Sower & the Seed

Reflection on the Readings for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Scripture texts can be found at http://usccb.org/bible/readings/071314.cfm

In this sower and seed parable, do we always have to be the dirt? Why do we always have to be the dirt? It's depressing. Who really thinks they've yielded a hundredfold of awesome religious results? My money is on nobody-that would look like pride. Probably the same with sixtyfold. Most of us think we'll be lucky to make thirtyfold because we figure we're still limping along at eight or ten, maybe twelve tops.

There are many ways of looking at and understanding parables.

First, let's look at the sower. It's not only bishops, priests , sisters, brothers, and missionaries that sow the seed of the word of God.

Parents, grandparents, and people in charge of a child, anytime they speak about the love of God, whether formal deliberate instruction, or just by how we love and treat them, are sowing the seeds of the kingdom of God.

For many of us, we would do well to speak of God and the events of salvation more often than we do. It can be at work, with family, with friends, or in social settings. We often hold back for fear of sounding "preachy" or of sounding like a phoney. Most people that we know, know our faults. But if you preach from the heart and show a true relationship with God, you can overcome those faults and show those in your life that relationship with God is important. You are planting the seed.

When we sow the seed of faith in God, don't worry about results. Our responsibility as Christians is to sow the seed of faith with those in our life. The results of that sowing is up to God. As Mother Theresa of Calcutta once said, "God does not call us to be successful; he calls us to be faithful." We may or may not see results. Some seeds may remain dormant for years before they reach maturity and growth. It's between those hearing the word and with God.

This parable talks about seeds, as well. We can relate to the seed, too. Like the seed, we "die" to ourselves in order to give life to others. Parents, in may ways, give up sleep, time, and personal pleasures to give their children good things and save for the future. Teachers in school in many ways, too, "die", when they give their "all" for the children they are charged with to give education.

When you respond to the word of God by being the "sower" and the "seed", you, like the "dirt" can produce "a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold." (Matthew 13:8)

Let us ask Jesus this day to enrich our understanding and increase our fervor. Let Jesus plant the seed in our hearts so we can produce manifold fruits in our live.

My Lord and my God!

Reflections on the Feast of St. Thomas. Scripture readings can be found at http://usccb.org/bible/readings/070314.cfm

Thomas is the kind of guy that we today would call a "show me" type of guy. He needed to see with his own eyes that the Lord has indeed risen from the dead. He wasn't content with relying on the word of the other disciples. Then what a gift Thomas receives from our Lord. Not only does he see the Risen Lord, he gets to touch Him.

Jesus says, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” (John 20:27). What does Thomas then say? “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28). Our Lord goes on to speak about you and I. Jesus then says, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” (John 20:29) What a gift the Lord has given to us. He is calling us blessed because of our faith in Him. And we have Thomas to thank for it.

After the Ascension of Jesus into heaven, Thomas goes on to become one of the great apostolic missionaries, going to India to bring the faith of Jesus to the people there. Thomas experienced Jesus first hand and was able to bring that faith to others.

You and I experience the Risen Jesus every time we go to Mass. When the priest says the words, "This is my body" and "This is my blood" the elements of bread and wine BECOME the Body & Blood of Jesus. We then are able to TOUCH Jesus by receiving Holy Communion.

We are then to go from the church to bring the Good News that Jesus has died, risen and ascended for all people. One of the choices the priest or deacon can choose from for the dismissal at mass is "Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord." We do this by being charitable and loving towards all those we meet during the course of our day or week. We are to be "Christ" to other people! The great St. Francis once said, "Go and proclaim the Gospel. When necessary, use words."

So, go and bring the good news that Jesus is alive and part of your life to other. Go and proclaim the gospel!

Corpus Christi Monastery

Since late Friday afternoon I have been on a private retreat at Corpus Christi Monastery in the Hunts Point section of the Bronx, NY. I do this private retreat every year at around the same time and look forward to being alone with God and praying with these women of prayer.

I join them in their rounds of the Liturgy of the Hours, Mass and Rosary. The rest of the time I spend by myself, reading scripture, and praying for those in my life that need prayer. I also pray for myself in order to become a better Christian and better deacon in order to serve the Lord more faithfully.

Today the church commemorates the memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Our lady's whole life was that of being totally opened to the will of God in her life and the service of others. In the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38), we hear the angel Gabriel announce to Mary that she will be the mother of the Messiah. At first Mary was puzzled, but then, after Gabriel explains, Mary says, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." (Luke 1:38).

