us.

There is not a doubt in my mind that God heard our prayers but the answer was simply no.

Our faith teaches us that God is all good and all powerful and all loving.

It follows then that if God is all good..

God could never do evil

If God is all powerful In other words there is nothing good that God can’t do.

And if God is all loving the way how answers our prayers is limited only by His love for us.

In other words God must always do the most loving thing because God is love.

So at first glance it’s hard to understand why Linda or why anyone young and vibrant is not spared.

So many sincere good people asked me that question this week this week.

As we journey through life It’s so important to remember only God has the big picture only God see and understand the whole plan.

Only God can see how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together.

In this case God called Linda home because somehow it must have been the most loving thing to do for her.

Last year God called another young Mom Laura Pagliaruli home because somehow it must have been the most loving thing to do for her.

The death of anyone we love is a very difficult for those of us to remain and in moments like that or any crisis often all we can hold onto is God is Good, God is Powerful, God is Love.

I don’t pretend to be always comfortable with the way God answers our prayers but I do believe in God’s love for each and everyone of us. 

An old farmer here in Berlin was rushed to the hospital a couple of years ago when I first got here.

Immediately his family called up the parish and I ran up to the Hospital to anoint him.

When I saw him in bed I realized that I recognized him.

I always used to see him stopping by church  all the time during the day to say a couple of prayers.

After he was anointed and received communion  surrounded by his family he said to me Father please help my family.

Help them understand if God heals me and I get to stay here with my family I win.

If God does not heal me and I die to be with Him I win

I can’t lose and I am not afraid.

The funeral Director called the next day he had died that very night.

That simple man’s words and that simple man’s faith was a great comfort to his family and a great comfort to me.

Yes God asks us to pray..

God asks us to put our petitions before him with faith.

But he never promises we will get what we want or what we think is best remember we don’t know the whole picture.

Rather, God he makes us a beautiful promise,

Once we have placed our needs before him and trust in his love....

the peace of God which surpasses all understanding

will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Have a good day everyone.

26th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year - A 2014

Today’s Gospel speaks about two sons.

Both of them are far from perfect.

The first  son seems like he is a train wreck waiting to happen.
He is disrespectful to his father and at first refuses to follow his request but eventually relents and does what he is asked.

The second son responds to his father respectfully and outwardly he seems like the good son but in the end he goes back on his word and never does what his father asked of him

The Son who eventually does what he is asked is judged righteous the who doesn’t is not.

The first son represents the tax collectors and prostitutes  and sinners of Jesus’ time.

Yes, at first they seemed like train wrecks but the love and acceptance they felt from Jesus turned them around and won them over.

Everyone but thought they were lost causes but Jesus knew better and throughout the gospel he made a special effort to reach out to them…. 

When you read the gospels it becomes crystal clear that Jesus had a special place in his heart for the broken, for those who didn't fit in, or people who kept making mistakes.  Let's review

Luke 15:7

Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

Mark 2:17

And Jesus said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick do. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Luke 15:2

And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

Luke 15:3-32

So he told them this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

There are so many more passages which illustrate this same point.

The second son represents the religious leaders of Jesus’ time.

They were people  who seemed to be living holy lives, but in reality are just giving God lip service.

The pharasies and scribes did not recognize Jesus as the Messiah.

They thought they were better than others.

They were not obedient to God’s call.

and They did not love, but they did put on a good show.

The parable teaches us three things:

The first is simply this we will not be judged by our intentions but rather by our actions.

In other words it’s not enough to simply say “yes” to God

For our yes to be real

For our yes to be salvific it must seen in the choices we make and the lives we live.

Our yes to God must permeate all that we say and all that we do.

Giving God lip service will not save us, even if our intentions are good even if we meant well.

The second lesson is simply this,

just like you can’t tell a book from it’s cover we simply cannot know the state of a person’s soul.

Only God knows the human heart.

Therefore our love must be shared equally with everyone,

Those who appear good and those who do not,

Those we are comfortable with and those we are not comfortable with,

We are called to love those who share our ideas and even those who do not.

We all know too well that sometimes people seem to live perfect lives and then we find out just how much they need our prayers and God’s mercy.

Other times we are quick to dismiss those who like the first son who don’t present themselves well, or not polished.

How many times do we look down on a person who just can’t seem to get their life together.

How many times have we refused to accept someone who made a mistake but wants to change.

The third lesson of the parable is this.

