July is Park and Recreation Month

Since 1985, July has been observed as Park and Recreation Month.  This year’s theme is “Get Wild!”  In line with this theme, the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) is encouraging people to “get wild” about parks and recreation.

Background information:

National Recreation and Park Association

Facebook: National Recreation and Park Association

NRPA: America’s Backyard Initiative

Facebook: America’s Backyard

New England Park Association

Connecticut Recreation and Parks Association

Maine Recreation & Park Association

Massachusetts Recreation and Park Association

New Hampshire Recreation and Park Association

Rhode Island Recreation and Parks Association

Vermont Recreation and Parks Association

Lumen Gentium: The Mystery of the Church (21, continued)

Chapter III of Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, is entitled “On the Hierarchical Structure of the Church and in Particular of the Episcopate.” It continues as follows:

“21. . . . For the discharging of such great duties, the apostles were enriched by Christ with a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit coming upon them,(154) and they passed on this spiritual gift to their helpers by the imposition of hands,(155) and it has been transmitted down to us in Episcopal consecration.(18*) And the Sacred Council teaches that by Episcopal consecration the fullness of the sacrament of Orders is conferred, that fullness of power, namely, which both in the Church's liturgical practice and in the language of the Fathers of the Church is called the high priesthood, the supreme power of the sacred ministry.(19*) But Episcopal consecration, together with the office of sanctifying, also confers the office of teaching and of governing, which, however, of its very nature, can be exercised only in hierarchical communion with the head and the members of the college. For from the tradition, which is expressed especially in liturgical rites and in the practice of both the Church of the East and of the West, it is clear that, by means of the imposition of hands and the words of consecration, the grace of the Holy Spirit is so conferred,(20*) and the sacred character so impressed,(21*) that bishops in an eminent and visible way sustain the roles of Christ Himself as Teacher, Shepherd and High Priest, and that they act in His person.(22*) Therefore it pertains to the bishops to admit newly elected members into the Episcopal body by means of the sacrament of Orders.”

(154) Cf. Acts 1:8, 2:4, John 20:22-23.

(155) Cf. 1 Timothy 4:14; 2 Timothy 1:6-7.

(18*) Conc. Trid., Sess. 23, cap. 3, citat verba 2 Tim. 1, 6-7, ut demonstret Ordinem esse verum sacramentum: Denz. 959 (1766).

(19*) In Trad. Apost. 3, ed. Botte, Sources Chr., pp. 27-30, Episcopo tribuitur primatus sacerdotii. Cfr. Sacramentarium Leonianum, ed. C. Mohlberg, Sacramentarium Veronense, Romae, 195S, p. 119: ad summi sacerdotii ministerium... Comple in sacerdotibus tuis mysterii tui summam.... Idem, Liber Sacramentorum Romanae Ecclesiae Romae, 1960, pp. 121-122: Tribuas eis, Domine, cathedram episcopalem ad regendam Ecclesiam tuam et plebem universam.. Cfr. PL 78, 224.

(20*) Trad. Apost. 2, ed. Botte, p. 27.

(21*) Conc. Trid., Sess. 23, cap. 4, docet Ordinis sacramentum imprimere characterem indelebilem: Denz. 960 (1767) . Cfr. Ioannes XXIII, Alloc. Iubilate Deo, 8 maii 1960: AAS S2 (1960) p. 466. Pall1us VI, Homelia in Bas, Vaticana, 20 oct. 1963: AAS 55 (1963) p. 1014.

(22*) S. Cyprianus, Epist. 63, 14: PL 4, 386; Hartel, III B, p. 713: Saccrdos vice Christi vere fungitur .. S. Io. Chrysostomus, In 2 Tim. Hom. 2, 4: PG 62, 612: Saccrdos est symbolon . Christi. S. Ambrosius, In Ps. 38, 25-26: PL 14, 105 1-52: CSEL 64, 203- 204. Ambrosiascr In I Tim. S 19: PL 17, 479 C ct in Eph. 4, 1;-12: col. 387. C. Theodorus Mops., from. Catech. XV, 21 ct 24: ed. Tonneau, pp. 497 et 503. Hesychiu Hieros., In Lcv. L. 2, 9, 23: PG 93, 894 B.

 

To access the complete document, please visit:

Dogmatic Constitution on the Church - Lumen Gentium

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for opportunities to encounter You, the Living God, in word and in sacrament during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

Randy Hain on Being a (Catholic) Rebel

“Come on, we know better than the Church, don’t we?  After all, this is the 21^st Century and times have changed.  Modern man is fully capable of deciding what is moral on his own, right?  All the really smart people in the media, government and academia who encourage us to embrace abortion, contraception, euthanasia and gay marriage can’t be wrong, can they?  After all, everyone knows that new and fresh ideas must clearly trump over two millennia of Church teaching.  Right?

“Wrong.”

In a recent commentary, Randy Hain, Senior Editor for The Integrated Catholic Life, reflected on rebellion and its role in our faith lives.

To access Mr. Hain’s complete post, please visit:

The Integrated Catholic Life: So, You Want to Be a (Catholic) Rebel? (28 JUN 12)

Reflection Starter from George Sheehan

“There are those of us who are always about to live. We are waiting until things change, until there is more time, until we are less tired, until we get a promotion, until we settle down – until, until, until. It always seems as if there is some major event that must occur in our lives before we begin living.” – Dr. George Sheehan

Ecclesium: “For the Beauty of the Earth”

As our Sunday celebration continues, I offer this version of “For the Beauty of the Earth.” The music was composed by Philip Stopford in 2003 for the choir of Belfast Cathedral (the Cathedral Church of Saint Anne).

