This and That:
Today’s Dedication, the Approaching Summer, and Mass Attendance
This weekend we celebrate two events that include our Area Vicar, Bishop Mitch Rozanski. He is with us for the 10:30am Mass today, Sunday, which follows with the dedication of the Sports Pavilion and the blessing of the Athletic Fields. He returns later this evening for the Sacrament of Confirmation at the Sunday 5:00 Alive. It is not coincidental that both events deal with youth.
Our new pavilion and athletic fields have increased our possibilities for serving our youth through athletics. Our Confirmation Class of high school Sophomores is another group of faith-filled youth who, hopefully, will be committed to their faith in Jesus Christ as they continue through their high school years.
In the past two years the number of youth to whom we minister has grown a great deal. Through the Drama Ministry and Athletics Programs we are drawing in young people at an increasing number. Of course drawing them in is only the beginning. It is the role of our parents to develop in them an appreciation for regular Sunday worship, as well as involvement in our parish life and outreach to those in need.
Last weekend and this weekend we have given the Sacrament of First Eucharist to so many wonderful 2nd Graders. Their openness and innocence to receiving Jesus in the Eucharist are a marvel to watch. Yet, if that openness and innocence is not fostered by regular Sunday worship, it will surely dry up and wither on the vine. It does take parents, who themselves have developed a habit of regular and faithful attendance and participation at Mass.
The school year is winding down. Anyone at weekend Masses will quickly note how the numbers have already begun to thin out now that Religious Education is over. Well, they will thin again when we switch to the summer schedule of three Masses on Memorial Day Weekend, and still again when our Catholic School ends the year. At that point, our people will scatter to vacation spots across the State and across the Nation. We have always experienced this lighter attendance as summer approached. However, what is of added concern is that over the past few years the attendance does not rebound to the level at which it was when things began to thin out. I do not really understand why this is so.
A Think Tank that is studying declining Mass attendance recently sent out a survey to all registered parishioners asking them what was keeping them away from regular Mass attendance and what could we do to bring them back to regular to attending regularly? The response was excellent with over 400 surveys received. A second letter and survey will be going out to the same group in a week or two, this time reporting the results of our findings and asking folks what their preference is for Mass time and type of music. Once all this information is in, the Think Tank will formulate recommendations, which will then go to parish leadership for decisions. There is no question that the input will have an impact on what our weekly worship with look like by this coming September.
Of course in the end what gets someone to regular Mass attendance, whether it is summer and they are away from home or it is just a lazy, hazy Sunday morning, is the person’s desire to be there or not. I wonder what makes me a regular attendee? Part of it is learned habit (It would not be Sunday for me if I didn’t go to Mass.) Part of it is to obey the commandment (Keep the Sabbath holy and worship God.) Part of it is my own desire to go and to feel connected to Jesus Christ and others with whom I share my faith.
They say that faith is “caught” not “taught.” That is, that it is “caught” in much the same way we catch a cold. We have to be exposed to someone who has a cold. Faithful Sunday observance, a home where children see parents forgiving and caring for each other, regular prayers at mealtime and before bed are all ways that children “catch” the faith. In addition, a home environment that is rich with symbols helps, e.g. a crucifix in bedrooms, palm over a picture or two, a statue or rosary on a dresser top are all helpful images that our Catholic Faith in present here.
Finally, since I began with youth, I’ll close with them. There are many couples who worship with their teenage children. I know from experience that many of those teens would prefer not to be there, but they come because they have learned that Sunday Mass is “what we do,” in much the same way that we do many other family customs. Once teens are out of the nest and away at college at least they will have the experience of having attended Mass with their family in the “old days.” That will be a tremendous resource to them when they have an opportunity to decide for themselves what to do on a Sunday morning.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Weekly HOMILY for May 20, 2007: Up or Down?
The Ascension of the Lord, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
May 20, 2007
Up or Down?
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
A Painting: Up and Down
In the Vatican Museum in Rome, there is painting entitled The Ascension.
This painting dates back to the fifteenth century and it depicts the apostles gathered on top of a mountain. Half of them are looking up at the sky.
There is an opening in the clouds and they are just staring. Jesus has apparently returned to the Father and is no longer visible.
The other half of the apostles are looking down to the ground. They see footprints, apparently the imprints of Jesus’ feet, but again, he is not visible.
The Scriptures: Up and Down
That Renaissance painting expresses one of the core messages in today’s readings.
In both the first reading and the gospel, Jesus reaffirms what he calls “the promise of the Father.” He is speaking here of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus is reassuring the apostles that he will be present to them through the Holy Spirit. And he is reassuring them that they will feel both comforted and empowered by this.
After Jesus says this and is taken up into heaven, the apostles kneel down in prayer and reverence. St. Luke says that “they are gazing up into the heavens.”
On the other hand, in our first reading we hear that two angels appear to these apostles. They ask, “Why do you stand here looking up at the skies?”
In effect, they remind the apostles that they must now get to work. Jesus has made them his witnesses or ministers on this earth.
So, when I think about the Renaissance painting and these Scripture passages, I see a balance between the heavens and the earth, between our looking up and our looking down. I also think that we see this balance I1) In our sacraments and (2) In the way Jesus calls us to live.
The Sacraments: Up and Down
First, our sacraments are a mix, a balance of the heavens and the earth.
For example, in Baptism, we repeat the words of Jesus, the Son of God: “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
At the same time, we use ordinary water, the material of this earth.
In the Eucharist, we again repeat the words of Jesus: “This is my body; this is my blood.” And again, Jesus has us use something of the earth: simple, ordinary bread and wine.
So, in our sacraments, there is this mix, this balance of the heavens and the earth. It is as if we are at one and the same time looking up to the heavens and looking down to the earth, much like the apostles in that painting.
Our Lives: Up and Down
I believe we are also called to live this balance in our personal lives.
First, we are to “look up to the heavens.” This means that we need to be grounded and rooted in God who is beyond this earth.
We do this by personal, private prayer, by reading the Scripture in a reflective way, and by coming to Mass and receiving the Eucharist each week. These are ways of “looking up to the heavens” – ways of strengthening our relationship with the Lord.
At the same time, we need to be looking down to the earth. This means that we care for our families, volunteer in our children’s schools, things like that.
And beyond family, it might mean that we assist the local Birthright Center or that we think about our Catholic teaching on just war and how that should guide us as a country. These are ways of looking down to the earth and being Jesus’ witnesses in the world.
Conclusion
So, today’s celebration of Jesus’ being taken up into heaven calls us to a balance.
It is a balance between looking up to the heavens and looking down to the earth. And this balance leads us to a spiritually healthy and holy life.
Our Lady of Grace
May 20, 2007
Up or Down?
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
A Painting: Up and Down
In the Vatican Museum in Rome, there is painting entitled The Ascension.
This painting dates back to the fifteenth century and it depicts the apostles gathered on top of a mountain. Half of them are looking up at the sky.
There is an opening in the clouds and they are just staring. Jesus has apparently returned to the Father and is no longer visible.
The other half of the apostles are looking down to the ground. They see footprints, apparently the imprints of Jesus’ feet, but again, he is not visible.
The Scriptures: Up and Down
That Renaissance painting expresses one of the core messages in today’s readings.
In both the first reading and the gospel, Jesus reaffirms what he calls “the promise of the Father.” He is speaking here of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus is reassuring the apostles that he will be present to them through the Holy Spirit. And he is reassuring them that they will feel both comforted and empowered by this.
After Jesus says this and is taken up into heaven, the apostles kneel down in prayer and reverence. St. Luke says that “they are gazing up into the heavens.”
On the other hand, in our first reading we hear that two angels appear to these apostles. They ask, “Why do you stand here looking up at the skies?”
In effect, they remind the apostles that they must now get to work. Jesus has made them his witnesses or ministers on this earth.
So, when I think about the Renaissance painting and these Scripture passages, I see a balance between the heavens and the earth, between our looking up and our looking down. I also think that we see this balance I1) In our sacraments and (2) In the way Jesus calls us to live.
The Sacraments: Up and Down
First, our sacraments are a mix, a balance of the heavens and the earth.
For example, in Baptism, we repeat the words of Jesus, the Son of God: “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
At the same time, we use ordinary water, the material of this earth.
In the Eucharist, we again repeat the words of Jesus: “This is my body; this is my blood.” And again, Jesus has us use something of the earth: simple, ordinary bread and wine.
So, in our sacraments, there is this mix, this balance of the heavens and the earth. It is as if we are at one and the same time looking up to the heavens and looking down to the earth, much like the apostles in that painting.
Our Lives: Up and Down
I believe we are also called to live this balance in our personal lives.
First, we are to “look up to the heavens.” This means that we need to be grounded and rooted in God who is beyond this earth.
We do this by personal, private prayer, by reading the Scripture in a reflective way, and by coming to Mass and receiving the Eucharist each week. These are ways of “looking up to the heavens” – ways of strengthening our relationship with the Lord.
At the same time, we need to be looking down to the earth. This means that we care for our families, volunteer in our children’s schools, things like that.
And beyond family, it might mean that we assist the local Birthright Center or that we think about our Catholic teaching on just war and how that should guide us as a country. These are ways of looking down to the earth and being Jesus’ witnesses in the world.
Conclusion
So, today’s celebration of Jesus’ being taken up into heaven calls us to a balance.
It is a balance between looking up to the heavens and looking down to the earth. And this balance leads us to a spiritually healthy and holy life.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for May 13, 2007: A Third of Priest Ordained in 2007 Are Foreign Born
May 10, 2007
Focus: A Third of Priests Ordained in 2007 Are Foreign Born
Dear Friend,
U.S. Bishops’ data on those to be ordained this year shows that their average age is 35 and one in three were born outside the United States. Researchers gathered information from 282 seminarians (including 221 future diocesan priests and 60 religious), approximately 60% of the estimated 475 men who are expected to be ordained.
The following are some interesting statistics:
-- Seven in 10 report their primary race as Caucasian, European American, or white.
-- Of the 33% of individuals to be ordained who were born outside the United States, the largest numbers come from Vietnam, Mexico, Poland and the Philippines. Our Archdiocese has priests from each country serving here.
-- Some 6% are converts to the Catholic faith.
-- More than six in 10 have a college degree from before entering the seminary.
-- Half of those responding attended a Catholic elementary school.
-- About two-thirds of the group had full-time jobs before going to the seminary.
-- The average age at which they began considering a vocation was 17.
The Georgetown University-based Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate compiled the information. The organization conducts the survey each year for the U.S. Bishops’ Secretariat for Vocations and Priestly Formation
It seems as if, given the clergy shortage, we are becoming a Mission Land once again.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Focus: A Third of Priests Ordained in 2007 Are Foreign Born
Dear Friend,
U.S. Bishops’ data on those to be ordained this year shows that their average age is 35 and one in three were born outside the United States. Researchers gathered information from 282 seminarians (including 221 future diocesan priests and 60 religious), approximately 60% of the estimated 475 men who are expected to be ordained.
The following are some interesting statistics:
-- Seven in 10 report their primary race as Caucasian, European American, or white.
-- Of the 33% of individuals to be ordained who were born outside the United States, the largest numbers come from Vietnam, Mexico, Poland and the Philippines. Our Archdiocese has priests from each country serving here.
-- Some 6% are converts to the Catholic faith.
-- More than six in 10 have a college degree from before entering the seminary.
-- Half of those responding attended a Catholic elementary school.
-- About two-thirds of the group had full-time jobs before going to the seminary.
-- The average age at which they began considering a vocation was 17.
The Georgetown University-based Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate compiled the information. The organization conducts the survey each year for the U.S. Bishops’ Secretariat for Vocations and Priestly Formation
It seems as if, given the clergy shortage, we are becoming a Mission Land once again.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly THIS AND THAT for May 13, 2007: Feedback on Mothers This Mothers' Day
This and That:
Feedback on Mothers This Mothers’ Day
The following appeared in this column two years ago and is worth repeating. They are answers given by elementary school age children to questions they were asked regarding mothers.
Why did God make mothers?
➢ She’s the only one who knows where the Scotch Tape is
➢ Mostly to clean the house
➢ To help us out of there when we were getting born
How did God make mothers?
➢ He used dirt, just like for the rest of us
➢ Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring
➢ God made my mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts
What ingredients are mothers made of?
➢ God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of meanness
➢ They had to get their start from men’s bones. Then they mostly use string, I think
Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
➢ We’re related
➢ God knew she likes me a lot more than other people’s moms like me
What kind of little girl was your mom?
➢ My mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff
➢ I don’t know because I wasn’t there, but my guess would be, pretty bossy
➢ They say she used to be nice
What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?
➢ His last name
➢ She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he drink too much?
➢ Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?
Why did your mom marry your dad?
➢ My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world and my mom eats a lot
➢ She got too old to do anything else with him
➢ My grandma says that mom didn’t have her thinking cap on.
Who’s the boss at your house?
➢ Mom doesn’t want to be boss, but she has to because dad can goof off sometimes
➢ Mom is. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
➢ I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad
What’s the difference between moms and dads?
➢ Moms work at work and work at home, and dads just go to work at work
➢ Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them
➢ Dads are taller and stronger, but moms have all the real power because that’s who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend’s
➢ Moms have magic. They make you feel better without medicine
What does your mom do in her spare time?
➢ Mothers don’t do spare time
➢ To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.
What would it take to make your mom perfect?
➢ On the inside she’s already perfect. On the outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery
➢ Diet. You know, her hair. I’d diet, maybe blue.
If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?
➢ She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I’d get rid of that
➢ I’d make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it and not me
➢ I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the back of her head
God bless all our moms – those who are with us still and those in heaven – this Mothers day for without them we simply would never have been.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Feedback on Mothers This Mothers’ Day
The following appeared in this column two years ago and is worth repeating. They are answers given by elementary school age children to questions they were asked regarding mothers.
Why did God make mothers?
➢ She’s the only one who knows where the Scotch Tape is
➢ Mostly to clean the house
➢ To help us out of there when we were getting born
How did God make mothers?
➢ He used dirt, just like for the rest of us
➢ Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring
➢ God made my mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts
What ingredients are mothers made of?
➢ God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of meanness
➢ They had to get their start from men’s bones. Then they mostly use string, I think
Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?
➢ We’re related
➢ God knew she likes me a lot more than other people’s moms like me
What kind of little girl was your mom?
➢ My mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff
➢ I don’t know because I wasn’t there, but my guess would be, pretty bossy
➢ They say she used to be nice
What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?
➢ His last name
➢ She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he drink too much?
➢ Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?
Why did your mom marry your dad?
➢ My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world and my mom eats a lot
➢ She got too old to do anything else with him
➢ My grandma says that mom didn’t have her thinking cap on.
Who’s the boss at your house?
➢ Mom doesn’t want to be boss, but she has to because dad can goof off sometimes
➢ Mom is. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
➢ I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad
What’s the difference between moms and dads?
➢ Moms work at work and work at home, and dads just go to work at work
➢ Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them
➢ Dads are taller and stronger, but moms have all the real power because that’s who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend’s
➢ Moms have magic. They make you feel better without medicine
What does your mom do in her spare time?
➢ Mothers don’t do spare time
➢ To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.
What would it take to make your mom perfect?
➢ On the inside she’s already perfect. On the outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery
➢ Diet. You know, her hair. I’d diet, maybe blue.
If you could change one thing about your mom, what would it be?
➢ She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I’d get rid of that
➢ I’d make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it and not me
➢ I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on the back of her head
God bless all our moms – those who are with us still and those in heaven – this Mothers day for without them we simply would never have been.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly HOMILY for May 13, 2007: Absent Yet Present
Sixth Sunday of Easter, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
May 13, 2007
Absent Yet Present
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
A Mother and Daughter
A mother named Terry West has written a very warm story about her relationship with her little daughter.
Terry West worked outside the home and her three-year-old daughter Marion stayed at the next-door neighbor’s house. The neighbor did day care for Marion and two other children.
Each day at noontime, Terry would come home from work on her lunch break. She would pick up little Marion at the neighbor’s house and Marion would be jumping for joy.
Mother and daughter would go home, have lunch and play together for a few minutes. Then, Marion would feel sad when her mother had to go back to work.
One day, Terry West stopped coming home for lunch. Even though her mother had explained this, Marion just could not understand.
But years later, Marion learned that her mother still did come each day. But she would sit at her kitchen window, eating her lunch by herself and watching Marion play in the neighbor’s yard.
Terry West did this because she wanted her daughter to become a little less reliant on her and to learn how to play well with the other children.
Marion now understands well that it was for her own growth and development that her mother stopped taking her home for lunch.
Jesus and Us
This true story can help us better understand today’s Gospel passage.
In it, Jesus is saying to the disciples: “I know you are anxious because I am going to leave you, but it is important for you that I go. For my Father will send the Holy Spirit to be with you and to help you grow in a new way.”
In other words, Jesus’ absence, like Terry West’s absence from Marion, is a time for the disciples to begin a new phase in their development.
And in a similar way, now is also a time of growth for us and this morning I want to focus on two aspects of our own growing, two aspect where we may be feeling Jesus’ absence and yet be assured of how he is present, lest we lose heart.
Our Growth by Relating to Others
First, we need to be attentive to our relationships, attentive to the persons we touch, see and speak with day in and day out.
Remember that Terry West in her seeming absence wanted her daughter to develop good ways of relating to her little friends.
Most of Jesus’ life was devoted to teaching us how to relate to one another. For example, we need to be respectful of one another even when differences and disagreements are present.
In today’s first reading, we hear of a significant conflict in the early Church, but notice how they maintain respect for one another and arrive at a resolution. I think we can largely conceive of our task on earth as developing God’s kingdom by being respectful and caring of all of God’s children.
Our Growth Living by Our Values and Beliefs
And second, we need to live by our values, beliefs, convictions, no matter what. Little Marion West was being challenged to relate well with her peers even when she thought her mother was not watching.
Jesus consistently teaches us to be authentic and not to do things because of what others will think of us or because of what we will get out of it.
It’s something like me, when I am back in the chapel, genuflecting before the tabernacle even when no one else is there looking at what I do.
Someone once said that the test of real character is what we do when we think no one else is watching.
In the same way, the test of our relationship with the Lord is what we do when we think no one else is watching.
