29 April 2018

A Perspective on Summer Camps

"My wife and I own a Toastmaster Automatic Popup Model 1B14, which was made by the McGraw Electric Company in the late 1940s or early 1950s. We got it with the camp we bought in eastern Maine nearly two decades ago. It makes toast. Perfectly. Every time. You put in two pieces of bread. You press the Bakelite handle down. The toast pops up less than three minutes later, and the bread is crisply and evenly browned on both sides. Apparently it's been doing this for longer than I've been alive. This strikes me as a small miracle, given that every new toaster I've ever bought has been flawed in one or more ways: striated toasting, requirement of repeated down-clicks, passive-aggressive rebellion against the repeated down-clicks, far too much standing around and fingertip drumming. And still these often make toast that somehow fails to match the replicable standard of being crispy on the outside and pliable on the inside. Also, the new toasters that I buy invariably stop working after a few years, and require replacement. I understand we are in a golden age of technology, yet it appears we've lost the ability to produce machines that can consistently make toast.

"There are other things at our camp that impress me similarly - our place is essentially a museum of Darwinian technology. Anything that failed was discarded, and items that have proven themselves over the past half century remain. (Also, a camp year is approximately four months, so things wear out less rapidly.) Our electric range, I'm guessing, dates to the late 1950s, the outboard engine to the early 1970s, and the avocado-green rotary-dial phone in the kitchen is clearly mid-1970s. All work just fine. The cherry-red living room carpet was likely installed in the 1960s, yet it has not faded where the sun hits it. The carpet probably should be in the Smithsonian, an artifact of when America knew how to make synthetics that can last forever yet still offer comfort when the shirtless choose to repose on the floor on a warm afternoon.

"We bought our camp in Maine's Washington County for many of the reasons people buy camps. That is, to have a place to get away when the weather is warm, a place so quiet you can hear moose crashing through the underbrush on the ridge above, or a squally wind rising in the pines a mile away down the lake. When we bought it, it seemed a matter of simple geography, of finding a place with less pavement than soil, with more quadrupeds than bipeds. 

"But after 20 summers, I've come to realize that the essence of a camp is more complicated than that. A summer camp is not about place. It's about time."

Although this article, published last summer in Yankee magazine, focused on the blessing (my word, not the author's) of a place to get away during the summer, it offered any interesting perspective on some of the "new and improved" items that have been offered to American consumers over the past several years - a perspective in which those of us of a certain age may find a bit of truth.

To access the complete Yankee article, please visit: 

Yankee: A Place to Get Away | Maine Summer Camp (2017) 




John Michael Talbot: "I Am the Vine"

As we continue our Sunday celebration, I offer this version of John Michael Talbot presenting "I Am the Vine":


Fifth Sunday of Easter

Today the Church celebrates the Fifth Sunday of Easter. The assigned readings are Acts 9:26-31, 1 John 3:18-24, and John 15:1-8. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 22 (Psalm 22:26-28, 30-32).

The Gospel reading is as follows:

Jesus said to his disciples: "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them into a fire and they will be burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you. By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples." 

Reflections on these readings:

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Salesian Sunday Reflections: Fifth Sunday of Easter (April 29, 2018)

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Sundays Salesian: Fifth Sunday of Easter (April 29, 2018)

Community in Mission: Fundamentals for Fruitful Discipleship - A Homily for the 5th Sunday of Easter (28 APR 18)


The Sacred Page: How Do You Know That You Are Saved? 5th Sunday of Easter (26 APR 18) 

St. Paul Center: On the Vine: Scott Hahn Reflects on the Fifth Sunday of Easter

Father George William Rutler Homilies: 2018-04-29 - Fifth Sunday of Easter

Word on Fire: Four Spiritual Lessons from the Life of Paul (Cycle B * Easter * Week 5)


Spirituality of the Readings: Cutting Back (Fifth Sunday of Easter)

In Exile: The Jesus Code - Unraveling the Secret (Fifth Sunday of Easter)


Let the Scriptures Speak: Persecutor Turned Promoter (Fifth Sunday of Easter
)

The Word Encountered: Radical Faith (Fifth Sunday of Easter
)

Historical Cultural Context: God the Patron (Fifth Sunday of Easter)

Thoughts from the Early Church: Commentary by Augustine (Fifth Sunday of Easter)

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of gentle April showers.

