Antonín Dvořák: "Stabat Mater"

As we continue our observance of Good Friday, I offer this version of Antonín Dvořák's "Stabat Mater," as presented by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Mariss Jansons:

 

Good Friday of the Lord's Passion

Today the Church celebrates Good Friday of the Lord's Passion. The assigned readings are Isaiah 52:13-53:12; Hebrews 4:14-16, 5:7-9; and John 18:1-19:42. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 31 (Psalm 31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-17, 25).

Reflections on these readings and this day:

Community in Mission: Finding the Good in Good Friday (2 APR 15)

The Deacon's Bench: On Christ's Seven Last Words: "They offer one final sermon on a mount, a lasting message of forgiveness and mercy" (2 APR 15)

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for taking upon Yourself, in Your suffering and death, our sins and the sins of all Your people.

'Cheerfulness Strengthens the Heart'

St. Philip Neri once said, "Cheerfulness strengthens the heart and makes us persevere in a good life; wherefore the servant of God ought always to be in good spirits." Yet, happiness can be an elusive disposition, and many today are struggling to find joy in their daily lives. It is important that we attend to the need we all have for happiness so we can be productive and inspire others to experience the joy of Christ.

Advice columnist Helen Dennis recently fielded a question that speaks to the challenges many are having in achieving happiness these days. The questioner expresses a lack of "contentment or happiness" and even guilt for this concern, given the amount of suffering others have endured over the past year, asking, "Is there anything I can do to find some level of happiness during these difficult times?"

Concern over one's own mental and spiritual well-being, even while others around us are suffering, should not be discounted. We have an obligation to attend to our own well-being in order to be at our best at whatever point we are needed to help others through their struggles. And that very dynamic of building ourselves up for the purpose of helping others is at the heart of the ultimate answer to finding happiness. It is also a dynamic hinted at within the practical advice offered by Helen Dennis in her answer to the question.

Dennis sites Yale psychology professor Laurie Santos, who created a class on the science of happiness after living with students and observing their high levels of stress, anxiety, loneliness, and worry about grades. In her course, Santos offers some key ways in which we can improve our happiness. Aside from basic issues of self-care, such as getting enough sleep and exercise, she encourages people to be more social, express gratitude, be in the moment, and practice kindness.

Dennis highlights studies showing how these simple actions lead to a greater sense of well-being among those who practice them, writing, "Health care workers who express gratitude by writing in a gratitude journal are less stressed and depressed."

Dennis also writes, "People who are the happiest report focusing on the needs of others. They donate money, volunteer or just do random acts of kindness. Of equal importance is being kind to ourselves. We need to remember that most often we do the best we can. Harsh self-criticism and unrealistic expectations do not lead to happiness."

We can see this practical advice pointing back to the deeper spiritual reality of why we must attend to our own well-being. Every one of us has a purpose in life that goes beyond temporal happiness, but we need to keep our spirits up if we are to attain all that God wants of us in this world.

In short, we owe it to ourselves to be joyful in order to better serve God and others. Living in the moment is one of the greatest ways we can express gratitude because it demonstrates our trust that God is looking out for the bigger picture. And being more social not only lifts our own spirits, but enables us to do the same for others and to discover their needs in order to practice kindness towards them. The pandemic has strained our ability to do this, but we must always find creative ways to follow God's will, and we should all be looking forward to recovering those opportunities to fully live out the call to happiness. 

This essay is a recent "Light One Candle" column by Father Ed Dougherty, M.M., The Christophers' Board of Directors ; 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 Pope Francis

"The Cross is the word through which God has responded to evil in the world. Sometimes it may seem as though God does not react to evil, as if he is silent. And yet, God has spoken, he has replied, and his answer is the Cross of Christ: a word which is love, mercy, forgiveness. It is also reveals a judgment, namely that God, in judging us, loves us. Remember this: God, in judging us, loves us. If I embrace his love then I am saved, if I refuse it, then I am condemned, not by him, but my own self, because God never condemns, he only loves and saves." - Pope Francis

National Autism Awareness Month

April is being observed as National Autism Awareness Month, an observance designed to help increase knowledge and understanding about autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). ASDs are a group of developmental disabilities that can cause social, communication, and behavioral challenges. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about 1 in 88 children in the U.S. has an ASD. While there are no proven cures for autism spectrum disorders, research has shown that early treatment can greatly reduce symptoms and increase a child’s ability to grow and learn new skills.