Then, after hearing that her elderly cousin, Elizabeth, is pregnant (with John the Baptist), Mary "set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah" (Luke 1:39) in order to be with Elizabeth in her time of need.

In the gospel for today's feast, we hear the familiar passage of the Child Jesus being missing, only to be found three days later talking to the teachers at the temple. Though Mary chastised Jesus for giving them this anxiety, she still pondered on what happened, and "kept all these things in her heart." (Luke 2:51).

The trust that Mary had in God at all times in her life, even during that anxious time of not knowing where Jesus was, is an example of how we are to live out our lives. We are to live in complete trust in God, even during those times in our lives when we are anxious or troubled about what may be happening in our lives.

Like Mary, we are to have Jesus at the center of our lives and to trust in God completely, in good times and even in those times when we are anxious about the problems we are facing. Then we will have the peace of God in us, knowing that Our Lord and His Mother are with us to help us through anything and everything.

For more information about Corpus Christi Monastery go to http://www.opbronx.org/. I'm sure also they would love to receive a financial gift from you, as well, for their ministry of prayer.

Receive the Gospel of Christ!

It was four years ago today at the 9:00 Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral that 12 of my classmates and I, were ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacon. After the ordination, Cardinal Timothy Dolan handed us the Book of the Gospels and said to each of us, "Receive the Gospel of Christ,whose herald you have become. Believe what you read, teach what you believe,and practice what you teach."

Over the four years since my ordination, I have performed wakes, baptisms, visited those in Morningside Nursing Home, assisted at numerous Masses. Through all the work that I have done since being ordained, I still have this joy of doing God's will as a deacon.

One of the residents at Morningside Nursing Home always reminds me of how I am to be grateful in what I do for God and where I am at in relationship with Him. Whenever I see Rosalyn and ask how she is, she responds, always with faith and with that gleam in her eyes, "As God would have me!"

So, as I carry out God's will for me, in whatever I do, I have to recall that it is where God would have me!

This Saturday, June 21st, at St. Patrick's Cathedral 11 more men will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacon to serve Christ in His Church. Pray for these men as they respond to Christ's Call with a YES!

Praise be Jesus Christ, now and forever!

Prayer

Last Sunday, June 1st, I had the honor of doing a Holy Hour at the Carmelite Monastery in Flemington, NJ. Their website can be found at http://www.flemingtoncarmel.org/

It was the 7th Sunday after Easter and the Gospel for that day was from John, chapter 17. Following is the Homily I gave on it for the Sisters at Carmel. Feel free to comment on it. Also, feel free to support the sisters and their community.

Homily on John 17:1-11a

“I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me.”

This portion of the gospel of St. John, chapter 17, has come to be known as the High priestly prayer. It’s all about relationship. Relationship between Jesus and His Father, and Jesus and His disciples. It sums up all that Jesus came to do and the intimate relationship between Him and the Father that allowed him to complete his work.
This gospel is ideal for this time of year when there are many men being ordained to priestly ministry. They are ordained not for themselves, but for the Church, not just to deepen their own spiritual life but to go into the world as representatives and evangelist of the Lord and His Gospel. They are ordained not for their own salvation but for the salvation of others. They are called to be in the world though not of the world. This is also true for all Christians.

In this prayer Jesus prays for the disciples and the community of faith. In this prayer he prays to the Father to give strength and protection to his faithful believers, as Jesus prepares to return to God the Father.

This prayer of Jesus is not only for those first followers of Jesus, but for us also. It teaches us the value of prayer being central in all we do.

This priestly prayer of Jesus is especially suitable for us here in Carmel. Prayer is central for the Carmelite way of life as it was to the life of Jesus. In the Carmelite rule of St. Albert, we read, “Each one of you is to stay in his own cell or nearby, pondering the Lord's law day and night and keeping watch at his prayers unless attending to some other duty.” Further, St. Theresa of Jesus tells us, “prayer in my opinion is nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with Him who we know loves us." And St. Therese of Lisieux says, “For me prayer is a surge of the heart, it is a simple look towards heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy.”

Living out your vocation as Carmelites and followers of Christ, you will have both trials and joys, but God has been revealed to you through Jesus Christ. You belong to God. As Jesus tells us in today’s gospel, “Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.”

Through the intercession of his Blessed Mother, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, you have come to know the one true God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. As a result, you have eternal life. You are in relationship with God, as well as in community and relationship with each other. You are called to live out your Christian vocation here in Carmel by being Christ to one another, and to those who you pray for.

Choice:

This meditation is on the readings from the First Sunday of Lent and can be found at http://usccb.org/bible/readings/030914.cfm.