Msgr. Pope on the Practice of Humility

"Pride is our most pervasive and serious sin. Humility is its antidote and the foundation of our spiritual life, and as the remedy to our most deep-seated pathology, it must be strong medicine. Humility is hard to swallow and has a lot of things it needs to work on."

In a recent commentary, Monsignor Charles Pope (pastor of Holy Comforter-Saint Cyprian Parish, Washington, DC) reflected on some aspects of the practice of humility, including its foundation and its focus.

To access Msgr. Pope's complete post, please visit:

Community in Mission: Humility is Hard - A Meditation on Some Aspects of Humility (26 APR 18)

Reflection Starter from Pope Francis

"Life only fully makes sense when it is given as a gift. It becomes tasteless when it is lived for itself alone." - Pope Francis

28 April 2018

André Rieu: "Tales from the Vienna Woods"

As this blessed week draws to a close, I offer this version of André Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra presenting "Tales from the Vienna Woods":



Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for beautiful spring days.

Heart, Humility, and the Most Holy Name

Do you put more of your head or your heart into your prayers? While author Gary Jansenac knowledges that you need the right balance, he suspects that over-intellectualizing prayer is a common problem, so we need to focus more on the heart. And one way to do that is through devotions.

During a Christopher Closeup interview with me about his book, Life Everlasting: Catholic  Devotions and Mysteries for the Everyday Seeker, Jansen explained that his interest in devotions developed over the course of his own life. A self-described worrywart who was raised Catholic but not too steeped in the faith, he found relief from anxiety when someone introduced him to the writings of Thomas Merton. That led him to other writers like Henri Nouwen and Fulton Sheen. "The more I read what they were talking about, the more [I saw] they were dealing with their anxiety and fear and how to overcome it."

An experience with his young son also taught Jansen a lesson about responding to fear. The two of them went to the grounds of St. Ignatius Retreat House in Long Island years ago to walk around and play. As it started getting dark, Jansen held his son's hand as they walked, and the boy said, "Dad, don't let go. I'm afraid." Jansen recalled, "I've been frightened many times in my life, and [didn't] reach out to my Father's hand and say, 'Abba, hold onto me. Don't let me go.' When you can [say], 'God, hold my hand,' it changes everything." The humility required to do that is part of the reason Jansen believes we sometimes need to let our hearts guide our heads. He views the Church as "a huge brain with a big heart," but worries that over-intellectualizing prayer can keep us from reaping its benefits. He explained, "You could read tons of books, but that doesn't mean you'll ever know anything more about God unless you have this personal experience along the way."

That's where devotions, Scripture, and even biology come in: "When you think of devotions, you never see the sacred mind of Jesus; you see the Sacred Heart of Jesus. You don't see the Immaculate Head of Mary; you see the Immaculate Heart of Mary. And when Gabriel comes to Mary and says, 'You're going to be the mother of God'...what happens? She ponders this in her heart. And think about this…When a fetus is developing, the first thing to develop is the heart. That happens about 14 days after conception. Another 14 days after that, that's when the brain starts. So the heart is sending information that creates the brain…[Putting] the mind at ease through the power of devotion, through the power of heartfelt prayer and meditation, can revolutionize the way that you experience God."

So how can people start practicing devotions? Jansen said, "One of the things that works for me…is the Most Holy Name of Jesus devotion. You repeat the name of Jesus throughout the day and allow the supernatural power of Jesus' name, the love that is embedded in that name, to be on your lips throughout the day. When you're standing in line at the grocery store, repeat the name of Jesus over and over. It's like thought substitution. Instead of worrying about stuff, repeat Jesus' name...St. Paul said, 'Pray ceaselessly.' He didn't really tell us how to do that, but I think the Devotion to the Most Holy Name is key to finding out how."

This essay is a recent "Light One Candle" column by Tony Rossi, Director of Communications, The Christophers; it is one of a series of weekly columns that deal with a variety of topics and current events.

Background information:

The Christophers

Reflection Starter from Theodore Roosevelt

"If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month." - Theodore Roosevelt

22 April 2018

"The King of Love My Shepherd Is"

As we continue our Sunday celebration, I offer this version of "The King of Love My Shepherd Is":

Fourth Sunday of Easter

Today the Church celebrates the Fourth Sunday of Easter. The assigned readings are Acts 4:8-12, 1 John 3:1-2, and John 10:11-18. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 118 (Psalm 118:1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28-29).