Jesus Remains with Us
In this earthly journey, throughout this entire stage of growth we find ourselves in, Jesus remains with us.
Little Marion did not see her mother at lunchtime, but mom was right next door, looking at her through the window. Jesus in today’s Gospel says that he and the Father will actually dwell with us.
They will do this through the Holy Spirit. So, we too may not see Jesus physically with us, but he is here.
And the most important way that Jesus is with us is through the Eucharist, where he’s present as flesh and blood under the forms of bread and wine.
Conclusion
So when we are feeling his “absence,” we can be assured of his presence to sustain and nourish, to comfort and strengthen, to give meaning and hope through all the growing that we must do.
That is the wonderful gift, the sacrament that we have the opportunity to celebrate and receive every Sunday.
Our Lady of Grace
May 13, 2007
Absent Yet Present
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
A Mother and Daughter
A mother named Terry West has written a very warm story about her relationship with her little daughter.
Terry West worked outside the home and her three-year-old daughter Marion stayed at the next-door neighbor’s house. The neighbor did day care for Marion and two other children.
Each day at noontime, Terry would come home from work on her lunch break. She would pick up little Marion at the neighbor’s house and Marion would be jumping for joy.
Mother and daughter would go home, have lunch and play together for a few minutes. Then, Marion would feel sad when her mother had to go back to work.
One day, Terry West stopped coming home for lunch. Even though her mother had explained this, Marion just could not understand.
But years later, Marion learned that her mother still did come each day. But she would sit at her kitchen window, eating her lunch by herself and watching Marion play in the neighbor’s yard.
Terry West did this because she wanted her daughter to become a little less reliant on her and to learn how to play well with the other children.
Marion now understands well that it was for her own growth and development that her mother stopped taking her home for lunch.
Jesus and Us
This true story can help us better understand today’s Gospel passage.
In it, Jesus is saying to the disciples: “I know you are anxious because I am going to leave you, but it is important for you that I go. For my Father will send the Holy Spirit to be with you and to help you grow in a new way.”
In other words, Jesus’ absence, like Terry West’s absence from Marion, is a time for the disciples to begin a new phase in their development.
And in a similar way, now is also a time of growth for us and this morning I want to focus on two aspects of our own growing, two aspect where we may be feeling Jesus’ absence and yet be assured of how he is present, lest we lose heart.
Our Growth by Relating to Others
First, we need to be attentive to our relationships, attentive to the persons we touch, see and speak with day in and day out.
Remember that Terry West in her seeming absence wanted her daughter to develop good ways of relating to her little friends.
Most of Jesus’ life was devoted to teaching us how to relate to one another. For example, we need to be respectful of one another even when differences and disagreements are present.
In today’s first reading, we hear of a significant conflict in the early Church, but notice how they maintain respect for one another and arrive at a resolution. I think we can largely conceive of our task on earth as developing God’s kingdom by being respectful and caring of all of God’s children.
Our Growth Living by Our Values and Beliefs
And second, we need to live by our values, beliefs, convictions, no matter what. Little Marion West was being challenged to relate well with her peers even when she thought her mother was not watching.
Jesus consistently teaches us to be authentic and not to do things because of what others will think of us or because of what we will get out of it.
It’s something like me, when I am back in the chapel, genuflecting before the tabernacle even when no one else is there looking at what I do.
Someone once said that the test of real character is what we do when we think no one else is watching.
In the same way, the test of our relationship with the Lord is what we do when we think no one else is watching.
Jesus Remains with Us
In this earthly journey, throughout this entire stage of growth we find ourselves in, Jesus remains with us.
Little Marion did not see her mother at lunchtime, but mom was right next door, looking at her through the window. Jesus in today’s Gospel says that he and the Father will actually dwell with us.
They will do this through the Holy Spirit. So, we too may not see Jesus physically with us, but he is here.
And the most important way that Jesus is with us is through the Eucharist, where he’s present as flesh and blood under the forms of bread and wine.
Conclusion
So when we are feeling his “absence,” we can be assured of his presence to sustain and nourish, to comfort and strengthen, to give meaning and hope through all the growing that we must do.
That is the wonderful gift, the sacrament that we have the opportunity to celebrate and receive every Sunday.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for May 6, 2007: Zen Thoughts
May 3, 2007
Focus: Zen Thoughts
Dear Friend,
The following are a few Zen thoughts for your week I received from a friend earlier in the week. I liked every one of them.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
1. Save the whales. Collect the whole set.
2. A day without sunshine is like, night.
3. On the other hand, you have different fingers.
4. I just got lost in thought. It was unfamiliar territory.
5. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.
6. 99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
7. Honk if you love peace and quiet.
8. He who laughs last thinks slowest.
9. Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
10. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
11. Support bacteria. They're the only culture some people have.
12. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
13. Change is inevitable, except from vending machines.
14. Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow.
15. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments.
16. How many of you believe in telekinesis? Raise my hand...
17. OK, so what's the speed of dark?
18. When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
19. Everyone has a photographic memory. Some just don't have film.
20. Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
Hope this gave you the same chuckle it gave me.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Focus: Zen Thoughts
Dear Friend,
The following are a few Zen thoughts for your week I received from a friend earlier in the week. I liked every one of them.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
1. Save the whales. Collect the whole set.
2. A day without sunshine is like, night.
3. On the other hand, you have different fingers.
4. I just got lost in thought. It was unfamiliar territory.
5. 42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.
6. 99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
7. Honk if you love peace and quiet.
8. He who laughs last thinks slowest.
9. Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
10. The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
11. Support bacteria. They're the only culture some people have.
12. A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
13. Change is inevitable, except from vending machines.
14. Plan to be spontaneous tomorrow.
15. If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments.
16. How many of you believe in telekinesis? Raise my hand...
17. OK, so what's the speed of dark?
18. When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
19. Everyone has a photographic memory. Some just don't have film.
20. Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
Hope this gave you the same chuckle it gave me.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly THIS AND THAT for May 6, 2007: How Do You Know You're Italian?
This and That:
How do you know you’re Italian?
Very often when my brother or sister and I talk long distance we remember the old days of growing up in Brooklyn, New York. Many times we will laugh over things Italian that we recall, being first generation children. The following are items over which we have had more than a few laughs.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
➢ You have at least one relative who wore a black dress every day for an entire year after a funeral.
➢ You spent your entire childhood thinking what you ate for lunch was pronounced “sangwich.”
➢ Your family dog understood Italian.
➢ Every Sunday afternoon of your childhood was spent visiting your grandparents and extended family.
➢ You’ve experienced the phenomena of 150 people fitting into 50 square feet of yard during a family cookout.
➢ You were surprised to discover the FDA recommends you eat three meals a day, not seven.
➢ You thought killing the pig each year and having salami, capacollo, pancetta and prosciutto hanging out to dry from your shed ceiling was absolutely normal. (That’s really Italian!)
➢ You ate pasta for dinner at least three times a week, and every Sunday, and laughed at the commercial for Wednesday is Prince Spaghetti day.
➢ You grew up thinking no fruit or vegetable had a fixed price and that the price of everything was negotiable through haggling.
➢ You were as tall as your grandmother by the age of seven.
➢ You thought everyone’s last name ended in a vowel.
➢ You thought nylons were supposed to be worn rolled to the ankles.
➢ Your mom’s main hobby is cleaning.
➢ You were surprised to find out that wine was actually sold in stores.
➢ You thought that everyone made their own tomato sauce.
➢ You never ate meat on Christmas Eve or any Friday for that matter.
➢ You ate your salad after the main course.\
➢ You thought Catholic was the only religion in the world.
➢ You were beaten at least once with a wooden spoon or broom.
➢ You thought every meal had to be eaten with a hunk of bread in your hand.
➢ You can understand Italian but you can’t speak it.
➢ You have at least one relative who came over on the boat.
➢ All of your uncles fought in a World War.
➢ You have at least six male relatives named Tony, Frank, Joe or Louie.
➢ You have relatives who aren’t really your relatives.
➢ You have relatives you don’t speak to.
➢ You drank wine before you were a teenager.
➢ You grew up in a house with a yard that didn’t have one patch of dirt that didn’t have a flower or a vegetable growing out of it.
➢ Your grandparent’s furniture was as comfortable as sitting on plastic. Wait a minute! You were sitting on plastic.
➢ You thought that talking loud was normal.
➢ You thought sugared almonds and the Tarantella were common at all weddings.
➢ You thought everyone got pinched on the cheeks and money stuffed in their pockets by their relatives.
➢ Your mother is overly protective of the males in the family no matter what their age.
➢ There was a crucifix in every room of the house.
➢ Wakes would be held in someone’s living room.
➢ You couldn’t date a boy without getting approval from your father and he had to be Italian.
➢ You called pasta “macaroni.”
➢ You dreaded taking out your lunch at school.
➢ Going out for a cup of coffee usually meant going out for a cup of coffee over Zia’s house.
➢ Every condition, ailment, misfortune, memory loss and accident was attributed to the fact that you didn’t eat something.
How do you know you’re Italian?
Very often when my brother or sister and I talk long distance we remember the old days of growing up in Brooklyn, New York. Many times we will laugh over things Italian that we recall, being first generation children. The following are items over which we have had more than a few laughs.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
➢ You have at least one relative who wore a black dress every day for an entire year after a funeral.
➢ You spent your entire childhood thinking what you ate for lunch was pronounced “sangwich.”
➢ Your family dog understood Italian.
➢ Every Sunday afternoon of your childhood was spent visiting your grandparents and extended family.
➢ You’ve experienced the phenomena of 150 people fitting into 50 square feet of yard during a family cookout.
➢ You were surprised to discover the FDA recommends you eat three meals a day, not seven.
➢ You thought killing the pig each year and having salami, capacollo, pancetta and prosciutto hanging out to dry from your shed ceiling was absolutely normal. (That’s really Italian!)
➢ You ate pasta for dinner at least three times a week, and every Sunday, and laughed at the commercial for Wednesday is Prince Spaghetti day.
➢ You grew up thinking no fruit or vegetable had a fixed price and that the price of everything was negotiable through haggling.
➢ You were as tall as your grandmother by the age of seven.
➢ You thought everyone’s last name ended in a vowel.
➢ You thought nylons were supposed to be worn rolled to the ankles.
➢ Your mom’s main hobby is cleaning.
➢ You were surprised to find out that wine was actually sold in stores.
➢ You thought that everyone made their own tomato sauce.
➢ You never ate meat on Christmas Eve or any Friday for that matter.
➢ You ate your salad after the main course.\
➢ You thought Catholic was the only religion in the world.
➢ You were beaten at least once with a wooden spoon or broom.
➢ You thought every meal had to be eaten with a hunk of bread in your hand.
➢ You can understand Italian but you can’t speak it.
➢ You have at least one relative who came over on the boat.
➢ All of your uncles fought in a World War.
➢ You have at least six male relatives named Tony, Frank, Joe or Louie.
➢ You have relatives who aren’t really your relatives.
➢ You have relatives you don’t speak to.
➢ You drank wine before you were a teenager.
➢ You grew up in a house with a yard that didn’t have one patch of dirt that didn’t have a flower or a vegetable growing out of it.
➢ Your grandparent’s furniture was as comfortable as sitting on plastic. Wait a minute! You were sitting on plastic.
➢ You thought that talking loud was normal.
➢ You thought sugared almonds and the Tarantella were common at all weddings.
➢ You thought everyone got pinched on the cheeks and money stuffed in their pockets by their relatives.
➢ Your mother is overly protective of the males in the family no matter what their age.
➢ There was a crucifix in every room of the house.
➢ Wakes would be held in someone’s living room.
➢ You couldn’t date a boy without getting approval from your father and he had to be Italian.
➢ You called pasta “macaroni.”
➢ You dreaded taking out your lunch at school.
➢ Going out for a cup of coffee usually meant going out for a cup of coffee over Zia’s house.
➢ Every condition, ailment, misfortune, memory loss and accident was attributed to the fact that you didn’t eat something.
Weekly HOMILY for May 6,2007: The Lesson of the $100
Fifth Sunday of Easter, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
May 6, 2007
The Lesson of the $100
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
The $100
Last year I was on vacation for a week with four priest friends.
We rented two adjoining apartments in a resort right on the ocean. The complex was large, with four hotel towers and three restaurants.
The resort was also a cashless society. You just needed to show your hotel ID in the restaurants and they would charge your account.
You know the routine: a painless way to wrack up a big bill!
Given my affinity for cooking, we ate in for many meals. Every other day, I’d go to the local market that was only five minutes away to stock up on supplies.
This one day I got everything I needed, was checking out and the bill came to about $85.
And then I realized the problem. I didn’t have my wallet and the store was not part of the resort where we were staying.
What was I going to do? I began asking the clerk if she could hold my order right there while I ran back to the hotel and got my wallet.
As I was saying this, a couple who had just checked out in the next line came over and asked what I needed. And before I could answer, he handed me five $20 bills and said that he and his wife would be on the beach at the volleyball court that afternoon and I could pay them back there.
I was speechless. I had never seen either of them and they didn’t know me.
There I was in sandals, shorts, and a tee shirt; not a black suit and Roman collar. And here this couple comes to my assistance by handing me $100!
Love Without Saying It
Isn’t that an amazing experience?
I was overwhelmed by what this guy and his wife – Tom and Jean – did for me. And I think it illustrates perfectly what Jesus is saying in today’s Gospel.
He says: “Love one another. Such as my love has been for you, so must your love be for one another.”
The fellow at the beach never used the word “love” and, as a matter of fact, I would have wondered about him if he had. The truth of the matter was he was living out in a very demonstrative way Jesus’ command to love.
What Love Isn’t and What Love Is
Notice, he did not base his helping me on any merit of mine – on whether I deserved it or not. In fact, my problem was my own fault, my own forgetfulness.
He did not make his assistance a quid-pro-quo. In other words, he did not loan me the $100 on the condition that I would do something for him in return.
And, what he did was not primarily a feeling he had for me.
It was for none of those reasons that he helped me. It was instead a decision to help, an action, an act of love, if you will.
Jesus’ Love
This, I suggest, is what Jesus does and what his love for us is like.
Jesus shows his love for us throughout his life by all that he says in scripture and all the things that he does. And those words and actions get summed up in one powerful image: this cross.
It is why we must have a crucifix – a cross with a body on it – in our churches, because it captures like nothing else Jesus’ love for you and me.
And like the couple in the market, Jesus’ love is not based on any merit of ours. In fact, we humans have had a pretty checkered history in the way we have lived.
Jesus’ love is not a quid-pro-quo. Even though he calls us to live a certain way, he does not do this on the condition that we will actually do what he asks us to do.
And Jesus’ love involves a decision and an action. It is not just or not primarily a feeling.
Jesus gives himself to us freely and fully. He gives himself to us for our wellbeing. He gives himself to us that we may be saved and have life with him now and for eternity.
And this is what the Eucharist or Holy Communion is all about.
It’s about Jesus giving himself to us right here and now. He gives us his Body and Blood, under the forms of bread and wine.
Imagine the gift. And in our eating and drinking we become one with him and acquire strength, comfort, and the relationship with will get us anything and everything we experience.
Conclusion
By the way, I did go to the volleyball area of the beach that afternoon.
And I did find Tom and Jean. And I did pay back the $100.
As I walked away I remember saying to myself, “This would make a great homily someday” and that day has come.
God bless the Toms and Jeans everywhere. May we be more like them, more like Jesus.
Our Lady of Grace
May 6, 2007
The Lesson of the $100
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
The $100
Last year I was on vacation for a week with four priest friends.
We rented two adjoining apartments in a resort right on the ocean. The complex was large, with four hotel towers and three restaurants.
The resort was also a cashless society. You just needed to show your hotel ID in the restaurants and they would charge your account.
You know the routine: a painless way to wrack up a big bill!
Given my affinity for cooking, we ate in for many meals. Every other day, I’d go to the local market that was only five minutes away to stock up on supplies.
This one day I got everything I needed, was checking out and the bill came to about $85.
And then I realized the problem. I didn’t have my wallet and the store was not part of the resort where we were staying.
What was I going to do? I began asking the clerk if she could hold my order right there while I ran back to the hotel and got my wallet.
As I was saying this, a couple who had just checked out in the next line came over and asked what I needed. And before I could answer, he handed me five $20 bills and said that he and his wife would be on the beach at the volleyball court that afternoon and I could pay them back there.
I was speechless. I had never seen either of them and they didn’t know me.
There I was in sandals, shorts, and a tee shirt; not a black suit and Roman collar. And here this couple comes to my assistance by handing me $100!
Love Without Saying It
Isn’t that an amazing experience?
I was overwhelmed by what this guy and his wife – Tom and Jean – did for me. And I think it illustrates perfectly what Jesus is saying in today’s Gospel.
He says: “Love one another. Such as my love has been for you, so must your love be for one another.”
The fellow at the beach never used the word “love” and, as a matter of fact, I would have wondered about him if he had. The truth of the matter was he was living out in a very demonstrative way Jesus’ command to love.
What Love Isn’t and What Love Is
Notice, he did not base his helping me on any merit of mine – on whether I deserved it or not. In fact, my problem was my own fault, my own forgetfulness.
He did not make his assistance a quid-pro-quo. In other words, he did not loan me the $100 on the condition that I would do something for him in return.
And, what he did was not primarily a feeling he had for me.
It was for none of those reasons that he helped me. It was instead a decision to help, an action, an act of love, if you will.
Jesus’ Love
This, I suggest, is what Jesus does and what his love for us is like.
Jesus shows his love for us throughout his life by all that he says in scripture and all the things that he does. And those words and actions get summed up in one powerful image: this cross.
It is why we must have a crucifix – a cross with a body on it – in our churches, because it captures like nothing else Jesus’ love for you and me.
And like the couple in the market, Jesus’ love is not based on any merit of ours. In fact, we humans have had a pretty checkered history in the way we have lived.
Jesus’ love is not a quid-pro-quo. Even though he calls us to live a certain way, he does not do this on the condition that we will actually do what he asks us to do.
And Jesus’ love involves a decision and an action. It is not just or not primarily a feeling.
Jesus gives himself to us freely and fully. He gives himself to us for our wellbeing. He gives himself to us that we may be saved and have life with him now and for eternity.
And this is what the Eucharist or Holy Communion is all about.
