Category: Deep Church Thoughts

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The Three Temples of Lent

Greetings, Church fans! The gist of the homily is below. If you want to see the whole Mass, go the St. Pat’s Facebook Page here. If you just want to see the homily, go to our YouTube page here. Blessings!

    The cleansing of the Temple is a very good example of Jesus the Prophet. Like Isaiah and his two smoking firebrands (Is 7:4) or Ezekiel digging a hole through the city wall, (Ez 8:8) Jesus is doing exactly the kind of dramatic act that prophets had always done. Since Twitter and Instagram were not around yet, it was how they got the peoples’ attention. 

       Pastors do the same thing sometimes. At present, I am cleansings the office cupboards. I’m not sure why we need 46 (Count em! Yes, 46!) different boxes and Ziploc bags of tea, 8 jars of coffee, and 23 coffee mugs, not to mention several pounds of condiments and spices. I also found a large variety appliances of dubious purpose.        Clutter creeps up on us and we sometimes don’t realize it until we are staring at a mountain of extraneous encrustations.     

       Jesus saw this happening in the Temple of Jerusalem and took action. So too for us, Lent is a good time to identify the clutter in our lives, how it blocks our path to Christ, and then to get rid of it in no less dramatic fashion. One way of doing so, is to think in terms of “Three Temples.” 

       The first temple mentioned in today’s gospel passage is the Temple of Jerusalem. For the people of Jesus day, this was the dwelling place of God and proof of his abiding presence with his people. It was where true worship was offered to God, and a sign of God’s protection over his chosen people. It was also big business. Endless streams of pilgrims would come, especially in the holy seasons. Obviously, they would need to obtain the necessary animals for sacrifice. This used to happen in the surrounding neighborhood, but as we see, it found its way onto the Temple grounds and even in parts of the Temple itself. Since one could not use Roman coins within the Temple precincts to make the purchase, one needed to change Roman coins for Temple script. Of course, the money changers would charge a nice little commission for their service. This also was big business. This is what really ticked Jesus off.  By driving them all out, he makes the point in no uncertain terms that they have profaned the Temple and all it stands for.  Jesus is very much the prophet calling the people to true worship in the manner of the expected Messiah.

       But then we learn of another Temple, the temple of his own body. This makes a lot of sense once we understand that all previous sacrifices ever offered under the Law of Moses, whether they were to establish covenants, to forgive sins, to remember or to give thanks, were fulfilled and perfected in the one perfect sacrifice of Christ on the cross.  In a very real sense, once he offered himself on the Cross, all previous sacrifices became superfluous.  Our eucharistic sacrifice here today is a propitiary sacrifice by which we participate in the one, perfect sacrifice of Christ.

       Finally, there is a third temple we need to be aware of. Namely, every one of us who is part of the Mystical Body of Christ. As St. Paul reminds us, “Do you not know that your body is a temple* of the holy Spirit within you…) 1 Cor 6:19)         We would do well to play the prophet with ourselves this Lent.  What are those worldly things that crept into our lives that get between us and our relationship with God and others? Lent is a great time to take stock, to make changes and to cleanse the temples of our lives. 

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Three Word Sermons

Greetings, Church fans! Below is the text of the homily. As always, you can pick up the whole Mass on the livestream on our Facebook page or just the homily on our YouTube Channel.

I was struck by something the Holy Father said recently:

“Lent is not a time for useless sermons, but for recognizing that our lowly ashes are loved by God.  It is a time of grace; a time for letting God gaze upon us with love and in this way change our lives.” 

Actually, it was the great social commentator, George Burns, who said,

“The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a good ending, then having the two as close together as possible.”

He may have had Jesus’ first sermon in mind when he said this. It’s a pretty short message in three parts:

       1. “This is the time of fulfillment.

       2. The kingdom of God is at hand.

       3. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

       This three part structure has pretty much been the norm for homiletics ever since. You may recall that the Holy Father always tries to leave us with “three words” in any of his addresses or sermons. So let’s look at each of these briefly.

       1.  It is a heady thing to realize that we are, in fact, living in the time of fulfillment. There are two aspects to what Jesus was talking about. First, Christ proclaims and the Church affirms that all Old Testament prophecies are fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. Second, all previous sacrifices, whether to establish covenants, to forgive sins, to remember or to give thanks, were fulfilled in the one perfect sacrifice of Christ on the Cross. This truly is the time of fulfillment.