God is concerned about now, you might say he has a short memory

For God the past is the past.

If a person was a great sinner in the past but repents and turns their life around they will be welcomed home to God.

If a person was a great saint in the past but changed their ways and refused to hear God’s call they place their salvation in jeopardy.

Remember

Only our actions Count

Only God understands the human heart

God is concerned about now the past is the past.

Have a great day everyone.

25th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year A -2014

Can you imagine what it must have been like for the father of a family to get up early every morning and go to the town square in the hope that someone would hire him?

Maybe He knew that there was nothing to eat in his house.

Maybe He knew that his wife and children were hungry.

Maybe he knew that their lives depended on him and the work of his hands and the sweat of his brow.

What was it like for him to stand there as foreman after foreman came by and hired others but did not hire him.

As the day progressed and sun passed over the sky what did the man feel knowing full well that he would probably have to go home empty handed with no food for those he loved.

And just when he thought all was lost almost at the end of the day the foreman came back one more time and hired those remaining.

He must have been so relieved that at the very least he would have some small thing to put on the table for his children.

In today’s Gospel  we should be touched by the generosity of the land owner and taken aback by the reaction of the other laborers.

Instead of rejoicing at the good fortune of those hired last,

Instead of being grateful for generosity of the landowner which might benefit them some day,

the other chose to be angry and jealous and greedy.

Even though all of the day laborers were in the same desperate circumstances of those hired last,

and all of them had received a just wage for the work they had done.

They were still indignant

You  know when I lived in Washington DC it became apparent to me that the whole city depended on the immigrants from South America to function.

On the construction sites the laborers all spoke Spanish and the foremen spoke English.

The men in suits road the expensive subway the poor covered in dust or wearing maid uniforms crowed in busses because the subway did not stop in their neighborhoods.

It was the same In all the restaurants, those who washed the dishes and prepared the food spoke Spanish you could hear them when they spoke with each other.

Washington is always filled with tourists and visitors and there are an incredible number of Hotels, the beds are made and the rooms are cleaned by poor immigrants from Latin America.

All of these types of jobs are done by a vast army of people who have left everything in the hope of something better for their families.

They willingly and gratefully almost always work at the kind of jobs we would not wish for our children or grand children.

When the recession hit the wealthy and our shrinking middle class were largely spared in DC. The government never runs out of money to hire.

But construction projects slowed just a bit.

Soon outside every home Depot and Lowes there appeared groups of men waiting, hoping to be hired for any menial task.

And whenever I saw them I was reminded of the Gospel we heard today.

If a car or pick up truck slowed down when they entered the parking lot the desperate men would run up and beg for work sometimes frightening the drivers.

Some greeted them with sympathy, many greeted these poor desperate men with hostility or anger yelling out of the car windows as they passed.

It seems that Home Depot parking lots had become the new town square where desperate people look for work to feed their families.

Both of these stories force us to ask ourselves are we or our country like the generous land owner in the Gospel  or like the jealous co workers who got their first?

There is a lot of rhetoric emotion about immigration reform these days.

There are cities and towns who actively seek out unauthorized or illegal immigrants and try to send them home even though they have been here for many years have paid taxes and raised their families here.

The  children of many of illegal immigrants have never known any other place.  Even though their parents were illegal they were born here.

The issue of unauthorized or illegal immigration is complex and it is very tempting to knee jerk and just say send them back or be angry that they are here.

The fact remains that if we did so many of our crops would remain in the fields.

If we sent them all  back the cost of construction projects would rise dramatically and many of our service industries would not have the labor the needed to service our restaurants and make up our hotel rooms.

One the other hand simply throwing open our borders to the world would create chaos.

We are a nation of immigrants many of our parents and grandparents and great grandparents were so desperate that they left all that they had too a risk and came to this country.

I have put the statement of the American Catholic Bishops on Immigration reform on our website. Next week, I am going to print the same statement in our bulletin for those who don’t do computers.

Let us ponder this complex question carefully and calmly and prayerfully.

Let us ask ourselves what would Jesus do?

or better yet what would Jesus have us do?

Amen

Feast of the Presentation of the Lord - Year A - 2014

On my dresser in my room there is a picture of my Mom and my Dad. I keep them there because in a beautiful way those pictures remind me of my parents and the love they so freely and generously gave to me.

Certainly I would love to have them here with me but for now all I have are those pictures and my memories.

