“My Soul Proclaims the Greatness of the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior”

This past Sunday I did a Holy Hour for the Holy Name Society at Holy Rosary Church in the Bronx, New York. Following is the homily I gave that I wanted to share with you.

During this month of October Holy Mother Church commemorates the patronal feast of this beautiful parish: the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Holy Mother Church also commemorates October as Respect Life Month.

The feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, celebrated on October 7^th of each year, was instituted by Pope Pius V, originally known as Our Lady of Victory, but later changed to Our Lady of the Rosary by Pope Gregory XIII.

Our Lady is someone who was always open to doing the Holy Will of God. She can be best described as an active contemplative, always meditating on scripture and how it applied to her life. She was so open to scripture that when the Angel Gabriel approached her to be the mother of the Messiah, after some careful thought on the explanation the angel gave her as to what this means, she said “yes” and as a result changed the course of human history by being the mother of the savior: Jesus Christ. By her “yes” she was able to bring Christ into the world. She would then go visit her elderly cousin, Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptist, and bring her comfort and help in her time of need.

Elizabeth and the child in her womb, John the Baptist, were the first to realize that the child that Mary was carrying was someone special. Elizabeth said to Mary, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” (Luke1:41-45) Mary’s response was, “My soul proclaims the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my savior.”

Mary carrying Jesus in her womb and Elizabeth carrying John the Baptist in her womb are two examples of the sanctity of life from conception. In other parts of scripture, we hear of the fact that life in the womb from conception should be respected and protected. In Psalm 139 verse 13 we read “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” What beautiful words acknowledging that life begins at conception!

Yet we live in a society where the child’s life before birth is not respected. Instead we hear of the mother’s right to choose what to do with her body, forgetting that there’s another body in her starting from conception. Further, since the legalization of abortion through Roe v. Wade, we have seen our society become more violent.

St. Theresa of Calcutta once said, “I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself.”

How do we, as Catholics, bring about a greater understanding of respect for life from conception to natural death? First, we start with how we live as Catholics! We are called to love God with our whole mind, heart, and body, and to love our neighbor as our self. By loving God and loving our neighbor, we are showing respect for life in each person we meet. We are recognizing that everyone we meet is made in the image of God.

Next, we can show respect for life from conception to natural death. One way is that we can get involved with the pro-life movement through the Sisters of Life here in New York. They have plenty of opportunities for us to help women in crisis pregnancies. There are those women who turn to abortion because they feel they are caught in a situation where they have no other alternative. But the Sisters of Life are there to help the mothers make a choice for life, and to help them in that most difficult time in their lives. If we can’t volunteer, we can show financial support to the Sisters of Life who are carrying out this great work. There’s also an opportunity of praying outside of an abortion clinic with those who are there to pray for the mothers entering these clinics, ready to do something they will regret for the rest of their lives. By being present and praying for the mothers and for their children, you can save a life.

In January of each year there’s the Right to Life March in Washington, D.C. If you’re able, try to join this march to help send the message out that the killing of an innocent baby in its mother’s womb is wrong and needs to come to an end.

Being pro-life is also loving those who are at the end of their lives living alone in nursing homes, that have no one to visit them. These are lonely people who spent their lives taking care of their families, but find themselves living alone, being ignored by family and friends. By arranging to visit those in nursing homes that have no one to visit them is being pro-life. This way, we can respect the life of those who are near the end of their lives here in this world. As Mary visited her elderly cousin, Elizabeth, in her time of need, we should also visit those who are near the end of their lives to comfort and love them as well.

Get involved in whatever way you can, whether it’s through the pro-life movement or by spending time with a lonely elderly person in a nursing home. Then you can say, like Mary, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.”

What About the Other 9?

Today we have a guest blogger, Arlene Muller. Arlene B. Muller, OSF, is a Professed Secular Franciscan, lector & Extraordinary Minister at St. Pancras Church, Member of St. Margaret's Choir, and Itinerant Speech/language Therapist.

The scripture readings for today's blog can be found at http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/101319.cfm

Whenever I read or listen to today's Gospel account of JESUS healing the 10 lepers, only one returning to thank Him, & JESUS' reaction, I wonder about the other 9 lepers.

When the 10 lepers stood apart from JESUS (since the laws concerning leprosy demanded distance) & begged for mercy, JESUS clearly instructed them to go & show themselves to the priest. The Jewish Law, especially the detailed prescriptions regarding leprosy outlined in the Book of Leviticus, required lepers who were healed to be declared healed by the priest before they were allowed to return to their families & the rest of society & to be no longer considered social outcasts. All 10 lepers began their journey to the priest out of obedience to JESUS, & making this journey required & demonstrated great faith on their part, because it would not have made sense for them to appear before the priest unless they believed they could show proof of  their having been healed by the time they arrived.