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

YouTube: Psalm 118: The Stone Which the Builders Rejected


The Gospel reading is as follows:

Jesus said: "I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. A hired man, who is not a shepherd and whose sheep are not his own, sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away, and the wolf catches and scatters them. This is because he works for pay and has no concern for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd. This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again. This command I have received from my Father."

Reflections on these readings:

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Salesian Sunday Reflections: Fourth Sunday of Easter (April 22, 2018)

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Sundays Salesian: Fourth Sunday of Easter (April 22, 2018)

Community in Mission: The King of Love My Shepherd Is - A Homily for the 4th Sunday of Easter (21 APR 18)


The Sacred Page: The Scandal of Jesus: The 4th Sunday of Easter (19 APR 18)

The Sacred Page: Jesus the Good Shepherd (The Mass Readings Explained) (16 APR 18)

St. Paul Center:The Shepherd’s Voice: Scott Hahn Reflects on the Fourth Sunday of Easter

Word on Fire: Getting St. Peter's Sermon Right (Cycle B * Easter * Week 4)


Spirituality of the Readings: Handles (Fourth Sunday of Easter)

In Exile: Providence and the Conspiracy of Accidents (Fourth Sunday of Easter)


Let the Scriptures Speak: The Lame Walk: An Image of the Church (Fourth Sunday of Easter
)

The Word Encountered: Other Sheep (Fourth Sunday of Easter
)

Historical Cultural Context: From Sheep to Shepherd (Fourth Sunday of Easter)

Thoughts from the Early Church: Commentary by Basil of Seleucia (Fourth Sunday of Easter)

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the beauty of clouds.

Msgr. Pope on Our Lives as Part of the Big Picture

"In Wednesday's reading, the Acts of the Apostles sets forth an event that amounts to a tale of one Church in two cities or regions. It illustrates well a couple of points: that the Church is always in need of reform and that our lives are not merely about us and what we want."

In a recent commentary, Monsignor Charles Pope (pastor of Holy Comforter-Saint Cyprian Parish, Washington, DC) reflected on our potential to "become self-absorbed and think that our situation is the only thing on God's radar" and on our lives being also "about what others need, and what others see and can contribute." 

To access Msgr. Pope's complete post, please visit:

Community in Mission: Your Life is Not About You, As Illustrated in a Biblical Story (19 APR 18)

Reflection Starter from Pope Francis

"God calls each one of us, and each call is a gift that should fill us with joy." - Pope Francis

21 April 2018

Santo & Johnny: "Sleep Walk"

As this blessed week draws to a close, I offer this version of Santo & Johnny presenting "Sleep Walk":


Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of appearance of flowers in the spring.

Fr. Dwight Longenecker on Our Resurrection Bodies

"In Perelandra C.S.Lewis puts out an interesting discussion about the physicality of angels. He says we conceive of angels and the spiritual realm as less real than this material world, but what if is the other way around?

"I explained it in an earlier post here. Simply put, the gospels make it clear that Jesus was not a ghost, but they also make it clear that he was not simply a resuscitated body. Jesus' body was physical, not spiritual and ghostly and ephemeral. However, it was also not like our bodies. It didn't relate to the physical world like ours.

"The simplest way to put this is that Jesus' resurrection body was not less real than this physical world, but more real.

"Lewis plays with this idea further in The Great Divorce. The souls from purgatory make a visit to heaven and they find that world to be more real than they are. The blades of grass hurt their feet. The apples are too heavy to pick up. They are afraid of the rain for it will pierce them like bullets.

"I was delighted therefore to discover when reading St Therese of Lisieux that she says, 'In heaven every grain of dust will be a diamond.' She had the same insight as Lewis. Nice."

In a recent commentary, Father Dwight C (parish priest at Our Lady of the Rosary Parish, Greenville, SC) reflected on what our resurrected bodies may be like.

To access Fr. Longenecker's complete post, please visit:

Fr. Dwight Longenecker: C.S.Lewis, St Therese and Our Resurrection Bodies (17 APR 18)

Reflection Starter from C. S. Lewis

"I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else." - C. S. Lewis

18 April 2018

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the service of military chaplains.

Donald McClarey on the Herosim of Fr. John De Valles

"Joao Baptista DeValles was born in 1879 in Saint Miquel in the Azores.  At the age of 2 his family moved to New Bedford, Massachusetts.  His first name anglicized to John, he quickly proved himself a brilliant student, eventually being fluent in six languages.  Ordained a priest in 1906 he served at Falls River at Espirito Santo Church, founding the first Portuguese language parochial school in the United States while he was there.  He later served at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in New Bedford and was pastor at Saint John the Baptist Church, also in New Bedford.