We are human beings and we all need reminders of people we love and experiences we’ve enjoyed.

God understands, us he made us and he knows our heart.

During the long history of God’s relationship with his people there have been moments when God knew we needed a special reminder of His presence..

As the Israelites fled Egypt they followed a cloud by day and a fire by night.

For centuries the they kept the tablets of God’s law in gilded wood box called the ark of the covenant.

The ark reminded them of God’s presence and gave them comfort. 

When the temple was finally built the Ark of the covenant was placed in the Holy of Holies, a place so sacred that only the High priest was allowed to go in once a year.

Then one day the israelites decided to use the ark of the covenant as a weapon and they brought it into battle. 

And God was so displeased that they lost the battle and the ark was lost forever..

When the temple was finally rebuilt the Holies of Holies was empty.

The chief priest would still go in and offer sacrifice but the Israelites were deprived of the comfort of God’s presence.

The temple was still sacred but the real presence of God was   gone

In today’s Gospel something astounding happened 

When Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the temple God’s very presence was returned to the temple and the Israelites and to all of humanity. 

Jesus was and is more than the ark of the covenant Jesus is the very Son of God. 

And from that day forward the temple and humanity would never be deprived of God’s loving presence again.

Only two people Simeon and Anna were there to understand the significance of the moment.

While on earth Jesus himself was the living presence of God,
 
But realizing that he would face death on the cross at the Last supper Jesus gave us his continual presence in the Eucharist. 

The Eucharist is more than a picture which causes us to remember.

The Eucharist, Holy Communion is the very real presence of God.

Since the last supper Jesus has been present in a real way at every Mass that was ever celebrated and in every church where the Eucharist is reserved.

What does this have to do with us.

All day long people stop into our church to pray it is a beautiful thing to see. 

Sometimes I find them smiling, sometimes I find them crying many have their head bowed in prayer.

There is almost always someone here. 

They come to give thanks or to seek help
They come here because they know that this is a sacred place.
They come because they long for the real presence of God in their lives.

So many people in our world long for God, yet can’t find Him.

But like Anna and Simeon the people who stop by during the week 
or the people who come early to pray, 
or the people who don’t rush out after they’ve received communion but remain in their place after the final blessing to pray or give thanks, know that God is here in this holy place.

Let us all be prophets of God’s real presence in our world.
Let us strive to deepen our devotion to Jesus forever present in the Eucharist.

Let us come into the presence of God in our sadness, in our need, and in our joy. .

God wants us to know that He is with us and once we really understand that God is with us, once we get it.

Nothing will be able to harm us or touch us.
May our belief in the loving presence of God  help us to live our generous lives 
lives which give hope to everyone we meet.

Amen

3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time Year - A - 2013

When we read how Jesus called his first disciples at first glance it seems kind of weird.

Who would leave everything and freely follow someone they didn’t even know.

If someone you never saw before comes up to you and says come follow me
Don’t go, it flies in the face of reason.

The scholars tell us that Jesus had been preaching in the Galilee for a while and many believe that James and John, Peter and Andrew had probably heard Jesus preach, they might have even listened to him several times.

Maybe Jesus had looked out in the crowds as he spoke and saw that they interested in what he had to say.

Whatever the case, when Jesus called they left everything and followed him.

If we are honest with ourselves we have to say that God calls us all the time.
All of us have been called by God.

When the little old lady down the street calls, and we see her number on the caller id, and we know that if we answer it will probably mean a half hour of our time listening,  God is calling.

When we don’t really need anything, but we want to just go out and buy something, just because we think it will make us happy,
and in our mind we think of someone who really needs the money we are about to waste on ourselves, God is calling.

When we realize that we know next to nothing about our faith, but we can’t even bring ourselves to buy a good Catholic book or make any effort to deepen in our relationship with God,  that is God calling.

When you get home from work and your wife or husband was with the kids all day and you know he or she could really use some down time, that is God calling.

When there is a new initiative in the parish or our school and you know you have the skills to help out, but you just don’t want to get involved, God is calling.

When we were hurt by someone and we know we should forgive them but we just don’t want to let go of our anger or resentments God is calling.

When everyone else at work is slacking because the boss is at a conference and you know in your heart it’s just not right to follow their example, God is callings

God is always calling us to do this and avoid that.

Quite frequently our response is not like that of the First Apostles.

Many times when God calls we pretend we just didn’t hear.