The one leper who returned to thank JESUS was a Samaritan. The Samaritans were commonly thought of as being a group of people who were a mixture of Jew & Gentile due to intermarriage, & so they were not as strictly attached to the Jewish Law. They worshipped God on their mountain instead of going to Jerusalem (see the account of JESUS' dialogue with the Samaritan Woman at the Well in John 4), & their laws & customs were different. The Jewish people were very strict in their observance of the Law of Moses & I would imagine that obedience was greatly emphasized in their upbringing. Centuries after the Babylonian exile the Jewish people were very aware of the consequences they had experienced as a people because of their disobedience to God's Law.

The difference between the Samaritan view of the Jewish Law & the Jewish view of the Jewish Law would probably have made it much easier for the Samaritan to be less fastidious about arriving promptly where the priest was located & thus it would probably have been easier for him to pause in his journey & to return to JESUS to thank Him.

I suppose many people reading this blog are "cradle Catholics" like myself, educated in the Catholic school system. My education in Catholic schools spanned the pre-Vatican II, mid-Vatican II & post Vatican II eras. My parents, aunts, uncles, and at least my maternal grandmother were all educated in the Catholic school system prior to Vatican II. Learning the value of obedience was an essential part of our formation, and I remember reading about the virtue of "right away obedience". When instructed to go on an errand we were encouraged to complete our errand and come back without unnecessary stops or delays along the way. In this way I can relate to the sense of urgency that faithful Jewish lepers might have felt in seeking to obey JESUS & the Jewish Law promptly and completely. I imagine that in their place I would have wanted to complete the assigned task before returning to seek out JESUS to thank Him.

Several years ago while on retreat I was taught what I considered a new insight into the intentions of the priest and the Levite who passed by the injured victim in the Parable of the Good Samaritan. If the victim had actually been dead instead of being half dead (which was hard to discern from their view on the road) and they had touched a dead body, they would have been made ritually unclean & unable to perform their service at the temple for a specified period of time. So it was not necessarily simply a lack of compassion on their part that caused them to fail to perform an act of charity by caring for the injured victim, but their strict observance of the Jewish Law & their vocation, which was not an issue for the Good Samaritan (although the Samaritan had to transcend cultural prejudice in order to treat the Jewish victim with compassion).

The question that haunts me whenever I hear or read the account of the 10 lepers is whether the other 9 lepers were merely very focused on obedience--if, like young Frederic in the Gilbert & Sullivan opera THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE they were "slaves of duty"--or whether they were, in fact, carelessly ungrateful. Would they have returned to seek out JESUS to thank Him IMMEDIATELY AFTER they had fulfilled their assignment of showing themselves to the priest & been declared cured? Or would they have merely returned to their lives, complacent, comfortable, forgetful & ungrateful? JESUS, since He is God, was and is able to read the hearts of every human being, so certainly He could read the hearts of all 10 lepers and understand their intentions. Was his annoyance at the return of only 1 leper merely His human reaction of hurt human feelings at a seeming lack of appreciation, especially on the part of his fellow Jews? Or did He, as God, recognize a lack of gratitude in the hearts of those who failed to return? Only God can read heart so only JESUS could tell us if the fault of the other 9 lepers was neglecting the prompt expression of gratitude due to over-conscientiousness or if they were, in fact, insufficiently grateful.

Obedience is still essential to us in our day, although as Christians we are not bound by most of the Jewish Law. Even in the Gospel of John JESUS equates love for Him with keeping His commandments. As Catholics we are supposed to abide by the commandments of God & His Church. From the account of the healing of the 10 lepers & the Parable of the Good Samaritan I would suggest that obedience is still vital to us today but there are two necessities of the Law of Love (the two greatest commandments) that should modify strict obedience: (1) expressing thanksgiving to God (like the Samaritan leper), and (2) acts of charity toward people in need (like the Good Samaritan).

Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you!

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/091519.cfm

‘Father,I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ Luke 15:18-19

This week for the Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time we have the familiar parable of the Prodigal Son, found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 15. In this parable, I think we all can relate to the Prodigal Son. After all, who doesn’t want a forgiving father ready and willing to forgive us, even when we mess up bad. We all throughout our lives have made poor decisions or committed sins that we feel are unforgiveable. Yet, as Jesus points out, God is all forgiving and is always looking for us to turn back to Him with love and repentance. Thankfully, no matter how many times we sin, if we turn to God with true repentance in our hearts, God will forgive us in the Sacrament of Confession. We just need to be sincere in our sorrow and God will forgive us.