       2. Precisely because this is the time of fulfillment, the Kingdom is at hand, both temporally and practically. Too often we look for God in the exotic and mysterious. But to be Catholic is to believe that through the sacraments, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, there is no part of our life, even our worst parts, to which God is not present.

       3. The gospel or “Good News” is that because of his sacrifice on the Cross and because that is so immediately accessible to us in the sacraments, the price for our sins has been paid. The only possible (and necessary) response is gratitude. Belief in the forgiveness of sins leads us to turn away from those very sins and live in the fullness of grace with Christ and each other. 

       This Lent, may we live as people of fulfillment who embrace the Kingdom and return to grace.  

Let us recognize that our lowly ashes are loved by God.  Let us allow God gaze upon us with love and in this way change our lives. 

       1. “This is the time of fulfillment.

       2. The kingdom of God is at hand.

       3. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

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Celebrating Marriage!

Hey, Church fans! Happy Valentine’s Day!

What could a celibate priest possibly know about marriage? Quite a bit more than you think. I’ve been watching you folks for 30 years now. Sort of like the Offensive Coordinator up in the press box. I can see things that may not be apparent on the field. Here is today’s musings. As always, you can catch the whole Mass here or just the homily on our YouTube Channel.

     Sometimes the readings match up with what is going on outside the liturgy and sometimes they don’t. This is a weekend when they don’t. In society and even in the Church is it Valentine’s Day and the culmination of Celebrate Marriage Week. It is important that we celebrate marriage, the union-body and soul–between one man and one woman, especially Christian Marriage.

A quick comment on the gospel

       Jesus enters into the reality of the leper

       Makes himself unclean

              The irony is that he now cannot move about freely.

       What Jesus touches, he transforms

       So it was for the leper

So it was when he went to the wedding of his friends in Cana

       So today, I’m going to talk about

              – the essential properties and the fruits of marriage,

              – the five stages of marriage

              – a bit about the reality of separation and divorce

Married love is different than other kinds of love

       I have six sisters, and I love them all.  I’m not going to marry one of them.

       I have  brother and I love him…like a brother.

       I love my mom, not going to marry her.

No, married love is unique and the sacrament of marriage is something special.

As understood by the Church, marriage has two essential properties and three characteristics or “fruits.” 

The essential properties of marriage are unity and indissolubility. The three fruits of marriage are permanence, fidelity and fecundity, i.e., it is “life-giving.”

       Unity: Marriage is the total gift of the self, body and soul, to one’s spouse.

       All that I am I give to you

              Without reservation, without condition.

       To do so, you have to know:

              1.  yourself, inside out and backwards. 

                      You can’t give away what you don’t have.

              2. your intended spouse, inside out and backwards. 

                      You should never give yourself away without great deliberation.

              3. the nature of the relationship in which your are giving yourselves to each other.

       Second essential property of marriage is Indissolubility:

     A a valid marriage is permanent, lasting until death. Jesus said, “What God has joined, let no one divide.” (Mk 10:9) It’s important to keep this in mind while preparing. Marriage is not something to do on a whim. But if a couple is well-prepared, then they can enjoy the fruits of marriage.

And then there are three characteristics of fruits of marriage. Permanence, fidelity, and fecundity. 

       Permanence—this gives the relationship the stability that allows the couple the freedom to love imperfectly. They do not have to fear that the relationship will end because they made a bone-headed mistake. Thus, it also allows them to love completely, without reservation or condition.

       Fidelity—gives the couple a sense of gratitude and reverence for the other. Reverence in this sense is to be ‘prayerfully attentive to the other.’ The faithful spouse looks to the good of the relationship and the needs of the other, even anticipating these needs. Eventually, they are so tuned into each other that they begin to finish each other’s sentences.

       Fecundity—Love by its very nature creates. So it is for God, and so it is for the couple who “co-create” with God. We are talking a love so intense in its physical expression that nine months later, you may have to give it a name! Every decision in marriage, no matter how seemingly mundane, can be discerned by asking whether or not it is life-giving physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

When we see how you love each other in good times and in bad in sickness and in health, we get just a little glimpse of what it means for God to love us.

       To often, I think we look for signs of God’s love in the strange, the exotic.

       But we don’t have to do that,
       I can look at any well-married couple and say, Look at them.  See how they love each other…That’s what’s I’m talking about.

