Listen to the homily here.
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Always look at Jesus Christ, especially instead of distractions: 6th Sunday in Easter Season
Listen to the homily here.
Notes:
Notes:
Easter 6th Sunday Weekend
BWCA Knife Lake
· Looking for camping sites
· Rolling waves
· Go forward
Jesus has said recently: “I love you” and “Know of my commandments”
· We need to face Jesus
· Like Jesus walking on the water, when Peter asked if he could walk on it too
· He did so and almost immediately, he began to sank and said, “Save me!”
· His problem was not seeing Jesus
Today, we often do the same thing, especially in our world
· Imagine the different worldly optics that, like Peter we are distracted
· Jesus taught us in John 15 (just after he called us not only his love, but his friendship):
o "If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.
If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own;
but because you do not belong to the world,
and I have chosen you out of the world,
the world hates you.”
If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own;
but because you do not belong to the world,
and I have chosen you out of the world,
the world hates you.”
To our graduates, you will be entering into the world, the wind, the waves and distractions
· Keep your eyes on Jesus Christ!
· Keep your faith, and when you start to sink seek his hand to pick you up and put your feet back on the ground again!
Parish Bulletin Article: "Four Levels of Happiness"
Congratulations to our graduates! Know of my prayers, as well as your family, loved ones, friends, our parishioners, and our community.
In this article, I would like to write to you, graduates, about happiness (and I hope all of our parishioners would learn about happiness as well).
In the history of our Catholic Church, we may know some insightfulness even two thousand years ago with philosophers as well as saints. I write to share this, as I hope you can grow, not just for the first and second levels of happiness, but all four of them.
Here we go:
· #1: Laetus: this level is about both materialism or pleasure that is within short-lived. For instance, I enjoy drinking a Coca-Cola. That gives me comfort with its taste, bubbles, refreshing beverage, and some energy with its caffeine. My happiness takes place, but only a few minutes to enjoy it or to use caffeine for a few hours. Or, if you haven’t heard about a big issue today in colleges, as well as in our culture: a “hookup” with casual sexual activities. Please avoid this one within our morality and the challenges of diseases or using another person as we should never use a person because you are a son or daughter of God, as well as that other person.
· #2: Felix: this level regards competition or comparison. Today I enjoy and challenge myself with running and triathlons, but when I was younger, I wanted to beat someone else to the finish line. I was excited to see how the data after these events, especially when I was #1! While this happiness occurs, it offers joy a little longer than #1, but it still occurs in most of society whether in a classroom, a job, a sport, dancing, concerts and more. It also happens when we compare ourselves within our ideas of our body, mind, or soul against other people. Uniquely, please do not compare yourself to another person as I wrote just above—you are loved by God and many other people in your life! Know how important you are as a person, the only person in the world, and more important than stars, or superficial levels all around our culture, and many people stop with happiness for these two levels.
· #3: Beatitudo: Beatitude = happiness at a deeper level than #1 or #2 and sometimes is at war with the second. Let’s go back to my experience with races. While I often said, “Good job,” or “Keep going,” (when I could still talk!) back then, and now. But back then, I used those words when I was passing someone else! Now, I also add this to people that are passing me. Beatitude/happiness in the third level is to recognize the good of another person, that may indeed be better than us. Here is where we can grow in our relationship with God to praise Him for another person, beyond us and continue to learn how essential we are as God and our parents created us and gave us life. Again, we are the only person, and God has chosen us to do His will.
· #4: Sublime Beatitudo: Sublime = to lift up or elevate. Sublime joyfulness is the type of happiness that Jesus Christ taught us, even to offer his own life to serve not just a few people, but everyone in the world, even today. While this level is the hardest to learn or offer, it is the glory of happiness. One area I think about this happiness is the men and women in the Boston Marathon, in which a bomb was placed towards the finish line, who ran towards that bomb. They served the people that were killed. They served the people who lost their legs. They served the people that were injured. These individuals were able to offer their own lives, and that is the closest we can experience happiness, even if it feels painful. Once again, that is what Jesus Christ taught us on the Cross.
As you graduates move on to college, a trade school or a job, please consider these levels of happiness, mainly to grow as an adult, as a disciple of Jesus Christ, as an individual that can experience the depths of happiness, joy, and beatitude with God.
God Bless!
Parish Bulletin Article: "May": 5-19-19
What a gorgeous month of May in our parishes and our community.
This is the month of our Mother Mary, as well as a time for Mother’s Day.
It also contains our fishing opener.
We have also experienced the Sacraments for our students: First Communion (last Sunday), and Confirmation (last Wednesday), which both nourishment of Jesus’ Body and Blood for our young students, and the power of the Holy Spirit for our young men and women.
And, we have our third or fourth tradition of a Baccalaureate Mass on Sunday, May 26th, 2019 at 10:30 at St. Thomas Aquinas to celebrate, pray and encourage our graduate students from each school(s). (Yes, you may wear your cap, gown, and tassel if you would want to).