"After the entry of the US into World War I, he joined the Army as a chaplain, serving with the 104th regiment, a Massachusetts National Guard outfit, part of the Yankee (26th) Division, made up of National Guard units from New England.  The Yankee Division arrived in France in September 1917, the second American division to arrive 'Over There'.

In a recent commentary, Donald R. McClarey offered a profile of Chaplain John De Valles, who was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism in action near Apremont, France, during the period of 10-13 April 1918.

To access Ms. McClarey's complete post, please visit:

Catholic Stand: April 10, 1918: The Angel of the Trenches Earns His Nickname (10 APR 18)

Reflection Starter from Josh Billings

"The trouble with people is not that they don't know but that they know so much that ain't so." - Josh Billings

17 April 2018

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the for hearing each prayer that we offer to You and for answering each one in the way You deem best.

From Angry Judge to Wounded Healer

Though singer-songwriter Audrey Assad converted to Catholicism in her 20s, remnants of the fundamentalist faith in which she was raised still held some power over her perception of God. Coupled with the despair she felt watching the war in her father's Syrian homeland play out in the news, the popular Christian music artist found her faith shaken and doubts about God's very existence growing. Emerging from that dark valley took a lot of time, but it resulted in her latest album Evergreen, filled with original songs that convey her struggles, new view of God, and a sense of rebirth and hope.

During a Christopher Closeup interview, Audrey recalled that the last few years resulted in her re-examining her "ideas about the nature of God." That re-examination was a good thing because she admits she "had a lot of bad ideas that needed to be done away with…My understanding of God was primarily in a sort of legal setting. I thought God is the judge, Jesus is the lawyer, and I'm the person on the stand, and I can't measure up. Thank goodness for Jesus, who is saving me from God because, otherwise, God wouldn't want anything to do with me because I'm this dirty rag of no worth."

While the Scripture verse, "Love your neighbor as yourself" is well-known, the "loving yourself" aspect is often overlooked, which was the case with Audrey. She explained, "I used to scoff at that idea of self-love, but now I understand. Thomas Merton said somewhere in his journal that by loving ourselves, we learn to love God…If God says, 'I love you. You are worthy of love, and I only make what is good,' then to sit in this attitude of self-loathing is actually [pride]…To love what God said is good…is actually the most humble thing you can do…It took me a long time to learn that."

Being the mother of two young children, including a four-month-old daughter, added to Audrey's paradigm shift about God: "Even when she's waking up all through the night, I have these moments of staring at her and thinking, 'You're so wonderful!' It does come to my mind and heart that if God is love, and God makes children out of love and for love, then this is Him. I am actually experiencing the way that He loves - in a very flawed form, I'm sure - but it feels like participating in something like that."

Audrey found special comfort in Henri Nouwen's depiction of Jesus as a "wounded healer," who rose from the dead not with a perfectly healed body, but with His wounds intact. She even wrote a song with that title, which begins, "Image of the Invisible / In our pain we feel you near. / God of heaven in flesh and bone / By your wounds we shall be healed."

Audrey said, "If we believe that Jesus is the fullest revelation of who God is...then His wounded body is significant because it means that [these wounds] have always had a place in the heart of God: to be wounded, to be vulnerable, to be laid bare and to be open to love with all of its pain and rejection and all the risks that it has." In the end, Audrey has become something of a wounded healer herself. The songs on Evergreen can be appreciated by anyone going through struggles of any kind, elevating their minds, hearts, and spirits to who God is and how much He loves us.

This essay is a recent "Light One Candle" column by Tony Rossi, Director of Communications, The Christophers; it is one of a series of weekly columns that deal with a variety of topics and current events.

Background information:

The Christophers

Audrey Assad

Reflection Starter from Psalm 100

"Shout joyfully to the LORD, all you lands; serve the LORD with gladness;come before him with joyful song.' - Psalm 100:1-2

16 April 2018

Public Safety Line of Duty Death

A New England public servant servant recently died in the line of duty, a reminder of the hazards and stresses faced by the members of the region’s public safety services.

Patrol Officer Sean Gannon, 32, an eight-year veteran of the Yarmouth, MA, Police Department, was shot and killed as he participated in an operation to serve an arrest warrant at 109 Blueberry Lane in the village of Marston Mills in Barnstable on Thursday, 12 April. May he rest in peace. 