In this video, the hymn is sung by Ecclesium in the Chapel of Keble College, Oxford, England. The video footage includes scenes of the west coast of Ireland and of Galway Cathedral (the Cathedral of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven and Saint Nicholas).

Holy Father's Prayer Intentions for July

Pope Benedict's prayer intentions for July are:

General Intention: That everyone may have work in safe and secure conditions.

Missionary Intention: That Christian volunteers in mission territories may witness to the love of Christ.

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today the Church celebrates the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The assigned readings are Wisdom 1:13-15, 2:23-24; 2 Corinthians 8:7, 9, 13-15; and Mark 5:21-43. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 30 (Psalm 30:2, 4-6, 11-13).

For one version of the Responsorial Psalm set to music, please visit:

YouTube: Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 30 "Thanksgiving Hymn for Deliverance"

The Gospel reading is as follows:

When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the sea. One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward. Seeing him he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, saying, “My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on her that she may get well and live.”

He went off with him, and a large crowd followed him and pressed upon him. There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew worse. She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.”

Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who has touched my clothes?”

But his disciples said to Jesus, “You see how the crowd is pressing upon you, and yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?’”

And he looked around to see who had done it. The woman, realizing what had happened to her, approached in fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth.

He said to her, “ Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction.”

While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue official’s house arrived and said, “Your daughter has died; why trouble the teacher any longer?”

Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official, “Do not be afraid; just have faith.” He did not allow anyone to accompany him inside except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James.

When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. So he went in and said to them, “Why this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.”

And they ridiculed him. Then he put them all out. He took along the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and entered the room where the child was. He took the child by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” The girl, a child of twelve, arose immediately and walked around. At that they were utterly astounded. He gave strict orders that no one should know this and said that she should be given something to eat.

Reflections on these readings:

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Sundays Salesian: 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (July 1, 2012)

Msgr. Charles Pope: On the Journey of Jairus from Despair to Deliverence – A Homily on the Gospel for the 13th Sunday of the Year (30 JUN 12)

The Deacon's Bench: Homily for July 1, 2012: 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (30 JUN 12)

Dr. Marcellino D'Ambrosio: Jairus' Daughter and the Enlightenment

Dr. Scott Hahn (July 1st 2012 - Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time)

The Sacred Page: God, Death, and Life: The Readings for the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Word Encountered: Prophetic Dying (Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B)

Lumen Gentium: The Mystery of the Church (21)

Chapter III of Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, is entitled “On the Hierarchical Structure of the Church and in Particular of the Episcopate.” It continues as follows:

“21. In the bishops, therefore, for whom priests are assistants, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Supreme High Priest, is present in the midst of those who believe. For sitting at the right hand of God the Father, He is not absent from the gathering of His high priests,(17*) but above all through their excellent service He is preaching the word of God to all nations, and constantly administering the sacraments of faith to those who believe, by their paternal functioning.(150) He incorporates new members in His Body by a heavenly regeneration, and finally by their wisdom and prudence He directs and guides the People of the New Testament in their pilgrimage toward eternal happiness. These pastors, chosen to shepherd the Lord's flock of the elect, are servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God,(151) to whom has been assigned the bearing of witness to the Gospel of the grace of God,(152) and the ministration of the Spirit and of justice in glory.(153)”

(150) Cf. 1 Corinthians 4:15.

(151) Cf. 1 Corinthians 4:1.

(152) Cf. Romans 15:16; Acts 20:24.

(153) Cf. 2 Corinthians 3:8-9

(17*) S. Leo M., Serm. 5, 3: PL 54, 154.

 

To access the complete document, please visit:

Dogmatic Constitution on the Church - Lumen Gentium

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for retired priests who continue to assist with sacramental and pastoral ministry.

On Confession and the Teachings of the Church

“It has often been argued that the problem of so-called ‘cafeteria’ Catholics is poor catechesis.  This may be so.  But not in the way most people mean it.  Most people mean that if these people had just been taught the doctrines of the faith properly, they wouldn’t be so antagonistic to the Church, or so dismissive of the teaching authority of the Church, or so darn lukewarm about attending mass.  The underlying assumption is that the problem is one of the intellect.

“While there may be some such Catholics who might change their minds regarding abortion, or contraception, or infallibility if only the doctrines were better explained to them, most Catholics who disagree with these, and other, doctrines understand well enough why the Church teaches what it teaches, but they still refuse to accept them.  So if they understand on an intellectual level the general reasons for a doctrine, why do some Catholics accept doctrine and others reject it?  The answer is that the fundamental obstacle lies not with the intellect, but with the will.  One can provide all manner of logical arguments for accepting a given doctrine as true, but if the will is not predisposed to divine truth, the arguments will not matter one bit.  When the will is turned against divine truth, and thus focused on the self, the intellect tows the line, defending the desires of the will at all costs.”

In a recent commentary, Arman J. Partamian reflected on the role of confession in bringing us closer to the Lord and His Church.

To access his complete post, please visit:

Matins Musings: Struggling with Church Doctrine? Go to Confession! (27 JUN 12)

Reflection Starter from John Henry Newman

“Let us seek the grace of a cheerful heart, an even temper, sweetness, gentleness, and brightness of mind, as walking in His light, and by His grace. Let us pray to Him to give us the spirit of ever-abundant, everspringing love, which overpowers and sweeps away the vexations of life by its own richness and strength, and which, above all things, unites us to Him who is the fountain and the centre of all mercy, loving-kindness, and joy.” – Blessed John Henry Newman