Many times when God calls we say to ourselves, I can’t do that even though it was God Himself who was calling and He knows we can.

Sometimes when God calls we simply say call me later or I’ll answer you call when it is convenient for me or,

I’ll answer your call when I have nothing else to do.

Sometimes we place God’s call way down on the list of our priorities. We say things to ourselves like I’ll get to that after I’ve taken care my needs or my wants.

Many of us respond to God’s call by saying I’ll do what you want
if you do what I want,
and you have to do what I want first.

The response of the first Apostles was immediate, radical and generous.

The world would be such a different place if our yes to God’s many calls was half as immediate and generous.

We are God’s hands and feet.

Through our lives and with our words the Gospel must be proclaimed and those in need must be cared for.

And Jesus said,
Come follow me and they did, let us do the same.

Amen

Feast of the Holy Family - 2013

They didn’t have an easy life.

When they were engaged she became pregnant and he knew it wasn’t his child.

For a while they were both very anxious because he planned to quietly call off the wedding.

When they finally worked things out they were forced to make a long journey.

When they finally arrived at their destination she gave birth to the baby.

When they presented their new born baby in the temple they were so poor they did not have the money for a goat or a lamb the usual offering for a first born son.

They could only offer two pigeons which he probably had to catch.

At the presentation one of the priests made a troubling prophecy about the child and about Mary which bothered them both.

Finally when they thought things were going to be ok three men from the east came looking for their son.

They brought him gifts and a warning that the child was in grave danger.

So just when they had gotten settled they had to flee for their lives to Egypt a strange and foreign land.

When the people who sought to kill thier child were dead they returned home.

Finally after all of that confusion and fleeing and fear they thought everything was going well.

Then when he was 12 their son disappeared

They searched from him for 3 days and were besides themselves. Losing a child for three days can be a life changing event.

Finally found him, he didn’t seem to understand why they were so upset.

We don’t know the when it happened or how it happened but at some point the father died leaving the son and him mother alone with their extended family.

Fast forward 20 years, when it became clear that God was calling the son to a special mission it was necessary for him to leave his mother in the care of relatives and follow God’s call.

There were towns and places where he became famous and was accepted and there were towns and places where the people wanted to kill him.

He was often gone from home for a long time which grieved and concerned his mother who worried about him.

Finally he was arrested by the religious leaders of his time tortured and sentenced to death.

His mother stood by him till the end as he died on the cross.

And indeed the sword of grief pierced his Mother’s heart.

You know sometimes we think that Saints have easy lives after all they are holy.

We fail to recognize that we quite often things don’t go well for saints either.

There is not a family in this parish that doesn’t have problems.

There is not a family in this parish which doesn’t wish that things could be different for someone they love.

You all know that my little narrative was about the Holy Family, Jesus, Mary and Joseph when you think about it they lived very difficult lives but they managed to remain saints.

Today the Church calls us to ask ourselves

How did they face all their challenges and still remain the holy family and how can we do the same?

I would propose to you three things that we need to imitate.

It should be obvious that they constantly tried to discern God’s will in their lives.

Before they settled on a course of action they prayed and asked themselves what is the right thing to do?

What does God want me to do ?

Once they figured out what God wanted them to do they tried to follow it to the fullest even when it was inconvenient or discouraging.

Finally throughout their lives they did their best to trust

Trust God even when they were fleeing to Egypt

Trust God even when Joseph passed away

Trust God even when Jesus and Mary understood that he had to leave home

Trust God even when Jesus had to face the horror of the Cross.

Yes today the Church calls us to meditate on the Holy Family and do everything in our power to follow their good example no matter what life throws our way.

May our prayer for ourselves and our loved ones be

Jesus Mary and Joseph Help us live good holy generous lives

Help us and our loved ones become holy families.

Amen

Christmas 2013

One of my earliest memories of Christmas, is of our family Manger Scene.

It was like a book which drew me into the mystery of Christmas.

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 she was dressed in blue and she had a white sash with her name written on it.

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 when my Mother and Dad weren’t looking.

The figures were pretty bumped up from 2 boys and 4 grandchildren.

When were breaking up my Mom’s house I was so grateful and relieved that my nephew said he wanted the manger scene.

It's been in the family almost 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 was born in a stable so that we might understand that a simple life can also be a good life.

He was born in the stable so that we might understand that we don’t need every new gadget and every new fad or convenience.