Finally, we have Memorial Day around our country as it is for, “a day on which those who died in active military service are remembered…,” typically on the last Monday in May.
Again, how important this month is. It offers a time for our spiritual journey with our Mother, our love of nature (as our “spring” usually begins in May!), and our journeys both with spirituality and physical movements, especially many young lives with a new chapter, and our time to reflect on Memorial Day and spend time with our loved ones.
Oh yeah, school is almost done!
God Bless!
Monday, May 13, 2019
Some nuggets with our Scriptures in Acts 11 and John 10: Monday, May 13th, 2019
Listen to the homily here.
Lamb (as a student advised me to preach about it!) and St. John of the Cross: "...little things do indeed become great...: 4th Sunday in Easter Season
Listen to the homily here.
Notes:
Notes:
4thSunday in Easter Season
I asked our students different ways that I could give a homily
· Answers: Jesus, the cross, a lamb and doves
o What? Where did you get that idea?
o The banner!
· Well, thank you as I will use that idea today for my homily!
John 10
· “My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand.”
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand.”
· How do you hear our Shepherds voice?
o Bible
o Confession—forgiveness
o Eucharist
Also, St. John of the Cross
· "For little things do indeed become great; and from a small beginning there comes in the end a great matter, even as a spark suffices to set a mountain on fire and burn up the whole world" (St. John of the Cross).
· St. John of the Cross’ essential was for two levels
o Small sins that can grow into vices
§ Cut it off!
§ Get to confession to stay in our Shepherds hand
o And, a small beginning with Jesus Christ will become great
Listen to God’s Word and when you do, you can enhance what to keep in virtue, and cut out what is vices in your life
Parish Bulletin Article: "Victims of Sexual Abuse": 5-12-19
As I was on vacation in Hawaii, I fell in love with both St. Damian and St. Marianne Cope who served on the islands of Hawaii. Quickly, know that St. Damian is "the patron saint of people suffering from leprosy," and St. Marianne Cope, "provide[d] health care on the Hawaiian Islands, especially to those with leprosy."
While my parents and I stayed on the island Maui, and we saw a stunning view seeing the ocean and two islands, one to the left (about ten o'clock vision), Lana'i, and the right side (two o'clock image) Moloka'i which had a mountain/volcano which is extinct. Now, I must also mention that I have told other people the wrong name of Moloka'i, like Mordicai, (a character in the book of Esther in the Bible) as well as Malachi, (a prophet in the Bible as well). My bad.
While I have just ordered a book about St. Damian, another for St. Marianne Cope and another for an intense book called "The Colony: The Harrowing True Story of the Exiles of Molokai," about the lepers who were exiled and quarantined in from 1866 to 1969, and there are actually six lepers still living in his colony. While it makes sense to me, for such quarantine is what we do to this day (for instance, the Ebola virus which "The quarantine period for Ebola virus. WHO and CDC recommend that individuals who are potentially infected with Ebola virus should be quarantined for 21 days" from http://www.virology.ws/2014/10/16/the-quarantine-period-for-ebola-virus/).
As I do not know all the details—yet—but I do know that this colony began to protect other people from this leprosy as they did not have as we do today. And, this disease is known today as "Hansen's Disease—which is still most commonly known as leprosy—was extremely stigmatized around the world for centuries."
The saddest part was these brothers and sisters were not listened to, were not fed, were not giving housing, etc.
Last weekend I preached about Moloka'i, as I spoke about the disturbing history with sexual abuse in our Catholic Church. I said that those who were abused by a Catholic priest, bishop or cardinal were, like the lepers, not listened to, not in the presence of (not all, not many, but a few) leaders of our Church or not protected.
Please know that we must be like St. Damian (who contracted this disease as he served the people in the lepers' colony on Moloka'i), St. Marianne Cope and Jesus Christ himself: "On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices and said, 'Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.' When he saw them he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went they were cleansed" (Luke 17:11-14).
As the scandal of sexual abuse has come to the front line—praise God!—around the world, we Catholics must continue to pray for these victims. We must offer our presence (when needed), love, compassion, and LISTENING to support our family. As Bishop Paul mentioned to us that: "…because we are all of the Body of Christ: 'If one part suffers, all the parts suffer it' (1 Corinthians 12:26)'".
We also must pray for these perpetrators, as Jesus taught us to pray for all sinners, even though this is indeed challenging when we experience anger, confusion, and disgusting acts.
Let us walk together with and towards our King, especially with every person who have experienced traumatic situations, especially today the victims of clergy sexual abuse.
God Bless.
Tuesday, May 7, 2019
The Victims of Clergy Sexual Abuse and our Response to Support these Survivors: 3rd Sunday in Easter Season
Listen to the homily here.
Notes:
Notes:
3rdSunday in Easter Season: Victims
“The Lord hears the cry of the poor.”