It’s about Jesus giving himself to us right here and now. He gives us his Body and Blood, under the forms of bread and wine.
Imagine the gift. And in our eating and drinking we become one with him and acquire strength, comfort, and the relationship with will get us anything and everything we experience.
Conclusion
By the way, I did go to the volleyball area of the beach that afternoon.
And I did find Tom and Jean. And I did pay back the $100.
As I walked away I remember saying to myself, “This would make a great homily someday” and that day has come.
God bless the Toms and Jeans everywhere. May we be more like them, more like Jesus.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for April 29, 2007: Time for Reflection
April 26, 2007
Focus: Time for Reflection
Dear Friend,
I have just returned from Easter Break and a wonderful time to be with friends, reading, reflecting, praying, and enjoying each other’s company. What a joy it was to “have it all!” Perhaps one of the most enriching of the experiences was the daily mediation I did each morning and evening for a half hour. Meditation, reflection, Centering Prayer, contemplation – call it what you will – has a way of doing that. The wonderful thing about this activity is that you don’t have to even leave home or have a day off to accomplish it.
The following are some words a friend recently shared with me about the joy of her reflection.
After a full day out in the world, stories, words, images, and songs from any number of sources continue to play in our heads hours after we encounter them. Even as we lie in bed, in the quiet dark, our minds continue noisily processing all the input from our day. This can leave us feeling unsettled and harassed. It also makes it difficult to take in any new information or inspiration. Like a cluttered house that needs to be cleared if it is to have room for movement and new life, our minds need clearing if they are to be open to new information, ideas, and inspiration.
Too often, the activities we choose to help us relax only add to the clutter. Watching television, seeing a movie, reading a book, or talking to a friend all involve taking in more information. In order to really clear our minds, we need a break from mental stimulation. Activities like yoga, dancing, or taking a long walk help to draw our attention to our bodies, slowing our mental activity enough that our minds begin to settle. Deep breathing is an even simpler way to draw attention away from our mental activities. Once we are mentally relaxed, we can begin the process of clearing our minds. Most of us instinctively know what allows our minds to relax and release any unnecessary clutter. It may be meditation or time spent staring at the stars. Whatever it is, these exercises feel like a cool, cleansing bath for the brain and leave our minds feeling clear and open.
Setting aside time to clear our minds once a day creates a ritual that becomes second nature over time. Our minds will begin to settle with less effort the more we practice. Ultimately, the practice of clearing our minds allows us to be increasingly more open so that we can perceive the world as the fresh offering it is, free of yesterday's mental clutter.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Focus: Time for Reflection
Dear Friend,
I have just returned from Easter Break and a wonderful time to be with friends, reading, reflecting, praying, and enjoying each other’s company. What a joy it was to “have it all!” Perhaps one of the most enriching of the experiences was the daily mediation I did each morning and evening for a half hour. Meditation, reflection, Centering Prayer, contemplation – call it what you will – has a way of doing that. The wonderful thing about this activity is that you don’t have to even leave home or have a day off to accomplish it.
The following are some words a friend recently shared with me about the joy of her reflection.
After a full day out in the world, stories, words, images, and songs from any number of sources continue to play in our heads hours after we encounter them. Even as we lie in bed, in the quiet dark, our minds continue noisily processing all the input from our day. This can leave us feeling unsettled and harassed. It also makes it difficult to take in any new information or inspiration. Like a cluttered house that needs to be cleared if it is to have room for movement and new life, our minds need clearing if they are to be open to new information, ideas, and inspiration.
Too often, the activities we choose to help us relax only add to the clutter. Watching television, seeing a movie, reading a book, or talking to a friend all involve taking in more information. In order to really clear our minds, we need a break from mental stimulation. Activities like yoga, dancing, or taking a long walk help to draw our attention to our bodies, slowing our mental activity enough that our minds begin to settle. Deep breathing is an even simpler way to draw attention away from our mental activities. Once we are mentally relaxed, we can begin the process of clearing our minds. Most of us instinctively know what allows our minds to relax and release any unnecessary clutter. It may be meditation or time spent staring at the stars. Whatever it is, these exercises feel like a cool, cleansing bath for the brain and leave our minds feeling clear and open.
Setting aside time to clear our minds once a day creates a ritual that becomes second nature over time. Our minds will begin to settle with less effort the more we practice. Ultimately, the practice of clearing our minds allows us to be increasingly more open so that we can perceive the world as the fresh offering it is, free of yesterday's mental clutter.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly THIS AND THAT for April 29, 2007: More Elderly, Fewer Babies
This and That:
More Elderly, Fewer Babies
The latest population projections point to a big increase in the number of elderly people in the coming decades. Last month the United Nations Population Division published the “World Population Prospects: The 2006 Revision.” It forecasts a world population of 9.2 billion by 2050, up from the current 6.7 billion. The increase will come from the less developed countries, whose population is projected to rise from 5.4 billion in 2007 to 7.9 billion in 2050.
In the economically developed nations, the report expects the population to remain largely unchanged at 1.2 billion. In fact, it would decline if it were not for immigration. The United Nations calculates that there will be a net migration from developing to developed countries of around 2.3 million people annually. In all countries, however, by 2050 the average age will be significantly higher. No less than half of the increase between 2005 and 2050 is expected to come from a rise in the population 60 and over. By contrast, the number of those under 15 will decline slightly. Aging will be particularly marked in the developed regions, where the population 60 and over is expected to nearly increase from 245 million to 406 million. That’s a 66% increase! The 2006 Revision also forecasts that fertility will continue to decline in developing countries. The study projects a drop from 2.75 children per woman in 2005-2010 to 2.05 in 2045-2050. The projected population level for 2050 could, however, prove to be too high.
Only a few years ago, population concerns were centered on what was supposed to be the threat due to a boom in births. The exaggerated fears of a population boom led to many abuses, such as forced sterilizations and abortions. Now, however, the 2006 Revision states that the world population is in the midst of an “unprecedented transformation” due to a change from a situation of high mortality and high fertility to one of low mortality and low fertility. By 2045, the number of persons in the world aged 60 and over is set to surpass, for the first time in history, the number of those under 15.
By 2050 the continued aging of the population means that all developed countries are expected to have median ages higher than 40 years. Meanwhile, the populations in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean will be undergoing a more rapid aging than the developed regions, due to the fertility reductions imposed as a result of family planning programs.
This will bring with it a big reduction in the working population and paying taxes to support those who are retired. The support ratio – the ratio of persons aged 15 to 64 over the sum of the number of children and of persons aged 65 or over – is expected to begin declining after 2010 in Europe, Northern America and Oceania, after 2015 in Asia and after 2025 in Latin America and the Caribbean. By 2050, Europe is expected to have the lowest support ratio, at 1.4 persons of working age for every dependant. Other regions are expected to have support ratios ranging from 1.6 in Northern America to 1.9 in Africa.
The financial challenges caused by an aging population are receiving growing attention. On March 13, 2007 the London Financial Times published an article on the problems faced by Singapore. Singapore, with its successful economy, should be well placed to handle a growing number of elderly. It has also avoided setting up a costly welfare system. Nevertheless, by 2030 Singapore is expected to have a quarter of its population comprised of persons above 65 years of age. With many of the older workers in low-paying jobs, and the prospect of only 2.2 workers to support each elderly person, compared with 10 workers in 2000, a growing income gap between rich and poor is forecast.
On April 5, 2006, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, addressed a session of the U.N.’s Commission on Population and Development of the Economic and Social Council. Radical population policies in past years have caused serious problems due to falling birthrates. “If the development of the world’s peoples is to be both sustainable and sane, such flawed policies will have to be replaced by truly people-centered ones,” he argued. This is a challenge, indeed, for a rapidly aging world.
More Elderly, Fewer Babies
The latest population projections point to a big increase in the number of elderly people in the coming decades. Last month the United Nations Population Division published the “World Population Prospects: The 2006 Revision.” It forecasts a world population of 9.2 billion by 2050, up from the current 6.7 billion. The increase will come from the less developed countries, whose population is projected to rise from 5.4 billion in 2007 to 7.9 billion in 2050.
In the economically developed nations, the report expects the population to remain largely unchanged at 1.2 billion. In fact, it would decline if it were not for immigration. The United Nations calculates that there will be a net migration from developing to developed countries of around 2.3 million people annually. In all countries, however, by 2050 the average age will be significantly higher. No less than half of the increase between 2005 and 2050 is expected to come from a rise in the population 60 and over. By contrast, the number of those under 15 will decline slightly. Aging will be particularly marked in the developed regions, where the population 60 and over is expected to nearly increase from 245 million to 406 million. That’s a 66% increase! The 2006 Revision also forecasts that fertility will continue to decline in developing countries. The study projects a drop from 2.75 children per woman in 2005-2010 to 2.05 in 2045-2050. The projected population level for 2050 could, however, prove to be too high.
Only a few years ago, population concerns were centered on what was supposed to be the threat due to a boom in births. The exaggerated fears of a population boom led to many abuses, such as forced sterilizations and abortions. Now, however, the 2006 Revision states that the world population is in the midst of an “unprecedented transformation” due to a change from a situation of high mortality and high fertility to one of low mortality and low fertility. By 2045, the number of persons in the world aged 60 and over is set to surpass, for the first time in history, the number of those under 15.
By 2050 the continued aging of the population means that all developed countries are expected to have median ages higher than 40 years. Meanwhile, the populations in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean will be undergoing a more rapid aging than the developed regions, due to the fertility reductions imposed as a result of family planning programs.
This will bring with it a big reduction in the working population and paying taxes to support those who are retired. The support ratio – the ratio of persons aged 15 to 64 over the sum of the number of children and of persons aged 65 or over – is expected to begin declining after 2010 in Europe, Northern America and Oceania, after 2015 in Asia and after 2025 in Latin America and the Caribbean. By 2050, Europe is expected to have the lowest support ratio, at 1.4 persons of working age for every dependant. Other regions are expected to have support ratios ranging from 1.6 in Northern America to 1.9 in Africa.
The financial challenges caused by an aging population are receiving growing attention. On March 13, 2007 the London Financial Times published an article on the problems faced by Singapore. Singapore, with its successful economy, should be well placed to handle a growing number of elderly. It has also avoided setting up a costly welfare system. Nevertheless, by 2030 Singapore is expected to have a quarter of its population comprised of persons above 65 years of age. With many of the older workers in low-paying jobs, and the prospect of only 2.2 workers to support each elderly person, compared with 10 workers in 2000, a growing income gap between rich and poor is forecast.
On April 5, 2006, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, addressed a session of the U.N.’s Commission on Population and Development of the Economic and Social Council. Radical population policies in past years have caused serious problems due to falling birthrates. “If the development of the world’s peoples is to be both sustainable and sane, such flawed policies will have to be replaced by truly people-centered ones,” he argued. This is a challenge, indeed, for a rapidly aging world.
Weekly HOMILY for April 29, 2007: Marriage: Created and Creating As God
Marriage of Greg and Emily Herwig
College of Notre Dame
(B-1, D-4, and F-5)
April 28, 2007
Marriage: Created and Creating As God
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Note: Since this was Deacon Preaching Sunday, Father Nick did not preach at his Masses. The following is a wedding homily he gave on Saturday at the wedding of Greg and Emily Herwig at the chapel of the College of Notre Dame in Baltimore City.
The Gilgamesh Epic
Biblical scholars tell us that at a certain time in history the Jewish People began to ask themselves, “How did we come to be? How were we created?”
In trying to find an answer to that question, two things were foremost in their minds: (1) How good God had been to them in creating them and (2) How God had chosen them from among all other people to be his very own.
God’s goodness and God’s choosing them – those two ideas filled their minds and hearts.
In trying to answer how it was that God created them, they looked around at the pagan religions of their neighbors and found an old Sumerian story called the Gilgamesh Epic.
The Gilgamesh Epic spoke of a cool and luxurious garden in which God had created a man and a woman from the earth.
Using this story as a base, they embellished it and it became the wonderful story of the creation of Adam and Eve that we find in the Book of Genesis.
God’s Creating
This scriptural background helps us understand better the first reading from Genesis that Greg and Emily have chosen for their marriage.
How beautifully it expresses God’s goodness – their sense of being blessed.
The passage tells us that God was primarily interested in creating something like himself and then empowering that creation with similar attributes.
We read that after God accomplishes this act of creation, he sits back and the writer of Genesis says, “God saw all he had made and indeed it was very good.”
Good, indeed! What a wonderful place to come from as you begin your lives together – the place of knowing that in creating each of you, God was very pleased with what he had done.
Created in God’s Image
The author of Genesis isn’t content simply to have God express his satisfaction over creating us. The writer goes into how God actually accomplished it.
There are three things that this “accomplishment” teaches us about marriage.
The FIRST is that we’re created in God’s image. Just as a hand in the mirror is an image of the real hand, so you both are God’s image.
And just how do husband and wife image God? As Christians, we believe, in God’s unity and diversity. We profess one God, yet three divine persons.
In the marriage bond, two separate individuals – complete with their very different personalities – can achieve a unity and oneness that is unparalleled in nature, a unity found only in the Godhead.
Husband and wife become one entity, a oneness that is expressed in a unity of shared feelings, a unity of life’s fulfillments, a unity of life’s disappointments.
Given Dominion
A SECOND thing that God’s creating man and woman teaches us about marriage has to do with being given dominion over all creation.
In being given dominion, God has not called you to dominate or violate nature, but to live in harmony with it.
Greg and Emily, you have the power to create jointly and to name the works of your hands, whether that creation is a home, a holiday dinner, love letters, relationships with friends, a child.
Know that you have been created partners and helpmates to one another and a woman is not a man’s shadow, nor his servant, but his other self.
In fact, the word “helpmate,” translated from the Hebrew, actually means “one who stands at the side of the other.”
God then, has created each of you as a partner and helpmate for the other, to lovingly rule over the works of your hands.
Remain at each other’s side; remain true companions and like any good companion, bring to your creating your very own unique gifts and talents.
Be Fruitful and Multiply
FINALLY, you’ve been called to be fruitful and multiply.
The children to be borne of your union will be proof itself that the Lord knows that it is not good for either man or woman to be alone.
Your very union then as husband and wife is of divine origin. It is a holy state in which you both can live a completeness not otherwise attainable alone.
That is important to remember Greg and Emily, when friends, possessions, careers, even your families or your children, seek to be first in our lives.
God saying, “Be fruitful and multiply” is divine testimony that no one or no thing, must ever come between your love for each other.
Conclusion
Greg and Emily, what we wish for you today on your wedding day is this sense of God’s goodness that has been bestowed upon you and has brought you to his altar today.
Let the reading from the Book of Genesis that you have chosen guide you on your common journey.
It is good that you have found each other.
Always remember that you have been (1) Created in God’s image, that you have been (2) Given dominion over creation and that your call is to (3) Be fruitful and multiply.
College of Notre Dame
(B-1, D-4, and F-5)
April 28, 2007
Marriage: Created and Creating As God
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Note: Since this was Deacon Preaching Sunday, Father Nick did not preach at his Masses. The following is a wedding homily he gave on Saturday at the wedding of Greg and Emily Herwig at the chapel of the College of Notre Dame in Baltimore City.
The Gilgamesh Epic
Biblical scholars tell us that at a certain time in history the Jewish People began to ask themselves, “How did we come to be? How were we created?”
In trying to find an answer to that question, two things were foremost in their minds: (1) How good God had been to them in creating them and (2) How God had chosen them from among all other people to be his very own.
God’s goodness and God’s choosing them – those two ideas filled their minds and hearts.
In trying to answer how it was that God created them, they looked around at the pagan religions of their neighbors and found an old Sumerian story called the Gilgamesh Epic.
The Gilgamesh Epic spoke of a cool and luxurious garden in which God had created a man and a woman from the earth.
Using this story as a base, they embellished it and it became the wonderful story of the creation of Adam and Eve that we find in the Book of Genesis.
God’s Creating
This scriptural background helps us understand better the first reading from Genesis that Greg and Emily have chosen for their marriage.
How beautifully it expresses God’s goodness – their sense of being blessed.
The passage tells us that God was primarily interested in creating something like himself and then empowering that creation with similar attributes.
We read that after God accomplishes this act of creation, he sits back and the writer of Genesis says, “God saw all he had made and indeed it was very good.”
Good, indeed! What a wonderful place to come from as you begin your lives together – the place of knowing that in creating each of you, God was very pleased with what he had done.
Created in God’s Image
The author of Genesis isn’t content simply to have God express his satisfaction over creating us. The writer goes into how God actually accomplished it.
There are three things that this “accomplishment” teaches us about marriage.
The FIRST is that we’re created in God’s image. Just as a hand in the mirror is an image of the real hand, so you both are God’s image.
And just how do husband and wife image God? As Christians, we believe, in God’s unity and diversity. We profess one God, yet three divine persons.
In the marriage bond, two separate individuals – complete with their very different personalities – can achieve a unity and oneness that is unparalleled in nature, a unity found only in the Godhead.
Husband and wife become one entity, a oneness that is expressed in a unity of shared feelings, a unity of life’s fulfillments, a unity of life’s disappointments.
Given Dominion
A SECOND thing that God’s creating man and woman teaches us about marriage has to do with being given dominion over all creation.
In being given dominion, God has not called you to dominate or violate nature, but to live in harmony with it.
Greg and Emily, you have the power to create jointly and to name the works of your hands, whether that creation is a home, a holiday dinner, love letters, relationships with friends, a child.
Know that you have been created partners and helpmates to one another and a woman is not a man’s shadow, nor his servant, but his other self.
In fact, the word “helpmate,” translated from the Hebrew, actually means “one who stands at the side of the other.”
God then, has created each of you as a partner and helpmate for the other, to lovingly rule over the works of your hands.
Remain at each other’s side; remain true companions and like any good companion, bring to your creating your very own unique gifts and talents.
Be Fruitful and Multiply
FINALLY, you’ve been called to be fruitful and multiply.
The children to be borne of your union will be proof itself that the Lord knows that it is not good for either man or woman to be alone.
Your very union then as husband and wife is of divine origin. It is a holy state in which you both can live a completeness not otherwise attainable alone.
That is important to remember Greg and Emily, when friends, possessions, careers, even your families or your children, seek to be first in our lives.