It’s not easy. 

The fives stages of marriage:

       1.  Marital Bliss

       2.  Disillusionment

       When you realize that all of your shortcomings and character flaws,

       ….AND THOSE OF YOUR SPOUSE…

       Don’t suddenly go away just because you got married.

       The truth is sometimes a very sobering thing.

              But it is never a bad thing.

       3.  Sheer exhaustion – “kenosis“

              When one or both parties are physically, emotionally, or spiritually exhausted.

       It is not necessarily anybody’s fault,

       It could be an illness, a financial crisis, a natural disaster.

       Characterized by a lack of feeling.

       “I don’t feel like I love you.” 

       No kidding, you can’t feel  anything, let alone affection for your spouse. 

       4.  Reconciliation

              The rebuilding of the relationship in a way that you could not imagine before.

       5.  Deeper covenantal love.

In this way, we can see how a good marriage truly is a reflection of the paschal mystery. 

       1. Humanity was in a state of “original bliss.”

       2. The illusions were stripped away

       3. The relationship was in crisis

       4. in the fullness of time, Christ came and all creation was reconciled to the Father.

       5.  Our relationship with God now is much deeper and more intimate than it was in the Garden.

       Incidentally, this is where the Moonie’s theology falls flat.

       They wish to return to the Garden.

       Just like couples who are in crisis will often say, “I just want to go back to the way it was when we first got married.

       “I’ll always answer, “Why? That was unsustainable.  God has something much more profound in store for you.” 

In my experience, every relationship redefines itself about every 7 years through this process.

       Healthy relationships get deeper and more intimate

       Unhealthy relationships will either go into suspended animation for another seven or will fail at that point. 

Which brings me to a word about separation, divorce and declarations of nullity, commonly called annulments.

       The sad reality is that, often through no fault of their own, a person will find themselves separated or divorced.

       There are a number of reasons for this.

       There are no good divorces. 

              There are necessary divorces.

                      But no good ones.

              As mentioned before, in a good marriage, here is someone who knows all of your vulnerabilities and honors them.

              Too often in divorce, we see that here is someone who knows all of your vulnerabilities

       And is willing to exploit them.

There are not good divorces.

       There are necessary divorces, but no good ones.

       When this happens in our midst, we need to recognize the pain and the suffering that comes with such a state of affairs

       We, as Christian are called to accompany those who suffer such pain.

       It is at this time, that they and their children need their Church more than ever.

       Now, there is heresy out there that if someone is simply separated or divorced, they can’t come to communion. 

       All things being equal, nothing could be farther from the truth. 

       Do not believe this lie.

       The only time that becomes an issue is if someone enters into another relationship

       And is living with someone to whom they are not married

       Or has gotten married outside the Church. 

       If a divorced person does find someone special with whom they wish to get married.

       In order to be sure that they are free to do so, they can petition the Archbishop for a declaration of nullity.

       We will investigate previous attempted marriage to see if it was valid.  If not, then we issue a decree of Nullity and they are free to marry

       The Irish have a wonderful expression: “May the love of God warm your heart like a great fire, so that a friend may come and warm himself there.” A good marriage is life-giving well beyond the relationship of the couple and their family. It enlivens the neighborhood, the community and the whole of society. 

It is not easy

       And not every marriage succeeds.

But it is so worth it, even to try.

Society needs good marriages. 

We need to defend, preserve and celebrate marriage any way we can.               

For those of you who are married or have been married, thank you.  May your witness to God’s love inspire us all to strive for such self-sacrifice.

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Why the Book of Job?

While I won’t say the Book of Job is my favorite, there are certain parts I really like. You might ask, “Hey Father Leo, why is the Book of Job in the Bible anyway? It’s sooooo depressing! Isn’t scripture supposed to inspire not depress?” Well, yes and no. Scripture bears privileged witness to Revelation and usually that is pretty inspiring. But it also is expressive of the People’s experience of God and the lessons they learn from that encounter. Why is Job in the Bible? Because, quite frankly, sometimes the human experience is not much fun. Who of us, especially in the midst of the present pandemic, has not at one time or another echoed the words of good ol’ Job: “Is not life a drudgery?!” or in the midst of sorrow exclaimed, “I shall never see happiness again!”

Let’s be honest.  Life is usually pretty good, but sometimes it really stinks. Wouldn’t you want a God who is present to you not just when life is all sweetness and roses, but especially when you are at your worst?