Media reports: 

Cape Cod Times: Yarmouth officer slain in the line of duty (13 APR 18) 

Cape Cod Times: Community embraces hope in second Yarmouth vigil (16 APR 18)

NECN: Cape Cod Police Officer Fatally Shot While Serving Arrest Warrant (13 APR 18)

Background information:

Yarmouth Police Department

Facebook: Yarmouth Police Department

Town of Yarmouth

Wikipedia: Yarmouth, Massachusetts

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the blessings you bestow on each of Your senior citizens as they meet the challenges of aging.

Bishop Tobin on the Aging Process

"'Seventy is the sum of our years, or eighty if we are strong, and most of them are fruitless toil, for they pass quickly and we drift away.' (Ps 90:10)

"These words of the Bible have certainly been on my mind recently, for having just celebrated my 70th birthday on April 1st, I've now reached the 'sum of my years.'

"Saint John Paul II used the same words in his 'Letter to the Elderly' (1999).

"There our Holy Father wrote: 'Seventy years was an advanced age when the Psalmist wrote these words, and few people lived beyond it. Nowadays, thanks to medical progress and improved social and economic conditions, life expectancy has increased significantly in many parts of the world. Still, it remains true that the years pass quickly, and the gift of life, for all the effort and pain it involves, is too beautiful and precious for us ever to grow tired of it.'

"By nature, I'm an introverted, introspective person, and I spend a fair amount of time alone, thinking about things. And I've been thinking a lot about what it means to turn 70, to have this milestone birthday. First, I've found, there are some very practical consequences."

In a recent commentary, Bishop Thomas J. Tobin, of the Diocese of Providence (RI), reflected on some serious and some not-so-serious aspects of the aging process.

To access Bishop Tobin's complete essay, please visit:

Without A Doubt: Seventy, Or Eighty If We Are Strong (5 APR 18)

Reflection Starter from James Russell Miller

"If you will call your troubles experiences, and remember that every experience develops some latent force within you, you will grow vigorous and happy, however adverse your circumstances may seem to be." - James Russell Miller

15 April 2018

"This Is The Day That The Lord Has Made"

As our Sunday celebration continues, I offer this version of "This Is The Day That The Lord Has Made":


Third Sunday of Easter

Today the Church celebrates the Third Sunday of Easter. The assigned readings are Acts 3:13-15, 17-19; 1 John 2:1-5; and Luke 24:35-48. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 4 (Psalm 4:2, 4, 7-9).
For one version of the Responsorial Psalm set to music, please visit:

YouTube: Psalm 4 Lord Let Your Face Shine On Us


The Gospel reading is as follows:

The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way, and how Jesus was made known to them in the breaking of bread.

While they were still speaking about this, he stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you." But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost. Then he said to them, "Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have." And as he said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, "Have you anything here to eat?" They gave him a piece of baked fish; he took it and ate it in front of them.

He said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled." Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. And he said to them, "Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things."


Reflections on these readings:

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Salesian Sunday Reflections: Third Sunday of Easter (April 15, 2018) 

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Sundays Salesian: Third Sunday of Easter (April 15, 2018)

Community in Mission: You Are Witnesses of These Things - A Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Easter (14 APR 18)


The Sacred Page: Salvation History as a Good Movie: The 3rd Sunday of Easter (10 APR 18)

The Sacred Page: The Risen Jesus is Not a Ghost (The Mass Readings Explained) (9 APR 18)

St. Paul Center: Understanding the Scriptures: Scott Hahn Reflects on the Third Sunday of Easter

Word on Fire: The Basics of Christian Proclamation (Cycle B * Easter * Week 3)


Spirituality of the Readings: The Rest of the Story (Third Sunday of Easter)

In Exile: Biblical Metanoia (Third Sunday of Easter)


Let the Scriptures Speak: The Lame Shall Leap (Third Sunday of Easter
) 

The Word Encountered: Glorified Bodies (Third Sunday of Easter
)

Historical Cultural Context: Alternate Reality (Third Sunday of Easter)

Thoughts from the Early Church: Commentary by Augustine (Third Sunday of Easter)

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of Your peace.

Msgr. Pope on Seeking Wonder and Awe

"A big problem today is that of widespread boredom. With all the diversions available to us, one would think we would be one of the least bored generations in history. There are various forms of entertainment available to us quite literally at our fingertips: television, streaming video, radio, the Internet, video games, and more. 