The stable teaches us that we don’t need huge houses impossible to clean and pay for.

The stable reminds us that sometimes we work too hard for things that rust and rot away.

This year as we look into the stable and gaze upon the manger… let us remember that simple can be good.

In the manger Jesus was…
Wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid 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.
We all have hungers.
We hunger for something
The manger teaches us that Jesus and Jesus alone can satisfy our hunger.

Every time we gaze on the manger
it is important to remember that

Only God
Only God’s Love can fill us up
Every other “satisfaction” no matter what it is temporary.

Jesus so wonderfully present in the Eucharist can satisfy our hunger.
When you look at a Christmas scene you always see a star.
our star at home was an old Christmas tree light and a pice of tin foil

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
A beacon of hope in 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 in every age and every circumstance might find God’s Son and feel God’s love.

Indeed over the centuries many have come guided by the light of faith

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
Sinners and Saints.

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
• God’s love is for everyone no matter what no matter what

Thank you, each and every one of you for being here tonight

Thank you giving a little bit of you time on these busy days to come and celebrate they mystery of God’s love.

From Deacon Carmen, the friars, our parish and our school’s staffs
Merry Christmas and a happy and Holy New Year

Amen

Love you Mom

4th Sunday of Advent Year A - 2013

Nowadays when you hear the word Fiat you think of the those little cars that drive off a cliff in Italy and drive out of the water in Brooklyn.

However fiat means a lot more than a car’s name.

We all know the story of the Annunciation when the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and informed her that she would have a child through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Mary’s response to the Angel was simply "Fiat."

Let it be done

With her fiat Mary overcame her confusion and her fears and said yes to God’s request or God’s plan. 

And by her fiat Mary gave Jesus, the very Son of God, to each one of us.

But Mary’s was not the only yes that God needed for His plan.

Today the Church asks us to reflect on St. Joseph and his fiat or his yes.

God also needed Joseph’s yes because without his support, and protection and guidance, Mary would not have been able to go it alone.

Joseph’s yes was just as difficult as Mary’s.
We don’t know how Joseph found about about Mary’s pregnancy.
We don’t know if she told him and tried to explain her encounter with the Angel or not.
We don’t know if he found out from someone else.
We don’t know if the families had a meeting to discuss the situation. 

We do know however he found out, that it did not give him peace.
He was confused and hurt.
He must have been worried about what people would think.
He must have been concerned that they would think the baby was his out of wedlock.
He must have been concerned about Mary and how she would take care of a baby without him. 
From everything we know about St. Joseph we know that he loved Mary and was willing to sacrifice anything for her.

He wanted to do the right things and so he decided to divorce Mary quietly and not subject her to the brutality of the law.

In other words Joseph got it wrong… his plan was not what God needed him to do. 


So once again God sent the Angel Gabriel to Joseph in a dream to give him comfort and show him what God need him to do.


From the moment he woke Joseph lived his fiat, his yes.
 
He took Mary into his home protecting her, providing for her and caring for her and her child without fear or reserve. 

It should be a comfort to us that both Mary and Joseph found it difficult to follow God’s plan.

Like Mary and Joseph God needs our yes God needs our fiat.

We too are asked to bring Christ Jesus into the world.
Like St. Joseph we have lots of worries and concerns.
What will people think ?
I’m to busy ?
What about what I want ?
I’ve forgiven enough already why does God want me to forgive again ?
I”m not worthy.

Yet like Mary and like Joseph God has a plan for each of our lives and all of us are an essential piece in the puzzle of God’s Divine plan.


Without our fiat
Without our yes to God’s plan
The world will be a little poorer our.
Our families will be a little poorer


Without our personal yes something that God needs to get done will not be done

Let us live thoughtful reflective lives.

Let us discern our place in God’s loving plan and no matter what worries or fears or concerns that we may have us let us say yes with open generous hearts just like Mary and like Joseph.

Amen

Third Sunday of Advent Year - A 2013

You know as I drove back and forth to Buffalo last year I found the best way to pass the time was to listen to books on CD’s.

And as I drove along the New York State Thruway (its a very boring drive) my emotions would change with the book I was listening to.

Sometimes I was afraid, other times I was relieved, other times I was nervous trying to figure out how the story would end. As I listened to the books I lived in the moment.

Many times we live our lives in the very same way. We become obsessed with the moment we are living and lose site of the long term.

When things are going well at the moment we are happy, but when we face a challenge or a difficulty sometimes we let it consume us.