A careful reading of the book shows that God never abandons Job in his affliction; and, incidentally neither do the three friends of Job who come to comfort him. One notes also that Job never gives up his faith in God and is eventually restored tenfold.

Job is especially relevant to the Christian. The story shows us how God never gives up on us. Sure, usually life is pretty good, but sometimes trial and affliction and even our own sins bring us to our knees. If the Cross teaches us anything, it is that through Christ’s redemptive suffering, God is especially present to us when we are at our worst.  For those who persevere to the end, the crown of righteousness awaits. 

The friends of Job show us that, as the Body of Christ, we are called to share in the burdens of others. When we feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned, bury the dead,
give alms to the poor, we are heart and arms and hands of Christ reaching out to others in their need.  

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Taking a Leap

       Try this little spiritual exercise. Sometime this week stand at the step of City Hall

       And for an hour, shout at the top of your lungs:

       “Forty-days more and this city will be destroyed!!!”

Then, come back next week and tell me how it went…

       The conversion of the city if Nineveh at the preaching of Jonah goes to show you that the only reason he was effective as that he was literally on a mission from God.

But with Jonah and with Paul and even with our Lord, we can see a certain urgency with which they go about their tasks. 

       “Forty days more…”

       “I tell you, brothers and sisters, that time is running out…”

       ““This is the time of fulfillment.

The kingdom of God is at hand.

Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

       You can feel the urgency in their message.

       When I was younger, I was captivated by Peter, James, John and Andrew, who left everything, seemingly on the spur of the moment, to follow Jesus simply because he asked them.

“What faith!” I thought. “What fervor!” 

       Then, as I grew older and started adulting, I thought to myself, “Self!  Hold on a minute. Normal people don’t this that.  They don’t just up leave everything because some stranger says, ‘Follow me.’” In fact, we see several other places where Jesus give the same invitation and they don’t follow him, such as the rich, young man in Mark 10:17-31.

       There has to be more to the story.

       Fortunately, we get our insight in last week’s gospel from the call of Andrew and Peter in the Gospel of John 

(Jn 1:35-42). As you recall, once Andrew spent the rest of the day with Jesus he sought out his brother Simon and exclaimed, “We have found the Messiah!” If we keep reading, we see that the next day the scene is repeated with Philip and Nathaniel. In this case, Philip says, ““We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth.” (Jn 1:45) 

       What becomes abundantly clear in a reading of John is that, like everyone else at the time, those who would become the first disciples were primed and ready for his appearance. They were on the lookout, and when they found themselves in his presence, they recognized in him the long-expected Messiah.

       They didn’t know what following him would entail, of course, but really they didn’t have to. He was there. He asked them to be his disciples. That was enough for the moment. The rest would take care of itself.

       It’s a good lesson for all of us who choose to follow Jesus. Do we recognize in Jesus the fulfillment of all our hopes and deepest longings? Do we choose to follow him daily? If we do, then every other decision from then on will flow from that choice. The rest is just details.

       The problem is, human beings are naturally averse to the unknown. We like a bit of certainty before we take a leap of faith. 

       We like the road map, not just trail markers.

       In the morning I like to listen the local news radio. It seems that every news and talk radio station has at least one featured show on planning your financial future and setting a road map to success.

       And yes, we should plan prudently in this regard.

       But in the end, it is all an illusion.

              “The world in its present form is passing away.”

You never see a hearse with a U-Haul behind it. 

       In her essay, the Open Door, Helen Keller once said something that I greatly admire:

          “Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.”

                                           – Helen Keller, The Open Door

Still, we like a bit of certainty before we take a leap of faith. 

       If not in what we are getting ourselves into,

       then at least in the ONE who is asking us to do it. 

       This trust in the other is called faith.

This is not something esoteric or complicated.

       Anyone who has watched a child leap into the swimming pool at his father’s beckoning knows what I am talking about.  

       The water is deeper than the child’s head.

       The child knows this.

       The child also knows that it is only about chest deep on his father.

       And he knows that since his father is there, he will be safe.

       And so…he leaps.

Is it any different for you and me as we stand on the edge as Christ beckons us out of the kiddy pool and into the deep end of discipleship?

       It is Jesus who is calling us.    

       What could we possibly be afraid of? 

              What could possibly hold us back?