"Yet still it seems that we are often bored. The reason for this, I think, is that we are overstimulated.

"The frantic pace of even our recreational activities leaves most of us incapable of appreciating the subtler, gentler, and more hidden things of life."

In a recent commentary, Monsignor Charles Pope (pastor of Holy Comforter-Saint Cyprian Parish, Washington, DC) reflected on the importance of seeking the gifts of wonder and awe, of appreciating "Gods glories and wonders, which are on display at every moment: in everything we see and in everyone we encounter."

To access Msgr. Pope's complete post, please visit:

Community in Mission: There Has Been No Loss of Wonders, Only a Loss of Wonder - A Brief Summons to Awe (10 APR 18)

Reflection Starter from Pope Francis

"The holiness to which the Lord calls you grows through small gestures in everyday life." - Pope Francis

11 April 2018

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the blessings You are bestowing on Your people during this Easter season.

Fr. Bevil Bramwell, OMI, on the Influence of Christ

"One of the underappreciated sides of John Paul II's teaching is something that applies to all of us. In his encyclicals Fides et Ratio and Ex Corde Ecclesiae, his overall aim was to show just how vast is the influence of Jesus Christ.

"This is not influence in a cultural sense. This is influence because: 'All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race.' (John 1:3, 4) This is influence, not at the level of society, but at the level of being.

"The significance of this is undervalued because our culture has its roots in the anticlericalism and the anti-Christianity of the Enlightenment. Unfortunately, therefore, we often think the way the Enlightenment would want us to. To the Enlightenment, Jesus Christ was just another founder of one religion among many.

"The truth, first of all, is that everything comes to be through the Divine Word of God who is Jesus. The things of Creation themselves speak of their divine origins by their beauty and truth. Then, second - and this is the light of which John spoke  - when we use our reason in a disciplined way, and allow it to be elevated by faith, we can truly learn about creatures and, even more excitingly, we begin to meet Christ more fully too."

In a recent commentary, Father Bevil Bramwell, OMI, reflected on how the "great truths of the faith are expressions from the mouth of Christ, in his life and in his Body, the Church."

To access Fr. Bramwell's complete post, please visit:

The Catholic Thing: Underestimating Christ (8 APR 18)

Background information:

 Pope John Paul II: Encyclical Letter Fides et Ratio

 Pope John Paul II: Encyclical Letter Ex Corde Ecclesiae

Reflection Starter

"Wake up every morning with the thought that something wonderful is about to happen." - Source Unknown

08 April 2018

"There's a Wideness in God's Mercy"

As our celebration of Mercy Sunday continues, I offer this version of "There's a Wideness in God's Mercy" as presented by the music ministry at Our Lady of Refuge Church, Brooklyn, NY:


Second Sunday of Easter (Sunday of Divine Mercy)

Today the Church celebrates the Second Sunday of Easter (Sunday of Divine Mercy). The assigned readings are Acts 4:32-35, 1 John 1:5-6, and John 20:20-33. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 118 (Psalm 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24).

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

YouTube: Responsorial Psalm - Psalm 118 Give Thanks to the Lord for He is Good


The Gospel reading is as follows:

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you." When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained."

Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, "We have seen the Lord."

But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe."

Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!"

Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name.

Reflections on these readings:

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Salesian Sunday Reflections: Second Sunday of Easter (April 8, 2018)

Oblates of St. Francis de Sales: Sundays Salesian: Second Sunday of Easter (April 8, 2018)

Community in Mission: From Fear to Faith - A Homily for the Second Sunday of Easter (7 APR 18)


The Sacred Page: The Readings for Divine Mercy Sunday (6 APR 18)

The Sacred Page: Divine Mercy Sunday (The Mass Readings Explained) (2 APR 18)

St. Paul Center: The Day the Lord Made: Scott Hahn Reflects on Divine Mercy Sunday

Word on Fire: Divine Mercy (Cycle B * Easter * Week 2)


Spirituality of the Readings: Seriously (Second Sunday of Easter)

In Exile: Living In The Holy Spirit (Second Sunday of Easter)


The Word Encountered: Community Transformations (Second Sunday of Easter
)

Historical Cultural Context: Dreams and Visions (Second Sunday of Easter)

Thoughts from the Early Church: Commentary by Cyril of Alexandria (Second Sunday of Easter)