Background information:

National Autism Awareness Month

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke: Autism Information Page

Autism Society

Fr. Raymond J. De Souza on the Holy Week Shadows of St. Joseph - Holy Thursday

"In his apostolic letter for the beginning of the Year of St. Joseph, Pope Francis cites Polish author Jan Dobraczyński. The Holy Father explains that his novel, The Shadow of the Father, 'uses the evocative image of a shadow to define Joseph. In his relationship to Jesus, Joseph was the earthly shadow of the heavenly Father: he watched over him and protected him, never leaving him to go his own way.' (Patris Corde 7)

"Nevertheless, Joseph is not present in the Lord's public life. Yet we might find St. Joseph during Holy Week, if we allow ourselves to imagine where his 'shadow' may have fell upon Jesus in those most sacred days."

In a recent commentary, Father Raymond J. De Souza, founding editor of Convivium Magazine, offered a fouth Holy Week reflection on Saint Joseph, this one for Holy Thursday.

To access Fr. De Souza's complete essay, please visit:

National Catholic Register: Commentaries: Father Raymond J. de Souza: The Holy Week Shadows of St. Joseph: Holy Thursday (1 APR 21)

"Lord, Who at Thy First Eucharist"

As we continue our celebration of Holy Thursday, I offer this version of "Lord, Who at Thy First Eucharist" as presented by the Saint Catherine of Siena Parish Choir (Trumbull, CT):

Holy Thursday

 Today the Church celebrates Holy Thursday. The day is celebrated as the beginning of the priesthood and the institution of the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. The assigned readings for the Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper are Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; and John 13:1-15. The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 116 (Psalm 116:12-13, 15-18).

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

YouTube: Responsorial Psalm: Holy Thursday (The Lord's Supper) "Psalm 116"

The Gospel reading is as follows:

Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end. The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over. So, during supper, fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God, he rose from supper and took off his outer garments. He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and dry them with the towel around his waist.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Master, are you going to wash my feet?" Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later."

Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet."

Jesus answered him, "Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me."

Simon Peter said to him, "Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well."

Jesus said to him, "Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed,  for he is clean all over; so you are clean, but not all." For he knew who would betray him; for this reason, he said, "Not all of you are clean."

So when he had washed their feet and put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, "Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me 'teacher' and 'master,' and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another's feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do."

Reflections related to this celebration:

Community in Mission: Passiontide Chronology: Holy Thursday (17 APR 19)

Community in Mission: The Seating Plan at the Last Supper (4 APR 12)

Crossroads Initiative: Holy Thursday - Eucharist, The Body of Christ

National Catholic Register: Holy Thursday and Divine Mercy (18 APR 19)

Thank You, Lord

 Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of our good priests.

Stephen White on U.S. Catholics Being a Leaven in Society

"A recent Gallup poll indicates that, for the first time in living memory, fewer than half of Americans (47 percent) consider themselves members of a church. For most of the 20^th century, the rate hovered around 70 percent. That number has been declining since at least the late 1990s, but the decline appears to be accelerating.

"Membership in a church, it should be said, doesn't necessarily reflect belief or religious affiliation. The question Gallup asked in its poll was, 'Do you happen to be a member of a church, synagogue, or mosque?' A fallen-away Catholic and a Catholic in search of a parish in a new city might both plausibly answer in the negative. While a minority of Americans claim 'membership' in some church, according to Gallup, 76 percent still claim some religious 'affiliation.'

"Particularly concerning for Catholics is that, even among those whose 'affiliation' is Catholic, the rate of 'membership' has fallen almost 20 percent since 1998. That's twice the rate of decline seen among Protestants.

"There is much to lament in these numbers, and in the myriad unhappy explanations for why such decline is happening. Without in any way dismissing legitimate concerns about such decline and what it means for the Church and her mission (to say nothing of souls), we shouldn't despair of the diminished position in which the Church now finds herself.

"Catholics in the United States - and here I mean both the clergy and the laity - too often demonstrate a complacency of mind more characteristic of an establishment church than a distinctive minority. This includes, by the way, a certain insecurity about 'losing a culture' that was never really ours to begin with.

"American Catholics are, and always have been, a religious minority.. . ."

In a recent commentary, Stephen P. White (executive director of The Catholic Project at The Catholic University of America and a fellow in Catholic Studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center) reflected on the importance of Catholics in the United States to be thinking more about how to stand out and less about how to fit in and about being the leaven to those around us, including our spouses, our children, our parents, our siblings, our fellow parishioners, our neighbors, and our co-workers.

To access Mr. White's complete post, please visit:

The Catholic Thing: Not a Loaf, but Leaven (1 APR 11)

Reflection Starter from Albert Pike

"We have all the light we need, we just need to put it in practice." - Albert Pike