       He has gone all the way to the Cross for us.  

His arms are still outstretched to embrace us. 

       What could possibly make us hesitate any longer?  

       Yet, still.  Some of us do.

In 1958, Thomas Merton, prolific author and monk of Gethsemane Abbey in Louisville, KY, wrote a book called “Thoughts in Solitude.”  In this book is a short prayer about this very moment in the life of every Christian. 

       It is now called “The Merton Prayer.”

              It is often quoted, even today.

       So I will conclude with it in hopes that you will find it helpful:

My Lord God,
I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end,
         nor do I really know myself,
         and the fact that I think I am following your will
         does not mean that I am actually doing so.


But I believe that the desire to please you
         does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore will I trust you always, though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.

I will not fear, for you are ever with me,
         and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. 

Amen.

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Being Andrew

Howdy, Church fans! Hope your team wins this weekend! . Below is the column. As always, you can catch the livestream at our FB page:

“So how did you decide to be a priest?”  It’s a question I get a lot. The short answer is, I was invited by another person. It’s as simple as that.

Vocations are not rocket science, but it is important to realize that every person in the parish has an essential role to play in calling forth, from our own parish family, men and women to serve the Archdiocese as priests, deacons, and religious. Vocations are everybody’s responsibility. Think about it. What could be better than helping someone answer the calling that Jesus has wanted for that person since he or she was created?  How cool is that?!

I’m also painfully aware that as we approach our 50th anniversary as a parish, I can think of no one whom the parish has called to the holy priesthood for the Archdiocese. I think we are about due, don’t you?

So how does it work? How do you invite someone to follow Christ into the priesthood?  We can get an idea from call of Peter through Andrew in today’s Gospel. The encounter shows us six easy steps.

Step 1. Look for Jesus yourself. 

Step 2. Follow Jesus yourself.

Step 3. Spend time with Jesus. 

Step 4. Seek out the other.

Step 5. Invite the other to follow Jesus. 

Step 6. Keep praying and trust Jesus to do the rest.

Step 1. We see that Andrew (and presumably John) were already looking for the Messiah, that’s probably why they were disciples of John. 

Step 2. Once John points him out, off they go!

Step 3. They came. They saw and spent the rest of the day in the Lord’s presence. That’s essentially what prayer is. Spending time with the Lord. We spend time with Jesus in private prayer, in small group prayer, and most profoundly in the liturgical prayer of the Sacred Assembly at Holy Mass.

Step 4. Having come to know Jesus, Andrew seeks out his brother, who apparently was also looking for Jesus.

Step 5. Once he finds him, he says, “Simon! You gotta come with me! We found him! This is the guy! Come and see!”  Then he brought him to Jesus.

Step 6. Jesus receives Simon…and Simon’s name, and his life, are forever changed. And, we should note, so is Andrew’s.

Remember. No Andrew, no St. Peter.  So be Andrew! Follow steps 1-3 and when the time is right go up to that young man and say: “You know, I see the qualities in you that would make a good priest. Would you please consider it?  I’m going to be praying for you.”  Then keep praying and let Jesus do the rest.     

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In God We Trust

My Dear Friends in Christ in St. Patrick’s Parish:

I began this week much like the rest of you – thankful for the gifts of faith, the gift of family, of health, among others.

One of those things which I apparently took for granted was the freedom to celebrate these gifts by giving thanks to Almighty God in our parish church in the Christmas liturgies, including today’s celebration of the Baptism of the Lord.

And then on Wednesday, I watched with interest and then with disgust as our Nation’s capital building, the very seat of our republic and a primary, living symbol of that freedom, was overrun by an unruly mob. The lives of five people were lost tragically, and the people of our Nation, indeed, of the world, asked with one voice, “How could this happen?” 

How indeed? 

I offer to you, my dear friends, and to all those of goodwill, that roots of this tragedy and every other tragedy that befalls our nation and all humanity are sown in the soil of a misplaced sense of in what and in whom shall we put our hope. 

As a human institution based on principles of Enlightenment philosophy, no one has ever claimed that the American experiment is immune from error.  Even the second verse of the hymn, America the Beautiful pleads, “God mend thine every flaw.”

And as good as it is, not even the greatest defenders of freedom and democracy have upheld the infallibility of our system of government.  It was Sir Winston Churchill who once famously quipped:

“No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise.  Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.”