God saying, “Be fruitful and multiply” is divine testimony that no one or no thing, must ever come between your love for each other.
Conclusion
Greg and Emily, what we wish for you today on your wedding day is this sense of God’s goodness that has been bestowed upon you and has brought you to his altar today.
Let the reading from the Book of Genesis that you have chosen guide you on your common journey.
It is good that you have found each other.
Always remember that you have been (1) Created in God’s image, that you have been (2) Given dominion over creation and that your call is to (3) Be fruitful and multiply.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for April 15: Time Spent Waiting
April 15, 2007
Focus: Time Spent Waiting
Dear Friend,
It could be argued that life is more about the time we spend waiting for something to happen than it is about something happening. What that boils down to is that the big events in our lives are preceded by many days and nights of dreaming, planning, organizing, and waiting. Yet it is the times of waiting in between the big events that actually constitute the majority of our lives. These “in-between times” are anything, but uneventful. In fact, they are rich with possibility and filled with opportunities for reflection and preparation, especially during these glorious seven weeks of Easter. Like a pregnant couple awaiting the birth of her child, we have a finite period of time in which to prepare internally and externally for the upcoming event that will define a new chapter in our lives.
When we find ourselves in an “in-between time,” we often can't help but feel impatient for the impending event. We just want to get to the future and have the new baby, the new job, the vacation, or a renewed, refreshed, or deepened connection with God. And yet, there is a reason a pregnancy takes nine months to fulfill itself. Nature provides the expectant parents with this time so that they can prepare the nest. This preparation plays out on many levels. Spatially, a space must be created in the home and resources must be set aside for the baby's future. Psychologically, a shift must occur in which the psyches of both parents agree to be responsible for a new life in the world. Emotionally, the heart must open wider to embrace and fulfill a new love.
Whenever you find yourself in such a time of waiting, you might want to spend time exploring your emotional, spiritual, psychological, and material readiness for the upcoming event or you may simply bask in the joy that is the waiting.
I’ll be on Easter Break next week enjoying time with friends and doing lots of reading. My next letter will be on Thursday, April 26, 2007.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Focus: Time Spent Waiting
Dear Friend,
It could be argued that life is more about the time we spend waiting for something to happen than it is about something happening. What that boils down to is that the big events in our lives are preceded by many days and nights of dreaming, planning, organizing, and waiting. Yet it is the times of waiting in between the big events that actually constitute the majority of our lives. These “in-between times” are anything, but uneventful. In fact, they are rich with possibility and filled with opportunities for reflection and preparation, especially during these glorious seven weeks of Easter. Like a pregnant couple awaiting the birth of her child, we have a finite period of time in which to prepare internally and externally for the upcoming event that will define a new chapter in our lives.
When we find ourselves in an “in-between time,” we often can't help but feel impatient for the impending event. We just want to get to the future and have the new baby, the new job, the vacation, or a renewed, refreshed, or deepened connection with God. And yet, there is a reason a pregnancy takes nine months to fulfill itself. Nature provides the expectant parents with this time so that they can prepare the nest. This preparation plays out on many levels. Spatially, a space must be created in the home and resources must be set aside for the baby's future. Psychologically, a shift must occur in which the psyches of both parents agree to be responsible for a new life in the world. Emotionally, the heart must open wider to embrace and fulfill a new love.
Whenever you find yourself in such a time of waiting, you might want to spend time exploring your emotional, spiritual, psychological, and material readiness for the upcoming event or you may simply bask in the joy that is the waiting.
I’ll be on Easter Break next week enjoying time with friends and doing lots of reading. My next letter will be on Thursday, April 26, 2007.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly HOMILY for April 15, 2007: From Suffering to Empowerment
Second Sunday of Easter, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
April 15, 2007
From Suffering to Empowerment
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Bill W: Suffering to Power
One day, back in the early 1900’s, a longtime alcoholic named Bill W. visited a home for recovering alcoholics in New York City.
On the orders of his doctor, he went into the room of a young man to show him the effects of drinking, but surprisingly, Bill W. found himself speaking to the young man with great passion.
He spoke of the dangers of drinking and of the human need for a Greater Power in your life.
As a result of this passionate sharing Bill W. found himself changed. He went on to found Alcoholics Anonymous which is based on this very same kind of sharing.
Something else Bill W. learned is that personal peace and empowerment are always connected to adversity and that his adversity is the very breeding ground for transformation.
What is takes to be transformed is: (1) First, to admit and own up to the suffering, struggle, and weakness in our lives. As we do that, (2) We are given the opportunity to reach out to a Greater Power – the Power of God. (3) Only then, do we experience the gifts that come from that God.
And those gifts are an inner peace or calm, and a personal power or empowerment for living our lives in a fulfilling and happy way.
Thomas: From Suffering to Empowerment
I suggest that we see this same experience or dynamic at work in today’s Gospel.
Thomas is feeling lost, disappointed and afraid. He is confused and doubting and searching.
What does Thomas want, when the other apostles say that they have seen the risen Jesus? He wants to see evidence of the suffering.
Thomas wants to see the wounds in Jesus’ hands and side. If he sees these, then he will know that it is Jesus and he will be able to believe.
The idea is that Jesus had submitted himself on the cross to the Father and Thomas will also be able to do the same thing. And this is exactly what happens.
Thomas sees Jesus’ wounds and this moves him to bring his sufferings and struggles, his doubts and questions to that Greater Power. We see this so clearly when he calls Jesus “My Lord and my God.”
And then, we have to imagine that the results for Thomas are the same as they are for others Apostles. He, like the others, must have experienced the peace that flows from Jesus and that Jesus even verbally imparts here.
And then Thomas must also have experienced the power or empowerment within himself. With the other apostles, he received the power of forgiveness and set out to bring God’s love and reconciliation to others.
You and I: From Suffering to Empowerment
So I would first ask you, where is your pain? Is it loneliness or worry? Is it uncertainty or doubt? Is it betrayal or another’s hostility?
Is it a struggle with sickness or some kind of compulsive behavior? Where are you in pain? Where do you struggle or suffering?
(1) We too need to own or admit this. And then (2) We need to reach out and submit ourselves to that Greater Power, as Bill W. says, in other words, to God. I recommend that we join Thomas in submitting to Jesus and saying, “My Lord and my God.”
If we do that, then (3) We will receive the gifts that flow from God. We will experience an inner peace right in the midst of our distress or struggle or pain.
And we will experience a power or empowerment for living: for reaching out to others even in loneliness, for persevering in pain, for managing our compulsive behavior – whatever the suffering or struggle may be.
Conclusion
Yes, what happened for Bill W. and for Thomas can happen for us.
It depends on only one thing – on our willingness – willingness to admit our need and to submit ourselves and our sufferings to God.
If we do that, then we allow God’s peace and power to flow into us and to change our lives.
Our Lady of Grace
April 15, 2007
From Suffering to Empowerment
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Bill W: Suffering to Power
One day, back in the early 1900’s, a longtime alcoholic named Bill W. visited a home for recovering alcoholics in New York City.
On the orders of his doctor, he went into the room of a young man to show him the effects of drinking, but surprisingly, Bill W. found himself speaking to the young man with great passion.
He spoke of the dangers of drinking and of the human need for a Greater Power in your life.
As a result of this passionate sharing Bill W. found himself changed. He went on to found Alcoholics Anonymous which is based on this very same kind of sharing.
Something else Bill W. learned is that personal peace and empowerment are always connected to adversity and that his adversity is the very breeding ground for transformation.
What is takes to be transformed is: (1) First, to admit and own up to the suffering, struggle, and weakness in our lives. As we do that, (2) We are given the opportunity to reach out to a Greater Power – the Power of God. (3) Only then, do we experience the gifts that come from that God.
And those gifts are an inner peace or calm, and a personal power or empowerment for living our lives in a fulfilling and happy way.
Thomas: From Suffering to Empowerment
I suggest that we see this same experience or dynamic at work in today’s Gospel.
Thomas is feeling lost, disappointed and afraid. He is confused and doubting and searching.
What does Thomas want, when the other apostles say that they have seen the risen Jesus? He wants to see evidence of the suffering.
Thomas wants to see the wounds in Jesus’ hands and side. If he sees these, then he will know that it is Jesus and he will be able to believe.
The idea is that Jesus had submitted himself on the cross to the Father and Thomas will also be able to do the same thing. And this is exactly what happens.
Thomas sees Jesus’ wounds and this moves him to bring his sufferings and struggles, his doubts and questions to that Greater Power. We see this so clearly when he calls Jesus “My Lord and my God.”
And then, we have to imagine that the results for Thomas are the same as they are for others Apostles. He, like the others, must have experienced the peace that flows from Jesus and that Jesus even verbally imparts here.
And then Thomas must also have experienced the power or empowerment within himself. With the other apostles, he received the power of forgiveness and set out to bring God’s love and reconciliation to others.
You and I: From Suffering to Empowerment
So I would first ask you, where is your pain? Is it loneliness or worry? Is it uncertainty or doubt? Is it betrayal or another’s hostility?
Is it a struggle with sickness or some kind of compulsive behavior? Where are you in pain? Where do you struggle or suffering?
(1) We too need to own or admit this. And then (2) We need to reach out and submit ourselves to that Greater Power, as Bill W. says, in other words, to God. I recommend that we join Thomas in submitting to Jesus and saying, “My Lord and my God.”
If we do that, then (3) We will receive the gifts that flow from God. We will experience an inner peace right in the midst of our distress or struggle or pain.
And we will experience a power or empowerment for living: for reaching out to others even in loneliness, for persevering in pain, for managing our compulsive behavior – whatever the suffering or struggle may be.
Conclusion
Yes, what happened for Bill W. and for Thomas can happen for us.
It depends on only one thing – on our willingness – willingness to admit our need and to submit ourselves and our sufferings to God.
If we do that, then we allow God’s peace and power to flow into us and to change our lives.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for April 8, 2007: Dying and Rising in Christ
April 5, 2007
Focus: Dying and Rising in Christ
Dear Friend
Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed!
It is difficult to believe that Christ is risen if we haven’t experienced small dyings and risings in our own daily living. They may be simple ones like the joy of being forgiven by God for a past offense, the insight that the choices someone close to me makes need not put me in a frantic or anxious state because I come from a different “center,” or the daffodils, tulips and crocuses pressing up through the earth after a long cold winter of “death.”
Easter is a time for renewal and for replenishing our energy through our faith in life being stronger than death. Here’s a reflection for this marvelous feast.
Within each of us there is a well of energy that must be regularly replenished. When we act as if this well is bottomless, scheduling a long list of activities that fit like puzzle pieces into every minute of every day, it becomes depleted and we feel exhausted, disconnected, and weak.
Refilling this well is a matter of finding time to focus on, nurture, and care for ourselves, or simply to take some “you time.” Most of us are, at different times throughout the day, a spouse, a friend, a relative, an employee, a parent, or a volunteer, a parishioner which means that down time is not necessarily “you time.” Though some people will inevitably look upon “you time"” as being selfish, it is actually the polar opposite of selfishness. We can only excel when our own spiritual, physical, and intellectual needs are fulfilled.
Recognizing the importance of “you time” is far easier than finding a place for it in an active, multifaceted lifestyle, however. Even if you find a spot for it in your agenda, you may be dismayed to discover that your thoughts continuously stray into worldly territory. To make the most of “you time,” give yourself enough time on either side of the block of time you plan to spend on yourself to ensure that you do not feel rushed. Consider how you would like to pass the time, forgetting for the moment your obligations and embracing the notion of renewal. You may discover that you are energized by creative pursuits, meditation, praying the rosary, doing relaxing activities during which your mind can wander, modes of expression such as writing, or the slow reading of Sacred Scripture.
Even if you have achieved a functioning work-life balance, you may still be neglecting the most important part of that equation – namely, you. “You time” prepares you for the next round of daily life, whether you are poised to immerse yourself in a professional project or chores around the home. It also affords you a unique opportunity to learn about yourself, your needs, and your tolerances in a concrete way. As unimportant as “you time” can sometimes seem, it truly is crucial to your wellbeing because it ensures that you are never left without the energy to give of yourself.
This state of being is truly the hope and promise of Easter.
Happy Easter to you and your loved ones! Christ is risen and we are rising each day in him.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Focus: Dying and Rising in Christ
Dear Friend
Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed!
It is difficult to believe that Christ is risen if we haven’t experienced small dyings and risings in our own daily living. They may be simple ones like the joy of being forgiven by God for a past offense, the insight that the choices someone close to me makes need not put me in a frantic or anxious state because I come from a different “center,” or the daffodils, tulips and crocuses pressing up through the earth after a long cold winter of “death.”
Easter is a time for renewal and for replenishing our energy through our faith in life being stronger than death. Here’s a reflection for this marvelous feast.
Within each of us there is a well of energy that must be regularly replenished. When we act as if this well is bottomless, scheduling a long list of activities that fit like puzzle pieces into every minute of every day, it becomes depleted and we feel exhausted, disconnected, and weak.
Refilling this well is a matter of finding time to focus on, nurture, and care for ourselves, or simply to take some “you time.” Most of us are, at different times throughout the day, a spouse, a friend, a relative, an employee, a parent, or a volunteer, a parishioner which means that down time is not necessarily “you time.” Though some people will inevitably look upon “you time"” as being selfish, it is actually the polar opposite of selfishness. We can only excel when our own spiritual, physical, and intellectual needs are fulfilled.
Recognizing the importance of “you time” is far easier than finding a place for it in an active, multifaceted lifestyle, however. Even if you find a spot for it in your agenda, you may be dismayed to discover that your thoughts continuously stray into worldly territory. To make the most of “you time,” give yourself enough time on either side of the block of time you plan to spend on yourself to ensure that you do not feel rushed. Consider how you would like to pass the time, forgetting for the moment your obligations and embracing the notion of renewal. You may discover that you are energized by creative pursuits, meditation, praying the rosary, doing relaxing activities during which your mind can wander, modes of expression such as writing, or the slow reading of Sacred Scripture.
Even if you have achieved a functioning work-life balance, you may still be neglecting the most important part of that equation – namely, you. “You time” prepares you for the next round of daily life, whether you are poised to immerse yourself in a professional project or chores around the home. It also affords you a unique opportunity to learn about yourself, your needs, and your tolerances in a concrete way. As unimportant as “you time” can sometimes seem, it truly is crucial to your wellbeing because it ensures that you are never left without the energy to give of yourself.
This state of being is truly the hope and promise of Easter.
Happy Easter to you and your loved ones! Christ is risen and we are rising each day in him.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
weekly MESSAGE for April 8, 2007: Dying and Rising from Material Possessions
This and That:
Easter Life: Dying and Rising from Material Possessions
For many years Ben Stein has written a biweekly column called “Monday Night At Morton’s.” (Morton’s is a famous chain of Steakhouses known to be frequented by movie stars and famous people from around the globe.) Now, Ben was terminating the column to move on to other things in his life. For me, it modeled a kind of “dying and rising” that Easter empowers us to do.
A blessed Easter to you and your loved ones.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
As I begin to write this, I “slug” it, as we writers say, which means I put a heading on top of the document to identify it. This heading is “eonlineFINAL,” and it gives me a shiver to write it. I have been doing this column for so long that I cannot even recall when I started. I loved writing this column so much for so long I came to believe it would never end.
It worked well for a long time, but gradually, my changing as a person and the world’s change have overtaken it. On a small scale, Morton’s, while better than ever, no longer attracts as many stars as it used to. It still brings in the rich people in droves and definitely some stars. I saw Samuel L. Jackson there a few days ago, and we had a nice visit, and right before that, I saw and had a splendid talk with Warren Beatty in an elevator, in which we agreed that Splendor in the Grass was a super movie. But Morton’s is not the star galaxy it once was, though it probably will be again.
Beyond that, a bigger change has happened. I no longer think Hollywood stars are terribly important They are uniformly pleasant, friendly people, and they treat me better than I deserve to be treated. But a man or woman who makes a huge wage for memorizing lines and reciting them in front of a camera is no longer my idea of a shining star we should all look up to.
How can a man or woman who makes an eight-figure wage and lives in insane luxury really be a star in today’s world, if by a “star” we mean someone bright and powerful and attractive as a role model? Real stars are not riding around in the backs of limousines or in Porsches or getting trained in yoga or Pilates and eating only raw fruit while they have Vietnamese girls do their nails.
They can be interesting, nice people, but they are not heroes to me any longer. A real star is the soldier of the 4th Infantry Division who poked his head into a hole on a farm near Tikrit , Iraq He could have been met by a bomb or a hail of AK-47 bullets. Instead, he faced an abject Saddam Hussein and the gratitude of all of the decent people of the world.
A real star is the U.S. soldier who was sent to disarm a bomb next to a road north of Baghdad. He approached it, and the bomb went off and killed him. A real star, the kind who haunts my memory night and day, is the U.S. soldier in Baghdad who saw a little girl playing with a piece of unexploded ordnance on a street near where he was guarding a station. He pushed her aside and threw himself on it just as it exploded. He left a family desolate in California and a little girl alive in Baghdad.
The stars who deserve media attention are not the ones who have lavish weddings on TV but the ones who patrol the streets of Mosul even after two of their buddies were murdered and their bodies battered and stripped for the sin of trying to protect Iraqis from terrorists.
We put couples with incomes of $100 million a year on the covers of our magazines. The noncoms and officers who barely scrape by on military pay but stand on guard in Afghanistan and Iraq and on ships and in submarines and near the Arctic Circle are anonymous as they live and die.
I am no longer comfortable being a part of the system that has such poor values, and I do not want to perpetuate those values by pretending that who is eating at Morton's is a big subject.
There are plenty of other stars in the American firmament...the policemen and women who go off on patrol in South Central and have no idea if they will return alive; the orderlies and paramedics who bring in people who have been in terrible accidents and prepare them for surgery; the teachers and nurses who throw their whole spirits into caring for autistic children; the kind men and women who work in hospices and in cancer wards.
Think of each and every fireman who was running up the stairs at the World Trade Center as the towers began to collapse. Now you have my idea of a real hero.
I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters. This is my highest and best use as a human. I can put it another way. Years ago, I realized I could never be as great an actor as Olivier or as good a comic as Steve Martin, Martin Mull or Fred Willard – or as good an economist as Samuelson or Friedman or as good a writer as Fitzgerald. Or even remotely close to any of them.