· The Lord hears the cry of the victims and the survivors of sexual abuse from a priest or bishop
o While sadly this occurs with many other adults who abuse children or adolescents, our priests and bishops do have a higher responsibility
o And we must continue to support with our time, talent and treasure, praying that they may continue to grow with Jesus Christ our Victor King
While I was on vacation, I would like to add my spiritual prayer that reminded me of our brothers and sisters who have been quieted, shushed or not listened to from some of our leaders, our pastors, our bishops
· On the island of Maui, we were blessed to see true beauty, which many call it paradise or heaven itself
· I agree and was grateful to have some time off, relax, as well as be crazy
· I took a bike one afternoon and I was thinking about that Island, a few miles away that we could see clearly: Mordecai
o Mordecai, the island in which has the lepers’ colony that began in 1865 as the king quarantined as the disease spread to try to control it for everyone else
§ They were there over a century, and six people still live in that colony of the lepers, a horrifying history in our chapter
o While or medicine world have figured out what disease it really was, as with new technology today, they did support them with humanitarian gifts
o The saddest part is these people were left to a settlement and quarantined with no help, no food, no lodges
· I am guessing that this is similar to the victims of sexual abuse that has been brushed under the rug, not listening, not supporting, not serving
· That is our job as Catholics and Christians, to find out Jesus’ lost sheep and I am guessing that Jesus would go to Mordecai for the last six victims of that disease
Let’s next look to another powerful passage: 2 Maccabees 12
· “On the next day, as by that time it had become necessary, Judas and his men went to take up the bodies of the fallen and to bring them back to lie with their kinsmen in the sepulchres of their fathers. Then under the tunic of every one of the dead they found sacred tokens of the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear. And it became clear to all that this was why these men had fallen. So they all blessed the ways of the Lord, the righteous Judge, who reveals the things that are hidden; and they turned to prayer, beseeching that the sin which had been committed might be wholly blotted out. And the noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sin of those who had fallen. He also took up a collection, man by man, to the amount of two thousand drachmas of silver, and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering.”
That’s where we come in
· As we continue to grow with our time, talent and treasure, this is a time for the victims. Like the Maccabees, they offered that collection from them, even though it was not them, but their brothers, for that collection, as well as the sinners of their brothers
o Meaning, we should also pray for our perpetrators, which I personally know is not easy
Finally, this process should be concluded in 4-6 months
· All of our pastors agreed to support, with each parish, to support the victims
· Now, this marathon is still not concluded, but the finish line is in focus, though I do not want to put out a number as we simply cannot until the judge for the court of bankruptcy agrees.
· I may say this, though: our settlement gift, without the exact number, is about half of what our UCA is (3.5 x our UCA goal). I will also be writing a $1,000 check to support the victims, as well as we pastors agreed with each other to do the same
I’m ready for this process to be done. I’m guessing you want it done. Most of our country wants this done with frustration, anger and seeking for justice, and millions of Catholics want this in the light of Jesus Christ to find the victims for HIS love, like the Malakai lepers
God Bless you all, and as I am so proud of each of you, we must support these victims like “The LORD hears the cry of the poor.”
Mother Mary of the Rosary, pray for us.
Parish Bulletin Article: "Mother's Day, First Communion, and Fishing Opener"
What a beautiful weekend, though who knows what the weather may be. I’ll be honest, there better be any snow! Three thoughts with some scriptures with what we will be doing.
First, happy Mother’s Day! Know of my gratitude for you Mothers who have been open to life, and also know of my prayers for those women and couples who are trying to have a child. Let’s all bring up some prayers as I know several married couples who want life as well.
And what a formidable passage in Proverbs 31 for all of our Moms:
· Portions of this poem/song in this passage: “A good wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life…Her lamp does not go out at night…She opens her hand to the poor, and reaches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet…Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.”
Second, congratulations to our first communicants! I am proud of you (NAMES), your parents (NAMES) and what an honor for us to witness your first reception of Jesus Body and Blood. And please remember that this is your first communion, and I hope that our family sees you for your second communion, your third, your 500th and beyond!
· Matthew 19:14: “Jesus said, ‘Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’”
· Luke 24:29d-31: “So he went in to stay with [two disciples]. When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; and he vanished out of their sight.”
Third, happy fishing opener! I invite you to know how cool it can be, not only to fish, but to spend time with your friends and loved ones, and also offer your opportunity in fishing to soak in God’s creation in nature. Offer a prayer of gratitude for Him and always remember his idea for fishing:
· John 21:3-6: “Simon Peter said to [Jesus’ disciples], ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will go with you.’ They went out and got into the boat; but that night they caught nothing. Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, ‘Children, have you any fish?’ They answered him, ‘No.’ He said to them, ‘Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, for the quantity of fish.”
Finally, we continue to enjoy Easter season until Pentecost…keep rolling!
God Bless you for this superb weekend!
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