But what about the other son, the one who was upset at the father forgiving the Prodigal Son. I like to call him the “Judgmental Son.” He seems to be doing everything right. He’s always there to do what the father expects him to do. He’s obedient in every way and does what is expected of him by the father. Yet there is one thing that is problematic: he’s quick to judge his sinful brother and feels as if he’s being cheated by the father because the father forgave the Prodigal Son. The Judgmental Son feels the Prodigal Son doesn’t deserve to be forgiven since he wasn’t around doing what he was supposed to be doing for the father. Yet the father tells him, “My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.” (Luke15:31-32) The father, lovingly and gently, points out to the “Judgmental Son” that we need to be loving and forgiving of those who are anxious to turn their lives back towards doing the right thing.

When we see other people that turn back to God, whether they are family members or acquaintances that may have led lives that are not very good, are we happy that they return to God? Or are we upset & jealous with God because they, too, are being forgiven by Him?

Let us be grateful to God for being forgiving of us and our sinfulness, and be joyful when others, too, are forgiven by God.

Following Jesus

The Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/090819.cfm
This past Sunday, September 8th, 2019, was Holy Name Sunday, where the members of the Holy Name Society gathers to reflect on the gospel, and their relationship with God. Following is a reflection that I submitted to the monthly newsletter.

“…anyone of you whodoes not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:33)

On this Holy Name Sunday, September 8^th, we are challenged by our Lord to focus on the importance of focusing on being true and faithful followers of Him. In the gospel for the Twenty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time (September 8^th) our Lord is telling us of the sacrifices of being His followers. It’s from Luke, chapter 14, verses 14 to 33.

In this gospel we hear Our Lord say things like “If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple…” or “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.”

Does Jesus really expect us to hate our family? I don’t think so. I believe he’s using an extreme example to get us to understand that no matter how important our families may be to us, there should be nothing more important than loving and serving the Lord God. In other words, we are not to let our love for our families get in the way of our relationship of loving God and serving the Lord.

Will this cause problems for us? That’s where the “cross” comes in. In our attempt in keeping God as our central focus in our lives, we will have issues and problems with our family and friends. These will be our crosses.

Finally, he says, “…anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.” Is Jesus asking us to sell everything we have and renounce it? No! He’s just indicating that the possessions we do have (our homes, our cars, our bank accounts, etc.) are tools in serving Him, but are not be more important than loving God! Don’t let your money and possessions become “golden idols” in your life! Love of God and serving Him is to be the most important thing in your life.

He must increase; I must decrease

 

"He must increase; I must decrease." (John 3:30)

Today we have a guest blogger from Arlene B. Muller. Arlene B. Muller, OSF, is a Professed Secular Franciscan, lector & Extraordinary Minister at St. Pancras Church, Member of St. Margaret's Choir, and Itinerant Speech/language Therapist.

Today, August 29, the Church commemorates the martyrdom of St. John the Baptist. John the Baptist, who courageously reprimanded King Herod for Herod's taking his brother's wife, incurred the queen's wrath, and the queen took advantage of Herod's drunkenness, lust, and desire for the respect of his guests to get her daughter to be the persuasive force behind Herod's reluctant acquiescence to behead the courageous martyr who pierced his conscience.

On the surface it would appear that Christians living in middle class America in the 21st century would have nothing in common with the ascetic prophet and martyr John the Baptist. Certainly his lifestyle is in sharp contrast with mine. He lived outdoors in the desert, while I live in a comfortable apartment. He ate locusts and wild honey, neither of which appeal to me at all, while I enjoy meals at diners and restaurants and nonfat green tea lattes. His clothing was rough and minimalist, providing little else but modesty and protection from the elements, while I shop in catalogs for reasonably priced, modest, comfortable & color-coordinated clothing.

But in reading in Saint of the Day their description of John the Baptist's efforts to fulfill his calling--the calling the LORD gave him to point others not to himself but to the LORD JESUS CHRIST--I felt the same tug at my heart that I have felt in praying the words of the CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH: "You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the LORD to prepare His way, to give His people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. ." (See Luke 1:68-79).

Although our lifestyles and the circumstances of our lives may be in sharp contrast to those of the ascetic prophet and martyr John the Baptist, there is a similarity in our calling. As Christians filled with the Holy Spirit we are all called to be witnesses for the LORD JESUS CHRIST in whatever environment, occupation, vocation and station in life to which the LORD has brought us. Although we don't go before the LORD historically, as St. John did, we should always be ready to "prepare His way" and to be one of the people the LORD uses to draw others to Himself in our homes, workplaces, schools, marketplaces and even public transportation by the way we live our lives, 

relate to others and in our words, both indirectly and sometimes directly. In the words attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, we are called to "Preach the Gospel always and, when necessary, use words".