I agree with Sir Winston, but we must remember that democracy is not an end unto itself.  Rather, even as flawed as it is, it remains the best instrument at hand to uphold and defend the principles and freedoms upon which this nation was founded. These principles are articulated in the Declaration of Independence and the writings of the Founding Fathers.  They are given concrete expression in the Constitution of Unite States. 

The freedoms expressed therein have been given different articulations throughout the last 245 years.  One of the most poignant was given by Franklin D. Roosevelt, in his famous “Four Freedoms” speech.  It was given on January 6, 1941, almost 80 years ago to the day, at the president’s annual address to Congress.  At that time, Europe and Asia were firmly in the grip of Second World War. The totalitarian powers of Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, Mussolini’s Italy, and the Soviet Union continued to grow unabated.  The United States had remained essentially neutral in the conflict, but was growing ever more wary as the tides of war ebbed ever closer to its shores. In the shadow of this ominous threat, the President addressed the nation, saying:

       In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.

 The first is freedom of speech and expression–everywhere in the world.

        The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way–everywhere in the world.

        The third is freedom from want–which, translated into world terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants-everywhere in the world.

        The fourth is freedom from fear–which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor–anywhere in the world.

Freedom of speech and expression; freedom of religion; freedom from want; freedom from fear – these are some of the essential freedoms upheld in the past century.  They have formed the cornerstone upon which much of our social discourse has been taken place for the past four generations. 

Yet even these are dependent on even more fundamental principles, not discerned by human reason alone, but revealed by Almighty God and passed on through the centuries by men and women of faith.

It was just such a man of faith who held the office of President at the conclusion that that exhaustive conflict just mentioned, who when faced with the mighty task of rebuilding a broken world, reminded the Nation once again that our strength and our hope must come from a deeper source.  In a radio address as Part of the Program ‘Religion in American Life’, 30 October 1949, President Harry Truman said:

“The United States has been a deeply religious Nation from its earliest beginnings. The need which the founders of our country felt–the need to be free to worship God, each man in his own way–was one of the strongest impulses that brought men from Europe to the New World. As the pioneers carved a civilization from the forest, they set a pattern which has lasted to our time. First, they built homes and then, knowing the need for religion in their daily lives, they built churches. When the United States was established, its coins bore witness to the American faith in a benevolent deity. The motto then was “In God We Trust.” That is still our motto and we, as a people, still place our firm trust in God.

“Building on this foundation of faith, the United States has grown from a small country in the wilderness to a position of great strength and great responsibility among the family of nations. Other countries look today to the United States for leadership in the ways of peace, and it is our task to meet that challenge.

“I am convinced that we are strong enough to meet the challenge. We are strong enough because we have a profound religious faith. The basic source of our strength as a nation is spiritual. We believe in the dignity of man. We believe that he is created in the image of God, who is the Father of us all.

“It is this faith that makes us determined that every citizen in our own land shall have an equal right and an equal opportunity to grow in wisdom and in stature, and to play his part in the affairs of our Nation.

“It is this faith that makes us respect the right of men everywhere to worship as they please and to live their own lives free from the fear of tyranny and strife.

“It is this faith that inspires us to work for a world in which life will be more worthwhile–a world of tolerance, unselfishness, and brotherhood–a world that lives according to the precepts of the Sermon on the Mount.

“I believe that every problem in the world today could be solved if men would only live by the principles of the ancient prophets and the Sermon on the Mount.

“Each one of us can do his part by a renewed devotion to his religion. If there is any danger to the religious life of our Nation, it lies in our taking our religious heritage too much for granted. Religion is not a static thing. It exists not in buildings, but in the minds and hearts of our people.

“Religion is like freedom. We cannot take it for granted. Man–to be free–must work at it. And man–to be truly religious–must work at that, too. Unless men live by their faith, and practice that faith in their daily lives, religion cannot be a living force in the world today.

“That is why each of us has a duty to participate-actively-in the religious life of his community and to support generously his own religious institutions.

“Just as an active faith sustained and guided the pioneers in conquering the wilderness, so today an active faith will sustain and guide us as we work for a just peace, freedom for all, and a world where human life is truly held sacred.

“Religious faith and religious work must be our reliance as we strive to fulfill our destiny in the world.”

In truth, any democratic society, even own great
Republic, cannot thrive or even survive apart from religious faith.