But I could be a devoted father to my son, husband to my wife and, above all, a good son to the parents who had done so much for me. This came to be my main task in life. I did it moderately well with my son, pretty well with my wife and well indeed with my parents (with my sister's help). I cared for and paid attention to them in their declining years. I stayed with my father as he got sick, went into extremis and then into a coma and then entered immortality with my sister and me reading him the Psalms.
This was the only point at which my life touched the lives of the soldiers in Iraq or the firefighters in New York. I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters and that it is my duty, in return for the lavish life God has devolved upon me, to help others He has placed in my path. This is my highest and best use as a human.
Faith is not believing that God can. It is knowing that God will.
By Ben Stein
Easter Life: Dying and Rising from Material Possessions
For many years Ben Stein has written a biweekly column called “Monday Night At Morton’s.” (Morton’s is a famous chain of Steakhouses known to be frequented by movie stars and famous people from around the globe.) Now, Ben was terminating the column to move on to other things in his life. For me, it modeled a kind of “dying and rising” that Easter empowers us to do.
A blessed Easter to you and your loved ones.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
As I begin to write this, I “slug” it, as we writers say, which means I put a heading on top of the document to identify it. This heading is “eonlineFINAL,” and it gives me a shiver to write it. I have been doing this column for so long that I cannot even recall when I started. I loved writing this column so much for so long I came to believe it would never end.
It worked well for a long time, but gradually, my changing as a person and the world’s change have overtaken it. On a small scale, Morton’s, while better than ever, no longer attracts as many stars as it used to. It still brings in the rich people in droves and definitely some stars. I saw Samuel L. Jackson there a few days ago, and we had a nice visit, and right before that, I saw and had a splendid talk with Warren Beatty in an elevator, in which we agreed that Splendor in the Grass was a super movie. But Morton’s is not the star galaxy it once was, though it probably will be again.
Beyond that, a bigger change has happened. I no longer think Hollywood stars are terribly important They are uniformly pleasant, friendly people, and they treat me better than I deserve to be treated. But a man or woman who makes a huge wage for memorizing lines and reciting them in front of a camera is no longer my idea of a shining star we should all look up to.
How can a man or woman who makes an eight-figure wage and lives in insane luxury really be a star in today’s world, if by a “star” we mean someone bright and powerful and attractive as a role model? Real stars are not riding around in the backs of limousines or in Porsches or getting trained in yoga or Pilates and eating only raw fruit while they have Vietnamese girls do their nails.
They can be interesting, nice people, but they are not heroes to me any longer. A real star is the soldier of the 4th Infantry Division who poked his head into a hole on a farm near Tikrit , Iraq He could have been met by a bomb or a hail of AK-47 bullets. Instead, he faced an abject Saddam Hussein and the gratitude of all of the decent people of the world.
A real star is the U.S. soldier who was sent to disarm a bomb next to a road north of Baghdad. He approached it, and the bomb went off and killed him. A real star, the kind who haunts my memory night and day, is the U.S. soldier in Baghdad who saw a little girl playing with a piece of unexploded ordnance on a street near where he was guarding a station. He pushed her aside and threw himself on it just as it exploded. He left a family desolate in California and a little girl alive in Baghdad.
The stars who deserve media attention are not the ones who have lavish weddings on TV but the ones who patrol the streets of Mosul even after two of their buddies were murdered and their bodies battered and stripped for the sin of trying to protect Iraqis from terrorists.
We put couples with incomes of $100 million a year on the covers of our magazines. The noncoms and officers who barely scrape by on military pay but stand on guard in Afghanistan and Iraq and on ships and in submarines and near the Arctic Circle are anonymous as they live and die.
I am no longer comfortable being a part of the system that has such poor values, and I do not want to perpetuate those values by pretending that who is eating at Morton's is a big subject.
There are plenty of other stars in the American firmament...the policemen and women who go off on patrol in South Central and have no idea if they will return alive; the orderlies and paramedics who bring in people who have been in terrible accidents and prepare them for surgery; the teachers and nurses who throw their whole spirits into caring for autistic children; the kind men and women who work in hospices and in cancer wards.
Think of each and every fireman who was running up the stairs at the World Trade Center as the towers began to collapse. Now you have my idea of a real hero.
I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters. This is my highest and best use as a human. I can put it another way. Years ago, I realized I could never be as great an actor as Olivier or as good a comic as Steve Martin, Martin Mull or Fred Willard – or as good an economist as Samuelson or Friedman or as good a writer as Fitzgerald. Or even remotely close to any of them.
But I could be a devoted father to my son, husband to my wife and, above all, a good son to the parents who had done so much for me. This came to be my main task in life. I did it moderately well with my son, pretty well with my wife and well indeed with my parents (with my sister's help). I cared for and paid attention to them in their declining years. I stayed with my father as he got sick, went into extremis and then into a coma and then entered immortality with my sister and me reading him the Psalms.
This was the only point at which my life touched the lives of the soldiers in Iraq or the firefighters in New York. I came to realize that life lived to help others is the only one that matters and that it is my duty, in return for the lavish life God has devolved upon me, to help others He has placed in my path. This is my highest and best use as a human.
Faith is not believing that God can. It is knowing that God will.
By Ben Stein
Weekly HOMILY for April 8, 2007: Why do you search for the Living One among the dead?
Easter Sunday, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
April 8, 2007
Why do you search for the living One among the dead?
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
The Two Angels at the Tomb of Jesus
“Why do you search for the living One among the dead?”
This morning, I think it is good for us to allow this question in today’s Gospel to be asked directly to ourselves. “Why do you or I search for the living One among the dead?”
Today is a day of great celebration for us Catholics and all Christians. We sing: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
But the truth of the matter is that many of us struggle with our faith in that very fact: Did Jesus really rise from the dead?
Will we really rise from the dead? Is there a resurrection, a life after death?
Messengers of Life and Messengers of God
I would submit that one reason for this struggle with faith is that we, in fact, “Looking for the living One among the dead” – to use the words of our Gospel passage.
Yes, we are quote, “among the dead” when cynicism holds us back from loving or when fear paralyzes us from really living. I believe we are “among the dead” when loneliness overcomes us or when prejudice blinds us to truth or goodness.
In being part of these experiences, we have, in effect, one foot in the grave. And it can be very difficult from that place we stand, to trust in a loving God or even believe in a risen Savior.
In the face of this, today’s Gospel tells us that some of Jesus’ friends find his tomb empty and they are bewildered and confused. And then the Gospel says, “While they were at a loss what to think of this, two men in dazzling garments appeared beside them.”
The two individuals are not identified, but our tradition sees them as messengers of God, as divine spokespersons, as angels. And these two messengers speak the key words: “Why are you looking for the living One among the dead?”
I would like to suggest that you and I, right from within our everyday lives, have similar messengers of God, similar divine spokespersons, similar angels.
Yes, we might very well have individuals who steer us away from “looking for the living One among the dead” and actually take us to the places and experiences where we can find “the living One.”
Angel of Trust
I would like to suggest that most of us have an angel of trust in our lives.
For example, a mother instinctively reassures her frightened little boy when he wakes up in the middle of the night. She says, “Everything’s going to be all right” as she holds him close.
Is she lying? Or naïve? Or is she expressing a profound truth about the ultimate goodness of life?
Is she not instinctively saying what Jesus himself believed as he commended his life to the Father on the cross? Today is the day to remember your angel of trust.
See if that divine messenger doesn’t also reassure you that everything’s going to be all right. And see if that assurance doesn’t lead you to say today with trust: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
Angel of Hope
I think that most of us also have an angel of hope in our lives.
We see this angel in someone refuses to get down in the dumps, no matter what. As a priest, I have seen this with people who are sick and even actively dying.
Yes, there are people who refuse to give in to their sadness and are able to see even their illness as leading to something greater, in some way to greater life.
Today try name the angel of hope in your life.
See if that divine messenger does not call forth the very best in you. And see if that leads you to say today with hope: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
Angel of Humor
Finally, I think most of us have an angel of humor in our lives.
I remember years ago leading the graveside prayers for my father’s funeral. My brother and I were grieving, but then I came to the words in the ritual about coming to the heavenly banquet.
Well, my father really, really enjoyed food, and I instinctively looked up from the funeral book and said something like “Dad must really be enjoying this whole thing now.” We all had a good laugh and even though I did not understand it then, I do now.
Our humor and laughter is a sign, a signal that death is not the last word and that life ultimately wins out. Today is the time to identify the angel of humor in your life.
See if that divine messenger does not draw you more fully into life. And see if that doesn’t help you to say with joy: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
Conclusion
So, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead?” A good question for us today as we answer it with, “Seek the living One among the living!”
Seek the living One in our experiences, in our divine messengers, in our angels of trust and hope and humor.
Only then will we be better able to take the risk of faith and to believe in the risen Christ and in our own future life with him.
Our Lady of Grace
April 8, 2007
Why do you search for the living One among the dead?
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
The Two Angels at the Tomb of Jesus
“Why do you search for the living One among the dead?”
This morning, I think it is good for us to allow this question in today’s Gospel to be asked directly to ourselves. “Why do you or I search for the living One among the dead?”
Today is a day of great celebration for us Catholics and all Christians. We sing: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
But the truth of the matter is that many of us struggle with our faith in that very fact: Did Jesus really rise from the dead?
Will we really rise from the dead? Is there a resurrection, a life after death?
Messengers of Life and Messengers of God
I would submit that one reason for this struggle with faith is that we, in fact, “Looking for the living One among the dead” – to use the words of our Gospel passage.
Yes, we are quote, “among the dead” when cynicism holds us back from loving or when fear paralyzes us from really living. I believe we are “among the dead” when loneliness overcomes us or when prejudice blinds us to truth or goodness.
In being part of these experiences, we have, in effect, one foot in the grave. And it can be very difficult from that place we stand, to trust in a loving God or even believe in a risen Savior.
In the face of this, today’s Gospel tells us that some of Jesus’ friends find his tomb empty and they are bewildered and confused. And then the Gospel says, “While they were at a loss what to think of this, two men in dazzling garments appeared beside them.”
The two individuals are not identified, but our tradition sees them as messengers of God, as divine spokespersons, as angels. And these two messengers speak the key words: “Why are you looking for the living One among the dead?”
I would like to suggest that you and I, right from within our everyday lives, have similar messengers of God, similar divine spokespersons, similar angels.
Yes, we might very well have individuals who steer us away from “looking for the living One among the dead” and actually take us to the places and experiences where we can find “the living One.”
Angel of Trust
I would like to suggest that most of us have an angel of trust in our lives.
For example, a mother instinctively reassures her frightened little boy when he wakes up in the middle of the night. She says, “Everything’s going to be all right” as she holds him close.
Is she lying? Or naïve? Or is she expressing a profound truth about the ultimate goodness of life?
Is she not instinctively saying what Jesus himself believed as he commended his life to the Father on the cross? Today is the day to remember your angel of trust.
See if that divine messenger doesn’t also reassure you that everything’s going to be all right. And see if that assurance doesn’t lead you to say today with trust: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
Angel of Hope
I think that most of us also have an angel of hope in our lives.
We see this angel in someone refuses to get down in the dumps, no matter what. As a priest, I have seen this with people who are sick and even actively dying.
Yes, there are people who refuse to give in to their sadness and are able to see even their illness as leading to something greater, in some way to greater life.
Today try name the angel of hope in your life.
See if that divine messenger does not call forth the very best in you. And see if that leads you to say today with hope: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
Angel of Humor
Finally, I think most of us have an angel of humor in our lives.
I remember years ago leading the graveside prayers for my father’s funeral. My brother and I were grieving, but then I came to the words in the ritual about coming to the heavenly banquet.
Well, my father really, really enjoyed food, and I instinctively looked up from the funeral book and said something like “Dad must really be enjoying this whole thing now.” We all had a good laugh and even though I did not understand it then, I do now.
Our humor and laughter is a sign, a signal that death is not the last word and that life ultimately wins out. Today is the time to identify the angel of humor in your life.
See if that divine messenger does not draw you more fully into life. And see if that doesn’t help you to say with joy: “Christ is risen! Alleluia!”
Conclusion
So, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead?” A good question for us today as we answer it with, “Seek the living One among the living!”
Seek the living One in our experiences, in our divine messengers, in our angels of trust and hope and humor.
Only then will we be better able to take the risk of faith and to believe in the risen Christ and in our own future life with him.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for April 1, 2007: Some of My Favorite Things
March 30, 2007
Focus: A Few of My Favorite Things
Dear Friend,
To commemorate her 69th birthday on October 1, actress/vocalist, Julie Andrews made a special appearance at Manhattan’s Radio City Music Hall for the benefit of the AARP. One of the musical numbers she performed was “My Favorite Things” from the legendary movie, “Sound Of Music.”
While it may be springtime and the end of Lent is upon us, while we are getting ready for Holy Week and the Sacred Triduum, it is a good time to remember how vulnerable we truly are.
Here are the lyrics she used:
Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting,
Walkers and handrails and new dental fittings,
Bundles of magazines tied up in string,
These are a few of my favorite things.
Cadillac's and cataracts, and hearing aids and glasses,
Polident and Fixodent and false teeth in glasses,
Pacemakers, golf carts and porches with swings,
These are a few of my favorite things.
When the pipes leak,
When the bones creak,
When the knees go bad,
I simply remember my favorite things,
And then I don't feel so bad.
Hot tea and crumpets and corn pads for bunions,
No spicy hot food or food cooked with onions,
Bathrobes and heating pads and hot meals they bring,
These are a few of my favorite things.
Back pains, confused brains, and no need for sinnin’,
Thin bones and fractures and hair that is thinnin',
And we won't mention our short shrunken frames,
When we remember our favorite things.
When the joints ache,
When the hips break,
When the eyes grow dim,
Then I remember the great life I've had,
And then I don't feel so bad.
Ms. Andrews received a standing ovation from the crowd that lasted over four minutes and repeated encores.
Focus: A Few of My Favorite Things
Dear Friend,
To commemorate her 69th birthday on October 1, actress/vocalist, Julie Andrews made a special appearance at Manhattan’s Radio City Music Hall for the benefit of the AARP. One of the musical numbers she performed was “My Favorite Things” from the legendary movie, “Sound Of Music.”
While it may be springtime and the end of Lent is upon us, while we are getting ready for Holy Week and the Sacred Triduum, it is a good time to remember how vulnerable we truly are.
Here are the lyrics she used:
Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting,
Walkers and handrails and new dental fittings,
Bundles of magazines tied up in string,
These are a few of my favorite things.
Cadillac's and cataracts, and hearing aids and glasses,
Polident and Fixodent and false teeth in glasses,
Pacemakers, golf carts and porches with swings,
These are a few of my favorite things.
When the pipes leak,
When the bones creak,
When the knees go bad,
I simply remember my favorite things,
And then I don't feel so bad.
Hot tea and crumpets and corn pads for bunions,
No spicy hot food or food cooked with onions,
Bathrobes and heating pads and hot meals they bring,
These are a few of my favorite things.
Back pains, confused brains, and no need for sinnin’,
Thin bones and fractures and hair that is thinnin',
And we won't mention our short shrunken frames,
When we remember our favorite things.
When the joints ache,
When the hips break,
When the eyes grow dim,
Then I remember the great life I've had,
And then I don't feel so bad.
Ms. Andrews received a standing ovation from the crowd that lasted over four minutes and repeated encores.
Weekly THIS AND THAT for April 1, 2007: A Fountain of Youth for You?
This and That:
A Fountain of Youth for You?
The final session of our Lenten Family Friday series: “How What We Believe Can Make A Difference” was entitled, A Fountain of Youth for You?
We began the session by looking at some “Youthful Longings” and “Adult Fears”. We named the first fear as mortality – the fear of death and the corresponding longing is for life unending. The second fear is that life has no meaning and we are just drifting through our existence. The longing that counteracts this fear is the longing for meaning and purpose in our life. The third fear is isolation and our longing in the face of that fear is for connections with others. The final fear is being alone in the universe and our deepest longing is for love.
We then turned our attention to some teachings of our Catholic Church that speak to our fears and longings. Those teachings include the following:
➢ This life is NOT all there is.
➢ We believe in resurrection of the body
➢ We believe in life everlasting
➢ We believe in a Risen Lord
➢ We believe that “resurrected” life begins here on earth
With these beliefs in mind, we looked at how our culture promotes a very different set of beliefs, including:
➢ Live for the present moment
➢ Instant gratification
➢ You only live once
➢ Believe in what we can see now
During table discussion, we considered our belief that God has created us for eternal life, so this life is not all there is. We thought about what shows us that when something sleeps, dies, or is in a state of upset – it’s not the end?
Some of the things that came to mind were: how we see in nature that plants die to be born again; how the body heals after illness or injury; how we experience that relationships that were broken can be healed; how grief subsides over time; and the reality that we wake from sleep each morning. These are hints from our experience that point to the promise of our glorification.
Next, we looked at our belief in the resurrection of the body, which is based upon our faith the Jesus rose from the dead bodily. Resurrection of the body builds on our experiences of healing. If the Spirit can raise Jesus, the Spirit can raise us also. What we experience in the hints to glorification will become fully realized when we are resurrected. We read this belief in the New Testament Letter to the Romans:
“If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.” Romans 8:11
What’s more, we believe that this glorification will last forever, as we will live forever with God. In the Gospel of John we read, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.” John 6:40
Jesus is the Way to this glorification forever. We believe that this is guaranteed by the fact that he is risen and still present to us, bringing us along to glory with him.
All of this is a promise of our own eternal life. The hints to glorification that we experience now become actual through faith in Jesus. In the Gospel of John, we read the story of Jesus’ friend, Lazarus, who has died. Jesus tells Lazarus’ sister, Martha, “I am the Resurrection and the Life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” We believe that resurrected life begins here and now. We don’t have to wait until we get to heaven after death to live the resurrected life.
Which would you prefer? “Pie in the sky when you die” OR living heaven now? As followers of Jesus, we are called to live our lives NOW in union with him, that we might also live in union with him forever.
How could “living heaven now” influence your choices?
Does this understanding color how we approach death – as a passage to eternal life? Does it change how we prepare for death – by the way we live now?