It’s so easy for us to forget that this moment is not all that life has to offer.

When we are lost in the present, or better yet consumed by the present, we forget that what really matters is how the book or our lif) ends.

Today’s readings try to bring this truth home to us.

They try and remind that sometimes it is important to take a long view of life..

In the first reading the Prophet Isaiah proclaims

“Be strong, fear not!
Here is your God,
he comes with vindication; with divine recompense
he comes to save you.
Then will the eyes of the blind be opened,
the ears of the deaf be cleared;
then will the lame leap like a stag,
then the tongue of the mute will sing.”

Isaiah was writing to a very disheartened people who were living in exile.

He wanted his contemporaries and us to remember that no matter what we are living in the present in the end God is faithful and he will come to save us.

In fact in 70 years the Jews were indeed allowed and encouraged to return home and live in peace.

In the Gospel we find John in prison.

Some say the he had expected that Jesus would lead a violent political revolution and John wanted to know when the revolt was starting.

Some say that John never really lost faith but that he sent his disciples to Jesus so that they could get to know Him, believe Him and follow Him.

Whatever the case may be John never forgot the end of the Story. He remembered to look at the big picture and he knew that his time had ended and that Jesus’ time had begun.

While in prison John did not lose heart or compromise on the truth.

He did not make a deal with Herod for his release.

He remembered God’s promise and he trusted that even if he was suffering now that God would be faithful

When we stop and think.

when we look at our world and our lives through the eyes of faith we know that in the end good wins and evil loses.

Many times we’re not sure how it will happen but we know how the story ends.

When we look at our lives through the eyes of faith

We know that salvation is ours for the asking no matter what trial we are facing at the moment.

And so good people let us take to heart the words of James in the second reading.

Let us be patient in good times and let us be patient in difficult times.

The simple phrase “This too shall pass” can help us to remember the end of the story.

And let us be filled with a deep abiding peace which can only come from trusting God who will always be faithful no matter what mess we may find ourselves in.

Today is Guaudete Sunday or Joyful Sunday.

One the 3rd Sunday of Advent the Church calls us to be joyful in anticipation of our Lord’s coming.

Only when we patiently trust in God can our heart be filled with peace and Joy.

Pope Francis recently wrote,

The joy of the gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus.

Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew.

Let’s not get lost in the present moment

Let us always look to the future

Let us remember that God is faithful

Let us patiently wait on the Lord

And if we can do all of these things let us be filled with the peace and even Joy which faith can give us.

Amen

2nd Sunday of Advent Year– A 2013

2nd Sunday of Advent - Year A - 2013

I’m not sure if you know this but before I came to St. Paul I spent a month living and praying in a trappist Monastery.

Trappists are a very strict religious community dedicated to a life of prayer and contemplation.

They don't’ talk.
They don’t eat meat,
and they get up at 2 AM pray and study.

Some of you are probably wondering to yourselves…

Fr. Robert what were you thinking ?

It was a wonderful experience but I have to admit I was not perfect at it.

Beside talking when I wasn’t supposed to after three weeks of vegetables one day I got into my car drove into town and bought a double cheeseburger with bacon.

Of course I felt bad so when I told the Abbot what I had done he smiled and said I guess you were made to be a Franciscan not a Trappist.

Along a pond at the monastery there was this very long beautiful row of trees they were in a perfect row equally spaced all the same size. It was very impressive.

One day I asked the guest master about the trees and he responded

A shoot shall blossom from the stump of Jesse

I didn’t understand what he was talking about so he went on to explain.

Many years ago that was a beautiful big old tree which the monks enjoyed.

It was very large and gave lots of shade. There was a bench underneath it and it was a great place sit in the shade and look over the valley and pray.

Then one year after an ice storm they had to cut it down.

Everyone of them was sad because they loved the tree and they loved that spot..

After it was cut down one of the monk cut several of the branches and placed them in the ground as fence posts.

To their surprise after a few months everyone of the posts began to sprout and with a lot of trimming and care that whole row of trees grew from the fence posts cut from the old tree.

A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse

Everyone of us has had dark  moments, moments when hope or even the possibility of hope seems far away.

Maybe you've endured the pain of a broken marriage or the death of a loved one.

Maybe you’ve run into financial troubles or lost your home a lot of people have.

Maybe you’ve become estranged with a family member or your kid is really struggling and can’t seem to find happiness.