The dignity of the human person, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness all find their origins in

a reliance on Almighty God and the principles of sound religion. 

The farther we stray as individual citizens and as a nation from our religious faith and practice, the more perilous becomes the survival of our Great Republic, as the democratic principles on which it is founded and the freedoms which it defends are inexorably eroded.  

Our ultimate hope cannot, must not reside in any particular political figure or party.  

Nor ultimately can we place our trust even in the exceptional institutions of remarkable human governance.

The testimony of our own history is clear.  There is only one maxim by which our nation has endured the tribulations of our past and through which we will endure the trials of the future.

“In God we trust.” 

May it ever be so. 

May God bless America.    

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Tu Solus Dominus

  It was fun to live in Rome for the better part of nine years off and on. The historic center of the city has been described by some as a “city of surprises.”  This was certainly true in my experience.  It’s a fun city to get lost in. After winding your way through twisting, narrow streets, hardly wider than an alleyway, suddenly you emerge into the open where something beautiful is waiting for you. 

       There are lots of little surprises as well. Once I was taking a shortcut through a back alley that I had taken many times before. Since the cobblestones were uneven there, I always tended to look down where I was going, but this morning I happened to look up and notice and inscription above one of the doors. Carved into the marble in three inch Roman script it simply said, “TU SOLUS DOMINUS.” In English it can be rendered “You alone are the Lord,” as it is in the Gloria that is sung at the beginning of Mass.

But as you Latin scholars out there know, it can also be rendered in a more personal way to read: “You alone, Lord.” or “Lord, only you.”

The fun thing is that ANY of these interpretations work as we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King this weekend. We can see this feast in its cosmic sense, where Jesus is indeed Lord of all Creation. He is the one who has dominion over all creation.  His is a sovereignty above all others. All nations, kingdoms, principalities, churches, parishes, corporations, co-ops, pinochle clubs, etc. will answer to him. There is nothing in the created order that will not be accountable to Christ, the King of the Universe.

In the more personal sense, the Christians acknowledge that Christ has dominion over every aspect our lives as well. There is no part of our life that is separated from God’s presence and God’s love as shown to us in Christ Jesus. If I acknowledge Jesus as Savior and Lord, that changes everything. Primarily, it will determine how I will organize my life; how I spend my time and resources and with whom.

As we celebrate the sovereignty of Christ over creation and over our lives, it’s a good time to reflect on whether or not he really is the center of our lives.  Here is a simple test to see if that is the case. Look at your calendar and your wallet. Do you organize your time and the time of the household around prayer and worship of Christ? Is it the priority to which everything else must defer? If so, great.  If not, then perhaps you need to make adjustments. Similarly, on what are you spending your money and other resources? Is Christ and his Church your first priority to which all other financial decisions defer?  If so, great! If not, then perhaps you need to make adjustments. 

It’s not rocket science. Christ is either Lord of the Universe and Lord of our lives or he is not. If we live our lives with him at the center, then everything else will be rightly ordered and no part of our lives will be separated from God.

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Faithful, Charitable Citizenship

Every couple of years I hate listening to the radio or turning on the TV.  The six weeks before the election provide some of the most acrimonious advertising you will ever see. This year is no exception as obscene amounts of money are being spent here to sway the balance of power in the Senate and House of Representatives. Because of our small media market, Alaska is especially inundated with political advertising. To get the same media penetration on the east coast as here, political parties and special interest groups would have to spend up to ten times more. Lucky us. The result is a never-ending stream of vitriol and negative advertising. We have ceased to talk policy and have resorted to character assassination. Surely we can do better than that.  

As Catholics, we are morally bound to exercise our civic duty to vote and participate in the political process and civic activities. Thankfully, the Church in her wisdom has articulated its social teaching in seven central principles that help us make sense of it all. These are:

· The Life and Dignity of the Human Person.

· Solidarity

· Care for God’s Creation

· Call to Family, Community and Participation

· Preferential Option for the Poor and Vulnerable

· Rights and Responsibilities

· Dignity of Work and Rights of Workers

Between now and the election, I will be featuring one or more of these themes in each column.  In the meantime, if you want to learn more go to:

· https://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catholic-social-teaching/seven-themes-of-catholic-social-teaching   or

· https://www.crs.org/resource-center/CST-101

We all have a duty to vote an INFORMED CONSCIENCE.  This is a good places to start.   – Fr. Leo