Does it give us a perspective on our lives – this is not all there is?
Does it call us to live in hope, since we live the resurrected life because of our Baptism in Christ?
Returning to our title for this session, a “fountain of youth” is not about the number of years you live on this earth, it’s the experience of heaven – life in union with God, and we can have it NOW!
So…Does what we believe make a difference?
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
A Fountain of Youth for You?
The final session of our Lenten Family Friday series: “How What We Believe Can Make A Difference” was entitled, A Fountain of Youth for You?
We began the session by looking at some “Youthful Longings” and “Adult Fears”. We named the first fear as mortality – the fear of death and the corresponding longing is for life unending. The second fear is that life has no meaning and we are just drifting through our existence. The longing that counteracts this fear is the longing for meaning and purpose in our life. The third fear is isolation and our longing in the face of that fear is for connections with others. The final fear is being alone in the universe and our deepest longing is for love.
We then turned our attention to some teachings of our Catholic Church that speak to our fears and longings. Those teachings include the following:
➢ This life is NOT all there is.
➢ We believe in resurrection of the body
➢ We believe in life everlasting
➢ We believe in a Risen Lord
➢ We believe that “resurrected” life begins here on earth
With these beliefs in mind, we looked at how our culture promotes a very different set of beliefs, including:
➢ Live for the present moment
➢ Instant gratification
➢ You only live once
➢ Believe in what we can see now
During table discussion, we considered our belief that God has created us for eternal life, so this life is not all there is. We thought about what shows us that when something sleeps, dies, or is in a state of upset – it’s not the end?
Some of the things that came to mind were: how we see in nature that plants die to be born again; how the body heals after illness or injury; how we experience that relationships that were broken can be healed; how grief subsides over time; and the reality that we wake from sleep each morning. These are hints from our experience that point to the promise of our glorification.
Next, we looked at our belief in the resurrection of the body, which is based upon our faith the Jesus rose from the dead bodily. Resurrection of the body builds on our experiences of healing. If the Spirit can raise Jesus, the Spirit can raise us also. What we experience in the hints to glorification will become fully realized when we are resurrected. We read this belief in the New Testament Letter to the Romans:
“If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.” Romans 8:11
What’s more, we believe that this glorification will last forever, as we will live forever with God. In the Gospel of John we read, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.” John 6:40
Jesus is the Way to this glorification forever. We believe that this is guaranteed by the fact that he is risen and still present to us, bringing us along to glory with him.
All of this is a promise of our own eternal life. The hints to glorification that we experience now become actual through faith in Jesus. In the Gospel of John, we read the story of Jesus’ friend, Lazarus, who has died. Jesus tells Lazarus’ sister, Martha, “I am the Resurrection and the Life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” We believe that resurrected life begins here and now. We don’t have to wait until we get to heaven after death to live the resurrected life.
Which would you prefer? “Pie in the sky when you die” OR living heaven now? As followers of Jesus, we are called to live our lives NOW in union with him, that we might also live in union with him forever.
How could “living heaven now” influence your choices?
Does this understanding color how we approach death – as a passage to eternal life? Does it change how we prepare for death – by the way we live now?
Does it give us a perspective on our lives – this is not all there is?
Does it call us to live in hope, since we live the resurrected life because of our Baptism in Christ?
Returning to our title for this session, a “fountain of youth” is not about the number of years you live on this earth, it’s the experience of heaven – life in union with God, and we can have it NOW!
So…Does what we believe make a difference?
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly HOMILY for April 1, 2007: Communion with God
Passion (Palm) Sunday, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
April 1, 2007
Communion with God
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
A Monk’s Communion with God
Back in 1959, 47 years ago, the Chinese Communists were occupying Tibet.
During this occupation, the Buddhist monks were targets of many atrocities. So, as the Chinese forces would invade the villages, the monks would flee into the mountains.
When the Chinese invaded one particular village, one Buddhist monk stayed behind. The Chinese commander marched into the monastery and there, in the courtyard, was the one remaining monk, sitting calmly in prayer.
The commander yelled, “Do you know who I am? I am he who can run you through with a sword.”
And the monk calmly replied, “Do you know who I am? I am he who can let you run me through with a sword.”
That Buddhist monk possessed a real inner communion with God, a communion that remarkably freed him from all fear.
This inner communion, this inner state of being with God freed him from being overwhelmed with anxiety about being killed. It freed him from uncontrolled anger at the injustice being done.
Jesus’ Communion with God
In the story of the Passion that we just heard, Jesus is confronting a similar series of threats moment after moment.
For example, he tells his apostles not to meet violence with violence and he heals the ear of one of the soldiers.
Hanging on the cross in excruciating pain, he is able to whisper, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
And at the very moment of death, he can utter the words of trust: “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”
There’s no question that his strong inner communion with his Father first, frees him from overwhelming fear and anxiety.
Second, it frees him from feeling vengeful toward his persecutors.
And, third, it empowers him to speak with extraordinary conviction in horrific situations.
It is only such inner communion with the Father that can give him a peace and trust that no sword, no suffering, no injustice can kill.
Our Communion with God
One reason why this story of Jesus’ Passion is so magnetic is that we very much want this inner communion with God.
One day each of us will have to confront horrific hardship, undeserved injustice, or painful suffering. None of us will be exempt from this.
It may be the untimely death of a loved one or our own sickness, being judged harshly or evaluated unfairly, losing a job or not getting admitted to the school of our choice.
Such realities are almost part and parcel of the human condition.
In confronting these hardships, injustices, and sufferings, we will need that inner communion with God that we see in Jesus today.
The good news is that we can have it!
This communion can be achieved through some daily, steady form of prayer. We can experience it through faithfully reading Sacred Scripture and allowing it to shape our thinking.
We can experience this inner communion through the Eucharist – by not making excuses, but by Sunday after Sunday allowing the Lord come to us in the gift of Holy Communion.
Conclusion
There is no question each of us needs this inner communion with God. Will we have it when the need comes crashing into our lives?
This Holiest of Weeks is the time for such communion. Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil all evening at 7:30pm.
We can have it in the story of Jesus’ Passion, Death, and Resurrection.
Our Lady of Grace
April 1, 2007
Communion with God
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
A Monk’s Communion with God
Back in 1959, 47 years ago, the Chinese Communists were occupying Tibet.
During this occupation, the Buddhist monks were targets of many atrocities. So, as the Chinese forces would invade the villages, the monks would flee into the mountains.
When the Chinese invaded one particular village, one Buddhist monk stayed behind. The Chinese commander marched into the monastery and there, in the courtyard, was the one remaining monk, sitting calmly in prayer.
The commander yelled, “Do you know who I am? I am he who can run you through with a sword.”
And the monk calmly replied, “Do you know who I am? I am he who can let you run me through with a sword.”
That Buddhist monk possessed a real inner communion with God, a communion that remarkably freed him from all fear.
This inner communion, this inner state of being with God freed him from being overwhelmed with anxiety about being killed. It freed him from uncontrolled anger at the injustice being done.
Jesus’ Communion with God
In the story of the Passion that we just heard, Jesus is confronting a similar series of threats moment after moment.
For example, he tells his apostles not to meet violence with violence and he heals the ear of one of the soldiers.
Hanging on the cross in excruciating pain, he is able to whisper, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
And at the very moment of death, he can utter the words of trust: “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”
There’s no question that his strong inner communion with his Father first, frees him from overwhelming fear and anxiety.
Second, it frees him from feeling vengeful toward his persecutors.
And, third, it empowers him to speak with extraordinary conviction in horrific situations.
It is only such inner communion with the Father that can give him a peace and trust that no sword, no suffering, no injustice can kill.
Our Communion with God
One reason why this story of Jesus’ Passion is so magnetic is that we very much want this inner communion with God.
One day each of us will have to confront horrific hardship, undeserved injustice, or painful suffering. None of us will be exempt from this.
It may be the untimely death of a loved one or our own sickness, being judged harshly or evaluated unfairly, losing a job or not getting admitted to the school of our choice.
Such realities are almost part and parcel of the human condition.
In confronting these hardships, injustices, and sufferings, we will need that inner communion with God that we see in Jesus today.
The good news is that we can have it!
This communion can be achieved through some daily, steady form of prayer. We can experience it through faithfully reading Sacred Scripture and allowing it to shape our thinking.
We can experience this inner communion through the Eucharist – by not making excuses, but by Sunday after Sunday allowing the Lord come to us in the gift of Holy Communion.
Conclusion
There is no question each of us needs this inner communion with God. Will we have it when the need comes crashing into our lives?
This Holiest of Weeks is the time for such communion. Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil all evening at 7:30pm.
We can have it in the story of Jesus’ Passion, Death, and Resurrection.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for March 25, 2007: The Bookend Generations
March 25, 2007
Topic: The Bookend Generations
Dear Friend,
Last evening I was reading a report entitled “The Bookend Generations.” It is a study that shows important differences between youngest and oldest Catholics. While proclamations abound about the unchanging nature of religious truth, the study shows that the beliefs and practices of our Catholic people continue to evolve. Two studies focus on significant generational differences among our Catholic people. Younger Catholics are more individualistic, seem more tolerant of religious diversity, and are far less committed to the practices of their faith than are older Catholics. Based on these findings, researchers speculate that the future Catholic Church in the US may be a fraction of the size it is now.
The two studies compare college students with Catholics who were born before 1941, twenty years before the Second Vatican Council. The researchers claim that, while changes in religious expression between parents and children are often sharp, the differences are even more dramatic when comparing Catholics with 40 or more years between them. For example, for young Catholics, missing Mass is an option, not a sure sign of “going to Hell.” For the older Catholics, it was a grave sin, confession was expected before Communion, and bishops were unquestioned authorities. Vincent Bolduc, one of the researchers, said that 80% of the college students disagreed with the statement: “Catholicism contains a greater share of truth than other religions.” “The college students take religious tolerance as a moral obligation and respect diversity of beliefs and behavior,” he claimed. Young Catholics seem steeped in a national culture that often regards the Catholic sexual prohibitions against premarital sex, artificial birth control, abortion, divorce, women priests and homosexual behavior as anachronistic.
The following are the percentages to questions to which respondents were asked to agree with or disagree:
1. How a person lives is more important than whether or not he/she is Catholic. (87% older Catholics; 85% Catholic students.)
2. Catholicism contains a greater share of truth than other religions do. (61% to 19%.)
3. Being Catholic is a very important part of who I am. (92% to 59%.) (4) It is very important that future members of my family grow up Catholic. (78% to 59%)
The oldest group of Catholics shows the highest rate of Mass attendance at 60% with each successive generation having a lower percentage: that is, 40%, 30%, and 15% for the college students. The researchers say that the trend is troublesome for it moves the Church and sacraments of the youngest farther and farther from the center of their lives and it is unlikely that this will change as they age, since evidence does not suggest the contrary. And it is with the data the researchers have accumulated that they claim that the Church of 2050 may well be a fraction of its present size. These are critical data that need to be considered in our efforts to evangelize and draw our people to worshipping as Catholics.
These findings are borne out each year when a meet with our Confirmation Candidates, who are Sophomores in high school, for an evening of questions and answers.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Topic: The Bookend Generations
Dear Friend,
Last evening I was reading a report entitled “The Bookend Generations.” It is a study that shows important differences between youngest and oldest Catholics. While proclamations abound about the unchanging nature of religious truth, the study shows that the beliefs and practices of our Catholic people continue to evolve. Two studies focus on significant generational differences among our Catholic people. Younger Catholics are more individualistic, seem more tolerant of religious diversity, and are far less committed to the practices of their faith than are older Catholics. Based on these findings, researchers speculate that the future Catholic Church in the US may be a fraction of the size it is now.
The two studies compare college students with Catholics who were born before 1941, twenty years before the Second Vatican Council. The researchers claim that, while changes in religious expression between parents and children are often sharp, the differences are even more dramatic when comparing Catholics with 40 or more years between them. For example, for young Catholics, missing Mass is an option, not a sure sign of “going to Hell.” For the older Catholics, it was a grave sin, confession was expected before Communion, and bishops were unquestioned authorities. Vincent Bolduc, one of the researchers, said that 80% of the college students disagreed with the statement: “Catholicism contains a greater share of truth than other religions.” “The college students take religious tolerance as a moral obligation and respect diversity of beliefs and behavior,” he claimed. Young Catholics seem steeped in a national culture that often regards the Catholic sexual prohibitions against premarital sex, artificial birth control, abortion, divorce, women priests and homosexual behavior as anachronistic.
The following are the percentages to questions to which respondents were asked to agree with or disagree:
1. How a person lives is more important than whether or not he/she is Catholic. (87% older Catholics; 85% Catholic students.)
2. Catholicism contains a greater share of truth than other religions do. (61% to 19%.)
3. Being Catholic is a very important part of who I am. (92% to 59%.) (4) It is very important that future members of my family grow up Catholic. (78% to 59%)
The oldest group of Catholics shows the highest rate of Mass attendance at 60% with each successive generation having a lower percentage: that is, 40%, 30%, and 15% for the college students. The researchers say that the trend is troublesome for it moves the Church and sacraments of the youngest farther and farther from the center of their lives and it is unlikely that this will change as they age, since evidence does not suggest the contrary. And it is with the data the researchers have accumulated that they claim that the Church of 2050 may well be a fraction of its present size. These are critical data that need to be considered in our efforts to evangelize and draw our people to worshipping as Catholics.
These findings are borne out each year when a meet with our Confirmation Candidates, who are Sophomores in high school, for an evening of questions and answers.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly THIS AND THAT for March 25, 2007: Say Yes to God, But Look Out!
This and That:
Say Yes to God, But Look Out!
For the past four weeks we have been looking at how what we believe can make a difference in the quality of our living. Personal belief is a powerful force. If we believe strongly in something, other’s opinions may not matter much and that belief about life or people or our jobs keeps us fired up, energized, and moving forward. Imagine what belief in Jesus could do for the way we treat others, seek reconciliation, or attend worship regularly?
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
This week’s presentation was entitled “Say Yes to God – but Look Out!” While the objective of saying yes to God may be a noble one, an individual must “look before he leaps.” That is, we need to realize the full implications of what a “yes” to God or anyone else for that matter might imply. As with any big decision such as purchasing a house, buying a car, getting married, having a child, we need to consider the implications, effects, or consequences of our initial action and we need to know them before we perform the act in order to own both act and consequences. Science tells us that the frontal lobe of the brain is the last part of the brain to develop in children and it does so around the age of 19 or 20. It’s for this reason that parents’ favorite phrase to their teenage offspring is “What in God’s name were you thinking!” when they do certain things. They may not know that the frontal lobe is responsible for thinking through the implications of what we do and their children simply do not have the mental ability to do so.
Thus we need to be careful of what we pray for. Most of those items are for our wellbeing or the wellbeing of others. So we pray for a team to win, for a positive financial impact, for someone to recover from a serious illness, for life, not death. But when we look at what we pray for we can see a hierarchy in our prayers, e.g. it’s nobler to pray for someone who is sick than to win a Lacrosse game. What then, is the most perfect form of prayer? Given this stream of logic, then, you might say the most perfect form of prayer would be that God’s will, whatever it is, be done in my life, as in, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The reasoning here is that God knows better what I need, than I might, a fact perhaps borne out in what we’ve prayed for and has come to pass only to make the situation worse than it was before.
Rather than looking at prayer as a means of securing “goodies” for ourselves or even for others, let’s look at prayer as a means of maintaining a relationship, as a way of being with a loved one. Who in your life do you rest with, savor relating to, or enjoy spending time with? Those bonds that tie you together emotionally are what prayer is to do in our relationship with God, tie us together. And as in a relationship, being one with the friend or spouse is about a common life that flowers in doing good for each other. In the best of relationships, the loved one often knows better what we need and is always there to provide it. You get the picture. The same is true of our relationship with God. God knows us better than we know ourselves; he loves us more than we love ourselves. Thus the most perfect form of bonding – or for that matter asking for something – is “Thy will be done!”
Without good models of relationships-with-God-bonded-in-prayer we only have our human analogies to rely upon. However, a great model to consider would be Mary of Nazareth, Mary the Mother of Jesus. What were her “secrets” to this deep communion with God? For starters she listened to the stirrings in her heart and responded with complete openness and love. While she may have been frightened or unclear about her call to become the mother of the Savior, she nevertheless allowed his life to be born within her and nurtured that life. Mary’s “yes” was a complete obedience to God’s will. She remained open to God, trusting of God, and with an openness and trust that were based on a prior relationship she had with him.
As a result of her stance with God, Mary became a woman “full of grace” in whom God’s grace was operative and out of that strengthening, she was able to challenge some basic beliefs of our society. So united was she with the Lord that she saw her place in God’s plan clearly. The Annunciation, the fruit of her bonding with God, not only reveals to the world that Jesus would be born, but it also reveals precisely who Jesus would be to our world.
As if Mary were not enough in her modeling, she goes beyond that to actually becoming the “Mother of the Church,” in the same way that a mother becomes the mother of another human being. How does this “birth” come about? Let’s look. The first thing she did after the Annunciation was to visit Elizabeth for whom she was a mentor and Elizabeth helps her understand her gift of complete faith in God’s will. They both recognize God working within them, Elizabeth carrying John the Baptist, and Mary, Jesus. Her dignity of “Mother of the Church” comes in her willingness and complete adherence to the Father’s will by participating in the redemptive work of Jesus and by listening to every prompting of the Holy Spirit. She is “Mother of the Church” because she cooperates by her obedience, faith, hope, and charity in the work of salvation and thus becomes the mother of us all. It is for this reason the Church rightly honors her.
Thus because of her “fiat,” her giving birth to Jesus, her relationship in raising him, her being the first to hear the Word of God and keep it, her relationship to our own mothers, and her own claim that “All generations will call me blessed,” Mary becomes important for us in two respects, as a model for our living and as “Mother of the Church.”
Next week will mark our final presentation in the six-week series and is entitled “A Fountain of youth for you.” As always, all are welcome, whether you signed up or not. Mass on Friday is at 6:30pm, supper at 7:00pm and the presentation at 7:30pm with activities for children of all ages, as well as a nursery.
Say Yes to God, But Look Out!