We hear in our first reading from Genesis about two trees in the middle of the garden: the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Only one was forbidden. That is the one Eve, then Adam, chose. We know the rest of the story.

What is it about us humans? Is it because we don't like being told what to do? If someone says, "You can't," that is when we are tempted to say, "Oh yeah? Watch me." Whether it's a two-year old just learning to say, "No," a teenager challenging a curfew, or someone ignoring the speed limit. It doesn't matter: Rebellion, which usually translates into pride! It just seems to be who we are as humans! It was through the rebellion of our original parents that we get this rebellion from. It's part of that original sin that we are all aware of: we, like Adam and Eve, want to be like God.

It is because of this self-centeredness that the Church, during this time of Lent,spends a lot of time talking about sin, and encouraging us to turn away from it. On Ash Wednesday, when you received your ashes, you probably heard one of two choices spoken by the priest or deacon: "Repent and believe in the Gospel" or "Remember, you are dust, and to dust you will return." These two phrases remind us that we are all sinners, due to the original sin of our parents, Adam and Eve.

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen once said of sinners, "The worst sinners are nice people who, by denying sin, make the cure of sin impossible. Sin is very serious, but it is more serious to deny sin." It is during Lent that we are to find that cure for sin!

In our Gospel of Matthew we also hear of temptation but with a far better ending than that of our story in Genesis. Jesus went into the wilderness of Judea and there He was also tempted. But here, instead, we have victory over the temptations. It was three times that Satan tempted Jesus in the desert, and three times Jesus won. The temptations that Jesus faced are no different than the temptations that we all face.

In the first temptation, Satan knows Jesus is hungry, and also knows the power that Jesus has. So he tempts Jesus into turning stones to bread. Tie this in with fasting during Lent. Why should we fast and give up things during Lent? In our society, so driven by consumerism, we are all tempted to satisfy our human needs with food and drink, plus all the other luxuries that you see advertised on TV. Jesus teaches that, "We do not live by bread alone." There is more to us than what we eat, wear, or drive. There is something down deep within us that needs to be satisfied, a place only God can fill. To have God fill that center of our lives, the Church encourages us to fast and abstinence. Giving something up for Lent is not about self-punishment but about freedom that liberates the soul and makes space for God.

In the second temptation, Jesus is tempted to put God to the test by jumping from the Temple. How often do we turn to God in prayer to try to compel him to do something for us. Often we are looking for quick answers to our prayers and quick fixes to our problems. Instead, prayer is a time to be with God in repentance and conversion of life. Jesus says, "You shall not tempt the Lord your God." We are to place our cares in God's hands and trust that He will always be there for us.

The third temptation is to seek the kingdoms of the world in the belief that fulfillment comes with power and control. Jesus teaches us a different way, "to do homage to the Lord alone." Fulfillment comes from following the Lord and in giving something of ourselves to others. We are serving God when we are helping others.

During this season of Lent, take the time to be with the Lord in true repentance. Read scripture daily, and if it's been a while, make use of the Sacrament of Confession. Then we will come to know the power of Jesus Christ in our life if we are generous in our fasting, prayer and alms giving.

Be All You Can Be

Scripture Readings for Ash Wednesday can be found at http://usccb.org/bible/readings/030514.cfm

A number of years ago there was an ad campaign for the US Army that went, "Be All You Can Be!" I was thinking of that today and how it can be applied to our Catholic/Christian faith and this time of prayer, fasting and penance. God, through the Church, is calling us into relationship with him during this time of Lent. We are normally self-centered, and selfish. We think only of ourselves, rather than putting God in the center of our lives, and caring for those God has placed in our lives.

St. Paul reminds us that, "... we are ambassadors for Christ..." (2 Corinthians 5:20). An ambassador represents the country or person to others. When people see an ambassador, they see the country or person they represent. Can people see Christ when they see us? We are to be like Christ in all who we are. We are to "be all we can be!" We are to be Christ-centered in our behavior towards all those we meet.

In our gospel from St. Matthew, our Lord is reminding us to make sure that we are doing righteous deeds and fasting for the right reasons! We are not doing it for recognition from other people, but rather for love of God and love of those around us. Jesus is calling us to have God in the center of all our actions. This coincides with what the prophet Joel, in our first reading, tells us, "Rend your hearts, not your garments,and return to the LORD, your God..." Joel 2:13. This means that we are to put aside our sinful ways that take us from God. We are to turn away from gossip, slandering, lustful behavior. We are to put aside all those things that take us away from God, and turn to God with repentance and love. We are to "be all we can be" for God.