The challenge for us Christians in middle class America in the 21st century that St. John the Baptist presents to us, perhaps even more than in any other time in history, is not necessarily to adopt his lifestyle of radical asceticism (although a few may share that calling) but, at least for me (a woman who likes affirmation, approval and positive attention) to try to emulate his selfless humility and to be reminded and to acknowledge that WE are NOT the center of the universe but our TRIUNE GOD IS, ESPECIALLY IN THE PERSON OF JESUS CHRIST.  As we strive to do good and to try to live out God's will and calling on our lives, let us remember that what we do is NOT for the purpose of pointing to ourselves, but to be like St. John the Baptist in pointing to JESUS CHRIST, our LORD and SAVIOR. May we always be inspired and challenged by the confession of St. John the Baptist: "He must increase; I must decrease." (John 3:30).

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!

 

Every year on August 15^th the Church commemorates the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven. In the Eastern Church this feast is called the Dormition (falling asleep) of Theotokos (Mother of God).

The Catholic Church teaches as dogma that the Virgin Mary “having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.” This was declared as dogma by Pope Pius XII on November 1^st, 1950. Since it was declared as dogma, we, as Catholics, are required to believe this as a truth revealed by God.

As Lay Carmelites we turn to Mary as our mother and sister. We are called to live out our lives in imitation of how she lived out her life. She was always open to doing the Holy Will of God.
In the Gospel of St. Luke, we hear of the angel Gabriel approaching Mary and telling her that she will be the Mother of the Messiah. Since she was not yet married, and as yet had not any marital relations, she was confused as to how this will happen. Gabriel’s response was, “Behold, you will conceive inyour womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great andwill be called Son of the Most High” (Luke 1:31-32). Her response, after being explained that the Holy Spirit will descend upon her, was her fiat (yes): “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38) Mary was open to God’s will, even if this would mean problems or difficulties in her life. She fully accepted God’s Will, with all it’s challenges in following it.

Then, after learning that her elderly cousin, Elizabeth, was pregnant with John the Baptist, she went to give her help and support to Elizabeth. Once Elizabeth said, “…how does this happen to me,that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:43), Mary responded with the beautiful Magnificat, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spiritrejoices in God my savior…” (Luke 1:46-47)

Mary’s whole life was that of being open to the will of God through contemplation, and then taking what she heard brought it to others. We can learn from Our Lady. Through praying and mediating daily on the Liturgy of the Hours, and by attending Mass Sunday (and if possible daily), we can bring what we hear through scripture to those in our lives.

Let us daily pray, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.”

Forgive Us Our Sins

The Scripture readings for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time can be found at http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/072819.cfm
In the gospel reading for today we hear Our Lord teach the disciples how to pray, using the words of the Lord's prayer, or, otherwise known as the "Our Father."

The disciples see the close relationship Jesus has with his Father, and the peace that He has once He's finished praying to the Father. They want that peace which can only come through union with God the Father.

The beautiful words of the Our Father teach us how to live our lives in union with God and with one another. First, the prayer starts off by recognizing that God is Holy: "Father, hallowed be your name..." Luke 11:2 By saying this, we acknowledge that God is Holy. Then it goes on to pray about relationship with others: "...forgive us our sins for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us..." Luke 11:4 This is the challenge that Our Lord is giving us: to not only love and serve God, but to be able to be forgiving to others as we expect God to be forgiving to us. This is really hard to follow and wrap our minds around.

We all have people in our lives that have hurt us. Whether it's a spouse, parents, brothers or sisters, co-workers, friends, we all have people that have hurt us. There are people that we are alienated from as a result of the hurt or wrong that they did to us. These are people that we find very difficult to forgive. But the Lord is expecting us to forgive them as we expect to be forgiven for the things we may have done.

On a practical level, though, I think that God realizes our human nature. He does expect us to forgive, but he also doesn't expect us to remain in relationships that will continually hurt us or ruin our peace of mind and tranquility. So it's okay to keep your distance from those that have hurt you in the past. But we have to let go of the hurt and forgive them and pray for them. It's okay to forgive and pray for those people that hurt you FROM A DISTANCE. To me, this is avoiding the "near occasion of sin." If being near someone that upsets me causes me to sin and to wish harm on them, it's best to keep your distance, and to pray for them and to forgive them for the hurt they have caused you.

Let us pray to God that we may have Him always at the center of all we do, and to be able to forgive others as He is forgiving to us.

Praise be Jesus Christ now and forever.