For the past four weeks we have been looking at how what we believe can make a difference in the quality of our living. Personal belief is a powerful force. If we believe strongly in something, other’s opinions may not matter much and that belief about life or people or our jobs keeps us fired up, energized, and moving forward. Imagine what belief in Jesus could do for the way we treat others, seek reconciliation, or attend worship regularly?
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
This week’s presentation was entitled “Say Yes to God – but Look Out!” While the objective of saying yes to God may be a noble one, an individual must “look before he leaps.” That is, we need to realize the full implications of what a “yes” to God or anyone else for that matter might imply. As with any big decision such as purchasing a house, buying a car, getting married, having a child, we need to consider the implications, effects, or consequences of our initial action and we need to know them before we perform the act in order to own both act and consequences. Science tells us that the frontal lobe of the brain is the last part of the brain to develop in children and it does so around the age of 19 or 20. It’s for this reason that parents’ favorite phrase to their teenage offspring is “What in God’s name were you thinking!” when they do certain things. They may not know that the frontal lobe is responsible for thinking through the implications of what we do and their children simply do not have the mental ability to do so.
Thus we need to be careful of what we pray for. Most of those items are for our wellbeing or the wellbeing of others. So we pray for a team to win, for a positive financial impact, for someone to recover from a serious illness, for life, not death. But when we look at what we pray for we can see a hierarchy in our prayers, e.g. it’s nobler to pray for someone who is sick than to win a Lacrosse game. What then, is the most perfect form of prayer? Given this stream of logic, then, you might say the most perfect form of prayer would be that God’s will, whatever it is, be done in my life, as in, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The reasoning here is that God knows better what I need, than I might, a fact perhaps borne out in what we’ve prayed for and has come to pass only to make the situation worse than it was before.
Rather than looking at prayer as a means of securing “goodies” for ourselves or even for others, let’s look at prayer as a means of maintaining a relationship, as a way of being with a loved one. Who in your life do you rest with, savor relating to, or enjoy spending time with? Those bonds that tie you together emotionally are what prayer is to do in our relationship with God, tie us together. And as in a relationship, being one with the friend or spouse is about a common life that flowers in doing good for each other. In the best of relationships, the loved one often knows better what we need and is always there to provide it. You get the picture. The same is true of our relationship with God. God knows us better than we know ourselves; he loves us more than we love ourselves. Thus the most perfect form of bonding – or for that matter asking for something – is “Thy will be done!”
Without good models of relationships-with-God-bonded-in-prayer we only have our human analogies to rely upon. However, a great model to consider would be Mary of Nazareth, Mary the Mother of Jesus. What were her “secrets” to this deep communion with God? For starters she listened to the stirrings in her heart and responded with complete openness and love. While she may have been frightened or unclear about her call to become the mother of the Savior, she nevertheless allowed his life to be born within her and nurtured that life. Mary’s “yes” was a complete obedience to God’s will. She remained open to God, trusting of God, and with an openness and trust that were based on a prior relationship she had with him.
As a result of her stance with God, Mary became a woman “full of grace” in whom God’s grace was operative and out of that strengthening, she was able to challenge some basic beliefs of our society. So united was she with the Lord that she saw her place in God’s plan clearly. The Annunciation, the fruit of her bonding with God, not only reveals to the world that Jesus would be born, but it also reveals precisely who Jesus would be to our world.
As if Mary were not enough in her modeling, she goes beyond that to actually becoming the “Mother of the Church,” in the same way that a mother becomes the mother of another human being. How does this “birth” come about? Let’s look. The first thing she did after the Annunciation was to visit Elizabeth for whom she was a mentor and Elizabeth helps her understand her gift of complete faith in God’s will. They both recognize God working within them, Elizabeth carrying John the Baptist, and Mary, Jesus. Her dignity of “Mother of the Church” comes in her willingness and complete adherence to the Father’s will by participating in the redemptive work of Jesus and by listening to every prompting of the Holy Spirit. She is “Mother of the Church” because she cooperates by her obedience, faith, hope, and charity in the work of salvation and thus becomes the mother of us all. It is for this reason the Church rightly honors her.
Thus because of her “fiat,” her giving birth to Jesus, her relationship in raising him, her being the first to hear the Word of God and keep it, her relationship to our own mothers, and her own claim that “All generations will call me blessed,” Mary becomes important for us in two respects, as a model for our living and as “Mother of the Church.”
Next week will mark our final presentation in the six-week series and is entitled “A Fountain of youth for you.” As always, all are welcome, whether you signed up or not. Mass on Friday is at 6:30pm, supper at 7:00pm and the presentation at 7:30pm with activities for children of all ages, as well as a nursery.
Weekly HOMILY for March 25, 2007: False Gods
March 25, 2007 was “Deacon Preaching Weekend.” The following is the homily that was to be preached on Friday, March 16, 2007 but wasn’t because of the ice storm.
Friday of the 3rd Week of Lent, Year 1
Our Lady of Grace
March 16, 2007
False Gods
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
False God’s Today
Homilies and spiritual writing about false gods routinely point out that we don’t blow down before a golden calf these days.
Our false gods are pleasure, power, money, and – uh-uh – work, especially success and “getting ahead” as a result of our work.
Even secular sources warn about becoming trapped on the corporate ladder.
Working overtime or seeking a promotion can begin to feel like treason + betrayal of God, one’s family, and one’s true self.
Scripture and Evangelists
A line in Hosea this evening seems to express just that: “We shall say no more, ‘Our god,’ to the work of our hands.
You will find more than one televangelist proclaiming that God is itching to make you successful, prosperous, and even wealthy.
The only reason this hasn’t happened yet is that you do not fully believe it. Pump up your faith and soon you can buy that Hummer y ou’ve been eying. Is there any truth to that?
After all, Psalm 90 prays, “Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands”
Catholic Spirituality
Does this go up against the spirituality of the cross?
Is it Christian faith compromised and infected by the lure of the world?
As usual, the truth lies in the middle and centers on doing the will of God.
Mother Teresa herself once said, “If it’s God’s will that you live in a mansion, fine; just be very sure it’s God who put you there.”
We need to do what we are called to do, give it our best effort, continually take it to God in prayer for evaluation and discernment, and then accept the results.
If we find success, how can we use it to help others?
If we experience setbacks, are they signs that God wants us to switch gears or modify our goals?
Or does God want us to have faith and continue the course?
Conclusion
Only sincere, open-hearted prayer will lead us to the answer.
Friday of the 3rd Week of Lent, Year 1
Our Lady of Grace
March 16, 2007
False Gods
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
False God’s Today
Homilies and spiritual writing about false gods routinely point out that we don’t blow down before a golden calf these days.
Our false gods are pleasure, power, money, and – uh-uh – work, especially success and “getting ahead” as a result of our work.
Even secular sources warn about becoming trapped on the corporate ladder.
Working overtime or seeking a promotion can begin to feel like treason + betrayal of God, one’s family, and one’s true self.
Scripture and Evangelists
A line in Hosea this evening seems to express just that: “We shall say no more, ‘Our god,’ to the work of our hands.
You will find more than one televangelist proclaiming that God is itching to make you successful, prosperous, and even wealthy.
The only reason this hasn’t happened yet is that you do not fully believe it. Pump up your faith and soon you can buy that Hummer y ou’ve been eying. Is there any truth to that?
After all, Psalm 90 prays, “Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands”
Catholic Spirituality
Does this go up against the spirituality of the cross?
Is it Christian faith compromised and infected by the lure of the world?
As usual, the truth lies in the middle and centers on doing the will of God.
Mother Teresa herself once said, “If it’s God’s will that you live in a mansion, fine; just be very sure it’s God who put you there.”
We need to do what we are called to do, give it our best effort, continually take it to God in prayer for evaluation and discernment, and then accept the results.
If we find success, how can we use it to help others?
If we experience setbacks, are they signs that God wants us to switch gears or modify our goals?
Or does God want us to have faith and continue the course?
Conclusion
Only sincere, open-hearted prayer will lead us to the answer.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for March 18, 2007: Identity -- Who Are We?
March 18, 2007
Focus: Identity, Who Are We?
Dear Friend,
We’re halfway through Lent and these days continue to be a great time for reflection. You might spend some quiet time with the following thoughts that a friends shared with me last week in an email.
Identity is an elusive concept. We feel we must define ourselves using a relatively small selection of roles and conscious character traits, even if none accurately represents our notion of who we are. The confusion surrounding who we really are is further complicated by the fact that society regularly asks us to suppress so much of our emotional, intellectual, and spiritual energy. Yet we are, in truth, spiritual beings inhabiting physical bodies, striving for enlightenment while living earthly lives. Our true self exists whether I acknowledge it or not. It is often buried under lots of fears and learned behaviors. When I recognize my power, my luminosity, I cannot help but live an authentic life of appreciation, fulfillment, and grace.
At birth and throughout our childhood, our thoughts and feelings were more than likely expressions of our true self. Though we may have learned quickly that to speak and act in a certain fashion would win others’ approval, we understood innately that we were no ordinary human being. There are many ways we can recapture the authenticity we once articulated so freely. Silent prayer, meditation, and reflection can liberate us from the bonds of those earthly customs that compel us to downplay our uniqueness. In order to realize our purpose, however, we must embrace our true self by letting our light shine forth.
Rediscovering who we are, apart from our roles and traits, does take time. It also takes courage. If, like many, we have denied our authenticity for a long while, we may find it difficult to separate our true identity from the identity we have created. Once we do find this authentic self, however, we will be overcome by a wonderful sense of wholeness as we reconcile our spiritual side and our physical side, as well as our inner and outer personas. As we gradually adjust to this developing unity, our role as a human being will reveal itself to us, and we will discover that we have a marvelous purpose to fulfill.
Enjoy the beauty of the warmer weather.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Focus: Identity, Who Are We?
Dear Friend,
We’re halfway through Lent and these days continue to be a great time for reflection. You might spend some quiet time with the following thoughts that a friends shared with me last week in an email.
Identity is an elusive concept. We feel we must define ourselves using a relatively small selection of roles and conscious character traits, even if none accurately represents our notion of who we are. The confusion surrounding who we really are is further complicated by the fact that society regularly asks us to suppress so much of our emotional, intellectual, and spiritual energy. Yet we are, in truth, spiritual beings inhabiting physical bodies, striving for enlightenment while living earthly lives. Our true self exists whether I acknowledge it or not. It is often buried under lots of fears and learned behaviors. When I recognize my power, my luminosity, I cannot help but live an authentic life of appreciation, fulfillment, and grace.
At birth and throughout our childhood, our thoughts and feelings were more than likely expressions of our true self. Though we may have learned quickly that to speak and act in a certain fashion would win others’ approval, we understood innately that we were no ordinary human being. There are many ways we can recapture the authenticity we once articulated so freely. Silent prayer, meditation, and reflection can liberate us from the bonds of those earthly customs that compel us to downplay our uniqueness. In order to realize our purpose, however, we must embrace our true self by letting our light shine forth.
Rediscovering who we are, apart from our roles and traits, does take time. It also takes courage. If, like many, we have denied our authenticity for a long while, we may find it difficult to separate our true identity from the identity we have created. Once we do find this authentic self, however, we will be overcome by a wonderful sense of wholeness as we reconcile our spiritual side and our physical side, as well as our inner and outer personas. As we gradually adjust to this developing unity, our role as a human being will reveal itself to us, and we will discover that we have a marvelous purpose to fulfill.
Enjoy the beauty of the warmer weather.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly THIS AND THAT for March 18, 2007: Differences -- Do They Divide or Unite?
THIS AND THAT:
Differences: Do They Divide or Unite?
Our Lenten Family Friday presentations continued this week with our theme: “How What We Believe Can Make a Difference.” The topic of Session 4 was “Differences: Do They Divide or Unite?”, and the focus was on the various roles of members of the Church. Unity with diversity is one of the great gifts of the Church.
From the beginning of the church, we have always believed that we are the Body of Christ, with Jesus as the Head. We have various roles, gifts and functions that serve a common mission: to actualize the Kingdom of God in this world.
We find this image in the First Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, Chapter 12:
“As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ… Now you are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.” (vv. 12 & 27) St. Paul also says in this letter that we need all of the parts of the Body of Christ and one part cannot say that it does not need any other part.
With this image from St. Paul in mind, we had table discussion on the following questions:
In the Body of Christ – the faith community – what part would you be?
• Eyes – seeing our mission in the needs of others?
• Ears – listening to God in prayer?
• Hands – reaching out in service?
• Feet – going out to others with the Word of God?
Our discussion led us to see that all roles in the Church are of equal value, they all flow from Baptism, and they all involve the investment of time, talent and treasure
This understanding was stated well in the vision of Vatican II: “There is a true equality with regard to dignity and the activity whereby all cooperate in the building up of the Body of Christ in their own unique manner.” (see LG #32)
Differences in roles must not divide us from one another as followers of Christ. There is no difference in the value of the various roles. Differences are not meant to create division or levels of importance in the eyes of God. We are only the Body of Christ when all parts are functioning, and each person, function or role needs all the others.
Even when it comes to leadership in the Church, people with different roles may be calling us or leading us at different times. For example, the Chairperson of the Outreach Committee may be calling us to meet a need, and he or she speaks to ALL about that need. An Ecclesial Minister, such as the Youth Minister, may be serving a specific need, but they are asking for the support of ALL members. In the same way, the Pastor fulfills his role by proclaiming the Word and administering Sacraments to ALL members. We experience the Holy Spirit at work in the Church through multiple ministries: liturgical ministries, service ministries, managerial ministries, spiritual ministries and educational ministries.
We discussed at our tables how this model of the Body of Christ compares with the previous hierarchical model, in which the levels of importance were: 1. Clergy; 2. Vowed Religious; and 3. Laity.
Returning to the vision of Vatican II, we looked at one of the documents that came from that Council, The Decree on the Apostolate of Lay People, which states: “The parish offers an outstanding example of community apostolate, for it gathers into a unity all the human diversity of the Church.” This decree outlines the role of the laity in the church as follows:
• Work in the parish in close union with their priests
• Bring before the ecclesial community their own problems, world problems and questions regarding our salvation
• Examine these issues together and solve them by general discussion
• According to their abilities: co-operate in all apostolic and missionary enterprises of church
This helped us to see the valuable that the laity have in the Church.
We then reflected on these two questions:
• As a lay person, what does my Baptism call me to:
– As a member of this faith community?
– As a person of faith with influence in the marketplace?
Our final large group discussion focused on the question: “How do I experience unity in the church, amid the different roles?”
The evening ended with a closing prayer:
Loving God, you keep together those you have united. Look kindly on all who follow Jesus, your Son.
We are all consecrated to you by our common baptism; make us one in the fullness of faith and keep us one in the fellowship of love.
We ask this through our Lord, Jesus Christ, you Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Next Week’s Topic is: “SAY YES TO GOD -- BUT LOOK OUT!” Everyone is welcome to join us for an interesting evening!
Differences: Do They Divide or Unite?
Our Lenten Family Friday presentations continued this week with our theme: “How What We Believe Can Make a Difference.” The topic of Session 4 was “Differences: Do They Divide or Unite?”, and the focus was on the various roles of members of the Church. Unity with diversity is one of the great gifts of the Church.
From the beginning of the church, we have always believed that we are the Body of Christ, with Jesus as the Head. We have various roles, gifts and functions that serve a common mission: to actualize the Kingdom of God in this world.
We find this image in the First Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, Chapter 12:
“As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ… Now you are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.” (vv. 12 & 27) St. Paul also says in this letter that we need all of the parts of the Body of Christ and one part cannot say that it does not need any other part.
With this image from St. Paul in mind, we had table discussion on the following questions:
In the Body of Christ – the faith community – what part would you be?
• Eyes – seeing our mission in the needs of others?
• Ears – listening to God in prayer?
• Hands – reaching out in service?
• Feet – going out to others with the Word of God?
Our discussion led us to see that all roles in the Church are of equal value, they all flow from Baptism, and they all involve the investment of time, talent and treasure
This understanding was stated well in the vision of Vatican II: “There is a true equality with regard to dignity and the activity whereby all cooperate in the building up of the Body of Christ in their own unique manner.” (see LG #32)
Differences in roles must not divide us from one another as followers of Christ. There is no difference in the value of the various roles. Differences are not meant to create division or levels of importance in the eyes of God. We are only the Body of Christ when all parts are functioning, and each person, function or role needs all the others.
Even when it comes to leadership in the Church, people with different roles may be calling us or leading us at different times. For example, the Chairperson of the Outreach Committee may be calling us to meet a need, and he or she speaks to ALL about that need. An Ecclesial Minister, such as the Youth Minister, may be serving a specific need, but they are asking for the support of ALL members. In the same way, the Pastor fulfills his role by proclaiming the Word and administering Sacraments to ALL members. We experience the Holy Spirit at work in the Church through multiple ministries: liturgical ministries, service ministries, managerial ministries, spiritual ministries and educational ministries.
We discussed at our tables how this model of the Body of Christ compares with the previous hierarchical model, in which the levels of importance were: 1. Clergy; 2. Vowed Religious; and 3. Laity.
Returning to the vision of Vatican II, we looked at one of the documents that came from that Council, The Decree on the Apostolate of Lay People, which states: “The parish offers an outstanding example of community apostolate, for it gathers into a unity all the human diversity of the Church.” This decree outlines the role of the laity in the church as follows:
• Work in the parish in close union with their priests
• Bring before the ecclesial community their own problems, world problems and questions regarding our salvation
• Examine these issues together and solve them by general discussion
• According to their abilities: co-operate in all apostolic and missionary enterprises of church
This helped us to see the valuable that the laity have in the Church.
We then reflected on these two questions:
• As a lay person, what does my Baptism call me to:
– As a member of this faith community?
– As a person of faith with influence in the marketplace?
Our final large group discussion focused on the question: “How do I experience unity in the church, amid the different roles?”
The evening ended with a closing prayer:
Loving God, you keep together those you have united. Look kindly on all who follow Jesus, your Son.
We are all consecrated to you by our common baptism; make us one in the fullness of faith and keep us one in the fellowship of love.
We ask this through our Lord, Jesus Christ, you Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Next Week’s Topic is: “SAY YES TO GOD -- BUT LOOK OUT!” Everyone is welcome to join us for an interesting evening!