Maybe your family has moved away and you live alone and are lonely waiting for someone to call..

Maybe you just can’t forgive someone and move on.

The list goes on and on and on…

Yes sometimes life seems like a dead stump.

In the first reading the Prophet Isaiah is describing the terrible time in which he lived.

During his youth Israel was affluent but then fell to the Assyrians. Many of the Israelites were taken away in exile.

In other words it went from a flourishing tree to what appeared to be a dead stump.

Judah the northern kingdom later became the pawn of foreign powers.

And even with all the compromises they had made with their neighbors

they too had fallen on very hard times.

All appeared lost there seemed to be no reason to hope.

Yet the prophet Isaiah refused to give up and under God’s inspiration he dared to prophesied that even though the stump of  Israel and Judah seemed dead a shoot would sprout  and life would return.

Many say this simple phrase was prophecy of the Messiah which would be fulfilled in Jesus

Isaiah’s prophecy called his contemporaries to hope, hope in God and God’s love

Pope Benedict once wrote

Hope is more than just the belief that things will get better.

Hope is the conviction that we are loved and cherished by God

And If we  understand that we are  loved and cherished by God even for one moment, our lives will never be the same.

No matter what challenge we face no matter how dead the tree seems.

The readings on this second Sunday of Advent call us to hope

Hope without ceasing

Dear Friends

If we are loved by God..
What can touch us ?
What can harm us ?
What should we fear ?
What can we fear ?

Even in our darkest moments let us dare to hope that  shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse.

Amen

Christ the King 2013 - Year C

We really don’t know that much about him.

We know that he lived during the time of Jesus.

Some say that he was a zealot trying to overthrow the Roman occupiers,

others say that he was a crook,

others say that he was a murderer.

Whatever he was we know that he was guilty and that whatever his crime was it the Romans felt that he merited death.

History has given him many names the most common is the “good thief” but others have called him St. Didimus. We know he is a Saint because from the cross Jesus promised him salvation.

Yes he was guilty as charged and from his place of torture he admitted it.

But deep within his heart was a tiny seed of repentance and faith.

We don’t know how it was planted or nurtured but it was there,

and this man’s faith gave him the capacity to to recognized Jesus as the Messiah as a King with a Kingdom, admit his own guilt,  and ask for mercy.

“Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

With those simple words, with that tiny moment of contrition the Good thief was given the promise of salvation.”

No matter what his crimes were Jesus knew that the the good thief recognized that Jesus was God and admitted his guilt and asked forgiveness.

Jesus’ promise was both simple and profound “This day you will be with me in paradise”

God’s mercy and God’s love for each and everyone whether we are guilty or innocent is amazing.

Quite frankly it is often beyond our comprehension.

Once when I was at a local nursing home. A woman said to me,

“I’ve lived a horrible life I’ve made too many mistakes to count.

I’ve hurt so many of the people I love and I have a terminal illness.The Doctor says I am going to die in a couple of months. What should I do, what can I do?”

I told her to ask for the sacrament of the sick and all of her sins would be forgiven.

She looked me right in the eye and said is God that reckless with his mercy ?

She died two weeks later completely reconciled with God.

The story of the Good thief proves that God is indeed reckless with his mercy.

God is reckless with his mercy and God is reckless with his love

The Feast of Christ the King is relatively new to the Church it was started in 1925 by Pope Pius XI.

In 1970  the Anglicans, Lutherans, and many other Protestants as well as by the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. All accepted it as a feast

Pius the XI instituted the feast Christ the King because he believed the world was becoming more and more secular and more and more violent and more and more materialistic.

He saw the world drifting from God.

He felt that many were simply forgetting or even worse ignoring God’s place in their lives and refusing to accept that God made us and we belong to him.

Pious the XI believed that the first world war, the rise of communism and the exaggerated materialism of the West all were conspiring  to squeeze God from our lives and with the Feast of Christ the King he sought to remind the world who we are and Who God is.

Let’s ask ourselves

• To we recognized God’s primary place in our lives, or do we think that we are the masters of our own destiny?
• To we remember that every moment of our lives is a gift from God, or do we think that somehow we are entitled to the gift of life?
• Do we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and our King, are we willing to serve Him and follow his plan?

The Feast of Christ the King is important because every year it places all of these questions before our heart and before our mind.

At the last possible moment the good thief recognized God’s rightful place in his life.

Do we ?

Amen