Thanksgiving

For the scripture readings for today's reflection, go to: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/112317-thanksgiving.cfm

What is thanksgiving? I think we often look at thanksgiving backwards. We think of thanksgiving as thanking God for something that has happened to us already. I believe the real purpose of giving thanks, though, is opening the door to even greater blessing. Thanksgiving becomes a window through which God's love shines.

Looking at the 10 lepers we have in today's gospel, what do we have? We have 10 men with a disease that has caused them to be outcasts in society. Because of their disease they weren’t allowed to be part of society. They were rejected and looked down upon. Leprosy was a disease for which there was no cure. In fact, leprosy was a death sentence carried out a little bit at a time—an arm now, a leg or ear later. Because the disease was thought to be highly contagious, lepers were driven out of town where they couldn't associate with anybody. These men were hopeless and helpless and alone, but they formed a fellowship among themselves. People feared catching the disease they carried. It is because of their disease that they stood at a distance from Jesus to speak with him.

Then they start hearing stories of this Jesus and all the miraculous healings he has been doing. They start hoping that they too will be healed by this Jesus of Nazareth. Their hopes began to rise. They reached the point of believing, so they began to dream. In spite of a hopeless disease, they began to feel there was a chance to live. Through fellowship, these ten lepers had the courage to keep going. Then they met Jesus and said to him, "Master, have mercy upon us." Everybody would have told them they were going to die, that it was useless to ask for help. If they had believed that, they would have died. But they came to our Lord, taking Jesus at his word that "All things are possible to him who believes."

Jesus saw a way to test their faith. He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." They could have looked at each other and said, "Well, nothing's happened to us. We're just the same as we were." Instead, they did what he said; they obeyed him. As they went, the blessing came—they were cleansed. What a tremendous experience!

The one that returned praising God shows what true gratitude and thanksgiving is all about. The other nine never returned to Jesus to thank him. They may have very well went on to the priests as Jesus requested to show that they were healed. But they were quick to forget the one who was responsible for their healing.

The one that returned was able to enter into a faith in Jesus as God. He was able to show that gratitude and thanksgiving to Jesus for the good that had happened to him. He was able to see the love of God in the healing that Jesus provided him.

We are called, like the Leper that was healed, to turn to Jesus in gratitude, trust and faith, not only in the good things we may have already received from the Hand of God, but we are to turn to Jesus in gratitude and faith for the good things that will happen to us. Faith is central in our relationship with Jesus. We are to trust that he is present in all our situations. We are to be truly grateful to him in all he does for us.

Each time we are at Mass, as we approach Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, we are invited to say, “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!” Then, as we leave church, we can rest assured that Jesus is saying to us, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.”

All Souls Day

All Souls’ Day

November is the month of the Holy Souls, and on November 2^nd, we commemorate All Souls’ Day. In the website http://www.catholic.org/saints/allsouls/ we read, “All Souls Day is a holy day set aside for honoring the dead. The day is primarily celebrated in the Catholic Church, but it is also celebrated in the Eastern Orthodox Church and a few other denominations of Christianity. The Anglican church is the largest protestant church to celebrate the holy day. Most protestant denominations do not recognize the holiday and disagree with the theology behind it.

According to Catholic belief, the soul of a person who dies can go to one of three places. The first is heaven, where a person who dies in a state of perfect grace and communion with God goes. The second is hell, where those who die in a state of mortal sin are naturally condemned by their choice. The intermediate option is purgatory, which is thought to be where most people, free of mortal sin, but still in a state of lesser (venial) sin, must go.”

So, during the month of November, and in particular on November 2^nd, we pray for those in our family that are in purgatory waiting to finally see the full glory of God in heaven. This website goes on to tell us: “Purgatory is necessary so that souls can be cleansed and perfected before they enter into heaven. There is scriptural basis for this belief. The primary reference is in 2 Maccabees, 12:26 and 12:32. ‘Turning to supplication, they prayed that the sinful deed might be fully blotted out... Thus made atonement for the dead that they might be free from sin.’”

One of the greatest ways to pray for our beloved dead relatives is by having masses said for them at our parishes. In years past I would go with my list of family members that have gone before me and have masses said for them. The mass is the highest form of Catholic worship, and can do the most good for the souls in purgatory. Further, when praying your rosary, pray for those in your family that have since passed on to their rest. I like to include those people (in addition to my parents and grandparents) that I haven’t thought of in years. They may very well still be in purgatory and are in need of that extra “push”, that extra prayer, to get them into heaven.

So pray for your dead, have masses said for them, say rosaries for them. Then when they make it to heaven, they will be praying for you.

Praise be Jesus Christ, now and forever,
Deacon Tom Tortorella

Blessed Francis Palau Y Quer

Today, November 7th, on the Carmelite calendar is the feast of Blessed Francis Paulau y Quer. Born in Ayona, Lerida, on December 29th, 1811, Blessed Francis Palau y Quer entered the Carmelite Order in 1832 and was ordained priest in 1836. Civil turmoil forced him to live in exile and outside his community. On his return to Spain in 1851, he founded his "School of Virtue" - which was a model of catechetical teaching - at Barcelona. The school was suppressed and he was unjustly exiled to Ibiza (1854-1860) where he lived at El Vedra in solitude and experienced mystically the vicissitudes of the Church. While in the Balearic Islands he founded the Congregations of Carmelite Brothers and Carmelite Sisters (1860-1861). He preached popular missions and spread love of Our Lady wherever he went. He died at Tarragona on March 20th, 1872, and was beatified by Pope John Paul II on April 24th, 1980.

Central in Bl. Francis Palau y Quer's teachings is that prayer is to be the center of all we do. He writes, "God in His providence has ordained not to cure our ills or grant us grace without the intervention of prayer." In our service to one another we are to first turn to God in prayer. He goes on to say, "He (God) wishes us to help in saving each other by means of our prayer." We may have friends or family that are in need of our help or are struggling with issues or problems. One way to start helping them is praying for their intentions. God will respond according to His Holy Will.

Blessed Francis pointed out the importance of prayer in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary. "...it was God's good pleasure that his coming  should be preceded by the prayers of the singular Virgin who by the beauty of her virtues drew into her womb the uncreated Word of God. The Redeemer came, and by constant prayer he reconciled the world to the Father." So prayer is central in our salvation.

In speaking on the Apostles being sent to preach to all nations, Blessed Francis says, "... the result of their preaching came from prayer more than from their words." Blessed Francis hconcludes by saying, "Since God does not distribute graces to men except through prayer, because he wishes us to recognize him as the source from which all good flow; in like manner, he does not wish to save us from danger, or cure our wounds, or console us in affliction, except by means of this same exercise of prayer."

So let us follow the example of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the apostles and Bl. Francis by praying for those in our families that are in most need of our prayers.