Weekly HOMILY for March 18, 2007: A Love Stronger Than Sin
4th Sunday of Lent, Cycle C
Our Lady of Grace
March 18, 2007
A Love Stronger Than Sin
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Dostoyevsky
In February 1881 – a little over 126 years ago – Fyodor Dostoyevsky, the great Russian novelist, realized that he was near death. He called his children to his side and requested that their mother read to them the parable that we just heard.
With eyes closed, he listened, drank in the words, intent on the vision he saw in his mind as the story unfolded.
When the reading was completed, Dostoyevsky said in a feeble voice: “My children, never forget what you have just heard. Have absolute faith in God and never despair of his pardon. I love you dearly but my love is nothing compared with the love of God for those who are his creation.
Even if you should be so unhappy as to commit a crime in the course of your life, never despair of God. You are God’s children. Humble yourselves before God as before your father.
Implore God’s pardon and God will rejoice over your repentance as the father rejoiced over that of the prodigal son.”
In short, the vision that Dostoyevsky wished to leave with his children was one of a love that is stronger than sin.
Gospel
It is this very same vision that has been left us by Jesus, who through all his words and works stated profoundly and forever God’s love for sinners.
Yes, God’s love is a love stronger and more powerful than sin and for this reason we need not harbor fear as we limp homeward for forgiveness.
Rather, our steps should be lighter and faster because we are encouraged to trust in a love that is beyond all measure.
Our way is gladdened because we know that the One who is waiting for us to arrive will welcome us, not with reproach, but with rejoicing, because we have made our way back, through forgiveness, to life.
Again, we have a story of God’s love, a love for us that is stronger than sin.
First Reading
That Joshua and the Israelites knew this same joy and cherished the promise of a new start is illustrated in today’s first reading.
Having arrived at a land they believe God has given them, they celebrate it as an event through which they have become a people liberated from slavery and bonded to God in a covenant of love.
True, they have proven themselves unworthy and unfaithful partners in this relationship with God before, but they have also learned that God is eager to reconcile and reinstate those who sincerely repent and return to him for forgiveness.
It is this vision of a loving and forgiving God that enables them to continue to repent and return more times than can be counted.
Again, we see this “love stronger than any sin” lived out.
Application
If it is indeed a “love stronger than any sin,” then no matter how much I have wronged or been wronged by infidelity with a friend,
No matter how much my vision of my marriage has been clouded by my or my spouses’ offenses,
No matter how hardened my heart has become because of long-held grudges,
There is one reality that is stronger than every disappointment, bitterness or ingrained mistrust that ties me down; it is that God’s love for you and me is stronger!
And God’s love for me, as seen and tasted and touched, in his son Jesus, draws me into the possibility of forgiveness and reconciliation.
How to Do It
To claim this forgiveness and reconciliation, we need only return to the story of the Prodigal Son and do what the son did, namely, (1) Come to my senses, (2) Admit my need, and (3) Limp home with repentance in my heart.
Despite all the mistakes he had made, the son can be credited for having enough sense to realize that no matter how great was his sin, his father’s love was greater still.
With only that awareness, that vision, to urge him homeward, the son does what so many of us do when we come to the point where we want to reconnect with family members or friends we have injured.
He practices what is called a soliloquy, a putting into the right words a little script with which to approach his father.
Of course, when the meeting finally takes place there’s no need for the rehearsed speech for it is the father who runs out to embrace him interrupting the soliloquy.
From clenched arms and through tears, he reinstates the boy as his son and calls for a celebration of one who was lost and now is found, one who was dead but lives again.
Conclusion
When the original audience heard this parable, how did they react?
For some, the parable was cause for rejoicing in the love and forgiveness of God. For others, the parable may have been like salt on a wound or a probe into their pride and self-satisfaction.
How will you and I respond to a love that is stronger than any one or all of our sins?
This coming Tuesday we will have our Lenten Penance Service: a great time to (1) Come to our senses, (2) Admit our need, and (3) Limp home with repentance in our heart.
Our Lady of Grace
March 18, 2007
A Love Stronger Than Sin
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Dostoyevsky
In February 1881 – a little over 126 years ago – Fyodor Dostoyevsky, the great Russian novelist, realized that he was near death. He called his children to his side and requested that their mother read to them the parable that we just heard.
With eyes closed, he listened, drank in the words, intent on the vision he saw in his mind as the story unfolded.
When the reading was completed, Dostoyevsky said in a feeble voice: “My children, never forget what you have just heard. Have absolute faith in God and never despair of his pardon. I love you dearly but my love is nothing compared with the love of God for those who are his creation.
Even if you should be so unhappy as to commit a crime in the course of your life, never despair of God. You are God’s children. Humble yourselves before God as before your father.
Implore God’s pardon and God will rejoice over your repentance as the father rejoiced over that of the prodigal son.”
In short, the vision that Dostoyevsky wished to leave with his children was one of a love that is stronger than sin.
Gospel
It is this very same vision that has been left us by Jesus, who through all his words and works stated profoundly and forever God’s love for sinners.
Yes, God’s love is a love stronger and more powerful than sin and for this reason we need not harbor fear as we limp homeward for forgiveness.
Rather, our steps should be lighter and faster because we are encouraged to trust in a love that is beyond all measure.
Our way is gladdened because we know that the One who is waiting for us to arrive will welcome us, not with reproach, but with rejoicing, because we have made our way back, through forgiveness, to life.
Again, we have a story of God’s love, a love for us that is stronger than sin.
First Reading
That Joshua and the Israelites knew this same joy and cherished the promise of a new start is illustrated in today’s first reading.
Having arrived at a land they believe God has given them, they celebrate it as an event through which they have become a people liberated from slavery and bonded to God in a covenant of love.
True, they have proven themselves unworthy and unfaithful partners in this relationship with God before, but they have also learned that God is eager to reconcile and reinstate those who sincerely repent and return to him for forgiveness.
It is this vision of a loving and forgiving God that enables them to continue to repent and return more times than can be counted.
Again, we see this “love stronger than any sin” lived out.
Application
If it is indeed a “love stronger than any sin,” then no matter how much I have wronged or been wronged by infidelity with a friend,
No matter how much my vision of my marriage has been clouded by my or my spouses’ offenses,
No matter how hardened my heart has become because of long-held grudges,
There is one reality that is stronger than every disappointment, bitterness or ingrained mistrust that ties me down; it is that God’s love for you and me is stronger!
And God’s love for me, as seen and tasted and touched, in his son Jesus, draws me into the possibility of forgiveness and reconciliation.
How to Do It
To claim this forgiveness and reconciliation, we need only return to the story of the Prodigal Son and do what the son did, namely, (1) Come to my senses, (2) Admit my need, and (3) Limp home with repentance in my heart.
Despite all the mistakes he had made, the son can be credited for having enough sense to realize that no matter how great was his sin, his father’s love was greater still.
With only that awareness, that vision, to urge him homeward, the son does what so many of us do when we come to the point where we want to reconnect with family members or friends we have injured.
He practices what is called a soliloquy, a putting into the right words a little script with which to approach his father.
Of course, when the meeting finally takes place there’s no need for the rehearsed speech for it is the father who runs out to embrace him interrupting the soliloquy.
From clenched arms and through tears, he reinstates the boy as his son and calls for a celebration of one who was lost and now is found, one who was dead but lives again.
Conclusion
When the original audience heard this parable, how did they react?
For some, the parable was cause for rejoicing in the love and forgiveness of God. For others, the parable may have been like salt on a wound or a probe into their pride and self-satisfaction.
How will you and I respond to a love that is stronger than any one or all of our sins?
This coming Tuesday we will have our Lenten Penance Service: a great time to (1) Come to our senses, (2) Admit our need, and (3) Limp home with repentance in our heart.
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Weekly MESSAGE for March 11, 2007: Winning Neologisms from the Washington Post
March 11, 2007
Focus: Winning Neologisms from the Washington Post
Dear Friend,
Every year, The Washington Post publishes the winning submissions to its yearly neologism contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words. I thought you might enjoy reading what they were.
The winners are:
1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.
2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained.
3. Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.
4. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.
5. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.
6. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.
7. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.
8. Gargoyle (n.), olive-flavored mouthwash.
9. Flatulence (n.), emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.
10. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.
11. Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.
12. Pokemon (n), a Rastafarian proctologist.
13. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.
14. Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your Soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Focus: Winning Neologisms from the Washington Post
Dear Friend,
Every year, The Washington Post publishes the winning submissions to its yearly neologism contest, in which readers are asked to supply alternate meanings for common words. I thought you might enjoy reading what they were.
The winners are:
1. Coffee (n.), the person upon whom one coughs.
2. Flabbergasted (adj.), appalled over how much weight you have gained.
3. Abdicate (v.), to give up all hope of ever having a flat stomach.
4. Esplanade (v.), to attempt an explanation while drunk.
5. Willy-nilly (adj.), impotent.
6. Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answer the door in your nightgown.
7. Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.
8. Gargoyle (n.), olive-flavored mouthwash.
9. Flatulence (n.), emergency vehicle that picks you up after you are run over by a steamroller.
10. Balderdash (n.), a rapidly receding hairline.
11. Rectitude (n.), the formal, dignified bearing adopted by proctologists.
12. Pokemon (n), a Rastafarian proctologist.
13. Oyster (n.), a person who sprinkles his conversation with Yiddishisms.
14. Frisbeetarianism (n.), (back by popular demand): The belief that, when you die, your Soul flies up onto the roof and gets stuck there.
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
Weekly THIS AND THAT for March 11, 2007: The Story of Dry Bones, Yours and Ours
This and That:
Session #3: “The Story of Dry Bones: Yours and Ours
Our topic for consideration this past Friday – “The Story of Dry Bones: Yours and Ours” – was part of the six-week series entitled: “How What We Believe Can Make a Difference.”
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
The evening began with a consideration of death in the Prophet Ezekiel. For Ezekiel, as for the ancient Hebrews, the body without “ruah,” that is, without breath, air, or wind was considered dead. A living sort of “death” in people we know may be seen as lifelessness, sinfulness, or relationships that bring us down. And when, at times, we feel “dead” is it not because we are without breath – as in out of breath or exhausted? Is it not as if without air – as in the sense of breathing polluted air or thin air? Is it not as if we were without wind – as if the air was stifling, listless, or smothering?
The Followers of Jesus after his passion and death were feeling this same sort of “death.” They were disillusioned with Jesus. Their hopes for Jesus as the promised Messiah were dashed. There was conflict and division among them in their bickering. Add to this the fact that they were fearful of the Jews. Feeling dead for them was feeling adrift, without purpose or hope.
Though these very concrete forms of death surrounded them, they did experience a coming to life. It came in the gathering that we have come to call Pentecost. After that event, the followers of Jesus were transformed. The fear was gone; it have been transformed into a desire to get out there and proclaim good news to a weary world. All the boundaries, chains, inhibitions – call them what you will – were gone! The significance of Pentecost was that it fulfilled, in the disciples of Jesus, the passing over from death to life that had taken place in him. That is to say that in Pentecost the Passover was being fulfilled in the disciples. As if by magic, they are opened up to hear the Word of God. In that very event they came to know the Spirit because the Spirit that dwells in us is the very power of God. In that very event the Spirit helped them in their weakness
Through table sharing, participants that evening came to realize that it was Jesus who had promised to send the Holy Spirit who will lead us to all truth (John 14:26) and each of them shared times when they had experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in their own life. Those moments may have been moments of new hope (the Holy Spirit’s gift of fortitude), or as “fresh air” (the Spirit’s gift of understanding), or as a new perception (the Spirit’s gift of knowledge).
At this point all present played “Baltimore Catechism” and who could name the Seven-Fold Gifts of the Holy Spirit? (Don’t peek; the answers are on the last page of this bulletin.) If you got those correct, do you remember any of the 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit? (Again, don’t peak, till you give the question a try.)
We believe that the Church possesses the fullness of Christ’s Spirit. In contrast to ourselves, who possess the Spirit at times, Christ was always filled with the Holy Spirit. And because the Church is his Body, the Holy Spirit is brought to completion in the Church. “Just how is the power of the Spirit at work in the Church?” you may ask. After his Resurrection and Ascension, and after the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Christ became present in the world by being manifested in the Church, which becomes the Sacrament of his presence. And through the Church-Presence-of-Christ, the Spirit does three important things: (1) It has the power to draw us. (2) It has the power to manifest Jesus Christ to us. (3) It has the power to bring us into communion.
This powerful presence of The- Church-Presence-of-Christ operates at several levels, namely, the Church as the Local Assembly at Parkton, the Church as the Local Church of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, and Church as the Universal Community of Believers. Thus this three-tiered reality of grace draws her life at all three levels from the Word and the Body of Christ and so becomes the living Body of Christ in our world.
Enough for the Church as the reality of presence of Christ! Where do the Sacraments fit in? The seven sacraments, as actions having both a “sacred” and “material” dimension, are powers that come forth from the “Body of Christ.” They are actions of the Holy Spirit at work in the Church. Thus what the soul is to the human body, the Holy Spirit is to the Body of Christ, the Church. They are how God becomes manifest and operative.
A second round of table sharing centered on three items for sharing: (1) How we see the Holy Spirit acting in the Body of Believers today? (2) What experiences have most helped us understand the Church as a community, inspired and led by the Holy Spirit? and finally, (3) What charisms or gifts of the Holy Spirit have we been given? How can we use these for the common good?
The topic for next week’s Session 4 is “Differences: Do They Divide or Unite?”
(Answers to questions from “This and That” above)
7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit:
➢ Wisdom
➢ Understanding
➢ Counsel
➢ Fortitude
➢ Knowledge
➢ Piety
➢ Fear of the Lord
12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit:
➢ Charity
➢ Joy
➢ Peace
➢ Patience
➢ Kindness
➢ Goodness
➢ Long Suffering
➢ Mildness
➢ Faith
➢ Modesty
➢ Continence
➢ Chastity
Session #3: “The Story of Dry Bones: Yours and Ours
Our topic for consideration this past Friday – “The Story of Dry Bones: Yours and Ours” – was part of the six-week series entitled: “How What We Believe Can Make a Difference.”
Fondly,
Father Nick Amato
The evening began with a consideration of death in the Prophet Ezekiel. For Ezekiel, as for the ancient Hebrews, the body without “ruah,” that is, without breath, air, or wind was considered dead. A living sort of “death” in people we know may be seen as lifelessness, sinfulness, or relationships that bring us down. And when, at times, we feel “dead” is it not because we are without breath – as in out of breath or exhausted? Is it not as if without air – as in the sense of breathing polluted air or thin air? Is it not as if we were without wind – as if the air was stifling, listless, or smothering?
The Followers of Jesus after his passion and death were feeling this same sort of “death.” They were disillusioned with Jesus. Their hopes for Jesus as the promised Messiah were dashed. There was conflict and division among them in their bickering. Add to this the fact that they were fearful of the Jews. Feeling dead for them was feeling adrift, without purpose or hope.
Though these very concrete forms of death surrounded them, they did experience a coming to life. It came in the gathering that we have come to call Pentecost. After that event, the followers of Jesus were transformed. The fear was gone; it have been transformed into a desire to get out there and proclaim good news to a weary world. All the boundaries, chains, inhibitions – call them what you will – were gone! The significance of Pentecost was that it fulfilled, in the disciples of Jesus, the passing over from death to life that had taken place in him. That is to say that in Pentecost the Passover was being fulfilled in the disciples. As if by magic, they are opened up to hear the Word of God. In that very event they came to know the Spirit because the Spirit that dwells in us is the very power of God. In that very event the Spirit helped them in their weakness
Through table sharing, participants that evening came to realize that it was Jesus who had promised to send the Holy Spirit who will lead us to all truth (John 14:26) and each of them shared times when they had experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in their own life. Those moments may have been moments of new hope (the Holy Spirit’s gift of fortitude), or as “fresh air” (the Spirit’s gift of understanding), or as a new perception (the Spirit’s gift of knowledge).
At this point all present played “Baltimore Catechism” and who could name the Seven-Fold Gifts of the Holy Spirit? (Don’t peek; the answers are on the last page of this bulletin.) If you got those correct, do you remember any of the 12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit? (Again, don’t peak, till you give the question a try.)
We believe that the Church possesses the fullness of Christ’s Spirit. In contrast to ourselves, who possess the Spirit at times, Christ was always filled with the Holy Spirit. And because the Church is his Body, the Holy Spirit is brought to completion in the Church. “Just how is the power of the Spirit at work in the Church?” you may ask. After his Resurrection and Ascension, and after the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Christ became present in the world by being manifested in the Church, which becomes the Sacrament of his presence. And through the Church-Presence-of-Christ, the Spirit does three important things: (1) It has the power to draw us. (2) It has the power to manifest Jesus Christ to us. (3) It has the power to bring us into communion.
This powerful presence of The- Church-Presence-of-Christ operates at several levels, namely, the Church as the Local Assembly at Parkton, the Church as the Local Church of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, and Church as the Universal Community of Believers. Thus this three-tiered reality of grace draws her life at all three levels from the Word and the Body of Christ and so becomes the living Body of Christ in our world.
Enough for the Church as the reality of presence of Christ! Where do the Sacraments fit in? The seven sacraments, as actions having both a “sacred” and “material” dimension, are powers that come forth from the “Body of Christ.” They are actions of the Holy Spirit at work in the Church. Thus what the soul is to the human body, the Holy Spirit is to the Body of Christ, the Church. They are how God becomes manifest and operative.
A second round of table sharing centered on three items for sharing: (1) How we see the Holy Spirit acting in the Body of Believers today? (2) What experiences have most helped us understand the Church as a community, inspired and led by the Holy Spirit? and finally, (3) What charisms or gifts of the Holy Spirit have we been given? How can we use these for the common good?
The topic for next week’s Session 4 is “Differences: Do They Divide or Unite?”
(Answers to questions from “This and That” above)
7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit:
➢ Wisdom
➢ Understanding
➢ Counsel
➢ Fortitude
➢ Knowledge
➢ Piety
➢ Fear of the Lord
12 Fruits of the Holy Spirit:
➢ Charity
➢ Joy
➢ Peace
➢ Patience
➢ Kindness
➢ Goodness
➢ Long Suffering
➢ Mildness
➢ Faith
➢ Modesty
➢ Continence
➢ Chastity
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